PEOCEEDINGS OF UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM. 205 



admit of a satisfactory collection of its birds being made. The only 

 one obtained of special interest is that now described. 



Mr. Ober's note of it is as follows: 



"219. 'Black bird,' <?, Mt. Misery. May 21, 1880. 



"General plumage soft, glossy black; chin and throat, top of head 

 and extending back over the eyes on each side, and under tail-coverts 

 rusty red; bill and feet black. Depth of bill f inch. 



" Sexes alike ; young male diiferent. 



"Length, 8 J inches; wing, 4^; alar extent, 13." 



June 10, 1881. 



IVOTES ON THE MOBTAtilTY AMONG FISHES OF THE GUIiF OF 



MEXICO. 



By S. H. JOHNSOIV. 



CusTOM-HousE, Corpus Christi, Texas, 



Collector's Office, June 17, 1881. 

 Prof. Spencer F. Baird, 



U. 8. Commissioner of Fish and Fisheries, Washington, D. C. : 

 Sir : Noticing in the Forest and Stream of 9th instant some answers 

 to queries as to the cause of mortality among fishes in the Gulf of 

 IMexico, I make bold to present the result of my observations. 



After very heavy rains and overflowing of rivers, the inner bays on 

 the Texas coast suffer a loss of from one-half to three-fourths of their 

 stock of salt-water fish, not including mullet, which live as well in fresh 

 as salt water. In fact land-locked mullet in a fresh- water pond or tank 

 grow to a weight of nine or ten j)Ounds. 



Last winter, after a heavy rain and a freeze, all the salt-water fish in 

 the Laguna del Madre (a large sheet of water lying between Padre 

 Island and the mainland) were found dead on the banks. 



We have two causes for destruction of fish here, viz., too much fresh 

 water and too cold weather. 



In the lagoon above spoken of, in a long drought, the water gets 

 too salty for the fish, and they become covered with sores, and unless 

 relieved by a rain they die from too much salt. 



I have never known any serious mortality among fish on the Gulf 

 coast where there was free flow of water, except during violent storms, 

 when many fish both small and large were beached and killed. 

 Very respectfully, 



S. H. JOHNSO]!^, 



Collector. 



