Biology 1st Edition by Jerome Krueger, Kendra Hill, Robert Noyd

Exercise 18

The diet of many carnivorous animals is determined by analyzing their stomach contents. Recently, a team of marine biologists examined the stomach contents of the porbeagle shark. The team found that more than half of porbeagle stomachs were empty. When filled, stomach contents included a wide diversity of prey. Task: What does this observation possibly indicate about each of the following: (A) Frequency of feeding, (B) length of feeding period (C) speed of digestion, (D) volume of food consumed, (E) type of feeding-generalist (eats anything) or specialist (eats only certain prey)?