\ 



WASHINGTON 



Figure 16. — Locations where fur seal stomachs collected 

 off Washington in 1967 contained Thaleichthys paciflcus 

 (5 occurrences), Alosa sapidlsslma (7 occurrences), 

 and Clupea harengus pallasl (15 occurrences). 



salmon ( Oncorhynchus gorbuscha , O. keta, 

 O. kisutch , O. nerka , and O. tshawytscha ) and 

 steelhead trout, Salmo gairdneri , were iden- 

 tified. 2 * One stomach contained the remains of 



0. gorbuscha , O. kisutch , O. tshawytscha , and 

 Salmo gairdneri . All species except O. gor- 

 buscha were immature, their scales showing 



1, 2, and 3 years of ocean growth. The O. gor- 

 buscha were 2 years of age and would be 

 mature. 



Mallotus villosus . Capelin are a minor food 

 of seals off Washington, although important in 

 Alaskan waters. Capelin were in the stomachs 

 of three seals collected in 1967, the first since 

 1961 when six seals taken off Grays Harbor 

 contained capelin. 



Thaleichthys pacificus . Eulachon were a 

 minor food in 1967. Three of five occurrences 

 were from seals taken 18.5 km. (10 miles) off 

 Cape Flattery, Wash. (fig. 16). £ulachon ranked 

 second in food volume in 1964 and 1965. 



Merluccius productus . Pacific hake have 

 also been a minor food off Washington. Remains 

 of this fish were found in the stomachs of 

 two seals, one taken at lat. 48°29' N., long. 

 124°56' W. and another at lat. 48°13' N., long. 

 124°57' W. In the small sample taken off 

 Washington in 1964, however, this species 

 ranked first in food volume. 



Sebastodes spp. Rockfishes have been one of 

 the four leading food items eaten by fur seals 

 in 5 of the 6 years when samples were col- 

 lected. They ranked first in total food volume 



Figure 17. — Locations where fur seal stomachs collected 

 off Washington in 1967 contained Engraulls mordax 

 (8 occurrences), Salmonldae (18 occurrences), and 

 Sebastodes spp. (5 occurrences). 



in 1959 and third in 1967. In 1967, rockfishes 

 were found in the stomachs of two seals taken 

 off the Columbia River and of three seals taken 

 west of Cape Flattery (fig. 17). Rockfishes 

 were also the major food of seals collected 

 off Washington by Canadian investigators in 

 1958 25 and I960. 2 * 



Anoplopoma fimbria . Sablefishes, often 

 called "blackcod" by commercial fishermen, 

 are a minor food of fur seals off Washington, 

 although in 1959 they ranked second in total 

 volume. They were found in only one stomach 

 in 1967, which was collected about 19 km. 

 (10 nautical miles) off Cape Flattery, Wash, 

 (lat. 48°29' N., long. 124°56' W.). 



2* Salmon scales were identified by Kenneth H.Mosher 

 and Gunnar Safsten, BCF Biological Laboratory, Seattle, 

 Wash. 



2 »G. C. Pike, D. J. Spalding, I. B. MacASkle, and 

 F. P. J. Velsen. 19S8. Preliminary report on Canadian 

 pelagic fur seal research in 1938. Fisheries Research 

 Board of Canada, Nanalmo, B.C., 76 pp. + appendixes. 

 [Processed.] 



26 G. C. Pike, D. J. Spalding, I. B. MacAsltie, and A. 

 Craig. 1960. Report on Canadian pelagic fur seal re- 

 search in 1960. Fisheries Research Board of Canada, 

 Nanaimo, B.C., 67 pp. + appendixes. [Processed.] 



43 



