NINETEENTH ANNUAL REPORT 127 



By authority of the Bureau and with the permission of the 

 Zoological Society, Dr. Townsend had personal charge of the 

 vessel. 



The investigations were undertaken for the purpose of as- 

 certaining the character, distribution and abundance of animal 

 life on the bottom, a work never before attempted in the western 

 part of the Sound. Seventy hauls were made with the beam 

 trawl, and at each dredging station occupied, the temperature 

 and salinity of the water were recorded at both surface and 

 bottom. 



The animal collections consisted largely of crustaceans, bot- 

 tom fishes, mollusks and starfishes, in about the order named. 

 Among the fishes, flounders predominated and were abundant 

 enough to be worth taking for market by trawling vessels. 



The work was confined to the deeper central portion of the 

 Sound from New York to Bridgeport. 



Among the invertebrates were spider crabs, rock crabs, 

 hermit crabs, large whelks, starfishes and an abundance of small 

 mollusks. 



Among the fishes there were, in addition to flounders, many 

 small hake and a few large ones, but the beam trawl is not well 

 adapted for taking fishes other than the more sluggish bottom 

 species. 



The dredgings show the conditions existing in midsummer 

 only ; winter conditions would be different when the fishes and 

 invertebrates of the shore region descend into deeper water. 



The collections made by the Fish Hawk were largly identi- 

 fied on board, the balance being landed at the Cold Spring Harbor 

 Laboratory for further examination by Dr. Davenport and at the 

 Aquarium by Dr. R. C. Osburn. 



All dredging stations were plotted on charts, and studies of 

 the material obtained are practically ready for publication. The 

 work in general has a fishery interest. Numerous fishes and 

 invertebrates were saved alive for exhibition at the Aquarium. 



ATTENDANCE. 



The following table shows the attendance for 1914, by 

 months : 



January visitors 100,783 Daily average 3,251 



February " 100,024 " " 3.572 



