Hostname: page-component-7479d7b7d-c9gpj Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-07-10T23:03:12.391Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Feeding habits of the Rio skate, Rioraja agassizi (Chondrichthyes: Rajidae), from off Uruguay and north Argentina

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  18 October 2010

Santiago A. Barbini  and
Luis O. Lucifora
Santiago A. Barbini*
Affiliation:
Laboratorio de Ictiología, Departamento de Ciencias Marinas, Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata, Funes 3350, Mar del Plata, B7602AYL, Argentina Comisión de Investigaciones Científicas del Gobierno de la Provincia de Buenos Aires (CIC), Calle 526 e/10 y 11, La Plata, B1906APN, Argentina
Luis O. Lucifora
Affiliation:
Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Avenida Rivadavia 1917, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires, C1033AAJ, Argentina Centro de Investigaciones Ecológicas Subtropicales (CIES) and Centro de Investigaciones del Bosque Atlántico (CeIBA), Casilla de Correo 9, Puerto Iguazú, N3370AVQ, Misiones, Argentina
*
Correspondence should be addressed to: S.A. Barbini, Laboratorio de Ictiología, Departamento de Ciencias Marinas, Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata, Funes 3350, Mar del Plata, B7602AYL, Argentina email: sbarbini@mdp.edu.ar
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

The feeding habits of the Rio skate, Rioraja agassizi, from off Uruguay and north Argentina were evaluated using a multiple-hypothesis modelling approach. Relationships between number of preys and sex, maturity stage, body size, season and region were assessed by building generalized linear models. Rioraja agassizi fed mainly upon crustaceans (shrimps, crabs and amphipods) and teleosts, but also upon isopods, cumaceans, lancelets and polychaetes. Ontogenetic diet shifts were found: small R. agassizi consumed amphipods, cumaceans and isopods and large individuals on shrimps, crabs and teleosts. The consumption of crustaceans (amphipods, shrimps, crabs, isopods and cumaceans) was higher in the northern (34°–38°S) than in the southern area (38°–41°S). Rioraja agassizi consumed more teleosts in the cold season and preyed more on lancelets in the warm season. Prey size increased with increasing body size of R. agassizi, but large individuals also consumed small prey. Ontogenetic shifts may be related to body size rather than other life-history traits. Rioraja agassizi adapts its feeding habits in response to regional and seasonal changes.

Keywords

skatesfeeding ecologydiet shiftssouth-west Atlantic
Type
Research Article
Information
Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom , Volume 91 , Special Issue 6: Fish Ecology , September 2011 , pp. 1175 - 1184
Copyright
Copyright © Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom 2010

