Feeding dynamics in fish experiencing cycles of feed deprivation: a comparison of four species

Abstract The temporal dynamics of daily food consumption were examined in individually housed fish that experienced four cycles of 1 week of feed deprivation followed by 2 weeks of feeding to satiation. Four species were compared: European minnows Phoxinus phoxinus: Cyprinidae; three‐spined sticklebacks Gasteosteus aculeatus: Gasterosteidae: gibel carp Carassius auratus gibelio: Cyprinidae; and the longsnout catfish Leiocassis longirostris: Bagridae. The stickleback, carp and catfish showed significant compensatory increases in food intake following deprivation, with the response becoming clearer in successive cycles. The temporal pattern of consumption during the refeeding periods differed between the four species. In sticklebacks, daily intake over a refeeding period initially decreased, but then recovered. In minnows, intake tended to decline over a refeeding period. Gibel carp showed an increase in daily intake on refeeding, but this may have reflected an adverse response to weighing. Over a refeeding period, catfish had a weak tendency to show an initial decline, followed by an increase. These differences are discussed in relation to differences in experimental protocols and biological differences between the species.