The
Albatross II was the reconditioned ocean tug Patuxent.
It was obtained from the Navy Department shortly after the Bureau
of Fisheries steamer Fish Hawk was relinquished on January 30,
1926. The first Albatross was decommissioned several years before,
on October 29, 1921. The Patuxent, renamed Albatross II,
was a two-masted steel steamer weighing 521 gross tons; her
overall length was 150 feet; and her header was 29 feet 6 inches.
She had a mean draft of 12 feet 3 inches.
In the summer of 1933 the activities of the Laboratory were
even more restricted than before. Galtsoff with the assistance
of R.O. Smith, conducted laboratory experiments on the growth
and fattening of oysters, and Sette studied various methods
of marking mackerel (fig. 36). Large schools of tagged mackerel
were kept under observation in the outdoor pool of the Laboratory
and in the aquarium, where the injuries caused by tagging could
be easily watched.
Lack of funds for the operation of the Laboratory prevented
the Bureau from providing facilities for independent investigators.
At the same time the deterioration of the laboratory buildings
and equipment steadily progressed. At this time, large research
projects conducted by the Bureau in the North Atlantic were
concerned primarily with the populations of oceanic fishes.
The major emphasis was devoted to the statistical aspects, such
as the analysis of catches, determination of the abundance of
year classes, rates of growth and mortality, and movements or
migrations of fishes. Laboratory work played a minor role in
these investigations and, consequently, the demand for laboratory
space by the Bureau's biologists diminished.
Fish hatching was still the major year-round operation while
the Laboratory, having no permanent personnel, functioned principally
during the summer. The division of administrative responsibility
added to the difficulty, since the hatchery operation and maintenance
of all buildings and grounds at Woods Hole were while the operation
of the summer Laboratory was under the Division of Inquiry.
As a result, the Laboratory could not develop its own program
of research and acquire solidarity as a scientific research
unit.
Some of the members of the Bureau of Fisheries even suggested
that the Woods Hole Station be declared "surplus property".
This view was strongly opposed by Galtsoff, who on many occasions
pointed out the unique advantage of a place having sea water
with uniform salinity, absence of wide daily fluctuations in
temperature, safe anchorage for small boats and live-cars, and
good docking facilities for sea-going vessels. The scientific
climate of Woods Hole, the access to the best biological library
in the country, lectures, discussions, conferences, and the
presence of many outstanding scientists are conditions highly
conductive to research. Furthermore, friendly cooperation with
the MBL and the newly established Oceanographic Institution
makes it possible, in emergencies to borrow equipment and use
the facilities of these institutions. Fortunately, the arguments
were effective and the Shellfisheries Section was permitted
to use the Laboratory for rapidly expanding work on oysters,
but very little money was made available for repairs and rehabilitation
purposes.
From 1935 to 1938 the Laboratory was without a formal Director,
and administrative responsibility for the work of the Laboratory
was assumed by Galtsoff. Experimental oyster investigations
at this time dealt with the physiology of spawning, accumulation
and storage of heavy metals in the oyster, seasonal fluctuations
in the concentration of glycogen and heavy metals, oxygen consumption
of oysters, and sex change. The latter study was continued for
five consecutive years before its completion. In 1935-36, in
connection with a special appropriation for oyster pest control,
a survey was made of the distribution of starfish and drills
in Buzzards Bay and Narragansett Bay. Under the supervision
of Galtsoff, the survey was carried on by K.S. Rice and temporary
assistants C.F. Reppun, G. Mishtowt, B. Boving, and C.D. Weber,
who also assisted in the experimental study of metabolism and
storage of metals in oyster tissues. Rice and Weber remained
in the residence for the entire year in order to extend their
observations throughout all seasons. Independent investigators
were: H.M. Smith, F.G. Hall, F.H. McCutchin, J.W. Wilson, and
E. Linton. In the summer of 1938 the following investigations
indirectly related to fishery problems were conducted: R. Maulf-
osmoregulative mechanism in crayfish; R.B. Root and H. Brown-
effect of carbon dioxide on the respiratory function of blood
of marine fishes; and J.M. Odiorne- behavior of melanophores
of Fundulus.
