Report of the President 65 



a work which could most advantageously be done in the 

 former fish hall, which adjoins the taxidermic laboratories. 

 The removal of the fishes afforded a favorable opportunity for 

 rearranging all the specimens in the cases. 



It may also be mentioned that a life-sized model, eight feet 

 in length, of the fossil fish Dinichthys has been prepared and 

 is ready to be placed on exhibition. It is the first full- 

 sized restoration of this ancient fish ever attempted. 



The study, or research, collections have received much 

 attention during the year and are in a satisfactory condition. 



The department is the local center for all informa- 

 Collections tlon re £ ar ding fishes, and numerous specimens were 



received during the year from various sources for 

 identification, among them series of fossil fishes from several 

 state geological surveys. 



In matters concerning research and publication, the 

 Bibliography of fish literature is the most important piece of 



work in hand. The plan of the work is to pre- 

 Bibliography , r * . , . 



of Fishes P are a cata l°§ ue °* tne entire literature relating 



to fishes, to be published in two volumes, one to 

 give the titles arranged according to authors, the other to be 

 a subject index to the first. The first volume, that of titles 

 arranged under authors, will appear during 1916. The work 

 has been made possible by a research fund annually voted 

 Curator Emeritus Dean by the Trustees. This was increased 

 during the past year by contributions from Dr. Dean and 

 Mrs. Dean. 



REPTILES AND BATRACHIANS 



It was the good fortune of the department to be able to 



send Mr. Clarence R. Halter to Santo Domingo, for the 



^ .. . months of May and Tune, where a collection of 



Expeditions .; ' 



some 450 reptiles was obtained in the vicinity of 



Sanchez. This material is entirely new, to the American 



Museum collections and contains besides some rarities and 



specimens new to science. 



The department was able also to send Mr. Walter 



Escherich to Florida for the month of May to do field work 



