proceedings: biological society 585 



The address was concluded by an account of the fish hatching carried 

 on in the park by the Bureau of Fisheries, and attention was drawn to 

 the great debt that the country and the park owe to fish culture and 

 fish acclimatization for making the park a veritable anglers' paradise, 

 affording probably better and more varied trout fishing than can be 

 had elsewhere in the United States. Some of the advantages of arti- 

 ficial propagation over natural propagation were pointed out. 



Numerous colored lantern slides of streams and lakes in the park 

 served to indicate the extraordinary attractions among which fishery in- 

 vestigations and fish culture are conducted; and there were shown also 

 colored views of geysers and hot springs in some of which collections 

 of sediment and algae had been made. Among some of this material 

 that had been obtained for and examined by Dr. N. A. Cobb there were 

 nematodes representing undescribed species — the first recorded from a 

 hot spring. (Author's abstract.) 



612TH MEETING 



The 6 1 2th meeting was held in the lecture hall of the Cosmos Club, 

 May I, 1920. Dr. T. S. Palmer presided, calling the meeting to order 

 at 8 o'clock with 30 persons present. The minutes of the 6 nth meet- 

 ing were read and approved. Upon recommendation of the Council 

 Dr. J. N. Aldrich of the National Museum and Eric D. Reid of the 

 Fish Division, National Museum, were elected to membership. 



Under the heading of 5m/ notes and exhibition of specimens, Dr. R. W. 

 Shufeldt, having collected all the salamanders known to occur in the 

 District of Columbia except the Cave Salamander, exhibited lantern 

 photographs of six of them. He exhibited two specimens of the spotted 

 trumpet leaf {Sarracenia variolaris) in full bloom, from near Orlando, 

 Florida. The specimens have been accepted by the Botanical Gardens. 



Dr. T. S. Palmer mentioned the tendency of animals in semi-domes- 

 tication or protection to breed earlier than in the wholly wild state. 

 Thus bison in the west have been born in April, where in the wild state 

 they are born in June. Pelicans in Florida normally have two breed- 

 ing seasons. May and November. Recently, under protection, the 

 birds arrive earlier and begin to breed in September. 



Dr. C. D. Marsh stated that loco weed is now common in 

 New Mexico and Arizona. The stand is quite heavy for that plant. 

 The plant periodically recurs, since the seeds are practically water 

 proof and withstand several seasons of moderately dry weather but a 

 few wet seasons will cause them to germinate. 



Regular Program 



Prof. A. S. Hitchcock: Floral aspects of British Guiana. 



An account was given of Prof. Hitchcock's recent trip to British 

 Guiana for the purpose of studying the grasses and collecting the flow- 

 ering plants and ferns. The work was cooperative between the U. S. 

 Department of Agriculture, the Gray Herbarium, and the New York 

 Botanical Garden. About three and one-half months were spent in 



