Feeding of a pelagic chaetognath, Sagitta friderici Ritter-Záhony off Ubatuba region (São Paulo, Brazil)

Vega-Pérez, Luz Amelia; Liang, Tsui Hua

doi:10.1590/S0373-55241992000100008

Abstracts

The diet of Sagitta friderici off Ubatuba region, São Paulo State, was studied in March, 1989. Specimens were collected with a closing-net during three days at six hours' intervals (00:00; 06:00; 12:00; 18:00 h), at a fixed station of 38 m depth. The population was composed basically by young stages (O-II). A total of 3175 specimens were examined but only 760 contained preys in their guts. Copepods were the main constituent of food eaten (79.86%). There was a preference for the genera Paracalanus, Oncaea, Corycaeus and for crustacean nauplii. Other zooplanktonic groups such as Annelida, Urochordatha, and Mollusca were also found in the gut. Cannibalistic behavior occurred in 2.66% of the samples. In S. friderici the food was selected by size and was a direct function of the predator size. Younger stages (O-I) selected small prey, whereas older stages (II) preferred larger preys. Specimens collected above the thermocline exhibited higher feeding intensity (FCR) during the night periods.

Feeding; Prédation; Zooplankton; Chaetognatha; Sagitta friderici; Ubatuba; Brazil

Espécimens de Sagitta friderici foram coletados numa estação fixa de 38 m de profundidade, ao largo de Ubatuba, Estado de São Paulo, em março de 1989. Arrastos verticais, acima e abaixo da termoclina, foram feitos com rede de fechamento (50 cm de diâmetro de boca e malha de 0.200 mm) durante três dias consecutivos e em intervalos de seis horas. O estudo de 3175 indivíduos, nos estágios de O-IV, revelou que 2415 apresentaram o trato digestivo vazio e 760 com algum tipo de alimento. Destes últimos, 283 continham material amorfo e os 473 restantes de 1 a 3 presas. Das 488 presas identificadas, 99,74% estavam localizadas na região posterior do trato digestivo e 0,26% na região anterior. A dieta de S. friderici esteve constituída de Crustácea, Annelida, Urochordata, Chaetognatha e Mollusca. Dentre os Crustácea, os Copepoda foram os mais abundantes, predominando os Calanoida e Cyclopoida. O estágio 0 de S. friderici teve preferência pelos náuplios de crustáceos, enquanto que uma maior diversificação do alimento, incluindo a prática do canibalismo, foi observada a partir do estágio I. Não houve diferenças significativas na composição da dieta dos indivíduos coletados nos diferentes períodos do dia. Os espécimens de S. friderici coletados acima da termoclina apresentaram maior porcentagem de tratos digestivos (FCR) contendo alimento.

Alimentação; Predação; Zooplâncton; Chaetognatha; Sagitta friderici; Ubatuba: SP; Brasil

ARTIGOS

Feeding of a pelagic chaetognath, Sagitta friderici Ritter-Záhony off Ubatuba region (São Paulo, Brazil)

Luz Amelia Vega-Pérez; Liang, Tsui Hua

Instituto Oceanográfico da Universidade de São Paulo (Caixa Postal 9075, 01065-970 São Paulo, SP, Brasil)

ABSTRACT

The diet of Sagitta friderici off Ubatuba region, São Paulo State, was studied in March, 1989. Specimens were collected with a closing-net during three days at six hours' intervals (00:00; 06:00; 12:00; 18:00 h), at a fixed station of 38 m depth. The population was composed basically by young stages (O-II). A total of 3175 specimens were examined but only 760 contained preys in their guts. Copepods were the main constituent of food eaten (79.86%). There was a preference for the genera Paracalanus, Oncaea, Corycaeus and for crustacean nauplii. Other zooplanktonic groups such as Annelida, Urochordatha, and Mollusca were also found in the gut. Cannibalistic behavior occurred in 2.66% of the samples. In S. friderici the food was selected by size and was a direct function of the predator size. Younger stages (O-I) selected small prey, whereas older stages (II) preferred larger preys. Specimens collected above the thermocline exhibited higher feeding intensity (FCR) during the night periods.

