Food competition between common carp (Cyprinus carpio) and topmouth gudgeon (Pseudorasbora parva)

Small cyprinid fish, the topmouth gudgeon (Pseudorasbora parva Schlegel, 1842) is considered as an undesirable fish species because it represents an important food competitor for commercial non-predatory fishes. This study was performed under pond conditions (four ponds in South Moravia and two ponds in South Bohemia) during the growing seasons in 2006 {--} 2007. The purpose of my work was to determinate the level of food competition between topmouth gudgeon and common carp (Cyprinus carpio) as a dominating pond fish species. Food selectivity was evaluated using Ivlev´s electivity index (Jacobs, 1974). The level of food competition between common carp and topmouth gudgeon was used to evaluate the index of food similarity according to Shorygin (1952). The diet of topmouth gudgeon consisted mainly of chironomid larvae and zooplankton, mostly cladocerans (Daphnia, Bosmina), detritus and periphyton (Oscillatoria, Scenedesmus, Sphaerotilus). Macrophytes, copepods and Brachionus were also ingested by P.parva but in comparatively low proportions. In contrast, carp diet consisted mainly of bottom items including chironomid larvae, macrophytes and organic debris, mainly detritus and periphyton. The food items of lesser importance were dragon fly (Anisoptera) larvae, cladocerans (Bosmina, Daphnia) and ostracods. Topmouth gudgeon competed with common carp for chironomid larvae, periphyton and detritus, for zooplankton (mainly cladocerans Daphnia, Bosmina). The highest valuation the food competition was registered in fish from the Vracovický pond (South Moravia) and the Podsedek pond (South Bohemia), when it amounted from 24.02 to 34.78 % food similarity