FISHERY BULLETIN: VOL. 73, NO. 2 



length conforms to a simple cube law relationship, 

 which would be expected if gonad weight remains 

 some constant proportion of the total weight. The 

 exponent 2.95 was determined by a least-squares 

 regression fit to a logarithmic transformation of 

 the data. The confidence limits around the regres- 

 sion line become increasingly large with higher 

 values of W and L, and the curve should not be 

 used for extrapolations beyond the range of the 

 data. Ovary weights in relation to age are shown in 

 Figure 14. There are few data for the older age 

 classes, but there is a definite positive correlation 

 of the fecundity and the age of the individual. 



Coloration, Sex, and Field Distribution 

 of Coloration Types 



The California sheephead is found in three main 

 color phases (Crozier 1966), all of which are closely 

 correlated with sexual state. 



For the first year, P. pulchrum has juvenile 

 coloration, a gold or salmon body color with black 

 spots on the anal fin, the anterior and posterior 

 portions of the dorsal fins, and on the caudal 

 peduncle, and with a silver lateral stripe extending 

 from the eye to the caudal fin. Crozier (1966) stated 

 that the initial body color was gold, and this was 

 gradually replaced by the reddish adult shade. The 

 juvenile coloration was seldom seen in individuals 

 over 100 mm SL, and has never been found in 

 sexually mature individuals. 



The most common color pattern of P. pulchrum 

 is a uniform rose or salmon color, covering the 

 entire body with the exception of the chin, which is 

 usually white in mature individuals. The median 

 and pelvic fins are darker than the body, ranging 

 from dusky red to black. The pectoral fins usually 

 match body color. Uniform coloration may be ob- 

 scured by a melanistic condition which causes the 

 entire body to appear brown. This occurs in vary- 

 ing degrees, making the fish appear almost black 

 in extreme cases. Eleven percent of the uniformly 

 colored fish captured at Catalina were designated 

 melanistic, as were one-third of all uniform types 

 at Guadalupe. 



A uniform coloration is characteristic of imma- 

 ture fish as well as mature females. Histological 

 analysis indicated, however, that the relationship 

 was not perfect. At Catalina, 3.5% of the in- 

 dividuals designated uniform in color were dis- 

 covered to have male gonads. When only sexually 

 mature uniformly colored California sheephead 

 were tallied, 5.1% were male. These males ranged 



70 



60 



50 



E 



iD 40 

 UJ 



>- 



a: 



§30 

 o 



20 



10 







W=8.88L- 26.25 

 r = 0.802 



VA- 



4 5 6 7 8 9 



AGE (years) 



Figure 14.-0vary weight versus age for females of Pimelomet- 

 opon pulchrum captured in June and July at Catalina Island. 



in length from 245 to 315 mm. and were captured 

 in June, July, and December. Examination of a 

 large series of gonad cross-sections from these in- 

 dividuals revealed a few stage 2 oocytes within the 

 lamellae from two captured in July. This can be 

 taken as evidence for a recent sex change. All the 

 others had gonads of completely normal male ap- 

 pearance. 



Field notes revealed that all of these individuals 

 were melanistic, and 70% were recorded as having 

 some male external characteristics, such as a small 

 nuchal hump or slight differential darkenings of 

 either the head or tail regions (see below). This 

 suggests the possibility that some of these in- 

 dividuals may have been incorrectly typed due to 

 the ground color being obscured by melanin. 



274 



