Salt River, Clarendon (Jamaica) is a popular recreational spot for many locals. This River is unique in its nature as the brackish water allows for both marine and freshwater fish species to thrive in this ecosystem. The feeding ecology of four co-occurring mojarra species, Eucinostomus argenteus, Diapterus auratus, Gerres cinereus, and Diapterus rhombeus in Salt River, a shallow, brackish water, tropical stream on the south coast of Jamaica was studied. Stomach content analyses were performed, and these revealed that the fishes have a primarily zoobenthic diet. Both juveniles and sub-adults of the four species feed significantly on cyclopoid copepods, but in varying amounts. Invertebrate eggs, nematodes, algae (both filamentous and unicellular), and amorphous organic matter were shown to be of significant importance in the diets as well. The working hypothesis is that these four species of mojarras vary their diet within and among the species to decrease competition within this habitat. This research is of national importance as Salt River, a part of the Portland Bight protected area which is the largest protected area in Jamaica, acts as a nursery for the juveniles of the fishes that inhabits the water in and around Goat Islands. The research was led by Tremaine Bowman (Graduate Student, Department of Life Sciences and her supervisor, Dr. Eric Hyslop (Freshwater Ecologist and Fish Biologist).

Reference: Tremaine Bowman and Eric J. Hyslop. 2022. The feeding ecology of four species of Mojarras (Family: Gerreidae) inhabiting a brackish water stream in Jamaica. Caribbean Journal of Science (2022), 52: pp. 353–372. https://doi.org/10.18475/cjos.v52i2.a15

Photo caption (L-R): Dr. Eric Hyslop (Freshwater Ecologist and Fish Biologist) and Tremaine Bowman (Graduate Student, Department of Life Sciences,The UWI Mona).

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