NINETEENTH ANNUAL REPORT 121 



fishes, six of turtles, two of porpoises, a giant lobster thirty-eight 

 inches in length, the longest on record, and numerous species 

 of invertebrates. 



In April Mr. L. L. Mowbray, of the Aquarium staff, went 

 to Moon, Mississippi, to procure specimens of fishes, including 

 the giant gars of the lower river region which reach lengths of 

 eight or nine feet. Owing to the lateness of his arrival, the gars, 

 being in spawning condition, could not be transported, but he 

 procured 150 fishes of twelve species, some of which were new 

 to the Aquarium collections. He also procured numerous turtles 

 and frogs. Another attempt will probably be made to procure 

 gars at a favorable season. These large fresh-water fishes are 

 greatly desired for one of the large floor pools of the Aquarium, 

 but the expense of transporting heavy fish tanks by rail is almost 

 prohibitive. 



In July Mr. Mowbray went to Key West, returning with 

 500 tropical fishes of sixty-six different species. Several of these 

 were also new to our exhibits. The cost of the trip to Florida, 

 amounting to $384, was reduced to the extent of $175, on account 

 of the sale of 150 specimens to the Detroit Aquarium. 



One of the porpoises (Tursiops truncatus) brought to the 

 Aquarium on November 15, 1913, is still living and in good con- 

 dition after more than thirteen months of captivity. Four other 

 porpoises received at the same time, lived in the building seven 

 months, when they were lost in rapid succession from pneumonia. 



The surviving animal is lively and playful, making its excit- 

 ing porpoise leaps many times every day. It is, so far as known, 

 the only porpoise in captivity, and is naturally the star attraction 

 of the Aquarium. It feeds entirely on fish, the cheapest that can 

 be bought in the markets, and consumes 25 pounds daily. The 

 specimen is a male, eight feet in length, and weighs about 300 

 pounds. 



A twenty-two page illustrated account of the Aquarium's 

 porpoises was prepared by the Director and published by the 

 Zoological Society in May, 1914, in Zoologica. 



In November the Director returned to Hatteras, N. C, to 

 obtain more porpoises, but owing to stormy weather, was forced 

 to abandon the project temporarily. During the summer he 

 made an attempt to capture porpoises at Stony Brook Harbor, 

 Long Island, but was unsuccessful on account of the force of the 



