Diet and foraging behavior of Ageneiosus inermis (Teleostei, Auchenipteridae)

By

Freitas, Tiago Magalhães da Silva
Santos, William Oliveira Dos
Prudente, Bruno da Silveira
Montag, Luciano Fogaça de Assis

Type

Article

Date of Publication

2020-7-13

Original Publication

Neotropical Biology and Conservation

Volume

15

Series / Issue

Issue: 3

Pages

209--218

Subjects

Amazon , Behavior , comportamento , Ecologia trófica , Feeding , Fish , habitat use , peixe , Trophic ecology , uso do hábitat

Contributed by

Pensoft Publishers

Language

English

Published by

Brazil Universidade do Vale do Rio dos Sinos

Identifiers

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3897/neotropical.15.e53383

 

Abstract

Ageneiosus inermisis the largest species of the family Auchenipteridae (Siluriformes) and has a primarily piscivorous diet, although no comprehensive data are available on the habitat use of this species. Given this, the present study describes the diet ofA. inermis, and provides inferences on its habitat use, based on the known behavior of its prey species. We analyzed the stomach contents of 14 specimens collected in the middle of Xingu River in the Brazilian state of Pará, which we complemented with data on 47 other specimens obtained from two published studies. Most of the ingested items were fish associated with the bottom substrate and riverbanks. AlthoughA. inermisis considered a pelagic species, we conclude it forages by exploring the river’s bottom and margins. Furthermore, asA. inermisis presumed to be diurnal, we assume that it does not pursue its prey actively, given that most of the prey species are nocturnal, but rather searches actively during the daytime for prey hidden in the bottom substrate. This hypothesis on the feeding strategy ofA. inermiscan only be confirmed by underwater observations, either in the wild or under captive conditions.