Dear Peggy et al.,
I use a Latin salutation to offer set the tone for a slight correction of
the thread of this discussion. Mrs. Ewing, my favorite Latinist ever (grade
10) taught me that the preposition in this phrase calls for an ablative
object; ergo ex pisce. If there are several fish contributing to the
harvest, ex piscibus might be preferable.
When the ephemeral scallop fishery was in full swing in Jacksonville, I
took about 1,000 batfish home over about ten campaigns with the invaluable
collaboration of a patient of mine who was a crewman on one of the
trawlers.The stuff I took from (two species of) batfish were remarkably
well-preserved. Cowries, although few in number, varied from shiny to
moderately dull - and some could have been “crabbed” at the time of
consumption. The most impressive characteristic was the intactness of the
majority of fragile bubble shells and their calcium-challenged cephalaspid
relatives. I suspect they would be excreted pretty much intact. From 1000
fish in various states of decay I took over 200 species (median size by
species 5 mm.; champion specimen 25 mm.), many of which have been found by
no other method in the waters off northeast Florida by me and my
Jacksonville Shell Club colleagues. Some of these finds, including taxa
unique to the batfish dissection technique, involved many dozens of perfect
specimens.
From this experience I concluded that there was little, if any mastication
or other crushing, of prey by these two fish species.
The productivity of other known molluscivorous fish, e.g. the Musselcracker
(Southeast Africa), Pacamăo (Northeast Brasil), Haddock (New England), etc.
is well-recognized by shell-collectors, and may not be very different from
the above (except that Batfish are smaller with even smaller
(proportionately) mouths. The stomach and intestinal secretions are not
likely as forgiving to the shells as with the batfish. I have heard that
there is a very short interval (“four to six hours”) between ingestion and
significant etching of Cypraea fultoni by Musselcracker fish. How this is
determined is puzzling, but I doubt it was under rigorous experimental
conditions.
Skates are renowned crushers of their molluscan prey and cannot be
considered a good source of shells for the specimen collector.
That’s the limit of my ability to elucidate Peggy’s problem.
Harry
At 01:57 PM 12/21/2005, you wrote:
>Dear listers
>
>We’ve heard of great quantities of shells being ingested by batfish, etc.
>How do they extract the meat? What happens to the shells after the meat is
>gone? Does stomach acid eat them up or are they expelled by the fish?
>
>I’ve gotten five largish turrids that were in a fish stomach. They’re all
>in pretty good shape, except the lips are broken back. Would that have
>happened when the fish ate the shell, or might it be an earlier fight with
>a crab or something??
>
>Peggy
>
> Peggy Williams: shell collecting trips
>
> Visit my website: <http://www.Shelltrips.com>www.Shelltrips.com
>
> PO Box 575
>
> Tallevast FL 34270
>
> (941) 355-2291
>
> <mailto:[log in to unmask]>[log in to unmask]
Harry G. Lee, M.D.
Suite 500
1801 Barrs Street
Jacksonville, FL 32204 USA
voice (904) 384 6419
fax (904) 388 1827
email: [log in to unmask]
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