96 



COM-ERCIAL Fi;:-7hJii?ISS RBVIir.V 



Vol. 13, Ko. 7 



THESE PUBLICATIONS ARE NOT AVA I LABLE FROM THE FISH AND Wl LDLI FE 

 SERVICE, BUT USUALLY MAY BE OBTAINED FROM THE AGENCIES ISSUING THEM. 



lington, New Zealand. This is a report of 

 New Zealand's fisheries with statistical data 

 for the various phases of this industry for 

 the year ending December 31, 1949- Total pro- 

 duction figures , both comparative and histor- 

 ical, are given by species and by port, in- 

 cluding infonnation on number of vessels and 

 personnel, and methods of capture. Statistics 

 for 1949 are also a\ailable for fish-liver oil, 

 whaling, oysters, toheroa, mussels, v«hitebait, 

 quinnat salmon, and canned fishery products. 

 Information is also supplied on fresh-water 

 fisheries and fresh-water fishery research. 



Observations on Polydora (Mudwom) in South Caro- 

 lina Oysters . by George D. Or ice, Jr., Contri- 

 butions from Bears Bluff Laboratories No. 11, 

 11 p., printed. Bears Bluff Laboratories, 

 Wadmalaw Island, S.C.Kay 1951, free. This 

 is a brief study of the oyster pest, Polydora . 

 along the South Carolina coastal region to de- 

 termine whether there is any correlation be- 

 tween the size of oysters, temperature and 

 salinity of the water, seasons of the year, 

 and Polydora infestations. The degree of dam- 

 age or other lethal effects of the Polydora is 

 not reported in this publication. 



"Plastic Deterioration and Metal Corrosion in 

 Petersen Disk Fish Tags," by A. J. Calhoun, 

 D. H. Fry, Jr., and E. P. Hughes, article, 

 California Fish and Game . July 1951, vol. 37, 

 no. 3, pp. 301-14, illus., printed. Division 

 of Fish and Game, Department of Natural Re- 

 sources, San Francisco, Calif. Petersen-type 

 tags ara cm rently being used extensively 

 along the Pacific Coast from California to 

 Alaska in connection with fish tagging pro- 

 grams on more than 30 species of fish in Cali- 

 fornia alone. These tags consist of two 

 plastic disks held against the fish by a pin 

 through both disks and some part of the fish's 

 body — ^usually the base of the dorsal fin or 

 the caudal peduncle. The disks ride on the 

 pins like wheels on an axle. Concerned about 

 the loss of tags due to corrosion of the pins 

 in salt water and to breakage of the disks , 

 the authors tested various metals commonly 

 used with Petersen disks and examined criti- 

 cally disks and pins returned from fish tagged 

 at sea. This article presents what the authors 

 have discovered to date. They state that they 

 do not believe that the Petersen disk is an 

 ideal fish tag, even when it stays free of 

 metal corrosion and plastic breakage, since 

 the design has many disadvantages (it is slow 

 to apply, does not allow for much grovrth of 

 the fish, and is overly apt to catch on nets). 

 On the other hand, the tag is less apt to be 

 overlooked and can be attached to a wide vari- 

 ety of fish. In their suncary, the authors 

 point out that the failure of the plastic 

 materials used for Petersen-type disk tags by 



the California Division of Fish and Game has 

 presented serious problems. Cellulose nitrate 

 has been the most satisfactory, although it 

 has tended to become brittle after prolonged 

 storage. Thin cellulose acetate disks (0.030 

 inch) seemed satisfactory on flatfish, but 

 have failed badly on salmon; thicker ones 

 (0.045 inch) have stood ap fairly well. Viny- 

 llte disks have been unduly brittle and sub- 

 ject to cracking. Corrosion of metal wires 

 used with these disks has been an even more 

 serious problem. Nickel and Monel metal have 

 proved entirely unsatisfactory because of their 

 rapid corrosion on salt-water fish. Silver has 

 been unsatisfactory because the wires broke. 

 Stainless steel and tantalum are both highly 

 promising on the basis of preliminary observa- 

 tions, and they are currently being tested 

 further . 



Proceedings of the Gulf and Caribbean Fisheries 

 Institute . Third Annual Session, Miami Beach, 

 Novanber 1950, 152 p., printed. The Gulf and 

 Caribbean Fisheries Institute, The Marine Lab- 

 oratory, University of Miami, Coral Gables, 

 Florida, June 1951. Presents all of the papers 

 presented at the third annual session of the 

 Institute. At the Commercial Fisheries Session, 

 the papers presented dealt with the future of 

 the red snapper fishery; problems of adminis- 

 tration and transportation in the wholesale 

 fisheries industry; the outlook for breaded 

 shrimp and similar products; the outlook for 

 shrimp production; and what does the future 

 hold for the independent boat owner. Papers 

 for the Inshore and Shell Fisheries Session 

 included several on oysters in the Gulf area; 

 measurement of the natural growth-rates of 

 decapod crustaceans; and results of shrimp re- 

 search in North Carolina. Subjects of the 

 papers presented at the Economic Session in- 

 cluded: the natural sponge fishery vs. syn- 

 thetic sponges; the shrimp fisheries in the 

 Gulf of Mexico; utilization of scrap fish and 

 fish waste in the Gulf and Caribbean area; the 

 fisheries of Surinam; and charter boat fishing 

 in the Miami area. At the Fishery Administra- 

 tor's Session, discussions and papers were con- 

 cerned with problems of fishery administrators. 

 Papers for the fishery Exploration and Techno- 

 logy Session discussed operation of the explor- 

 atory fishing vessel Oregon ; effect of menhaden 

 operations on other fisheries; control of fish 

 spoilage by icing and freezing; the use of 

 echo sounders in fisheries; the role of ex- 

 ploratory fishing in the developnent of commer- 

 cial fisheries; anl Florida's seafood sanita- 

 tion program. The Caribbean and General Ses- 

 sion was concerned with progress reports on 

 the Gulf States Marine Fisheries Commission, 

 the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commis- 

 sion, and a survey of the present knowledge 

 of the Gulf of Mexico; the organization of the 



