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ICES Journal of Marine Science: Journal du Conseil 2006 63(9):1682-1694; doi:10.1016/j.icesjms.2006.07.003
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© 2006 International Council for the Exploration of the Sea

Feeding habits of demersal fish in Icelandic waters: a multivariate approach

Andrzej Jaworski* and Stefán Áki Ragnarsson

Marine Research Institute Skúlagata 4, PO Box 1390, 121 Reykjavík, Iceland

*Correspondence to A. Jaworski: FRS Marine Laboratory, PO Box 101, 375 Victoria Road, Aberdeen AB11 9DB, UK; tel: +44 1224 876544; fax: +44 1224 295511. e-mail: jaworskia{at}marlab.ac.uk.

Stomach data were examined to assess the key factors that determine diet composition in some of the most important demersal fish species in Icelandic waters and to identify major feeding guilds. The data were collected during the groundfish surveys conducted by the Marine Research Institute in 1992. The factors examined included geographic position, depth, season, and fish size. Data were analysed using multivariate methods: canonical correspondence analysis (CCA), non-metric multi-dimensional scaling (NMDS), and hierarchical clustering. For the CCA, important explanatory variables for the observed feeding patterns were found using forward stepwise selection. Fish size was the most important explanatory variable for most species, reflecting distinct ontogenetic shifts in diets. A large variation in diet composition was observed, and the CCA model explained 6–16% of the total variation. The spatial and seasonal variability in diets reflected, in general, patterns of prey availability. Among the main predators, the two major feeding guilds were (i) species preying mainly on echinoderms, supplemented with fish and other benthic invertebrates, and (ii) species preying mainly on crustaceans and fish.

Keywords: Amblyraja radiata, Anarhichas lupus, Anarhichas minor, feeding habits, Gadus morhua, Hippoglossoides platessoides, Iceland, Melanogrammus aeglefinus, Pollachius virens, Sebastes marinus

Received 6 April 2006; accepted 12 July 2006.


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