38 American Fisheries Society 



cordia Parish, this State, is possibly as well, or even 

 better stocked with paddle-fish than White Lake. The 

 fish grow considerably larger here, and, it is thought 

 likely, spawn later as this lake is much further north 

 than White Lake. 



Another element which added to the curtailment of our 

 experiments was the conditions found in and around the 

 large enclosure where we empounded the fish. These 

 were such as to make it almost impossible to get them 

 out for examination from the day they were put into it 

 until they were finally fished out at the close of the season. 



While at work at White Lake, our employees obtained 

 and preserved a few rather interesting specimens. Among 

 these was the egg sac, etc., of a ten-pound female paddle- 

 fish, caught when in the act of spawning. This still con- 

 tained a portion of the mature eggs, some of which were 

 in the oviduct. Another specimen is the egg sac, etc., of 

 a female of about the same weight which was also de- 

 positing eggs when caught and which still held a few 

 mature eggs. All of the internal organs of an eight-pound 

 female which had just recently finished depositing her 

 eggs, as well as those of a twelve-pound spent male, were 

 preserved. The milt, etc., of an eight-pound unripe male 

 was also preserved. 



I attach herewith copy of a report on a microscopic 

 examination of the stomach, etc., of a paddle-fish, made 

 for us by Percy Viosca, Jr., B.S., of Tulane University. 

 This, I think, may be found interesting and useful. 



NOTE ON THE VISCERA OF POLYODON SPATHULA 



Specimen — 8 lb. female, after spawning, caught at White 

 Lake, March 28, 1915. 



Gill rakers long and numerous: clean and practically 

 free from microscopic organisms. Only one copepod 

 observed. 



Stomach large (U-shaped). Contents, examined under 

 compound microscope, found to contain: Protozoa 

 (one large flagellate especially numerous), small 



