Abstract
Scyphomedusae collected from Port Phillip Bay, Victoria, Australia, between 1984 and 1986, consumed a variety of zooplankton. The percentage composition of gut contents of Cyanea capillata (Linné) in order of decreasing importance was larvaceans 31%, cladocerans 29%, fish eggs 14%, copepods 11%, hydromedusae 9%, and ascidian tadpoles 3%. The percentage composition of gut contents of Pseudorhiza haeckeli Haacke was fish eggs 41%, copepods 33%, larvaceans 8%, cladocerans 4%, crab zoea 4%, and decapod larvae 1%. Both species of scyphomedusae showed strong positive selection for fish eggs and yolk-sac larvae, and negative selection for other prey items. When fish eggs were omitted from the selectivity analyses, C. capillata showed positive selection for amphipods, decapods, crab zoea, Podon spp., larvaceans and ascidian tadpoles, and negative selection for Evadne spp. and all copepod taxa. Pseudorhiza haeckeli showed positive selection for amphipods, decapod larvae, crab zoea and cladocerans, and negative selection for cirripede larvae, larvaceans and hydromedusae. Amongst copepods, P. haeckeli showed positive selection for calanoid and harpacticoid copepods and negative selection for cyclopoid copepods.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
Literature cited
Arnott, G. H. (1974). Studies on the zooplankton of Port Phillip Bay and adjacent waters with special reference to the Copepoda. PhD thesis, Monash University, Melbourne
Bailey, K. M. (1984). Comparison of laboratory rates of predation on five species of marine fish larvae by three planktonic invertebrates: effects of larval size on vulnerability. Mar. Biol. 79: 303–309
Bailey, K. M., Batty, R. S. (1983). A laboratory study of predation by Aurelia aurita on larval herring (Clupea harengus): experimental observations compared with model predictions. Mar. Biol. 72: 295–301
Bailey, K. M., Yen, J. (1983). Predation by a carnivorous marine copepod, Euchaeta elongata Esterly, on eggs and larvae of the pacific hake, Merluccius productus. J. Plankton Res. 5: 71–82
Bishop, J. W. (1966). Feeding rates of the ctenophore Mnemiopsis leidyi. Chesapeake Sci. 7: 95–100
Brooks, J. L., Dodson, S. I. (1965). Predation, body size, and composition of the plankton. Science, N.Y. 150: 28–35
Deason, E. E., Smayda, T. J. (1982). Ctenophore-zooplanktonphytoplankton interactions in Narragansett Bay, Rhode Island, U.S.A., during 1972–1977. J. Plankton Res. 4: 203–217
Buskey, E. J., Mann, C. G., Swift, E. (1986). The shadow response of the estuarine copepod Acartia tonsa (Dana). J. exp. mar. Biol. Ecol. 103: 65–67
Fancett, M. S. (1986). Species composition and abundance of scyphomedusae in Port Phillip Bay, Victoria. Aust. J. mar. Freshwat. Res. 37: 379–384
Fancett, M. S. (In preparation). Species composition and abundance of the zooplankton of Port Phillip Bay, Victoria, Australia: with special reference to the microzooplankton.
Fancett, M. S., Jenkins, G. P. (in press). Predatory impact of scyphomedusae on ichthyoplankton and other zooplankton in Port Phillip Bay. J. exp. mar. Biol. Ecol.
Fraser, J. H. (1969). Experimental feeding of some medusae and Chaetognatha. J. Fish. Res. Bd Can. 26: 1743–1762
Gerritsen, J., Strickler, J. R. (1977). Encounter probabilities and community structure in zooplankton, a mathematical model. J. Fish. Res. Bd Can. 34: 73–82
Greene, C. H., Landry, M. R., Monger, B. C. (1986). Foraging behavior and prey selection by the ambush entangling predator Pleurobrachia bachei. Ecology 67: 1493–1501
Hulsizer, E. E. (1976). Zooplankton of lower Narragansett Bay, 1972–1973. Chesapeake Sci. 17: 260–270
Jacobs, J. (1977). Coexistence of similar zooplankton species by differential adaptation to reproduction and escape in an environment with fluctuating food and enemy densities. Oecologica (Berl.) 30: 313–329
Kimmerer, W. J., McKinnon, A. D. (1985). A comparative study of the zooplankton in two adjacent embayments, Port Phillip and Westernport Bays, Australia. Estuar.cstl Shelf Sci. 21: 145–159
Kiørboe, T., Mohlenberg, F., Nicolassen, H. (1982). Ingestion rate and gut clearance in the planktonic copepod Centropages hamatus Lilljeborg in relation to food concentration and temperature. Ophelia 21: 181–194
Kremer, P. (1979). Predation by the ctenophore Mnemiopsis leidyi in Narrangansett Bay, Rhode Island. Estuaries 2: 97–105
Lindahl, O., Hernroth, L. (1983). Phyto-zooplankton community in coastal waters of Wester Sweden — an ecosystem off balance? Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser. 10: 119–126
Lonsdale, D. J. (1981). Regulatory role of physical factors and predation for two Chesapeake Bay copepod species. Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser. 5: 341–352
Möller, H. (1979). Significance of coelenterates in relation to other plankton organisms. Meeresforsch. Rep. mar. Res. 27: 1–18 (Ber. dt. wiss. Kommn Meeresforsch.)
Möller, H. (1980). Scyphomedusae as predators and food competitors of larval fish. Meeresforsch. Rep. mar. Res. 28: 90–100. (Ber. dt. wiss. Kommn Meeresforsch.)
Möller, H. (1984). Reduction of a larval herring population by a jellyfish predator. Science, N.Y. 224: 621–622
Pearre, S. (1982). Estimating prey preference by predators: uses of various indices and a proposal of another based on χ 2. Can. J. Fish. aquat. Sciences 39: 914–923
Reeve, M. R., Walter, M. A., Ikeda, T. (1978). Laboratory studies of ingestion and food utilization in lobate and tentaculate ctenophores. Limnol. Oceanogr. 23: 740–751
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Additional information
Communicated by G. F. Humphrey, Sydney
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Fancett, M.S. Diet and prey selectivity of scyphomedusae from Port Phillip Bay, Australia. Marine Biology 98, 503–509 (1988). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00391541
Accepted:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00391541