REPORT OF THE BIOLOGIST 



COMMISSION OF INLAND FISHERIES. 



Many problems of economic interest have been suggested to the 

 members of the Commission as worthj^ of careful scientific investi- 

 gation, but one in i^articular — the depredations of the star- fish — is 

 of such pressing importance that the Commission has recommended 

 its immediate consideration. 



Interviews with our fishermen reveal lack of definite informa- 

 tion in regard to the habits of the animal, and reference to the 

 literature on the subject jdelds little of practical value. 



The facts before us are as follows : 



The natural equilibrium of life in Narragansett Bay has been 

 disturbed ; many of the fish which once inhabited our waters have 

 been destroj^ed ; and their place has been taken by new forms ; 

 the rivers and streams opening into the bay are now more or less 

 polluted, and are no longer fit breeding places ; of recent years 

 the oyster men have cleared and ijlanted large tracts of our shal- 

 low inlets, and have thus not only imported millions of oysters but 

 with these, and quite unintentionally, myriads of animals quite 

 new to this locality. In addition to animals quite new to the 

 locality, animals already here have been often emancipated by the 

 destruction of their natural enemies, and have consequently multi- 

 plied without restraint. The star-fish belongs to this latter class. 

 It has destroyed manj^ of the large beds of mussels, the attractive 

 feature of our bay for many of the most important food fishes, it 



