DO MARINE FISH HIBERNATE?

Press, Volume LXIX, Issue 21050, 29 December 1933, Page 10

DO MARINE FISH HIBERNATE?

ICHTHYOLOGISTS INTERESTED A SAI LOU'S DISCOVERY Although it is known that freshwater fish in certain parts of Europe hibernate during the winter there is no definite proof that any species of marine fish follow the same practice, but a discovery made by a sailor some years ago, which was recently brought to the notice of ichthyologists at the British Museum and in Stockholm, may lead to proof of something previously unsuspected in the fish of the sea. The result of the investigations carried out by these authorities on fish should be of particular interest to New Z.ealanders as the man who gave rise to them is a resident of the Dominion. In following his calling upcm the ocean this man reached withm one ! degree of the Arctic Circle on one occasion, and, while there, C } lS " covered a species of fish something like a herring buried in the sands of a beach. He formed the opinion that the fish burrowed into the sand when winter was approaching and remained there until the sun returned in the spring to thaw them out, but it was not until comparatively recently that he got into touch with an ichthyologist, who lias referred the matter to experts in the Northern Hemisphere. When the matter was first referred to Dr. S. L. Hora, assistant superintendent, Zoological Survey of India, at Calcutta, he wrote to the New Zealand resident for further particulars. Dr. Hora stated in his letter that, it was known that certain coastal fishes could burrow in sand for the purpose of depositing their eggs. In several countries of Europe the fresh-water fish were known to hibernate during the winter, but the instance quoted by the New Zealander was remarkable both because it referred to a marine fish and because the fish burrowed in sand before hibernating. "The instance to which you direct my attention shows that animation is suspended due to intense cold or to drought consequent to the freezing of water," Dr. Hora's letter continued. "The Gobioid fish I observed activating at Uttarbhag reacts to drought pure and simple, as the ponds in which it lives dry up altogether during certain months of the year. Though the final results ai-e the same the causes are different in the two cases." More Details. In forwarding the fuller particulars asked for the discoverer of the fish stated that he had seen them at the Island of Vego, or "Vegen, as it was variously spelt on different maps. The island was situated one degree south of the Arctic Circle. It had a range of mountains stretching north and south along its western side and some miles of flat country on the east of the mountains. This flat country terminated in a number of white sandy beaches. After giving particulars locating the island and the conditions ex* - - ing there, the New Zealand resident states that the nearest he can get |to an accurate description of the fish which he found in the sand of one of these beaches is that it is similar to a herring without scales. The fish was discovered on the beach at Fisken, about four miles from Roro, the landing place on the island. "I formed the opinion that this lish burrowed into the sand after a few inches of ice had formed in the late fall," he wrote. "A period of intense cold would then ensue, which, in my opinion, would preclude any possibility of escape, for the beach, in conjunction with the ice, would be composed of-one solid mass during the winter months. In the spring, when the ice commenced to separate itself from the bottom, and any clear patch could be observed, digging would sometimes reveal this fish at the various depths previously stated." (Evidently in an earlier letter.) "The fish after exposure to normal atmosphere emits a smell peculiar to that fish alone of all the different species it has been my experience to come into contact with during my lifetime," the writer continues. "The odour contains a peculiarity of its own which could not, in my opinion, be identified with any other species already know to that part of zoology which treats of fishes." The particulars supplied by the New Zealand resident have been forwarded by Dr. Hora to ichthyologists at the British Museum and at Stockholm.