REPORT OF COMMISSIONERS OF INLAND FISHERIES. 167 



LOPHIID.^. The Fishing-Frogs. 

 197. Lophius piscatorius (Linnaeus). Goose fish; Bellows-fish; Angler. 



Geog. Dist.: North Atlantic, common on Ijoth coasts. Ranges south- 

 ward along the shore to Cape Hatteras; in deep water as far as the 

 Barbadoes, in 209 fathoms, and to Cape of Good Hope. North to 

 Norway and Nova Scotia. 



Habitat: A sluggish, bottom-loving fish. Present in shallow water in 

 spring and fall, retiring to deep water in both very warm and very 

 cold weather. In the winter of 1904-1905 many of this species, about 

 a foot in length, were frequently seen dead in Narragansett Bay and 

 thrown up on the shores. This was probably caused by the excessive 

 cold of that season. 



Season in R. I.: Common from April to July; apparently absent in 

 summer, probably going into deeper water; common in shallow water 

 again in October. In September, 1880, three specimens were taken 

 in the tilefish area at depths of 120 to 365 fathoms. (Proc. U. S. Nat. 

 Mus., ISSO, 461.) 



Reproduction: Probably spawns from June to August in deep water. 

 The eggs are buoyant, enclosed in a ribbon-shaped gelatinous mass 

 about two or three feet wide and 25 to 30 feet long. The eggs are 

 arranged in a single irregular layer, each arranged in a gelatinous 

 envelope twice the diameter of the egg. The egg is j inch in diameter 

 (1.75 mm.), and has a large oil globule. 



Food: Extremely voracious in its feeding habits, swallowing all kinds of 

 fishes, including large numbers of its own species. It has been known 

 to swallow live water-fowl, whence its common name. Dr. Linton 

 found specimens whose stomachs contained large quantities of mud 

 full of mollusca, small Crustacea, and annelids. 



Rate of Growth: Specimen four inches long taken off the banks of 

 Newfoundland in 1856. Young specimens have been found only at 

 considerable depths. Adults are taken four feet in length. 



References: 



1882: A. Agassiz, Proc. Amer. Acad., XVII, 280. 



1885: A. Agassiz and Whitman, Mus. Comp. Zool. Harv. Coll., XIV, 



16. 

 1890: McIntosh and Prince, Trans. Roy. Soc, Edinburgh, XXXV.. 



869. 

 1891: Prince, Report, Fishery Board, Scotland, 9. 

 1897: McIntosh and Masterman, British Marine Food Fishes, 149. 



