524 
Fishery Bulletin 96(3), 1 998 
Atlantic Myxine. The patterns they described as typi- 
cal for the WNA are not found in our preserved speci- 
mens from the IGM. Further, our field data, which 
included ROV and submersible observations and trap 
collections, indicate that the described color patterns 
are not characteristic of living members of the inner 
Gulf of Maine populations. Whether they are char- 
acteristic of other WNA populations, or typical of only 
a few subpopulations, remains to be determined. 
Acknolwedgments 
This study was funded in part by a grant from the 
National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s 
National Undersea Research Center at the Univer- 
sity of Connecticutt, Avery Pt., CT. The crew of the 
research vessel Seward Johnson and the Johnson 
SeaLink (Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institution) 
made possible direct underwater observations of 
hagfish at study sites within the Gulf of Maine. Their 
professionalism and their tolerance of the logistical 
complications introduced by large quantities of hag- 
fish slime are greatly appreciated. Time aboard the 
research vessel John M. Kingsbury and both person- 
nel and logistical support were generously provided 
by the Shoals Marine Laboratory, Cornell Univer- 
sity, Ithaca, NY. Robert L. Wisner (Scripps Institute 
of Oceanography, University of California, San Di- 
ego, CA) provided the raw data from Wisner and 
McMillan ( 1995) and additional information on hag- 
fish collections. Data extracted from these sources 
are included in the Tables above. Alexander Gryska 
and Susan Kuenstner of the New England Fisheries 
Development Association provided catch statistics 
and length data from their work with the Gulf of 
Maine hagfish fishery. 
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