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|R E E O ER. T. 23:23
ON THE
FISHES OF OHIO.
BY DAVID / JORDAN, M. D.
—4—
PREVIOUS PUBLICATIONS ON THE FISHES OF OHIO.
Before proceeding to the discussion of the Fishes of Ohio, a brief Sur-
vey of the earlier publications treating wholly or chiefly of the local fish
fauna may be interesting :
The earliest of these which has come to my notice is a brief paper by
Rafinesque, entitled “Discoveries in Natural History, made during a
journey through the Western Region of the United States, by Constan-
time Samuel Rafinesque, Esq. Addressed to Samuel L. Mitchill, Presi-
dent, and other members of the Lyceum of Natural History, in a letter
dated at Louisville, Falls of the Ohio, 20th July, 1818, * in the Avnerican
Monthly Magazine and Critical Review, September, 1818.
In this article the following catalogue of fishes of the Ohio River is
given, and mime of the species are described at some length. Many of the
names adopted were merely provisional, and were changed when the
species were finally described :
Perca Salmonea ... --------------------. . . . . . . . . . ... --------. Salmon.
Porca chrysops.----------------------.... . . . . . . . . . . ... -------- Rockfish.
Sciaena grummiens -----...-...- ... ---. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .------White Perch.
Sciaena caprodeg -----------------, ..…. . . . . . . . . . . . .---...--Hog Fish,
Bodiamus calliurus …-------------------...-----------...---. Baſs,
Sparus Cyanellis.------------------------- -------------------Sun Fish.
Sparus nigropunctatus -----------------------------. ...------ Bachelor Perch.
Silurus punctatus ------------------------------. & Cº. fºr tº tº º ºs º ºs erº ºr * Mud Cat Fish,
47



738 FISHES-INTRODUCTION.
Silurus olivaris -------------------------------------------- Yellow Cat Fish.
Silurus amblodon ------------------------------------------Black Cat Fish.
Catostomus bubalus. --------------------------------------. Buffaloe Fish.
Jafontonius erythrurus -----, --------------------------------Red Horse.
Catostomus macropterus------------------------------------- Carp,
Catostomus duguesnei--------------------------------------- Sucker.
Clupea heterurus-------------------------------------------- Gizzard.
Clupea aloboides ------------------------------------------- Shad.
Glossotton harengoides ......... . . . . . . . . . . . . ** * * * * * * * * * six cºs º ºs & sº sº sº as tº Spring Herring.
CºlošSodon hoterritus. . . . . . . . . --, ... - ... --...- ... ---. . . . . . . . . . . Summer Herring,
Hydrargyra dinoma ...------------------------------------. Minny.
Hydrargyra notata -------------- * * * * * * ºn tre ºf tº # * ** * are we tº ºs ºr *s tº sex gº º gº ºn g º ºs ºs º a Chub.
Hydrargyra amblops ... -- * * * * * * * sº cº rºm º ºs º ºs ºº sº tº tº sº ºr are tº as as sº we ºn et, sº tº sº, sº m sº sº, ºr gº White Chub.
Lepisosteus fluviabilis -------------------------------------- Gar Fish.
Polyodon folitum ------ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ----------, -, --, -----.Shovel Fish.
Polyodor Pristig -------- ... --, ----- - - - - -, -, -------, -, -, -, ---- Spado Fish.
Acipenser platorynchus, --------- ~~~~... --~~~~ :--------------- Sturgeon.
Silurus pollidus.-----, -, ----------------------------------- White Cat.
Not seen yet : Pike, Eels, Lamprey, Black Perch, Yellow Perch, Red Perch.
Soon after this appeared a Supplemental paper, recording 22 more
species, and describing three of them. This was in the October number
of the journal, and was entitled “Further discoveries in Natural History,
made during a journey through the Western Region of the United
States, by Constantine Samuel Rafinesque, Esq.”
The following are the Spc.cies added to the catalogue in this paper:
Lepisosteus plaiostonus -----------------------. Alligator Fish.
Lepisostous Steliorhynchus . . . . . . ...-------------- Gar Figh.
Anguilla Joticauda . . . . . . . . . . . . ... -------------. Ohio Eel,
Cyprinus fasciolaris.......... ----- ge as we was ºr se at ºn was gº º tº vs. º ºs º is as Mullet.
Cyprinus trachiaphas ------------------------- ... Brown Mullet.
Exoglossum argentium -----. ---- ** * * * * * * ºn tº its tº gº ºn gº as gº º White Chub.
Olmerus albula --------------------------------- White Fish.
Bodianus calliops -----------, - rai º ºx tº as º ºx sº sº tº tº º ºs ºs º gº ºn º Bride Perch.
Pogostoma leucops.... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . White Eye.
Esox Vittatus..... as are tº its s tº “w ºr * * * * * * c & s tº se ris as a = sº as sº ------. Jack Pike.
EBox fasciolaris --------------------------------- Salmon Pike.
Catostoratts amisopterus.------------------------ Perch Buffalo.
Catostomus amblodon ...--------... --------------- Black Buffalo,
Catostomus Veljfer . . . . --------.... --...--, -------- Sailor Fish.
Glossodon Chrysops ---------------------------- . Gold Eye Herring.
Clupea Chry Bouhloris...... ----- *...* * * * * tº dº gº gº tº ºr * * * * * * * * Golden Shad.
Silurus pallidus--------------------------------- White Cat Fish.
iSiluruń Corulescens---------------, -------------- Blue Cat Fish.
Glanis limosus 2--------------------------------- Mud Cat Fish.
Accipeuse" heptipus----------------------------- Brown Sturgeon.
Dinoctus truncatus.----------------------------- Blunt-nose Sturgeon.
Juifhoſephis adamantinus -----------------------. Diamond Fish or Devil Jack,
RAFINESQUE ON OHIO FISHES, 739
A third paper, in the November number of the same journal is called
“Further account of Discoveries in Natural History in the Western States,
by Constantine Samuel Rafinesque, Esq. Communicated in a lotter
from that gentleman to the editor, Lexington, October 5, 1818.”
In this are described the following new species, and the genera to
which they belong :
Pomoxia annularis, Moturus ſlavus, Sarchitus vittatus.
A fourth paper by Rafinesque on Ohio animals was published in the
Journal de Physique, de Chymie et d’Histoire Naturelle, Paris, June,
1819. It is entitled “Prodrome de 70 nouveaux Genres d’Animaux
découverts dans l’intéricur des Etats-Unis d’Amérique durant l’anée
1818.” º
The genera of fishes there noticed are the following: Aplodinotus,
Iºtheostoma, Pogostoma, Aplocentrus, Calliurus, Lepomis with its sub-genera,
Pomotis and Apomotis, Noteinigonus, Amphiodon, Amblodon, Cycleptus, Noturus,
Pilodiclis, and Litholepis. The species added to the list are :
Aplodinotus grunniens, Calliurus punctulatus, Amblodon niger,
Etheostoma ſlabellaris, Lepomis cyanellus, Cycleptus nigresceus,
Etheostoma caprodes, Lepomis macrochirus, Noturus luteus,
Etheostoma blennioides, Noternigonus auratus, Pilodictis limosus,
Pogostoma leucops, Amphiodon alveoides, Litholepis adaman viºus,
Aplocentrus calliops, Amblodon bubalus,
The fifth paper by Rafinesque on Ohio Fishes is “Description of the
Silures or Cat-fishes of the River Ohio, by C. S. Rafinesque, Professor of
Botany in the Transylvania University of Lexington, Kentucky,” from
Quarterly Journal of Science, Literature and Arts, Royal Institution,
London, 1820, ix.
Here are described the following species.
Silurus maculatus, Silurus cerulescens, Silurus lividus,
War. erythroptera, War. melanurus, War. fuscatus,
Silurus pallidus, Silurus argentinus, Silurus melas,
var. lnarginatus, Silurus nebulosus, Silurus cupreus,
var. lateralis, Silurus viscosus, Silurus xanthocephalus,
war, leucoptera, Silurus limosus.
Rafinesque now desired to gather together these scattered papers, with
their confused and often contradictory nomenclature into one coherent
work, and So he began the publication of a series of descriptions of the
fishes of the Ohio River in the “Western Review and Miscellaneous
Magazine,” published at Lexington, Kentucky. This publication
began December, 1819 and closed November, 1820.
Oversheets of this series of articles were bound and repaged as a small
volume under the following title :
740 FISHES-INTRODUCTION.
Ichthyologia Ohiensis or | Natural History of the Fishes Inhabiting the River
Ohio | and its Tributary Streams | Preceded by a physical description of the Ohio and
its branches | by C. S. Rafinesque, | – | Professor of Botany and Natural History in
Transylvania University, Author of the Analysis of Nature, &c., &c., member of the
Literary and Philosophical Society of New York, the Historical Society of New York,
the Lyceum of Natural History of New York, the Academy of Sciences of Philadelphia,
the American Antiquarian Society, the Royal Institute of Natural Sciences of Naples,
the Italian Society of Arts and Sciences, the Medical Societies of Lexington and Cincin-
nati, &c., &c., | – | The art of seeing well, or of noticing and distinguishing with
accuracy the objects which we perceive is a high faculty of the mind, unfolded in few
individuals, and despised by those who can neither acquire it, nor appreciate its re.
sults | – | Lexington, Kentucky printed for the Author by W. G. Hunt (price one
dollar). | – | 1820 | (1 vol., 8vo, 90 pp.). - -
On the reverse of the title page:
These Pages and the Discoveries which they contain in one of the principal
Branches of Natural History, are respectfully Insribed | by the Anthor | To his fel-
low-labourers in the same field of Science | Prof. Samuel L. Mitchill, M. D who has de-
scribed the Atlantic Fishes of New York, and to | C. A. LeSueur, who was the first
to explore the Ichthyology of the Great American Lakes, &c. In token I of Friend-
ship, Respect, and Congratulation. . -
This singular work has been for Several reasons a stumbling block in
the progress of the study of American Ichthyology. This has been
partly owing to errors of observation on the part of the author, partly to
the admixture of statements derived from memory, imagination, or hear-
say with statements of fact, and, finally, in no slight degree to the fact
that Rafinesque's accounts were taken from the living fishes, and hence
were not to be readily interpreted by workers in the closet with preserved
specimens. - -
The difficulty of obtaining the volume, and the fact that Several writers
of authority, especially French and English, have set the bad example
of ignoring Rafinesque's works altogether, because in their limited
knowledge of the local fauna, they have be unable readily to determine
his species, have also helped to cause confusion. -
Rafinesque's work has been well summed up by Professor Agassiz.:
“Nothing is more to be regretted for the progress of natural history in this country
than that Rafinesque did not put up Bomewhere a collection of all the genera and
species he had established, with well-authenticated labels, or that his contemporaries
did not follow in his steps, or at least preserve the tradition of his doings, instead of
decryin g him and appealin g to foreign authority against him. Tracing his course 38 3,
naturalist during his residence in this country, it is plain that he alarmed those with
whom he had intercoarse, by his innovations, and that they preferred to lean upon the
anthority of the great naturalist of the age, then residing in Europe, who, however,
knew little of the special history of this country, than to trust a somewhat hasty man
who was living among them, and who had collected a vast amount of information from
all parts of the States, upon a variety of objects then entirely new to science. From
RAFINESQUE NEITHER, KNAWE NOR FOOIL. 74.1
what I can learn of Rafinesque, I am satisfied that he was a better man than he
appeared. His misfortune was his prurient desire for aovelties and his rashness in
publishing them, and yet both in Europe and America, he has anticipated most of his
contemporaries in the discovery of new genera and species in those departments of
science which he has cultivated most perserveringly, and it is but justice to restore them
to him, whenever it can be done.” (Am. Journ. Sc. Arts, 1854, p 354.)
Without further discussion of this subject, which the writer has else-
where treated in full (Review of Rafinesque's memoirs on North Ameri-
can Fishes, Bull., ix, U. S. Nat. Mus., 1877), I may say that Rafinesque's
work as a whole is bad enough, and bad in a peculiarly, original, and
exasperating way, but that it is much better than Some of its critics
have considered it, and that the trouble it has occasioned in nomencla-
ture is due to a large extent to causes not inherent in the character of
the work. A certain amount of conservative odium always attaches to
a writer who attempts to form natural genera out of time-honored arti-
ficial combinations.
I now turn with pleasure to the writings of one, who, though perhaps,
not so good an ichthyologist as his predecessor, Rafinesque, was a much
more satisfactory writer on Fishes.
The earliest paper of Dr. Jared Potter Kirtland on the Fishes of Ohio,
to be found in his “Report on the Zoëlogy of Ohio, in the second annual
report of the Geological Survey of this State, by W. W. Mather, in 1838.”
This paper consists of a catalogue of 72 species, with notes on their
habits, distribution, and value as food.
Later, Dr. Kirtland undertook a much more important work entitled,
“Descriptions of the Fishes of Lake Erie, the Ohio River and their tribu-
taries.”
This was published as a serial in the Boston Journal of Natural His-
tory, vols. iii, iv, and v, (1840 to 1846).
In this work, 66 species are described belonging to 32 genera. Each
species is accompanied by a figure drawn by Dr. Kirtland himself
These figures are very unequal, Soºne of them, especially of the later ones,
are very good, while others are Scarcely recognizable. It should be re-
membered that scientific draughtsmen were more difficult to obtain in
Ohio then than now, and that the author of the paper drew the fishes
himself because he could find no one else competent to do it -
The faults of this paper are exactly the reverse of those of the Ichthy-
ologia, Ohiensis. They are principally two fold: (a) in an undue con-
servatism, whereby Several really distinct species (as Pomocys annularis
and Pomoſºys migromaculatus) are confounded, and numerous smaller min-
mows and darters are treated as the young of their larger relatives, and
(b) in an undue reliance on the opinion of certain other authors, whose
742 FISHES-INTRODUCTION.
knowledge of Western fishes was much less than his own. A good re-
sult of this conservatism is, however, seen in the fact that, while out
of the 111 species described in the Ichthyologia, Ohiensis, upwards of
43 are either spurious or redundant; in the “Fishes of Lake Erie and
the Ohio River,” out of 66 species none are spurious, and only three
Semotilus dorsalis, Platirostra emdentula, and Ammocoetes concolor, are redun-
dant. Of these, the first was correctly suspected by Dr. Kirtland to be
indentical with his Semotilus cephalus. The Second he had not seen, but
had followed LeSueur, who was one of the best ichthyologists of his day,
in considering it as a distinct species, instead of what it really was, an
old individual of Polyodom folium. As regards the Ammocaºtes, the discow-
ery that these eyeless forms were simply larval Lampreys is a very
recent one, made, if I am not mistaken, by Professor Huxley.
Later, in the Cleveland “Annals of Science ’’ and “Family Visitor,”
the plates of his Fishes of Ohio were reproduced, and some new species
described and figured. As I have not these papers at hand I forbear
further remark on them.
Dr. Kirtland once told the Writer that he abandoned the idea of con-
tinuing his ichthyological writings with the flood of new genera poured
out by Agassiz, Girard, and others, which swept away his landmarks,
and which in many cases he was unable to identify or understand, and
he said that if he could have his way, he would have us “all turned
back to the Linnaean classification.” It will be noticed that while
Rafinesque “discovered "upwards of 70 new genera and sub-genera in
America, Dr. Kirtland declined to establish even one.
Since the time of Dr. Kirtland the only paper of importance especially
relating directly to the Fishes of Ohio is the “First Annual Report of the
Ohio State Fish Commission, to the Governor of the State of Ohio, for the
years 1875 and 1876,” and the “Second Annual Report ’’ of the same for
the year 1877.
The part pertaining to the habits and value of the fishes was written
by the late Mr. John H. Klippart, a close observer and excellent
amateur ichthyologist. The descriptions of genera and species in the
first report were arranged by Mr. Chas. H. Gilbert, and the second by Dr.
Ernest Copeland from manuscript of the present writer.
These papers contain a catalogue of 185 species Supposed to occur in
Indiana and therefore in Ohio. This list, except in Some minor matters
of nomenclature, and in the inclusion of Some Illinois species, is Sub-
stantially that which forms the basis of the present report. The accounts
of the food fishes, contained in Mr. Klippart's paper, are readable and
valuable.
|KIRTLAND ON OFHIO FISHES. 743
The following table will be interesting as showing the progress of our
knowledge of Ohio fishes, and the changes which have taken place in the
nomenclature.
In it are included the species described from Ohio by (a) Rafinesque in
the “Ichthyologia, Ohiensis,” and by (b) Kirtland in his “Fishes of Lake
Erie, the Ohio River and their tributaries. For the purpose of com-
Tarison I add (c) the list of species contained in the present report, and
(d) a list of names given by Dr. Günther to the same species in his
Catalogue of the Fishes of the British Museum (8 vols., 1859–1870), the
most valuable general work yet published on Ichthyology.
FOUR LIST OF
OHIO FISEIES.
JoBDAN, 1879.
GUNTHER, 1859–1870.
KIRTLAND, 1840–1846.
RAFINESQUE, 1820.
Ammocoetes niger-----------------
Scolecosoma argenteum ------. ----
Polyodon folium ------------------
Scaphithynchops platyrhynchus---
Acipenser rubicundus------------.
Acipenser maculosus. ---------...--
Lepidosteus osseus ----------------
Lepidosteus platystomus ---------.
Litholepis spatula ---------------.
Amia Calva-----------------------
Anguilla Vulgaris ----------------
Ichthalurus furcatus.-------------
Ichthalurus robustus.
Ichthalurus punctatus.-----------
Amiurus nigricans.
Amiurus natalis.------------------
Amiurus vulgaris.
Amiurus catus--------------------
Amiurus marmoratus.
Amiurus melas -------------------
a ga ºr gº gº tº as tº ºn Ex 1 s ºr a ex ºr rº, s m º ºx ºf tº cº tº tº gº tº ºr º º ſº tº º º
sº tº tº gº is ſº ºn e. e º ºs e º gº gº e º gº tº º ºx tº ºs º E. cº º ſº tº tº º Es º ºs
Polyodon folium -----------------
Scaphithynchus cataphractus.... .
Acipenser rubicundus--------- Y
Acipenser liopeltis.------------ }
Acipenser maculosus ----------- J
Lepidosteus osseus.--------------
Lepidosteus platystomus ----------
Lepidosteus viridis.---------------
Anguilla vulgaris, bostoniensis, etc.
Amiurus furcatus.
Amiurus affinis.
Amiurus caudafurcatus.----------
Amiurus natalis --------------
Amiurus nigricans ------------
Amiurus catus.
* * * * * * * tº ºr ºn Ex as sº ºn as ºc ºr re sº ºn tº es us as tº gº ºr gº tº es tº gº tº g
Petromyzon argenteus.
Ammocoetes concolor.
Polyodon folium---------------.
Platirostra, edentula -----------.
Acipenser platorhynchus ---------
Lepisosteus Oxyurus -----. tº E. E. E. E. zº
Lepisosteus platostomus -- -----.
Lepisosteus ferox.---------------
Amia calva.
Anguilla lutea -------------------
Pimelodus coerulescens -----------
Pimelodus cupreus.--------------
Petromizon nigrum.
Polyodon folium.
Planirostra, edentula.
Accipenser platorhynchus.
ſ Accipenser maculosus.
d Accipenser serotinus.
Accipenser ohiensis.
Accipenser macrostomus.
Lepisosteus longirostris,
Lepisosteus platostomus.
Lepisosteus ferox.
Litholepis adamantinus.
} Lepisosteus oxymrus,
ſ Anguilla laticauda.
| Anguilla aterrima.
º Anguilla xanthomelas.
UAnguilla lutea.
Pimelodus pallidus.
Pimelodus maculatus.
Pimelodus coerulescens,
Pimelodus lividus,
Pimelodus cupreus.
Pimelodus melas.
f
#
Amiurus xanthocephalus.--...----.
Pelodichthys olivaris ------------.
Noturus flavus.-------------------
Noturus exilis.
Noturus miurus.
Noturus sialis.
Icththyobus bubulus. ------------.
Bubalichthys urus ---------------.
Bubalichthys bubalus -----.... --.
Carpiodes carpio.--...- -----------
Carpiodes thompsoni ------...----.
Carpiodes cyprinus.--------------.
Carpiodes bison -----------------.
Carpiodes Velifer -----------------
Carpiodes Cutisanserinus -----...----
Carpiodes difformis ---------------
Cycleptus elongatus ... --- as tº tº º gº ºn tº a
Catostomus longirostris. ---. ... a . . sº tº º tº
Catostomus teres -----------------
Catostomus nigricans ...--- tº tº tº º tº Eº º
Erimyzon Sucetta. ---. cº ºn ea ºf sº tº E tº º ºs º º
Minytrema melanops ...------------
Myxostoma velatum -------------.
Myxostoma anisura ---------------
Myxostoma aureolum-------------
Myxostoma macrolepidotum -----.
Myxostoma carpio --------- gº tº Gº gº tº gº tº
Placopharynx carinatus.
Quassilabia lacera.
Campostoma anomalum -----------
re ºr ºs º ºs cº ºr tº sº tº gº up tº a to sº sº a zy tº we ra as a on tº e s s Gº tº tº go tº
Hopladelus sp
Pimelodus punctulatus.--------.
Noturus flavus.-----------------
Noturus platycephalus ----------
Sclerognathus cyprinella ---------
Sclerognathus urus,
* * > * > * c as tº gº ºn tº º ºs ºs c as º ºs º º º sº tº sº tº gº tº ſº º ºs tº
Sclerognothus elongatus.--------.
Catostomus hudsonius.
Catostomus griseus.
Catostomus teres.
} Catostomus aureolus------------
Catostomus nigricans ------------
Moxostoma oblongum.
Moxostoma tenue----------- tº m º ºs
Catostomus fasciatus.-----------.
* * * * * * * * cº ºn tº gº ºn ºn tº me tºp ºn e º ºs ºs cº, E, ºr tº & Eº gº tº º tº gº a
• * = &º ºn tº tº gº ºry º ºr tº ſº ci º ºs º ºx ºn tº gº tº ºr º º ºs º º grº gº º ºs º ºx
Catostomus carpio.
Campostoma dubium. -----------.
Pimelodus catus.-----------------
Pimelodus limosus ---------------
Noturus flavus.----. s tº sº, sº cº -> * tº es sº º sº *
* * * * me tº a ºn tº so tº e º sº as ºr ea se me ex ºr ºn tº e º ºs º º sº as so * * *
s sº * ºn sº tº me tº º ºs gº sº e º ºx º' tº gº g tº º º gº º a gº ºn tº gº tº tº ºr ſº º
Catostomus communis.-----------.
Catostomus nigricans ------------
• * ºr tº tº ºs ºrº was º gº gº ºr tº º º ºs gº dº º sº ºr e º sº º ºr & tº º º tº ºvº tº
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Catostomus aureolus.
Catostomus duquesnii.---- tº tº ºn tº º ºrº tº
Exoglossum dubium.-------------
Pimelodus xanthocephalus.
ſ Pimelodus viscosus.
} Pimelodus nebulosus.
Pimelodus limosus.
Pylodictis limosus.
Noturus flavus.
Catostomas bubalus.
Catostomus carpio.
Catostomus velifer.
§ Catostomus elongatus.
Q Cycleptus nigrescens.
Catostomus flexuosus,
Catostomus Xanthopus.
Hypentetium macropterum,
Catostomus fasciolaris.
Catostomus melanops.
Catostomus anisurus.
Catostomus erythrurus,
Catostomus melanurus.
Q
Rutilus anomalus.
Catostomus melanotus.
§
FOUR LISTS OF OHIO FISHES-Continued,
JORDAN, 1879.
GUNTHER, 1859–1870.
KIRTLAND, 1840–1846.
RAFINESQUE, 1820.
Chrosomus erythrogaster --...- ....
Hybognathus nuchalis.----------.
Pimephales promelas ---------. --.
Hyborhynchus notatus -- - - -------.
Exoglossum maxillilinguæ-------. .
Hudsonius storerianus -----------.
Hudsonius Volucellus ---. --------.
Hudsonius Stramineus,
Hudsonius fretensis.
Hudsonius hæmaturus -------. sº sº sº º
Hudsonius analostanus.----.......
Chriope heterodon ---------------.
Minnilus rubrifrons.------------ - -
Minnilus ariommus.
Minnilus Scabriceps.
Lythrurus diplºmius -----...----.
Luxilus cornutus -----------------
Ericymba buccata. ------...-------.
Phenacobius teretulus.
Rhinichthys cataractae.----.... --.
Rhinichthys atronasus-----------.
ErimyStax dissimilis.... ------ * - tº g
Ceratichthys amblyops ----------.
Ceratichthys biguttatus. ---...-----
Couesius prosthemius ----. * tº E. Er tº E is
Semotilus corporalis -----...-- E is tº E &
Telestes elongatus ---------...----.
Phoxinus neogaeus ---------------
Leuciscus erythrogaster.----. ---.
Hybognathus nuchalis.
Pimephales promelas-------------
Hyborhynchus notatus ---------. .
Exoglossum maxillilingua.
Leuciscus storerianus -----------.
Leuciscus Volucellus.
Leuciscus ha-maturus.
Leuciscus analostanus.----...----.
Leuciscus heterodon.
Leuciscus rubrifrons,
Leuciscus photogenis.
Leuciscus rubellus,
} Leuciscus copii ----------------.
Leuciscus diplasmius ... ---. -------
Leuciscus cornutus.--------------
Ericymba buccata.
Rhinichthys nasutus,
Rhynichthys atronasus.
} Rhynichthys obtusus.
