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ICES Journal of Marine Science: Journal du Conseil 2006 63(5):867-874; doi:10.1016/j.icesjms.2006.02.002
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© 2006 International Council for the Exploration of the Sea

Trophic ecology of the Patagonian skate, Bathyraja macloviana, on the Argentine continental shelf

L.B. Scennaa,*, S.B. García de la Rosab and J.M. Díaz de Astarloac,d

a Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), and Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata (UNMdP), Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales, Departamento de Ciencias Marinas Funes 3350, Mar del Plata B7602AYL, Argentina
b UNMdP, Departamento de Ciencias Marinas Argentina
c CONICET, UNMdP, Departamento de Ciencias Marinas Argentina
d Instituto Nacional de Investigación y Desarrollo Pesquero Paseo Victoria Ocampo No 1, Mar del Plata B7602HSA, Argentina

*Correspondence to L. B. Scenna: tel: +54 223 4751107; fax: +54 223 4753150. e-mail: lscenna{at}mdp.edu.ar.

The diet, feeding strategy, and dentition of the Patagonian skate, Bathyraja macloviana, on the northern continental shelf of Argentina were studied from specimens collected during research cruises in September and October 2001. Of a total of 81 stomachs examined, only 3.7% were empty. Cumulative prey curves showed that sample sizes were adequate to describe the main prey items of the diet. Quantitative analysis, a graphical method, and trophic niche breadth indicated the species to be a specialized feeder. The most important prey items were polychaetes, followed by gammarid amphipods, isopods, and crabs. Cumaceans, ophiuroids, and hydrozoans were likely incidentally consumed by mature females. Sexual dimorphism in dentition was observed; mature males had longer and sharper tooth cusps than females or immature males. However, there was a high degree of dietary overlap between mature males and mature females, indicating that dental sexual dimorphism in the species is more important in reproductive behaviour than in differential prey consumption.

Keywords: Argentine waters, Bathyraja macloviana, dentition, diet, feeding strategy, Rajidae, trophic niche breadth

Received 31 May 2005; accepted 2 February 2006.


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