Abstract
Foraging behaviors of the piscivorous cornetfish Fistularia commersonii were observed at shallow reefs in Kuchierabu-jima Island, southern Japan. This fish foraged on two types of prey fishes: one was reef fish that typically dwell on or near substrata (e.g., Tripterygiidae and Labridae), and the other was pelagic fish that shoal in the water column (e.g., Clupeidae and Carangidae). The prey sizes, prey types and foraging behaviors changed as the predator size increased. Prey sizes were largely limited by gape size of the cornetfish, and small predators consumed small prey. The small cornetfish (10–30 cm in total length) fed only on reef fish captured after stalking (where the fish slowly approaches the prey and then suddenly attacks). The stalking was done either solitarily or in foraging association with conspecifics. Large fish (30–120 cm) fed on both types of fishes by stalking and/or chasing (where the fish chases the prey using its high mobility and attacks), either solitarily or in foraging association with con- or heterospecifics. Thus, chasing was only performed by the large cornetfish against pelagic prey fish in associative foraging with other con- and heterospecific predators. As their body sizes increased, F. commersonii began to show a diversification of foraging behaviors, which was strongly related not only to the habitat types and anti-predatory behaviors of the prey fishes but also to associative foraging with con- or heterospecifics, which improves their foraging success.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Aronson RB (1983) Foraging behavior of the west Atlantic trumpetfish, Aulostomus maculatus: use of large, herbivorous reef fishes as camouflage. Bull Mar Sci 33:166–171
Baker R, Sheaves M (2005) Redefining the piscivore assemblage of shallow estuarine nursery habitats. Mar Ecol Prog Ser 291:197–213
Bjorndal KA (1997) Foraging ecology and nutrition of sea turtles. In: Lutz PL, Musick JA (eds) The biology of sea turtles. CRC Press, Boca Raton, FL, pp 199–231
Christensen B (1996) Predator foraging capabilities and prey antipredator behaviours: pre- versus postcapture constraints on size-dependent predator-prey interactions. Oikos 76:368–380
Cruz-Escalona VH, Peterson MS, Campos-Dávila L, Zetina-Rejón M (2005) Feeding habits and trophic morphology of inshore lizardfish (Synodus foetens) on the central continental shelf off Veracruz, Gulf of Mexico. J Appl Ichthyol 21:525–530
Diamant A, Shpigel M (1985) Interspecific feeding associations of groupers (Teleostei: Serranidae) with octopuses and moray eels in the Gulf of Eilat (Aqaba). Environ Biol Fish 13:153–159
Fritzsche RA (1976) A review of the cornetfishes, genus Fistularia (Fistulariidae), with a discussion of intrageneric relationships and zoogeography. Bull Mar Sci 26:196–204
Gerking SD (1994) Feeding ecology of fish. Academic, San Diego, CA
Gushima K (1981) Study on the feeding ecology of reef fishes in Kuchierabu Island. J Fac Appl Biol Sci Hiroshima Univ 20:35–63
Gushima K, Murakami Y (1976) The reef fish fauna of Kuchierabu, offshore island of southern Japan. J Fac Fish Anim Husb Hiroshima Univ 15:47–56
Hiatt RW, Strasburg DW (1960) Ecological relationships of the fish fauna on coral reefs of the Marshall Islands. Ecol Monogr 30:65–127
Hixon MA (1991) Predation as a process structuring coral reef fish communities. In: Sale PF (ed) The ecology of fishes on coral reefs. Academic, San Diego, CA, pp 475–508
Hobson ES (1968) Predatory behavior of some shore fishes in the Gulf of California. US Fish Wildl Ser Res Rep 73:1–92
Iwasaki Y (1998) Maturity and feeding habits of rainbow-runner, Elagatis bipinnulatus, in the western Pacific Ocean. J Sch Mar Sci Technol Tokai Univ 46:33–40
