Short Term Changes In A Cod Larval Patch West Of Iceland 1997

No abstracts are to be cited without prior reference to the author.

A large patch of cod larvae was sampled twice during late June - early July 1997. The interval between sampling dates was one week. A part of the patch remained unsampled on both occations and thus, planned mortality estimates were not realised. Rough estimates of the total number in the patch (6 * 1010) suggests that a great deal of mortality took place after the last survey (average length 12 mm SL). Cirripedia nauplii which dominated the zooplankton samples were unimportant in the cod stomachs. Copepod eggs are the most common food items up to 12 or even 16 mm length. Copepods dominate the food in most length groups above 12 mm and the availability oflarger copepods (in this case the larger stages of Ca/anus finmarchicus) may largely determine the feeding conditions of the early juveniles.