Effect of the selective feeding ofGalaxias maculatus(Salmoniformes, Galaxiidae) on zooplankton of a South Andes lake

The effect of larval and juvenile predation ofGalaxias maculatus on a natural small-sized zooplankton was studied in a South Andes lake. Field data of zooplankton density and composition were combined with fish gut content analysis during a spring-summer season. Results showed thatGalaxias early stages ingested mostly planktonic preys. A shift was observed in prey electivity: larvae preferred copepod nauplii whereas juveniles preferred cladocerans. Larval predation provokes the failure of the summer cohort of the calanoid copepodBoeckella gracilipes. The effect of juveniles is more undefined, but seems to prevent the reappearance ofCeriodaphnia in the summer plankton.