02225nas a2200277   4500008004500000020001400045245010500059210006900164260000800233300001200241490000700253520141000260653000801670653001201678653001101690653001101701653001101712653001401723653001101737653001501748653001001763100001701773700001701790700001701807856012301824       2007                        Engldsh    a0175-865900aFeeding habits of sand smelt (<i>Atherina boyeri</i>, Risso 1810) in Trichonis Lake (Western Greece)0 aFeeding habits of sand smelt iAtherina boyerii Risso 1810 in Tri  cJun  a209-2140 v233 aThe feeding habits of sand smelt (Atherina boyeri, Risso, 1810) from Trichonis Lake (Western Greece) were investigated. Stomach contents were analyzed from 240 specimens with total lengths ranging from 35 to 112 mm. Samples were taken at monthly intervals (January-December 1997). Of the total number of stomachs examined, 53 were empty (22.1%). However, values varied greatly with season (maximum in January: 50%; minimum in August: 7.6%). Prey analyses of stomach contents identified 15 important items (%Rn > 0.05) belonging to six major groups: crustacean (copepods, cladocera), mollusca (bivalve: larvae), insects (larvae), cestode worms and finfish (fry and eggs). Dominant prey were larvae of the bivalve Dreissena polymorpha (%Rn = 33.8), the copepods Eudiadomus drieschi (%Rn = 26.4) and the cladocera Diaphanosoma brachyurum (%Rn = 24.2). The importance of cladocera and copepods decreased with increasing size of the sand smelt, while the importance of bivalve larvae, fish eggs and finfish fry increased with increasing sand smelt size. Seasonal changes in diet composition and prey abundance in sand smelt stomachs were recorded as coinciding with the seasonal composition and abundance of the zooplankton community in the surface layers of Trichonis Lake. Bivalve larvae were the dominant prey of A. boyeri during January to May, while copepods and cladocera dominated from June to December.10aage10aestuary10afishes10agrowth10alagoon10amortality10aPisces10apopulation10ariver1 aChrisafi, E.1 aKaspiris, P.1 aKatselis, G.  uhttps://icgf.myspecies.info/content/feeding-habits-sand-smelt-atherina-boyeri-risso-1810-trichonis-lake-western-greece