Feeding of European Pilchard, Sardina pilchardus (Walbaum, 1792) in Derna Coast, Eastern Libya

A total of 700 specimens of Sardina pilchardus were collected monthly from the catch of trawling net and lampara fishery operating on the Derna coast on the Mediterranean Sea from August to July 2018. The feeding habits including the annual diet composition, monthly variations in the diet composition, and the variations of the diet with length, and the intensity of feeding were studied. Sardinella pilchardus feed on a wide variety of prey types: copepods (37.9%), cladocerans (22.0%), polychaete larvae (17.0%), dinoflagellates (14.1%), diatoms (5.2%), and crustaceans eggs (3.9%). Copepods and cladocerans were the major food item all year round (59.9%) and it was found in all length groups. In the present study copepods, cladocerans, polychaeta larvae, and crustacean eggs increased as the size increased while diatoms and dinoflagellates decreased as the fish size increased. The feeding intensity was quite high during the autumn (72.9%), summer (74.7%), and spring (60.7%).