Omnivorous zooplankton and planktivorous fish

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Abstract
The distance at which Lepomis gibbosus reacts to zooplankton is shown to be a linear function of prey size. If fishes sweep out a cylindrical path as they forage the frequency of prey encountered is then proportional to the square of this reaction distance. With the inclusion of the probability of capture success after a fish pursues a prey, a model of prey selection can estimate the effect of predacious zooplankton on the energy ingestion of planktivorous fish. Since predacious zooplankton are much larger and more visible to the fish than their own prey, this more than compensates for the energy lost by the additional trophic level and the moderate ability of predacious zooplankton to elude capture.

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