We assessed the trophic structure of the fish fauna in Sinhá Mariana pond, Mato Grosso State, from March 2000 to February 2001. The aim was to determine the feeding patterns of the fish species during the rainy and dry seasons. The diets of 26 species (1,294 stomach contents) were determined by the volumetric method. Insects and fish were the most important food resources: insects were the dominant food of 23% and 27% of the species, respectively, in the rainy and dry season, and fish was the dominant item for 31% of the species in both seasons. Cluster analysis (Euclidean Distance) identified seven trophic guilds in the rainy season (detritivores, herbivores, insectivores, lepidophages, omnivores, piscivores and planktivores), and five trophic guilds in... |