Abstract
Abstract Energy acquisition is of fundamental importance to the survival of any organism. Thus, the morphology, or tools, that an organism uses to capture food can be under intense selective pressure. We studied the prey capture mechanics of the central mudminnow (Umbra limi), a benthic-dwelling fish species with a varied diet. A morphology suited for one specific prey type may not be as well suited for another prey type. Thus, we might expect that mudminnow are more successful at capturing one sort of prey over another. Specifically, we sought to determine if there were any changes in prey capture success and underlying prey capture mechanics when faced with highly elusive prey, live feeder fish (guppies), versus a non-elusive invertebrate larvae (midges of the family Chironomidae), commercially known as “blood worms.” Our results indicated that the more elusive prey caused mudminnow to have a slightly slower but a slightly more extreme premaxillary protrusion and expansion events. However, these differe...
Published Version
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