Predation Of Mesopelagic Fish In Faroese Waters

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Mesopelagic fish (lanternfish, pearlsides and white barracudina) has no important as prey on the Faroese shelf and Faroe Bank. There was only found mesopelagic prey in a few stomachs of cod, haddock, and greenland halibut (19 of 10.882 stomachs). Conversely, salmon and saithe feed on lanternfish of the Faroese shelf and of the Faroe Bank. In total 3949 salmon stomachs and 5386 saithe stomachs are analyzed in Faroese waters. Four percent of the analyzed saithe had feed on lanternfish and 12 % of the analyzed salmon had feed on lanternfish. The predators that had feed on lanternfish were caught of the shelf and of the Faroe Bank (86 % of the saithe and 100 % of the salmon). When the saithe was divided into areas, 10 % had eaten lanternfish of the shelf and 2 % had feed on lanternfish on the shelf and Faroe Bank. White barracudina which mainly occurs below 200 m depth was preyed upon by saithe (6.7 %) and salmon (2.4 %) of the shelf and greenland halibut on the Faroe self (4 %). Pearlsides, which mainly occur in the epipelagic zone, was common prey for saithe on the shelf (2 %) and Faroe Bank (1.8 %) and for salmon of the shelf (12 %). The saithe that were caught relative close to bottom feed on lanternfish more often when lanternfish were available and one saithe had eaten 27 lanternfish while the cod that feed in the same area and depth as saithe preferred to feed on blue whiting.