STRAY NOTES FROM PORTO RICO 



By J. T. Nichols, 



American Museum of Natural History, New York City. 



The writer has had the good fortune to spend the bet- 

 ter part of the past July studying the fishes of Porto Rico 

 in the interest of a biological survey of that island which 

 is being forwarded by the New York Academy of Sciences 

 and the Insular Government. The material collected has 

 not yet been studied, and indeed a discussion of the de- 

 tailed scientific results obtained would be out of place 

 here. Certain observations, however, he has had in mind 

 to talk over with members of the American Fisheries So- 

 ciety, and these are herewith presented. 



The Silk Snapper, Neomaenis vivanus, is a deep-water, 

 yellow-eyed representative of the more familiar Red 

 Snapper. Evermann and Marsh in Bulletin XX of the 

 U. S. Fish Commission for 1900, speak of it as one of 

 the important food fishes of the island, but say that it 

 was not common in Porto Rican markets during their 

 visit, though Mr. Oscar Riddle found it quite common in 

 the San Juan market at certain times. On July 13 of this 

 year it was exposed plentifully for sale in the San Juan 

 market. As Evermann and Marsh were on the ground in 

 winter, the difference may be a seasonal one. The data 

 at hand are as yet quite insufficient to determine this. A 

 herring, Sardinella sardina, not listed in the U. S. Fish- 

 eries Bulletin referred to, but found abundant this sum- 

 mer at San Juan, also may be of seasonal occurrence. 



The Barracunda or "Picunda" is one of the more fa- 

 vored food-fishes in Porto Rico. The waters of San Juan 

 harbor are unfortunately badly polluted, and the fish from 

 near there consequently looked on with suspicion, this 

 species less so, because it is thought to feed exclusively on 

 active live food. In Cuba the Picuda is looked on with 

 much disfavor. Large individuals especially are consid- 



