APPENDIX F 



"TARPON IS VIVIPAROUS 



"Dr. C. H. Townsend, while on his way to the Galapagos 

 Islands for the purpose of collecting the giant tortoises 

 found on those islands, sends the following interesting note 

 on the tarpon. 



Balboa, Canal Zone, 



March 30, 1928. 



Dear Mr. Grant: 



In conversation with Mr. S. A. Venable of the Zone 

 Police Force, an experienced tarpon fisherman, I was in- 

 formed that the fish is viviparous. He has repeatedly 

 observed the females seeking shallow water, generally less 

 than 4 feet deep, where a continuous stream of young fish 

 was poured from her vent, the young being apparently 

 little more than ^-inch long. The young immediately 

 seek refuge in groups, under the large scales of the mother, 

 each scale standing outward at an angle of probably 30°. 

 The young clustered in these scale shelters as thickly as 

 they could. Mr. Venable's many observations lead him 

 to believe that the young shelter under the scales ten days 

 or more, when they are ^-inch long. The mother soon 

 rids herself of the young by shaking herself and by leaping. 



I have myself no personal or book knowledge of the 

 tarpon. The above notes may be a record of something 

 entirely new, and may explain the remarkably large scales 

 of this fish. If it isn't new to science, it is to many, in- 

 cluding myself. 



C. H. Townsend." 



230 



