Alimentação da tainha Mugil curema (Perciformes: Mugilidae) e caracterização ambiental do estuário do Rio Paraíba do Norte

Abstract

Mugil curema Valenciennes, 1836, is a species of great economic importance, it occurs mainly in estuarine and coastal areas which they are used for food. These areas are subjected to strong anthropogenic impacts. This study aimed to deepen the knowledge on the feeding of M. curema and the influence of physical-chemical variables on diet these animals.In the state of Paraíba, Rio Paraíba do Norte suffers due to the continuing impact of human activities, it may interfere with the behavioe and life cicle of various species on site. The water quality and substrate is critical for maintaining the base bodies of foof chains, as well as the fis themselves in their initial stages ontogenetic particulary susceptible to environmental unbalance and mortality. Thys study tested hypothesis that the high loads os nutrients in the stuary the increase od algae communities due to eutriphication, positively influencing the diet and abundance of M. curema. It was developed in Paraíba do Norte River estuary, through monthly samplings from July 2010 to June 2011, on four sampling stations. Phytoplankton sampling and water for physical-chemical analysis were also performed. We sampled 130 individuals of M. curema, whose stomachs were analyzed. Cyclotella and Coscinodiscus were the main phytoplankton resources in the diet of M. curema. The analyses indicate the possibility that the individuals may picky on the some food items, because even with high density of some species in the water, they did not occur in stomachs examined. The rainfall on the drainage basin in the Paraíba do Norte River has great influence on water quality in the estuary, both in nutrients carried and in the salinity reduction. It was concluded that the diet of M. curema was basically of Bacillariophyceae, Coscinodiscophyceae, Cyanobacteria and sediment, and that both young and adults mullets use the estuary for feeding.