ON THE FRACTION OF BARRED SPIRAL GALAXIES

We investigate the stellar masses of strongly barred spiral galaxies. Our analysis is based on a sample of similar to 14,000 visually classified nearby galaxies given by Nair & Abraham. The fraction of barred spiral galaxies is found to be a strong function of stellar mass and star formation history, with a minimum near the characteristic mass at which bimodality is seen in the stellar populations of galaxies. We also find that bar fractions are very sensitive to the central concentration of galaxies below the transition mass but not above it. This suggests that whatever process is causing the creation of the red and blue sequences is either influencing, or being influenced by, structural changes which manifest themselves in the absence of bars. As a consequence of strong bar fractions being sensitive to the mass range probed, our analysis helps resolve discrepant results on the reported evolution of bar fractions with redshift.