Diet of two cyprinid species, White bream (Blicca bjoerkna) and Common roach (Rutilus rutilus) in the Danube river, Belgrade

Abstract

Food and feeding habits of white bream (Blicca bjoerkna) and common roach (Rutilus rutilus) specimens sampled from the Belgrade section of the Danube River in April 2021 were investigated. Stomach contents of 20 individuals of both cyprinid fish species were analyzed and no individual had an empty stomach. There was a small difference in the stomach contents of these two analyzed fish. The food items in stomach showed a wide spectrum, ranging from crustacean, molluscs to aquatic insects. Therefore, analyzed fish species displayed an omnivorous feeding. Based on the obtained data, the indices of frequency, abundance and significance for each of the identified prey categories were calculated. Trichoptera (aquatic insects) and Gammaridae (Crustacea) were found to be the most common and abundant prey utilized by all analyzed species. The attained results, since these are relatively small samples collected during one monthly outing (April), can be considered preliminary and require further research.