SHORT COMMUNICATION Previous exposure to novel prey improves the feeding success of hatchery-reared spotted seatrout, Cynoscion nebulosus (Cuvier, 1830) within habitat structure Lauren A Jackson 1 , Chet F Rakocinski 2 & Reginald B Blaylock 2 1 Southeast Fisheries Science Center, NOAA, NMFS, Pascagoula, MS, USA 2 Department of Coastal Sciences, The University of Southern Mississippi, Ocean Springs, MS, USA Correspondence: C F Rakocinski, Department of Coastal Sciences, The University of Southern Mississippi, 703 East Beach Drive, Ocean Springs, MS 39564, USA. E-mail: chet.rakocinski@usm.edu As a popular recreational sportfish in the Gulf of Mexico, the spotted seatrout (Cynoscion nebulosus) is probably being managed at close to its maxi- mum sustainable level (Fulford & Hendon 2010). Consequently, the feasibility of stock enhancement is being evaluated in Mississippi as part of a com- prehensive management strategy for this species. The success of stock enhancement depends on the ability of newly released hatchery-reared (HR) fish to acquire the necessary survival skills in terms of feeding, habitat use and predator avoidance (Hun- tingford 2004; Leber 2004; Liao 2004). As the hatchery setting is devoid of natural stimuli, the ability of HR fish to acclimate to the natural set- ting requires critical assessments (Olla, Davis & Ryer 1998; LeVay, Caralho, Quinitio, Lebata, Ut & Fushimi 2007). Thus, the role of complex habitat structure should also be considered when evaluat- ing foraging abilities of HR fish (Salvanes & Brai- thwaite 2005, 2006). Unfamiliarity with natural prey and habitat may impede the survival of HR spotted seatrout by hindering their feeding success upon release into the wild. Prior exposure to natural prey may alle- viate unfamiliarity with foraging under natural conditions, including structured habitat. To assess this possibility, the effect of previous exposure to novel natural prey on the feeding success of HR fish was evaluated as a treatment effect, crossed with the presence or absence of structured habitat. Our objective was to assess the feeding success of juvenile HR spotted seatrout on novel live prey (grass shrimp; Palaemonetes spp.) both in the pres- ence and in the absence of emergent Spartina alter- niflora within the context of a mesocosm experiment. Juvenile spotted seatrout were reared in a recir- culating system at the USM GCRL Thad Cochran Marine Aquaculture Center where they had been maintained on a pelleted diet. All experimental fish came from the same hatchery cohort and were 163 days old (mean TL and Wt, 17.5 cm and 58.22 g). A predominant food item in the wild, grass shrimp (Palaemonetes spp.) (Jackson, Rako- cinski & Blaylock 2013) was used as prey in this study. Grass shrimp were collected from local marsh edge habitat for the experiment. Carapace lengths of one hundred of 720 grass shrimp used averaged 22.84 Æ 3.72 SD mm. The experiment was conducted outdoors under a 5-m-high, 55% shade cloth and maintained at ambient photoperiod and temperature. The design comprised twelve 680-L round fibreglass tanks, each filled with ~500 L of saltwater. To account for any systematic spatial variation, the spatial layout was subdivided into three randomized blocks (i.e. four tanks representing all four treatments). Tanks within each block were ran- domly assigned to one of the four treatment com- binations: (1) experienced fish with no Spartina; © 2014 John Wiley & Sons Ltd 1 Aquaculture Research, 2014, 1–5 doi: 10.1111/are.12438