80 FISHERY BULLETIN OF THE FISH AND WILDLIFE SERVICE 



seaboard. The importance of such information concerning our marine food fishes has 

 been brought out by Bowman (1914), who asked 



Are the chief spawning places such that when the bulk of the larvae appear from the egg they 

 find themselves in the immediate neighborhood of a locality suitable for development? To what 

 extent do the prevailing physical conditions assist the passive eggs and helpless larvae in securing a 

 suitable habitat for further development? 



It is of considerable import to the annual success of the American fisheries that there 

 should be an intimate connection between the spawning grounds of a species and the 

 localities suitable for growth. 



The present paper presents additional distributional and descriptive data on the 

 young of a number of marine fishes regularly occurring in lower Chesapeake Bay. 

 These data should help to increase our knowledge of the spawning season and spawning 

 habitat of these fishes. 1 



METHODS 



The area of Chesapeake Bay included in this study is bounded roughly by Cape 

 Henry and Cape Charles on the east, Lynnhaven Roads on the south, Old Point 

 Comfort on the west, and Back River Light on the north (fig. 1). 



Plankton collections were made at weekly or biweekly intervals at definite points 

 within this area with a meter ringnet towed by powerboat. All except two of the 

 collecting stations were permanently marked with navigation buoys and nearly all 

 plankton was taken at definite localities over the entire period of collection — extending 

 from May to October 1929, from April to December 1930, and during January and 

 March 1931. The period of each tow was standardized at 15 minutes, the tow usually 

 being with the tide and at as constant a rate of speed as conditions permitted. 2 Col- 

 lections were usually taken from 10:30 a. m. to 2:00 p. m. Both surface and sub- 

 surface tows were frequently made at each station. Subsurface tows were made from 

 10 to 20 feet below the surface of the water — the depth of water at no station exceeding 

 30 feet. 



PLANKTONIC FISHES 



Over 7,400 young fishes, representing 45 species, were taken in the plankton collec- 

 tions in lower Chesapeake Bay during 1929-30. Of the total number, 7,380 fishes 

 were identified and separated into 31 recognizable species, while 50 fishes were sepa- 

 rated into 14 unknown species. The planktonic young of the sea trout, Cynoscion 

 regalis, constituted over 50 percent of the total number of fish identified; followed in 

 abundance by the young of the common anchovy, Anchoiriella mitchilli; the sea robin, 

 Prionotus sp. ; and the blenny, Hypsoblennius hentz. 3 The numerical seasonal relation- 

 ship of the various species of larval and postlarval fishes in the plankton given by the 

 month and year is presented in table 1. 



The planktonic fishes, usually in larval or postlarval stages, were secured princi- 



> Acknowledgment is due the War Department for extended use oflaboratory space at Old Point Comfort, Vs., and to the many 

 fish dealers and fishermen about Hampton Roads for valued information and assistance. Special mention is due Miss Louella E. 

 Cable for the original drawings (figs. 2 to 9, 12 to 21, 24, and 25) in this report. 



' The length of the net was approximately 4 meters (13 feet), the upper 1M meters of No. silk bolting cloth (3S meshes to the 

 Inch), the lower 3 meters of No. 2 silk cloth (54 meshes to the inch), and a detachable cap of No. 12 silk cloth (150 meshes to the inch. 



• Numerically the young of A. mitchilli were far more abundant in the plankton than the young of C. regalis but, owing to the 

 labor involved, only a small proportion of young mitchilli was removed from the plankton, while all the young of C. regalis as well as 

 all other species were removed and identified. 



