JOHNSON, UTTER and HODGINS: ELECTROPHORETIC INVESTIGATION 



tein bands B-i and A-7. Only protein band B-i 

 was common to Sebastolobiis and the Atlantic 

 Sebastes (Tables 2, 4, and 5). 



When the total amount of common patterns 

 between genera is considered, we agree with 

 Tsuyuki et al. (1968) that there is relatively 

 greater similarity between the Pacific Sebastes 

 and the Atlantic Sebastes than between either 

 and the other genera studied. S. aurora was 

 found to have relatively the same degree of dif- 

 ference between itself and the other Pacific Se- 

 bastes species as there was between the Atlantic 

 Sebastes and the Pacific Sebastes. This agrees 

 with the findings of Tsuyuki et al. (1968) who 

 suggested that S. aurora should possibly be ele- 

 vated to the generic level because of its degrees 

 of difference. The interpretation of similarity 

 based on electropherograms must be done with 

 caution as only amino acid substitutions which 

 change the net charge of the polypeptide chain 

 can be detected. 



Table 5. — Summary of intergeneric enzymatic similarity 

 in Scorpaenidae.^ X indicates the occurrence of com- 

 mon bands between one or more species of the genera 

 compared. 



'^ No common bands were found between Sebastolobus and Helicolenus. 



VARIATION WITHIN 

 PACIFIC SEBASTES 



Combining the enzyme and protein variations 

 in the Pacific Sebastes resulted in 10 of the 27 

 Pacific Sebastes species having unique biochem- 

 ical profiles (Table 2). These species were S. 



elongatus, S. entomelas, S. aurora, S. chloros- 

 tictus, S. diploproa, S. helvomaculatus, S. saxi- 

 cola, S. variegatus, S. alutus, and S. levis. Some 

 species were represented by only a few samples 

 — therefore further sampling may reveal vari- 

 ation in these profiles. PGM was not included 

 in these profiles because of its high degree of 

 polymorphism in the genus. A new species, S. 

 reedi, was reported by Westrheim and Tsuyuki 

 (1967) that resembles S. cramerl, S. alutus, and 

 S. proriger but was readily separable from these 

 when morphology and biochemical methods were 

 employed. Our study found that S. reedi and 

 S. crameri were identical with respect to muscle 

 protein and five enzyme systems but differed in 

 PGM. This suggests that S. reedi may be more 

 closely related to S. crameri than to the other 

 species. 



Three species, S. caurinus, S. maliger, and 

 S. auriculatus, had profiles that difl["ered only 

 in the enzyme aGPDH, which was monomorphic 

 in S. maliger (F band) but polymorphic for the 

 F and S bands in S. caurinus. All three species 

 have the peptidase A-P band which was found 

 in no other Sebastes species. These three species 

 are very similar in morphology and habitat pref- 

 erences. In certain areas of Puget Sound, Wash., 

 hybridization between the three may occur, 

 whereas in other areas they remain separate be- 

 cause of behavioral differences.' Investigation 

 of biochemical and morphological characteristics 

 of these species may provide valuable informa- 

 tion on the processes of speciation. 



The amount of polymorphism of aGPDH and 

 PGM in the family Scorpaenidae could prove to 

 be useful for the identification of breeding pop- 

 ulations and verification of species and subspe- 

 cies. On the basis of morphometric data, Bar- 

 sukov (1964) suggested that two subspecies exist 

 in Sebastes alutus (S. a. alutus — off the Pacific 

 coast of North America and S. a. paucispinus — 

 from Honshu Island, Japan, to perhaps Bristol 

 Bay, Alaska). Westrheim (1970) suggested 

 that S. alutus had a southern and a northern type 

 of fish off the coast of North America — the south- 



* C. R. Hitz, National Marine Fisheries Service, Fish- 

 ery Biologist, Exploratory Fishing and Gear Research 

 Base, Seattle, Wash., personal commun., April 1971. 



411 



