Food of snapper in western Bay of Plenty,New Zealand

Feeding was examined in 772 snapper, Chrysophrys auratus (Bloch and Schneider), from the western Bay of Plenty, New Zealand. Occurrence, points (bulk), and numbers methods of food analysis were used in the study. Diet was extremely varied, and, by all methods of food analysis, crustaceans, polychaetes, echinoderms, molluscs, and teleosts formed the main snapper food groups, with crustaceans being the most important. Size of snapper, depth, sampling area, and time of day affected the occurrence, volume, and numbers of food items, while sex did not.

Seasonal feeding patterns on most species/categories of food varied locally within each sampling area, and there were no uniform seasonal feeding patterns for any food/category in the four sampling areas examined.