The
1938 Hurricane
On September 21, 1938, the Station suffered a severe blow from
a tropical hurricane and the storm wave which accompanied it.
In the report to the Commissioner the damages caused by the
hurricane are described by Galtsoff, acting Director, as follows:
"Fisheries grounds littered with debris, boats, cars, and silt
present probably the most convincing picture of the ferocity
of the tidal waves and wind that struck Woods Hole. The most
serious destruction was done to the pier, three-quarters of
which was carried away and deposited on the grounds nearby.
Not only the wooden upper structures and planks were demolished,
but the heavy stones forming the wall were lifted and tossed
away. . . . Water filled the basements of the Laboratory and
residence buildings and undermined the foundation, smashed the
windows and considerably damaged materials and equipment stored
there. Tile roofs of both buildings were ripped leaving several
large holes, some of them about 10 feet square. . . fortunately
the laboratory boats and scientific equipment were not damaged."
A rough estimate indicated that about $100, 00 would be required
to rehabilitate the Station. Such funds were not available,
and in view of the uncertain future of the Station no efforts
were made to request the necessary Congressional appropriation
for rehabilitation. A sum of about $5,00 for the immediate and
most urgent repairs was allocated. It was sufficient to repair
the roof, replace broken windows, and do other minor jobs. The
seawall and wharf remained badly damaged.
In the summer season of 1940, two interesting projects were
carried out at the Laboratory. Arthur Shlaifer of the New York
Aquarium studied the social and respiratory behavior of young
tarpon, and P.F. Scholander of the University of Oslo, Norway,
jointly with L. Irving and S. W. Grinell conducted research
on the respiratory adjustment to diving and asphyxia in harbor
seals (Scholander, Irving, and Grinell, 1942). Half of the hatchery
floor was set aside for bulky equipment, which included respirometers,
electrocardiograph, and instruments for the automatic recording
of pulse and respiration rates in seals. The animals were strapped
to a special holder and were kept in air first, then they were
automatically submerged into water. From 10 to 16 seals were
kept in a fenced enclosure along the beach and boat slip. The
experiments provided valuable information for understanding
the physiology of diving, but the problem of maintaining and
feeding lager number of seals presented many unexpected headaches
to the Station personnel.
In the summer of 1941 the study on the deposition rate of shell
material in oysters was undertaken by Galtsoff and Dorothy H.
Algire. At the invitation of the Bureau, Chester I. Bliss conducted
a seminar on statical methods in biology and worked on the problem
of standardization of toxicity experiments.
Shortly after the beginning of hostilities in December 1941,
the Station was closed and the buildings were occupied by the
U.S. Navy until the spring of 1944. The library, large stock
of laboratory equipment, and chemicals were transferred for
storage to the basement of the MBL. During the ensuing years
shellfishery research, mostly dealing with the study of life
history of the mud worm, Polydora ligni, and with physiology
of the feeding of oysters, was conducted by Galtsoff and Edith
Morrison in a laboratory room rented in the main building of
the MBL.
During the war years Woods Hole presented an unfamiliar picture.
The Fisheries grounds and the adjacent buildings of the MBL
were surrounded by high fence, and became inaccessible to civilians.
The gay crowd that used to assemble near the aquarium and around
the seal pool was no longer there. Less than half of the MBL
laboratory rooms were occupied. Bright-looking pleasure boats
were gone, and very few fishing vessels were seen in the harbor.
Even the New Bedford-Nantucket steamer lost its smart appearance
under a coat of gray paint. At night everything was pitch dark
and the streets were deserted.
