ALASKA INDUSTRIES. 



227 



CATALOGUE OF THE FISHES OF THE PKIBILOF GROUP. 



[A memorandum of the fishes collected at the Pribilof Islands, 1872-73, by Henry "W. Elliott.] 



Anarrhichas lepturus. Rare ; seals drive tbem off. 



Gadus morrhua. "Treesca."' Rare; .seals drive them off. 



Hippoglossus vulgaris. "Poltoos." Codiuiou; ouly large ones caught. 



Melletes papilio.- "Kalog." Common; a beach cottoid. 



Cottus iiiger.' "Kalog." Commou; a beach cottoid. 



Muraenoides maxillaris.* Rare; a beach lish. 



Liparis gibbus.^ Rare. 



Gasterosteus cataphractus. Commou ; found in lagoon. 



Gasterosteus pungitius. Common ; found in lagoon. 



notes on the invertebrates. 



Field notes upon the entomology, malacology, botany, 

 ETC. — Touching a specific list of tbe insect life here, I regret exceed- 

 ingly that my collections covering this head, as well as those which 

 include the two following orders, have been unaccountably mislaid ; con- 

 sequently I shall not reproduce the hastily and naturally imperfect 

 memoranda which I made of them when they were packed on St. Paul 

 Island in 1872. 



Limited number of insects on the Pribilof Islands. — The 

 variety and abundance of entomological life here is not great, with the 

 marked exception of a few species of beetles and Hesh flies on the kill- 

 ing grounds. The green and golden carabus is, however, found distrib- 

 uted in great numbers all over the islands. 



Scanty molluscan representation on the seal islands. — 

 I qualify my statements made at the introduction to this memoir by 

 saying that the terrestrial and littoral forms of mollusca on and around 

 the Pribilof group are scant in number, but I believe that the pelagic 

 life in this respect will be found quite ricli. For instance, I never saw 

 any live specimens of the Nepfunimuv. All the sliells of this character 

 collected had been cast up by the surf and were empty. The largest 

 live gasteropod that came under my notice was a species of Murex. As 

 the above sketch idainly shows, the conchologist has not a very exten- 

 sive field here, though doubtless search bent directly to this end would 

 develop a much better catalogue. If a dredge were patiently and ener- 

 getically used around these islands I am very sure that many new forms 

 would be found, which give us tangible evidence of their being, by laud 

 and beach hunting for them. My time was so thoroughly engrossed 

 on the rookeries that I had not a single day to spare during the only 

 season of the year in which I could work witli my dredge. The rough 

 water and weather that prevail wiien the seals are not about prevented 

 my following up the mollusks in this manner. 



1 The St. George natives have caught codlish just off the Tolstoi head earlv in 

 ■Tune, but it is a rare occurrence. By going out 2 or 3 miles from the village at either 

 island, daring July and August, the uativo fisherman usually captures large hiilibut ; 

 not in abundance, however. The St. Paul people, as well as their relatives on St. 

 George, fish in small, "one-hole" bidarldes. They venture together in sfjuads of four 

 to six; one man alone in a kyack is not able to secure a "bolshoi jioltoos." The 

 method, when the halibut is "hooked, is to call for your nearest neighbor in his 

 bidarka, who jiaddles swiftly up; you extend your paddle to him, retaining your 

 own hold, and he grasps it; then you seize his in turn, thus making it impossible to 

 capsize, while the large and powerfully struggling lish is brought to the surface 

 between the canoes and knocked on the head. It is then towed ashore and carried 

 in triumph to the lucky captor's house. 



- New genus and species determined by Dr. Tarleton H. Bean, based upon my type 

 specimen. 



^ New species. 