Descriptors: Feeding, Prédation, Zooplankton, Chaetognatha, Sagitta friderici, Ubatuba, Brazil.

RESUMO

Espécimens de Sagitta friderici foram coletados numa estação fixa de 38 m de profundidade, ao largo de Ubatuba, Estado de São Paulo, em março de 1989. Arrastos verticais, acima e abaixo da termoclina, foram feitos com rede de fechamento (50 cm de diâmetro de boca e malha de 0.200 mm) durante três dias consecutivos e em intervalos de seis horas.

O estudo de 3175 indivíduos, nos estágios de O-IV, revelou que 2415 apresentaram o trato digestivo vazio e 760 com algum tipo de alimento. Destes últimos, 283 continham material amorfo e os 473 restantes de 1 a 3 presas. Das 488 presas identificadas, 99,74% estavam localizadas na região posterior do trato digestivo e 0,26% na região anterior.

A dieta de S. friderici esteve constituída de Crustácea, Annelida, Urochordata, Chaetognatha e Mollusca. Dentre os Crustácea, os Copepoda foram os mais abundantes, predominando os Calanoida e Cyclopoida.

O estágio 0 de S. friderici teve preferência pelos náuplios de crustáceos, enquanto que uma maior diversificação do alimento, incluindo a prática do canibalismo, foi observada a partir do estágio I.

Não houve diferenças significativas na composição da dieta dos indivíduos coletados nos diferentes períodos do dia.

Os espécimens de S. friderici coletados acima da termoclina apresentaram maior porcentagem de tratos digestivos (FCR) contendo alimento.

Descritores: Alimentação, Predação, Zooplâncton, Chaetognatha, Sagitta friderici, Ubatuba: SP, Brasil.

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Acknowledgements

The authors are grateful to the two anonymous referees for their criticism of the manuscript. Financial support for this investigation came from the Comissão Interministerial para os Recursos do Mar (CIRM). The junior author received the scholarship of the Coordenadoria de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Ensino Superior (CAPES) for this study.

(Manuscript received 16 June 1992; revised 23 November 1992; accepted 10 December 1992)

