Diet and trophic interactions between catadromous eels and sympatric fish in Kenyan east flowing river systems

Abstract

Biotic interactions such as competition and predation are important ecological drivers of population structure. Interactions among higher trophic level fish can contribute to further population declines in species, such as eels, made vulnerable by overexploitation or environmental change. Furthermore, trophic interactions may further predispose eel populations to collapse, but this is poorly understood, particularly along the Western Indian Ocean (WIO) rivers. This study evaluated stomach contents of fish captured with glass and commercial fyke nets in the Athi and Ramisi Rivers, which discharge into the WIO. Stomach contents were examined using dissecting microscope to establish diet composition. Eels primarily consumed assorted fish (43 %), and crustaceans (36 %); such as penaeid shrimp (14%) and prawns (13%) and crab (9%), thus belonged to a higher trophic level (TL) of 3.47 than native (2.98) or introduced (2.8) sympatric fish species. Diet breadth of eels was significantly lower (0.20) than for sympatric fish species (0.27), attributed to higher diet specialization. The TL of carnivorous fish (3.19) and their diet compared well with those of eels, even though diet preference differed significantly among fish types. Consequently, eels ranked as vulnerable by the IUCN are further threatened by previously undescribed competition from carnivorous fish.