Food Habits of Ictalurus nubulosus in Acid Polluted Water of Northern West Virginia

Abstract

Abstract A qualitative and quantitative investigation of the food habits of the brown bullhead, Ictalurus nebulosus (LeSueur), was conducted between June and September, 1968, in the acid-polluted Monongahela River, West Virginia, and in Doe Pond, a small relatively pollution-free subimpoundment of the Tygart River Reservoir, West Virginia. Oligochaetes were the most important invertebrate food source in the Monongahela River, whereas chironomid larvae were the most important invertebrates consumed at Doe Pond. Also consumed were significant quantities of detritus and algae at Doe Pond, and sewage at outfall-associated sections of the Monongahela River. No qualitative difference in food habits was noted between different size groups of fish in either acid or non-acid situations. The bottom fauna of the Monongahela River were unevenly distributed; the most abundant organisms were oligochaetes, with chironomids ranked second. An Ivlev Electivity Index of -.06 was obtained for oligochaetes, indicating random ...