Predator-prey relationships of winter flounder, Pleuronectes americanus, in the New York Bight apex

• Published in: Fishery bulletin (Washington, D.C.) Vol. 92; no. 3; pp. 608 - 619
• Main Authors: Steimle, F W, Jeffress, D, Fromm, SA, Reid, R N, Vitaliano, J J, Frame, A
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: 1994
• Subjects: Marine; Pleuronectes americanus; ANW, USA, New York Bight
• ISSN: 0090-0656

A 39-Month study of the effects of cessation of sewage sludge disposal in the New York Bight apex on the diets of certain fishes and on the benthic macro-faunal community provided an opportunity to examine predator-prey relationships of winter flounder, Pleuronectes americanus, one of the common predators in the area. Benthic macrofauna and winter flounder were collected monthly and bimonthly, respectively, from July 1986 through September 1989 at three sites in the Bight apex that are variably influenced by sewage sludge. There were limited changes in winter flounder diets and abundance of dominant benthic macrofaunal species following cessation of sewage sludge disposal. The comparison of volumetric contribution of common prey in flounder stomachs to potential-prey abundance in benthic samples suggested several relationships. These included evidence of preferential predation on the polychaete Pherusa affinis; this selective preference may be associated with its high caloric content as well as with its average high biomass density. Other common prey, primarily polychaetes but including an anthozoan, were also preyed upon in proportions greater than their abundance in the environment. Some moderately abundant potential prey, such as the small near-surface-dwelling mollusc. Nucula proxima and the ribbon worm Cerebratulus lacteus were not commonly preyed upon suggesting they were unavailable as prey or were avoided by winter flounder. Corresponding fluctuations in abundances and predation of the pollution-tolerant polychaete Capitella sp. and the pollution-sensitive amphipod Unciola irrorata suggested a proportional consumption relationship in association with sludge disposal and its cessation.