Ceratichthys dissimilis.---------.
Ceratichthys hyalinus.----------.
Ceratichthys biguttatus ---...----.
Cetatichthys plumbeus,
Leucosomus corporalis ---...-----
Leuciscus elongatus.------------.
Phoxinus neogaeus.
Leuciscus storerianus,
Leuciscus kentuckiensis.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * se e o as gº ºn as Es ºr ea ge
Leuciscus compressus (female)---.
Leuciscus plagyrus ------------.
Leuciscus diplasmius.----------.
Luxilus dissimilis.
Semotilus biguttatus.
Semotilus dorsalis --------------
Semotilus cephalus-------------.
Luxilus elongatus.
Chrosomus erythrogaster.
Pimephales promelas.
Minnilus notatus,
Minnilus dinemus,
Semotilus diplasmius,
Rutilus ruber.
} Luxilus chrysocephalus.
Rutilus plargyrus (?).
Rutilus amblops.
Semotilus dorsalis.
Semotilus cephalus.
§
Notemigonus chrysoleucus ------ ..
Dorosoma cepedianum Inotatum -- .
Pomolobus chrysochloris ---------.
Hyodon tergisus-----------------.
Coregonus quadrilatéralis -------.
Coregonus clupeiformis ---------.
Coregonus hoyi.
Coregonus artedi ---------------.
Coregonus nigripinnis.
Coregonus tullibee --------------.
Salvelinus fontinalis.----. as º ºs º ºs ºs º ºr
Cristivomer namycush -----...---.
Percopsis guttatus.--------------.
Amblyopsis spelaeus --------- tº ºn tº me a
Typhlichthys subterraneus,
Chologaster agassizii.
Fundulus diaphanus.------------.
Zygonectes notatus.--------------
Zygonectes dispar.
Melanura limi -------------------.
Esox salmoneus -----------------.
Esox cypho------ An ºr ºf Łº & ºr ºr ºr * * * * * * * * *
Esox lucius----------------------.
Esox nobilior,
Labidesthes sicculus.
Aphododerus Sayanus------------.
Pomoxis annularis.--------------.
Pomoxis hexacanthus.-----------.
Centrarchus iridens.----. ---------
Copelandia eriarcha.
Eupomotis aureus ----------------
Eupomotis pallidus,
| Abramis americana --------------
Ceatoëssus Cepedianus.----------.
tº º 'º º tº E. & tº ºr º- ºr kº tº 4- tº gº tº tº º, º ºr m º ºs ºs º gº gº º sº tº dº º E
Hyodon tergisus------------------
: Coregonus quadrilateralis.
Coregonus novae-angliae.
Coregonus albus --------------.
} Coregonus richardsoni,
Coregonus harengus
Coregonus lucidus,
sº s & Cº. º. ºº e º ºs e =
} Coregonus clupeiformis.
Coregonus tullibee.
Salmo (Hucho) fontinalis . ... --.
Salmo hudsonicus. -------------.
Salmo namycush ---------------.
Percopsis guttatus.
Amblyopsis spelaeus,
Fundulus multifasciatus,
Haplochilus pulchellus.------- :
Haplochilus aureus.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * ~ * * * me tº ºr tº sº tº º e º sº gº tº p
Esox cypho.
Esox lucius--------------------.
Esox estor --------- - - - - - - - - - - - - -
Aphredoderus sayanus.
Centrarchus nitidus.------------.
Centrarchus hexacanthus -----...
Centrarchus iridens.
Pomotis auritus.----------------.
Leuciscus chrysoleucus----------.
Chatoëssus ellipticus------------
Alosa Chrysochloris ------------- -
Hyodon tergisus ----------------.
Coregonus albus,
Coregonus artedi.
Hydrargyra limi.
Esox umbrosus ----------------..
Esox reticulatus.
Esox estor.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * ta. º. tº ſº º ºr º e mº
Centrarchus hexacanthus,
Pomotis vulgaris.
| Notemigonus auratus.
Dorosoma notata.
ſ Hyodon tergisus.
| Hyodon clodalus.
i Hyodon vernalis.
Hyodon heterurus.
\ Hyodon amphiodon.
Salmo nigrescens.
Salmo allegheniensis.
Semotilus notatus.
Esox salmoneus,
Pomoxis annularis.
Pomolobus chrysochloris.
§
FOUR LISTS OF OHIO FISHES-Continued,
JoBDAN, 1879.
*
GUNTHER, 1859–1870,
KIRTLAND, 1840–1846.
RAFINESQUE, 1820.
Xenotis lythrochloris -------------
Xenobis aureolus. ------------- Jº sº gº tº
Xenotis inscriptus.
Xenotis peltastes.
Lepomis macrochirus -------------
Lepomis anagallinus,
Tlepomis pallidus -----------------
Apomotis cyanellus --------------.
Chanobryttus gulosus -----------.
Ambloplites rupestris -----------.
Micropterus Salmoides -- - - - - - - - - - -
Micropterus pallidus --------------
Roccus chrysops.-----------------
Morone interrupta.
Perca fluviatilis americana -------.
Stizostethium canadense -------, --
Stizostethium Vitreum -- - - - - - - - - - -
Pleurolepis pellucidus.
Diplesium blennioides.------------
Imostoma shumardii.
Rheocrypta copelandi,
Boleosoma olmstedi---------------
Boleosoma nigrum -- - - - - - - - - ------
• a tº e ºs º as a º ºx sº g o gº gº ºn tº a tº º ºr se ea º gº es º ºs º º Es tº ſº tº
& gas sº º gº ºn s ſº gº & cº; tº ſº º ºs sº ºn tº £ tº gº dº sº gº tº gº tº gº © tº gº tº ſº º
* is sº º cº ºn a ch =3 & gº as e º gº ºs e º sº tº my sº sº tº º ºs º º ºs º º Es tº tº
* tº gº ºs & E & 3 ºz º ºs º ºx º' s sº ºn e ∈ E & Es º gº sº sº E. E. E. E. tº gº º is
Pomotis incisor.
Bryłtus punctatus ---------------
Centrarchus gulosus,
Bryttus melanops.
Centrarchus aneus. --------------
Centrarchus fasciatus. --- - - - - - -
Grystes Salmonoides ----------- g
Centrarchus obscurus ----------
Huro nigricans ------------------
Labra multilineatus -- - - - - - - * 3: g- tº tº
} Perca flavescens ---------------.
Perca gracilis.
} Lucioperca cana densis.
Lucioperca grisea.
Lucioperca americana. ----. tº gº tº Eº ſº e
sº ſº sº tº gº tº E. & & gº tº º, ºr tº cº tº º ºi º sº tº gº gº tº gº tº cº & & 2 º gº tº tº
Boleosoma tessellatum,
Boleosoma maculatum,
• * E * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * sº gº tº a ºn a sº as s
• e s = e s e s is sº es e e s = < c, a w e s = e s so es as a s is cº e s a
* * E º º tº te tº tº as 5 tº as as s sº o e º 'º a gº tº gº tº tº as a g º m sº e =
Centrarchus fasciatus ------------
Labrax multilineatus -----------.
Perca flavescens.
* * * * : * : c & sº gº º gº º sº sº e º 3 º ºs c > tº ºn e º a gº gº & E * *
Icthelis megalotis.
Icthelis auritus.
*
Icthelis macrochira.
Icthelis cyanellus.
Iothelis melanops.
} Icthelis erythrops.
Lepomis ichtheloides.
( Calliurus punctulatus.
Lepomis' trifasciata.
Lepomis flexuolaris.
Lepomis Salmonea.
| Lepomis notata.
UEtheostoma calliura.
Lepomis pallidus.
Lepiberma chrysops.
Stizostedion salmoneum,
Etheostoma blennioides.
;
i
Percina Caprodes -----------------
Percina, manitou.
Alvordius aspro -------------------
Alvordius macrocephalus.
Alvordius phoxocophalus.
Alvordius Variatus.---------------
Ericosma evides.
Hadropterus tessellatus.
Nothonotus camurus.
Nothonotus maculatus -----------.
Nanostoma Zonalis.
Poecilichthys coeruleus.
Poecilichthys spectabilis.
Etheostoma Squamiceps.
Etheostoma flabellare.-----------.
Boleichthys eos.
Vaillantia camura.
Microperca punctulata.
Haploidonotus grunniens -------. .
Uranidea gracilis ----------------.
Uranidea hoyi.
Uranidea meridionalis.
Iſranidea wilsoni.
Uranidea bairdi -----------------.
Uranidea spilota.
Triglopsis thompsoni--------------
Lota maculosa ------- sº s sº gº ºn tº as tº e º 'º -
Eucalia inconstans ---------------.
Pygosteus occidentalis concinnus..
|% Pileoma semifasciatum ---------.
Pileoma zebra.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * *-s ºr º º Gº Gº - E - sº sº sº sº cº tº as º ºx º' Gº gº
Corvina oscula-------------------
Cottus gracilis.
Cottus bairdi -------------------.
Ptyonotus thompsoni.
Lota Vulgaris.--------------------
v * * * * * * * * * * * * se so me me a s m ºn tº sº ºn us g g a sº as ºn as m ºr
Gasterosteus concinnus.
Etheostoma caprodes.------------
Etheostoma blennioides.
Etheostoma variatum.
Etheostoma maculatum.
• * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * is sº as us me as tº us ºn as a
Cottus gobio.
Lota maculosa.
Gasterosteus inconstans.
Etheostoma caprodes,
Etheostoma flabellata.
Etheostoma fontinalis.
Pegedictis iota lops,
Amblodon grunniens.
.
750 ITISHES-INTRODUCTION.
The State of Ohio includes two well defined ſaunal areas, so far as its
fishes are concerned. These are Lake Erie and its tributaries on the
north, and the Ohio River and its tributaries on the south. Of about
163 species found in the Waters of the State, about 40 may be considered
characteristic of the Lake fauna, Seldom being found in tributaries of the
Ohio. A large number, about 67, belong properly to the Ohio River
fauna, the remaining 56 being common to both. The species found in the
lake number therefore about 96, and those in the river, about 123. In
nearly every case where a Species is common to both faunae, northern or
lake specimens will be found to be deeper in body and deeper in color
than the Southern or river Specimens. Some of the species belonging
properly to the lake region occur in the headwaters of the Scioto, Miami,
etc. I suppose this to be due to the fact that the watersheds in the State
are sometimes low and Swampy, permitting at times the interchange of
fishes. Why these species do not spread Southward is not explained,
but this is probably due to Something in the water or the climate.
Of species belonging especially to the Lake fauna, we may enumerate
the following :
Acipenser rubicundus, . Coregonus tullibee,
Amiurus catus, Cristivomer namaycush,
Carpiodes thompsoni, Percopsis guttatus,
Catostomus longirostris, Esox nobilior,
Couesius prosthemius, Eucalia, inconstans,
Rhinichthys cataractae, Pygosteus occidentalis,
Hudsonitº storerianus, Lota maculosa,
Telestes elongatus, Uranidea spilota,
Coregonus quadrilateralis, Triglopsis thompsoni,
Coregonus clupeiformis, Eupomotus aureus,
Coregonus hoyi, Perca americana,
Coregolius artedi, Microperca punctulata,
Coregonus nigripinnis, Boleichthys eos.
Of species characteristic of the Ohio River fauna, the following may be
mentioned: -
Scaphirhynchops platyrhynchus, Minnilus ariommus,
Polyodon folium, Minnilus scabriceps, \
Litholepis spatula, Lythrurus diplasmius,
Noturus ſlavus, Hudsonius stramineus,
Pelodichthys olivaris, Pomolobus chrysochloris,
Amiurus xanthocephalus, Dorosoma cepedianum,
Amiurus melas, Centrarchus viridens,
Ichthaylurus robustus, Xenotis lythrochloris,
Ict.hthalurus furcatus, Lepomis anagallinus,
Ichthyobus bubalus, Lepomis macrochirus, i.
Bubalichthys urus, Etheostoma Squamiceps,
FISHES OF GENERAL DISTRIBUTION.
Bubalichthys bubalus,
Carpiodes carpio,
Carpiodes Cutisanserinus,
Cycleptus elongatus,
Myxostoma apisura,
Ceratichthys amblyops,
Ericymba buccata,
Minnilus rubrifrons,
Poecilichthys cooruleus,
Nothonotus camurus,
Nanostoma Zonale,
Rheocrypta copelandi,
Imostoma Shumardi,
Erico8ma evides,
Pleurolepis pellucidus.
The following are species of general distribution, occuring probably in
every suitable stream in the State:
Amiurus natalis,
Catostomus teres,
Catostomus nigricans,
Erimyzon Sucetta,
Minytrema melanops,
Myxostoma macrolepidotum,
Ceratichthys biguttatus, ©
Semotilus corporalis, g
Chrosomus erythrogaster,
Notemigonus chrysoleucus,
Minnilus rubellus,
Hudsonius analoStan us,
Luxilus cornutus,
Hyborhynchus notatus,
Melanura limi,
Labidesthes sic.culus,
Pomoxys nigromaculatus,
Pomoxys annularis,
Xenotis megalotis,
Lepomis pallidus,
Apomotis cyanellus,
Ambloplites rupestris,
Micropterus Salmoides,
Micropterus pallidus,
Roccus chrysops,
Etheostoma ſlabellare,
Boleosoma nigrum.
Percina caprodes.
As an illustration of the character of the local fauna of the smaller
streams of the interior, I give the following list of the species taken by
Professor H. E. Copeland and myself in the White River, near Indian-
apolis, Indiana. This stream is in all essential respects similar to the
Miami, and other rivers of Western Ohio:
ETHEOSTOMATID ZE.
Microperca punctulata Putn.------------------------------- Rare.
Etheostoma flabellare Raf---------------------------------- Rare.
Nothonotus camurus (Cope) Jor.---------------------------- Rare.
Poecilichthys variatus (Kirt.) Ag. --...---- º º ºs º º gº ºn º dº sº ºn tº º gº ſº, tº gº tº º sº Common.
Poecilichthys spectabilis Ag. -------------------------------- Frequent.
Pleurolepis pellucidus (Baird) Ag.-------------------------- Frequent.
Boleosoma nigrum (Raf.) Jor. ------------------------------ Common.
Alvordius aspro Cope and Jor. ------------------------------ Frequent. f
Ericosma evides Jordan and Copeland.--------------------- Rare.
Rheocrypta copelandi Jor. ---------------------------------- Rare.
Diplesium blennioides (Raf.) Jor.------ -------------------- Common.
Percina caprodes (Raf) Grd...-----------------------------
752 FISHES INTRODUCTION.
CENTRARCHIDZE.
Pomoxys nigromaculatus (LeS,) Grd. ----------------------. Rare,
Pomoxys annularis Raf. ------------------------------------ Uncommon.
Ambloplites rupestris (Rafi) Gill.--------------------------. Common.
Micropterus pallidus (Raf.) Gill and Jor. -----...----------. Common.
Micropterus Salmoides (Lac.) Gill.-------------------------- Common.
Apomotis cyanellus Raf. ----------------------------------- Common.
Lepomis macrochirus Raf. ----------- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Frequent.
Lepomis pallidus (Mit.) Gill and Jor. ------------------...-... Common.
Xenotis inscriptus (Ag) Jor. ------------------------------. Frequent.
Xenotis megalotis (Raf) Jor.------------------------------- Common.
Xenotis lythrochloris Jor. ---------------------------------- Frequent.
Xenotis aureolus Jor. -------------------------------------- Frequent.
SCIAENIDAE.
Haploidonotus grunniens Raf. -------------------------, ---- Uncommon.
cottidiº. "
Potamocottus wilsonii, (Grd.) Gill. ------ * * * * * * : * r * tº gº as ºr rº tº tº º ºs ºn Uncommon.
Potamocottus Carolinae Gill. ------- ------------------------- Rare.
ATHERINIDAE,
Labidesthes Bicculus Cope. --------------------------------- Common.
CYPRINODONTIDAE,
Zygonectes notatus (Raf) Jor. ----------------------------. Common.
UMIBRID/E, &
Melanura limi (Kirt.) Ag. ---------------------------------- Rare.
Esocion.
Esox Salmoneus Raf. -------------------------------------- Common.
DOROSOMATIDAE.
Dorosoma cepidianum (LeS,) Gill. --- ...... --...----.... -----. Uncommon.
CYPRINIDAE,
Campostoma 2nomalum (Raf) Ag. ------------------------- Common.
Hyborhynchus notatus (Raf) Ag. --------------------------Common.
Hybognathus nuchalis Ag:--------------------------------- Rare.
Ericymba bucatta Cope. ----------------------------------- Common.
Semotilus corporalis (Mit.) Putn. -------------------------- Common.
Ceratichthys biguttafus (Kirt.) Grd. -----------...--------- Common.
Ceratichthys amblops (Raf.) Grd. -------------------------- Common.
FISHES OF WHITE RIVER, 7.53
Erimystax dissimilis (Kirt.) Jor.---------------------------- Frequent.
Rhinichthys obtusus Ag. ----------------------------------- Common,
Hudsonius Stramineus (Cope) Jor. -------------------------- Frequent.
Chrosomus erythrogaster Raf. -----------------------------. Common.
Lythrurus diplºmius (Raf.) Jor. ---------------------------- Common.
Luxilus cornutus (Mit.) Jor. ---------------------- * * * * * * * * r * Common.
Hudsonius analostanus (Grd.) Jor. ------- ... * * * * * * a sº tº º ºs º ºs º º 'º wº Common.
Episema! Scabriceps Cope--------------- * - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Locally abundant.
Episema ariomma Cope------------------------------------ Frequent.
Minnilus dinemus Raf. ------------------------------------. Frequent.
Minnilus rubrifrons (Cope) Jor. ---------------------------. Common.
Notemigonus chrysoleucus (Mit.) Jor.---------. • tº º sº ºn tº ºn tº as tº as º º Common.
CATOSTOMIDAE.
Catostomus teres (Mit.) LeS.------------------------------ Common.
Catostomus nigricans LeS. -------------------------------- Common.
Erimyzon Sucetta (Lac.) Jor. -------------------------------Common.
Minytrema melanops (Raf.) Jor. --------------------------- Common.
Myxostoma macrolepidotum (LeS.) Jor. --------------...----- Common.
Carpiodes carpio Raf. -------------------------------------. Rare.
SILURIDAE,
Ichthoelurus punctatus (Raf.) Jor. -------------------------. Rare
Amiurus melas Raf. ---------------------------------------- Uncommon,
Amiurus cupreus (Raf) Gill, ------------------------------. Common.
Amiurus xanthocephalus Raf. ------------------------------ Common.
Noturus sialis Jor. ----------------------------------------- Common.
Noturus flavus Raf. ---------------------------------------- Frequent.
Noturus miurus Jor. --------------------------------------- Common.
LEPIDOST!' IDAE,
Lepidosteus osseus (L.) Ag. ----------------------...----...-- Uncommon.
POLYODONTIDAE.
Polyodon folium Lacep.-----------------. * º sº sº * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Uneommon.
PETROMYZONTIDAE,
Ammocoetes niger (Raf.) Jor...-----------------------...----. Locally abundant,
Scolecosoma argenteum (Kirtland) Jor. ...... ---...-- m e º sº m ºn v. Rare,
48
FIS HE S.
A fish in the popular sense of the word is a member of any one of the
four classes of aquatic or fish-like vertebrates, the Pisces (True Fishes), the
Elasmobranchii (Sharks, Skates, etc.), the Marsipobranchii (Lampreys), and
Leptocardii (Lancelets). A fish in this comprehensive and rather in-
definite sense may be defined as a cold-blooded vertebrate, adapted for life
in the water, breathing by means of gills, the limbs if present developed
a fins, the fingers and toes being represented by cartilaginous rays con-
mected by membrane, the exoskeleton obsolete or developed as scales or
bony plates, and one or more fins developed on the median line of the
body, usually composed of rays connected by membrane.
Of a fish, in the popular sense, one could hardly say more, without the
necessity of the constant introduction of exceptions. Of a “true fish, i.e.,
a member of the Class Pisces, a definition will be given further on.
Of the four classes of fish-like vertebrates only two are represented in
the waters of Ohio. These are the Lampreys (Marsipobranchii) and the
True Fishes (Pisces). These two may be compared as follows:
* Skull imperfectly developed, without lower jaw or membrane bones (opercula, etc.);
paired fins (pectorals and wentrals) undeveloped, with no shoulder girdle or pelvic
elements; gills purse-shape, usually with Beveral external openings ; nostril single, on
the median line of the head ; body eel-shaped, Scaleless. . . . MARSIPOBRANCHII.
**Skull well-developed, with a lower jaw and membrane bones; paired fins more or
less developed, with a shoulder girdle (lyriform or furcula-shaped) curved forwards and
with its respective sides connected below ; and with distinct pelvic elements; gills not
purse-shaped, their external openings single on each side ; nostrils one on each side,
their openings often double; body variously formed, usually Scaly. . . . PISCES.
Beginning with the lowest, or least complicated of these groups we come now to the
consideration of
(LASS I. MARSHPOBRANCHII. THE MYZONTS.
Skeleton cartilaginous; the skull inperfectly developed, not separate
from the vertebral column; no ribs; no true jaws; no limbs; no shoulder
girdle nor pelvic elements; gills in the form of fixed Sacs, without
branchial arches, six or seven in number on each side ; a single nasal
aperture; mouth Subinferior, nearly circular, adapted for sucking; heart
FIS HES-PETROMYZONTII) AE. 755
without arterial bulb ; alimentary canal straight, simple, without coecal
appendages, pancreas or spleen; generative outlet peritoneal; vertical
fins with feeble rays, continuous around the tail; naked, eel-shaped
animals, inhabiting all waters. (Marsipion, a small pouch or purse;
bragchia, gills.)
This class is divided into two orders, the Hyperotreta or Hag-fishes, in
which the nasal duct is tube-like with cartilaginous rings, penetrating
the palate, and Hyperoartia or Lampreys, with the nasal duct developed
&n the form of a blind sac not penetrating the palate. The former order
is not numerous in species, and none of its members a e fou (Id in fresh
water, so that in the fauna of Ohio, we have to consider only
ORDER 1. HYPEROARTIA. THE LAMPREYS,
Marsipobranchii with the nasal duct in the form of a blind sac, not penetrating the
palate. This order is equivalent to the single family Petromyzontidae. (Iſupero8, palate ;
artio9, complete or entire.)
F. A. MILY I. PETRO MY Z O N TID AE. T H E L A M P R EY S.
Rºy eel-shaped, naked, sub-cylindrical anteriorly, compressed behind; mouth dearly
cºpoular, suctorial, armed with horny teeth which are simple or multicuspid, and rest on
papilla: ; of these teeth several standing behind the opºning of the oesophagus are more
or less united, forming a semi-circular plate, known as tue mandibulary plate ; in front
of the opening of the Cesophagus are either two large separate teeth, or else two or three
teeth coalescent into a crescent shaped plate; these are the so-called maxillary teeth;
eyes present, in the adult ; gill openings seven, arranged in a linear series along the
sides of the chest ; nostril above the head; lips present, sometimes fringed ; dorsal fin
with its posterior part usually continuous with the anal around the tail, the anterior
part more or less distinctly separated by a notch ; intestines with a spiral valve; eggs
Small.
Some Species of Lamprey build large circular nests, as large as a cart-
wheel, a foot or two in height, sometimes raising half a foot above the
surface of the water. They collect these stones, of the size of a hen's egg
with their mouth, and are said to fashion them into circles with their
tail. Whether our Ohio Species build conspicuous nests, I do not know.
These animals undergo a metamorphosis, the young forms being
usually toothless, with the eyes rudimentary. Until quite recently, these
larval forms have been considered as separate genera. Genera five or six,
3pecies about twenty, found in all waters in temperate regions. They
attach themselves to the bodies of fishes, and feed on their flesh, which
they scrape off with their rasp-like teeth. The marine species of the
genus Petromyzon reach a considerable size and are valued as food. The
fresh water species are, however, too small for such use. Two genera
are represented in Ohio. They are easily distinguished by the differ.
ence in the teeth. -
756 FISHES-IPETROMYZONTIDAE.
ANALYSIS OF GENERA OF PIETROMYZONTIDAE.
*Maxillary teeth coalescent, forming a crescent shaped plate, with a distinct cusp at
each end, between which is sometimes a small median cusp; dorsal fin continuous.
AMMOCOETES, 1.
**Maxillary teeth double or triple, composed of two or three pointed cusps close
together, and not forming a crescent-shaped plate; dorsal fin continuous.
SCOLECOSOMA. 2.
GENUS 1. AMMOCOETES. Dumeril.
Ammocoetes, DUMERIL, Faune Française, 1828, (based on larval forms.)
Ichthyomyzon, GIRARD, U. S. Pac. R. R. Surv., 1858.
Type, Ammocoetes branchialis, L., the larval form of Pétromyzon planeri, BLOCH, an
European species closely related to A. niger.
Etymology, ammos, sand; koite, to lie.
Small Lampreys with the dorsal fin continuous, Gometimes emarginate, but not
divided into fins, the posterior portion continuous with the anal around the tail, and
with the maxillary tooth single, forming a broad crescentic plate, with a large bluntish
cusp at each end, and sometimes a small cusp between them. But one American species
is known, very closely allied to the European Pride or Small Lamprey.
1. AMMOcqLTES NIGER (Rafinesque) Jordan.
Small Black Huahmprey.
Petromyzon migrum, RAFINESQUE (1820), Ichthyologia Ohiensis, 84.
Petromyzon niger, JORDAN (1878), Man, Vert., first edition, 315.
