Ontogeny of the digestive system of meagre Argyrosomus regius reared in a mesocosm, and quantitative changes of lipids in the liver from hatching to juvenile

► We describe the ontogeny of the digestive system of meagre in relation to feeding. ► Meagre is a fast growing species, developing rapidly its digestive system. ► Changes in the feeding protocol were reflected in larval feeding preferences. ► A new method for liver lipid content was used to identify malnutrition periods. ► The new method was shown to be useful in improving larval rearing protocols.