Regresar

Feeding habits of Lutjanidae family snappers in the Gulf of Mexico and the Mexican coasts of the Pacific and Atlantic oceans: A review

Abstract:

Snappers of the Lutjanidae family are an important fishing resource off the Mexican coasts, with reports of catches around 12,000 tons by year. The objective of this study was to determine if there is variation in the prey consumed by the Lutjanidae family on the coasts of the Mexican Atlantic and Pacific oceans by performing a dietary analysis, based on published data, regarding the relative importance index (RII) for 12 snapper species: Ocyurus chrysurus, Rhomboplites aurorubens, Lutjanus griseus, L. apodus, L. analis, L. synagris, L. campechanus, L. peru, L. guttatus, L. colorado, L. argentiventris and L. novemfasciatus. Snapper diets were composed mainly of crustaceans (69%), followed by fishes (28%) and the remaining 3% corresponded to other prey. It can be assumed that snappers are efficient vehicles to transport energy from low to high trophic levels in the food web, coming this energy mainly from crustaceans.