SIXTEENTH ANNUAL REPORT OW 
Conservation Commission, through Dr. T. H. Bean, State Fish 
Culturist. Three of these have been donated to the new Phila- 
delphia Aquarium. The Commission also presented thirty 
short-nosed sturgeons, raised in fresh-water ponds. 
Dr. C. B. Davenport presented a young specimen of the rare 
redfish, (Pseudopriacanthus), caught at Cold Spring Harbor, 
Long Island. Since its arrival last summer it has lived in the 
sea-horse tank, thriving on the small Gammarus crustaceans used 
as food for those fishes, and has nearly trebled in size. A com- 
plete list of gifts to the exhibits and to the library will be found 
under heading of Accessions. The exhibits of the Aquarium as 
a whole, are purchased through funds provided by the New York 
Zoological Society. 
The Aquarium still has two of the striped bass (Roccus line- 
atus) which were supposed to be three years old when the Aquar- 
ium was opened in 1896. Neither specimen weighs more than 
twenty pounds. The California sea-lion has been in the building 
over four and a half years, and has nearly doubled its size. It is 
a remarkably healthy and lively animal. An elephant seal nearly 
two years old was lost through the mischief of a visitor who gave 
the animal a lead pencil to play with. The pencil was swallowed 
and lodging in the intestines caused its death. 
The keeping of seals in a building as warm as it is neces- 
sary to keep the Aquarium in winter, has not been attended with 
very satisfactory results. The seal pools will probably be stocked 
with other animals better adapted to an indoor life, until accom- 
modations can be provided that will insure the welfare of the 
seals. In a larger building it would be quite possible to arrange 
quarters for seals where they could have the lower air tempera- 
ture that is necessary for such warm-blooded animals. 
The collection of local fishes and invertebrates was main- 
tained in good condition through the efforts of our regular col- 
lector and through seining trips made by the Aquarium employ- 
ees to the lakes of the various parks in Greater New York. Many 
specimens were also brought in from the off-shore fishing banks 
by the fishing steamer Taurus. 
The fish-hatchery was kept in operation during the winter 
and spring months for the public exhibition of the methods in 
use in the artificial hatching and rearing of fishes. The United 
