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First information about the stomach contents of juvenile green turtles, Chelonia mydas, in Rio de Janeiro, south-eastern Brazil

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  13 February 2013

Danielle Rodrigues Awabdi ,
Salvatore Siciliano  and
Ana Paula Madeira Di Beneditto
Danielle Rodrigues Awabdi
Affiliation:
Universidade Estadual do Norte Fluminense, CBB, Laboratório de Ciências Ambientais, Campos dos Goytacazes, RJ, 28013-602, Brazil
Salvatore Siciliano
Affiliation:
Escola Nacional de Saúde Pública/FIOCRUZ, Departamento de Endemias, Grupo de Estudos de Mamíferos Marinhos da Região dos Lagos (GEMM-Lagos), Rio de Janeiro, RJ, 21041-210, Brazil
Ana Paula Madeira Di Beneditto*
Affiliation:
Universidade Estadual do Norte Fluminense, CBB, Laboratório de Ciências Ambientais, Campos dos Goytacazes, RJ, 28013-602, Brazil
*
Correspondence should be addressed to: A.P.M. Di Beneditto, Universidade Estadual do Norte Fluminense, CBB, Laboratório de Ciências Ambientais, Campos dos Goytacazes, RJ, 28013-602, Brazil email: anapaula@uenf.br
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Abstract

This work provides the first information about the stomach contents of juvenile green turtles (Chelonia mydas) on the coast of Rio de Janeiro State, south-eastern Brazil (22°50′S–23°00′S). Between June 2009 and May 2010, we obtained 49 stomach contents of specimens that were stranded, of which 37 contained food items. Among food items, macroalgae stood out with 83.7% frequency of occurrence in the stomachs analysed and 37 species were identified. The most representative macroalgae in the stomach contents were: Sargassum vulgare, Ulva lactuca, Gelidiella acerosa and Pterocladiella capillacea. Teleosts and molluscs were also recorded in the stomach contents of the species in the region; however, with low representativeness. Analysis of stomach contents confirmed herbivory as the preferred dietary pattern of C. mydas.

Keywords

Chelonia mydasstomach contentsherbivorysouth-west Atlantic
Type
Research Article
Information
Marine Biodiversity Records , Volume 6 , 2013 , e5
Copyright
Copyright © Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom 2013

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