Kalogirou S, Corsini M, Kondilatos G, Wennhage H (2007) Diet of the invasive piscivorous fish Fistularia commersonii in a recently colonized area of the eastern Mediterranean. Biol Invasions 9:887–896
Keenleyside MHA (1979) Diversity and adaptation in fish behaviour. Springer, New York
Kingsford MJ (1992) Spatial and temporal variation in predation on reef fishes by coral trout (Plectropomus leopardus, Serranidae). Coral Reefs 11:193–198
Major PF (1978) Predator-prey interactions in two schooling fishes, Caranx ignobilis and Stolephorus purpureus. Anim Behav 26:760–777
Morse DH (1977) Feeding behavior and predator avoidance in heterospecific groups. BioScience 27:332–339
Parrish JK (1993) Comparison of the hunting behavior of four piscine predators attacking schooling prey. Ethology 95:233–246
Pitcher TJ (1986) Functions of shoaling behaviour in teleosts. In: Pitcher TJ (ed) The behaviour of teleost fishes. Chapman & Hall, London, pp 294–337
Potts GW (1980) The predatory behaviour of Caranx melampygus (Pisces) in the channel environment of Aldabra Atoll (Indian Ocean). J Zool (Lond) 192:323–350
Robertson DR, Sweatman HPA, Fletcher EA, Cleland MG (1976) Schooling as a mechanism for circumventing the territoriality of competitors. Ecology 57:1208–1220
Sano M, Shimizu M, Nose Y (1984) Food habits of teleostean reef fishes in Okinawa Island, southern Japan. Univ Mus Univ Tokyo Bull 25:1–128
Schmitt RJ, Strand SW (1982) Cooperative foraging by yellowtail, Seriola lalandei (Carangidae), on two species of fish prey. Copeia 3:714–717
Silvano RAM (2001) Feeding habits and interspecific feeding associations of Caranx latus (Carangidae) in a subtropical reef. Environ Biol Fish 60:465–470
St John J (1999) Ontogenetic changes in the diet of the coral reef grouper Plectropomus leopardus (Serranidae): patterns in taxa, size and habitat of prey. Mar Ecol Prog Ser 180:233–246
Su Y, Fong SC, Tu MC (2005) Food habits of the sea snake, Laticauda semifasciata. Zool Stud 44:403–408
Takeuchi N, Gushima K (2006) Promiscuous spawning behaviour of the tropical herring Spratelloides gracilis. J Fish Biol 68:310–317
Takeuchi N, Hashimoto H, Gushima K (2002) Short-term foraging patterns of individual cornetfish, Fistularia commersonii, based on stomach content analysis. Ichthyol Res 49:76–80
Takeuchi N, Kai H, Kadota T, Himeno N, Kobayashi K, Shimizu N, Gushima K (2005) Diets of 28 fish species from 12 families at Kuchierabu-jima Island. J Grad Sch Biosp Sci Hiroshima Univ 44:15–24
Takeuchi N, Saeki T, Sakai Y, Hashimoto H (2007) Diets of 45 fish species from 17 families at Kuchierabu-jima Island. J Grad Sch Biosp Sci Hiroshima Univ 46:5–13
Yukihira H, Shibuno T, Hashimoto H, Gushima K (1994) Feeding habits of moray eels (Pisces: Muraenidae) at Kuchierabu-jima. J Fac Appl Biol Sci Hiroshima Univ 33:159–166
Acknowledgments
I wish to thank Dr. K. Gushima of Hiroshima University for his helpful advice and timely guidance throughout this study, Dr. Y. Sawara of Hirosaki University for reading the draft manuscript, two anonymous reviewers for many useful comments on the manuscript, and many colleagues at Biology of Aquatic Resources, Hiroshima University and Dr. I. Akagawa of Tokai University for supporting this study. I also thank the people of Kuchierabu-jima Island for supporting my fieldwork.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
About this article
Cite this article
Takeuchi, N. Ontogenetic changes in foraging tactics of the piscivorous cornetfish Fistularia commersonii . Ichthyol Res 56, 18–27 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10228-008-0059-9
Received:
Revised:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10228-008-0059-9