A study of Baikal seals, which are endemic to Lake Baikal in Russia, finds that they consume significant amounts of an amphipod, a freshwater planktonic species, and, although species as small as the amphipods are rarely targeted by non-filter-feeders, the seals' specialized comb-like cheek teeth and strategy of following amphipod swarms' daily vertical migrations allows for the high foraging rates needed for a non-filter-feeder to make the small organisms a significant component of its diet, according to the authors.
Article #20-14021: "Ultrahigh foraging rates of Baikal seals make tiny endemic amphipods profitable in Lake Baikal," by Yuuki Y. Watanabe, Eugene A. Baranov, and Nobuyuki Miyazaki.
MEDIA CONTACT: Yuuki Y. Watanabe, National Institute of Polar Research, Tokyo, JAPAN; e-mail: watanabe.yuuki@nipr.ac.jp
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Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences