430 



BULLETIN OF THE BUREAU OF FISHERIES 



the same time out of all the ports. The Booth Co. discontinued its small-meshed 

 nets in 1903 ; but the fish were not gone then, because they are said to have been taken 

 abundantly in the 43^-inch ciscowet nets for a few succeeding years. Mr. Scott 

 says that in 1906 they were noticeably scarcer than in the preceding years, but that 

 they could still be taken in paying quantities. Mr. Parker states that in the fall 

 previous to their disappearance they were still fairly numerous, but that there were 

 none in the following spring. They seem to have been taken last out of Ontonagon 

 and Grand Marais, Mich., but since about 1907 no industry has depended on the 

 bluefin alone. 



It is not certain what factors contributed to bring about the decline of the 

 species. Unless most of the individuals of the species do not become sexually mature 

 until they attain a length of 10 inches, it is strange that intensive fishing should have 

 affected their abundance so soon. The nets employed would hardly take a fish of 

 smaller size, and in theory it appears judicious to permit the use of a mesh that will 

 take only the largest examples of the species. Furthermore, there were vast areas, 

 especially along the Canadian shore, in which the bluefins were not exploited, and it 

 would be expected that the lake would be restocked from the surplus of these areas 

 if overfishing alone were responsible for their decrease. Latterly no bluefin nets 

 have been tried, and it would be interesting to know if the bluefins are becoming more 

 abundant on the American side and if they occur in their original abundance on the 

 Canadian shore. I have pointed out already in various connections that the nets 

 I used in the survey of the Leucichthys fauna of the lake were too few, probably of 

 unsuitable mesh, and necessarily were employed too much at random to give con- 

 clusive results on the present status of the species. 



BKEEDING HABITS 



Pearled males and females spent, spawning, or nearly ripe were collected out of 

 Grand Marais, Mich., on October 3, 1917, in 65 fathoms and deeper (record 2) and 

 out of Rossport, Ontario, on October 4, 1921, in 80 to 90 fathoms (record 20). It is 

 not possible to state, of course, that the nets in either case were lifted from the spawn- 

 ing grounds of the species, but the state of development of the sex organs of the 

 individuals taken indicates, at least approximately, the time of spawning and fur- 

 nishes corroboration of the statements of the fishermen who once fished for the 

 species. Mr. Parker and Mr. McLean, of Marquette, Mich., and Mr. Scott, of 

 Grand Marais, Minn., state that the bluefins spawned during September on the 

 grounds they frequented during most of the year at depths of 60 to 100 fathoms. 

 Mr. Desjardins and Mr. Macdonald, of Grand Marais, say that the bluefins were 

 most abundant out of that place in September, which would indicate that there was 

 also a spawning run at that time out of that port. 



Leucichthys nigripinnis regalis (new subspecies) of Lake Nipigon 



The Nipigon blackfin is like the typical form in respect to body shape and general 

 appearance. The main differences are numerical, and the values for certain charac- 

 ters are summarized below for comparison: 