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

REFERENCES

Acha, E.A., Mianzan, H.W., Guerrero, R.A., Favero, M. and Bava, J. (2004) Marine fronts at the continental shelves of austral South America. Physical and ecological processes. Journal of Marine Systems 44, 83–105.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Anderson, D.R., Burnham, K.P. and Thompson, W.L. (2000) Null hypothesis testing: problems, prevalence, and an alternative. Journal of Wildlife Management 64, 912–923.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Barbini, S.A. (2006) Hábitos alimentarios y selectividad de hábitat de la guitarra chica, Zapteryx brevirostris (Chondrichthyes, Rhinobatidae) en el ecosistema costero bonaerense y uruguayo. MSc thesis. Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata, Mar del Plata, Argentina.Google Scholar
Baremore, I.E., Murie, D.J. and Carlson, J.K. (2010) Seasonal and size-related differences in diet of the Atlantic angel shark Squatina dumeril in the northeastern Gulf of Mexico. Aquatic Biology 8, 125–136.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Belleggia, M., Mabragaña, E., Figueroa, D.E., Scenna, L.B., Barbini, S.A. and Díaz de Astarloa, J.M. (2008) Food habits of the broad nose skate, Bathyraja brachyurops (Chondrichthyes, Rajidae), in the south-west Atlantic. Scientia Marina 72, 701–710.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Braccini, J.M. and Perez, J.E. (2005) Feeding habits of the sandskate Psammobatis extenta (Garman, 1913): sources of variation in dietary composition. Marine and Freshwater Research 56, 395–403.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Braccini, J.M. (2008) Feeding ecology of two high-order predators from south-eastern Australia: the coastal broadnose and the deepwater sharpnose sevengill sharks. Marine Ecology Progress Series 371, 273–284.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Brazeiro, A., Acha, E.M., Mianzan, H.W., Gómez, M. and Fernández, V. (2003) Aquatic priority areas for the conservation and management of the ecological integrity of the Río de la Plata and its maritime front. Montevideo and Buenos Aires: FrePlata, Proyecto PNUD-GEF RLA/99/631.Google Scholar
Colonello, J.H., García, M.L. and Lasta, C.A. (2007) Reproductive biology of Rioraja agassizi from the coastal southwestern Atlantic ecosystem between northern Uruguay (34°S) and northern Argentina (42°S). Environmental Biology of Fishes 80, 277–284.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Cortés, E. (1997) A critical review of methods of studying fish feeding based on analysis of stomach contents: application to elasmobranch fishes. Canadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences 54, 726–738.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Cousseau, M.B. and Perrotta, R.G. (2000) Peces marinos de Argentina. Biología, distribución, pesca. Mar del Plata: Instituto Nacional de Investigación y Desarrollo Pesquero.Google Scholar
Crawley, M.J. (2005) Statistics: an introduction using R. Chichester: John Wiley & Sons.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Estalles, M., Perez Comesaña, J.E., Tamini, L.L. and Chiaramonte, G.E. (2008) Reproductive biology of the skate, Rioraja agassizi (Müller and Henle, 1841), off Puerto Quequén, Argentina. Journal of Applied Icthyology 25, 60–65.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Farias, I., Figueiredo, I., Moura, T., Serrano, Gordo L., Neves, A. and Serra-Pereira, B. (2006) Diet comparison of four ray species (Raja clavata, Raja brachyura, Raja montagui and Leucoraja naevus) caught along the Portuguese continental shelf. Aquatic Living Resources 19, 105–114.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Franklin, A.B., Shenk, T.M., Anderson, D.R. and Burnham, K.P. (2001) Statistical model selection: an alternative to null hypothesis testing. In Shenk, T.M. and Franklin, A.B. (eds) Modeling in natural resource management: development, interpretation, and application. Washington: Island Press, pp. 75–90.Google Scholar
García, M.L. (1984) Sobre la biología de Discopyge tschudii (Chondrichthyes, Narcinidae). Physis A 42, 101–112.Google Scholar
Giberto, D.A., Bremec, C.S., Acha, E.M. and Mianzan, H. (2004) Large-scale spatial patterns of benthic assemblages in the SW Atlantic: the Río de la Plata estuary and adjacent shelf waters. Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science 61, 1–13.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Guerrero, R.A. and Piola, R.A. (1997) Masas de agua de la plataforma continental. In Boschi, E.E. (ed.) El Mar Argentino y sus recursos pesqueros. Volume 1. Mar del Plata: Instituto Nacional de Investigación y Desarrollo Pesquero, pp. 107–119.Google Scholar
Jaureguizar, A.J., Menni, R., Lasta, C. and Guerrero, R. (2006) Fish assemblages of the northern Argentine coastal system: spatial patterns and their temporal variations. Fisheries Oceanography 14, 326–344.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Jonhson, J.B. and Omland, K.S. (2004) Model selection in ecology and evolution. Trends in Ecology and Evolution 19, 101–108.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kaiser, M.J. (1998) Significance of bottom-fishing disturbance. Conservation Biology 12, 1230–1235.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Koen, Alonso M., Crespo, E.A., Gracía, N.A., Pedraza, S.N., Mariotti, P.A., Berón Vega, B. and Mora, N.J. (2001) Food habits of Dipturus chilensis (Pisces: Rajidae) off Patagonia, Argentina. ICES Journal of Marine Science 58, 288–297.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kyne, P.M., San, Martín J. and Stehmann, M.F.W. (2007) Rioraja agassizi. In IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2010.2. www.iucnredlist.org.Google Scholar
Lambert, G. (2005) Ecology and natural history of the protochordates. Canadian Journal of Zoology 83, 34–50.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Loez, C. and Schang, M.M. (1982) Régimen alimentario de la raya Raja agassizi (Müller y Henle, 1841) del litoral bonaerense, Argentina. BSc thesis. Universidad de Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires, Argentina.Google Scholar
