REPORT OF COMMISSIOXERS OF IXLAXD FISHERIES. 43 



States Fish Commission while investigating the extent of the tilefish 

 grounds. These grounds inchide an area between 69° and 73° 

 west longitude and 40° 20' and 39° 47' north latitude, and are situated 

 on the edge of the Gulf Stream, directly to the south of the Rhode 

 Island coast. A complete discussion of the tilefish, which is the 

 most important of the fishes taken in that region, will be found in 

 the R. I. Fish Commission reports for 1899 and 1900, and in the 

 Bulletin of the United States Fish Commission for 1898, page 321. 

 If any apology is necessary for mentioning the fishes taken in waters 

 at such a distance from Rhode Island, it may be said that a knowledge 

 of the fish fauna of the Gulf Stream at that particular point helps 

 to explain the occurrence of so great a number of tropical species in 

 our coast waters, and also that, if the tilefish should become of any 

 commercial importance, the location of the area in w^iich it is taken 

 is such that it w^ould be more readily accessible to the Rhode Island 

 fishermen than to those of any other state. With a few exceptions, 

 the species mentioned in this appendix are surface forms. A com- 

 plete enumeration of the deep-water fishes of this region would unduly 

 extend the list by the inclusion of a large number of forms which have 

 a closer relation to the deep-sea fauna than to the fauna of Rhode 

 Island. 



Following the list of fishes is a short article on "The Common 

 Fishes of the Herring Family." This has been added in the hope 

 that it may aid in clearing up the confusion prevalent in this locality 

 regarding the identity of some of the species of that family. Plates 

 have been inserted to supplement the descriptions of the fishes 

 mentioned. 



In order to make the identification of certain forms easier, plates 

 are presented to show a few of our occasional visitors from southern 

 waters, and also to illustrate the two species of the sturgeons which 

 are common in the waters of Rhode Island. These plates have been 

 reproduced from Goode's " Natural History of Aquatic Animals," ex- 

 cept Plate VI, which was taken from Jordan's '' Guide to the Study 

 of Fishes." 



