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Fishery Bulletin 102(1) 



recent growth is concentrated on the medial or lateral 

 surface at the sulcus, decreasing towards the dorsal and 

 ventral surfaces, resulting in a wedgelike appearance. 



The thick type (Fig. 4C) is characterized by new growth 

 that increases the thickness of the otolith without increas- 

 ing the cross sectional width, causing the annulii to appear 

 closely spaced on the lateral surfaces. In the wedge subtype 

 (Fig. 4D), the most recent growth is concentrated at the sul- 

 cus and narrows towards the dorsal and ventral surfaces, 

 forming a wedge shape. 



It should be noted that these types and subtypes are not 

 always clearly defined. It should also be noted that clas- 

 sification to the subtype is based on the most recent one 

 or more hyaline zones. A wedge subtype is formed when a 

 single hyaline zone widens near the sulcus and comes to a 

 point at the outer edge. 



Of the 191 otoliths examined, 63 (33.0%) were classified 

 as "wide" types, 76 (39.7% ) were classified as "wide, wedge 

 subtypes," 32 (16.8%) were classified as "thick" types, 5 

 (2.6%) were classified as "thick, wedge subtypes,' and 15 

 i 7.99? ), could not be classified by this scheme. 



Position of the OTC mark 



There was no detectable OTC mark in 22 of 191 otoliths. 

 The absence of marks appeared to be a random event, 

 occurring in otoliths from several different recovery years 

 and equally likely to be found among different sexes, otolith 

 types, different depths, and locations. 



Of the 169 otoliths with detectable marks, the OTC mark 

 was found in a hyaline zone in 129 otoliths (76.3%), in an 

 opaque zone in 36 otoliths (21.3%), and could not be reli- 