ALMEIDA-PRADO, M. S. 1961. Distribuição dos Chaetognatha no Atlântico Sul Ocidental. Bolm Inst oceanogr., S Paulo, 11(4):15-49.
______ 1968. Distribution and annual occurrence of Chaetognatha off Cananéia and Santos coast (São Paulo, Brazil). Bolm Inst, oceanogr., S Paulo, 17(1):33-55.
ALVARIÑO, A. 1985. Predation in the plankton realm; mainly with reference to fish larvae. Inv. mar. CICIMAR, 2 (nş esp. 1):1-122.
BJÖRNBERG, T. K. S. 1981. Copepoda. In: Boltovskoy, D., ed. Atlas del Atlántico Sudoccidental y métodos de trabajo con el zooplancton marino. Mar del Plata, INIDEP. 936 p.
FEIGENBAUM, D. L. & MARRIS, R. C. 1984. Feeding in the Chaetognatha. In: Barnes, M., ed. Oceanogr. mar. Biol. a. Rev., 22:343-392.
______ & REEVE. M. R. 1977. Prey detection in the Chaetognatha: response to a vibrating probe and experimental determination of attack distance in large aquaria. Limnol. Oceanogr., 22(6):1052-1058.
FURNESTIN, M. L. 1957. Chaetognathes et zooplancton du secteur atlantique marrocain. Revue Trav. Inst. Peches marit, 21(1/2):1-356.
HEYDORN, A. E. F. 1959. The Chaetognatha off the west coast of the Union South Africa. Investí Rept Div, Sea Fish., Repub. S. Afr., 30:1-56.
McLELLAND, J. A. 1980. Notes on the northern Gulf of Mexico occurrence of Sagitta friderici Ritter-Zahony (Chaetognatha). Gulf Res. Repts, 6(4):343-348.
______ 1989. An illustrated key to the Chaetognatha of the northern Gulf of Mexico with notes on their distribution. Gulf. Res. Repts, 8:145-172.
NAGASAWA, S. & MARUMO, R. 1972. Feeding of a pelagic chaetognath Sagitta nagae Alvariño in Suruga Bay, Central Japan. J. oceanogr. Soc. Japan, 28(5):181-186.
______ & ______ 1976. Further studies on the feeding habits of Sagitta nagae Alvariño in Suruga Bay, Central Japan. J. oceanogr. Soc. Japan, 32(5):209-218.
ØRESLAND, V. 1987. Feeding of the chaetognaths Sagitta elegans and S.setosa at different seasons in Gullmarsfjorden, Sweden. Mar. Ecol.-Prog. Ser., 39:69-79.
PEARRE Jr., S. 1973. Vertical migration and feeding in Sagitta elegans Verril. Ecology, 54:300-314.
______ 1976. A seasonal study of the diets of three sympatric chaetognaths. Investigación pesq., Barcelona, 40(1):1-16.
______ 1980. Feeding by Chaetognatha: the relation of prey size to predator size in several species. Mar. Ecol.- Prog. Ser., 3:125-134.
______ 1982. Feeding by Chaetognatha: aspects of inter- and intra-specific predation. Mar. Ecol.-Prog. Ser., 7:33-45.
RAKUSA-SUSZCZEWSKI, S. 1969. The food and feeding habits of Chaetognatha in the seas around the British Isles. Pol. Archs Hydrobiol., 16:213-232.
REEVE, M. R. 1970. The biology of Chaetognatha I. Quantitative aspects of growth and egg production in Sagitta hispida. In: Steele, J. H., ed. Marine food chains. Edinburgh, Oliver & Boyd. p. 168-189.
______ & WALTER, M. A. 1972. Conditions of culture, food-size selection, and the effects of temperature and salinity on growth rate and generation time in Sagitta hispida Conant. J. expl mar. Biol. Ecol., 9:191-200.
STONE, J. H. 1969. The chaetognatha community of the Agulhas Current: its structure and related properties. Ecol. Monogr., 39(4):433-463.
STUART, V. & VERHEYE, H. M. 1991. Diel migration and feeding patterns of the chaetognath, Sagitta friderici, off the west coast of South Africa. J. mar. Res., 49:493-515.
SULLIVAN, B. K. 1980. In situ feeding behaviour of Sagitta elegans and Eukrohnia hamata (Chaetognatha) in relation to the vertical distribution and abundance of prey at Ocean Station "P". Limnol. Oceanogr., 25(2):317-326.
SZYPER, J. P. 1978. Feeding rate of the chaetognath Sagitta enflata in nature. Estuar. coast, mar. Sci., 7:567-575.

Publication Dates

Publication in this collection
15 May 2012
Date of issue
1992

History

Accepted
10 Dec 1992
Reviewed
23 Nov 1992
Received
16 June 1992

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.

[1] ALMEIDA-PRADO, M. S. 1961. Distribuição dos Chaetognatha no Atlântico Sul Ocidental. Bolm Inst oceanogr., S Paulo, 11(4):15-49.

[2] ______ 1968. Distribution and annual occurrence of Chaetognatha off Cananéia and Santos coast (São Paulo, Brazil). Bolm Inst, oceanogr., S Paulo, 17(1):33-55.

[3] ALVARIÑO, A. 1985. Predation in the plankton realm; mainly with reference to fish larvae. Inv. mar. CICIMAR, 2 (nş esp. 1):1-122.

[4] BJÖRNBERG, T. K. S. 1981. Copepoda. In: Boltovskoy, D., ed. Atlas del Atlántico Sudoccidental y métodos de trabajo con el zooplancton marino. Mar del Plata, INIDEP. 936 p.

