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Transactions of the Nebraska Academy of Sciences and Affiliated Societies
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Full-Text Articles in Population Biology
Food Habits Of Imperiled Plains Topminnow And Diet Overlap With Invasive Western Mosquitofish In The Central Great Plains, Joseph Thiessen, Keith D. Koupal, Casey W. Schoenebeck, Julie J. Shaffer
Food Habits Of Imperiled Plains Topminnow And Diet Overlap With Invasive Western Mosquitofish In The Central Great Plains, Joseph Thiessen, Keith D. Koupal, Casey W. Schoenebeck, Julie J. Shaffer
Transactions of the Nebraska Academy of Sciences and Affiliated Societies
Plains Topminnow (Fundulus sciadicus) populations have experienced large declines throughout the Central Great Plains, with Western Mosquitofish (Gambusia affinis) introductions suggested as a contributing factor. There are limited studies identifying the food habits of Plains Topminnow and the trophic interactions with Western Mosquitofish. This study sought to determine if a diet overlap exists between the Plains Topminnow and the introduced Western Mosquitofish by identifying the feeding habits of both species. We analyzed diets from lentic and lotic populations of Plains Topminnow captured in August and found lentic topminnows employed a generalist diet while lotic topminnow selected for gastropods. …