NOTE Wood: Using bone measurements to estimate the size of Pomatomus saltatnx 



465 



Beamish, 1987; Hansel, 1988, Sharf et al., 1998). In 

 addition, the bones used in the present study are strong 

 bones (with the exception of the opercle), that are liable 

 to resist digestive erosion. 



All the relationships generated in the present study 

 yielded very accurate predictions of original prey size, 

 but the jaw bones are of special interest. Bluefish can 

 be classified as predators that exhibit a biting behavior 

 during predation. Fish that show this type of predation 

 behavior have very heavy, robust jaw bones (Norton, 

 1995). The jaw bones (maxilla, premaxilla, and dentary) 

 of bluefish are both easily identifiable and likely resis- 

 tant to digestion, and when combined with the adequacy 

 with which original size can be determined from these 

 bones (based on AIC rankings and %PE), they are the 

 best option for researchers interested in back-calculat- 

 ing original bluefish sizes. 



The results of this study provide a means to fur- 

 ther analyze the stomach contents of bluefish preda- 

 tors beyond identifying, and quantifying prey items. 



The usefulness of this type of data has been shown 

 repeatedly for a number of species (Mclntyre and Ward, 

 1986; Feltham and Marquiss, 1989; Serafy et. al., 1996; 

 Sharf et. al., 1997; Sharf et. al., 1998). The ability to 

 back-calculate the original size of a prey leads to the 

 enhancement of diet studies and allows for more accu- 

 rate estimates of predator consumption rates. The lack 

 of this kind of data and correlations for many key prey 

 species in the Atlantic and elsewhere is surprising. 



Acknowledgments 



Funding for this study was provided by the Bluefish- 

 Striped Bass Dynamics Research Program at Rutgers 

 University in cooperation with the National Marine 

 Fisheries Service (grant NA97FE0363). I am indebted 

 to the numerous fishing tournament directors, as well 

 as the fishermen at the tournaments for allowing me to 

 collect many of the bluefish needed for this study. I am 



