390 U. S. BUREAU OF FISHERIES 



In many females the eggs are not extruded at the regular period, 

 and in many instances these eventually harden into an almost solid 

 mass. At Pirate Cove, in 1913, my attention was early called to these 

 delayed spawners. The first one was observed on May 10, shortly 

 after my arrival at the station. From then on they occasionally 

 appeared until early in August, when they became quite numerous. 

 On June 25 I cut out of one female a roe that weighed 8 pounds. Oc- 

 casionally the eggs were found in a mass with the usual envelope 

 missing. In no instance that I observed did this condition seem to 

 affect the health of the fish, all of them appearing to be normal fish 

 so far as food qualities, weight, etc., were concerned. 



YOUNG 



Doctor Bean's observations showed young cod as present in shallow 

 water near shore at some place or other on the Pacific side between 

 Cooks Inlet and Unalaska between May and October, and that about 

 the middle of the latter month they reach an average length of 4 or 

 5 inches. 



On September 7, 1913, I first noticed large numbers of young cod 

 from 2 to 4 inches in length swimming around Pirate Cove harbor, 

 and they were still there in large numbers when I left on September 

 26. The small native boj'S would catch them occasionally on a baited 

 hook or bent pin. which the fry would pursue eagerly. They were 

 found occasionally also in the stomachs of adults brought in by the 

 fishermen, showing conclusively that the cod do not discriminate 

 against their own offspring. 



FOOD 



The food of the Pacific cod is as plentiful and as varied as in the 

 Atlantic. Any fish that it can capture forms a part of its food. I 

 opened and examined the stomachs of many cod at Pirate Cove sta- 

 tion during the summers of 1912 and 1913, and was surprised at the 

 variety of food found therein. During July, 1913, shrimp were ex- 

 ceedingly abundant in their stomachs. I also found three ducks with 

 bright red feet, known locally as "Alaska pigeons." These evidently 

 had been swallowed but a short time before, as they were all in an 

 excellent state of preservation. Alaska pollock {Theragra chalco- 

 gra/mma) seemed to be the chief food of the cod. although, strange to 

 relate, it was found to be absolutely worthless as bait when cut into 

 pieces. Sculpins are frequently found in its stomach, as are also 

 salmon, herring (Clupea pallasi), capelin, halibut, and sand launce 

 (Ammodytes personatus) . Yellow striped fish, or "Atka mackerel " 

 (Pleurogrmnmus m-onopteryghis), is a popular article of food. 

 Sometimes young cod are found in the stomachs of the adults, Octopi 

 and shrimp are favorites of the cod. and during the summer months 

 their stomachs will be found, in certain sections, to be filled with 

 the latter. 



OTHER MEMBERS OF THE GADID.3R 



An odd feature of the cod fisheries of the Pacific is the total 

 absence of the haddock and hake, which form such a large proportion 

 of the catch of the Atlantic Gadidae fishery. The pollock of Alaska 



