Alaska whitefish were more or less distended and 

 crammed with eggs, almost all of them least cisco 

 eggs. A few larger eggs in the stomachs were 

 probably those of the Alaska whitefish. 



Volume of eggs per stomach ranged between 1.5 

 and 42.4 ml (x = 19.96 ml). Numbers of eggs per 

 stomach ranged between 200 and 7,842 (jc = 

 3,574). Other items, present only in insignificant 

 amounts, included Diptera, Tendepedidae, 

 Trichoptera, Hydracarina, unidentified insect 

 parts, a tree bud, and a small slimy sculpin, Cottus 

 cognatus. 



As indicated previously, extensive life history 

 studies of this species conducted by the Alaska 

 Department of Fish and Game have shown that 

 prespawners do not feed. Presumably, then, the 

 phenomenon reported here is of rare occurrence. 

 However, if the entire Alaska whitefish popula- 

 tion of the Chatanika River, estimated at 7,000 to 

 8,000 fish (see footnotes 1, 2) should engage in this 

 activity, then it might constitute a major source of 

 egg mortality for the least cisco population. Since 

 both species are important components of the sport 

 fishery resources of the Chatanika River, the 

 matter is worth further investigation. 



The samples reported upon here were collected 

 as part of a study of the environmental effects of 

 the Trans-Alaska Pipeline crossing of the 

 Chatanika River. This study is conducted jointly 

 by the Division of Life Sciences, University of 

 Alaska, Fairbanks, Alaska, and the Arctic En- 

 vironmental Research Laboratory, Environmen- 

 tal Protection Agency, Fairbanks, and is sup- 

 ported by the Environmental Protection Agency. 



Literature Cited 



BAJKOV, A. 



1930. A study of the whitefish (Coregonus clupeaformis) in 



Manitoban lakes. Contrib. Can. Biol. Fish., New Ser. 



5:441-455. 

 BIRRER, A., AND W. SCHWEIZER. 



1936. Der Edelfisch des Vierwaldstatter Sees Coregonus 



Wartmanni nobilis, Fatio. Ein Beitrag zur Kenntnis der 



Coregonen in den Schweizer Seen. Arch. Hydrobiol. 



29:617-663. 

 HART. J. L. 



1930. The spawning and early life history of the whitefish, 

 Coregonus clupeaformis (Mitehill), in the Bay of Quinte, 

 Ontario. Contrib. Can. Biol. Fish., New Ser. 6:165-214. 



1931. The food of the whitefish, Coregonus clupeaformis 

 (Mitehill) in Ontario waters, with a note on the para- 

 sites. Contrib. Can. Biol. Fish., New Ser. 6:445-454. 



JACOBSEN, O. J. 



1974. Feeding habits of the population of whitefish 

 (Coregonus lavaretus (L.)) in Haugatjern — a eutrophic 

 Norwegian Lake. Norw. J. Zool. 22:295-318. 



MCPHA1L, J. D., AND C. C. LlNDSEY. 



1970. Freshwater fishes of northwestern Canada and 

 Alaska. Fish. Res. Board Can. Bull. 173, 381 p. 

 QADRI, S. U. 



1961. Food and distribution of lake whitefish in Lac la 

 Ronge, Saskatchewan. Trans. Am. Fish. Soc. 90:303- 

 307. 

 SLACK, H. D., F. W.K. GERVERS, AND J. D. HAMILTON. 



1957. The biology of the powan. Stud. Lock Lomond 

 1:113-127. 

 VAN OOSTEN, J., AND H. J. DEASON. 



1939. The age, growth, and feeding habits of the whitefish, 

 Coregonus clupeaformis (Mitehill) of Lake Champlain. 

 Trans. Am. Fish. Soc. 68:152-162. 

 WAGLER, E. 



1927. Die Blaufelchen des Bodensees {Coregonus 

 wartmanni Bloch). Int. Rev. Gesamten Hydrobiol. 

 Hydrogr. 18:129-230. 



JAMES E. MORROW 



Division of Life Sciences 

 University of Alaska 

 Fairbanks, AK 99701 



ELDOR W. SCHALLOCK 



Arctic Environmental Research Laboratory 

 Environmental Protection Agency 

 Fairbanks, AK 99701 



GLENN E. BERGTOLD 



Division of Life Sciences 

 University of Alaska 

 Fairbanks, AK 99701 



EGG MORTALITIES IN WILD POPULATIONS 



OF THE DUNGENESS CRAB IN 



CENTRAL AND NORTHERN CALIFORNIA 1 



A recent study (Fisher and Wickham 1976) of 

 eggs from wild populations of the Dungeness crab, 

 Cancer magister, collected in the 1974-75 season 

 showed that epibiotic fouling and egg mortalities 

 occurred more heavily in the Drakes Bay region of 

 central California than in the other California 

 regions sampled (Pacifica, Point Reyes, Bodega 

 Bay, Russian River, Gualala, Fort Bragg, and 

 Eureka). The paper suggested that nutrients from 

 San Francisco Bay were carried northward by the 

 Davidson Current (the prevalent coastal current 

 during the winter months) causing an increase in 

 epibiotic fouling which restricted gaseous ex- 

 change across the egg membrane and increased 

 egg mortalities. 



^his work is a result of research sponsored by NOAA Office of 

 Sea Grant, U.S. Department of Commerce, under Grant No. 04 5 

 158-20 NOAA. This work is also supported by California State 

 Legislature Funds for Aquaculture. 



235 



