972 



ZOOLOGICAL SOCIETY BULLETIN. 



in captivity five and four years respectively. 



Of the amphibians twenty-three species have 

 been shown. The hellbender and congo-eel 

 have lived for five years and the Japanese giant 

 salamander and the mudpuppy four years. 

 Various other species have lived for two to three 

 years. 



Naturally the greater portion of the lists con- 

 sists of the fishes, which total three hundred and 

 twelve species. Of this number ninety-two 

 species are from fresh-water, one hundred and 

 twenty-four from local marine waters and 

 ninety-six are tropical marine fishes from Ber- 

 muda and Key West. This list might have 

 been greatly increased if any attempt had been 

 made to secure the less common fishes and par- 

 ticularly the smaller, less conspicuous species 

 of the fresh-water minnows and darters, which 

 are very numerous. However, it has been the 

 policy of the Aquarium management to exhibit 

 especially the food and game fishes, which are 

 of particular interest to the angler and the 

 general public. The tropical fishes have been 

 exhibited also on account of their gaudy colors 

 and in some cases because of the unusual form. 

 A few of the local species such as the sea-horse, 

 angler and sea-robin are regularly exhibited 

 on account of their peculiarities of form. 



Some species of fishes are very long-lived in 

 eaptivitjr. One specimen of the common striped 

 bass, which was brought to the Aquarium as a 

 two-year-old, in the spring of 1894, is still living 

 and promises to attain his majority the coming 

 May. However, he is the only one left of fifty- 

 five brought in at the same time. Specimens of 

 the common gar-pike and the short-nosed gar- 

 pike have spent eighteen years at the Aquarium 

 and are still living. These fishes and the striped 

 bass were brought in long before the building 

 was opened to the public on December 10th. 

 1896. 



A number of other species have lived for a 

 long time. Some of these are: 



Mudfish or bowfin 12 years, still living 



Channel catfish 5 



Goldfish 8 



Bull-head 5 " ,: " 



Pearl roach 10 



Whitefish 5 



Rainbow trout 5 



Brook trout 5 



Stickleback 4 



Yellow perch 5 years 



Climbing perch (India)... 8 



Common sturgeon 5 



Common eel 7 



Common scup 4 



Sea drumrish 5 



Blackfish or Tautog 7 



Gunner 4 



Squirrelfish 5 



Green moray 1 



Nassau grouper 7 



Yellowfinned grouper 4 



Black grouper 4 



Gray snapper 7 



Lane snapper 6 



Blue striped grunt 5 



Sheepshead 4 



Blue angelfish 5 



Common triggerfish 5 



The conditions surrounding many species of 

 animals in the Aquarium are far from normal 

 and probably the longevity of animals in con- 

 finement is a fair measure of the approach at- 

 tained in the matter of food, temperature, etc., 

 to the conditions of nature. 



SEA-HORSES. 



There seems to have been an unusual number 

 of these queer little fishes along our coast the 

 past summer, — at least there was less difficulty 

 than usual in securing a supply for the Aqua- 

 rium. Among those obtained was one male speci- 

 men that apparently transcends all records for 

 size. According to the literature at hand none 

 have been observed to reach a length greater 

 than about six inches. The longest measure- 

 ment of the specimen referred to was seven and 

 one-quarter inches, though the head of the sea- 

 horse cannot be entirely straightened out. 

 Measured over the angle formed by the head 

 and body the length would be considerably 

 greater, for the head was one and five-eighths 

 inches long and the remainder of the body six 

 and one-half inches. The greatest girth of 

 this specimen was three and one-quarter inches. 



Sea-horses are always variable in color. Of 

 the specimens taken the past summer some were 

 pure yellow, others pure brown and others were 

 variouslv blotched. 



Catalufa (Priacanthus arenatus). — A beautiful 

 fish, never before exhibited, arrived at the Aquarium 

 in Februarv from Kev West, Florida. 



