Arctic skate preys on remarkably large glacial eelpouts
Published on 21. November 2014
Arctic skate Amblyraja hyperborea preys on remarkably large glacial eelpouts Lycodes frigidus
I. Byrkjedal, J. S. Christiansen, O. V. Karamushko, G. Langhelle, A. Lynghammar
ABSTRACT:
During scientific surveys on the continental slopes north-west of Spitsbergen and off north-east Greenland (c. 600 and 1000 m depths), two female Arctic skates Amblyraja hyperborea were caught while swallowing extraordinary large individuals of glacial eelpout Lycodes frigidus. The total length (LT) of the prey constituted 50 and 80% of the LT of the skates, which reveal that A. hyperborea are capable predators of fishes of surprisingly large relative size.
Journal of Fish Biology. Early View Version, doi: 10.1111/jfb.12554