Cephalopod Prey of the Sub-Antarctic Fur Seal, Arctocephalus tropicalis, at Gough Island
The Sub-Antarctic Fur Seal, Arctocephalus tropicalis, at Gough Island preys predominantly on cephalopods, but includes relatively small quantities of fish in its diet. Stomachs of Fur Seals (n = 220) culled on land were either empty (32%), contained only stones (8%) or contained almost exclusively p...
| Main Authors: | , |
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| Other Authors: | , , |
| Format: | Book Part |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Springer
1985
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://oceanrep.geomar.de/id/eprint/34027/ https://oceanrep.geomar.de/id/eprint/34027/7/714.pdf |
| Summary: | The Sub-Antarctic Fur Seal, Arctocephalus tropicalis, at Gough Island preys predominantly on cephalopods, but includes relatively small quantities of fish in its diet. Stomachs of Fur Seals (n = 220) culled on land were either empty (32%), contained only stones (8%) or contained almost exclusively prey remains resistant to digestion, such as cephalopod pens, ‘beaks’, eye balls, fish bones and otoliths. The pooled cephalopod lower beaks (n = 424) that could be identified (n = 337), showed that Ommastrephidae (52.5%), Histioteuthidae (25.2%), Onychoteuthidae (19.9%), Cranchiidae (2.1%) and Octopoteuthidae (0.3%) constituted the main prey items based on frequency of occurrence. Cephalopod mass estimates, from regression of lower rostral lengths against mass, approximated this relative arrangement of cephalopod families. |
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