504 A. E. Verrill — The Bermuda Islands. 



low temperature and the cold northwest winds, persisting for many 

 days together, appear to have heen sufficient to cool the sea-water 

 beyond the limit of endurance for many of the tropical fishes found 

 there, so that vast numbers died and were washed ashore, especially 

 during the first week of March, all along the coast, but more abun- 

 dantly around the shores of Hamilton Harbor and the adjacent 

 islands. The stench from their decomposition became so great that 

 the local government was obliged to aid in their removal, early in 

 March, for sanitary reasons. 



The fishes that died in the largest quantities were two of the com- 

 mon shallow water species, viz : the hamlet grouper and the red 

 squirrel fish. Later in the season these and other fishes that had 

 previously been common were found to be scarce and difficult to 

 obtain. In fact, most of the ordinary market fishes were much 

 scarcer than ever before. 



Among other interesting fishes seen dead on the shore were the 

 green parrot-fish, large porcupine-fishes, hog fish, Spanish lady-fish, 

 trunk-fish, angel-fish, etc. 



The following partial list* of species includes those that were 

 particularly noticed among the dead fishes, March 8th to loth : — 



Squirrel-fish Holocentrus Ascensionis. 



Hamlet Grouper Epinephelus striatus. 



Parrot-fish _ Pseudoscarus guacamaia. 



Porcupine-fish Diodon hystrix. 



Trunk-fish Lactophrys triqueter. 



Cow-fish _ LactopJi rys tricorn is. 



Small Eock-fishes Mycteroperca bonad (young). 



Spanish Angel-fish; Catalineta ..Holacanthus tricolor. 



Rainbow Flounder Platophrys lunatus. 



Guapena; Eibbon-fish Eques lanceolatus. 



Green Moray ..I/ycodontis funebris. 



Bermuda Hog-fish Lachnolaimus maximus. 



Spanish Lady-fish Harpe rufa. 



In this list, very incomplete as it must be, there are two >>u'cies 

 that had not been previously recorded from Bermuda waters, so 



* I am indebted to my son, A. Hyatt Verrill, for part of the above list, for he 

 arrived in Bermuda March 7th, when the shores were still covered with the 

 dead fishes, though most of them were then so badly decomposed that they could 

 not be preserved. Had he been on the ground a week earlier, he could have 

 made, without doubt, a very valuable collection of the fishes, including many 

 rai - e species not in the above list. When I arrived at Bermuda. April 12th, the 

 most of the dead fishes had disappeared, though skeletons of some of the more 

 abundant species were common ; but a few dead, or nearly dead, specimens of 

 some species were still often found floating at the surface. 



