FISHERY BULLETIN: VOL. 82, NO. 1 



In each area, two permanently buoyed stations 

 served as foci for sampling. At each station, we deter- 

 mined a range of suitable compass headings for tran- 

 sects. To assure complete coverage of the area, we 

 divided each range of suitable headings into five 

 equal subarcs and randomly chose transect headings 

 from each subarc. Headings were selected separately 

 for each sampling stratum. One transect per subarc 

 was made on each sampling day for bottom sampling. 

 In the water-column strata, where fish patchiness 

 necessitated more samples, we made one transect in 

 each subarc and added another transect from one of 

 the subarcs (randomly chosen). Thus, five transects 

 were usually made from each station per date on the 

 bottom, and six at each station and depth stratum in 

 the water column. Regardless of sampling method, 

 transects began 7-10 m from the station hub. Tran- 

 sects were taken from both sampling stations on a 

 sampling day. Data from the two stations at an area 

 were pooled, since the abundances of major species 

 were generally indistinguishable between stations in 

 an area on a given date. 



On the bottom, fish sampling was conducted 

 visually in 75 m long strip transects. Divers (one per 

 station) counted fish in bands estimated to be 3 m 

 wide and 1.5 m high, while reeling out 75 m long lines 

 along the predetermined compass headings. All non- 



cryptic fishes within this band were identified and 

 counted, with separate tallies kept for juvenile, sub- 

 adult, and adult members of each species (Table 1). 

 All subadult and adult Mac rocystis plants >1 m tall 

 (Dean footnote 4) were counted in the same 3 m wide 

 band while reeling in the transect line on the 

 return trip. 



Transects in the water column at the two kelp-forest 

 areas were made with underwater movie strips, using 

 Elmo Super 311 Low Light 5 movie cameras (F/l.l), 

 Giddings Cine-Mar housings, and Kodak Ekta- 

 chrome 164 super-8 film cartridges. At 18 frames/s, 

 the transects lasted about 3 min. Divers swam pre- 

 determined compass headings and photographed 

 fish occurring in a 120° horizontal arc about the tran- 

 sect axis and 1.5 m above and below the diver's 

 depth. The transect ended when the film cartridge 

 was exhausted. Water-column transects were made 

 in three depth strata: 3 m, 7.6 m, and 12 m (Table 2). 

 Horizontal visibility was measured with each set of 

 transects (at a depth on a sampling date), as the dis- 

 tance at which an olive-tan colored, 10 cm long float 

 ("fish mimic") became indistinct. Films were later 

 viewed in slow motion by at least two observers, at 



'Reference to trade names does not imply endorsement by the 

 National Marine Fisheries Service, NOAA. 



Table 1.— Common and scientific names of fishes observed at the San Onofre kelp bed and adjacent kelpless cobble area during fall 1979 with 

 the estimated weight of juveniles, subadults, and adults. Body weights for teleosts were estimated from average observed lengths, converted to 

 weights using the length-weight regressions of Quast (1968a: Appendix B), after adjusting for the bias (underestimate) from the use of average 

 body length to predict average body weight (see Pienaar and Ricker 1 968). Weights of elasmobranchs were estimated from fishes trapped in the 

 intakes of the San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station, Unit 1, during 1976-79. 1 Asterisks indicate species not included among kelp-bed 

 "residents." Common names after Robins et al. (1980). 



Weight (g) 



Weight (g) 



'E. DeMartini and R Larson. 1980. Predicted effects of the operations of San Onofre Nucler Generating Station Units 1, 2, and 3 on the fish fauna of the San Onofre 

 region. Report submitted to the Marine Review Committee of the California Coastal Commission. Unpubl. rep., 27 p. Marine Science Institute, University of California, Santa 

 Barbara, CA 93106. 



2 Members of the genus Sebastes will be grouped under rockfish spp. in subsequent tables. 



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