Lucas, A.J., Guerreo, R.A., Mianzan, H.W., Acha, E.M. and Lasta, C.A. (2005) Coastal oceanographic regimes of the Northern Argentine Continental Shelf (34°–43° S). Estuarine, Coastal and Shelf Science 65, 405–420.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lucifora, L.O., Valero, J.L., Bremec, C.S. and Lasta, M.L. (2000) Feeding habits and prey selection by the skate Dipturus chilensis (Elasmobranchii: Rajidae) from the south-western Atlantic. Journal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom 80, 953–954.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lucifora, L.O., García, V.B., Menni, R.C. and Escalante, A.H. (2006) Food habits, selectivity, and foraging modes of the school shark, Galeorhinus galeus. Marine Ecology Progress Series 315, 259–270.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lucifora, L.O., García, V.B., Menni, R.C., Escalante, A.H. and Hozbor, N.M. (2009a) Effects of body size, age and maturity stage on diet in a large shark: ecological and applied implications. Ecological Research 24, 109–118.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lucifora, L.O., García, V.B. and Escalante, A.H. (2009b) How can the feeding habits of the sand tiger shark influence the success of conservation programs? Animal Conservation 12, 291–301.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Magurran, A.E. (2004) Measuring biological diversity. Malden: Blackwell.Google Scholar
Massa, A.M., Lucifora, L.O. and Hozbor, N.M. (2004) Condrictios de la regiones costeras bonaerense y uruguaya. In Boschi, E.E. (ed.) El Mar Argentino y sus recursos pesqueros. Volume 4. Mar del Plata: Instituto Nacional de Investigación y Desarrollo Pesquero, pp. 85–99.Google Scholar
Menni, R.C. and Stehmann, M.F.W. (2000) Distribution, environment and biology of batoid fishes off Argentina, Uruguay and Brazil. A review. Revista del Museo Argentino de Ciencias Naturales 2, 69–109.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Morato, T., Solá, E., Grós, M.P. and Menezez, G. (2003) Diets of thornback ray (Raja clavata) and tope shark (Galeorhinus galeus) in the bottom longline fishery of the Azores, northeastern Atlantic. Fishery Bulletin 101, 590–602.Google Scholar
Muto, E.Y., Soares, L.S.H. and Goiten, R. (2001) Food resource utilization of the skates Rioraja agassizi and Psammobatis extenta on the continental shelf off Ubatuba, south-eastern Brasil. Revista Brasileira de Biologia 61, 217–238.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Orlov, A.M. (2003) Diets, feeding habits, and trophic relations of six deep-benthic skates (Rajidae) in the western Bering Sea. Journal of Ichthyology and Aquatic Biology 7, 45–60.Google Scholar
Pinkas, L.M., Oliphant, S. and Iverson, I.L.K. (1971) Food habits of albacore, bluefin tuna and bonito in Californian waters. California Fish and Game 152, 1–105.Google Scholar
Rinewalt, C.S., Ebert, D.A. and Cailliet, G.M. (2007) Food habits of the sandpaper skate, Bathyraja kincaidii (Garman, 1908) off central California: seasonal variation in diet linked to oceanographic conditions. Environmental Biology of Fishes 80, 147–163.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Robinson, H.J., Cailliet, G.M. and Ebert, D.A. (2007) Food habits of the longnose skate, Raja rhina (Jordan and Gilbert, 1880), in central California waters. Environmental Biology of Fishes 80, 165–179.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Rouse, G.W. and Pleijel, F. (2001) Polychaetes. London: Oxford University Press.Google Scholar
Ruocco, N.L., Lucifora, L.O., Díaz de Astarloa, J.M. and Bremec, C. (2009) Diet of the white-dotted skate, Bathyraja albomaculata, in waters of Argentina. Journal of Applied Ichthyology 25, 94–97.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
San, Martín M.J., Braccini, J.M., Tamini, L.L., Chiaramonte, G.E. and Perez, J.E. (2007) Temporal and sexual effects in the feeding ecology of the marbled sand skate Psammobatis bergi Marini, 1932. Marine Biology 151, 505–513.Google Scholar
Scharf, F.S., Juanes, F. and Sutherland, M. (1998) Inferring ecological relationships from the edges of scatter diagrams: comparison of regression techniques. Ecology 79, 448–460.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Scharf, F.S., Juanes, F. and Rountree, R.A. (2000) Predator size–prey size relationships of marine fish predators: interspecific variation and effects of ontogeny and body size trophic-niche breadth. Marine Ecology Progress Series 208, 229–248.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Soares, L.S.H., Rossi-Wongtschowski, C.L.D.B., Alvares, L.M.C., Muto, E.Y. and Gasalla, M.A. (1992) Grupos tróficos de peixes demersais da plataforma continental interna de Ubatuba, Brasil. I. Condrichthyes. Boletim do Instituto Oceanográfico, São Paulo 40, 79–85.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Soares, L.S.H., Moraes, Vazzoler A.E.A. and Correa, A.R. (1999) Diel feeding chronology of the skate Raja agassizi (Müller and Henle) (Pisces, Elasmobranchii) on the continental shelf off Ubatuba, Southeastern Brazil. Revista Brasileira de Zoologia 16, 201–212.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Stehmann, M.F.W. (2002) Proposal of a maturity stages scale for oviparous and viviparous cartilaginous fishes (Pisces, Chondrichthyes). Archive of Fishery and Marine Research 50, 23–48.Google Scholar
Tamini, L.L., Chiaramonte, G.E., Perez, J.E. and Cappozzo, H.L. (2006) Batoids in a coastal fishery of Argentina. Fishery Research 77, 326–332.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Treloar, M.A., Laurenson, L.J.B. and Stevens, J.D. (2007) Dietary comparisons of six skate species (Rajidae) in south-eastern Australian waters. Environmental Biology of Fishes 80, 181–196.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Venables, W.N. and Ripley, B.D. (2002) Modern applied statistics with S-Plus. 4th edition. New York: Springer.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Watling, L. and Norse, E.A. (1998) Disturbance of the seabed by mobile fishing gear: a comparison to forest clearcutting. Conservation Biology 12, 1180–1197.CrossRefGoogle Scholar