Abstract
The consumption of bluegill by Far Eastern catfish and largemouth bass was examined in aquaria. Twenty or more live bluegill were introduced into each aquarium with one catfish or largemouth bass. Bluegill were captured in Lake Sugawa, Nagano Prefecture, and almost all of them could be preyed upon by the catfish and bass. The consumption of bluegill was correlated with the body weight of catfish and bass except for the very large predator individuals. Far Eastern catfish consumed comparatively more bluegill (9.4% of the catfish body weight per day) than largemouth bass (4.5%). Stocking Far Eastern catfish is potentially an effective method for reducing bluegill, although prey-selection experiments using bluegill, native Japanese prey fish and the catfish are required before actively advocating the biological control of bluegill using Far Eastern catfish.
