170 



BIOLOGY OF THE SEAS OF THE U.S.S.R. 



Catfish {Anarrhichas minor and A. lupus) are also mainly benthos-eating; 

 the echinoderms {Stronyglocentrotus droebachiensis, Ophiura sarsi, Ophiopho- 

 lis aculeata) and the molluscs {Pecten islandicus, Cardium ciliatum) are pre- 

 ponderant in its diet. However, it devours large amounts of fish also, mainly 

 cod and long rough dab. 



Although an inhabitant of the sea bottom, more than half the diet of the 



Fig. 70. Food ranges of various fish of the Barents 

 Sea (Brotzky, Briskina, Bogorov, and others). 



1 Ammodytes tobianus; II Careproctus reinhardti; 

 III Gadus poutassou ; IV Liparis major ; V Gymna- 

 canthus tricuspis; VI Myoxocephalus quadricornis; 

 VII Icelus bicornis ; VIII Lycodes pallidus ; IX Arted- 

 iellus europeus; X Aspidophoroides olrickii; XI Tri- 

 glops pingeli. Repletion indices given by numerals 

 under circles. White sectors inside circles denote per- 

 centages of empty stomachs. 1 Full stomachs; 



2 Empty stomachs ; 3 Pelagic crustaceans ; 4 Bottom- 

 living crustaceans; 5 Benthos; 6 Fish; 7 Sea-bed 



soil. 



ray {Raja radiata) consists of pelagic organisms (60 per cent) with 20 per cen- 

 fish and 20 per cent crustaceans and, to a lesser extent, benthos. Ray does not 

 touch infauna at all, it chooses the mobile benthos forms such as bottom crust 

 taceans and worms. Hence ray can be compared with cod as regards its feed- 

 ing habits. Among fish it chooses caplin, cod, haddock and long rough dab, 

 among the pelagic crustaceans Pandalus borealis and Thysanoessa. 



Various non-commercial Barents Sea fish (M. Briskina, 1939) are typical 

 benthophages (Fig. 70), which tear out the infauna from the bottom, as for 

 example Artediellus europeus; others fatten on infauna, onfauna and on 