[5] FEIGENBAUM, D. L. & MARRIS, R. C. 1984. Feeding in the Chaetognatha. In: Barnes, M., ed. Oceanogr. mar. Biol. a. Rev., 22:343-392.

[6] ______ & REEVE. M. R. 1977. Prey detection in the Chaetognatha: response to a vibrating probe and experimental determination of attack distance in large aquaria. Limnol. Oceanogr., 22(6):1052-1058.

[7] FURNESTIN, M. L. 1957. Chaetognathes et zooplancton du secteur atlantique marrocain. Revue Trav. Inst. Peches marit, 21(1/2):1-356.

[8] HEYDORN, A. E. F. 1959. The Chaetognatha off the west coast of the Union South Africa. Investí Rept Div, Sea Fish., Repub. S. Afr., 30:1-56.

[9] McLELLAND, J. A. 1980. Notes on the northern Gulf of Mexico occurrence of Sagitta friderici Ritter-Zahony (Chaetognatha). Gulf Res. Repts, 6(4):343-348.

[10] ______ 1989. An illustrated key to the Chaetognatha of the northern Gulf of Mexico with notes on their distribution. Gulf. Res. Repts, 8:145-172.

[11] NAGASAWA, S. & MARUMO, R. 1972. Feeding of a pelagic chaetognath Sagitta nagae Alvariño in Suruga Bay, Central Japan. J. oceanogr. Soc. Japan, 28(5):181-186.

[12] ______ & ______ 1976. Further studies on the feeding habits of Sagitta nagae Alvariño in Suruga Bay, Central Japan. J. oceanogr. Soc. Japan, 32(5):209-218.

[13] ØRESLAND, V. 1987. Feeding of the chaetognaths Sagitta elegans and S.setosa at different seasons in Gullmarsfjorden, Sweden. Mar. Ecol.-Prog. Ser., 39:69-79.

[14] PEARRE Jr., S. 1973. Vertical migration and feeding in Sagitta elegans Verril. Ecology, 54:300-314.

[15] ______ 1976. A seasonal study of the diets of three sympatric chaetognaths. Investigación pesq., Barcelona, 40(1):1-16.

[16] ______ 1980. Feeding by Chaetognatha: the relation of prey size to predator size in several species. Mar. Ecol.- Prog. Ser., 3:125-134.

[17] ______ 1982. Feeding by Chaetognatha: aspects of inter- and intra-specific predation. Mar. Ecol.-Prog. Ser., 7:33-45.

[18] RAKUSA-SUSZCZEWSKI, S. 1969. The food and feeding habits of Chaetognatha in the seas around the British Isles. Pol. Archs Hydrobiol., 16:213-232.

[19] REEVE, M. R. 1970. The biology of Chaetognatha I. Quantitative aspects of growth and egg production in Sagitta hispida. In: Steele, J. H., ed. Marine food chains. Edinburgh, Oliver & Boyd. p. 168-189.

[20] ______ & WALTER, M. A. 1972. Conditions of culture, food-size selection, and the effects of temperature and salinity on growth rate and generation time in Sagitta hispida Conant. J. expl mar. Biol. Ecol., 9:191-200.

[21] STONE, J. H. 1969. The chaetognatha community of the Agulhas Current: its structure and related properties. Ecol. Monogr., 39(4):433-463.

[22] STUART, V. & VERHEYE, H. M. 1991. Diel migration and feeding patterns of the chaetognath, Sagitta friderici, off the west coast of South Africa. J. mar. Res., 49:493-515.

[23] SULLIVAN, B. K. 1980. In situ feeding behaviour of Sagitta elegans and Eukrohnia hamata (Chaetognatha) in relation to the vertical distribution and abundance of prey at Ocean Station "P". Limnol. Oceanogr., 25(2):317-326.

[24] SZYPER, J. P. 1978. Feeding rate of the chaetognath Sagitta enflata in nature. Estuar. coast, mar. Sci., 7:567-575.