BULLETIN OF TIIE UNITED STATES PISH COMMISSION. 337 



Vol. V, JVo. 22. Washington, 1>. C. Aug. 21 , 1889. 



117.— NOTES UPON I 1*11 AIM) THE I ISH I.HI EM. 



Compiled by CIIAS. W. SITIILEY. 



[Mainly derived from the official correspondence. ] 



Appearance of mackerel. — M. I!. Sampson, keeper of the United 

 States life-saving- station at Manomet Point, writing under date of July 

 IT). 1885, says: "Mackerel have made their appearance in schools near 

 this station, and a few have been taken with hook and line." 



Stranding of a finback wnALE at Mount Desert Light 

 Station. — Writing under date of July 4, 1885, Thomas Milan, keeper, 

 says : "There was a male finback whale came ashore at this station July 

 3. He is 50 feet long, circumference about 25 feet. The flukes have a 

 breadth of 12 feet 1 inch; back fin, 1 foot 3 inches; depth of flukes, 3 

 feet 2 inches; from snout to back fin, 40 feet; length of mouth, 12 feet. 

 The outside skin was nearly all stripped off, as he had been eaten con- 

 siderably by the sharks. The color of his back was a dark lead color 

 or nearly black ; flukes, upper side, same color, under side, grayish- 

 white." 



A Codfish baisk near Noonivak Island.— On June 5, 1884, dis- 

 covered a cod bank off western end of Noonivak Island in latitude 00° 

 23' 40" K and longitude 108° 57' W. Depth of water on bank about 25 

 fathoms; bottom, sand, gravel, and rock. Again, on June 0, 1884, in 

 latitude 00° 03' N. and longitude 107° 58' W., caught a large number 

 of cod, weighing from 12 to 10 pounds. This seems to be a part of the 

 same bank discovered June 5. Depth of water on this bank about 19 

 fathoms, sand and shell bottom. The fish on both occasions seemed to 

 be very plentiful. [Extract from log of schooner Ounalaska.] 



Appearance of fish at Atlanticville, X. Y.— David A. Vail, 

 keeper of the Tiana Life-Saving Station, Atlanticville, X. Y.. wrote, 

 May 1, 1885: " The appearances of fish on this coast have been as fol- 

 lows : Alewives first appeared on February 26; porgies, April 20 ; sen- 

 robins, April 22; Boston mackerel, April 30; butterfish, April 30. I 

 have caused a watch to be kept for whale and porpoises, but have seen 

 none. Neither have I heard of any being seen in this vicinity this 



spring." 



June 19, Mr. Vail again wrote: "I have been unable to observe the 

 advent of fish on the coast as closely as I desired. The inlet to oar bay, 

 which is small, is too small for fish to enter the bay, and it closed entirely 

 on the 15th of May. During the week ending June menhaden were 

 abundant on this coast. On June 3 two whales were observed directly 



Bull. U. S. F. C, 85- 



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