Document Type
Article
Date of Original Version
1996
Department
Oceanography
Abstract
Hydroids are typically attached, benthic cnidarians that feed on a variety of small prey. During sampling on Georges Bank in spring 1994, we found huge numbers of hydroids suspended in the plankton. They fed on young stages of copepods that are an important prey for fish, as well as on young fish themselves. Two independent methods were used to estimate feeding rates of the hydroids; both indicate that the hydroids are capable of consuming from 50% to over 100% of the daily production of young copepods. These results suggest that hydroids can have a profound effect on the population dynamics of zooplankton and young fish on Georges Bank.
Publication Title, e.g., Journal
Deep Sea Research Part II: Topical Studies in Oceanography
Volume
43
Issue
7-8
Citation/Publisher Attribution
Madin, L. P., Bollens, S. M., Horgan, E., Butler, M., Runge, J., Sullivan, B. K.,...Clarke, M. E. (1996). Voracious planktonic hydroids: unexpected predatory impact on a coastal marine ecosystem. Deep Sea Research Part II: Topical Studies in Oceanography, 43(7-8), 1823-1829. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0967-0645(96)00038-0
Available at: https://doi.org/10.1016/S0967-0645(96)00038-0
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 License.