On the basis of these results and the data previ- 

 ously presented, we consider C. excisa to be a rela- 

 tively benign parasite. This appears to be a gen- 

 eral characteristic of host-parasite relationships 

 between cymothoids and fishes, at least in un- 

 stressed situations (Keys 1928). 



Acknowledgments 



Specimens of C. excisa were kindly identified by 

 T. Bowman, U.S. National Museum of Natural 

 History (USNM), and have been deposited at the 

 USNM. C. M. Courtney, Marco Ecology Labora- 

 tory, Marco Island, Fla., sexed the parasites and 

 analyzed gut contents of parasitized fishes. D. T. 

 Logan and M. H. Baslow provided comments on 

 the manuscript. 



Literature Cited 

 Bowman, T. E. 



I960. Description and notes on the biology of Lironeca 

 puhi, n. sp. (Isopoda: Cymothoidae), parasite of the 

 Hawaiian moray eel, Gymnothorax eurostus (Abbott). 

 Crustaceana 1:84-91. 



Heck, k. l., jr. 



In press. Patterns of community organization and popula- 

 tion dynamics in tropical seagrass i Thalassia testudinum ) 

 meadows. Mar. Biol. (Berl.). 



Keys, a. b. 



1928. Ectoparasites and vitality. Am. Nat. 62:279-282. 

 MONTALENTI, G. 



1941. Studi sull' ermafroditismo dei Cimotoidi. - I. Eme- 

 tha audouinii (M. Edw.) e Anilocra physodes (L.). Pubbl. 

 Stn. Zool. Napoli 18:337-394. 

 MORTON, B. 



1974. Host specificity and position on the host in Nerocila 

 phaeopleura Bleeker (Isopoda, Cymothoidae). Crusta- 

 ceana 26:143-148. 

 RICKER, W. E. (editor). 



1971. Methods for assessment offish production in fresh 

 waters. 2d ed. IBP (Int. Biol. Programme) Handb. 3, 

 Blackwell Sci. Publ., Oxf. and Edinb., 348 p. 

 TRILLES, J. -P. 



1964. Specificite parasitaire chez les Isopodes 

 Cymothoidae mediterraneens. Note preliminaire. Vie 

 Milieu 15:105-116. 



MICHAEL P. WEINSTEIN 



Lawler, Matusky and Skelly Engineers 

 Tappan, NY 10983 



Kenneth L. heck, jr. 



Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia 

 Benedict Estuarine Research Laboratory 

 Benedict, MD 20612 



FECUNDITY OF THE SOUTHERN NEW 



ENGLAND STOCK OF YELLOWTAIL FLOUNDER, 



LIMANDA FERRUGINEA 



The yellowtail flounder, Limanda ferrunginea, is 

 an important commercial species to both the New 

 England and Canadian fishing industries. Accord- 

 ing to Royce et al. (1959) there are five relatively 

 distinct stocks of yellowtail flounder with little 

 migration occurring between them: southern New 

 England, Georges Bank, Cape Cod, Nova Scotian, 

 and Grand Bank stocks. Catches have recently 

 been declining. For example in the southern New 

 England and Cape Cod stocks (ICNAF (Interna- 

 tional Commission for the Northwest Atlantic 

 Fisheries) subarea 5Zw), the number of metric 

 tons landed per standard fishing day has declined 

 from 3.5 in 1970 to 1.5 in 1975; the total catch 

 declining from 24,103 to 5,460 metric tons over the 

 same period (Cain 1 ). 



Pitt (1971) has estimated the fecundity of the 

 Grand Bank stock (ICNAF Subareas 3L, 3N, 30) 

 but no other yellowtail flounder fecundity data 

 have been published. Fecundity may vary from 

 one stock of flatfish to another, e.g., plaice 

 (Simpson 1951), so we have analyzed the fecundity 

 of the southern New England stock of yellowtail 

 based on 50 fish, and compared these values with 

 the fecundity estimates of Pitt (1971). 



Methods and Materials 



Ovaries used for fecundity estimates were col- 

 lected on 9 and 12 April 1976 from fish landed by 

 commercial vessels at Point Judith, R.I. Fish were 

 randomly sampled from the combined catches of 

 several vessels, and therefore represented a ran- 

 dom sample of the southern New England popula- 

 tion. Only ripening ovaries, i.e., ovaries swollen 

 but eggs not fully developed in size (Scott 1954), 

 were used thus omitting fish that may have begun 

 to spawn. Fish were measured to the nearest cen- 

 timeter total length, and the ovary wet weight was 

 determined to the nearest 0.1 g. Ovaries were pre- 

 served in Gilson's fluid as modified by Simpson 

 (1951) and allowed to remain in this solution for 

 3-5 mo to facilitate ovarian tissue breakdown. 

 Otoliths, read independently by each of us, were 

 used to determine ages. The growth rings were 

 recognized according to Scott (1954) who also 



•Cain, W. L. 1976. Yellowtail flounder tabulations for 1977 

 assessments. Int. Comm. Northwest Atl. Fish. Working Pap. No. 

 76/IV/49. 



877 



