— 1Q2 — 



Place of capture: St. 8i, 200 meters wire, 2 specimens; 300 m. wire, 11 specimens. St. 82, 300 m. wire 

 19 specimens; 1200 m. wire, 4 specimens St. 88, 300 m. wire, i specimen. St. 93, 200 m. wire, i specimen 

 St. 167, 1500 m. wire, 1 specimen. 



3. Leptocephalus sp. (PI. IX, Fig. l) 



This characteristic form, which is remarkable amongst other things by being very 

 deep and short, by its long pointed snout and large black spots on the alimentary canal, 

 was only taken once. The specimen was not full-grown. 



Place of capture: St. 93, 200 m. wire, i specimen. 



4. Tilurus sp. major (PI. IX, Fig. 7) 



This larger form was taken the first time on May 22nd 1904 west of the Faeroes in 

 the same haul as the first L. brevirostris we got. 

 Place of capture (1905): St. 81, 200 m. wire, 2 specimens. 



5. Tilurus sp. minor (PI. IX, Fig. 3) 



This small form with thread-like tail was only taken in 1905. Perhaps it belongs to 

 the developmental series of the former. 



Place of capture: St. 8i, 200 m. wire, 2 specimens. 



It appears from this list that Leptocephalus brevirostris occurs within the re- 

 gion investigated in much greater numbers than any of the other Lepto- 

 cephalus species (ca. 265 L. brevirostris were found). Then comes Lept. Syna- 

 phobranchi pinnati with 39 and Lept. Congri vulgaris with 11 specimens, whereas 

 only quite a few specimens of the others were taken. This is obviously also in very good 

 agreement with what we know of the frequency of the various species of eels within the 

 region investigated. 



It may seem strange that various Leptocephali have not hitherto been found in 

 quantities off West Europe, where they have now proved to occur in great numbers, 

 especially as Leptocephali have been brought in great quantities to the museums of 

 Europe from tropical seas, where they were taken on the surface of the water by ordinary 

 trading ship by means simply of a plankton net'. The reason for this is perhaps that 

 they occur in tropical seas in much greater quantities than in the Atlantic off West Europe, 

 so that it was only by means of our strongly fishing apparatus that we succeeded in 

 proving their occurrence here also in quantities 2. The question cannot be settled until 

 similar apparatus are also used in tropical waters. 



It has been mentioned, that the larvae of the common eel do not take food during 

 the whole of their metamorphosis (i. e. right from Stage 1 which indicates the end of the 

 larval development to Stage 6). This is the case however not only with Lept. breviro- 

 stris but also with our other Leptocephali (Z,. Congri vulgaris and L. Synaphobranchi 

 pinnati., our material of the others was too small to let the point be investigated). In 



1 The Copenhagen Zoological Museum for example contains large collections of Leptocephali, for the most 

 part taken in tropical seas by captains of sailing ships. 



2 Another contributing factor is perhaps, that the sailing vessels do not in general get their fishing appa- 

 ratus in order until they are far to sea and especially come into quieter waters, such as the tropics usually are. 



