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Abstract
The grey mullets (Family: Mugilidae) have been described as plankton feeders, herbivores, omnivores, slime feeders, foul feeders, bottom feeders, etc. In general, grey mullets are known to be benthic feeders. During a comprehensive trophic ecological study of fish assemblages in brush-parks in the Negombo estuary, Sri Lanka, carried out from 2014 to 2016, a food item that was not found in the aquatic environment, such as zooplankton, phytoplankton, macrophyte or detritus, was observed in the gut contents of mugilids. In this communication, the authors report that the frequency of occurrence of these peculiar items in the gut contents were shedded gill epithelia. Even though shedded gill epithelia were not considered as a food item, they were the most common item in the stomach contents contributing to 49.9% of the mean volume of stomach contents.
Highlights
The mullets (Family: Mugilidae) are widely distributed in the coastal waters, estuaries and even in freshwater in the tropical and subtropical regions of the world (Wijeyaratne and Costa 1986; Koutrakis et al 1994; Blay 1995)
Studies on the food and feeding habits of grey mullets were investigated by several authors in different parts of the world (Pillay 1953; Luther 1962; Thompson 1966; Berdugo and Kimor 1974; Kurian 1975; Wijeyaratne and Costa 1986, 1987a, 1987b, 1990; Rao and Babu 2013)
Luther (1964) reported the presence of a similar structure among the food items of Liza macrolepis and Mugil cephalus from the Palk Bay, Mandapam, India, which was postulated as shedded gill rakers and considered shedding of gill rakers as a special characteristics of grey mullets
Summary
The mullets (Family: Mugilidae) are widely distributed in the coastal waters, estuaries and even in freshwater in the tropical and subtropical regions of the world (Wijeyaratne and Costa 1986; Koutrakis et al 1994; Blay 1995). Many biological aspects of mullets including food and feeding habits, growth, migration pattern, spawning and reproduction have been studied (Odum 1968; Marais and Erasmus 1977; De Silva and Silva 1979a; Wijeyaratne and Costa 1986; Blay 1995; Fatema et al 2013). The mullets have been identified as an important group of fish in the subsistence fisheries in the coastal lagoons of Sri Lanka.
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