How does the diet of a growing yellowfin tuna change regarding prey size and energy return?
Answer
It shifts towards fewer, larger meals offering greater caloric payoff
As a yellowfin tuna increases in size, its physical capabilities improve, specifically its gape size and stamina for sustained pursuit. This allows for a nutritional shift where the efficiency calculation changes. A small tuna needs many small meals to accumulate necessary energy for growth. In contrast, a larger tuna prioritizes fewer, larger meals because these provide a significantly greater caloric return relative to the energy expended during the hunt. This transition moves their diet toward medium-sized fish and larger cephalopods, which are more energy-dense targets.
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