Ammocoetes miger, JoBDON (1878), Man. Wert, second edition, 349,-JORDON (1878), Bull.
Ills. Lab. Nat. Hist, 2, 70.
Description.—Head moderate, nearly as long as the chest (i. e. space occupied by the
gill openings); mouth comparatively small ; lips with a conspicuous fringe of papillae;
dorsal fin high, considerably depressed in front of the vent, but not divided into fins,
the posterior part highest ; anal fin evident ; anal tube copspicuously protruded in the
spring ; eyes moderate; maxillary tooth with its cusps large, triangular, well separated,
a small pointed median cusp usually present in the adult ; in younger specimens the
median cusp is obsolete, and in half grown individuals the tooth forms a curved plate,
without distinct cusps; mandibulary plate curved with eight to ten well developed sub-
equal,tooth-like lobes, inside of which is a plate bearing three teeth; a plate on each
side of the opening of the Cesophagus, the remaining teeth inconspicuous, Bluish-black
above, silvery below ; Size small, Length, 6 to 10 inches.
Habitat, Ohio Valley, Upper Mississippi, and Great Lake region.
Diagnostic marks,—This species may be known to be a Lamprey by its
sucking mouth and numerous gill openings. From the other Ohio
Lamprey, the form of the maxillary tooth will distinguish it at sight.
The larvae of the two without eyes or teeth are very similar, but the
present species is smaller and darker than Sewlecosoma argentoum.
SILVERY LAMPREY. * 757
Habits.--This Lamprey is usually seen in the spring, when it ascends
small clear brooks, in large numbers for the purpose of depositing its
spawn. They are often found clinging to stones and clods of earth, in
which position they are readily destroyed by the Small boy. Later in the
season they disappear, probably returning to deeper water, and are sel-
dom caught except when attached to some unlucky fish. As they are
rarely seen on their way down stream, “it is thought by fishermen that
they never return, but waste away and die, clinging to rocks and stumps
of trees for an indefinite period ; a tragic feature in the scenery of the
river bottoms worthy to be remembered with Shakespeare's description
of the sea floor.” (Thoreau.)
They probably occur throughout Ohio, but are more abundant further
northwest. They have, of course, no economic value.
GENUS 2, SCOLECOSOMA. Girard.
Scoleco80ma, GIRARD, U. S. Pac. R. R. Surv., x, 384, 1859.
Type, Ammocoetes concolor, KIRTLAND, which is the larval form of Petromyzon argenteus,
KIRTLAND.
Etymology, 8kolez, worm ; 80ma, body.
Lampreys of rather small size, having the dorsal fin high and continuous, with only
a shallow emargination; the teeth nearly equal over the large buccal disk, the maxillary
teeth two in number, pointed and set close together, without interspace and not form-
ing a crescent shaped plate; mandibular plate with numerous close set pointed cusps,
which resemble distinct teeth. This genus differs from Petromyzon in the continuous
dorsal, there being two distinct dorsal fins in the latter genus. Its known species in-
habit the Great Lake region and the Mississippi Valley. The group was originally in-
tended to include only those blind species (i.e. larvae) which had a single dorsal fin,
those larvae with two dorsal fins being called by Girard Ammocoetes. The type of
Scoleco80ma really seems to be a representative of a distinct genus, for which the name
is of course to be retained in spite of the erroneous views entertained as to its relations
by its author.
2. SCOLECOSOMA ARGENTEUM (Kirtland) Jordan.
Silvery Lagan prey ; NIund Eei.
Petromyzon argemiew8, KIRTLAND (1840), Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist., iii, 342,
Ichthyomyzon argenteus, JORDAN (1876), Man. Wert, first edition.
Ammocoetes argenteu8, JORDAN (1878) Man. Verb., second edition.
Ammocoetes concolor, KIRTLAND (1840), Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist., iii, 473 (larva).
Ichthyomyzon hirudo, GIRARD, (1859), U. S. Pac. R. R. Surv., x, 342–GUNTHER (1870),
Cat. Fishes Brit. Mus., viii, 507.
Ammocoetes hirudo, Jordon, Man, Vert., second edition, 350.
Ammocoetes a pyptera, ABBOTT (1860), Proc. Acad. Nat, Sci, Phila., 327 (larva).
758 FISHES-PETROMYZONTIDAE.
DeBoription.—Body stoutish, compressed behind ; head broad, with large buccal disk
the edges of which are fringed but not conspicously ; teeth pretty strong and nearly
uniform, the two maxillary cusps being very similar to the other teeth ; mandibulary
cusps seven in number, connivent, the middle ones the longest ; color bluish, sides
silvery ; often mottled ; a small dusky spot above each gill opening, usually conspic-
uous. Length about a foot.
Habitat, Great Lake region and Mississippi and Ohio Valleys, mostly in deep water
but ascending Small streams to spawn in the Spring.
Diagnosis.-The presence of two teeth close together, and similar to
the other teeth, in the mouth in front of the opening of the gullet will
distinguish this Lamprey from the other species found in Ohio. This
species is larger and paler colored.
Habits.-This Lamprey is rather common, both in Lake Erie and in
the Ohio River. It is not often found in small streams, excepting in
the spawning season. I have obtained several specimens, with Perch
from Lake Erie, both external, feeding on the Perch, and intermal, having
been devoured by the fish. Dr. Kirtland's original type was found
fastened to a Wall-eyed Pike (Stizostethium). Probably all of our larger
fishes sometimes are victims to its voracity. The species seems to reach
nearly its full size before dropping its larval peculiarities, as blind and
toothless Specimens of six or eight inches in length are occasionally
taken. • - -
According to Professor Milner, this Lamprey frequently is parasitic on
the Lake Sturgeon, producing circular Scars or raw Sores. “It is proba-
ble that their natural food is the Slime or mucus exuded in abundance
from the pores, but they frequently retain their hold upon a spot until
they have eaten through to the flesh, and deep ulcerous cavities occasion-
ally result from the Sore” (Milner, Rept. U. S. Fish Comm., 1872–73, p.
74). According to Dr. C. C. Estes and others, this species likewise finds
“green pastures” on the naked skin of Polyodon.
(LASS II. PISOES. THE TRUE FISHES.
Excluding the Chimaeras, Skates, Sharks, Lampreys, Lancelets and
their allies, fish-like vertebrates, which are not fishes in a strict zoologi-
cal sense, a fish may be defined as follows:
A fish is a cold blooded vertebrate, adapted for life in the water, having
the limbs developed as fins, the dactyls being represented by cartilaginous
rays connected by membrane (rarely obsolete); exo-skeleton, if present,
of Scales, spines, or bony plates; one or more fins on the median line of
the body composed of rays connected by membrane; skull developed,
TERMS USED IN DESCRIPTION. 7.59
with membrane bones (opercula, etc.) in connection with it, and contain-
ing a brain of several differentiated ganglia; 8houlder girdle developed,
lyriform or furcula shaped; a distinct lower jaw; branchiae, with the
outer edge free, attached to about five bony arches, which are connected
with the hyoid bome and parallel with the shoulder girdle, the hinder-
most pair modified into tooth-bearing “pharyngeals;” gill openings a
single cleft on each side behind the operculum, either confluent below
or else separated by an isthmus; heart (typically) with two cavities and
an arterial bulb. In most fishes there is a membranous air bladder
lying immediately beneath the back bone, answering homologically to
the lungs of the higher vertebrates. In a few Ganoids the air bladder is
cellular and more or less functional, and connected by a glottis with the
oºsophagus; in most of the Soft-rayed species (Suckers, Minnows, Sal-
mon, Catfishes, etc.) there is a slender duct connecting the air bladder
with the alimentary canal; in the spinous fishes (Perch, etc.) this is
wanting. Reproduction by eggs of Small size, which are usually fertil-
ized after exclusion; the members of a few groups (Cyprinodontidae, Am-
blyopsidae, etc.) are ovoviviparous, the young being developed in a sort of
uterus. (Latin piscis, a fish.)
NOTE. –The terms used in the description of fishes may perhaps best be made clear to
one not familiar with them by a sort of object lesson. The reader is supposed to have
at hand a specimen of the Common Brook Sucker (Catostomw8 teres) and a Black Bass
(Micropterus 8almoides). The general form of the body is, in this memoir, usually first
indicated in general terms, as elongate, oblong, 8hort, deep, etc.; more specific terms are
compressed (flattened laterally); depressed (flattened from above); fusiform (spindle-
shaped, tapering each way from the shoulders); terete (nearly cylindrical, i. e., the ver-
tical and horizontal diameters about equal. The depth of the body is described by com-
parison with the length, along the side from the tip of the Snout to the base of the caudal
fin. The depth is measured at the deepest point, and is proportionately greater in old
fishes than in young. The general form of the head is next noted; then the form and
position of the mouth; the mouth is terminal when its opening is forwards, and the two
jaws are not very unequal in length, as in the Black Bass : it is inferior, when, by the
shortness of the lower jaw, its position is entirely underneath the snout, as in the
Sucker; it is oblique when its cleft Slants backward and downward when the mouth
is closed; it is horizontal when the reverse is the case. The bones of which the jaw is
composed are the following: The two dentary bones joined by a symphysis in front, form-
ing the mandible or lower jaw; the pre-maxillaries, or inter-maxillaries, fortoing always the
middle of the front part of the upper jaw, and in some cases forming its entire edge, as
is the case in the Black Bass. Attached to the pre-maxillaries, either behind them,
as in the Black Bass, or below them, as in the case of the Trout, are the maxillaries or su-
pra-maxillaries. In the Black Bass these are conspicuous and flat, extending back below
the eye; in the Sucker they are hardly recognizable without dissection; in some fishes
there is attached to the upper posterior edge of the maxillaries and parallel with it a
very small bone called the 8wpplemental maxillary. The relative size of the mouth is
conveniently indicated by describing how far back the maxillary extends; thus “max-
f
760 FISHES-TECHNICAL TERMS.
llary extending to posterior border of pupil,” indicates that the maxillary reaches a ver-
tical line passing through that point. In the same way, the position of the mouth may
be fixed by stating on what level as compared with the eye, the pre-maxillary or upper
lip is placed.
The jaws are sometimes provided with lips. These may be plain, plicate, puckered, or
pappillose (with little tubercles, as is the case with the Brook Sucker). At the angle of
the mouth, attached to the maxillary, is sometimes a fleshy appendage, called a barbel,
This may be extremely short and scarcely visible, as in the Chub, or very long and con-
spicuous, as in the Catfish. Sometimes the nostrils or the chin, or both, may have
barbels,
The upper jaw is said to be protractile, when there is a deep furrow in the skin, sepa-
rating it from the skin of the forehead, as in the Sucker, and not protractile, when the
skin of the upper lip, in the middle at least, is continuous with that of the forehead, as
in the Log Perch.
The membrane bones of the head may be readily recognized by taking a Sucker. The
large “gill cover,” occupying most of the side of the head behind the eye is the oper-
~culum or opercle; below this and extending up obliquely behind it is the subopercle; in
front of the opercle, nearly parallel with it and separating it from the cheek, is the pre-
opercle, and below the angle of the preopercle, wedged in between it and the subopercle,
is the narrow interopercle : below the eye is the series of 8wborbital bones, and in front of
it, below the double opening of the nostril, is the preorbital. On the top of the head in
the Sucker, and rather posterior, is a characteristic hole in the skull covered by skin,
known as the fontanelle. The presence of the fontanelle may be verified with a pin.
The eye is proportionately much larger in a young fish than in an old one ; its relative
size is usually expressed by comparing its diameter with the length of the muzzle (dis-
tance from front of eye to the tip of the Snout), with the length of the head (measured
from the tip of the snout along the side of the head to the posterior border of the
opercle), and with the width of the interorbital 8pace (distance between the eyes above).
Thus eye five in head, is a concise way of stating that the diameter of the eye is one-fifth
the Jength of the side of the head. ſº
Tne tooth-bearing bones of the mouth can be recognized in the Black Bass, The
principal of these are, * - -
1. Dentary, the bones of the lower jaw.
2. Premaa'illary, above described.
3. Maxillary, above described. This bone is usually toothless, or merely toothed on
its edge.
4, Vomer, the bone on the middle line of the palate, immediately behind the upper
jaw. This bone has a patch of teeth in the Black Bass.
5. Palatine8, a bone extending outward and backward on each side from the vomer,
provided each with a band of teeth in the Black Bass. -
6. Pterygoids, behind the palatines on each side, without teeth in the Black Bass; but
armed with a small patch in the Rock Bass (Ambloplite6).
7. Tongue, toothless in the Black Bass, but with a patch of teeth in the Rock Bass.
8. Hyoid bone, the base of the tongue, on each side of which the gill arches are
attached. •
9. Gill rakers, the stiffened appendages of the anterior pair of gill arches; the gills are
on the outer or convex edge, the gill rakers on the interior or concave side of the arch.
DESCRIPTIVE TERMS. - 761
10. Upper pharyngeals, two sets of bones, usually rounded, placed on the upper side of
the oesophagus, behind the gill arches.
11. Lower pharyngeals, one on each side of the median line, below the Oesophagus, and
behind the gill arches. These bones are modified gill arches, and their forms vary much
with the different suborders of fishes, and their structure is of great importance in the
system of classification. In the Black Bass they are flattish and Bomewhat triangular ;
in the Sucker they are sickle-shaped.
The comparative size of the head is described by noticing how many times its length
(along the side, from the snout to the posterior edge of the opercle), is contained in the
length of the body (measured along the side from the tip of the snout to the middle of the
base of the caudal fin). Thus “head 44 in length '' (as is the case in the Sucker) in-
indicates that the length of the head is a little less than one-fourth that of the head
and the body. The length of the head is proportionately rather greater in young fishes
than in adults.
Below the subopercle and interopercle, and nearly parallel with them are the bony
branchiogtegal ray8 enveloped in the gill membranes. These are three in number on each
side in the Sucker, six in number in the Black Bass, and their number often furnishes
important characters.
The 8cale8 when normally developed, are either Ctenoid (with the exposed or posterior
edge rough or ciliated as in the Perch or Black Bass), or Cycloid (smooth as in the Sucker).
In most cases, there is a series of scales along each side, each of which is provided with
a mucous tube, these forming a conspicuous raised line known as the lateral line. In
many Scaleless fishes this chain of mucous tubes is developed.
The relative size of the scales is indicated by counting them. Of course, the smaller
they are proportionately, the more numerous they are. The number forming the lateral line
i8 one of the most valuable and com8tant of 8pecific characters, being subject to but slight varia-
tions. “Scale8 10-65-7,” the formula of our Sucker, signifies ten series of scales between
the dorsal fin and the lateral line ; 65 scales in the lateral line, and seven series between
the lateral line and the wentrals.
The fins are (a) the paired fins, which are the pectorals (corresponding to the anterior
limbs or arms) situated immediately behind the gill openings, and the ventrals (corres-
ponding to the posterior limbs) placed either behind or below the pectorals; and (b)
the vertical fins, or fins on the median line of the body. These are the dorsal (on the
back), caudal (on the end of the tail), and the amal (on the lower side, behind the vent).
The dorsal is sometimes divided into two fins, in which case the anterior is called
first dorsal, the posterior, second dorsal.
The position of the fins is a matter of much importance. The ventrals are said to be
abdominal when they are inserted on the belly, notably behind the pectorals, as in the
Sucker, thoracio when inserted wilder the pectorals or close behind them, as in the Black
Bass, jugular when in advance of the pectorals, as in the Cod, fish.
The rays of which the fins are composed may be either 8pines or 80ft ray8.
The 8pines are usually stiff and pointed, and are never jointed or articulated, and are
never branched. In those fishes which have spines there is commonly one in each ven-
tral fin, none in the pectoral or caudal fins, one or more in the front part of the anal fin
and several in the anterior part of the dorsal fin, constituting the whole first dorsal
when there are two dorsal fins.
The 80ft rays are always articulated or jointed towards their tips, and most of them
are also branched. They are therefore usually wider at their tips than at their bases,
and are seldom rigid, unless rendered so by drying. In all cases where the dorsal and
f
762 - F [SHES-O RDIERS OF
anal fins are composed of soft rays only, there are at the anterior edge of the fin, from
one to three undeveloped or rudimentary rays, usually closely adherent to the first
developed ray. Some writers enumerate these in their descriptions, but in the present
memoir they are not counted except in a few cases, where the fact is specified. The
short 8pines should, however, never be omitted. The last ray of the dorsal and anal
fins is usually split to the base. This is counted as one not as two.
In certain fishes, as the Trout and Cat fish, there is on the median line of the back
behind the dorsal fin a fleshy expansion known as the adipose ſin, It has of course, no
rays, and is not strictly a fin.
In the present paper the number of spines is indicated by the use of Roman figures;
the number of Soft rays, by Arabic figures. When a fin has both spines and soft rays,
if the two kinds are united by a membrane, a comma (,) separates the number of Spines
from the number of Soft rays. In case the spines are separated as a distinct fin a
dash (–) divides the two in the enumeration. Thus, in the Black Bass, “D. X,13”
indicates a continuous dorsal fin, with ten spines and thirteen soft rays. In the White
Bass, “D. IX—I, 12” indicates two dorsals, whereof the first has nine spines, the Second
has one spine and twelve short rays.
The number of rays in the pectoral and caudal fins is seldom of any value in the classifi-
cation of fishes. e
The abbreviations, D., dorsal fin; A, anal; C., caudal; P., pectoral; W., ventral ;
B., branchiostegals, and lat. 1, lateral line, are frequently used, especially in enumerat-
ing the number of fin rays or scales.
ARTIFICAL KEY TO THE ORDERS OF PISCES REPRESENTED IN OHIO.
*Tail evidently heterocercal; ventral fins abdominal; no true spines, but some of the
fins usually provided with fulcra, (Ganoidei). -
a. Skeleton cartilaginous; body naked or with series of bony bucklers.
bb. Mouth narrow, inferior, toothless, preceded by four barbels.
CHONDROSTEI, 3.
bb, Mouth terminal, broad, with minute deciduous teeth ; snout prolonged into a
Spatulate process. - & º º o e SELACHOSTOMI. 2.
aa. Skeleton bony ; body scaly.
C0. Scales ganoid, i.e. rhombic enamelled plates ; dorsal fin short ; no gular
plates. º e º º º e de u º GINGLYMODI. 4.
cC. Scales cycloid; dorsal fin very long ; a broad gular plate. -
EIALECOMORPEII, 5.
**Tail not evidently heterocercal, ( Teleostei).
s d. Maxillaries wanting, or confluent with the palatines; body serpentiform; no
º º, º ventral fins; vertical fins confluent, or nearly so around the tail.
& ENCHELYCEPHALI, 6.
dd, Maxillaries present, rudimentary, each forming the base of a long barbel; no
Scales; dorsal and pectoral fins each with a single strong spine,
NEMATOGNATHI 7.
ddd, Maxillaries, complete, not forming the base of a long barbel.
6. Wentral fins (in our species) composed each of a strong Spine and a rudimen-
tary ray ; dorsal with free spines; body scaleless, naked or mailed.
HEMIBRANCHII. 9.
ee, Wentral fins if present, not as above. e º s TELEOCEPHALI, 8.
PADDLE FISHES. 763
SUB-CLASS GANOIDEI. THE GANOID FISHIES.
Skeleton bony or cartilaginous; optic nerves forming a chiasma ; arterial bulb rbyth-
mically contractile, provided with several rows of valves; intestine usually with a
spiral valve ; ventral fins, if present, abdominal ; tail more or less heterocercal. Of this
important sub-class, few species are now extant, and these few vary widely from One
another. Of the earlier fossil fishes, a very large proportion are ganoids (gano.8,
Splendor, many of the species being provided with shining enamelled plates).
ORDER. 2. SELACHOSTOMI. THE PAIDDLE
FISHIES.
No subopercle, preopercle, interopercle or maxillary bones ; a single broad branchio-
stegal ; ventral fins abdominal, with an entire series of basilar segments; branchihyals
cartilaginous ; premaxillaries forming the border of the large mouth ; snout dilated,
prolonged ; skin smooth or nearly So ; tail heterocercal. This order contains but a single
family, Polyodontidae. (Selachog, a shark; 8toma, mouth.)
F. A. M IL Y II. P O L Y O DO N T IID AE . T H E P A D D L E
FIS H E S.
Body elongate, fusiform, subterete ; skin smooth or with minute roughnesses; sides of
the upturned part of tail with bony plates; mouth very wide, terminal but overhung
by the long snout, which is produced into a long and thin spatula-like process, retićhlate
above and’ below, thin and flexible at its edges; jaws and palate with minute
deciduous teeth; no barbels; gill openings wide ; opercle rudimentary, striate, pro-
duced into a long skinny flap; no tongue; spiracles present ; air bladder large, com-
municating with the oesophagus; intestine with a well-developed spiral valve; stomach
Coecal, with a broad divided pyloric appendage ; dorsal far back, between ventrals and
anal; caudal with its lower lobe well-developed, nearly as long as the upper; pectoral
fins large, inserted low ; lateral line present.
There are two species of this singular family known, representing two genera, Poly-
odon from America and Psephurus from China. They are large shark-like fishes, living in
fresh-waters, and feeding on mud and minute Crustacea.
*Gill rakers long and fine, exceedingly numerous; upper caudal fulcra narrow, 15 to
20 in number. * * º © ë POLYODON. 3.
GENUS 3. POLYODON. Lacepede,
Polyodon, LACEPEDF, Hist, Nat, des Poissons, i, 403, 1798.
Spatularia, SHAW, General Zoology, v, 362, 1804.
Platirostra, LESUEUR, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci., Phila., i, 223, 1818 (adult without teeth).
Type, Polyodom fewille, LACEPEDE, Polyodon folium, Auct.
Etymology, polu.8, many; odom, tooth.
Polyodontida, with each branchial arch furnished with a double series of very long
Setiform gill rakers, the two series being divided by a broad membrane; upper caudal
fulcra not enlarged. American.
764 FISHES-POLYODONTIDAE.
3. POLYodoN FOLIUM Lacepede.
Paddle Fāsān; Spoon-bill; Shovel Fish ; Bill Fish ; Houack-billed
Cat.
Polyodom fewille (folium), LACEPEDE (1798), Hist, Nat, des Poiss., i, 403.
Polyodon folium, KIRTLAND, Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist., iv, 21.—GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes, Brit.
Mus, viii, 346.-Jordan (1878), Man, Wert. E. U. S. 2d. Ed., 344 (and of authors
generally).
Spatularia reticwlata, SIIAW (1844), Gen. Zool, v, 362 (and of some authors).
Platiro8tra edentula, LESUIEUR (1818), Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., i, 223 (based on old
and toothless specimens).-KIRTLAND, Bost, Journ, Nab. Hist., v. 22.
Planirostra spatula, Owen, Osteo). Catal., i, 83,
Body moderately elongated, the disproportionately large head and long snout form-
ing nearly half of the total length, the prolonged opercular flap extending about to the
ventrals; spatula largely developed, nearly as broad as the head, forming more than
one-third of the total length in the young, and about one-fourth in the adult ; fins
large, all more or less falcate; color grayish, pale below. D., 55 to 60. A., 56. Length,
2 to 6 feet.
Habitat, entire Mississippi Valley. Abundant in the larger streams, Beldom enter-
ing Small ones.
Diagnosis.—This species is known at once by the broad leaf-like pro-
jection of the snout. It bears little resemblance to any other American
fish.
Habits.-This large fish abounds in the lower parts of the Ohio River
and its principal tributaries, whence it is often taken in nets, but its
tough shark-like flesh is but little esteemed. -
The character of its food has been first made known by Prof. S. A.
Forbes (Bull, Ills. Lab. Nat. Hist., 2., 82), who remarks:
“This is by far the most remarkable fish in our rivers, and is not less remarkable in its
food than in its structure. By the fishermen it is supposed to live on the mud and Slime of
the river bottom. The alimentary canal of each of the five specimens examined was found
full of a brownish, half fluid mass, which, when placed under the microscope, was seen to
be made up chiefly (in one case almost wholly) of countless myriads of entomostraca, of
nearly every form known to occur in our waters, including many that have been seen as
yet nowhere but in the stomachs of these fishes. Mixed with these, in varying proportion,
were several undetermined and probably undescribed species of water worms (Annulata),
most of them belonging to the family Naididas. Sometimes as much as a fourth of the
mass was composed of vegetable matter—largely algae, but included fragments of all the
aquatic plants known by me to occur in the waters of the Illinois, except Ceratophyllum.
Occasional leeches (Clepšine), water bettles (Coptotomw8 interrogatus, etc.), a few larvae of
Diptera and Ephemera and water bugs (Coriza) were noticed. Among the crustacea
Several specimens of the remarkable Leptodora hyalina ware found.
“I have not had time for anything more than a general examination of the mass of
matter presented—sometimes more than a pint from a single fish—and canno!, there-
fore, give a list of the species. Curiously, very little mud was mixed with the food,
PADDLE FISH ; SPOON-BILL. 765
“The remarkably developed gill-rakers of this species thus receive their explanation.
These are very numerous and fine, arranged in a double row on each gill arch, and are
twice as Jong as the filaments of the gill. By their interlacing they form a strainer
scarcely less effective than the fringes of the baleen plates of the whale, and probably
allow the passage of the fine silt of the river bed when this is thrown into the water by
the shovel of the fish, but arrest everything as large as a Cyclopé. The fish is said by the
fishermen to plow up the mud in feeding with its spatula-like Bnouš, and then to swim
slowly backward through the muddy water. Its moutb, it may be noticed, is very large,
even for a fish.
