Pinfish readily fed on red drum prey, and mortality was significantly different among
habitat types for wild-caught red drum ŽFig. 1A, Table 1.. Mean predation rates are
highest in the non vegetated mesocosms and lowest in the oyster reef with intermediate
levels of mortality in marsh and seagrass. For hatchery-reared red drum, no significant
mortality differences were observed among habitat types ŽFig. 1B, Table 1.. The
response of hatchery-reared red drum to habitat structure and to pinfish predators in
experimental mesocosms was distinctly different from wild-caught red drum. Without
exception, wild-caught red drum attempted to hide within the structure of the habitat
types, while hatchery-reared fish exhibited schooling behavior near the surface of the
water.