Assessmet of feeding habitas of Carangoides chrysophorys in Hormozgan waters Province

Longnose trevally is one of the most important species of the Carangidae and is considered as a commercially important fish species. In this research, 440 samples were collected by trawl net from different locations of fishing harbors from spring 2016 to winter 2017 in Hormozgan waters authority. After the initial analysis and biometry, the samples were frozen and transferred to the laboratory. At the beginning of the study, samples were dissected and the stomach weight, type of stomach contents, gastric contents and liver weight were analyzed.The results showed that the preference of food in males and females for fish, as main food, was 76.6% and 18.1%, respectively, for crustaceans were 11.1% and 17.4%, and for molluscs were 4.8% and 4.3% respectively. Among the fish samples obtained from the stomach, Engrauliudae, Ambassidae, Nemipetridae and Mullidae composed 56.6%, 19.62%, 5.6%, 4.67% respectively, and the total of the other fish was 13.51%. Among the crustaceans, shrimps and crabs made up 63.15 and 36.85% of the stomach contents, respectively. Statistical analysis did not show a significant difference between male and female nutritional preferences (P ≥ 0.05). The average Stomach emptiness index (CV) was 69.67%. The longnose trevally is a carnivorous species, and the results of  the current research show that the main food of this species are fish and crustaceans in the studied region. This species is considered as relatively low appetite fishes, and the highest percentage of Stomach emptiness index was obtained in the summer and winter seasons.