The freshwater grass shrimp Palaemonetes antennarius in the diet of fish in Lake Bracciano (Central Italy)

• Main Authors: Traversetti L., Dörr A.J.M., Scalici M.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: EDP Sciences 2016-01-01
• Series: Knowledge and Management of Aquatic Ecosystems
• Subjects: Decapoda; Palaemonidae; Palaemonetes antennarius; fish stomach content analysis; Mediterranean
• Online Access: http://dx.doi.org/10.1051/kmae/2015040

We evaluated the importance of the freshwater grass shrimp Palaemonetes antennarius as trophic source for the lacustrine fish of the Lake Bracciano (Central Italy) analyzing 6120 stomach contents of 10 species. Shrimp was recorded for all size classes of the investigated species with a variation in frequency and abundance depending on seasons. P. antennarius was occasionally preyed by cyprinids, and systematically by small individuals of carnivorous fish. Our findings acquire more importance if we take the shrimps ecological niche into account, as it is potentially acting as detritivorous/generalist and predator of benthic invertebrates as well. This feeding behavior makes P. antennarius an important network ring, being a taxon that ought to receive the same attention recommended for other freshwater decapods as proposed for Austropotamobius pallipes and Potamon fluviatile.