placed in the systematic 

 fish collection is a very- 

 showy specimen, but it 

 should be remembered 

 that in its natural en- 

 vironment there are so 

 few red rays left in the 

 sunlight which pene- 

 trates the mass of blue- 

 green water, that the 

 red color of the fish 

 cannot show. 



In latitude 39° 39' 

 north and longitude 72° 

 07' west, Zenopsis, a lit- 

 tle-known deep-water 

 relative of the European 

 "John Dory," was 

 found. When a cast 

 of Zenopsis is placed on 

 exhibition, a direct com- 

 parison with the Eu- 

 ropean fish can be made. 

 In the same locality 

 was taken a single spec- 

 imen of the small rare 

 shark Catidus rotifer, so-named from the delicate netlike color pattern on its 

 back and sides. Two flounders, Paralichthi/s oblongus and Limanda ferru- 

 ginea, previously not contained in our collection, also proved to be common 

 in deep water within fifty miles of New York. 



Observations of no less interest were made on other commoner fish also. 

 The Carolina sea robin and the fluke which abound in our bays in summer 

 were found scattered in the deep water off shore, indicating that with 

 colder weather they migrate into the depths. We caught a single alewife 

 along the Long Island shore. This species of herring with other similar 

 fishes formerly ascended our fresh water streams to spawn in incredible 

 numbers, which have gradually decreased on account of the damming 

 and pollution of coastwise streams. A number of years ago Professor 

 Baird attributed the decrease of cod which has gone on off the New 

 England coast, not to over-fishing but to decrease in these smaller fishes 

 which used to fill the waters adjacent to the streams where they spawned 

 throughout a great part of the year and which formed an important 

 factor in the cod's food supply. 



The facts gleaned on this short trip with the steam trawl point out the 

 importance of a thorough study of our local fishes, which it is hoped there 

 will soon be opportunity to undertake. 



44 



A large hake from the catch. The fish from the net are 

 all dumped in a pile on the steamer's deck, to be dexter- 

 ously sorted with pitch forks, cleaned and tossed below, 

 where they are immediately buried in ground ice so that 

 they will reach the market in good condition 



