DIET AND FEEDING-BEHAVIOR OF JUVENILE AND ADULT BANANA PRAWNS PENAEUS-MERGUIENSIS IN THE GULF OF CARPENTARIA, AUSTRALIA

The diet of Penaeus merguiensis de Man was studied by examining the co ntents of the foreguts of 432 juveniles collected from estuarine and 4 67 adults from offshore habitats in the Gulf of Carpentaria between Fe bruary 1985 and November 1989. The juveniles in the estuary had fed ma inly at night and on rising or near-high tides; the largest amount of food was found in prawns collected 2 h after high tide. Crustaceans, b ivalves, gastropods and polychaetes were the most common food items in the guts of both juveniles and adults. Copepods and other crustaceans were significantly more common in the diet of juvenile prawns caught at night. Foraminiferans, nematodes and algae were found less frequent ly as the size of the prawns increased. Comparative analysis of foregu t contents showed no difference between schooling and non-schooling ad ult P. merguiensis. The study shows that tidal stage, daylight, and th e size of P. merguiensis affect the composition of the diet.