3.6 



ZOOLOGICAL SOCIETY BULLETIN 



ONE OF THE LARGEST OF OUR TORTOISES 

 The growth of this specimen has been so great, as to oppose the theory of the gr 

 which these reptiles are supposed to attain. 



and fear at a dead snake which I presented ; 

 preened several feathers of one wing, smooth- 

 ing out all the dislodged barbs ; rattled its beak 

 ruong the wires to make a sound to attract my 

 attention ; and finally seized its water-pan and 

 turned it over in pure playfulness. 



The Aquarium has, for two months, had 

 a good-sized specimen of the Tarpon {Tar- 

 pon Atlanticus), the first of the species ever 

 exhibited there and probably the only one ever 

 kept in captivity. 



This tarpon, which is nearly five feet long, 

 was taken on July 27, in a pound net at Bel- 

 ford, N. J., in the southern part of New York 

 Bay. As soon as discovered in the net the 

 Aquarium was notified and arrangements were 

 at once made with the fishermen to have it 

 brought to the Aquarium without delay. For 

 more than a week it refused food, but at the 

 end of the second week was feeding freely on 

 several kinds of small, live fishes, and is now 

 in good condition. 



Another specimen of the tarpon, about six 

 inches longer, was taken in the same locality 

 and in the same way, on the following day. 

 This specimen did not recover from injuries 

 received during capture and died five days 

 after being placed in the tank. It weighed 

 just sixty pounds and was five feet and five 

 inches in length. 



The occurrence of the tarpon in New York 

 Bay is noteworth}-, as there appear to be only 

 two or three other records of its appearance 

 there. A specimen was taken at Gravesend 

 Beach, New York Bay, in the summer of 1901. 

 The species occurs as a straggler nearly every 

 year along the south shore of Long Island and 

 the south coast of Massachusetts. There does 

 not appear to be any record of its capture on 

 the New Jersey coast. 



The tarpon may be considered as the king 

 of game fishes. It is common in the Gulf of 

 Mexico and is habitually taken by anglers at 

 various points from Florida to \'era Cruz. 

 Mexico. c. II. T. 