The 1944 Hurricane
The Station was released by the Navy in 1944, and shortly after
that (September 14) it was struck by a vicious hurricane. This
storm did more serious damage to the buildings and grounds than
those inflicted in 1938. Large sections of the roofs of the
residence and Laboratory buildings were carried away; all chimneys
were demolished; about 160 windows were broken in the residence.
Damages caused by high water and storm waves were even greater.
Sea water filled up the basement of the residence to the depth
of about 7 feet, destroying the oil furnace, supplied, and equipment
which were stored there. The seawall at the eastern side of
the Fishery grounds was demolished and a deep gulley extended
from the beach to the sidewalk, undermining the Spencer F. Baird
monument. Porches, railings, and outside stairways were demolished,
and the entire grounds were covered with slimy debris. At the
height of the hurricane, which struck Woods Hole after darkness,
the water at the southern end of the Laboratory stood about
6 feet above street level and a strong current was sweeping
the grounds. All employees of the station and their families
assembled in the corridor of the second floor of the residence,
which was considered to be the safest place, and were strictly
forbidden to go outside. Soon the chimneys began to collapse
with a roaring noise, the roof was blown off, and all the windows
facing the sea were smashed either by wind or by flotsam thrown
by waves; it seemed that the old residence was going to collapse
at any moment. Fortunately, the old, well-built structure withstood
the onslaught of water and wind. Panic which threatened to develop
among the children and some hysterical women, who wanted to
run away from the building, was prevented and all were persuaded
to remain indoors. Those of us who had previous experience knew
that flying pieces of tile and strong currents running over
the fishery grounds constituted the greatest danger. The next
day many pieces of broken tiles were found embedded about one-half
inch deep in the wooden buildings across the street, several
hundred feet away from the residence. Fortunately no lives were
lost and nobody sustained any injury.
The violence of the wind subsided about 5:00 a.m. and it was
possible to step outside and examine the wreckage (fig. 37).
For nearly a week Woods Hole was without electric power and
gas. The highways were blocked by fallen trees, and the railroad
tracks between Woods Hole and Falmouth had been washed away.
The basement of the MBL buildings, where laboratory equipment
was stored, was flooded but fortunately only the glassware placed
on the floor and on the two lower shelves was under water. Optical
equipment, analytical balances, and other more expensive apparatus
were stored away in the cupboards and were undamaged. There
were a multitude of problems to be solved right away. The most
urgent ones were the general cleaning of the grounds, temporary
patching of the destroyed portions of the roofs, and the boarding
of broken windows.
Some of the alterations made by the Navy were very useful to
the Station. For a long time the U.S. Coast Guard maintained
a structure along the northern part of the Fishery grounds which
was used as a messhall for the sailors on the Coast Guard ships,
when the latter were in port. The Navy transformed this structure
into a small hospital and dispensary and along side of it constructed
an adjoining wooden barrack as quarters for WAVES. The barrack
was not occupied, however, when the Navy returned the property
to the Fish and Wildlife Service. The hospital building and
WAVES quarters were rebuilt as apartments, which in the following
years were occupied by the Superintendent, the Director, and
the Administrative Officer of the Station. To alleviate the
acute shortage of housing facilities at Woods Hole, the residence
building was turned over to the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution
as a dormitory for its wartime employees.
Operation of the hatchery, which was interrupted at the beginning
of World War II, was now permanently discontinued. The personnel
were retired or transferred, and the responsibility for maintaining
the buildings and grounds was turned over to the Branch of Fishery
Biology (formerly Division of Scientific Inquiry). The disaster
at Woods Hole again raised the acute question of whether or
not the Bureau should close the Station and dispose of the land.
