CLARKE: DIETS OF FOURTEEN SPECIES OF MESOPELAGIC FISHES 



tion), the high ASV's observed probably indicate a 

 real preference for large prey. 



A 48 mm Ceratoscopelus warmingi female from 

 90 m had no lenses in the eyes. The outer eye cover 

 was intact and the space normally occupied by the 

 lens was filled with gelatinous material similar to 

 the humor in the rest of the eye. Thus the lenses 

 were not missing due to damage during capture or 

 even a recent injury. This fish had not only man- 

 aged to reach adult size, but had three fresh 

 copepods and remains of others and a euphausiid 

 in the stomach. 



Bolinichthys longipes (Table 8) 



Trematode parasites were frequently present in 

 the stomachs of B. longipes : The large fish from 110 

 m averaged over six parasites/stomach (Table 8). 

 Parasite load and frequency was much lower in the 

 small fish from 70 m. It was not possible, due to 



insufficient numbers, to rigorously compare 

 stomach contents of fish with and without para- 

 sites from any given depth-size group; however, 

 while some of the unparasitized fish had more 

 intact prey than most parasitized specimens, there 

 were no obvious differences in prey type or fre- 

 quency. Thus the parasites did not appear to bias 

 the diet directly or by effectively increasing diges- 

 tion rate and causing more resistant prey types to 

 appear as intact in disproportionate frequencies. 

 Microzooplankton, 90% of which were Oncaea 

 spp., made up the great majority of food items in 

 all groups (Table 2). A large fraction of the Oncaea 

 spp. eaten were very small (^0.6 mm); such sizes 

 were rarely eaten by most of the other fishes con- 

 sidered. The ASV's for these small forms were ab- 

 surdly high; data from very fine mesh plankton 

 nets would be needed to estimate preference. If the 

 ASV's for the large Oncaea are reduced by a factor 

 of 4 (see Methods section), the values are still quite 



Table 8. — Stomach contents of Bolinichthys longipes and Diogenichthys atlanticus. Format as in Table 4. 

 Also given are incidence and number per fish of trematode parasites in B. longipes. 



Calanus tenuiformis 

 Acrocalanus spp. 

 Clausocalanus spp. 

 Euaetideus acutus 

 Aetldeldae CV, CVI >3.0 mm 

 Scolecittirix bradyi 

 Scolecithricella spp. <1.0 mm 

 Scolecithricella spp. sl.O mm 

 Pleuromamma xiphias 

 P. abdominalis 

 P gracilis 

 Lucicutia spp. 

 Heterortiabdus papilliger 

 Candacia longimana 

 Candacia spp CV, CVI 

 Paracandacia spp. CV, CVI 

 Unident. caianoid 

 Oittiona spp. 

 Oncaea spp. >0.6 mm 

 Oncaea spp. sO.6 mm 

 Corycaeus spp. 

 Microsetella spp. 

 Euptjausia spp. 

 Euphausiid larva 

 Ostracod <- 1 .0 mm 

 Ostracod 1 .0-1.4 mm 

 Ostracod 1 .5-1.9 mm 

 Amphipod 1 .0-1 .9 mm 

 Chaetognath 

 Gastropod larva 



Other prey: B longipes 



1(0.07) 



1(0.33) 

 1(0.12) 



1(0.07) 



1(0.38) 



1(0.07) 

 1 



17(2.86) 

 42(95) 



1(0.03) 



2(-) 



2(0.42) 

 1(0.18) 



3(0.31) 

 1(0.18) 



1(0.03) 



2(0.03) 



1(0.10) 

 1(0.07) 

 2(0.21) 

 1(0.12) 



1(0.01) 

 1(0.06) 

 2(0.03) 



1(0.17) 

 1(0.04) 

 2(0.04) 



2 

 1(0,05) 



45(3.40) 



52(x) 

 2(0.07) 



1(=c) 



5(0.44) 

 1(0.11) 



1(0.01) 



2(0.15) 

 1(0.05) 



2(0.15) 

 1(0.09) 



2(0.01) 



1(0.01) 



1(0.08) 



1(0.05) 



2(0.24) 



2(0.06) 



5(0.15) 



2 



1(0.04) 



86(4.64) 



42(x) 

 1(0,03) 



1(x) 



3(0.19) 

 2(0.03) 

 2(0.05) 

 1(0.08) 



1(0.14) 



2(0,06) 



1(0) 



4(0,07) 



2(0,11) 



4(0,02) 



1(0,08) 



1(0.03) 



2(0.12) 



8(0.41) 



1(0,06) 



2 



125(5,48) 

 78(205) 



2(x) 



2(0.09) 

 1(0.07) 



1(0.01) 



1(0.01) 

 2(0.06) 

 1(0.05) 

 4(0.14) 



10(0.20) 

 2(0.11) 

 2(0.01) 



10(0.66) 

 26(1.46) 

 15(0.97) 

 6 



150(7.14) 



84(240) 



2(0.04) 



1(0.05) 

 1(0.27) 

 2(0.50) 

 1(0.05) 

 1(0.08) 



1(0.02) — 



70 m: 17-26 mm— 1 Pontella sp. (x) 

 90 m: 26-35 mm— 2 Aetldeldae C -; 2,0 mm (0,08), 1 Euctiaeta media (0,21) 

 36-47 mm— 2 Loptiottirix spp, (0,14), 1 Gaetanus sp. (0.08). 

 1 Pareuctiaeta sp (^), 1 zoea (9.50) 

 110 m: 26-35—1 Amphipod <1.0 mm (^) 

 36-49—1 Stylocheiron sp. (0.17) 



3(5.40) 



2(0.45) 

 1(0.10) 



1(0.06) 

 2(0.45) 



1(0.14) 

 3 



11(3.40) 

 11(45.8) 



4(x) 

 1(0.03) 



1(0.18) 

 1(0,33) 

 1(0.05) 



629 



