Louella E. Cable (1900–1986) was an American

ichthyologist Ichthyology is the branch of zoology devoted to the study of fish, including bony fish ( Osteichthyes), cartilaginous fish (Chondrichthyes), and jawless fish (Agnatha). According to FishBase, 33,400 species of fish had been described as of Octobe ...

Biography

Louella E. Cable was born in

Chamberlain, South Dakota Chamberlain is a city in Brule County, South Dakota, United States. It is located on the eastern bank of the Missouri River, at the dammed section of the Lake Francis Case, close to where it is crossed by Interstate 90. The population of Chambe ...

on July 5, 1900. She received a teacher's certificate from

Dakota Wesleyan University Dakota Wesleyan University (DWU) is a private Methodist university in Mitchell, South Dakota. It was founded in 1885 and is affiliated with the United Methodist Church. The student body averages slightly fewer than 800 students. The campus of the ...

and B.A. (1926) and M.A. (1927) degrees from the University of South Dakota. In 1927, the U.S.

Bureau of Fisheries The United States Fish Commission, formally known as the United States Commission of Fish and Fisheries, was an agency of the United States government created in 1871 to investigate, promote, and preserve the fisheries of the United States. In 1 ...

hired Cable to assist Samuel Frederick Hildebrand at its research station and lab in

Beaufort, North Carolina Beaufort ( ) is a town in and the county seat of Carteret County, North Carolina, Carteret County, North Carolina, United States. Established in 1713 and incorporated in 1723, Beaufort is the fourth oldest town in North Carolina (after Bath, Nor ...

. Working as a scientific illustrator, Cable was the first woman professional biologist at the Bureau. Cable's illustrations won praise in the scientific community and notoriety in the popular press. In her lab in 1929–1930, Cable successfully cultured several fish through their larval stages, a ground-breaking accomplishment: prior to this time, for many species, their early life cycles were only known from capture of wild specimens. In 1937, Cable turned her research attention to

shad The Alosinae, or the shads,Alosinae

in South Carolina's Edisto River. By 1941, she was studying the family of fishes in the Chesapeake Bay watershed, and in 1942 Cable was named chair of a multi-state committee dedicated to restoring the Bay's shad fisheries. With Robert A. Nesbitt, in 1943 she presented her research to Select Committee on Conservation of Wildlife Resources of the House of Representatives. Cable wrote a nationally syndicated article, "Delaware Shad Fishing Has Suffered Great Reduction," in August 1944, arguing for a 50 percent reduction in annual catch tonnage in order to restore the fishery. Along with fellow Fish and Wildlife Service scientist Lucille Farrier Stickel, Cable was praised by Secretary of the Interior

Harold L. Ickes Harold LeClair Ickes ( ; March 15, 1874 – February 3, 1952) was an American administrator, politician and lawyer. He served as United States Secretary of the Interior for nearly 13 years from 1933 to 1946, the longest tenure of anyone to hold th ...

in a press release, as well as in an October 1945 article on the wire services, "Women Scientists Helped Yanks Win the War." In 1950, working from

Ann Arbor, Michigan Ann Arbor is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan and the county seat of Washtenaw County, Michigan, Washtenaw County. The 2020 United States census, 2020 census recorded its population to be 123,851. It is the principal city of the Ann Arbor ...

, Cable shifted her focus to the fisheries of the Great Lakes, studying

ciscoes The ciscoes (or ''ciscos'') are salmonid fish that differ from other members of the genus in having upper and lower jaws of approximately equal length and high gill raker counts. These species have been the focus of much study recently, as rese ...

and the decline of lake trout. She received a Ph.D. in Fisheries Biology from the University of Michigan in 1959. From 1957 to 1964, she led the agency's fish hatchery in Northville, researching ciscoes and other freshwater whitefish species. Cable retired in 1970 after 43 years of service. A fish from the Galápagos Islands,

Cable's goby Cable's goby (''Eleotrica cableae'') is a species of goby endemic to reefs around the Galápagos Islands. This species grows to a length of SL. This species is the only known member of its genus. The specific name honours the United State ...

, was named for Louella Cable by

Isaac Ginsburg Isaac Ginsburg (August 9, 1886 – September 2, 1975) was a Lithuanian-born American ichthyologist. Cable was, for a time, one of two female members of the

American Fisheries Society The American Fisheries Society (established 1870 in New York City), is the "world’s oldest and largest organization dedicated to strengthening the fisheries profession, advancing fisheries science, and conserving fisheries resources." It is a mem ...

, along with

Emmeline Moore Emmeline Moore (April 29, 1872–September 12, 1963) was an American biologist known for her various articles on fish diseases, as well as pioneering work in conservation and combating water pollution. She earned a PhD in biology from Cornell Uni ...

. Cable died on 25 May 1986. She left her estate to the University of South Dakota to endow the Louella E. Cable Memorial Scholarship for zoology students.

Selected publications

* Appendix II to the Report of the U.S. Commissioner of Fisheries for 1928. Document no. 1037. * Document no. 1093. * * * *

References

Bibliography

External links

Louella E. Cable
at Find a Grave {{DEFAULTSORT:Cable, Louella E. 1900 births 1986 deaths American ichthyologists University of South Dakota alumni University of Michigan alumni Women ichthyologists 20th-century American zoologists 20th-century American women scientists