Michigan Department of Natural Resources
Institute for Fisheries Research
212 Museums Annex Building
Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109-1084
Abstract.-Insights
into the dynamics of fish growth can be gained by using foraging
theory to link bioenergetics models of fish and their prey. These
links are critical for modeling fish daily ration and growth, prey
mortality, selection among prey, and competition among predators.
However, the foraging theory that is relatively well developed for
planktivores does not always apply to piscivores without important
modifications. Visual encounter is often limited by visual acuity for
most planktivores, but probably limited by prey contrast for
piscivores, so that piscivore reactive distance is much less
dependent on prey size. Whereas handling time per prey may limit the
capture rate for some planktivores, it is irrelevant for most
piscivores, which eat relatively small numbers of large prey and are
more likely to have daily ration limited by rates of digestion or
prey encounter. Time for gastric evacuation or digestion should not
be a part of handling time, because search can occur simultaneously
with digestion. If handling time is not important for piscivores,
then Holling's Type-1 functional response may be more appropriate
than the Type-2. An alternate form of the functional response is
presented for predators that feed on prey of uniform size and stop
foraging each day when some maximum number of prey are ingested. This
functional response has a negatively accelerated rise to an
asymptote, similar to the Type-2 functional response, but based on a
very different mechanism. Simulations with a bioenergetics model show
that the variance in daily growth among individuals is likely to be
greater for piscivores, which feed on a small number of large prey,
than for planktivores, which feed on a large number of small
prey.