Feeding biology of steindachnerina brevipinna ( characiformes, curimatidae) in the Ibicuí –Mirim river, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil

The feeding biology of Steindachnerina brevipinna (Eigenmann & Eigenmann, 1889) is described based on specimens collected in the Ibicuí-Mirim river, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, from April 2001 to March 2002. Diet description is based on the analysis of the frequency of occurrence and index of dietary importance of the ingested items. The monthly variation of stomach repletion, hepatosomatic and intestinal indexes was also analyzed. Major feeding activity occurred before (May, June and July 2001) the reproductive period, with the hepatosomatic index values showing similar variation along the year. Both the mean intestinal quotient and the analysis of the main ingested items (Bacillariophyta and Chlorophyta algae) indicate a detritivorous diet