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<p>Individual dietary specialization is a fundamental phenomenon for understanding ecological niche dynamics, but its expression may vary depending on temporal scale and environmental context. We investigated the diet of the Amazonian cichlid <i>Mesonauta festivus</i> (Heckel 1840) across four floodplain populations, combining stomach content analysis, which reflects short-term assimilation, with stable isotope analysis, which integrates long-term feeding patterns. While stomach contents indicated high individual specialization and marked spatial heterogeneity, isotopic data revealed trophic convergence over time and strong similarity among populations. Dietary differences between sexes were observed only in some localities and were not associated with morphological variation. Overall, the findings suggest that individual specialization in <i>M. festivus</i> is transient and influenced by extrinsic factors in the short term. This study emphasizes the importance of integrating complementary methodological approaches to better understand the trophic dynamics of fish in Amazonian floodplain ecosystems.</p>

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Stomach contents and stable isotopes reveal contrasting short- and long-term dietary patterns in an Amazonian cichlid

  • 期刊论文

  • 发表日期：

    2026年4月28日

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  • Cândida Juliana Albertin-Santos,
  • Ana Odete de Melo Eloi da Silva,
  • Efrem Jorge Gondim Ferreira,
  • Jansen Zuanon,
  • Márcio Silva Araújo

摘要

Individual dietary specialization is a fundamental phenomenon for understanding ecological niche dynamics, but its expression may vary depending on temporal scale and environmental context. We investigated the diet of the Amazonian cichlid Mesonauta festivus (Heckel 1840) across four floodplain populations, combining stomach content analysis, which reflects short-term assimilation, with stable isotope analysis, which integrates long-term feeding patterns. While stomach contents indicated high individual specialization and marked spatial heterogeneity, isotopic data revealed trophic convergence over time and strong similarity among populations. Dietary differences between sexes were observed only in some localities and were not associated with morphological variation. Overall, the findings suggest that individual specialization in M. festivus is transient and influenced by extrinsic factors in the short term. This study emphasizes the importance of integrating complementary methodological approaches to better understand the trophic dynamics of fish in Amazonian floodplain ecosystems.