Feeding Habits of Ctenochromis polli Thys Van Den Audenaerde, 1964 (Labriformes, Cichlidae), From Low Course of Djoue River (Affluent of Right Bank of Congo River)

摘要

The diet of from the lower Djoue River was determined by the size of the specimens and the sampling season. Stomach contents of 662 specimens caught monthly from September 2012 to August 2013 were examined. The size of the individuals varies between 15.37 and 109.52 mm, for a mean 49.95 ± 8.3. Of the stomachs analyzed, 145 were empty, representing a vacuity coefficient of 22%. The food spectrum of C. polli consists mainly of algaes (Ip = 65%) and plant debris (Ip = 11%). A plasticity of the diet is observed according to the size, at sizes greater than 69.17mm (Classes 5-7), a gradual change in diet was observed with entomophagous and ichthyophagous tendency. The diet varies little according to the seasons; the algaes are the main preys in the dry season and insects during the rainy season. The food composition and the intestinal coefficient value showed that Ctenochromis polli is herbivorous.