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International Journal of Marine Science 2013, Vol.3, No.12, 98-104
http://ijms.sophiapublisher.com
98
Research Article Open Access
Food and Feeding Habits of the Mudskipper,
Boleophthalmus boddarti
(Pallas, 1770) from Pichavaram Mangroves, Southeast Coast of India
V. Ravi
Centre of Advanced Study in Marine Biology, Faculty of Marine Sciences. Annamalai University, Parangipettai-608502, Tamil Nadu, India
Corresponding author email: ravi.velayudham@gmail.com
International Journal of Marine Science, 2013, Vol.3, No.12 doi: 10.5376/ijms.2013.03.0012
Received: 25 Feb., 2013
Accepted: 24 Mar., 2013
Published: 27 Mar., 2013
Copyright
©
2013 Ravi. This is an open access article published under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use,
distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Preferred citation for this article:
Ravi,V., 2013, Food and Feeding Habits of the Mudskipper,
Boleophthalmus boddarti
(Pallas, 1770) from Pichavaram Mangroves, Southeast Coast of India,
International Journal of Marine Science, Vol.3, No.12 98
-
104 (doi: 10.5376/ijms.2013.03.0012)
Abstract
The mudskipper,
Boleophthalmus boddarti
(Pallas) (Order Perciformes: Family Gobiidae) are found distributed along the
mudflats of estuary and mangroves where they construct burrows. Being amphibious and locomotive in nature, mudskippers feed
very actively in the mudflats during low tide. A total of 156 fishes (juveniles, males and females) were randomly caught using cast
net and hand nets and they were immediately preserved in formalin. In the present study, the food and feeding habits and feeding
intensities of the mudskipper,
B. boddarti
from the Pichavaram mangroves were determined following points and volumetric
methods. The results revealed that diatoms formed the major food item in the gut of
B. boddarti
and found around 55% of its diet
throughout the year. Nematodes, polychaetes, algae and fish eggs were also found constituting lower percentage during the study
period. Detritus and mud/sand particles were present in moderate percentages in all the seasons. Active feeding was noticed during
January (post monsoon to May (summer) but it was below 50% during June (summer) to September (premonsoon), whereas during
October and monsoon the feeding intensities were found very low. The poor feeding may be due to flood in the mudflats during
monsoon season.
Keywords
Mudskipper;
Boleophthalmus boddarti
; Food and feeding; Pichavaram mangroves; India
Background
Mudskippers (Order Perciformes; Family Gobiidae)
are morphologically and physiologically well-adapted
amphibious fish capable of living on land and in water.
From ecological point of view, mudflat environment is
very important for mudskippers where they actively
feed during the exposure of mudflat at low tide. At the
same time they are not able to feed during high tide
due to submergence of the mudflat. However,
mudskippers remain inside of their burrow which
protects them from predators (Milward, 1974).
Investigations on food and feeding habits of the
mudskippers reveal them either as herbivores (Ryu et
al., 1995) or carnivores (Milward, 1974; Colombini et
al., 1996). Information is available on gobiid fishes
with reference to food and feeding habits (Stebbins
and Kalk, 1961; Gordon et al.,
1968; El-Zaidy et al.,
1975; Sarkar et al., 1980). More recently, interspecific
comparison of diets has been made in relation to
competition (Ip et al., 1990). Colombini et al (1995)
described that foraging strategy of the mudskipper
(
Periophthalmus sobrinus
) take place entirely out of
water on the mud surface or at the tidal edge. Study of
the diet based upon the analysis of stomach contents is
now a standard practice in fish biology. Review of
methods and their application on stomach contents
analysis was made by Hynes (1950), Pillay (1952),
and Hyslop (1980). The morphology of the alimentary
tract in relation to diet among gobioid fishes was
studied by Geevargheese (1983). The mudskipper,
Boleophthalmus boddarti
is a distinct residential fish
which constructs burrows for sheltering along the
mudflats of Pichavaram mangroves, Southeast coast
of India. Ananda Rao et al
(1998) stated the
vulnerability of the mudskipper,
B. boddarti
while
Ravi (2005 and 2011) reported the loss of mudflat and
mudskipper population along the Southeast coast of
India. Therefore, the objective of the present study is
to investigate food preference of
B. boddarti
according to their life stages and sexes by using
stomach content analysis.