1Graduate School of Science and Technology, 2Faculty of Fisheries, Nagasaki University, Bunkyo, Nagasaki 852-8521, Japan
We compared the feeding selectivity of three marine fish larvae, spotted halibut, yellowtail and flathead, according to their growth by using two strains of L-type rotifer and one strain of S-type rotifer. In the experiment on the selectivity to shape of rotifer lorica (L and S-type), the larvae of the three species showed similar selectivity though the shape of the lorica and the anterior spines were different. In terms of rotifer size selection, the larvae of the three species positively selected smaller rotifer at the onset of feeding. However, the selection shifted to larger rotifers on 10 DAH for spotted halibut and 16 DAH for yellowtail and flathead larvae. By comparing the selectivity based on mouth size, flathead larvae showed strong selectivity to larger rotifers than spotted halibut and yellowtail larvae.