Abstract
Food consumption, growth and the ability to withstand starvation were studied in two species of predominantly piscivorous predatory lionfishes from the Gulf of Aqaba, Red Sea: Dendrochirus brachypterus a small-bodied species, 35–40 g body weight, and Pterois volitans, 1.10–1.20 kg body weight. In experimental conditions, the biomass consumed by D. brachypterus was 0.8–1.1 g day-1 in juveniles of 10–20 g body weight and 3.0–5.0 g day-1 in adults of 35–40 g. P. volitans consumed 5.5–13.5 g day-1 as juveniles, and 14.6 g day-1 when adults of 300–500 g body weight. The growth trajectories of both species are parallel until they attain 20–25 g body weight. From this point on, growth in the maturing D. brachypterus nears asymptotic, while Pterois continue their exponential increase up to 70–80 g body weight. With age, the efficiency of food conversion, indexed by the condition (K) factor, is low (from 0.46 in young fish to 0.22 in adults), as most of their food energy is channeled towards maintenance. In nature, larger Pterois of 300–400 g body weight, consume about 8.5 g day-1, amounting to 3.10 kg yr-1; for 80 fish inhabiting a 1 km long reef, this totals approximately 228.48 kg yr-1. Starvation experiments in these fishes produced a clear correlation between their initial weight and their ability to withstand prolonged fasting: D. brachypterus lost 12–33% body weight within 7 weeks, and the larger Pterois lost only 5–16% within 3 months. I discuss the advantages and disadvantages of early maturation as well as small size versus large size, and delayed maturation in these two closely-related predatory fishes. Experiments with naive adult lionfish showed that their selection of prey species is a learned process, vital to survival during growth in the prey-fishes' rich habitat of coral reefs.
Similar content being viewed by others
References cited
Adelman, H.M., J.L. Bingham & J.L. Maatch. 1955. The effect of starvation upon brook trout of three sizes. Progr. Fish-Cult. 17: 110–112.
Atema, J. 1980. Chemical sense, chemical signals, and feeding behavior in fishes. pp. 57–101. In: J.E. Bardach, J.J. Magnuson, R.C. May & J.M. Reinhart (ed.) Fish Behavior and its Use in the Capture and Culture of Fishes, ICLARM Conf. Proc. 5, ICLARM, Manila.
Charnov, E.L. & G.H. Pyke. 1977. Optimal foraging. Quarterly Rev. Biol. 52: 138–154.
Diana, J.S. 1979. The feeding pattern and daily ration of a top carnivore, the northern pike (Esox lucius). Can. J. Zool. 57: 2121–2127.
Ehrlich, P.R. 1975. The population biology of coral reef fishes. Ann. Rev. Ecol. Syst. 6: 211–247.
Fishelson, L. 1970. Spawning behaviour of the cardinal fish Cheilodipterus lineatus in Eilat (Gulf of Aqaba, Red Sea). Copeia 1970: 370–371.
Fishelson, L. 1975. Ethology and reproduction of the pteroid fishes found in the Gulf of Aqaba (Red Sea) especially Dendrochirus brachypterus (Cuvier) Pteroidae (Teleostei). Publ. Stat. Zool. Napoli 39: 635–656.
Fishelson, L. 1980. Strategies of space and food sharing and partition in fish populations leading toward optimal utilization of resources. pp. 415–445. In: J.E. Bardach, J.J. Magnuson, R.C. May & J.M. Reinhart (ed.) Fish Behavior and its Use in the Capture and Culture of Fishes, ICLARM Conf. Proc. 5, ICLARM, Manila.
Fishelson, L. 1983. Social behaviour of adult tilapia fish in nature and in captivity (Israel). pp. 48–58. In: L. Fishelson & Z. Yaron (ed.) Intern. Symp. Tilapia Aquacult., Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv.
Fishelson, L. 1989. Bisexuality and pedogenesis in gobies (Gobiidae: Teleostei) and other fish, or: Why so many little fish in tropical seas? Sencken. Marit. 20: 147–169.
Fishelson, L., L.W. Montgomery & A.A. Myrberg. 1987. Biology of Acanthurus nigrofuscus with emphasis on changeover in diet and annual gonodal cycles. Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser. 39: 37–47.
Fishelson, L. 1994. Comparative internal morphology of deepsea eels, with particular emphasis on gonads and gut structure. J. Fish Biol. 44: 75–101.
Fishelson, L. 1995. Eilat (Gulf of Aqaba) littoral: life on the red line of biodegradation. Israel J. Zool. 41: 43–55.
Folkvord, A. 1991. Growth, survival and cannibalism of cod juveniles (Gadus morhua): effects of feed type, starvation and fish size. Aquaculture 97: 41–60.
Fry, F.E.J. 1957. The aquatic respiration in fish. pp. 1–63. In: M.E. Brown (ed.) The Physiology of Fishes, Volume 1, Academic Press, New York.
Hunter, J.R. 1980. The feeding behavior and ecology of marine fish larvae. pp. 287–330. In: J.E. Bardach, J.J. Magnuson, R.C. May & J.M. Reinhart (ed.) Fish Behavior and its Use in the Capture and Culture of Fishes, ICLARM Conf. Proc. 5, ICLARM, Manila.
