Diet Composition of Three Catfishes from Al-Hammar Marsh, Al-Fuhoud, Iraq

Abstract

The stomach contents of three catfish species were studied. These were Silunis triostegus Heckel, 1843, Heteropneustes fossilis (Bloch, 1794), and Mystus pelusius (Solander in Russell. 1794). Fishes were collected from Al-Hammar Marsh near Al-Fuhoud during the period from March 1989 to Febaiary1990. Small fish fonned 70.7% of the volume of food consumed by S. triostegus and 83.2% according to ranking index. While shrimp and insects larvae were rankfed first and fonned 47.7% and 59.4% of the food components M. petusis according to volumetric method and ranking index, respectively. Detritus and non-nutritional materials comprised 51.7% and 67.9% of stomach contents H. fossilis according to thetwo methods mentioned above respectively M plusius was the most active feeding fish .