Haseman : Expedition to Central Soirii America. 293 



lectinjj Seine"), having a mesh of one-ciiiarter of an inch, is the 

 most \aliial)le of all implements. With this it is possible to collect 

 alonti the niari^ins of ii\ei"s both in ihe (la\lime and at night. This 

 seine is also useful in lagoons and creeks, and on sand-bars, but it 

 cannot be advantageously drawn in muddy i>Iaces. Shorter seines 

 are needed for small and rapid streams, especially wlu'n there are 

 large quantities of brush and boulders in them. I had better success 

 In- ])lacing the seine without a canoe when the water was not deep. 

 During the da\- I always had far better success by placing the nets 

 around large sections of the plant-grown margins of the lakes and 

 ri\ers and fastening both ends of the net to the banks. Then the 

 encircled i)lants were cjuietly removed and the nets pulled ashore. 

 In this way I sometimes obtained a canoe-load of fishes at one haul, 

 the catch containing at times as many as fifty species. Great care 

 must be taken in employing this method because of alligators, snakes, 

 and sting-rays. Seining, as well as other methods of collecting, should 

 be employed during all stages of the rise and fall of the rivers, because 

 there is a wonderful migration of fishes during this time. The Guarani 

 Indians call this migration Piracema, and at times they cannot 

 catch more than small characins and cichlids. The migration is 

 associated with spawning, and nearly all of the large species of fishes 

 go up the rivers when the fiood season begins. At this time the 

 Indians go to the waterfalls to catch the masses of fish which are 

 waiting for a rise of the river sufficient to enable them to get above the 

 falls. 



In swift water seines having a fine mesh are not good. For large 

 fishes and fast-swimming species a longer seine with coarse meshes 

 must be used. As a rule Lepidosiren can be captured during the dry 

 season in swamps by cutting a circle in the grass and placing the seine 

 in it. Then remove all of the gra;ss and roll up the net. 



2. Gill-nets and Set-nets. — Gill-nets can be used when there are 

 no Piranhas {SerrisalmonincB) , but wherever Piranhas exist seining 

 and netting have to be done skilfully and quickly, because the Piranhas 

 can cut a net into pieces in an instant. Set-nets are very useful in 

 rocky places, especially for mailed catfishes, which hide under rocks 

 during the day. 



3. Dip-nets. — In mountain rills, in grassy places, and under rocks 

 in rapidly flowing water a dip-net is often needed, and with the aid 

 of the feet many small mailed catfishes, Pygidiidce, and small characins 



