BULLETIN OF THE UNITED STATES FISH COMMISSION. 
9,0 
fishermen several valuable specimens were obtained, among- them being- some species 
of fishes new to the collection. The ship did not do any dredging about Arroyo. 
Vieques Island. — The entire north coast of this island is without bays or harbors, 
and is so exposed that a heavy surf is constantly beating from one end of the island to 
the other, rendering collecting practically impossible. The south side has four or five 
well-protected bays and would doubtless prove a rich and interesting collecting-ground. 
Along the north shore, near Isabel Segunda, the principal town on the island, a few 
hauls with the seine secured several species of fishes; and in a little creek west of the 
town some brackish-water species were taken, including young mullet ( Mugil cure- 
mo ), Gua/oina gua/oina, robalo ( Centropomus widecinialis), and hog-choker (Aciiirus 
lineatus). Specimens of several food-fishes were obtained from the fishermen, and 
a few other species were collected on the reef near the town. 
Dr. Moore visited El Caballo Blanco, a small shoal about 1.5 miles northwest 
from the town, where he made valuable collections of invertebrates. 
Culebra Island. — The shore collecting about this little island was chiefly inside 
Ensenada Honda and along the neighboring shores outside. This harbor is one of 
the best as well as one of the prettiest found in Porto Rico, or any of the outlying- 
islands. It is commodious, the depth is sufficient for large vessels, the entrance is 
very narrow, and it is surrounded by high, picturesque hills. The shores of this 
bay are usually high and there is little or no mangrove. In most places the depth 
increases slowly, the bottom is usually well covered with algse, and there are no 
rocks which interfere with seining. The place is therefore quite suitable for this 
kind of collecting, and a good number of desirable specimens was obtained. 
Just across the neck of land forming the southwest side of the harbor is an 
indentation in the coast called “Seine Bay” by the Tortola fishermen. Here the 
coast sweeps around in a broad, gentle curve with a long beach of clean, compact 
white sand, which was found to be an excellent seining-ground. In one part of the 
bay the water is quite shallow, and a considerable area is covered with small masses 
of dead coral, under and about which many small but interesting fishes were found. 
By first surrounding one of these masses with a light seine and then lifting the coral 
mass out of the way, the fishes, crabs, etc., hiding under it could usually be captured. 
Seining was also successful in several naked open areas or deeper pools, free from 
vegetation, and with clean, white, sand bottom, in which various species of fishes 
were seen. The most conspicuous fishes in the pools and about the coral masses 
were cockeye pilots {Eujjomacentrus and Abudefduf) , young snappers, and young 
mojarras, while under the rocks various species of blennies would be found. Certain 
species of starfishes and sea-urchins were also common. 
Brown pelicans were quite abundant here, as also on the reefs at Mayaguez and 
Guanica, feeding upon “sardinas” and such other fishes as they could catch. 
At the lower or southeast end of this cove a high, rocky point comes down to the 
water. The shore is very rocky and a rich, live reef comes close in. Attempts 
were made to collect on this reef, but the surf was too high and little could be done. 
The region off this side of Culebra Island is one of the principal fishing-grounds 
visited by the fishermen from Tortola, St. Thomas, and Santa Cruz. These fishermen 
make the bulk of their catch in the pots or basket traps. These are usually baited 
with white chunks of cactus pulp, which probably serve simply as a decoy, and set in 
5 to 8 fathoms of water. Each pot has usually three buoys, fastened to it by long, 
