Feeding diet of whitemouth croaker, Micropogonias furnieri (Desmarest, 1823) (Actinopterygii, Sciaenidae) on the coastal region of Itaipu, Niterói, Rio de Janeiro State

Abstract

The whitemouth croaker, Micropogonias furnieri, is an important coastal fishery resource, broadly distributed in the western Atlantic, being targeted in southern Brazil by the bottom trawl, gillnet and handline fisheries. In Itaipu, this species represents 60.1% of the fishery biomass production, being captured mostly by gillnets (corvineira type). To define the food resources used and their seasonal variations in the diet of the species at Itaipu region, stomach contents from 262 individuals of whitemouth croaker, ranging from 89 to 530 mm of total length were analyzed. Samples were collected from the small-scale fishery landings from September, 2003 to September, 2004. The Index of Relative Importance (IRI) was calculated for each item. In 214 stomachs we identified 25 items, including crustaceans, fishes, polychaetes, molluscs, bryozoans, digested organic material and sediment, confirming the generalist food habit of the species. Crustacean was the most important category in the diet of the whitemouth croaker. Among the crustaceans, mysidacean was the most important item, whereas shrimps, stomatopods, isopods and crabs were relatively less important. Seasonal analysis of the IRI values revealed that crustaceans constituted the most important category during all seasons of the year.