Trophic structure of fish assemblages in the lower Miranda River, Pantanal, Mato Grosso do Sul State, Brazil.

Abstract

Of a total of 101 fish species caught in the Lower Miranda River floodplain, 29 were omnivorous, 16 ichthyophagous, 12 herbivorous, 18 detritivorous, 8 zooplanktophagous, 7 insectivorous, 2 lepidophagous, 4 ichthyophagous/insectivorous and 4 zooplanktophagous/insectivorous. Almost half of the species belong to omnivorous and detritivorous trophic guilds. The same is not true when biomass is considered. The number of fish species by trophic guild didn't change along the year whereas the biomass changed significantly. The frequency of abundant fish species was not the same for the sampled environments.