FISHERY BULLETIN: VOL. 69, NO. 4 



Mysidopsis higelowi Tattersall, 1926 

 Geographic Distribution 



M. higelowi is a small American species that 

 occurs along the Atlantic and Gulf coasts of 

 eastern and southern United States from New 

 England to Louisiana. 



The NMFS collection contains 2,031 specimens 

 out of 54 samples (Figure 11; Burns and Wig- 

 ley, Table 12) collected from northeastern 

 Georges Bank southward along the coast to the 

 vicinity of Jacksonville, Fla. Georges Bank is 

 the principal area represented in the sampling; 

 the results extend the known range of this spe- 

 cies a considerable distance to the northeast. 

 Only five samples were from localities south of 

 the Nantucket Shoals region: these were taken 

 off New Jersey, Virginia, North Carolina, and 

 northern Florida. 



It is interesting to note this species is not 

 listed as present in the plankton samples col- 

 lected from Georges Bank between 1939 and 

 1941 (Whiteley, 1948). Although the absence 

 could have been due to annual fluctuations in 

 abundance in this northern sector of its range, 

 our results show the species was present each 

 year we conducted moderate or heavy sampling: 

 in 1955 through 1958, and in 1964 through 1967. 

 More likely the absence in the 1939-41 samples 

 resulted not from temporary fluctuations but be- 

 cause these earlier collections were primarily 

 from middle and upper water levels, whereas 

 most of the NMFS collections were taken on or 

 near the sea bottom. 



Bathymetric Distribution 



M. higelowi is a shallow-shelf species that has 

 been reported from inshore localities such as the 

 inlet to Indian River Bay, Del., and Calcasieu 

 Pass, La., and from offshore waters as deep as 



Figure 11. — Geographic distribution of My- 

 sidopsis higelowi based on specimens in the 

 collection at the NMFS Biological Labora- 

 tory, Woods Hole. 



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JACKSONVIILEO 



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