With the exception of the Shellfisheries Section, no other section
of the Bureau at this time was interested in Woods Hole or considered
that the Station was needed for their work. The great potential
usefulness of the Station in connection with the rapidly increasing
scope of scientific research in fishery biology and oceanography
was again emphasized by Galtsoff in several memoranda submitted
to the Director of the Service. Fortunately the Station had
a good friend in Albert M. Day (fig. 38), who from 1945 to 1952
was Director of the Fish and Wildlife Service, U.S. Department
of the Interior. The Fish and Wildlife Service was an agency
formed by combining the Bureau of Fisheries and the Biological
Survey. Thanks to his wisdom and foresight the Station was saved
from approaching doom. Careful survey of the buildings indicated
that in spite of old age and inroads of several severe storms
and two hurricanes, the old structures were still sound and
could be reconditioned and re-equipped at the estimated cost
of about $175,000 to $200,00. The Director considered, however,
that it was unwise to ask for such a large sum of money to be
put in the old and inflammable buildings, and thought that eventually
they should be replaced by modern structures. Small amounts
of money were made available for the reconstruction of the seawall,
new roofs, repairs to a portion of the Fishery dock, etc. A
great deal of the work inside the building was made by the Superintendent
and Station carpenter.
By the summer of 1947, the Station was sufficiently restored
as a laboratory to be used by a small number of investigators.
During that year Galtsoff, acting Director of the Laboratory,
assisted by J. Griggs, made observations on the density of oyster
blood under various environmental conditions, and made toxicity
tests of the water and plankton associated with the blooming
of Gymnodinium brevis, a microorganism which causes "red tide"
along the west coast of Florida (Galtsoff, 1948). Development
of the nervous system and the reactions of fishes were studied
by H.C. Tracy and a group of his students, supported by a grant
from the U.S. Navy. For brief periods the Laboratory space was
used by two visitors from South America: Horacio Rosa, Jr.,
of the Division of Protection of Fishes in Sao Paulo, Brazil,
and Antonio Landa, of the Guano Company in Lima, Peru. Landa
was a Peruvian fishery trainee, studying the problems and methods
of investigation in fishery problems in the United States. Other
visitors to the Laboratory were: Jacques Monod of the Pasteur
Institute, Paris, France; George Teissier, Director of the Biological
Station at Roscoff; Paul Tchernia, Major General of the French
Navy in charge of fishery investigations; and G.N. Mitra, Assistant
Director of Fisheries, Cutack (orissa), India.
The major investigation carried on in the Laboratory in 1948
was an experimental study of the toxicity of crude oil absorbed
by carbonized sand. This investigation was undertaken at the
request of the U.S. Navy. The technique of using carbonized
sand in combatting fire of oil spilled from naval ships was
developed during the war and proved to be effective as a fire
prevention measure. A heavy slick of crude oil on the water's
surface can be eliminated in a few minutes by sprinkling it
with carbonized sand. Granules of this specially prepared sand
readily absorb oil they form large lumps and sink to the bottom
carrying with them oil globules. The experimental work conducted
for the Navy by Galtsoff and Walter Chipman showed that the
oil absorbed by sand remains toxic and that water soluble materials
which are gradually extracted from oil affect bottom animals
in varying degrees (Chipman and Galtsoff, 1949). This work lead
to the development of the method of bioassay which later on
was employed in the toxicity tests of all pipes and materials
used for the construction of the new Fisheries Laboratory. Study
of the respiration and sex change in oysters was continued by
Galtsoff, and the exhibits of the public Aquarium were prepared
by him with the assistance of A.R. DeMetriff (fig. 39).
Intensified interest on the part of the New England fishing
industry on the depletion of groundfish resources and renewed
interest on the part of the Fish and Wildlife service on the
value of oceanographic studies on fishery resources resulted
in a rebirth of the Laboratory. A new era started with the transfer
of the office of the New England Banks Fishery Investigations
(previously called North Atlantic Fishery Investigations) from
Cambridge to Woods Hole. A new vessel, Albatross III
(fig. 40), was available for the explorations of offshore fishing
grounds. The vessel was commissioned at ceremonies held at Boston
Fish Pier on March 19, 1948. Formerly named Harvard, she was
built in 1926 as a steam trawler and before being "sold" to
the Fish and Wildlife Service for $1 she was credited with catching
and landing about 35 million pounds of groundfish. When World
War II broke out, the Harvard was in a shipyard being converted
into a research vessel. She was immediately requisitioned by
the U.S. Navy for the Coast Guard, renamed Bellefonte, and returned
to the Service in 1944. The Bellefonte was laid up at Woods
Hole in semi-operative condition until plans were made and funds
allocated to reconvert her back to a fishery research vessel
under the name Albatross III. Due to insufficient funds
she was operated only intermittently during the period 1948-54.
