Diet composition and trophic level of bluefin searobin, Chelidonichthys spinosusin the South Sea of Korea

The diet composition of bluefin searobin, Chelidonichthys spinosus was studied using 397 specimens collected by fisheries resources survey vessels bottom trawls of national institute of fisheries science in February, June, May, August and November 2022 from nineteen areas in the South Sea of Korea. The species ranged from 9.7 cm to 42.0 cm in total length (TL). C. spinosus was bottom-feeding carnivore that fed mainly on Macrura, which constituted 85.7% of %IRI, especially Leptochela sydniensis. The proportion of Macrura decreased inversely proportional to body size, whereas the consumption of Brachyura and Stomatopoda increased gradually. With the increase in body size of C. spinosus, a significant rise in the mean weight of prey per stomach (mW/ST) was observed (one-way ANOVA, P<0.05).