Daily rations and food availability of Japanese flounder Paralichthys olivaceus,small flounder Tarphops oligolepis and sand goby Favonigobius gymnauchen at a sandy beach in the central Seto Inland Sea,Japan

ABSTRACT:     To estimate the daily rations of Paralichthys olivaceus , Tarphops oligolepis and Favonigobius gymnauchen and to clarify diel variation in food availability to them, diel sampling was conducted over a 24-h period at a sandy beach in the Seto Inland Sea, Japan. The mean total length and body weight (BW) of P. olivaceus , T. oligolepis and F. gymnauchen were 32.6 mm (0.35 g), 23.7 mm (0.13 g) and 50.2 mm (1.03 g), respectively. The mean stomach contents index and percentages of stomachs with food were high during the day but low at night, indicating that these species are day-feeders. Paralichthys olivaceus and F. gymnauchen consumed mainly mysids and crangonids, whereas T. oligolepis fed chiefly on mysids. The estimated mean daily rations (95% confidence intervals) for P. olivaceus , T. oligolepis and F. gymnauchen made with the bootstrap method were 18.1 (9.3–31.3)%BW, 13.2 (7.9–24.3)%BW and 3.7 (1.7–7.4)%BW, respectively. Mysids were more abundant in the near-bottom layer during the day than at night, but the opposite was true for crangonids.