208 Evermann and Kendall — Notes on a Pipefish. 



The most western records are from the neighborhood of the 

 Azores. The British Museum has specimens from north of 

 the Azores. In a report (1896) on the fishes collected during 

 explorations by the Prince of Monaco's yacht L'Hirondelle, in 

 1885-1888, Collett records a specimen from Lat. 39° 22' 48" N.; 

 Long. 33° 45' 30" W., taken at the surface over 1384 metres. 



The locality from which the present specimens were obtained 

 lies about in a direct line between the southern end of Cape 

 Sambro, Nova Scotia, and the south point at the entrance of 

 Bassin d'Arachon, Atlantic coast of southern France; and 

 northward of the Azores, a little east, but some 360 nautical 

 miles north of the Hirondelle station. 



Conch states that it "abounds in incalculable numbers from 

 near the shore to several miles in the open sea ; and it is then 

 they appear to perform a perhaps limited migration or change 

 of quarters ; for they swarm at the surface in fine weather from 

 the early part of summer to its declination ; but after this time 

 they are not seen and perhaps have gone to the bottom and 

 into deep water." 



Owing to their structure, their swimming powers are limited 

 and their migrations restricted to such as they accomplish by 

 taking passage on a piece of floating seaweed, to which they 

 attach themselves by their somewhat prehensile tail. The direc- 

 tion of the migration, therefore, is dependent mainly upon tides 

 and currents, and those found north of the Azores probably 

 reached those places by this means. 



This species attains the largest size of any of the pipe fishes. 

 Individuals are said to have been observed having a length of 2 

 or 3 fet't, but as commonly met with they are not so long. 



An interesting account illustrating the size attained by this 

 fish is given by Blake-Knox, Zoology, 1866, p. 508: 



' Last winter I met with an immense fish of this kind. Seeing 

 a boy whacking a donkey with a gutta percha stick, as I thought, 

 I asked him where he got it. ' It's only the stock of a snot 

 (seaweed), sir; see? 1 and I did see a fine icquoreal 3 feet 5 inches 

 long. Of its toughness you may judge. It is not uncommonly 

 taken in baskets with whelks and crabs." 



As previously mentioned, the present specimens are young 

 individuals, the most perfect specimen being about 7 inches 



