Feeding habits of starry ray (Raja radiata) in West Greenland waters

• Published in: ICES Journal of Marine Science
• Main Author: Pedersen, Søren Anker
• Format: Text
• Language: English
• Published: Oxford University Press 1995
• Subjects: Articles; Greenland; northern shrimp; Pandalus borealis; Copepods
• Online Access: http://icesjms.oxfordjournals.org/cgi/content/short/52/1/43; https://doi.org/10.1016/1054-3139(95)80014-X

A total of 1436 starry ray ( Raja radiata ) stomachs were collected on the shrimp fishing grounds off West Greenland in summer and autumn 1990–1991. Starry rays <20 cm fed primarily on copepods, gammarids, mysids, and polychaetes, while larger specimens >19 cm fed mainly on northern shrimp ( Pandalus borealis but also fish, mainly redfish ( Sebastes sp.)). The maximum sizes of shrimp and redfish eaten increased with ray size, but prey-predator size relationships showed weak correlations. Predator size, depth of water, and year were found to influence the average degree of stomach fullness. Starry ray is an opportunistic feeder. Northern shrimp and redfish are by far the most abundant shrimp and fish species on the West Greenland shrimp grounds and these prey species dominate the food of starry ray. Redfish becomes available to starry ray through fishing mortality in the shrimp fishery.