lowing factors to verify the warming trend in New England waters : 



1. A long-term upward trend in air temperatures in New England 

 is evident from the record. The increase has been greatest 

 for the winter months. 



2. Upward trends in winter sea temperatures are shown for 

 St. Andrews, N. B., Boothbay Harbor, Maine, and Woods 

 Hole, Mass. The correlation of January water temperatures 

 at Boothbay Harbor with January air temperatures at New 

 Haven, Conn., and Eastport, Maine, indicates a long-term 

 upward trend in surface temperatures corresponding to that 

 for winter air temperatures. 



3. Hydrographic data for the Gulf of Maine in 1953 and 1954, 

 indicate an increase of from 1° to 5° F. throughout the water 

 column since the period 1912-26 for most parts of the Gulf. 



The presence of a few temperate and cold water species not in 

 Tracy's list can be attributed to the greater fishing intensity now 

 carried on in Rhode Island waters. Fifty years ago the majority of 

 the fish were obtained by trapping or seining. Offshore fishing was 

 done with an inefficient beam trawl or with hook and line. Today, 

 trawl vessels can fish with large, efficient nets at variable depths, 

 guided to their quarry with electronic fish-finding devices such as 

 "fathometers" and "fish-finders." 



Occasionally fresh water species of fish stray into the tidal brackish 

 waters of coastal rivers. Table 3 lists fresh water species of fish 

 which have been reported in the brackish coastal rivers of Rhode 

 Island. Much of the data for Table 3 was obtained from Horton 

 (1958). 



Thirty-one species of fish which are included in this survey, but 

 have not been recorded in Rhode Island waters during the past 40 

 years, are listed in Table 4. Included in this list are five species of 

 flying fish. These pelagic species appear to be present in waters off 

 Block Island, but are very difficult to capture. 



A list of fish of questionable identification from Rhode Island 

 waters appears in Table 5. These species are doubtful because they 

 were immature specimens or their place of capture is not clear. 

 In the case of the African lildish (Batistes forcipatus), only one 

 specimen was collected in 1867. This may have been a mutation or 

 variation of a species of North American filefish. 



86 



