ZOOLOGICAL SOCIETY BULLETIN 



ZOOLOGICAL SOCIETY BULLETIN 



Birds 

 William Beebe. 

 Lee S. Crandall. 



Published bi-monthly at the Office of the Society, 

 111 Broadway, New York City. 



Yearly by Mail, $1.00. 



MAILED FREE TO MEMBERS. 



Copyright, 191$, by the Neio York Zoological Society. 



Each author is responsible for the scientific accuracy 



and the proof reading of his contribution. 



Elwin R. Sanborn, 



Editor and Official Photographer 



Vol. XXI, No. (5 



NOVEMBER. 1918 



several years ago. stated that in view of our 

 adoption of the word, its usage would be re- 

 garded as established, and they purposed insert- 

 ing it in the next issue of their encyclopedia. 

 This has not yet been printed. 



Mr. W. A. Povser. editor of Aquatic Lid 1 , 

 revived the word Aquarian in 1910 and has 

 since used it in his magazine, though he also 

 uses Aquarist. 



Mr. Povser advised the writer last summer 

 that he had received intelligence of the forma- 

 tion of an astrological society in Boston for the 

 purpose of studying mental, moral and physical 

 effects of planets on human beings. As the 

 world was passing through the portion of the 

 universe dominated by the sign Aquarius, the 

 society was named The Boston Aquarian Socie- 

 ty, its members being known as Aquarians. Mr. 

 Poyser's informant expressed a humorous fear 

 lest a confusion of the titles Aquarian and Aqua- 

 rist lead to the latter being accused of star-gaz- 

 ing. But however that might be. aquarium 

 lovers may take assurance from the moral in the 

 old story about the little boy who. being a star- 

 gazer, finally fell into a pond while looking 

 skyward — which only shows that he was obliged 

 to direct his attention to aquatic life sooner or 

 later. 



It is true that the word Aquarian lias proved 

 most versatile, having found a place successively 

 in the realms of religion, pisciculture and astrol- 

 ogy; but Aquarist, being capable of but a single 

 construction, seems to hold the advantage. 



NEED OF A COLLECTING BOAT FOR 

 THE AQUARIUM. 

 The recent loss of a fine specimen of the 

 ocean sunfish which might today have been on 

 exhibition alive in New York, brings up again 

 the question of a boat for the Aquarium. 



Boat and pound-net fishermen along the adja- 

 cent coast frequently telephone the Aquarium 

 when unusual marine animals are taken. These 

 the Aquarium cannot often secure for mere lack 

 of suitable transportation facilities. 



There is no reason why a small-sized ocean 

 sunfish could not be kept at the Aquarium. Dur- 

 ing the summer months the Gulf Stream drifts 

 interesting creatures northward, which enter 

 our bays and are frequently captured, but which 

 cannot be transported in ordinary shipping 

 tanks. All aquariums must do their own col- 

 lecting, as the animal dealer keeps no aquatic 

 animals but seals and alligators. 



Fishes and most other marine animals must 

 be transported in their natural element, and 

 there is no device so well suited to this purpose 

 as the ordinary fishing sloop or power boat pro- 

 vided with a water compartment. In the com- 

 mon type of "well-smack," as it is called, there 

 is a water compartment built in the middle of 

 the craft, to which sea water has access through 

 small holes in the hull. It is, of course, en- 

 tirely water-tight in its relation to other parts 

 of the boat. The well-smack is an old type of 

 fishing boat and has been used in many coun- 

 tries for carrying fishes to market alive. It was 

 in extensive use along the New England coast 

 before the practice of carrying ice became gen- 

 eral. There are many still in use. even in the 

 neighborhood of New York. All lobstermen 

 continue to use them. 



In tropical regions, as in Florida, Bermuda, 

 and the West Indies, the day's catch is brought 

 to market alive in well-smacks, usually of small 

 size. In fact, the first tropical fishes exhibited 

 alive in New York were brought in a large well- 

 smack from Bermuda by the late William E. 

 Damon. They were exhibited at Barnum's Mu- 

 seum, then located at Broadway and Ann Street. 

 With a well-smack of suitable size, the Aqua- 

 rium could lay the whole coast, from Massachu- 

 setts to South Carolina, under tribute for speci- 

 mens in the summer season. 



The New York Aquarium has never been able 

 to keep the perpetually interesting octopus, for 

 the reason that it does not survive transporta- 

 tion in tanks, although specimens have been 

 shipped yearly from southern points. It is no 

 uncommon thing for Bermuda fishermen to keep 

 octopi alive in the wells of their smacks for 

 weeks together. The octopus lives long in cap- 

 tivity and is nearly always to be seen in the 

 tanks of Bermuda. Naples, and other aquariums, 

 to which it can be transported without injury. 

 It is common at Charleston, from which point 

 its transportation to New York in a well-smack 

 would be entirely practicable. 



