Fishes exhibit a range of feeding modes and strategies to forage in and on sand habitat. Here, we describe a novel feeding mode, whereby small juvenile baldchin groper, Choerodon rubescens (⁓65–100 mm TL), vigorously forward sweeps the benthos with a single pectoral fin to reveal small benthic prey and visually scans the immediate benthos on the swept side of the body. The behaviour was not exhibited by larger conspecifics (140–180 mm TL) presumably because they had progressed to larger and hard‐shelled benthic prey and/or perhaps because the small juveniles foraged more or less continuously to obtain enough very small prey. These records confirm yet another mode of prey capture in the evolution of the highly variable feeding repertoire of the Labridae.
Details
Title
Another Novel Feeding Mode in the Labridae: Juvenile Tuskfish Fan Sand With Vigorous Single Pectoral Fin Swipes
Authors/Creators
Brendan C. Ebner - Murdoch University
David L. Morgan - Murdoch University, Centre for Sustainable Aquatic Ecosystems