“It is possible that this wholesale destruction of entomosfraca may affect the food
Supply of other and more valuable fishes, especially of the very young of the predaceous
species. We cannot yet say, however, where the 8tress of the struggle comes in the life
of any given species, and consequently are unable either to relieve or heighten it at
will, or to perceive the full effect of the forces already at work. Fuller knowledge
must precede any but the most cautious and conservative recommendations.”
Synonymy.—This species was first described by Lacepede, under the
generic name of Polyodon, in reference to the very numerous teeth in the
jaws and palate, which character was considered to distinguish the genus
from its relatives, the Sharks and the Sturgeons. Lacepede's description,
which is a very minute and excellent one, was made up from numerous
young Specimens preserved in the French Museum under the name of
“Chien de mer feuille”. The original locality of these specimens was
unknown, as Lacepide remarks, “Nous ne pouvons cependant rien con-
jecturer relativement à ses habitudes; sur lesquelles nous navons regu
aucun renseignement, non plus que Sur les mers qu’elle habite; tout ce
que mous pouvons dire, c'est que, par une Suite de la conformation de ce
Polyodon, elles doivent, pour aimsi dire tenir le milieu entre celles des
Squales et celles des acipensires.”
A few years later, this fish was again described under the name Spatu.
laria reliculata Shaw, and this name has been, of late years, occasionally
employed by writers in spite of the unquestionable priority of Polyodon
folium, on the ground of the inappropriateness of the latter name, the
adult fish being often without teeth. There is, however, no good ground
for setting aside Polyodon, even if Spatularia seems a more pleasing name.
The fish does have many teeth, even if they ultimately fall out, and
Polyodom it must remain.
Still later, old specimens received the name of Platirostra edentula, they
being considered to form a genus distinct from Polyodon, on account of
their toothlessness, and of certain alleged differences in form. The
identity of Platirostra with Polyodon remained undiscovered until com-
paratively recently.
Lastly comes the name Panirostra spatula, apparently given with full
766 IFISHES-ACIPENSERIDAE.
knowledge of the priority of other names, and therefore worthy of notice
only for censure of its author.
ORDER. 3. CHONDROSTEI. THE CHONDROSTEANS.
Body elongated, covered with a series of bony plates; tail heterocercal; skeleton cartila-
ginous ; mouth small, inferior, without teeth ; no branchiostegal rays; ventral fin with
an entire series of basilar segments; no subopercle or preopercle; interopercle and
maxillary present ; branchihyals osseous. This group contains but the single family,
Sturgeons or Acipengerida. (Chondros, cartilage ; osteon, bone).
FAMILY III. A CIPEN SERIDAE. THE STURGEONs.
Body elongated, Bubterete, protected by five rows of large bony shields, the lower row
sometimes deciduous in old specimens; the shields are usually provided each with a
hooked spine ; between these rows are usually smaller rough plates; snout produced;
mouth entirely inferior, much behind the tip of the snout, protractile, toothless; four
barbels in a transverse row in front of the mouth ; vertical fins with fulcra; dorsal fin
placed far back, nearly opposite the anal ; Ventral fins present, posterior; pectoral fins
large, inserted low ; air bladder large, not cellular ; stomach not coecal, with pyloric
appendages; intestine with a spiral valve. Young Sturgeons have the scales rougher
and the snout longer and more pointed than it is in the adult. s
Large fishes, inhabiting the fresh waters of northern regions, some of them marine and
entering the rivers. Genera two, species twenty-five or more. Most of them are valued
as food.
ANALYSIS OF GENERA OF ACIPENSERIDAE.
*Rows of bony bucklers distinct from head to tail; spiracles present ; snout sub-coni-
cal, rather narrow. º º e º o e * º ACIPENSER. 4.
**Rows of bony bucklers all confluent on the tail; no spiracles; snout rather broad,
triangular, depresged. . . . . . . SCAPHIRRHYNCHOPS. 5.
GENUS 4. ACIPENSER. Linnaeus.
Acipenser, LINNACUS, Syst, Naturae, 1858.
Type, Acipember 8turio, L., the Common Sea Sturgeon.
Etymology, Latin Acipember, a Sturgeon, said to be from acw8, sharp, and pinna ſin.
Sturgeons with the tail subterete, the rows of bony bucklers not being confluent on
it ; Spiracles present ; Snout Sub-conic, narrowed ; tail not ending in a filament. This
genus as here understood comprehends all but one of the known species of Sturgeons.
Some of them are marine ; others are confined to the fresh water lakes and rivers.
4. ACIPENSER RUBICUNDUS LeSueur.
Lake Stiturgeona ; Rock Sturgeoma.
Acipenger rubicundus, LFSUEUR (1818), Trans. Am. Philos. Soc., i, 388–GUNTHER, Cat.
Fishes, Brit. Mus., vii, 338.-KIRTLAND, Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist, iv, 303,-MILNER,
Rept, Comm. Fisheries, 1872–73, 67, and of authors generally.
LAKE STURGEON. 767
Acipender rupertianus, RICHARDSON (1836), Fauna Bor.-Am, Fishes, 311, and of several
authors.
Acipenger liopeltis, GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes Brit. Mus., viii, 341.
Description.—Snout rather short and bluntish, forming less than half the length of the
head in the adult, longer and more pointed in the young ; barbels long, nearer the Snout
than the eye; bony shields moderate, rather smooth ; shields with the pointed keel
nearly central, and directed rather upwards than backwards; skin with numerous
prickles and stellate ossifications; about 13 shields in the dorsal row (before dorsal fin);
34 in the Jateral series and 9 in the ventral ; the plates becoming smoother with age,
and in very old specimens, most of them finally falling off; anal fin mostly below the
dorsal ; caudal fulcra, not remarkably developed. Length, two to six feet.
Habitat, Great Lakes, Upper Mississippi and northward, very abundant in the Upper
Lakes, ascending the tributary rivers in large numbers to Spawn in the Spring.
Diagnosis.-The Lake Sturgeon is distinguished from the Sea Sturgeon
(A. sturio, L.), by its smaller size and the greater number of plates in the
lateral series (about 34 instead of 28). From the Ohio River Sturgeon,
it may, perhaps, be known by the central position of the spinous keel to
the plates. This character (first noticed by Professor Milner), may be
simply due to the greater age of the specimens examined, as the plates
certainly grow smoother, and the spines more central with increased age.
Habits—In Ohio this species occurs only in Lake Erie and its larger
tributaries, the Sturgeon of the Ohio River being considered, whether cor-
rectly or not, as belonging to another species. The following account is
abridged from the notes of Prof. Milner (Rept. Commr. Fish and Fisheries,
1872–73):
“This Sturgeon attains the largest size of any fish of the lakes. They are taken only
within comparatively shoal waters, and in some of the bays and among the islands they
are very abundant. The largest specimen it has been my fortune to see did not quite at-
tain the length of six feet, though there are traditions in localities on the lakes of nine
foot Sturgeons. The average of the mature ones taken is less than five feet. In numbers
they will not compare favorably with any of the staple food-fishes. At Sandusky, Ohio,
where they are more numerous than in any other locality, except, perhaps, Green Bay,
Wis., there were about 14,000 mature Sturgeons handled, weighing about 700,000 pounds,
obtained from about 85 pound-nets.”
Their food consists almost entirely of the shell-fish of the lakes, prin-
cipally Gasteropods, the thinner-shelled kinds of the genera. Physa, Plamor-
bis, and Valvata being found broken in the stomachs, while Limnaea and
Melantho remain whole. Eggs of fishes are sometimes found, but it is
probable that they are not extensively spawn eaters.
The spawning season in Lake Erie occurs in June. They then ascend
the various tributary rivers as far as the depth of the water and the
various obstructions will permit, in large Schools, and may often be seen
*
768 FISHES-ACIPEN SERIDAE.
in the evening, leaping from the surface, throwing their bulky forms en-
tirely out of the water.
In regard to the game qualities of this species, Mr. Hallock says
(Sportsman's Gazetteer, 4th Ed., 339):
“The long projecting sucker mouth situated almost under the center of the head
will sometimes suck in from the bottom the anglers baited hook, in which case, one
may as well try to Snub an old log. It is possible, however, to coax him to move occa-
sionly, and then you may, or you may not, succeed in bringing him to gaff.” “ ” “As
a game fish, the sturgeon is not a success.”
5. ACIPENSER MACULOSUS LeSueur.
Ohio River Sturgeom.
Acipenger maculosus, LESUEUR, Trans. Am. Philos. Soc., New Series, i, 393.−GUNTHER,
Cat. Fishes, Brit. Mus., viii, 339, and of authors generally.
Description.—This Bpecies is very similar to the preceding, and all the specimens
which the writer has had the opportunity to examine, seem to him to be the
young of the preceding. The snout is more pointed than in the Lake Sturgeon; the
skin rougher; the scutes are more strongly keeled and their spinous points are placed
much behind the middle of the shield, and are directed backward more than is the case
in the preceding. As observed long ago by Dr. Kirtland (Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist., iv,
1842, p. 304.), “These characters are not, however, permanent, and therefore are not to
be relied upon. If the maculogue of LeSueur, be not the young of the others, their young
have never been discovered.”
Habitat, Ohio and Mississippi Rivers.
Habits.-The habits of this fish are essentially similar to those of the
preceding, and a more careful comparison of the two must be made before
any important specific differences (if such exist) be pointed out.
GENUS 5. SCAPHIRREIYNCHOPS. Gill.
Scaphirhynchus, HECKEL, Ann. Wiener Museum, i, 1835, 71 (preoccupied in Ornithology).
Scaphirhynchope, GILL, MSS., in Jordan and Copeland's Check List Fishes N. A., Bull
Buff. Soc. Nat. Hist., 1876, 161.
Type, Acipember platyrhynchus, RAFINESQUE.
Etymology, 8kaphé, Spade ; rugghos, Snout ; op8, appearance.
Sturgeons with the tail broad, depressed, wider than deep, entirely covered by the
confluent series of bony plates; no spiracles; snout depressed, triangular, having almost
the form of a spade ; tail ending in a long filament (at least in the young); anal fin
inserted behind the dorsal. A single species.
6. ScAPHIRRHYNCHOPs PLATYRHYNCHUS (Rafinesque) Gill.
Sinovel-mesed Staurgeon.
Aoipsensor platorynchus, RAFINESQUE (1820), Ichthyologia Ohiensis, 79–KNRTLAND, Bost.
Journ. Nat. Hist., v. 25.
SHOWEL-NOSED STURGEON. '.69
Scaphirhynchus platyrhynchua, GIRARD (1858), U. S. Pac. R. R. Surv., x, 357, and of most
authors,
Scaphirhynchops platyrhynchus, Jordon (1878), Man. Vert. E. U. S., 2d. Ed , 346.
Acipenser cataphraotus, GRAY (1834), Proc. Zool. Soc. London, 122.
Scaphirhynchus cataphractus, GUNTHER (1870), Cat. Fishes, Brit. Mus., viii, 345.
Scaphirhynchus raſinesquii, HECKEL (1835), Ann. Wiener Museum, i, 71.
Description —Body rather long and slender, tapering anteriorly into a depressed spade-
shaped snout, and posteriorly into the long and slender tail, which is much depressed,
considerably broader than deep, and from the dorsal ſin backward completely encased
in a coat of mail formed by the coalescence of the lateral series of scutes ; shields all
somewhat obcordate, the spine quite posterior and nearly horizontal; the edges of the
Scutes rough ; lateral scutes higher than long ; anal fin almost entirely behind dorsal ;
dorsal rays about 25 in number, dorsal series of 8hields of about 16 scutes ; lateral series
43; ventral series 11 ; color plain brownish. Length, one to eight feet (Kirtland).
Habitat, Ohio Valley to the Upper Missouri, and southwest to the Rio Grande ; not
recorded from the Great Lakes.
Diagnosis.-This species may be known at once from the other Stur-
geons by the flattened tail, the surface of which is entirely bony.
Habits.--This fish is common in the Ohio River, and some of its larger
tributaries. It is taken in Seines in considerable numbers, and is used
for food, though it does not seem to be highly valued. Nothing dis-
tinctive is on record of its habits which are probably essentially like
those of the Lake Sturgeon.
ORDER 4. GINGLYMODI. THE RHOMBOGANOIDS.
Parietals in contact ; pterotic simple; symplectic present ; mandible with coronoid,
opercular, angrilar articular, and dentary bones; basis of cranium simple ; third
Superior pharyngeal bone small, lying on foul th; upper basihyal wanting ; maxillary
subdivided ; a praecoracoid arch ; Vetrebrae opisthocoelian ; pectoral fins with meso-
pterygium and five other basal elements; skeleton generally ossified ; precoracoid carti-
laginous; one axial hyoid, and three basal branchihyals; tail heterocercal; dorsal
short, inserted far back; Yentrals abdominal ; pectorals inserted low ; scales rhombic,
enamelled ; air bladder cellular, partly functional. (Gigglumos, hinge; odous, tooth.)
This order includes but one family, the Gar Pikes or Lepidosteida,
F A M I L Y IV. L. E PID O S T E I D AE. T H E G A R P I K E S.
Body elongate, covered with hard diamond-shaped enamelled scales, arranged in re-
gular oblique series; head more or less elongate, the jaws depressed and produced, the
upper jaws projecting somewhat beyond the lower; mouth with the cleft rather narrow
but very long; most of the margin of upper jaw formed by premaxillaries; each jaw
with one or two series of very strong teeth, set Vertically, between these are numerous
Smaller teeth ; middle portion of each jaw with bands of fine rasp-like teeth, which
49
770 IFISHES-LEPIDOSTEIDAE.
grow larger backward; top and sides of head bony and rugose; opercula well-developed;
gill openings rather large ; branchiostegals three ; fins without spines, but all preceded
by fulcra ; dorsal short and rather high, rather behind the anal fin and similar to it;
ventral fins large, abdominal; pectorals inserted very low ; air bladder large, cellular,
having somewhat the functions of a lung, communicating with the pharynx by a sort of
glottis; stomach not coecal, but with numerous pyloric appendages; intestine with a
rudimentary spiral valve.
Fishes of large size, inhabiting the fresh waters of North America, from the Great
Lakes to Central America and Cuba, the last relics of the Ancient Ganoid Fauna, “ left
to show us what the ancient Fishes were like, as Saturn’s rings to show us how the
world was made.” There are but two genera now extant, and the number of species
is small, perhaps not exceeding three. Numerous fossil genera and species are known.
ANALYSIS OF THE GENERA of LEPIDOSTEIDAE,
*Large teeth of the jaws in a single series, º e & tº LEPIDOSTEU.S. 6.
* "Large teeth of the jaws in two series; snout broad, depressed, about as long as the
rest of the head, te tº e tº º ë § º e LITHOLEPIS, 7.
Genus 6. LEPIDOSTEUs. Lacepede.
Lepisostews, LACEPEDE (1803), Hist. Nat, des Poiss, v, 331.
Lepidogleus, AGASSIZ, Poissons Fossiles, ii, 2.
Cylindrosteus, RAFINESQUE (1820), Ich. Ohiensis, 72.
Type, Lepisogteu8 gavialis, Lac, ; E803: o38eu8, L,
Etymology, lepig, scales; 08teon, bone.
Sub-genus Lepido8teu8. Snout very slender, much longer than the rest of the head.
LEPIDOSTEUs OSSEUS (Linnaeus) Agassiz.
Long-nosed Gar Pike ; Bill Fisła.
E803, osseus, LINNAEUS, Syst. Nat, i, 516 —BLOCEI and SCHNIEIDER, 392,-MITCHILL, Trans.
Lit. and Phil. Soc., i, 44; Am, Mo. hly Mag., ii, 321,–SHAW, Gen, Zool, V, 115.
Lepidosteus onseus, AGASSIZ, Poissons Fossiles, ii, 2–STORER, Synopsis, 465–CoPE, Proc.
Phil, Acad. Sci., 1864, 87.—PUTNAM, Bull, M. C. Z., 1863, 2–GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes,
viii, 330–DUMERIL, Hist. Nat. des Poissons, 1870,-JoRDAN, Ind. Geol. Surv., 1874,
226; Bull. Buff. Soc. Nat. Hist, 1876, 96; Man. Vert., 1876, 308, and of many
Writers.
? Esox viridis, GMELIN, L I., 1789, (after Catesby).
Lepisosteus gavialis, LACEPEDE, v, 333, 1803–GUICHENOT, Mag, Zool., 1839, Poissons, 5.
Sarchirus vittatus, RAPINESQUE, Ich. Oh, 1820, 79.
Lepidosteus oxyurw8, RAFINESQUE, Ich Oh, 73.-KIRTLAND, Rept, Zool, Ohio., 170, 186;
Bost. Journ, Nat. Hist, iv, 16–THOMPSON, Hist, Vt., 145, 1842.
Lepidosteu8 oayurus, AGASSIZ, Amer. Journ, Sci, and Arts., 1854, 360–PUTNAM, Bull. M.
C, Z., 1863, 2–Cope, Proc. Phil. Acad. Sci., 1865, 87.
Lepisosteus longirostria, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh, 1820, 70 (based on the species described
by Mitchell “under the obsolete name of E803, o&seu8)
Lepidosteus longirostria, RICHARDSON, F, B. A., iii, 237.-DEKAY, Fishes N. Y., 274.
LONG-NOSED GAR PIKE. 771
Lepidosteus huronensia, RICHARDSON, l.c.—AGASSIZ, l. c.—CoPE, I, c., 86–DUMERIL, l. c.
Lepidosteus rostratw8, RICHARDSON, 1, c., 238.
Zepidosteus gracilis, AGAssiz, Poissons Fossiles, ii, 3–RICHARDSON, l, c., 240.
Zepidogteu8 gemiradiatus, AGASSIZ, l.c., ii, 2.—MULLER, Abhandl. Akad. Wiss. Berl., 1814,
pl. 2.
Lepidosteus lineatus, THOMPSON, Hist. Vermont, 145, 1842.
Lepidosteus bison, DEKAY, Fishes, N. Y., 271.
Iepidosteus leptorhynchus, GIRARD, Pac, R. R. Surv., x, 351, 1859,
Depidosteus crassus, COPE, Proc. Phil. Acad. Sci., 1865, 86,
Lepido8teus otarius, COPE, l.c. -
Lepidosteus louisianensis AUGUST DUMERIL, Hist, Naturelle des Poissons, 1-70,
Lepidosteu8 harlani, DUMERIL, op. cit.
Lepidogteu8 &mithii, DUMERIL, op. cit.
Depidosteu8 ayregii, DUMERIL, op. cit.
Depidosteu8 clintonii, DUMERIL, op. cit.
Lepidosteus piquotianus, DUMERIL, op. cit.
Lepidostew8 elisabeth, DUMERIL, op. cit.
Depido8teu8 copii, DUMERIL, op. cit.
Lepidosteus lamarii, DUMERIL, op. cit."
Lepidosteu8 troostii, DUMERIL, op. cit.
Lepidosteus lesueurii, DUMERIL, op. cit,
Lepidosteus treoulii, DUMERIL, op. cit,
Depidosteus milbertii, DUMERIL, op. cit,
Iepidostew8 horatii, DUMERIL, op. cit.
Lepidostew8 thompsoni, DUMERIL, op. cit.
Description.—Body elongate, subterete; head very long, forming about one third the
length, its depth about one twelfth ; snout more than twice the length of the rest
of the head; ventral fins about midway between pectorals and anal; olivaceous,
white below; sides with round black spots, which are more distinct posteriorly; in old
fishes these are faint, but in the young they are very conspicuous, and in very young
individuals they are confluent, forming a black lateral band; all the fins except the
pectorals with similar round black spots. D. 7, A, 9, lat. 1, 65. Length, two to five feet.
Habitat, New York to Missouri river, south to Florida and the Rio Grande, abundant
in all large bodies of water, but not ascending small streams.
Diagnosis.--From the other Bony Gars this species may be known
at once by the great length and slenderness of the snout, the distance
from the eye to the tip of the snout being more than twice the length of
the rest of the head.
Habits.-The Gar Pike is abundant in the state of Ohio, inhabiting
the Lake and the Ohio River, and ascending all the larger tributaries of
both. It frequents lakes and quiet places in the rivers and is a fish of
usually quiet or somnolent habits. Dr. Kirtland remarks, “It may be
seen, apparently sleeping, on the surface, and gently carried around on
an eddy, for an hour at a time.” Notwithstanding the prevalent idea of
its great voracity, it rarely takes the hook, and I have never seen it
772 FISHES-I.EPIDOSTEIDAE.
attempt to take food, although I have frequently seen them basking in a
school of minnows, and have kept them in aquaria, l have never found
any fish in the stomach of the Gar, and out of eight examined by Prof.
Forbes, the stomachs of all but one were empty, that one containing a
single craw-fish.
The fishermen generally have a great dislike for this fish, destroying
it without mercy when taken. Its flesh is said to be rank and tough,
and it is seldom or never used for food. Even “the dogs will not eat it”,
say some writers, but the average dog prefers a beef-bone even to Trout
or Grayling.
This fish is interesting to the comparative anatomist from its combin-
ing certain reptilian characters with the ordinary traits of fishes, and to
the geologist, as it is intimately connected with certain Ganoid groups now
extinct, and the study of its embryology, which no one has yet been able
fully to trace, is expected to throw much light on the relations of the
Ganoids to ordinary fishes and to Reptiles and Batrachia. The youngest
specimens now known have the caudal fin developed as a second dorsal
and anal, separated by a slender tail.
Since the above was written, Prof. Alexander Agassiz has read a paper
before the National Academy of Sciences, detailing his recent studies of
the Embryology of this species. The following abstract of this paper is
from Science News, vol. i., pp. 19–20.
“Some knowledge of the embryology of the Gar Pike (Lepido8teus) has long been
needed, but no one has been able to raise the young, until Mr. Agassiz succeeded in doing
so last summer. This fish is one of the few living survivors of those vast extinct orders
of geologic ages; and it is thus especially important to compare its embryology with
that of modern fishes, in the hope of revealing more fully the structure of the fossil
races, and of throwing light upon modern questions of evolution. The Limulus, which
holds a similar position among the crabs, has had its embryology worked out by Pack-
ard, while Morse has studied the development of the brachiopods—an almost extinct
group of mollusks dating back to the early rocks.
The Gar Pike comes up the St. Lawrence in May, laying its eggs about the 20th, and
then disappears. The eggs are large, Wiscous, 8tick fast in an isolated way to whatever
they fall upon, and look much like those of toads, having a large outer membrane and
a small yolk. Mr. Agassiz sent his assistant, Mr. S. W. Garman, to obtain these eggs,
and also arranged to have a series collected at all Stages of growth and preserved. Art-
ficial fecundation failed, but Mr. Garman brought to Cambridge about 500 naturally-laid
eggs, of which all but 30 perished through mold. The young began to hatch in six days
and Mr. Agassiz began his examinations, the misfortune to the eggs precluding any
study previous to the birth of the young. Out of the 30 young hatched, 27 lived until
July 15th, when they were as old as those observed by Prof. Wilder. Mr. Agassiz found
that these little Gar Pikes were not so different from the young of the bony fishes as he
had expected ; the interesting development of the lung was not made out, but judging
by external characters the difference is small. Connection with the Sharks appears in
SHORT-NO SIED GA. R. PIKE. 773
the similarity of the branchial arches and by the presence of the lateral fold in which
the pectoral fins are formed ; the way the tail is developed is very like that of the bony
fishes. Among the ganoids, it appears, as well as in ordinary fishes, the dorsal cord is
straight at first, then assumes a slight upward curve at the extremity, when finally
there appears the beginning of a lobo underneath pointing toward the complete hetero
cercal tail, All this is as in the bony fishes; but this is the perinament c indition of
the Gar Pike, while in the bony fishes the extremity of the dorsal cord becomes extinct.
The mode of development of the pectoral lobe (very large in this species) furnishes
another resemblance. In the brain, and in the mode of formation of the gills, a likeness
to the sharks is noticeable. The young Gar Pikes move very slowly, and seem to float
quietly save an exceedingly rapid vibration of the pectorals and the tip of the tail.
They do not swim about much, but attach themselves to fixed objects by an extraordinary
horse-shoe-shaped ring of sucker-appendages about the mouth. These appendages
remain even after the snout has become so extended that the ultimate shape is hinted
at ; and furthermore it is a remnant of this feature which forms the fleshy bulb at the
end of the snout in the adult. The summing up of Mr. Agassiz's investigations thus
far is, that the young Gar Pike has many characteristics in common with the sharks and
skates, but is not so different from the bony fishes as has been supposed "
None of our species, unless it be the Eel has been made the subject of so
many useless nominal species as the Gar Pike. This work began with an
unfortunate remark of Professor Agassiz (Am. Journ. Sci. and Arts, 1854,
360), “I have now in my own collection, not less than twenty-two well
characterized species of this genus.” For the naming of these twenty-
two and about as many more we are indebted to Professor August Dumeril,
yet only three, or at most five or six of them all are really distinguishable.
Sub genus Cylindrosteu8. Rafinesque. Snout moderate, about as long as the rest of
the head.
8. LEPIDOSTEUS PLATYSTOMUs Rafinesque.
Short-anosed Gar Piłe.
IZepisosteus platostomus, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh, 72.-KIRTLAND, Rept. Zool. Ohio, and Bost.
Journ, Nat, Hist, iv, 20.
Lepidosteus platystomus, AGASSIZ, Amer. Journ. Sci, and Arts, 1854, 360,-GUNTIIER, Cat.
