TABLE 5. — Frequency of occurrence of food items (from stomachs containing food) in fishes from the Texas coast collected 

 from 46 to 54 m water depths between 4 June and 3 July 1981. Fish sizes in mm SL, except* = mm total length. N = total 

 stomachs examined, % E = percentage of empty stomachs, De = detritus, Cr = crabs, Fi = fish, St = stomatopods, Sh = 

 shrimp, Sq = squid. Frequency of occurrence of prey fishes and shrimps in parentheses. Prey shrimps denoted by T 

 [Trachypenaeus) or S (Sicyonia), followed by frequency and size range (mm tail length). 



TABLE 6.— Frequency of occurrence of food items (from stomachs containing food) in fishes from the Texas coast collected 

 from 55 to 64 m water depths between 4 June and 3 July 1981. Fish sizes in mm SL. N= total stomachs examined, %E = 

 percentage of empty stomachs, De = detritus, Fi = fish, Sh = shrimp, Cr = crabs, Sq = squid, Ms = other taxa including 

 polychaetes, molluscs, and mysids. Frequency of occurrence of prey fishes and shrimps in parentheses. Prey shrimps 

 indicated by T (Trachypenaeus) followed by frequency and size range (mm tail length). 



water depths and were classified as major prey of 9 

 species, including inshore lizardfish, Synodus foe- 

 tens; largescale lizardfish, Saurida brasiliensis; big- 

 eye, Priacanthus arenatus; Atlantic cutlassfish, 

 Trichiurus lepturus; Mexican flounder, Cyclopsetta 

 chittendeni; knobbed porgy, Calamus nodosus; black- 

 edge moray, Gymnothorax nigromarginatus; bon- 

 nethead, Sphyrna tiburo; and Atlantic sharpnose 

 shark, Rhizoprlonodon terraenovae. Fishes were a 

 major food category for all size classes of Synodus 

 foetens in all six depth ranges. For all species ex- 

 amined, predation on fishes was more frequent in the 



four offshore depth ranges (19-28% occurrence) than 

 in the two inshore depth ranges (5 and 6% occurrence). 

 Nineteen taxa of prey fishes were identified, with 

 anchovies, Anchoa spp., the primary target in 9-26 m 

 waters and Saurida the most frequent in 27-64 m 

 waters. Rogers (1977) found fish in the stomachs of 

 23 out of 26 fish species from Texas and Louisiana 

 shelf waters. Prey fish comprised at least 48% by 

 volume of the diets of eight of those species: Saurida 

 brasiliensis and Synodus foetens (as we found); Atlan- 

 tic midshipman, Porichthys plectrodon, sand sea- 

 trout, Cynoscion arenarius, and silver seatrout, C. 



400 



