852 



SCIENCE. 



[N. S. Vol. VIII. No. 207. 



the middle of May to near the first of July. 

 The scup, Stenotomiis chrysops, spawns during 

 early June, but the eggs do not all become 

 ripe at the same time. Though thousands 

 of squeteague were taken in the fish-trap 

 during July, not a single individual con- 

 tained spawn, and this was not surprising) 

 for, according to Dr. Hugh M. Smith' 

 spawning occurs about June. The cunner, 

 Tautogolabrus adspersns, spawns during June 

 and early July, and the bright colored 

 young are abundantly found throughout 

 the latter part of the summer. Ripe tautog, 

 Tautoga onitis, were ' stripped ' on June 15th 

 and ripe eggs might have been taken until' 

 the middle of July. The ' puffers ' are also 

 summer breeders, the spawning season oc- 

 curring early in June, after which the 

 young are frequently taken in the skim- 

 ming-net. 



Since the establishment of the biological 

 laboratories at Woods Holl the toad-fish 

 has contributed to science with great gener- 

 osity. Tin cans, broken bottles and shat- 

 tered fragments of crockery are regulai-ly 

 planted by the collectors, and are regularly 

 lined with large golden eggs. Oviposition 

 occurs as early as June 3, and it may occur 

 at any subsequent time throughout the 

 month. According to Dr. Hugh M. Smith 

 the blue-fish arrives about June 1st, at which 

 time well-developed ova are found in a small 

 proportion, and at Nantucket large roes have 

 been found as late as July 15th. The first 

 young blue-fish were taken at Woods Holl 

 on June 10th, and measured from 1^ to H 

 inches in length. The j'oung of the mullet, 

 Mugil curema, IJ inches in length, were 

 taken on June 28th. Both species of sea- 

 robin breed during the eai-ly part of June. 

 The eggs, not particularly transparent, read- 

 ily develop in the laboratory and hatch in 

 about five daj's. After the first of July 

 females with eggs are seldom taken. 



Among the Pleuronectidse, Bothus macula- 

 tus breeds during early June, and the eggs 



may be artificially hatched, the period o^ 

 incubation being about eight days. The 

 young of ' flat-fish' were taken in the tow- 

 net by Mr. S. R. Williams, from the 4th to 

 the 17th of June, on which latter date they 

 were most abundant. A few were also 

 taken during the latter part of the month 

 and during July. I have the following in- 

 teresting note from Mr. Vinal Edwards : 

 " A large school of young cod placed in the 

 'Eel Pond ' directly from the hatching jars, 

 in December last, left the pond in June 

 when the water reached a temperature of 

 about 60° F. They were at this time from 

 2 to 4h inches in length." The spawn of the 

 goose-fish is occasionallj' taken near Menim- 

 sha. When a spawn is found, an abun- 

 dance of embryological material results^ 

 since the eggs are united in a great jelly- 

 like band that will more than fill a bucket. 



The auftrieb is not rich in surface verte- 

 brates during the summer. In June young 

 hake, pipe-fish, lump-fish and herring occa- 

 sionally occur. In earlj' July young swell- 

 fish, cunners, sticklebacks, tautog, sand- 

 eels, silversides, hake and sand dabs ; and 

 during the middle of July the swell-fish, 

 cunners, sticklebacks, silversides, sand-eels 

 and hake are still conspicuous, though 

 gradually disappearing from the surface as 

 the season advances. 63"^ the middle of 

 August only occasional specimens are taken . 



Two species of land turtles are abundant 

 in fresh-water ponds near the laboratories. 

 The painted turtle, Chrysemys picta, breeds 

 from June 11 to 25, and deposits its eggs 

 in the evening, from 6 to 8:30 o'clock. The 

 snapping turtle also breeds during the 

 middle of June, but it deposits its eggs in 

 the early morning. 



Ascldians. — I am indebted to Frank W. 

 Bancroft for many of the following notes 

 respecting the breeding of ascidians. 



Appendicularia were abundant near Gay 

 Head on July 28bh, and Doliolum is often 

 taken at the same locality. Farther from 



