that precise estimation of production can be done 

 within 30 d by sampling for eggs; this goal seems 

 attainable for the northern anchovy. Utilization of 

 the method for other species seems feasible. 



Literature Cited 



COLLINS, R. A. 



1969. Size and age composition of northern anchovies 

 ^Engraulis mordax) in the California anchovy reduction 

 fishery for the 1965-66, 1966-67, and 1967-68 seasons. In 

 the northern anchovy (Engraulis mordax) and its fishery 

 1965-1968, p. 56-74. Calif. Dep. Fish Game,Fish Bull. 147. 



Hunter, J. R., and S. R. Goldberg. 



1980. Spawning incidence and batch fecundity in north- 

 em anchovy, Engraulis mordax. Fish. Bull., U.S. 77: 

 641-652. 



Klingbeil, r. a. 



1978. Sex ratios of the northern anchovy, Engraulis 

 mordax, off southern California. Calif. Fish Game 

 64:200-209. 



Murphy, G. I. 



1966. Population biology of the Pacific sardine ( Sardinops 

 caerulea). Proc Calif. Acad. Sci., Ser 4, 34:1-84. 



Saville, a. 



1964. Estimation of the abundance of a fish stock from egg 

 and larval surveys. In J. A. Gullsmd (editor). On the 

 measurement of abundance of fish stocks, p. 164-170. 

 Rapp. P-V. Reun. Cons. Perm. Int. Explor Mer 155. 

 SebeR, G. a. E 



1973. The estimation of animal abundance and related 

 parameters. Hafner Press, N.Y., 506 p. 

 SMITH, P E. 



1972. The increase in spawning biomass of northern 

 anchovy, Engraulis mordax. Fish. Bull., U.S. 70: 

 849-874. 



Keith Parker 



Southwest Fisheries Center La Jolla Laboratory 

 National Marine Fisheries Service, NOAA 

 P.O. Box 271 

 La Jolla, CA 92038 



FOOD OF THE HARBOR SEAL, 



PHOCA VITULINA RICHARDSI, 



IN THE GULF OF ALASKA 



The harbor seal, Phoca vitulina richardsi (Shaugh- 

 nessy and Fay 1977), is the most abundant and 

 widespread coastal pinniped in the Gulf of Alaska. 

 Harbor seals occupy virtually all nearshore hab- 

 itats, and individuals occasionally occur as far as 

 100 km offshore (Spalding 1964; Wahl 1977; Fiscus 

 et al. ). Despite their abundance and ecological 



'Fiscus, C. H., H. W. Braham, R. W. Mercer, R. D. Everitt, 

 B. D. Krogman, P D. McGuire, C. E. Peterson, R. M. Sonntag, 



importance, little information is available on 

 their diet in Alaskan waters. In the most extensive 

 food study published to date, Imler and Sarber 

 ( 1947) examined stomachs of 99 seals from south- 

 eastern Alaska and 67 from the Copper River 

 Delta. Wilke (1957) presented information on the 

 food of seven harbor seals collected from Amchitka 

 Island in the western Aleutian Islands. Kenyon 

 (1965) reported on the stomach contents of 11 

 harbor seals taken in the same location. Bishop 

 (1967) commented on stomach contents of two 

 seals from Aialik Bay and two from Tugidak 

 Island. Virtually no information has been avail- 

 able on the food of harbor seals from the Gulf 

 of Alaska. 



The study area (Figure 1) included coastal Gulf 

 of Alaska from Yakutat Bay to Sanak Island. The 

 portion of Cook Inlet north of Kachemak and 

 Kamishak Bays was not included. The study area 

 was divided into seven subareas for data analysis: 

 northeastern Gulf of Alaska, Copper River Delta, 

 Prince William Sound, Kenai coast, Lower Cook 

 Inlet, Kodiak, and Alaska Peninsula. 



Selection of Valdez as terminus of the trans- 

 Alaskan oil pipeline and planned outer conti- 

 nental shelf oil and gas lease sales were the 

 principal motivating factors for conducting this 

 research. Production and transport of crude oil 

 appeared to have the potential for significant 

 alteration of the marine biota (Evans and Rice 

 1974) thus influencing the abundance and com- 

 position of harbor seal prey species. Established 

 commercial fisheries for salmon, Oncorhynchus 

 spp.; Pacific herring, Clupea h. harengus; halibut, 

 Hippoglossus stenolepis; king crab, Paralithodes 

 camtschatica; snow crab, Chionoecetes bairdi; Dun- 

 geness crab. Cancer magister; and shrimp, Pan- 

 dalus spp., occur over the area, and pinnipeds are 

 sometimes considered to be significant compet- 

 itors with these fisheries. Data are needed to 

 establish the possible impact of harbor seals on 

 these commercially exploited species. Plans for 

 developing fisheries are required by Federal laws 

 (Public Law 94-265, Fishery Conservation and 

 Management Act of 1976, and Public Law 92-522, 

 Marine Mammal Protection Act of 1972) to utilize 

 an integrated ecosystem approach to management 



and D. E. Withrow. 1976. Seasonal distribution and relative 

 abundance of marine mammals in the Gulf of Alaska. In 

 Environmental assessment of the Alaskan Continental Shelf. 

 Vol. 1. Principal investigators reports for October- December 

 1976, p. 19-264. Environmental Research Laboratories, NOAA, 

 Boulder, Colo. 



544 



FISHERY BULLETIN: VOL. 78, NO. 2, 1980. 