Tin 1955 the Saltonstall-Kennedy funds made possible the full-time
operation that lasted until 1959, when she was decommissioned.
During that period of service she made 128 cruises, most of
them to Georges Bank and adjacent waters. In 1951-52 the Albatross
III was loaned to WHOI for trans-Atlantic hydrographic
cruises.
The principal activities of the Albatross III that
were started in 1948 were concerned with a census of groundfish
on the New England banks. The results of these surveys provided
a basis upon which prediction of abundancy are now being made
to the fishing industry.
The determination of natural mortality and growth rates, essential
in all population studies, formed an essential part of this
research. Previous investigations conducted by the Bureau showed
the necessity of protecting small haddock (two years old or
less) from destruction, which during the war years reached enormous
proportions. It was estimated that at least 17 million baby
haddock were killed during this period and discarded on the
New England banks by the otter trawl fleet using small (three-inch)
mesh nets.
William F. Royce, Chief of North Atlantic Fisheries Investigations,
became Director of the Laboratory in 1948. Part of the Laboratory
was set aside for shellfish investigations under Galtsoff. The
number of investigators working at Woods Hole projects were
carried out: effect of otter trawling on productivity of the
bottom by Royce; study of the population of haddock by H. Schuck;
and abundance and yield of groundfish by A. Perlmutter. Seven
other investigators and fishery aids were engaged in various
phases of fishery research. A small number of independent investigators
used the facilities of the Laboratory: H.C. Tracy and his associates
continued a study of the development of nervous system and behavior
in larval and young toadfish; Dr. and Mrs. J. Lein of Syracuse
University studied the clotting mechanism of lobster blood;
A. Goldstein and Dora Goldstein of Harvard University Medical
School investigated the cholinesterase in marine bacteria and
invertebrates. Eugenia Galtsoff of Geroge Washington University,
in cooperation with P.S. Galtsoff, made experiments in transplantation
of toadfish embryos (Galtsoff and Galtsoff, 1959).
In 1949 Albatross III completed 23 cruises before being
laid up from January to May because of the shortage of funds.
The main research project for which the ship's operations were
required concerned the haddock fishery and movements of haddock
on Georges and Browns Bank. The effect of the commercial catch
on changes in the size and composition of the stock of New England
haddock was demonstrated by the analysis of the data accumulated
in previous years (Schuck, 1949). Other investigations were
concerned with the flounder fishery, census of all fish populations
over the entire New England banks area, and hydrography of fishing
areas.
Shellfish investigations were conducted by Galtsoff only during
the summer. These studies pertained to the physiology of feeding
of the oyster and with the fertilization and cleavage of oyster
eggs. All cytological work was performed by Eugenia Galtsoff.
The Laboratory was also used for the study of the material collected
by Galtsoff during his expedition to the Gulf of Panama and
Gulf of Chiriqui to determine the cause of the precipitous decline
in the pearl fishery. Tissues of the pearl oyster, preserved
during the expedition, were microscopically examined, and the
mollusks and other invertebrates found in association with the
pearl oyster were identified. Only four independent investigators
used the facilities of the laboratory.
Pending the proposed transfer to Boothbay Harbor, the administrative
headquarters of the Clam Investigations were located at the
Woods Hole Station. Observations on the feeding of the soft-shell
clam were made jointly by John Barlow and personnel at WHOI.
