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Boletín de Investigaciones Marinas y Costeras - INVEMAR
Print version ISSN 0122-9761
Abstract
GONZALEZ-ROJAS, Santiago et al. Feeding habits of bonito Euthynnus alletteratus and albacore Thunnus alalunga (Perciformes, Scombridae) in the Colombian Caribbean. Bol. Invest. Mar. Cost. [online]. 2024, vol.53, n.2, pp.45-66. Epub Aug 24, 2024. ISSN 0122-9761. https://doi.org/10.25268/bimc.invemar.2024.53.2.1316.
The feeding habits of the bonito Euthynnus alletteratus and the albacore Thunnus alalunga were assessed by analyzing the contents of 85 stomachs (50 from bonito and 35 from albacore) collected between March 2018 and April 2019. A qualitative and quantitative analysis of the prey found in the stomach contents was conducted, as well as of the trophic spectrum between species and climatic seasons. Climatic information was obtained through satellite images, analyzing variables such as sea surface temperature, salinity, and winds. In terms of abundance, the most representative prey were the fish Sardinella aurita (42.48 %) and Teleostei remains (27.45 %) for E. alletteratus, and Megalopa larvae (56.89 %) and Teleostei remains (10.26 %) for T. alalunga. The relative importance index indicates that the main prey for E. alletteratus were Teleostei remains (IRI = 1460.65) and Sardinella aurita (IRI = 1179.70), while, for T. alalunga they were megalopa larvae (IRI = 1367.19) and Teleostei remains (IRI = 840.94). These large pelagic predators were classified as generalists, with a low prey diversity in their stomach content. No trophic overlap was observed between the two species.
Keywords : tunas; pelagic fish; diet; Caribbean.