Feeding ecology and reproductive biology of the orange-spotted toadfish Torquigener hypselogeneion (Bleeker, 1852) (Tetraodontidae) in the Taşucu Bay, Mediterranean Coast of Türkiye
Makaleler > Tam Makale · 2025
Yazarlar: Erhan Irmak, Uğur Özden, Semih Engin, Dilruba Seyhan Öztürk, Adnan Çağlar Oruç, Sencer AKALIN
Ege Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences, Uluslararası, 2025, cilt 42, ss 232-240
Özet
This study examines the feeding ecology and reproductive biology of the invasive pufferfish Torquigener hypselogeneion along the Levantine coast of Türkiye. A total of 400 specimens were sampled (2018–2019), with a length-weight relationship of W = 0.0198L3.0144 (r = 0.983). Stomach content analysis identified 24 prey groups, with crustaceans, gastropods, and bivalves being the most significant. T. hypselogeneion exhibits fully opportunistic feeding behavior. The reproductive period spans July to October, peaking in September (GSI values). Relative fecundity averaged 29046 ± 1525 eggs. During the field surveys, it was determined that T. hypselogeneion was one of the most abundant invasive fish species in the coastal ecosystem in the study area. These findings provide key bio-ecological insights into T. hypselogeneion in the eastern Mediterranean.