BIOLOGY OF BIKINI ATOLL — SCHULTZ 313 



DEEP-WATER USE OF ROTENONE 



Vernon E. Brock and Dr. Earl S. Herald, two ichthyologists who 

 are excellent swimmers and skin divers, successfully carried on sev- 

 eral deep-water poisonings of fishes with powdered cube root. They 

 mixed in the usual manner about 35 pounds of the substance, then 

 placed 5 to 10 pounds of the "mud" in desert water bags. Equipped 

 with standard U. S. Navy shallow-water diving outfits, Brock and 

 Herald took the rotenone to the bottom, distributing it around coral 

 growths. Down below with the usual dipnets, they recovered fishes, 

 bringing them to a man at the surface, who preserved the specimens. 

 This deep-water work was necessary to obtain a more complete pic- 

 ture of the fish fauna of Bikini and the change in kinds of fishes at 

 various depths in the lagoon. Several fish species occurring over the 

 shallower parts of the reefs normally are not found at depths below 

 10 or 20 feet, whereas some kinds below that depth are not taken 

 near the surface. 



COLLECTING WITH A LIGHT AT NIGHT 



A bright light suspended from a small ship at night at the surface 

 of the sea attracts to it myriads of nocturnal organisms — crustaceans, 

 worms, squid, octopi, and numerous species of fishes. Silversides, small 

 wrasse, round herring, the pelagic stages of goatfishes, surgeon fishes, 

 puffers, lizard and file fishes dart in and out of the field of illumina- 

 tion. Large flying fishes, a foot or two long, come swimming or flying 

 toward the light at night. Down below a few feet, larger predaceous 

 fishes can be seen rushing about feeding on the abundant animal life. 

 Eager collectors gathered above this light on a platform, and with 

 fine-meshed dipnets scooped up the animals, preserving thorn for 

 future study. 



Several kinds of fishes and invertebrates taken around the light were 

 never collected by any other means at Bikini. 



UNDERWATER TELEVISION 



At Bikini in 1947 I saw demonstrated the Navy's new underwater 

 television, prepared and operated by the Cornell Aeronautical Labora- 

 tory', Buffalo, N. Y. The camera end of this remarkable devise was 

 set up on the deck of the sunken submarine, Apogon, in IGO feet of 

 water. It was sufficiently sensitive to daylight to give clear and precise 

 images on the screen in the control and observation room of the U. S. S. 

 Coucal. The color patterns of fishes were portrayed in pale greenish 

 light with distinctness as they swam in front of the lens. I identified 

 with ease two species of pigfish (Lethrinus), the trumpet fish {Fisfu- 

 lana), a jack {Cara?ix), the moorish idol {Zanchis), and Siganus 

 pv.nctatus. 



