Some observations on the feeding ecology of Norwegian spring spawning herring (Clupea harengus) along the coast of Norway
Original version
This report is not to be cited without prior reference to the authorAbstract
The feeding ecology of Norwegian spring spawning herring Clupea
harengus was studied with samples collected from cruises in
February -March 1991, May 1992, and February and April 1993. A
wide variety of zooplankton organisms were observed in the diet of
herring, with crustaceans dominating except in samples from May
1992 when larvaceans (Oikopleura sp.) dominated. Fish were
occasionally preyed. In addition to larvaceans, copepods (Calanus
finmarchicus and C. hyperboreus ) and amphipods (Parathemisto
spp.) were important food items in the diet of herring captured in
May 1992. Krill (Thysanoessa inermis and Meganyctiphanes
norvegica) were the major prey of herring from the Møre coast in
February-March 1991 and in February 1993. Plankton samples taken
with MOCNESS from the same area also showed krill to be
dominant. Sixty to seventy per cent of the stomachs examined from
these two cruises were empty indicating low feeding activity during
the spawning season.