Neste estudo foram investigados os hábitos alimentares do caracídeo Hollandichthys multifasciatus. Amostras foram obtidas entre março de 2004 e fevereiro de 2005, em dois riachos de água escura da Floresta Atlântica Costeira do Sul do Brasil. A dieta, avaliada por métodos quantitativos e qualitativos, inclui insetos aquáticos e terrestres, decápodes, oligoquetos aquáticos, plantas e aranhas. Os maiores indivíduos alimentaram-se principalmente de plantas, insetos terrestres e aranhas, enquanto que os menores indivíduos alimentaram-se basicamente de plantas e oligoquetos aquáticos. A espécie apresentou hábito alimentar onívoro, e sua dieta no riacho estudado foi composta por material autóctone (principalmente oligoquetos aquáticos) e alóctone (plantas e insetos terrestres).

Feeding habits of the characin Hollandichthys multifasciatus were investigated. Samplings were made between March 2004 and February 2005 in two black water streams of the coastal Atlantic rainforest in southern Brazil. The diet, evaluated by qualitative and quantitative methods, included aquatic and terrestrial insects, decapods, oligochaetes, plants and spiders. Large individuals feed mainly on plants, terrestrial insects, and spiders, whereas small fish feed basically on plants and oligochaetes. The species showed an omnivorous feeding habit, and its diet was composed of autochthonous (mainly oligochaetes) and allochthonous (plants and terrestrial insects) material.

No manguezal da Baía de Guaratuba, litoral sul do Brasil, os Gerreidae são representados por 3 gêneros e 5 espécies, compondo uma parcela numericamente importante da ictiofauna local. Este trabalho descreve a estrutura populacional e os hábitos reprodutivos de Eucinostomus argenteus, E. gula e E. melanopterus, reconhecendo as relações que mantêm com o manguezal. Os resultados indicam que o manguezal representa para elas um habitat transitório. Os subadultos crescem na área ao longo do ano, deixando-na na primavera ou no verão, quando completam a maturação e desovam, no mar ou em outra região da Baía. E. argenteus e E. gula não retornam ao manguezal após a desova, mas E. melanopterus provavelmente sim. As três espécies alimentam-se sobretudo de poliquetos, apresentando diferenças nos itens secundários da dieta.

Several coastal fish use the estuarine habitat during a part of their life cycle. These sites are considered good for the reproductive activity, as well as for the growth of larvae and juveniles. Concerning the Gerreidae, however, many studies reveal that most species leave the estuaries to reproduce at sea. At Guaratuba Bay, southern Brazil, this family is represented by three genera and five species, which make an important fraction of the local assemblage. The present study investigated the populational structure and breeding habits of three Eucinostomus species, in order to know what relationship exists between them and the mangrove. It was found that the Guaratuba mangrove represents a transitory habitat for the life cycle of the Eucinostomus species. The sub-adults grow in the mangrove throughout the year and leave this milieu in spring or summer, when they complete the gonadal maturation and presumably spawn. E. argenteus and E. gula do not return to the mangrove after spawning. The three species feed mainly on polychaetes, but differences occur with respect to the secondary components of the diet.

Diapterus rhombeus (Cuvier, 1829) is one of the most common Gerreidae species in the estuarine region at the Guaratuba Bay, Southern Brazil. Based on studies developed between July, 1993 and January, 1997, it was observed that its presence in the mangrove area is not regular: the smallest individuais are more abundam during late summer and in autumn, and the largest ones during spring and early summer. Its diet comprises plant material and invertebrates, specially polychaets. The morphological aspects of the gonads, the monthly changes on the Condition Factor, and lhe monthly distribution of the individual size groups, suggest that this population spawns during the spring, out the estuarine region. The smaller individuais use the mangrove area of Guaratuba Bay to a growth phase, and the adulls to make somatic reserves to the spawning period.