-2-
2.7 miles east-northeast of Belle Island, and thus contributed
the greatest amount of radioactivity to the Belle area.
There
was however, residual radioactivity present from previous atomic
weapons detonated at Bikini Atoll and at Eniwetok.
Reef fishes were collected in the vicinity of Belle Island
by using rotenone, hook and line, or spear in depths ranging
from a few inches to about l2 feet.
Almost all of the collec-
tions were made on the seaward side of the island in Area P
(Fig. 1) in a habitat containing approximately equel] amounts of
coral and sand.
The area is typical of the reef of the northern
portion of the atoll except that it sustained a certain amount
of physical damage because of its proximity to the shot.
Attempts were made to confine the specimens analyzed to
those fish which were typical residents of the Belle area, but
such efforts were not entirely successful.
The fish collected
during the first month after Nectar shot consisted mainly of
goatfish and mullet, species which move along the north reef
from island to island.
Typical reef residents such 4s grouper,
damselfish and surgeonfish appeared to be scarce during this
period.
In all, 34 different collections were made in 1954 and
1955 which included 693 specimens, these representing 57 species
and 22 families of fishes.
However, only 9 species from 9 fami-
lies were consistently present in the collections (Table 1 and
Appendix).
The collections and treatment of data were similar to those
in earlier investigations by the Applied Pisheries Laboratory.
For complete details see WT-616 (UWFL-33).
The specimens were