Fishes, vii,329,-STORER, Synopsis, 466,-WILDER, Proc. Am. Ass. Adv. Sci., 1875,
B. 151, and of anatomists generally.
Cylindrostew8 platystomus, AUGUST DUMERIL, Hist, Nat, des Poissons, 1870.-Jordan, Ind.
Geol. Surv., 1874, 227; Bull, Buff. Soc., 1876, 96; Man, Vert., 308.
Lepisostew8 albus, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh, 73.
Cylindrostew8 albw8, Cope, Proc. Phil. Acad. Sci., 1865, 86.
Lepidostew8 platyrhynchus, DEKAY, Fishes N. Y., 273, 1842.
Cylindro8tew8 platyrhynchw8, DUMERIL, op. cit.
Lepidosteus grayi, AGASSIZ, Poissons Fossiles, ii, 2. 3.
Lepidostew8 (Cylindrostew8) latirostris, GIRARD, Pac. R. R. Rept., x, 353.
Cylindrosteus latiro8tris, COPE, l. c.
Lepidosteus (Cylindrosteus) oculatus, WINCHELL, Proc. Phil. Acad. Sci., 1864, 183.
774 IFISHES--—LEPIDOSTEID AE.
Cylindro8teu8 oculatwa, COPE, l.c.
Cylindrosteus productus, COPE, Proc, Phil. Acad., 1865, 86.—DUMERIY, op. cit.
Cylindrosteu8 aga&sizii, DUMERIL, op. cit.
Cylindrostew8 rafine8quei, DUMERIL, op. cit.
Cylindro8teu8 bartonii, DUMERIL, op. cit,
Cylindrosteu8 castelmandii, DUMERIL, op. cit,
Cylindrostew8 zadockii, DUMERIL, op. cit.
Description.-The Short-nosed Gar is very similar to the preceding species in size, color,
dentition, etc. The body is, however, rather deeper, and the snout is notably shorter,
being only about as long as the rest of the head. Different specimens vary considerably
in the length of the snout, and some specimens are very pale, while others are dusky or
more or less distinctly spotted. Length, 2 to 5 feet.
Habitat, Great Lakes to Florida, and Texas, abundant is most large bodies of water,
most common south Ward.
Diagnosis.--From the Alligator Gar, this species may be known by the
presence of a single row of teeth on each side of the jaw. From the
Long-nosed Gar, the shortness of its Snout will distinguish it.
Hvbits.--This species is not common anywhere in Ohio, and it is more
often found in the Ohio River than in ſake Erie. In habits, food, etc.,
the two fishes are so far as known precisely identical.
This species like the preceding, has been frequently made the type of
new species, but being less common in collections, it has suffered some-
what less.
GENUS 7. LITHOLEPIS, Rafinesque.
Litholepis, RAFINESQUE, American Monthly Magazine, iii, 1818, 447.
A traotosteu8, RAFINESQUE, Ichthyologia Ohiensis, 1820, 72.
Type, Litholepis adamantinus, RAFINESQUE, 1818; Lepido8teu8 feroa, RAFINESQUE, 1820,
= Lepigostew8 8patula, LACEPEDE, 1803.
Etymology, lithos, Stone ; lepig, Scale.
Gar Pikes with jaws comparatively short and broad, the snout rather wide, about as
long as the rest of the head, and the large teeth of the jaws in two rows on each side.
Species reaching a very large size. The name Atractosteu8 has been most frequently em-
ployed for this genus, but as will be seen by the above synonymy, the preferable name
Litholepis is two years the older. But one species is known from the United States, but
two others, perhaps identical with ours, are described from tropical America.
9. LITHOLEPIS SPATULA (Lac.) Jordan.
Alligator Gar; Great Gar; Manjuari.
? Esox tristocchus, BLOCH and SCHNEIDER, Syst. Ichthyol., 395, 1801 (Cuba).
% Atracto&teu8 tristocchus, PoEY, Synopsis Piscium Cubensium, 1868, 445 (from Cuba; pos-
sibly distinct from ours),
Lepisostew8 spatula, LACEPEDE, Hist. Nat, des Poiss., V, 333, 1803, and of some authors.
Araoto8tew8 8patula, DUMERIL, Hist. Nat. des Poiss, 1870.
ALLIGATOR GAR. 775
Litholepis spatula, Jordan, Man, Vert., 2d Ed., 342, 1878.
Litholepis adamantinus, RAFINESQUE, Am. Monthly Mag., 1818, iii, 447; Ich. Oh, 76-
Jordan, Bull. Buff. Soc. Nat. Hist., 1876, 96; Man. Vert, 1st Ed.
Lepisogtew8 (Atractosteu8) ferox, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh., 1820, 75–GIRARD, Pac. R. R. Surv.,
x, 353, 1858.
Lepisogteus ferox, KIRTLAND, Rept. Zool, Ohio, 1838, 170, 196; Bost. Journ. Nat. His' , iv,
18.-STORER, Synopsis, 466.
Atractosteus feroz, DUMERIL, Hist. Nat. des Poissons, 1870,-JORDAN, Ind. Geol. Surv.,
1874, 227.
Lepidostew8 (Atractostew8) berlandieri, GIRARD, Pac. R. R. Surv., x, 353.
Atractoglew8 lucius, DUMERIL, Op. cit.
Lepidogteus viridis, GUNTHER, Cat. Fish. Brit. Mus., viii, 329, 1870 (probably not E803.
viridis, Gmelin).
Description —Body comparatively stout, subterete; head moderate, forming more than
one-fourth the length ; snout broad, depressed, its length being about half of the total
length of the head; general color olivaceous, the young being more or less spotted,
especially posteriorly and on the fins. D., 8; A, 8; lat, l., 60. Length, 8 feet or more
when adult.
Habitat, warmer parts of America. Central America, Mexico, Cuba, Gulf States
ascending the Mississippi and its tributaries to Kansas, Illinois and Ohio.
Diagnosis.-The great Alligator Gar may be known from the other
species by its broad, depressed snout, and by the presence of two series of
large teeth on each side of the jaw.
Habits.-The habits of this species are doubtless similar to those of
the other Gars, except that its greater size may enable it to feed upon
larger animals. The fish is essentially a tropical species and is probably
now very rarely seen in the Ohio River. I have never seen a specimen
from the Ohio River. Dr. Kirtland knew of but two or three having
been taken in its waters, and Rafinesque apparently saw but the jaws
of one. Specimens from the Lower Mississippi, Texas and Florida are
however, not rare in collections.
This fish, with its coat of mail and long, sharp teeth is, doubtless, a
formidable one, but its ferocity has probably been somewhat exaggerated
by newspaper correspondents and other irresponsible writers.
Rafinesque's remarks on his “Litholepis adamantinus” are worth quot-
1ng :
“This may be reckoned the wonder of the Ohio. It is only found as far up as the
falls, and probably lives also in the Mississippi. I have seen it, but only at a distance,
and have been shown some of its singular scales. Wonderful stories are related con-
cerning this fish, but I have principally relied upon the description and figure given me
by Mr. Audubon. Its length is from 4 to 10 feet. One was caught which weighed 400
pounds. It lies sometimes asleep or motionless on the surface of the water, and may be
mistaken for a log or a snag. It is impossible to take it in any other way than with the
Seine or a very strong h9ok, the prongs of the gig cannot pierce the scales which are as
776 FISHES-AM IIIDAE.
hard as ſlint, and even proof against lead balls Its flesh is not good to eat. It is a
Voraciſ us fish. Its vulgar names are Diamond Fish (owing to its scales being cut like
diamonds), Devil Fish, Jack Fish, Garjack, etc. The snout is large, convex above, very
obtuse ; the eyes Small and black; nostrils small, round before the eyes; mouth beneath
the eyes, transversal with large angular teeth. Pectoral and abdominal fins trapezoidal.
Dorsal and anal fins equal, longitudinal, with many rays. The whole body covered
with large Stone scales, lying in oblique rows ; they are conical, pentagonal and pen-
taedral, with equal sides from half an inch to one inch in diameter, brown at first but
becoming of the color of turtle shell when dry. They strike fire with steel ! and are
ball proof!”—(Rafinesque, Ich. Ohiensis, 91.)
If our species is identical with the Cuban Manjuari, which is not im-
probable, the older name, L. trista-chw8 (Bloch), must be substituted for
L. 8patula,
ORDER. W. HALECOMORPHI. THE CYCLOGANOIDS.
Parietals in contact ; pterotic simple ; basis of cranium, and anterior vertebrae simple;
mandible with opercular and coronoid ; maxillary not segmented, forming part of the
border of the mouth ; third Superior pharyngeal lying on the enlarged fourth ; upper
basihyal wanting ; vertebrae amphicoelian ; pectoral fins with mesopterygium and eight
other elements, body covered with thick, cycloid scales; tail heterocercal; dorsal fin
long; ventral fins abdominal; skeleton mostly ossified : precoracoid cartilaginous; one
axial and four basal branchihy als; air bladder cellular, with partial functions of a lung,
This order contains but a single family, the Amiida, with no near relatives among
recent fishes. (Latin, halecomorphow8, baving the form of a shad.)
FAMILY V. A MIIDAE. THE GRIN D LEs.
Body oblong, moderately compressed posteriorly; the head broad, narrowed forwards,
its upper surface bony and rugose; membrane bones of head extremely hard ; a broad
radiated bony plate between the branches of the lower jaw ; maxillary broad, with a
supplemental bone, forming part of the margin of the upper jaw ; jews with strong teeth ;
similar teeth on vomer, palatine and pterygoid bones ; eye rather Small ; anterior nos-
trils each with a barbel ; branchiostegals about nine ; gill openings very wide, not
separated by an isthmug ; gill rakers short , body covered with cycloid scales; lateral
line present ; dorsal fin occupying most of the back, its rays rather low, of nearly uniform
length ; anal fin short ; ventral fins small; pectoral fins inserted rather high ; fins all
without fulcra; tail heterocercal; air bladder large, cellular, lung-like, communicating
by a glottis with the osophagus; stomach large; coloration dark, the male fishes with
an ocellated black spot on the tail. A single species is known, among recent fishes.
GENUS 8. AMIA. Linnaeus,
Amia, LINNAEUS, Systema Naturae, Ed. xii, 1766.
Type, Amia calva, LINNAEUS.
Etymology, amia, an ancient name of the marine Bonito (Sarda pelamys) transferred
by Linnaeus to this very different fish.
The characters of the genus are included above, with those of the family,
GRIN DLE FISH. 777
10. AMIA CAL VA Linnaeus.
Grindie Fish ; Grindle ; John A. Grim die; Bow-fin ; Dog-fish ;
Mud-ſish ; Brindle-ſish ; Poisson de Marais; Lawyer.
Amia calva, LINNACUS (1758), Syst. Naturae.—KIRTLAND, Bost. Journ, Nat. Hist., iii, 479.
GUNTHER, Cat. Fish. Brit. Mus., viii, 325.—JORDAN, Man Vert. E U. S., 2d Ed., 340.
Amia ocellicauda, RICHARDSON (1836), Fauna Bor.-Am., iii, 246, 1836 (adult female).
Amia occidentalia, DEKAY (1848), New York Fauna, Fishes, 269, 1842 (adult female).
Amia ocellicauda, occidentalis, marmorata, ornata, viridis, canina, lemligino.8a, 8wboarulea,
cinerea, and reticulata (1846), CUV. et VAL, Hist, Nat, des Poiss., xix, 412-431, 1846.
Amia ornata, marmorata, ocellicauda, thompsoni, canina, lentigimosa, occidentalis, reticulata,
piquotii, cinerea, 8wbcarrulea, and viridis, AUGUST DUMERIL, Hist. Nat. Des Poissons,
1870,
Description —Dark olive or blackish above, nearly white below ; sides with traces
of greenish markings; lower jaw and gular plate with round blackish spots; fins
mostly blackish ; male fishes smaller than the females, marked by a roundish black
spot near the base of the caudal fin, above ; this spot is surrounded by a pale Orange
ocellation ; this spot is wanting in the females ; depth of body from four to four and one
half times in its length ; length of head nearly four; eye small, contained eight times
in head, Dorsal, about 46; anal, 11; lat. 1, 68. Length of male, 13 feet; female, 2 to 2%.
Habitat, Great Lake region to Virginia, Florida, and Texas, very abundant in the
larger or more sluggish rivers, and in the bayous and lakes,
Diagnosis.—Either as “Grindle” or “ Dog-fish' this species is known to
every fisherman in the regions where it occurs. From all other Ohio
fishes it may be known by the presence of the broad plate between the
branches of the lower jaw.
Habits –—This species occurs in Ohio, both in Lake Erie and in the
Ohio River, more abundantly in the lake, bowever, than in the rivers.
It is one of the most powerful and most voracious of our fishes. It is
more tenacious of life than any other, living longer out of water
than any, even the species of Amiurus. I once kept a specimen alive,
out of water, in a warm room, for a whole afternoon, in order to make a
water color sketch of it. Its lung-like air-bladder enables it to breathe
air, So long as its air passages are kept moist, and when out of water, it
dies only after the shrinkage of its gelatinous and pasty muscles due to
the evaporation of the water they contain. The susceptibility to evap-
oration of the fleshy parts is one of the peculiar characteristics of this
fish. The flesh is never used for food, and is said to be very disagreeably
flavored, even if it did not almost wholly disappear in the process of
frying.
Concerning the “gamey ’’ qualities of this fish, the following from a
correspondent of the Chicago Field (1878, p. 403), from Jackson, Miss.,
may be interesting to anglers who are not exclusively pot fishers:
778 FISHES-AM IIDAE,
“We have a fish here that we call ‘John A. Grindle’, but what his other names may
be in different parts, if they are found there, I do not know. They grow up to ten
pounds weight, and are perfectly worthless except for sport, but for the latter they are
grand. They are far ahead of our trout, I beg your pardon, you say we must not call
them trout any more but black bass. Well our black bass then, or any other fish I
know of. -
“Grindle or John A., as we familiarly term them, are my favorite fish when I want
a day's sport, for they are dead game, never giving up until tired out, and it takes a long
time to tire him. Of course the man who fishes for the pot swears when he gets a John
A., and then breaks his head, but the pot-fisher don’t want gameness or Sport, though
he thinks he wants the latter; meat is what he is after and a John A. bothers him. A
favorite place for our fish is across the river and through the thickets to Lawrence lake,
which is so surrounded by swamp that it is difficult to approach, but which is
much frequented by anglers in season. Our manner of taking the Grindle is usually
with a reed pole, with or without a reel, and with a strong hook and line baited with
a live minnow, which we cast and troll.
“John A. is a terrific biter, and as fierce a fighter as I ever knew, and he lasts. One
day last week I killed fourteen, weighing from three to seven pounds apiece, and one
of these fish fought me over half an hour. Thiuk of that l half an hour's exciting fun,
alternating between hope and fear and then crowned with success. This is a delight
that the pot-fisher never felt with his stiff pole t witching out his little fish before he
fairly feels them, in his haste to get another, Having told you so much about them, I
will now try and give you a description of the fish as far as I am able, not being a
scientist ; but hope that you may be able to recognize it and tell us something of it.
“John A. is a Soſt-finned fish, not a spine about him. His body is round and long, like
a pike or jack, and has heavy scales, which are round, that is have no prickles like a
perch or bass. His tail is rounded, but not evenly; it is as if the lower portion was
worn off, but the young ones are so, and I think it natural. His head is covered with
hard plates, and looks like the head of a reptile; it has two sets of teeth, with some
on the roof of the mouth and others back near the gullet. There is but one fin on his
back, but it runs nearly the whole length of it, and is soft and of even height. The
lower fins are large and a pair in the middle of its belly. There is sometimes a black
spot as big as a quarter of a dollar on its tail, and we call them John A.’s and “Spotted
Grindle,” according as they have or are without the spot. They live a long time out
of water. There, that is as near as I can come to his likeness, unless I add that it has
an expression of ferocity in its whole look.”
Mr. Hallock (Sportsman's Gazetteer, 324), thus remarks concerning
this fish :
“They take frogs, minnows, and sometimes the spoon. Their habitat is deep water,
when they drive everything before them. Their teeth are so sharp and their jaws so
strong that they have been known to bite a two-pound fish in two the very first snap.
The young when about six inches long make a famous bait for Pickerel and Pike, Put
a hundred in a rain barrel and you can keep them all Summer without change of water.
For the aquarium, the young have no equal, but nothing else but snails can live in the
tank. He will kill a lizard or any other living thing the instant it touches the water.”
According to Dr. C. C. Estes (Hallock, l. c.):
“While the parent remains with the young, if the family becomes suddenly alarmed,
THE LAwyER. 779
the capacious mouth will open, and in rushes the entire host of little ones; the ngly
maw is at once closed, and off she rushes to a place of security, where again the little
captives are set at liberty.”
As indicated in the synonymy above, this fish has been made the Sub-
ject of many nominal species, most of them based on specimens in the
Museum at Paris. The discovery that the differences in color and size
are merely sexual differences, which, by the way, was the first piece of
ichthyological work attempted by the present writer, has caused them
to fall into the synonymy. After laboriously distinguishing twelve
“species”, among the thirty or so specimens at his disposal, M. Dumeril
very naïvely remarks, “I am unable to determine for which, among the
species with a black caudal spot, the name Amia calva was intended.”
The Vernacular names of this species are rather interesting. Some
of its earlier describers called it Mud-fish, and this name is frequently
met with in anatomical works. It is very rarely heard among the fisher-
men. Throughout the Great Lake Region the prevailing name is Dog-
fish, which name is there also applied to Melanura limi, most fishermen
supposing the latter to be the young of Amia. In Lake Champlain it is
said to be called “ Bow-fin". In the Western States, the name “Lawyer”
is frequently applied to it, often with the remark that “this is not the
real Lawyer' (Lota maculosa). The alleged reason for the application of
this name, as Dr. Kirtland once told me, is that “it will bite at anything,
and is good for nothing when caught.” A correspondent of the Chicago
Field informs us that “these ornary customers are called Lawyers because
they are bull headed and slippery.”
Of wider range than any of these names is the name Grindle, with
its variations Grinnel, Grindle-fish, Brindle-fish and John A. Grindle.
This name is applied to the fish in the Dismal Swamp Region of Vir-
ginia, where I have found the species abundant, and in Southern Illinois,
as well as in all the streams of the low country of the South where the
fish is known. No hint has yet been given as to its origin. The fol-
lowing remarks from the pen of Mr. Fred. Mather on this name are very
pertinent :
“We fancy the Southern name of ‘Grindle’ for the Amia for several reasons, one of
which is that no other fish bears it, and another is its striking oddity. The fish bears
this name, as we have seen, in nearly all the Southern states and also parts of Illinois
and Ohio. Its other names are all shared with other fishes, for instance, “dog-fish ’ is
applied to a kind of Shark, ‘mud-fish” is shared with the little Mud Minnow, Melanura,
and ‘lawyer’, with the Ling or Eel-pout, Lota. Besides, ‘grindle’ covers more terri-
tory, and is consequently less local than any of the trivial names. But who was old
Grindle, anyway?”
780 FISHES-ANGUILLIDAE.
SUB-CLASS TELEOSTEI. THE BONY FISHES.
Skeleton more or less ossified ; tail homocercal, or at least not evidently heterocercal;
Optic nerves simply crossing, without chiasma ; arterial bulb simple, with two opposite
Valves at its origin; air bladder if present, not cellular. This group comprises the
great majority of recent fishes (teleos, perfect ; osteon, bone). &
ORDER 6, ENCHELY CEPHALI. THE EELS.
This order is framed by Professor Cope for the reception of those Eel-like fishes which
have the following osteological characters,
Parietals in contact ; lower pair of basihyals wanting ; scapular arch suspended to an
anterior vertebra; no post temporal; no symplectic; maxillary bone absent, or connate
with the premaxillary, which forms the border of the mouth. Premaxillaries separated
on the median line by the ethmoid; superior branchihyals and inferior and superior
pharyngeals well developed, the latter of four bones. Of these the fourth is largest
and supports the third which, with the second, is directed forwards. (Cope.)
Among the fresh water fishes, the Eels may be known by the serpentiform body, the
absence of ventral fins and the long and low dorsal and anal which meet around the
tail; the jaws are well developed and provided with teeth. But one species occurs in
the waters of Ohio. (Egchelw8, eel; kephale, head.)
ANALYSIS OF FAMILIES OF ENCHELYCEPHALI.
*Pectoral fins present ; teeth of sides of jaw separated, not forming a continuous
cutting edge, & º . . e t & * § g ANGUILLIDAE. 6.
F A MILY WI. A N G UIL L ID AE . T H E E E L S.
Body much elongated, anteriorly cylindrical, compressed behind, covered with mi-
nute scales which are imbedded in the skin ; mouth rather large, horizontal, the upper
jaw not projecting; teeth small, ir, bands, not forming a uniform cutting edge; gill
openings rather narrow ; dorsal fin beginning at a considerable distance behind the head,
continuous with the anal around the tail. A single genus, with probably less than ten
species, although several hundred have been described. The Eels are cosmopolitan, and
inhabit all sluggish or still waters, whether brackish or fresh, in warm or temperate
regions.
GENUS 9. ANGUILLA. Thunberg,
Anguilla, THUNDERG. * * *
Muraºna, (LINNAEUS) BLEEKER, Atl. Ich. Mur. I, (not of authors generally.)
Type, Muraºna anguilla L., equal to Anguilla vulgaris, TURTON.
Etymology, Latin, anguilla, Greek, egchelus, an eel.
The characters of this genus are included above.
R.E.L. 781
2. ANGUILLA VULGARIS Turton.
Commamom Eel.
EUROPEAN SYNoNYMY, (var. vulgaria Ž)
Muraºma anguilla, LINNMEUS, Syst. Nat., i, 426.-BLOCH and SCHNEIDHR, Systema Ich-
thyol, 486, and of all early writers.
Anguilla vulgaris, TURTON, British Fauna, 87.-FLEMING, British Animals, 199—GUN-
THER, Cat. Fishes Brit. Mus., viii, 28, and of European authors generrally.
Anguilla canariensis, callengis, acutiro8tris, mediorostris, oryrhina, pekinensia, migratoria,
fluviatilis, cuvieri, bibronii, 8avignyi, morena, marginata, microptera, altirostria,
platycephala, latirostris, nilotica, a gyptiaca, hibernica, and many other names of Euro-
pean species-makers.
AMERICAN SYNONYMY. (var. rostrata ?)
Muraºna anguilla, SCHOPFF, Beobacht. Naturforscher, Berlin, viii, 138.
Anguilla vulgaris, MITCHILL (1814), Trans. Lit, and Phil. Soc., i, 360; Am. Mo. Mag., ii,
241.—GUNTHER (1870), Cat. Fishes, viii, 30.—“DARESTE, Monograph of Anguilliform
Fishes,”—fide BAIRD (unites into one, all the species of Amguilla described from the
Northern Hemisphere).
Muraena rostrata, LESUEUR, Journ. Phil. Ac. Sc i, 81,–RICH., F. B. A , iii, 267.
Anguilla rostrata, DEKAY, Fishes N. Y., 312–STORER, Synopsis, 485.-Jordan (1876),
Bull, Buff. Soc. Nat, FIist., 96. ; Man. Vert., 304, sec. ed., 338.
Murama bostoniensis, LESUEUR, Journ. Acad., i, 81.—STORER, Rept. Fishes Mass., 158–
THOMPson (1842), Hist. Wt., 148.
Anguilla bostoniensis, DEKAY, Fishes N. Y., 313 —AYREs, Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist, iv, 979–
STORER, Synopsis, 485; Fishes Mass., 1855, 408–GILL, Cat. Fishes East Coast, 1861,
56; Can, Nat, Aug., 1865, 20; Rept. U. S. Fish Commission, 1871–72, 811. –GUNTHER,
Cat. Fishes, 1870, viii, 31, and of late authors generally.
Anguilla Serpentina, STORER, Synopsis, 486.—GILL, Cat. Fishes E. Coast, 1861, 56.
Muraena 8erpentina, LESUEUR, l.c., i. 82.-STORER, Rept. Fishes, 158.--THOMPson, Hist
Vt., 1842, 148.
Anguilla argentea, DEKAY, Fishes N. Y., 313.--STORER, Synopsis, 485.-GILL, I c.
Muraºna macrocephala, LESUEUR, 1 c., 82. §
Anguilla macrocephala, DEKAY, l.c., 313 —STORER, Synopsis, 486.-GILL, l c, 82.
Anguilla laticauda, RAFINEsque, Ich. Oh, 77. -
Anguilla aterrima, RAFINESQUE, 1 c., 78.
Anguilla acanthomelas, RAFINEsque, l.c., 78.
Anguilla lutea, RAFINEsque, l.c., 78.-KIRTLAND, Bost. Journ, Nat. Hist, iv, 234–
STORER, Synopsis, 486, and of some Western writers.
Anguilla tenuirostria, DEKAY, Fishes N. Y., 310–" KAUP, Cat. Apodal Fish, 44.”
Angwilla mova:0rleanensis, KAUP, 1 c., 43.
Anguilla punctatissima, KAUP, l.c., 44.
Anguilla terana, KAUP, 1 c. 45.-GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes, viii, 32.
‘Anguilla novo terra’, KAUP, l.c., 45.—GILL, l.c., 1861, 56.
Anguilla wabashensis, KAUP, l.c., 46.
Anguilla tyrannus, GIRARD, U. S. and Mex. Bound. Surv., 1859, 75.
