Dietary Overlap Between Non-Native Pike Killifish and Juvenile Snook in Tampa Bay, FL

Pike killifish is an established non-native fish species in Florida that was first documented in south Florida in 1957 and secondarily in the Tampa Bay area in 1994. Decreases in small-bodied fish abundances have been linked to the introduction of pike killifish in both of these regions. Recent increases in the range and abundance of pike killifish in Tampa Bay and overlap in habitat usage has led to concerns about potential competition with, and predation on, early-juvenile common snook (≤100 mm SL). Stomach contents of pike killifish and early-juvenile snook were collected to examine both the dietary overlap of these two species and potential differences in the diet of early-juvenile snook from locations with and without pike killifish co-occurring. Prey resources were collected at the time of sampling from locations with and without pike killifish co-occurring to assess possible prey limitations. Preliminary analysis indicates that the diet of pike killifish overlaps with that of early-juvenile snook, but early-juvenile snook have a wider diet breadth, consuming a number of organisms that are not consumed by pike killifish. There also does not appear to be a substantial difference in the diet of early-juvenile snook from locations with and without pike killifish co-occurring.