﻿NO. 
  1950. 
  CRUSTACEAN 
  PARASITES 
  OF 
  FISH 
  AND 
  CRABS— 
  WILSON. 
  191 
  

  

  Beside 
  these 
  forms, 
  which 
  may 
  be 
  designated 
  as 
  the 
  regular 
  catch, 
  

   odd 
  species 
  are 
  continually 
  being 
  taken 
  both 
  in 
  the 
  fish 
  pots 
  and 
  in 
  

   the 
  seines, 
  and 
  if 
  the 
  fishermen 
  be 
  induced 
  to 
  save 
  these 
  and 
  bring 
  

   them 
  in 
  for 
  examination 
  it 
  will 
  be 
  found 
  that 
  they 
  include 
  during 
  the 
  

   season 
  a 
  good 
  representation 
  of 
  nearly 
  every 
  family 
  that 
  occurs 
  in 
  the 
  

   West 
  Indies. 
  In 
  this 
  way 
  may 
  often 
  be 
  obtained 
  the 
  remora 
  (Eche- 
  

   neis 
  naucrates), 
  the 
  sea-bat 
  (Ogcoceplialus 
  vespertilio), 
  the 
  spotted 
  

   moray 
  {Lycodontis 
  moringa), 
  the 
  cutlass 
  fish 
  (TricMurus 
  lepturus), 
  the 
  

   galliwasp 
  (S 
  y 
  nodus 
  foetans) 
  , 
  and 
  the 
  flying 
  gurnard 
  (CephalacantJius 
  

   volitans), 
  together 
  with 
  a 
  host 
  of 
  other 
  odd 
  forms. 
  

  

  Many 
  of 
  the 
  marine 
  fish 
  run 
  far 
  up 
  into 
  the 
  fresh-water 
  rivers, 
  

   especially 
  the 
  muUets 
  and 
  pipefishes, 
  but 
  there 
  are 
  about 
  a 
  dozen 
  

   strictly 
  fresh-water 
  species, 
  including 
  two 
  or 
  three 
  darters, 
  mudfish, 
  

   catfish, 
  and 
  the 
  like. 
  These 
  are 
  not 
  often 
  caught 
  by 
  the 
  natives 
  but 
  

   may 
  easily 
  be 
  obtained 
  with 
  a 
  seine. 
  All 
  the 
  rivers 
  are 
  swift 
  and 
  

   turbulent 
  streams 
  except 
  for 
  the 
  short 
  deadwater 
  near 
  their 
  mouths, 
  

   and 
  during 
  the 
  rainy 
  season 
  they 
  become 
  powerful 
  torrents, 
  sweeping 
  

   down 
  into 
  the 
  sea 
  everything 
  that 
  gets 
  caught 
  in 
  their 
  current. 
  At 
  

   such 
  times 
  no 
  fish 
  can 
  be 
  obtained 
  from 
  the 
  rivers, 
  and 
  even 
  under 
  

   favorable 
  conditions 
  the 
  supply 
  is 
  limited. 
  To 
  escape 
  being 
  swept 
  

   away 
  many 
  of 
  the 
  fish 
  have 
  acquired 
  the 
  habit 
  of 
  burrowing 
  under 
  

   the 
  rocks 
  or 
  going 
  into 
  holes 
  in 
  the 
  banks, 
  wliich 
  adds 
  to 
  the 
  difficulty 
  

   of 
  securing 
  them. 
  

  

  On 
  low 
  land 
  to 
  the 
  west 
  of 
  the 
  town, 
  between 
  the 
  Montego 
  Kiver 
  

   and 
  the 
  ocean, 
  is 
  a 
  portion 
  of 
  the 
  old 
  bed 
  of 
  the 
  river, 
  which 
  now 
  

   forms 
  a 
  good-sized 
  pond 
  filled 
  with 
  brackish 
  water 
  and 
  plentifully 
  

   supplied 
  with 
  fish 
  and 
  Crustacea. 
  

  

  This 
  combination 
  of 
  salt, 
  fresh, 
  and 
  brackish 
  water 
  furnishes 
  

   exceptional 
  facilities 
  for 
  the 
  study 
  of 
  fish 
  and 
  their 
  parasites. 
  And 
  

   it 
  would 
  be 
  difficult 
  to 
  find 
  a 
  region 
  better 
  suited 
  for 
  such 
  investiga- 
  

   tion 
  than 
  Montego 
  Bay 
  and 
  the 
  immediate 
  vicinity. 
  

  

  PARASITIC 
  ISOPODS. 
  

  

  As 
  might 
  be 
  expected, 
  parasites 
  of 
  all 
  kinds 
  were 
  fairly 
  common 
  m 
  

   Jamaica. 
  But 
  while 
  there 
  was 
  a 
  wide 
  diversity 
  of 
  form 
  and 
  nearly 
  

   every 
  animal 
  was 
  more 
  or 
  less 
  infested 
  with 
  them, 
  the 
  actual 
  numbers 
  

   were 
  remarkably 
  smaU. 
  More 
  parasites 
  have 
  repeatedly 
  been 
  taken 
  

   from 
  a 
  single 
  fish 
  at 
  Woods 
  Hole, 
  Massachusetts, 
  or 
  on 
  the 
  coast 
  of 
  

   Maine, 
  than 
  could 
  be 
  obtained 
  from 
  a 
  scOre 
  of 
  them 
  here 
  in 
  Jamaica, 
  

   and 
  to 
  a 
  certam 
  extent 
  the 
  same 
  was 
  true 
  of 
  the 
  Crustacea 
  and 
  

   ascidians 
  that 
  were 
  examined; 
  there 
  was 
  the 
  same 
  dearth 
  of 
  numbers. 
  

  

  The 
  parasitic 
  isopods 
  were 
  about 
  the 
  only 
  exception 
  to 
  this 
  general 
  

   rule. 
  In 
  the 
  temperate 
  regions 
  of 
  both 
  the 
  Atlantic 
  and 
  Pacific 
  

   oceans 
  these 
  parasites 
  are 
  quite 
  rare, 
  but 
  here 
  in 
  the 
  tropics 
  they 
  are 
  

  

  