Body cylindrical, compressed behind, ending in a point; head long, flnttened above }
mouth horizontal, extending to beyond the eye, the lower jaw rather the longer; eye
782 - FISHES-AN GUILLIDAE.
small, well forward; anterior nostrils with a slight barbel; pectorals about half as long
as head, rounded ; color olive-brown, or yellowish, sometimes almost black, the color
extremely variable ; head ten in length. D. & A, 455; length two to four feet.
Habitat, throughout the Northern Temperate Zone, in bays, and ascending all streams.
Diagnosis.—A person that does not know an eel at Sight will not look to
this paper for information.
Habits—In the State of Ohio the Eel is not a very common fish, al.
though there are few streams in the State in which they are not some.
times found. It is supposed that their presence in Lake Erie is due to
the opening of canals. They are native, however, in the Ohio.
Whether they breed in the State, or in fact in any fresh water, is still
uncertain. I am inclined to think that they do breed in fresh water, if
for no other reason than that I have found young Eels, less than an inch
long, in the head waters of the Alabama River, some 500 miles from the
sea. The habits of the Eel and its excellent qualities as a food fish are
too well known to require special notice here.
The question as to the Sexual characters and relations of the Eel has
long remained a standing puzzle to maturalists. The following account
of the recent final settlement of this question, from the New York Times,
will be of interest in this connection :
When Prof. Baird announced to the American Fish Culture Association, in February
last [1878], that he had within the six weeks previous received Eels with ripe ovaries, it
started a ripple of excitement in the room, which in a few days reached every natural-
ist in the land, and awakened new interest in the old question of the mode by which
this mysterious fish perpetuated its race, one which had baffled all inquirers since man
first sought to penetrate the Secrets of creation, and which had almost by common con-
sent been relegated to the category of “things which no fellow can find out.”
In commenting on this discovery, writers have ransacked history from Aristotle down,
and have given all the theories which have been entertained by people who framed
them in order to hide their ignorance, and who had not the moral courage to confess
that they really did not know how the fish did breed. Aristotle, after roasting the in-
testines of Eels, and recording that he heard the eggs crack, afterward doubted the ev-
idence, and, for want of Something better, declared that they were born of mud. This
was improved upon by Pliny, who solemnly attributed their origin to particles rubbed
from mature Eels by contact with rocks, etc. Later conjectures of fishermen and other
have credited their existence to the “hair worm” or “hair snake,” Gordius, who in its
turn is absurdly said to originate from a hair. Mussels, lamphreys, carrion, and other
objects, animate or inanimate, have been charged with their maternity, but since the
statement made by Prof. Baird, last season, many persons have been on the lookout for
the ovaries of the Eel, but without success, until recently, and now, since Mr. Eugene
G. Blackford, of Fulton Market, has shown them to the fishermen, fish-dealers, and
others, they all say: “Oh, yes, that is what we call ‘Eel fat,” it is always plenty at
EEL. 783
this time of the year.” And now the wonder is that no one has discovered this before,
for during all these long centuries, in which the question of the generation of Eels has
been an open one, the eggs have been in plain sight; in fact, right under the noses of
the investigators. It is also singular that all the Eels observed so far in the markets
have been females. Mr. Blackford, after showing the ovaries to his eel-dressers, di-
rected them to watch for any departure from this appearance, and some interest was-
being awakened in the old assertion of their being hermaphrodites, although no sper-
matozoa had been been found in connection with the ovaries, until the recent discovery
of a male Eel by Prof. Packard set the question of their unisexuality at rest. These
discoveries were being discussed in Mr. Blackford’s office a short time ago by a few gen-
tlemen, among whom was Mr Frederick Mather, the well known fish culturist, when a
specimen was brought from an Eel weighing six pounds.
A portion was placed under the microscope, when the eggs appeared to be in shape of
octogons, but which, Mr. Blackford stated, was caused by their pressing upon each
other, Mr. Mather took the ovary home, and, after carefully examining the eggs, con-
firms Mr. Blackford’s statement of their globular form when separated, but finds that
the eggs, like those of all fishes before exclusion, are flaccid, and is of the opinion that an
increase in size and solidity would occur after they had been deposited by the fish and
the absorption of water and milt had taken place. The eggs varied so much in size
that a measurement by the micrometer of one or two did not give as fair an idea of their
dimensions as to place a number in a line, measure them, and count them under a low
power, by which means, with three different lots, Mr. Mather found that they measured
eighty to the inch, and when separated on the glass slide could be readily discerned by
the naked eye. Mr. Mather then proceeded to estimate the number of eggs contained
in this six-pound Eel, which was done by carefully subdividing the mass until a small
portion contained a quantity which could be counted, and which was then multiplied by
the number of divisions, thus: The mass was halved, quartered, etc., seventeen times,
making the last section 1-131,072 of the whole. To avoid error, this was done three
times, giving the first time sixty-eight eggs, or 8,912,896 in the whole. The second
trial gave seventy-seven eggs, or a total of 10,092,544, while the third yielded seventy-
one eggs, which showed the mass to contain 9,306,112.
Considering the minuteness of the eggs, these different results are remarkably near each
other, and Mr. Mather fixes the numbers contained in this individual fish at 9,000,000,
which, when we consider that each of the ovaries was nearly a foot in length, and
about half an inch in diameter at the thickest part, does not seem to be at all exaggerated.
The wonderful fecundity of Eels is shown in the immense numbers seen ascending the
streams in early summer, when each little elver of three inches probably represents
one hundred eggs, which, from being devoured, infertility, and other causes, have failed
to arrive at his length.
ORDER VII. NEMATOGNATHI. THE CAT-FISHES.
This order, easily recognizable at sight by the long barbels, dorsal and pectoral spines,
and the absence of true scales, is distinguished by the following osteological characters,
according to Professor Cope:
“Parietals and supraoccipital confluent ; four anterior vertebrae ossified, an ossicula
auditus, no mesopterygium. Basis cranii and pterotic bone simple ; no coronoid bone.
784 FISHES-SILURIDAE}.
Third superior pharyngeal bone wanting, or small and resting on the fourth, second di-
rected backwards ; one or two pairs of basal branchihyals; suboperculum wanting; pre-
maxillary forming mouth-border above ; interclavicles present.” A large order, in some
respects intermediate between the Sturgeons and the Cyprinida. The leading family is
the Siluridoº,
* Opercle present; dorsal fin inserted in front of the ventrals. . . SILURIDAE, 7.
F A MILY W II. SILUR ID AE. T H E C A T. FIS HE S.
This family includes such of the Nematognathi as have the rayed dorsal fin short, and
placed in advance of the ventrals, and the operculum developed. The variation in appear-
ance among the members of this family is great, some having the skin naked, others hav-
ing it covered with bony plates of various forms. The American fresh water species, some
thirty in number, agree in having the body naked ; the head with eight long barbels
whereof the maxillary bones form the bage of the longest pair ; no subopercle; top of
head not mailed ; dorsal and pectoral fins each with a pungent spine, which is often
serrate; adipose fin present, without rays; gill openings wide.
There are upwards of seven hundred species of Siluridae known, referred to about one
hundred genera. They are most numerous in the fresh waters of South America, and
are numerous enough in North America, and Africa. A few occur in Europe, and some
are maritie Our species are valued for food in proportion to their size. They mostly
inhabit lakes and sluggish Streams, and are usually very tenacious of life.
* Adipose fin, with its posterior margin free, not aduate to the body, nor connected
with the caudal fin.
a. Band of tº eth on the premaxillaries, without lateral backward processes.
b Supraoccipital bone produced backward from the skull, receiving the pointed
anterior end of the second interspinal (bone at the base of the dorsal fin), thus forming
a continuous bony bridge from the head to the dorsal; (slender silvery species, with small
mouth and forked caudal fin) * tº & ſº & § ſº ICHTIIAELURUS. 10.
bb. Supraoccipital bone not produced, falling short of the interspinal, the bony
bridge being therefore interrupted; (stout dusky-colored species, with larger mouth and
less forked or truncate caudal fin, tº g g e § AMIURUS 11.
aa. B and of teeth on the premaxillary, with a strong backward extension on each
side; lower jaw longest; anal fin short, * * t PELODICIITHYS 12,
** Adipose fin low, keel-like, adnate to the body, and usually continuous with the
caudal fin. tº e * & tº & o tº NOTURUS. 13.
GENUS 10. ICHTHAELURUS. Rafinesque.
Iotalurus, RAFINESQUIE (1820), Ichthyologia, Ohiensis, 61.
Elliops, RAFINESQUE (1820), Ichthyologia, Ohiensis, 62.
Synechoglamis, GILL (1859), Annals Lyc, Nat. Hist, vii, 39,
Ictalurus, GILL (1862), Proc. Boston Soc. Nat. Hist, 41.
Ichthalurus, CoPE (1869), Journ, Acad. Nat Sci., Phila, 237. (Corrected orthography,)
Type, Silurw8 punctatus, Rafinesque.
Etymology, Ichthus, fish ; ailourw8, cat,
Body elongated, slender, and much compressed. The caudal peduncle is short but
slender, and presents behind the anal an elongated elliptical section.
FORK-TAILED CHANNEL C.A.T. 785
Head conical in profile, compressed, and with the sides sloping downward and out-
ward. The supraoccipital bone is prolonged backward, and its emarginated apex re-
ceives the acuminate anterior point of the second interspinal. The skull is covered by
a thin tense skin, through which the Sculpture of the bones is apparent ; eyes large
and almost entirely lateral ; mouth Small, transverse, and terminal; the upper jaw
protrudes beyond the lower; teeth subulate and aggregated into a short, laterally trun-
cated band on each jaw. Branchiostegal rays 8 or 9; dorsal fin situated over the inter-
val between the pectoral and ventral fing, higher than long, with one long spine and
usually six articulated rays; adipose fin pedunculated over the posterior portion of the
anal; anal fin long, and provided with from 25 to 35 rays; it commences near the anus;
ventral fins each with one simple and seven branched rays; pectoral fins each with a
stout spine, retrorse-Serrate within, and about nine branched rays The serrae of the
pectoral spines vary with age and circumstances, and do not in this genus give good
specific characters. Caudal fin elongated and deeply forked, with the lobes equal and
pointed.
The genus Ichthaluru.8 is at once recognized by the forked caudal fin, its silvery or
olivaceous colors, and by its compressed, elongated, and slender body which gives to it
a peculiarly graceful appearance, very unlike that of the Stout, obese and large-headed
Amiuri. The head is smaller in proportion than in Amiurus, more compressed, and not
covered by so thick a skin ; the mouth is proportionally much smaller. But the only
invariable generic distinction resides in the mode of insertion of the supraoccipital or
interparietal bone into the head of the second interSpinal. A firm and immovable
bridge is thus formed, which gives an uninterrupted passage from the dorsal fin to the
snout. The silvery coloration is also a marked distinguishing feature.
It is not generally true that the species of Ichthalurus reach a larger size than those
of the other genera. Amiurus nigricans and Pelodichthys olivaris far exceed in size any of
the species of Ichthaluru.8.
12. ICHTHAELURUS FURCATUs (Cuv. and Val.) Gill.
Fork-tailed Chnaramel Cat.
Pimelodus furcatus, CUV. and VAL. (1840), Hist. Nat, des Poiss., xv, 136.
Ichthalurw8 furcatw8, GILL (1861), Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., 43.
Amiurus furcatus, GUNTHER (1864), Cat, Fish. Brit. Mus., V, 103.
Ichthalurus furcatus, Jordan, Bull, U. S. Nat. Mus., x, 75; Man. Vert, Ed. 2d, 1878, 328.
Pimelodus affinis, BAIRD and GIRARD (1854), Proc. Ac. Nat, Sci., Phila., 26–GIRARD (1859),
U. S. Mex. Bound., Ich, 32.
Description.—Body very slender; head slender, the eye small, wholly anterior, its pos-
terior margin being in front of the middle of the head; slope from snout to dorsal fin
more or less concave; skin thin ; coloration brightly silvery; anal fin extremely long,
with 32 to 34 rays;" its base forming one-third of the length of the body and head;
head 4} in length; depth, 4 in adult, 5% in young; pectoral spine 14 in head; length 1
to 2 feet,
Habitat, Ohio Valley to Texas, in the larger streams; not common.
“In this family the rudimentary rays at the beginning of the anal are always in-
cluded in the enumeration.
50
786 FISHES-SILURIDAE.
Diagnosis.--This is the only Cat-fish in Ohio having more than thirty
rays in the anal fin.
Habits.-I have seen one or two specimens taken at Cincinnati. Noth-
ing distinctive is known of its habits, which are probably identical
with those of its cogener, I. punctatus.
13. ICHTHAELURUS RoHUSTU's Jordan.
Cºhuack!e-headed Cat.
Ichthalurus robustus, JoBDAN (1876), Bull, U. S. Nat. Mus., x, 76; Man. Vert., Ed. 2d,
1878, 328.
Description.—Body rather stout and deep, compressed behind ; the back elevated; head
rather large, one-third longer than broad; the eye moderate, wholly in front of the mid-
dle of the head ; slope from snout to base of dorsal more or less concave, the dorsal re-
gion being elevated; skin thick; coloration pale, little silvery; anal fin moderate, its
base 3} to 4 in length ; its rays 27 to 30; head 4% in length ; depth about 4; pectoral
spine little more than half the length of head; length 1 to 2 feet,
Habitat, Ohio Valley, Mississippi Valley, not very common.
Diagnosis.--From I. punctatus this species may be known by the smaller
and more anterior eye, which is in front of the middle of the head;
from I. furcatus it is separated by the shorter anal fin.
Habits.--The few specimens known of this species are from the lower
Ohio, Illinois, and Mississippi Rivers. Nothing distinctive is known of
its habits in life.
14. ICHTII.A.LURUS PUNCTATUS Jordan.
B. Hue Cºaſt; W inite Cat; Silver Cant; Chaahaane A Cat.
Silurus punctatus, RAFINEsquit (1818), Amer. Monthly Mag, and Critical Review, Sep-
tember, 359.
Ictalurus punctatus, JoBDAN (1876), Bull. Buff. Soc. Nat. Hist, 95; Manual of Ver-
tebrates, 300,—Jorda N and COPELAND (1876), Check List, Bull. Buff. Soc. Nat.
IIist, 159—Jordan (1877), Annals Lyc, Nat. Hist, N. Y., -, -NBLSON (1876), Bull.
Ills, Mus. Nat. Hist, 50.
Ichthalurus punclatus, Jordan (1878), Bul).U. S. Nat. Mus, X, 76; Man. Vert, Ed.
2d, 328.
Pimelodus caudafurcatus, LESUEUR (1819), Memoires du Museum, V, 152.
Amiurus caudaſurcatus, GUNTHER (1864), Cataloguo of Fishes, v, 102.
Silurus maculatus, RAFINEsquE (1820), Quarterly Journal of Science, Literature, and
Arts, London, 48 (et var, erythroptera, p. 49).
Pimelodus (Ictalurus) maculatus, RAFINESQUE (1820), Ichthyologia Ohiensis, 62.
Silurus pallidus, RAFINKsquE (1820), Quart. Journ. Sci. Lit, and Arts, London, 49 (et war.
marginatua, lateralis, leucoptera).
Pimelodus pallidus, RAFINESQUE (1820), Ich, Oh, 63–KIRTLAND (1838), Report Zool,
Ohio, 169,194.
BLUE CAT. 787
Silurus cerulescene, RAFINESQUE (1820), Quart. Journ. Sci. Lit. and Arts, London, 49 (et
var. melanurus).
Pimelodus cerulescene, RAFINESQUE (1820), Ich. Ohiensis, 63.—KIRTLAND (1838), Rept.
Zool. Ohio, 169, 194; (1846) Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist., iv, 332.—STORER (1846), Sy-
nopsis Fishes N. A. in Mem, Nat. Acad. Sci., 405. (All these descriptions refer more
or less to Amiurus migricans.)
Ictalurus carulescene, GILL (1862), Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat Hist., 43–Cope (1865), Proc. Acad.
Nat. Sci, Phila, 85; (1870) Proc. Am. Philos. Soc., 489.-Jordan (1874), Ind. Geol.
Survey, 222.—GILL (1876), Ich., Capt. Simpson's Exped., 417.
Ichthalurug caprulescene, COPE (1869), Journ. Acad, Nat. Sci., 237.
Silurus argentinus, RAFINESQUE (1820), Quart. Journ. Sci. Lit, and Atts, London, 50.
Pimelodu.8 argyrus, RAFINESQUE (1820), Ichthyologia, Ohiensis, 64.
Pimelodus furcifer, CUV, and VAL. (1840), XV, 139.-‘‘HYRTL (1859), Denkschr. Akad. Wiss.
Wien, 16”. –“KNER, Sitzgsber, Akad. Wiés. Wien, xxvi, 421,”
Ictalurus furcifer, GILL (1862), Proc, Bost, Soc. Nat. Hist., 43.-JorDAN (1876), Manual
Vert., 300.
Pimolodu.8 gracilis, HOUGH (1852), Fifth Ann. Rept. Reg, Univ., Condition State Cabinet
Nat. Hist., Albany, 26.
Synechoglani8 gracilis, GILL (1859), Trans, Lyc, Nat. Hist., 3 (reprint).
Ictaluru.8 gracilis GILL (1862), Proc. Bost. Suc. Nat. Hist., 43.−COPE (1865), Proc. Acad.
Nat. Sci., Phila, c5.-Jol{DAN (1876), Mari, Vert., 300.-JORDAN and COPELAND
(1876), Check List, 159.
Pimelopus vulpes, GIRARD (1858), Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci., Phila, 170; (1859) U. S. and Mex.
Bound. Surv., 33.
Iotalurus vulpes, GILL (1862), Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat, Hist, 43–JORDAN and CoPELAND
(1876), Check List, 159.
Pimelodus olivaceu8, GIRARD (1838), Pac. R. R. Survey, X, 211.
Iotalurus olivaceus, GILL (1862), l, c., 43; (1876) Rept, Ichthy. Capt. Simpson’s Exp., 417.
—JORDAN (1876), Man, Vert., 300,—JORDAN and COPELAND (1876), Check List, 159.
Synochoglanis beadlei, GILL (1839), Trans. Lyo. Nat. Hist, N.Y., 2 (reprint).
Ictalurus beadlei, GILL (1862), Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist, 43.-JORDAN and CoPELAND
(1876), Check List, 159.
Pimelodus houghii, GIRARD (1839), Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci., Phila., 159.
Pumelodus megalops, GIRARD (1S,59), l. C., 161 (said to have the eye very large, its dia-
meter one-third the length of the side of the head).
Ictalurus megalops, Joko AN and CoPELAND (1876), Bull. Buff. Soc. Nat, Hist., 159.
Pimelodus graciosus, GIRARD (1859), Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 161.
Pimelodus hammondii, ABBOTT (1860), Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 568.
Pimelodus notatus, ABBOTT (1869), Proc, Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 569.
Iotalurus simpsoni, GILL (1862), Proc, Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist, 43; (1876) Ich. Capt. Simp-
son's Exp., 47.
Description,-Body slender, little elevated, the dorsal region not much elevated, and
the profile from snout to dorsal little concave; head rather small, conical, with small
mouth ; eye larger, placed medially, the middle of the head falling in front of its pos-
terior margin; skin thin ; pectoral spines long, 13 in head; coloration olivaceous, sil-
very, the adult bluish, the young yellowish, with darker blotches, made of dark
points, which disappear with age ; head 4; depth 5 in length ; anal base about 4 times
in length, of 25 to 29 rays. Length 1 to 23 feet.
788 FISHES-SILURIDAE.
Habitat, Canada to Florida, Texas and Montana, abundant in all suitable waters east
of the Alleghanies,
Diagnosis.—This most abundant species may be known from the other
white Cat-fishes by the position of the eye, which is not wholly in ad-
vance of the middle of the head.
Habits.-This species is very abundant in the Ohio River and its larger
tributaries, and is found, but less frequently, in Lake Erie. It does not
usually ascend small streams. It is used for food, and is of some value,
but the flesh is perhaps hardly as good as that of most of the Amiuri.
The species prefers clear waters, being averse to mud, and is much less
tenacious of life than the Amiuri are. Its singular form and silvery
colors renders it an attractive aquarium fish.
The idea is prevalent that this is our largest Cat-fish. I find no good
evidence of the truth of this supposition. The largest specimens I have
ever seem would hardly weigh over five or six pounds. And all the large
“Blue Cats’’ which have been shown me belong to Amiurus nigricans. I
have seen the adult of Ichthalurus punctatus put on the hook as “live
bait,” to attract Amiurus migricans, at Cumberland Falls, in Kentucky.
GENUS 11. AMIURUS. Rafinesque.
Silurw8 et Pimelodus sp., LINN/EUS, and all Writers prior to 1802.
Ameiurus, RAFINESQUE (1820), Ich. Ohiensis, 66 (as section under sub-genus Ictalurus of
Pimelodu.8.)
Amiurus, GILL (1862), Proc. Bost. Soe, Nat. Hist., 50, and of recent writers generally.
Ameiurus, CoPE (1864), Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci., Phila, 231.
Gronias, CoPE (1864), Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci, Phila, 231.
Type, Silurus cuprew8, Rafinesque.
Etymology, a, privitive; meiourus, curtailed, in allusion to the entire caudal fin.
Body moderately elongated, robust, anteriorly Vertically ovate, and scarcely com-
pressed; caudal peduncle also robust, but much compressed, and at its end evenly con-
TV6X, -
Head large, wide, laterally expanded, above ovate and in profile cuneiform ; supra-
occipital extended little posteriorly and terminating in a more or less acute point,
which is entirely separate from the second interspinal buckler; the skin covering the
bones is thick.
Eyes rather small, in one species covered by the skin ; mouth large, terminal, trans-
verse, the upper jaw in most species the longer; jaws often equal, the lower, in one or
two species distinctly projecting.
Teeth subulate, aggregated in broad bands on the intermaxillaries and dentaries; the
intermaxillary band is convex in front, of equal breadth, and abruptly truncated near
the insertion of the intermaxillaries ; the lower dental band is anteriorly semicircular,
attenuated to the angles of the mouth,
Branchiostegal membrane on each side with eight or nine rays in typical species; ten
or eleven in two or three aberrant species; dorsal situated over the interval between
GREAT FORK-TAILED CAT. 789
the pectorals and ventrals, higher than long, with a pungent spinous ray dentate behind,
and about six branched rays; adipose fin short, inserted over the posterior half of the
anal ; anal fin of moderate length, with from fifteen to twenty-six rays, the usual num-
ber being twenty or twenty-one ; caudal fin short, usually truncate when spread open,
slightly emarginate when not expanded,—in species related to Ichthalurus more or less
deeply forked, in some other species rounded; when the caudal fin is forked the lobes
are usually unequal ; ventrals each with one simple and seven branched ray8; pectoral
fins each with a stout spine, which is commonly retrorse-serrate behind, these Serrae vary
much with age and circumstances, and do not appear in this genus to furnish good Spe-
cific characters; lateral line usually incomplete.
This genus includes our common Eastern American Catfishes, and is readily recognized
by the broad head covered by a thick skin, the free termination of the posterior process
of the supraoccipital bone, the compressed body, and by the free adipose fin.
This genus, although undoubtedly a very natural one, is rather hard to defin2 Cer.
tain species (lupus, miweiventris, migricans) have real affinities with the species of Ich-
thaluru.8, having, like them, the body elongate, the head rather narrow, the anal long,
the caudal forked, and the coloration pale. The absence of the connection between
the Supraoccipital and the interspinal is the only technical character by which Amiurus
may be distinguished from Ichthalurus.
ANALYSIS OF SPECIES OF AMIURUS.
* Caudal fin forked. ſº º ſº tº g tº {. & & NIGRICANS. 15.
** Caudal fin rounded, or slightly emarginate.
a, Anal rays 24 to 26. * lº ſº ſº & † e e * NATALIS. 16.
aa, Anal rays 18 to 22.
b. Lower jaw longer than upper. & e i. tº e . VULGARIS. 17.
bb. Lower jaw not longer than upper.
o, Coloration mottled or variegated; adipose fin large. . MARMORATUS. 18.
co, Coloration nearly plain,
d. Head moderately broad, with a nearly even slope from the tip of the
Snout to the elevated base of the dorsal fin,
e. Body elongate ; anal rays 20 to 22. . g tº g . CATUS. 19.
ce, Body short and deep ; anal rays 18 to 20, . tº e . MELAS, 20.
dd, Head very broad ; an angle at occiput; anal small, usually with 19 rays.
XANTHOCEPHALUS, 21.
15. AMIURUs NIGRICANs (LeSueur) Gill.
Great Fork-tailed Cat; Mississippi Cat; Florida Cat;
Great Catfish of the Lakes.
Pimelodus nigricans, LESUEUR (1819), Memoires du Museum d’Hist. Nat., v., 153–CUv.
and VAL. (1840), xv, 133.-DEKAY (1842), Fishes N. Y., 180—STORER (1846),
Synopsis, 403.−“HYRTL (1859), Denkschrift Akad, Wiss, Wien, xvi, 16.”
Amiurus migricans, GILL (1862), Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., 44–JorDAN (1876), Man.
Vert, 318–Jordan and CoPELAND (1876), Check List, 159 (not of GUNTHER (1864),
nor of CoPE (1870), equal to A, conosus).-Jordan (1877), Bull, U. S. Nat, Mus., x, 83;
(1878), Man. Wert, sec. ed., 329.
Silurus (Pimelodus) migrescens, RICHARDSON (1836), Fauna Bor.-Am, Fishes, 134.
