98 Boston Society of Natural History 



Alpheus Hyatt, a former director of the Museum; A. E. Verrill, of 

 Yale University; Van Vleck, Rathbun, A. S. Packard of Brown 

 University, J. A. Cushman, and Miss Mary J. Rathbun, now of the 

 National Museum at Washington, frequently appear in the records 

 of the Museum and on the labels of specimens which some of them 

 obtained by extensive dredging. 



Although two hundred fathoms have been arbitrarily selected as 

 the depth limit for New England work, most of the material in the 

 collections has come from the shore or from water not deeper than 

 fifty fathoms. Dredging operations in from one hundred to two hun- 

 dred fathoms would undoubtedly produce abundant, valuable, and 

 much desired species, but such work requires elaborate and expen- 

 sive equipment. As it is, we have several thousand specimens in the 

 various divisions included in the term marine invertebrates, the re- 

 sult of early collections and the work of more recent curators. 



Fishes 



THERE are over 340 species of fish in New England of which 

 about 220 are mounted in our collection, leaving about 120 

 fish still to be acquired. Thirty-eight families are represented. Se- 

 lachians are well represented. There are about a dozen sharks excel- 

 lently mounted, including Basking Shark, Thresher Shark, Great 

 Blue Shark, Man-eating Shark, and Mackerel Shark. The Scom- 

 bridae, or mackerel-like fishes, are represented by about a dozen 

 species, and there are also numerous species of flounders. 



The game fish are all represented : salmon, pickerel, perch, bass, 

 catfish, etc., as well as such economically important species as cod, 

 pollock, haddock, halibut, and smelt. 



