NOTES ON PARASITES OF BERMUDA FISHES. 



B}' EuwiN Linton, 



Of Washington and Jefferson College, Wn^JihujIon, I'eniisylixtnia. 



INTRODUCTION. 



These notes are based on investigations made l)y the writer at the 

 Bermuda Biolog-ical Station for Research, Flatts, Bermuda, from 

 July 7 to August 7, 1903. 



I am under oljligations to many of my colaborers in the laboratory 

 for their friendly assistance, and especially to Mr. Thomas Barbour, 

 to whom I am indebted for the identitication of many of the iish 

 which were examined, and without whose energetic and disinterested 

 help ni}^ list of fish would ])e shorter than it is. 



It gives me pleasure also to record my grateful acknowledgments 

 to the Bermuda Natural History Society and to Doctor Mark and 

 Doctor Ik'istol for the privileges of the laboratory. 



The opportunities for getting material were limited, and, moreover, 

 much of the material was in poor condition. This was especially true 

 of many of the small distomes. When it is rememV)ered that the 

 temperature of the laboratory was not often as low as SO'-' F., day or 

 night, it will be easily understood that much care was necessary to 

 prevent the rapid deterioration of material. 



While an examination of a greater number of tisli would, without 

 doubt, add many parasitic forms to the list contained in this paper, 

 enough has l)een ascertained to ati'ord some data relative to the degree 

 to which the Bernmda fishes are infested. 



So far as my observation teaches, those fishes which are found on 

 the inner reefs are freer from encysted parasites than are those which 

 live on the outer reefs and in the deeper waters outside. On account 

 of the exceeding transparency of the Bermuda waters, sharks, which 

 are the great disseminators of cestode ova, do not frequent the shal- 

 lower waters of the shoals. This fact probal^ly accounts for the com- 

 parative scarcity of cestode larvfe in the fish which were taken on the 

 shoals. On the other hand, the large groupers and rock fish, all 

 of which were from al)out l-i fathoms of water on the outer reefs, 

 were found to harbor numerous encysted cestodes on the viscera, and 

 especially in the walls of the stomach. A recurring feature in the 



Proceedings U.S. National Museum , Vol. XXXIII— No. 1560. 



85 