Pimelodus sp. incog, THOMPSON, (1842), History Vermont, 139.
79() FISHES-SILURIDAE.
Pimelodu.8 coºrulescens in part, of RAFINESQUE, KIRTLAND, and others; the big “ Chan-
nel Cats’’ all belong to this species,
Description.—Body moderately stout, head narrow, longer than broad; mouth moder-
ate, the upper jaw the longer ; barbels long ; pectoral spines short and stout, dentate ;
caudal fin strongly furcate, but less so than in the Channel Cats; anal fin very long ;
color dark, sometimes mottled with paler; anal 25 or 26. Head 4+ in length ; its width
5, Length, 2 to 6 feet.
Habitat.—Great Lake region to Texas and Florida, abundant in the larger streams and
lakes.
Diagnosig.—This species may be known from the other Amiuri by the
forked tail. The form is stouter and the colors darker than in any of the
species of Ichthalurus.
Habits.-This species is the common Cat-fish of the lake fishermen, in
contra-distinction to the Bull-head, as A. catus is usually called. In the
Ohio it is the Mississippi Cat. It is found only or chiefly in the larger
bodies of water, and reaches a very great size. It is valued as food, al-
though the flesh is rather coarse and flavorless. I have seen specimens
of nearly a hundred pounds weight, and have heard of Cat-fish weighing
two or three hundred pounds, but I presume them to have been weighed
by guess.
16. AMIURUS NATALIS (LeSeur) Gill. &
Catſish ; Yellow Cat.
a. War matalis,
Pimelodus natalis, LESUEUR (1819), Mem. du Museum, v, 154,-STORER (1846), Synopsis,
405.
Amiurus natalia, GILL (1862), Proc. Bost. Soc Nat. Hist., 44.—GUNTHER (1864), Cat.
Fishes Brit, Mus., v., 101,–Jordan (1877), Bull. U S. Nat. Mus., x, 86.
Pimelodus puma, GIRARD (1859), Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci., Phila., 160.—JoRDAN (1878), Man,
Wert, Ed, 2, 331.
b. var. lividug.
Silurus lividua, RAFINESQUE (1850), Quart. Journ. Sci. Lit. and Arts, London, 48 (et var.
fuscatus),
Pimelodw8 lividus, RAFINESQUE (1820), Ich. Ohiensis, 65.
Amiurus lividua, JoBDAN (1876), Man. Vert, 302.-Jordan and CoPELAND (1876), Check
List, 159.
Pimelodw8 felinus, GIRARD (1858), U. S. Pac. R. R. Expl., x, 209.
Amiurus felinus, GILL (1862), Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist, 44–Cope (1870), Proc. Am.
Philos. Soc., 485 –Jordan and CopyLAND (1876), Check List, 159.
Pimelodus catw8, GIRARD (1859), Proc. Phila. Acad. Nat, Sci., 160 (not of DeKay and most
authors).
Amiurus catus, COPE (1870), Proc. Am, Philos. Soc., 484.—Jordan and Copeland, Check
List, 159.
Pimelodus oupreoides, GIRARD (1859), Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci., Phila, 159,
LONG-JAWED CATFISH. 791
Amiurus cupreoides, GILL (1862), Proc. Bost, Soc. Nat. Hist., 44.
C. War. C00708018,
Siluru.8 (Pimelodus) canobu.8, RICHARDSON (1836), Fauna Bor.-Amer., Fishes, 132.—CUV.
and VAL. (1840), xv, 129,-DEKAY (1842), Fishes N. Y., 186,-STORER (1846), Sy-
nopsis, 402.
Amiurus con08.us, GILL (1862), Proc, Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist, 44.—CoPE (1870), l.c., 485–
JORDAN (1876), Man. Vert., 303,-JORDAN and CoPELAND, Check List, 159.
d. var. cuprew8.
Silurug cupreu8, RAFINESQUE (1820), Quart Journ, Sci. Lit, and Arts, London, 51.
Pimelodus (Ameiurus) cupreu8, RAFINESQUE (1820), Ich. Oh., 65.
Pimelodu.8 cupreu8 KIRTLAND (1838), Rept. Zool, Ohio, 169, 194; (1846) Bost. Journ. Nat,
Hist, iv, 333–DEKAY (1842), Fishes N. Y., 187.-STORER (1846), Synopsis, 404–
GIRARD (1859), Proc. Acad. Nat. Soi., Phila., 169.
Amiurus ouprew8, GILL (1862), Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., 44.—CopF (1870), Proc. Am.
Phil. Soc., 485.-JORDAN (1876), Bull. Buff. Soc. Nat. Hist., 96; Man. Wert, 303.−
NELSON (1876), Bull, Ills. Mus. Nat. Hist., 50.—JoadAN and CoPELAND (1876), Check
List, 159.—JORDAN (1877), Annals Lyceum Nat. Hist N. Y.; Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci.
Phila., 45.
Ameurug cuprew8, COPE (1865), Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila , 276.
e. War. antomiémèig.
Pimelodw8 antoniensis, GIRARD (1859), Pac. R. R. Expl., x, 291.
Amiurus antoniensis, GILL (1862), 1, c., 44.—COPE (1870), l.c., 485.
Description.—Body not much elongate, usually rather deep and chubby, sometimes ex-
tremely so; head wide and flattish, not much longer than broad, the mouth very wide;
the lower jaw usually shortest, but sometimes the two jaws about equal when the
mouth is closed; dorsal region not much elevated; anal fin very long, its base one-fourth
or more the length of the body, of 24 to 27 rays; spines not very long; caudal fin
truncate or slightly notched; color normally dark yellowish brown, sometimes nearly
black; head 3% to 4 in length; depth 4 to 5; D. I, 6; A, 24 to 27. Length 1 to 2 feet.
Habitat, Great Lake Region to Virginia, Florida, and Texas, generally abundant.
Diagnosis.—This is an extremely variable species as regards color
and form. It is the only Ohio Cat-fish having a truncate caudal fin and
more than twenty-three anal rays. Specimens from different waters
vary much from each other. A very short, fat, chubby form is occasion-
ally seen, which looks very unlike the ordinary form, Some of the lead-
ing varieties have received special names, which it is not necessary to
give here.
Habits.--This is one of the most abundant species of the lakes, ponds,
and bayous of Ohio, being tolerably common throughout the State. It
does not reach a very large size.
17. AMIURUS VULGARIS (Thornpson) Nelson.
Long-jawed Catfish.
Pimelodus vulgaris, THOMPSON (1842), History of Vermont, 138.
792 FISHES-SILURIDAE.
Amiurus vulgaris, NELSON (1876), Bull, Ills, Mus. Nat. Hist., 50,—Jordan and COPELAND
(1876), Check List, 159–Jordan (1877), Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus, x, 85; (1878) Man.
Vert., ed. 2d., 33.
Pimelodus ailurus, GIRARD (1858), U. S. Pac. R. R. Surv, Fishes, 210.
Amiurus ailurw8, GILL (1862), Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., 44.
Amiurus alurus, COPE (1870), Proc. Am. Philos. Soc., 485 –Jordan (1876), Man. Wert.,
302–JORDAN and COPELAND (1877), Check List, 159,
Pimelodus dekayi GIRARD (1859), Proc. Acad, Nat Sci., Phila, 160. -
Amiurus dekayi, GILL (1862), Proc, Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., 44–CoPE (1870), Proc. Am.
Philos. Soc., 485.-JorDAN (1876), Man. Wert, 302,
Description.—Body moderately elongate; head longer than broad, rather narrowed
forward; profile rather steep, pretty evenly convex; dorsal region more or less ele-
vated ; mouth wide, the lower jaw projecting beyond the upper ; barbels long; anal
fin moderate, of about 20 rays ; caudal fin truncate; color blackish, belly pale; head
34 to 4 in length ; depth 4% to 5; D, I, 6; A. 20. Length 1 to 13 feet.
Habitat, Great Lake Region and Mississippi Valley to Manitoba. Not uncommon.
Diagnosis —This is the only species of Amiurus in which the lower jaw
is the longer. From Pelodichthys olivaris it may be known by the longer
anal fin, as well as by the very different form and coloration.
Habits.-This species is not very common in Ohio. It is taken in Lake
Erie with Amiurus catus, and occasionally in the Ohio River. It is sold
as a food fish with the ordinary “Bull-head.”
18. AMIURUS MARMORATUS (Holbrook) Jordan.
|WI:lrbled Catſisła.
Pimelodus marmoratus, Holbrook (1855), Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 54.
Amiurus marmoratus, JorDAN (1877), Bull, U. S. Nat, Mus., x, 89; (1878) Man, Wert, ed
2d., 332, 407.
Description.—Body rather stout and chubby; head moderately broad, with a nearly
even slope from the elevated base of the dorsal to the snout ; mouth rather wide; jaws
about equal ; barbels long, branchiostegals 10; dorsal spine high, more than half the length
of head, inserted nearer the adipose fin than the snout ; adipose fin very large; caudal
fin truncate; coloration usually variegated, the ground color dark, sharply mottled with
brown, greenish, and whitish, the coloration sometimes nearly plain ; head 34 in length;
depth 4; D. I, 6; A. 20. Length 13 feet.
Habitat, Southern Illinois to Florida, chiefly in lowland streams.
Diagnosis.-The color of this species is usually sufficiently distinctive;
when this is obliterated it cannot be readily separated from A melas.
Habits.--This species occurs in the Lower Ohio, but it has not yet been
noticed in the limits of the State. Nothing distinctive is known con-
cerning its habits, except that it is a Species of the bayous, and its range
is chiefly southward.
IBULL-HEAD–HORNPOUT. 793
19. AMIURUs MELAs (Rafinesque) Jordan and Copeland.
Sunn all Black Catſish.
Silurug melag, RAFINESQUE (1820), Quart. Journ. Sci. Lit. and Arts, Lond, 51.
Pimelodw8 mela 8, RAFINESQUE (1820), Ich. Oh, 66.
Amiurus melas, Jordan and CoPELAND (1876), Check List, 195.-JORDAN (1877), Bull. U.
S. Nat. Mus., x, 89; (1578) Man. Vert., Ed. 2d, 332.
Pimelodw8 catulus, GIRARD (1859), U. S. Pac. R. R. Surv., 208.
Pimelodus confinis, GIRARD (1859), Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 159.
Amiurus obesus, GILL (1862), Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., 45.—GILL (1876), Ich., Capt.
Simpson's Expd., 420.
Description —Body very stout, short and deep ; head moderate, somewhat contracted
forwards, the front steeply elevated, the body thick across the shoulders, rather rapidly
narrowed behind ; jaws nearly equal ; dorsal fin inserted nearer adipose fin than Snout ;
anal basis nearly 5 in length of body, the fin short and deep ; color very dark or blackish ;
membrane of anal fin almost always distinctly black, contrasting with the paler rays;
head 3%; depth 3} to 4 ; anal 18 to 20. Length 1 foot.
Habitat, Mississippi Valley and Great Lake region.
Diagnosis.--The short, chubby form and short and deep anal fin usually
readily distinguish this species from the closely related A. catus.
Habits.-This small species is rather common in the Ohio River. It is
confounded by the fishermen with A. Tanthocephalus and A. catus.
%
* as s t
20. AMyuRUs CATUs Gill.
Bull-Iread; Horm p out; Catfish.
Silurus catw8, LINNAEUS (1758), Syst. Nat., x, p. 305; (1766) xii, p. 504,-BLOCH, SCHN.
(1801), 387.-MITCHILL (1818), Journal Lit. and Philos. Soc. N. Y., i, 433,
Pimelodus catus, CUV. and VAL. (1840), xv., 124.—DRKAY (1842), Fishes N.Y., 182—STORER
(1846), Synopsis, 402,
Amiurus catus, GILL (1862), Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., 44.—GUNTHER (1864), Cat. Fishes,
v, 99 (excl. syn. pars),-Urſler and LUGGER (1876), Fishes of Maryland, 152.-JORDAN
(1877), Bull, U. S. Nat. Mus., x, 90; Man. Wert, E. U. S., 332.
Pimelodu.8 mebulogus, LESUEUR (1819), Mem. du Museum, v, 149.—STORER (1838), Rept.
Fishes Mass., 102.
Amiurus nebulogus, GILL (1862), Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., 44.—COPE (1870), Proc. Am.
Philos. Soc., 485.
Pimelodus atrarius, DEKAY (1842), Fishes N. Y., 185.-STORER (1846), Synopsis, 404;
(1855) Fishes of Mass., 279.
Amiurus atrarius, GILL (1862), Proc, Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist, 44.—Jordan (1876), Man.
Vert., 30,—NELSON (1876), Bull, Ills. Mus. Nat. Hist., 50.—JorDAN and CoPELAND
(1876), Check List, 159,-JORDAN (1877), Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 46.
Pimelodw8 felis, AGASSIZ (1850), Lake Superior, 281.
Amiurus felis, GILL (1862), Proc. Bost. Soo. Nat. Hist., 44.
Pimelodw8 hoyi, GIRARD (1859), Proc. Acad. Nat, Sci, Phila, 159.
Amiurus hoyi, GILL (1862), Proc, Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist, 44.—CoPE (1870), Proc. Am. Philos.
794 FISHES-SILURIDAE.
Soc., 486.-JORDAN (1876), Man. Wert., 301,–Jordan and CopFLAND (1876), Check
List, 159.
Pimelodu.8 vulpeculus, GIRARD (1859), Proc, Acad. Nat. Sci, Phila, 160.
Amiurus vulpeculus, GILL (1862), Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., 44.
Amiurus mispillien8is, COPE (1870), Proc. Am. Philos. Soc., 486.-JordAN and CoPKLAND
(1876), Check List, 159.
Description.—Body rather elongate; head rather broad, the front moderately steep, the
slope from snout to dorsal being nearly an unbroken line; upper jaw longer than lower;
anal fin with 21 or 22 rays, its base 4} in length of body; dorsal spine usually inserted
rather nearer adipose fin than snout; head 4; depth 4 to 43 in length; color dark yel-
lowish brown, varying to black, the belly white, with a tinge of yellow. Length 1 to
2 feet. *
Habitat, Great Lake region to Maine and South Carolina, the commonest Cat-fish
northward and east of the Alleghany Mountains.
Diagnosis.-The common Bullhead may be known by the presence of
21 or 22 anal rays, a projecting upper jaw, and a truncate or a very slightly
emarginate caudal fin.
Habits.-This is the commonest of the Cat-fishes in Lake Erie and its
tributaries, abounding in every brook and pond. In the Ohio River it
is very much less common, its place being taken by the closely related
mela8 and canthocephalus. It does not reach a large size, but is a very fair
food fish.
Thoreau speaks of the Horned-pout as a dull and blundering fellow,
like the Eel, vespertinal in its habits, and fond of the mud. It bites de-
liberately, as if about its business. They are extremely tenacious of life,
opening and shutting their mouths for half an hour after their heads
have been cut off. A blood-thirsty and bullying race of rangers, inhab-
iting the river bottoms, with ever a lance in rest, and ready to do battle
with their nearest neighbor. I have observed them in summer, when
every other one had a scar upon his back, where the skin was gone, the
mark of some fierce encounter. Sometimes the fry, not an inch long, are
seen darkening the shore with their myriads.
The following vigorous description of the habits of Amiurus catus, and
of its claims on the attention of the Fish Commission, is from the editor
of the Milwaukee Swn. Although written as a burlesque, it gives a
vivid and truthful idea of the “game " qualities of the Bull-head:
It seems that the action of the Milwaukee common council in withdrawing the use of
the water works from the fish commissioners will put a stop to the hatching of white
fish. This is as it should be. The white fish is an aristocratic fish that will not bite a
hook, and the propagation of this species of fish is wholly in the interest of wealthy
owners of fishing tubs, who have nets. By strict attention to business they can catch
all of the whitefish out of the lake a little faster than the State machine can put them in.
Poor people can not get a smell of white fish. The same may be said of brook trout.
CATFISH. 795
While they will bite a hook, it requires more machinery to catch them than ordinary
people can possess without mortgaging a house. A man has got to have a morocco book
of expensive flies, a fifteen dollar bamboo jointed rod, a three dollar trout basket, with
a hole morticed in the top, a corduroy suit made in the latest style, top boots of the
Wellington pattern, with red tassels in the straps, and a flask of Otard brandy in a
side pocket. Unless a man is got up in that style a speckled trout will see him in Chi-
cago first, and then it won’t bite. The brook trout is even more aristocratic than the
white fish, and should not be propagated at public expense.
But there are fish that should be propagated in the interest of the people. There is
a species of fish that never looks at the clothes of the man who throws in the bait, a
fish that takes whatever is thrown to it, and when once hold of the hook never tries to
shake a friend, but submits to the inevitable, crosses its legs and says, “Now I lay me,”
and comes out on the bank and seems to enjoy being taken. It is a fish that is the friend
of the poor, and one that will sacrifice itself in the interest of humanity. That is the
fish that the State should adopt as its trade-mark, and cultivate friendly relations with
and stand by. We allude to the Bull-head.
The Bull-head never went back on a friend. To catch the Bull-head it is not neces-
essary to tempt his appetite with porter-bouse steak, or to display an expensive lot of
fishing tackle. A pin hook, a piece of liver, and a cistern pole is all the capital required
to catch a Ball-head, He lies upon the bottom of a stream or pond in the mud thinking.
There is no fish that does more thinking, or has a better head for grasping great ques-
tions, or chunks of liver, than the Bull-head. His brain is large, his heart beats for
humanity, and if he can’t get liver, a piece of tin tomato can will make a meal for
him. It is an interesting study to watch a boy catch a Bull-head. The boy knows
where the Bull-head congregates, and when he throws in his hook it is dollars to but-
tons that “in the near future” he will get a bite.
The Bull-head is democratic in all its instincts. If the boy’s shirt is sleveless, his hat
crownless, and his pantaloons a bottomless pit, the Bull head will bite just as well as
though the boy is dressed in purple and fine linen, with knee-breeches and plaid stock-
ings. The Bull-head seems to be dozing on the muddy bottom, and a stranger would
say that he would not bite. But wait. There is a movement of his continuation, and
his cow-catcher moves gently toward the piece of liver. He does not wait to smell of
it, and canvass in his mind whether the liver is fresh. It makes no difference to him.
He argues that here is a family out of meat. “My country calls and I must go,” says
the Bull-head to himself, and he opens his mouth and the liver disappears.
It is not certain that the boy will think of his bait for half an hour, but the Bull-head
is in no hurry. He is in the mud and proceeds to digest the liver. He realizes that his
days will not be long in the land, or water, more properly speaking, and he argues that
if he swallows the bait and digests it before the boy pulls him out, he will be just so
much abead. Finally, the boy thinks of his bait, pulls it out, and the Bull-head is
landed on the bank, and the boy cuts him open to get the hook out. Some fish only
take the bait gingerly, and are only caught around the Selvage of the mouth, and they
are comparatively easy to dislodge. Not so with the Bulk-head. He says if liver is a
good thing, you can’t have too much of it, and it tastes good all the way down. The
boy gets down on his knees to dissect the Bull-head, and get his hook, and it may be
that the boy swears. It would not be astonishing, though he must feel, when he gets
his hook out of the hidden recesses of the Bull-head like the minister who took up a
collection and didn’t get a cent, though he expressed thanks at getting his hat back.
There is one drawback to the Bull-head, and that is his horns. We doubt if a boy ever
796 FISHES-SILURIDAE.
descended into the patent insides of a Bull-head to mine for limerick hooks, that did
not, before the work was done, run a horn into his vital parts. But the boy seems to ex-
pect it, and the Bull-head enjoys it, We have seen a Bull-head lie on the bank and be-
come dry, and to all appearances dead to all that was going on, and when a boy Sat
down on him, and got a horn in his elbow, and yelled murder, the Bull-head would grin
from ear to ear, and wag his tail as though applauding for an emoore.
The Bull-head never complains. We have seen a boy take a dull knife and proceed
to follow a fish line down a Bull-head from head to the end of his subsequent anatomy,
and all the time there would be an expression of sweet peace on the countenance of the
Bull-head, as though he enjoyed it. If we were preparing a picture lepresenting “Re-
signation,” for a chromo to give to subscribers, and wished to represent a scene of Suf-
fering, in which the sufferer was light-hearted, seeming to recognize that all was for the
best, we should take for the subject a Bull-head, with a boy searching with a knife for a
long-lost fish-hook.
The Bull-head is a fish that has no scales, but in lieu thereof has a fine India rubber
skin, that is as far ahead of fiddle-string material for strength and durability as possible.
The meat of the Bull-head is not as choice as that of the Mackere), but it fills up a
stomach just as well, and The Swn insists that the fish commissioners shall drop the
hatching of aristocratic fish, and give the Bull-heads a chance.
21. AMIURUs XANTHOCEPHALUs (Rafinesque) Gill.
Srmall Yellow Catfish.
Siluru.8 acanthocephalus, RAFINESQUE (1820), Quart. Journ. Sci. Lit, and Arts, London, 51.
Pimelodus wanthocephalus, RAFINESQUE (1820), Ich. Ohiensis, 66.--KIRTLAND (1838), Rept,
Zool, Ohio, 169, 194.—STORER (1846), Synopsis, 405.
Amiurus acanthocephalus, GILL (1862), Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist, 44.—Jordan and CoPE-
LAND (1876), Check List, 159.-JORDAN (1877), Ann. Lyc, Nat. Hist., N. Y., .
Pimelodus catus, KIRTLAND, Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist, v, 330 (excl. syn.).
Amiurus albidus, Jordan (1876), Man, Vert., 302 (not Pimelodu.8 albidus LeSueur).-NEL-
SoN (1876), Bull, Ills. Mus, Nat. Hist, 50.
Amiurus nebulogus, Jordan (1877), Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci, Phila., 45.
Description.—Body stout and deep, much as in A. natalis, head very broad, about as
broad as long, the slope from snout to base of dorsal quite uneven, there being a more
or less decided angle at the occiput; mouth very broad; dorsal spine inserted nearer
adipose fin than snout ; anal fin short and low, its rays usually 19; caudal fin truncate
or slightly emarginate; coloration rather pale yellowish brown; head 4 in length;
depth 4 to 4%. Length 1 foot.
Habitat, Ohio Valley.
Diagnosis.--This species resembles A. natalis, but differs in the short
anal fin. The broad head separates it from A. catus, and the amal fin is
lower and smaller than in the latter Species.
Habits.-This small species abounds in the ponds and bayous of South-
ern Ohio and Indiana. I have not noticed it in any of the streams trib-
utary to Lake Erie. Its habits offer nothing distinctive.
MUD CATFISH. 797
GENUs 12, PELODICHTBYS. Rafinesque.
Pilodictis, Rafinesque (1819), Prodrome de Soixante dix Genres, etc., in Journal de
Physique, de Chymie, et d’Histoire Naturelle, Paris, 422.
Leptops, RAFINESQUE (1820) Ichthyologia, Ohiensis, 64.
Opladelw8, RAFINESQUE (1820), Ichthyologia, Ohiensis, 64.
Ilictis, RAFINESQUE (1820, Ichthyologia, Ohiensis, 66.
Pylodiclis, RAFINESQUE (1820), Ichthyologia, Ohiensis, 67.
EIopladelus, GILL (1862), Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist, 45, and of most late authors.
Pelodichthys, GILL and Jordan, MSS.–Jorda N (1876), Ann. Lyc. Nat. Hist, N. Y., .
Pimelodus sp., KIRTLAND, CUV. and VAL., et Auct.
Etymology, pelos, mud ; ichthus, fish.
Type, Pilodictis limočić, Raf. = Silurug olivaris, Raf.
Body much elongated, very slender, much depressed, anteriorly broader than high ;
head large, very wide and depressed, laterally expanded, above broadly ovate, and in
profile cuneiform ; skin very thick, entirely concealing the skull; supraoccipital bone
entirely free from the head of the second interspinal; eyes small; mouth very large,
anterior and transverse; the lower jaw always projects beyond the upper; teeth in
broad villiform bands on the intermaxillaries and dentaries; the intermaxillary band
is convex anteriorly, and proceeds to the insertion of the maxillaries, where it is ab-
ruptly angularly deflected, and proceeds backward as an elongated triangular extension.
The band at the Symphysis is slightly divided and anteriorly separated by a small tri-
angular extension of the labial membrane; the lower dental is anteriorly semicircular
and attenuated to the corners of the mouth ; there are about twelve branchiostegal
rays on each side; the dorsal fin is situated over the posterior half of the interval be-
tween the pectorals and ventrals, and has a spine and about seven branched rays; the
spine is rather small, and more or less enveloped in the thick skin; the adipose fin is
large, and has an elongated base resting over the anal; it is very obese and inclines
rapidly backward; it is rather less free posteriorly than in Amiurus; the anal fin is
small; it commences far behind the anus, is a little longer than high, and is composed
of about fourteen rays; the caudal fin is oblong, subtruncated, placed on a vertical
basis, and with numerous accessory simple rays, recurrent above and beneath the caudal
peduncle; the pectorals have a broad, compressed spine, Serrated or dentated on its
external and internal margins, and with the prolonged fleshy integument obliquely
striated; the ventrals are rounded and have nine rays, one simple and eight branched;
vent well behind ventrals, much in advance of anal; coloration brown or yellowish,
more or less marbled or spotted. But one species is yet known. Å
22. PELODICHTHYS OLIVARIS (Rafinesque) Gill and Jordan.
WHuld Catfish.
Silurus olivaris, RAFINESQUE (1818), Am, Monthly Mag., iii, Sept., 355.
