SOO Transactions. — Zoology. 



For the first four days many ova died, but others began to hatch, and 

 this operation was completed in a fortnight. Only 15,000 ova, however, 

 were estimated to be the result, so there could not have been the full number 

 as supposed in the box. Of these, 2,000 were deformed and died, and the 

 13,000 survivors were put into the Kakanui river in January, 1878, being 

 then very vigorous, and about 2^ inches long each. Nothing has been seen 

 or heard of them since. 



The loMtefish [Coregonus albus) were brought from San Francisco by the 

 New Zealand Government, and on 21st February, 1878, two boxes were 

 presented to our society, one to be handed to the Oamaru society if applied 

 for. On opening one box at the Opoho ponds we found the ova all dead or 

 hatched out, so the other box was opened to endeavour to save some few ova 

 if not too late. There were many good eggs in this box, out of which we 

 succeeded in hatching about 1,000 young whitefish. The two boxes were 

 supposed to contain 50,000 eggs each, and on being opened I found the 

 temperature of the moss 46°" Fahr., of the water flowing from the creek into 

 the hatching-house 54°, and of the water in the hatching-boxes themselves 

 53°. (See table of temperatures in the Appendix.) The young fish were 

 hatching out as the eggs were being put into the hatching-boxes, and came 

 out in one day or two. On 19th March Mr. Deans started with the young 

 fish for Lake Wanaka, but they all unfortunately died ere he got half way. 

 Probably they were neither old enough nor strong enough to stand the 

 journey. During hatching water varied from 49° to 57°, and when a week 

 old the young fish were fed with blood. In the case of the last shipment 

 sent us in January, 1880, we had the boxes conveyed straight from the Bluff 

 to our hatching-boxes, near Queenstown, Lake Wakatipu, on the 19th. 

 The water used was from a cold spring, but no gravel was put in the boxes, 

 which were covered over to exclude light, and an awning formed a roof for 

 the hatching place. The ova were hatching when put into the water, which 

 had a temperature of 48° to 52°, but none lived longer than thirty-six hours. 

 Mr. Deans observed that some of the fish before they died appeared to have 

 fungus, the tails getting quite white in appearance. So great was the mor- 

 tality that Mr. Deans turned them all out into Lake Wakatipu, part at 

 Beach Bay and part at Half-way Bay, 21st January, 1880, but nothing more 

 has been seen of them. The surface water of the lake had a temperature of 

 about 56°. Dr. Black kindly made an analysis of the water of this spring 

 used at Queenstown, also of Wakatipu and of Opoho water, with this 



result : — 



Organic matter in solution. 



Eowell's spring . . . . . . . . . . . . !•! grs. per gal. 



Wakatipu . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 0'5 „ 



Opoho .. .. .. .. .. .. . . 2-3 ,, 