Iles, T.D. 1984. Allocation of resources to gonad and soma in Atlantic herring Clupea harengus L. pp. 331–347. In: G.W. Potts & R.J. Wootton (ed.) Fish Reproduction: Strategies and Tactics, Academic Press, London.
Karlsen, O., J-C. Holm & O.S. Kjesbu. 1995. Effects of periodic starvation on reproductive investment in first-time spawning Atlantic cod (Gadus morhua L.). Aquaculture 133: 159–170.
Kieffer, J.D. & P.W. Colgan. 1992. The role of learning in fish behaviour. Rev. Fish Biol. 2: 125–143.
Kuruvilla, A. & V.M. Nair. 1993. Regional metabolic variations in skeletal muscle and changes in liver and gill of Cyprinus carpio Linn. as response to starvation stress and refeeding. Indian J. Exp. Biol. 31: 765–771.
Maddock, D.M. & M.P.M. Burton. 1994. Some effects of starvation on the lipid and skeletal muscle layers of the winter flounder, Pleuronectes americanus. Can. J. Zool. 72: 1672–1679.
Mann, R.H.K. & C.A. Mills. 1979. Demographic aspects of fecundity. Symp. Zool. Soc. Lond. 44: 161–172.
Marconto, A., A. Bisazza & M. Fabris. 1993. The cost of parental care and egg cannibalism in the river bullhead, Cottus gobio L. (Pisces, Cottidae). Behav. Ecol. Sociobiol. 32: 229–237.
Mehner, T. & W. Wiesner. 1994. Energetics and metabolism correlates of starvation in juvenile perch (Perca fluviatilis). J. Fish Biol. 45: 325–333.
Micale, V. & F. Perdichizzi. 1990. A quantitative and histochemical study on melano-macrophage centers in the spleen of teleost fish, Diplodus annularis L. J. Fish Biol. 37: 191–198.
Montgomery, W.L. & P.E. Pollak. 1988. Gut anatomy and pH in a Red Sea surgeonfish, Acanthurus nigrofuscus. Mar. Ecol. Prog. Ser. 44: 7–13.
Montgomery, W.L., A.A. Myrberg & L. Fishelson. 1989. Feeding ecology of surgeonfishes (Acanthuridae) in the northern Red Sea, with particular reference to Acanthurus nigrofuscus (Foköt). J. exp. mar. Biol. Ecol. 132: 179–207.
Mrówka, W. 1994. Brood care motivation and hunger in the mouthbrooding cichlid Pseudocrenilabrus multicolor. Behav. Proc. 9: 181–190.
Pauly, D. 1984. A simple method for estimating the food consumption of fish populations from growth data and food conversion experiments. U.S. Fish. Bull. 84: 27–840.
Pijanowska, J., L.J. Weider & W. Lampert. 1993. Predator-mediated genotypic shifts in prey populations: experimental evidence. Oecologia 96: 40–42.
Reimers, E., A.G. Kjorrefjord & S.M. Stavostrand. 1993. Compensatory growth and reduced maturation in second year winter farmed Atlantic salmon following starvation in February and March. J. Fish Biol. 43: 805–810.
Sale, P.F. (ed.) 1991. The ecology of fishes on coral reefs. Academic Press, New York. 275 pp.
Schoener, J.R. 1971. Theory of feeding strategies. Ann. Rev. Ecol. Syst. 11: 369–404.
Shpigel, M. & L. Fishelson. 1986. Behaviour and physiology of coexistence in two species of Dascyllus (Pomacentridae, Teleostei). Env. Biol. Fish. 17: 253–265.
Shpigel, M. & L. Fishelson. 1989. Food habits and prey selection of three species of groupers of the genus Cephalopholis (Serranidae, Teleostei). Env. Biol. Fish. 24: 67–73.
Stearns, S.C. & R.E. Crandall. 1984. Plasticity for age and size at sexual maturity: a life-history response to unavoidable stress. pp. 13–33. In: G.W. Potts & R.J. Wootten (ed.) Reproduction Strategies and Tactics, Academic Press, London.
Thresher, R.E. 1976. Ecological determinants of social organisation of reef fishes. Proc. 3rd Internat. Symp. Coral Reefs 1: 551–557.
Whetherbee, B. 1990. Feeding biology of sharks. pp. 469–502. In: S.H. Gruber (ed.) Discovering Sharks, Special Publication, Volume 14, American Littoral Society, Highlands.
Wieser, W., G. Krumschnabel & J.P. Ojwang-Okwor. 1992. The energetics of starvation and growth after refeeding in juveniles in three cyprinid species. Env. Bio. Fish. 33: 63–71.
Yamada, S., Y. Tanaka, M. Sameshima & M. Furuichi. 1994. Effects of starvation and feeding on tissue N-α-acetylhistidine levels in Nile tilapia Oreochromis niloticus. Comp. Biochem. Physiol. 109: 277–283.
Yamasita, M. 1993. Studies on cathepsines in the muscle of chum salmon. Bull. Nat. Res. Inst. Fish. Sci. 5: 9–116.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Fishelson, L. Experiments and observations on food consumption, growth and starvation in Dendrochirus brachypterus and Pterois volitans (Pteroinae, Scorpaenidae). Environmental Biology of Fishes 50, 391–403 (1997). https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1007331304122
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1007331304122