Abstract
The diet of at least 28 species of mesopelagic fish from the Pacific coast of Hokkaido was examined. The dominant family was the Gonostomatidae (42%) which was represented by five species. The most abundant species wasCyclothone atraria which together with the other species of this genus preyed predominantly on copepods. Euphausiids and copepods were dominant in the diet ofGonostoma gracile. The next most abundant family was the Myctophidae (32%) which was represented by seven species. The dominant species,Stenobrachius nannochir, preyed mainly on copepods. Copepods were also the dominant food item of the other myctophids except forLampanyctus jordani which fed mainly on euphausiids. The other important family was the Bathylagidae (21%).Leuroglossus schmidti was the dominant species and its diet was more diverse with ostracods, copepods, molluscs and larvaceans being the most important food items.Bathylagus ochotensis had a similar diet. Copepods were the most important food items for all but a few species and their occurrence in the fish stomachs was related to the known vertical distribution of both predators and prey. Ostracods and euphausiids were also important prey items, the latter especially in large fish species. Molluscs and larvaceans were restricted to the two species of the family Bathylagidae.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Cailliet, G.M. (1972): The study of feeding habits of two marine fishes in relation to plankton ecology. Trans. Amer. Micros. Soc.,91, 88–89.
Clarke, T. A. (1978): Diel feeding patterns of 16 species of mesopelagic fishes in Hawaiian waters. Fish. Bull. U.S.,76, 495–513.
Clarke, T.A. (1980): Diets of fourteen species of vertically migrating mesopelagic fishes in Hawaiian waters. Fish. Bull. U.S.,78, 619–640.
Clarke, T.A. (1982): Feeding habits of stomiatoid fishes from Hawaiian waters. Fish. Bull. U.S.,80, 287–304.
Collard, S.B. (1970): Forage of some eastern Pacific midwater fishes. Copeia,1970 (2), 348–354.
Furuhashi, K. (1966): Studies on the vertical distribution of copepods in the Oyashio region east of Japan and in the Kuroshio region south of Japan. Publ. Seto Mar. Biol. Lab.,14, 295–322.
Gjøsaeter, J. and Kawaguchi, K. (1980): A review of the world resources of mesopelagic fish. FAO Fisheries Technical Paper, No.193, FAO, Rome, 1980.
Gorelova, T.A. (1980): Feeding of deep-sea fish of the genusCyclothone (Gonostomatidae, Pisces). Oceanology,20, 209–213.
Gorelova, T.A. and Tselyin, N.B. (1979): Feeding of mesopelagic fish of the genusCyclothone. Oceanology,19, 736–739.
Hopkins, T.L. and Baird, R.C. (1977): Aspects of the feeding ecology of oceanic midwater fishes. In: Oceanic Sound Scattering Prediction ed. by N.R. Andersen, and B.J. Zahuranec, Marine Science, Vol.5, Plenum Press, New York and London, pp. 325–360.
Kawaguchi, K. (1969): Ecological study of the micronektonic fishes of the western Pacific Ocean. Ph. D. Dissertation, The University of Tokyo, Japan, 218 pp.
Maynard, S.D. (1982): Aspects of the biology of mesopelagic fishes of the genusCyclothone (Pisces: Gonostomatidae) in Hawaiian waters. Ph. D. Dissertation, University of Hawaii, Hawaii. 257 pp.
Morioka, Y. (1972): The vertical distribution of calanoid copepods off the southeast coast of Hokkaido. In: Biological Oceanography of the Northern North Pacific Ocean, ed. by A.Y. Takenouchi, Idemitsu Shoten, Tokyo, pp. 309–321.
Okiyama, M. (1971): Early life history of the gonostomatid fishMaurolicus muelleri (Gmelin) in the Japan Sea. Bull. Japan Sea Regional Fisheries Laboratory,23, 21–53.
Ozawa, T.K., Fujii, K. and Kawaguchi, K. (1977): Feeding chronology of the vertically migrating gonostomatid fishVinciguerria nimbaria (Jordan and Williams) of southern Japan. J. Oceanogr. Soc. Japan.,33, 320–327.
Pearcy, W.G., Krygier, E.E., Mesecar, R. and Ramsay, F. (1977): Vertical distribution and migration of oceanic plankton off Oregon. Deep-Sea Res.,24, 223–245.
Pearcy, W.G., Lorz, H.V. and Peterson, W. (1979a): Comparison of the feeding habits of migratory and non-migratoryStenobrachius leucopsarus (Myctophidae). Mar. Biol.,51, 1–8.
Pearcy, W.G., Nemoto, T. and Okiyama, M. (1979b): Mesopelagic fishes of the Bering Sea and the adjacent northern North Pacific Ocean. J. Oceanogr. Soc. Japan.,35, 127–135.
Tyler, H.R. and Pearcy, W.G. (1975): The feeding habits of three species of lanternfishes (Family Myctophidae) off Oregon, USA. Mar. Biol.,32, 7–11.
Ueno, T. (1971): List of the marine fishes from the waters of Hokkaido and its adjacent regions. Sci. Rep. Hokkaido Fish. Experimental Station,13, 61–102.
Willis, J. M. and Pearcy, W. G. (1982): Vertical distribution and migration of fishes of the lower mesopelagic zone off Oregon. Mar. Biol.,70, 87–98.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Gordon, J.D.M., Nishida, S. & Nemoto, T. The diet of mesopelagic fish from the Pacific coast of Hokkaido, Japan. Journal of the Oceanographical Society of Japan 41, 89–97 (1985). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02109178
Received:
Revised:
Accepted:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02109178