REPOKT OF THE COMMISSIOXEE OF FISHERIES. 15 



MARINE BIOLOGICAL LABORATORIES. 



The facilities of the marine biological laboratories were used for the 

 investio-ation of a number of problems important in the work of the 

 Bureau and marine biology in general. The tables were occupied as 

 usual by investii^ators from various institutions of learning in the 

 United States and for studies conducted at the special request of the 

 Bureau. 



At the Woods Hole laboratory the principal work conducted for the 

 Bureau was the continuance of the biological survey' of the neighbor- 

 ing waters and the tabulation of the results. The steamers Phalarope 

 and Tv'.vA KairTt were employed in this service, their dredgings in 

 Vineyard Sound and Buzzards Bay determining areas of distribution 

 of species for the ultimate purpose of mapping these waters. Other 

 investigations at tlie laboratory dealt with the physiological effects on 

 fishes of changes in the density and salinity of water; the physiology 

 of the digestive tract of certain fishes; the parasites of fishes, and the 

 food value of certain hitherto unused or little-used fishes, crustaceans, 

 and mollusks. 



At Beaufort. X. C. . the fauna is being studied by various specialists 

 and investigations of economic importance are being conducted with 

 reference to the commercial fishes of the region, the artiticial propa- 

 gation of sponges, and the culture of oysters and clams. These last 

 inquiries are in continuation of work previously begun, which it is 

 expected will extend over several seasons. 



CANVASSES OF COMMERCIAL FISHERIES. 



The statistical inquiries of the Bureau, which cover various sections 

 of the country in turn from year to year, in 1906 included canvasses of 

 the shad and ale wife fisheries of North Carolina, the salmon fishery 

 of Penobscot River and Bay. and all the fisheries of the New England 

 States, besides the regular reports of the resident agents at Boston 

 and Gloucester. The North Carolina inquiries were made at the 

 request of the State authorities for the purpose of obtaining data to 

 serve as a basis for legislation to preserve the shad and alewife fish- 

 eries, which have suffered a serious decline in recent years as the 

 result of excessive and indiscriminate fishing. The information fur- 

 nished from Boston and Gloucester, published as usual in monthly 

 bulletins and an annual summary, and showing the catch by months 

 and fishing grounds, is extremely valuable as bearing on the question 

 of the dependence of American fishermen on the banks lying off' the 

 shores of the British provinces. 



Detailed statistical reports on the fisheries of the Great Lakes, the 

 New England States, the Hawaiian Islands, and the crab industry of 

 Maryland, which were canvassed in 1905, have been published during 

 the past year. 