Hopladelus olivaris, GILL (1862), Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist, 45–CoPE (1867), Journ.
Acad. Nat. Sei, Phila., 237,-JORDAN (1876), Man. Wert, 303; (1877), Proc, Acad.
Nat. Sci. Phila., 46–NELson (1877), Bull. Ills. Mus. Nat. Hist, 50–GILL (1876),
Ich. Capt. Simpson's Expl., 426–JORDAN and COPELAND (1876), Check List, 170.
Pelodichthys olivaris, JORDAN (1876), Ann. Lyo. Nat. Hist, N. Y., -; Bull. U. S. Nat.
Mus., x, 1877, 95; Man, Wert, 2d Ed., 1878, 334.
798 FISHES-SILURIDAE.
Glamis limosw8, RAFINESQUE (1818), Am. Monthly Mag., iii, 447, and iv., 107 (name only),
Pilodictis limoğug, RAFINESQUE (1819), Journ. de Physique, 422,
Pylodiclis limosus, RAFINESQUE (1820), Ich, Ohiensis, 67.
Silurus mebulosw8, RAFINESQUI, (1820), Quart, Journ. Sci. Lit, and Arts, London, 50.
Pimelodus mebwlogus, RAFINESQUE (1820), Ich. Oh, 64.
Silurus viscosus, RAFINESQUE (1820), Quart. Journ. Sci. Lit and Arts, 50.
Pimelodus viscogw8, RAFINESQUE (1820), Ich, Oh., 66.
Silurus limoğw8, RAFINESQUE (1820), Quart. Journ. Lit. and Arts, 51.
Pimelodus limosus, RAFINESQUE (1820), Ich. Oh, 67.—KIRTLAND (1846), Bost. Journ. Nat.
Hist., iv, 335,-STORER (1846), Synopsis, 404. -
Pimelodw8 punctulatus, CUV. and VAL. (1840), xv, 134.—DEKAY (1842), Fishes, N. Y., 187.
—STORER (1846), Synopsis, 403–GUNTHER (1864), Cat. Fishes, v, -. .
Pimelodw8 amew8, CUV. and VAL. (1840), xv, 135.—DEKAY (1842), l. c.—STORER (1846),
1. C., 403.
Description.—Body very long and slender, depressed forwards, closely compressed
behind ; head extremely flat, the lower jaw the longer; barbels short ; dorsal spine
small, half the height of the fin, enveloped in thick skin ; pectoral gpine very strong,
flattened, serrate behind ; caudal fin Sorūewhat emarginate ; anal fin short, its base
about 7 in body ; coloration mottled brown aud yellowish, whitish below ; bead, 34 in
length ; depth, 5%; D., I, 7; A., 15. Length, 2 to 3 feet.
Habitat, Ohio Valley to Iowa and Southward, abundant in the larger streams.
Diagnosis.-The flat head and strong!y projecting jaw distinguish this
species at once from our other Catfishes.
Habits.--This species abounds in the Ohio River and its larger tribu-
taries. It reaches a larger size than any other except Amiurus migricans
and is used for food, although its unattractive exterior causes it to be less
valued than the other large Species, A3 its name indicates, it is pre-
eminently a mud loving species.
GENUS 13, NOTURUS. Rafinesque.
Noturus, RAFINESQUE (1818), Am. Monthly Mag., iv, 41.
Schilbeodes, BLEEKRR (1858), Ichthyologiſe Archipelagi Indici Prodromus, vol. i., Siluri
(Acta Societarum Indo-Nederlandica, vol. iv), 258, (S. gyrinus, Mit ).
Etymology, moto8, back ; oura, tail (means tail over back, Raf.).
Type, Noturus flavus, Raf. f
Body more or less elongate, 2nteriorly subcylindrical, thence more or less compressed;
head above ovate and depressed, with a slight longitudinal furrow, branching into a
transverse depression on the nape; skin very thick, entirely concealing the bones;
Supraoccipital entirely free from the head of the Second interspinal ; eyes small or of
moderate size; mouth anterior, rather large, and transverse; upper jaw usually more
or less projecting beyond the lower ; teeth Subulate, closely set in a broad band in each
jaw, the lower one interrupted, the upper continuous; branchiostegals nine; dorsal fin
situated over the posterior half of the interval between the pectoral and ventral fins,
with a sharp, short, entire spine, and seven branched rays; adipose fin long and low,
keel-like, its posterior lower margin being adnate to the tail, and usually connected
with the caudal fin ; caudal fin obliquely truncated or rounded, inserted on an
YELLOW STONE CAT. 799
obliquely rounded base ; numerous rudimentary rays in front of it both above and
below ; anal fin short, with 12 to 20 rays; ventrals rounded, nine rayed; pectoral fins
with a sharp spine, either smooth, grooved or dentate behind ; vent some distance in
front of anal fin ; lateral line complete. -
The species are numerous and of small size. The group is less homogeneous than
Ichthalurug and Amiurus.
ANALYSIS OF SPECIES OF NOTURU8.
*Premaxillary band of teeth with a strong backward process on each side (subgenus
Noturus).
a. Pectoral spine serrate in front, nearly entire behind ; adipose fin notched.
FLAVUS. 23.
**Premaxillary band of teeth without lateral backward processes (subgenus
Schilbeodes).
b. Pectoral spine serrate behind, rough in front; adipose fin notched.
c. Pectoral spines shortish, about one-third length of head, weakly serrate; jaws
equal. ſº e * ſº & ſº ſº EXILIS. 24.
cc. Pectoral spines very strong, more than half length of the head; upper jaw
longer. e • MIURUS. 25.
bb. Pectoral spine grooved behind ; adipose fin high and continuous; stout.
SIALIS. 26.
23. NoTURUS FLAvus Rafinesque.
Yellow Storne Cat 5 Cornhursora Stone Cat.
Noturus flavus, RAFINKsquE (1818), Am. Monthly Mag, and Critical Review, p. 41 ; Ich.
Oh., 1820, 68–KIRTLAND (1833), Rept. Zool. Ohio, 167, 195; Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist,
iv, 1846, 336 —STORER (1846), Synopsis, 406–GILL (1862), Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat.
Hist., 45 —CoPE (1864), Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila , 277; Journ, Acad. Nat. Sci.
Phila., 1869, 237,-GUNTHER (1854), Cat. Fishes, vi, 104.—UHLER and LUGGER (1876),
Fishes Maryland.-JorDAN (1877), Ann. Lyc, Nat. Hist., N. Y.,-.
Noturus luteus, RAFINESQUE (1819), Journ. de Physique, 421–JorDAN (1877), Bull. U.
S. Nat. Mus, x., 99; Man, Vert, 2d. ed., 1878, 335.
Noturus occidentalis, GILL (1862), Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., 45; (1876) Capt. 3 Simpson's
Rept., 423.-Jordan and COPELAND (1876), Check List, 160.
Noturus platycephalus, GUNTHER (1864), Catalogue Fishes, v, 104.—JORDAN and CoPE-
LAND (1876), Check List, 160.
Description—Body elongate; head depressed, broad and flat, nearly as broad as long;
middle region of body subcylindrical ; tail compressed ; a strong keel on the back
behind the dorsa), leading to the adipose fin ; adipose fin deeply notched, but continuous
with the caudal fin; dorsal spine very short ; pectoral spine retrorsely serrated in
front, slightly rough or nearly entire behind, its length contained three times in
distance from snout to dorsal ; color nearly uniform yellowish-brown, sometimes black-
ish above; fins yellowish edged ; head, 44; width of head, 5%; depth, 23; distance from
snout to dorsal 3; anal rays, 16, Length, 10 to 15 inches.
Habitat, Canada to Virginia, Missouri, and Montana, abounding in the larger streams.
800 FISHES-SILURIDAE.
Diagnosis.--This species may be known from the other Stone Cats by
its greater size, and by the U-shaped band of premaxillary teeth.
Habits.-Like the other Stone Cats, this is a sluggish fish, lurking
under stones and logs. It is much more abundant in the Ohio and its
immediate tributaries than in the streams of the interior. Although
much the largest species of the genus, it is too small to be valued as
food
24. NOTURUs ExILIS Nelson.
Slender Stone Cat.
Notwrus exilia, NELSoN (1876), Bull. Ills, Mus. Nat, Hist., 51.—Jord AN and COPELAND
(1876), Check List, 160,—JORDAN (1877), Ann. Lyc. Nat. Hist. N. Y. — ; Bull, U. S.
Nat. Mus., x, 1877, 10; Man. Vert. E. U. S., 2d, Ed, 1878, 335.
Description.—Body elongated, the head small, narrow, very much depressed ; the jaws
neatly equal ; premaxillary band of teeth without backward processes; dorsal spine
low, nearer snout than anal; pectoral spines short, nearly straight, about one-third
length of head, slightly retrorse, serrate without, with about six small straight teeth
within, which are not one-third as long as the spine is broad; color pale yellowish-
brown, nearly plain ; tip of dorsal black; head 4+ in length ; depth about 6; distance
from snout to dorsal 3 1-5 in length ; anal rays 14 or 15, Length, 3 to 5 inches.
Habitat, Indiana to Missouri and Kansas, not yet noticed in Ohio.
Diagnosis—This species may be known from the other Ohio species by
the small, rough pectoral spines, and by the nearly equal jaws.
Habits.-This species has not yet been noticed east of the tributaries
of the Illinois, but as it will probably be found in Ohio, it is inserted
here. It is one of the Smallest and most slender species, and its habits
offer nothing distinctive.
25. NOTURUs MIURUs Jordan.
Variegated Stonne Cat.
Noturus miurus, JORDAN, MSS.—JORDAN and COPELAND (1876), Check List, 160,-
JoBDAN (1877), Ann, Lyc, Nat. Hist, 46 (name only); Ann. Lyc. Nat. Hist. N. Y.,
1877, −; Bull. U. S. Nat, Mus., x, 1878, 100; Man. Wert, 2d. Ed., 1878, 336.
Description.—Body moderately elongate, the dorsal region more or less elevated ; head
moderate, the upper jaw the longer; pectoral spines very strong, curved, their inner
serrae very strong, spine-like, more than half as long as the spine is broad; adipose fin
continuous, high, interrupted by a deep notch which does not, however, break the con-
tinuity of the fin; the rudimentary caudal rays beginning in the notch; color grayish,
the back with four definite, broad, dark cross-bars; one before the dorsal, one behind it,
one on the middle of the adipose fin, and one Small one behind ; top of head, and tips
of fins black; distance from snout to dorsal 2% in length; pectoral spine 2+ in this dis-
tance; head 3% to 4; depth 4% to 5; A, 12 or 13, Length 3 or 4 inches.
Habitat, Ohio Valley to Great Lake region and south to Louisiana.
CHUBBY STONE CAT. 801
Diagnosis.--From the other Ohio Cat fishes, this species may be known
by the large, saw-like pectoral spine, and by the variegated coloration.
Habits.--This pretty little fish abounds in most of the Small streams
of Ohio, especially southward. It is found under stones and logs. It
is an attractive species for the aquarium.
26. Not URUs s1ALIs Jordan.'
Chubby Stone Cat.
Notwrug gialis, Jorn AN (1877), Bull, U. S. Nat, Mus., x, 102; Man. Verb., 2d. Ed., 1878,
337.
Description,-Body short and thick, compressed behind ; head very large and broad,
less depressed than in the others; spines stout and rather long, those of the pectoral
(ins straight, about half the length of the head, 9% in the distance to the dorsal fin;
smooth externally, grooved within ; dorsal higher than long, its insertion nearer anal fin
than Snout ; adipose fin high and continuous, not at all notched ; barbels short, the
lower darker; color nearly uniform yellowish brown, without dark bars or blotches; a
conspicuous narrow black lateral streak and sometimes two dorsal streaks; head, 3% to
4; depth 4 to 5 ; distance from snout to dorsal 2% ; width of head 3% Length, 3 or 4
inches.
Habitat, Mississippi Vailey to Red River of the North.
Diagnosis.-This species may be known by its chubby form, its plain,
pale Coloration, and by the absence of Serrations on the pectoral spine.
Habits.-The habits of this species are similar to those of N. miurus.
The two species reach about the same size ; they are usually found
together and are about equally abundant in Ohio.
(ORDER 8. TELEOCEPHALI. THE TYPICAL
FISHES.
This order comprises the vast majority of recent fishes, and is characterized rather
negatively as wanting the peculiarities of the other orders, than as having any positive
traits of its own. In general, the maxillaries are normally developed, and distinct
from the premaxillaries, not forming the base of a long barbel. The gills are of the
ordinary pattern, and the gill, openings are in front of the pectorals and not usually very
narrow ; the opercle, subopercle, preopercle, and interopercle are all developed. This
group includes the various soft-rayed fishes, with the ventrals abdominal, the scales
generally cycloid and the air-bladder connected by a duct with the alimentary canal,
the Malacoptert or Physostomi of authors, and the spinous rayed fishes, with the ventrals
thoracic, the scales usually ctenoid and tho air bladder without duct, the Acanthopteri
OT PRy360hyst of authors, as well as a large number of forms variously intermediate or
&berrant (teleos, perfect; kephale, head; the skull having all its parts developed).
51
802 FISHES-CATO STOMIDAE.
ARTIFICAL KEY TO THE FAMILIES OF TELEOCEPHALI Found IN OHIo.
*Ventral fins present, abdominal.
t Rayed dorsal fin single : no spines.
a, Adipose fin present.
b. Scales ctenoid ; lateral margins of upper jaw formod by pre-maxillaries alone.
- PERCOPSID/IE, 14.
bb. Scales cycloid ; lateral margiñs of upper jaw formed by maxillaries.
& SALMONIDAE. 13.
aa, Adipose fin wanting.
c. Abdomen compressed to a sharp edge, which is armed with hard plates or
Serratures.
d Month small, the upper jaw the longer; maxillary simple,
DOROSOMATIDAE, 10.
dd. Mouth rather large, the jaws about equal; maxillary in three parts,
CLUPEIDAE, 11.
co Abdomen not serrated.
e, Jaws toothless; pharyngeals falciform.
f. Dorsal rays 11 or more ; pharyngeal teeth very numerous in a single row.
CATO STOMIDAE 8,
ff, Dorsal rays 7 to 9; pharyngeal teeth few. . . . . CYPRINIDAE. 9.
ee. Jaws with teeth,
g, Vent normal, behind the ventrals ; eyes developed.
h. Head naked ; teeth strong; scales large, silvery. HyoposTIDE. 12.
hh. Head scaly more or less ; dorsal fin inserted posteriorly, opposite anal or
nearly so.
i. Upper jaw not protractile.
j. Jaws very long, armed with strong unequal, movable teeth.
- ESO CIDAE, 18.
jj. Jaws short, armed with bands of small teeth. . UMI; RIDAE. 17.
ii. Upper jaw extremely protractile ; head flattened above; mouth small ;
caudal rounded. e & º † te CYPRINOIDONTID/E, 16.
gg. Went jugular, before the ventral fins; eyes concealed. w
AMIBLYOPSID/E, 15.
f : Rayed dorsal fins two, the anterior of a few feeble spines ; body elongate, with a
- silvery lateral band. te e e à * tº ATHE RINIDAE, 19.
**Ventral fins present, thoracic or jugular,
a, Skin covered with scales,
b. Anterior three or more rays of dorsal ſin spinous; ventrals thoracic.
c. Dorsal with more than five spines.
d. Vomer with teeth.
e. Branchiostegal 7; dorsal fins two; preopercle wanting.
PERCIDAI, 24,
ee. Branchiostegals 6; preopercle nearly or quite entire.
f. Anal spines one or two; dorsal fins two. . ETITEostomATID/E, 23.
ff. Anal spines three to nine ; dorsal fin continuous. *
CENTRARCFIIDAE. 22.
dd. Womer toothless; anal spines two.
g. Second anal spine not larger than first. . . ETHEOSTOMATIDA, 23.
SUCKERS. 803
gg. Second anal spine many times as large as the first. SCLENIDAE. 25.
cc. Doral fin continuous, with less than five spines.
h, Went anterior, near or in front of ventrals ; bones of head serrated.
APHODODERIDAE. 20.
hh. Vent normal; bones of head entire. . . . . ELASSOMATID/E, 21.
bö, Anterior dorsal of soft rays only ; a barbel at tip of lower jaw.
GADIDAE. 27.
aa. Skin naked or prickly; head broad ; dorsal fins two. . Cotti D/E, 26.
F A M IL Y V III. C. A T O S T O M I D AE. T H E SU C K E R S.
Body oblong or elongated, covered with cycloid scales of moderate or large size;
head moderate, naked, the opercular bones normally developed ; nostrils double ; mouth
commonly more or less inferior, usually with thickened lips ; the upper jaw is formed
in the middle by the small, lamelliform premaxillaries and on the side by the max-
illaries; no barbels; no teeth in the jaws ; pharyngeal bones falciform, with a single
row of many compressed teeth which grow smaller upward ; branchial openings
restricted to the sides, separated by a broad is thruus; branchiostegals three; dorsal
variously developed, the number of rays from nine to fifty ; anal short and high ; caudal
emarginated or forked ; pectorals placed low : ventrals abdominal ; intestinal canal
very long ; stomach simple, without pyloric coeca ; air bladder large, not protected by a
bony capsule, divided by transverse contrictions into two or three regions. Fishes of the
fresh water, all but two of the known species being Agerican. The latest authority on
the group (Jordan, Bull, U. S. Nat, Mus., xii, 1878) recognizes 55 species, arranged in 13
genera. These fishes feed chiefly on vegetable substances, and on worms, ova, insect
larvae, crustaceans, and small mollusks. All are used as food, but none of them are
much valued as the flesh is coarse, Soft, tasteless, and full of Small bones. The young of
some of the species abound in every brook and pond in the State of Ohio, and they
form one of \he most characteristic features of our fish fauna,
ANALYSIS OF GENERA OF CATOS TOMIDAE.
*Dorsal fin elongated, more or less elevated in front, of 25 or more rays; air bladder
in two parts,
t Fontanelle present ; body oblong ovate ; scales large; head large.
a. Mouth large, terminal, protractile forwards ; lips thin, nearly smooth.
ICHTHYOBUS, 14.
aa. Mouth small, subinferior, protractile downward. -
b. Pharyngeal bones strong, the teeth coarse and large, increasing in size down-
ward. . © ë. tº & * • '. ... BUBALICHTHYs. 15.
bb. Pharyngeal bones, narrow, their teeth thin and weak. . CARPIODES. 16.
ff Fontanelle obliterated by the union of the parietal bones; body elongate;
scales small ; head small. e ſº tº º º * CYCLEPTUS, 17.
**Dorsal fin short, subquadrate, with ten to eighteen rays; body oblong or elongate.
0. Air bladder in two parts.
d. Lateral line complete; lips papillose ; scales moderate or small.
\ CATOSTOMUs. 18.
dd Lateral line interrupted or wanting ; lips plicate ; scales large.
804 FISHES-CATO STOMIDAE.
6. Lateral line entirely wanting ; mouth somewhat oblique.
ERIMYZON. 19.
66. Lateral line incomplete, obsolete in the young, becoming more perfectly
developed with age, but always interrupted ; mouth inferior.
MINYTREMA. 20.
cc. Air bladder in three parts; lateral line developed.
f. Mouth normal, the upper jaw protractile, the lower lip entire or lobed, usually
plicate.
g. Pharyngeal bones moderate, the teeth compressed, growing gradually
larger downward; mouth rather small. . . . . MYxos roMA, 21.
gg, Pharyngeal bones very strong, with the lower teeth much enlarged, sub-
cylindrical and truncate ; upper teeth small and compressed ; mouth
large, oblique. & ſº * • . ſº . PLACOPHARYNX. 22.
ff. Mouth singular, the upper lip not protractile, greatly enlarged, the lower lip
developed as two separate lobes; operculum very short.
QUASSILABIA. 23.
GENUS 14, ICHTHYOBU.S. Rafinesque.
Amblodon, RAFINESQUE, Journal de Physique de Chymie et d’Histoire Naturelle, Paris,
421, 1819 (part).
Ictiobus, RAFINESQUE, Ich, Oh., 1820, p, 55. (As subgenus of Catostomw8 )
Ichthyobus, AGASSIZ, Am. Journ. Sci. and Arts, 1855, p. 195.
Type, Amblodon bubalus, RAIFINISQUE.
Etymology, ichthu.8, fish; boug, bull or buffalo ; i.e., buffalo-fish,
Head very large and strong, wide and deep, its length 33 to 3% in that of the body,
its upper surface broad and depressed ; eye moderate, wholly anterior in position, the
middle of the head being entirely behind it ; suborbital bones proportionately narrow ;
fontanelle large, well open ; opercular apparatus largely developed, the suboperculum
broad, the operculum broad, strongly furrowed ; mouth very large for a Sucker, ter-
minal, protractile forwards, the middle of the premaxillaries rather above the line of
the middle of the eye, the posterior edge of the maxillary extending about to the line of
the nostrils ; mandible very Strong, oblique, placed at an angle of 45 degrees or more
when the mouth is closed, its posterior end extending to beyond opposite the front of
the eye, its length a little less than one-third that of the head; lips very little developed,
the upper narrow and smooth, Scarcely appreciable, the lower narrow, rather full on the
sides, but reduced to a narrow rim in front, entirely destitute both of papillae and plicae;
jaws without cartilaginous sheath ; muciferous system of head well developed ; isthmus
marrow ; pharyngeal bones in form intermediate between those of Carpiodes and those of
Bubalichthys, the outer surface of the arch standing outwards, and presenting a porous
outer margin ; the peduncle of the symphysis is much longer proportionally, and more
pointed than in Carpiodes and Bubalichthy}. The teeth are very numerous, Small, thin and
compressed as in Carpiodes, but the lower ones are gradually larger than the upper ones;
their inner edge slanting outward, and not uniformily arched as in Bubalichthys, or
truncate as in Cycleptub, the innermost margin rising Somewhat in the shape of a pro-
jecting cusp; gill-rakers of anterior arch long and slender above, becoming shorter
downward ; body heavy, robust, not especially arched above nor greatly compressed,
the form somewhat elliptical, the depth 23 to 3% in the length of the body; scales large,
thick, nearly equal over the body, their posterior edges somewhat serrate, the lateral
TED-MOUTH BUFFALU) FISH. 805
line well developed, but not as distinct as in Carpiodes, slightly decurved anteriorly, the
number of scales in its course 36 to 42; 13 to 15 in a transverse series from dorsal to ven-
trals ; dorsal fin with an elongate basis, its number of rays 25 to 30, the anterior ray8
somewhat elevated, their length about half that of the base of the fin ; caudal not much
forked ; anal fin not much elevated, its rays about 9 in number ; pectorals and ventrals
moderate, the latter with about 10 rays ; sexual peculiarities, if any, unknown ; colora-
tion dark, not silvery, above dusky olive ; lower fins more or less black; air bladder
with two chambers ; size very large. But one species is certainly known.
27. ICHTHYop Us BU BALUs (Rafinesque) Agassiz.
Red- annouath Buſſalo Fish ; Large-run outined Buffalo.
Amblodom bubalug, RAFINESQUE, Journal de Physique, 1818, 421.
Catostomus bubalus, RAFINESQUE, Am. Month. Mag, and Crit. Rev., 1818, 354; Ich. Oh,
1820, 55.
Ichthyobus bubalus, AGASSIZ, Am. Journ. Sci. Arts, 2d series, xix, 1855, 196—JoBDAN,
Fishes of Idd., 1875, 222; Bull. Buffalo Soc. Nat. Hist., 1876, 95; Man. Vert, 1876,
298; Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila, 1877, 72; Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., ix, 1877, 34; Man.
Vert., 2d Ed., 1878, 322 ; Bull U. S. Nat. Mus., xii, 1878, 214.—Jordan and CoPE-
LAND, Check List, 1876, 158.-JORDAN and GILBERT, in Klippart's Rept., 1876, 53.−
NELSON, Bull. No. 1, Ills. Mus. Nat. Hist., 1876. 49.
Sclerognathw8 cyprimella, CUVIER and VALENCIENNES, Hist. Nat, des Poissons, xvii, 1844,
477, pl. 518.-STORER, Synopsis, 1846, 428.-GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes Brit, Mus., vii,
1868, 24.
Foththyobus cyprinella AGASSIZ, Am. Journ. Sci. Arts, 1855, 196.—JoBDAN, Man. Vert,
1876, 298.—Jordan and Cop ELAND, Check List, 1876, 158.
Ichthyobus rauchii, A GASS1z, Am. Journ. Sc. Arts, 2d series, xix, 1855, 196.-PUTNAM,
Bull. Mus. Comp. Zool, 1863, 10 —JORDAN and COPELAND, Check List, 1876, 158.-
Jordan and GILBERT, in Klippart's Rept., 1870, 53.−JORDAN, Man. Vert., 2d. Ed.,
1878, 323. :
Mothyobus 8tolleyi, AGASSIZ, Am. Journ. Sci Arts, 2d Series, xix, 1855, 196—JGRDAN and
COPELAND, Check List, 1876, 158,
Iothyobus ischyrus, NELSON, MSS.—JORDAN, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1877, 72–
Jordan and CoPELAND, Check List, 1876, 158.-JORDAN and GILBERT, in Klippart's
Rept., 1876, 53.−JorDAN, Man. Wert, 2d Ed., 1878,
Description.—Body robust, moderately compressed, the outline somewhat elliptical,
\out the back rather more curved than the belly; depth 2% to 3% in length ; head very
large and thick, 3% in length of body ; opercular apparatus very strong, the operculum
itself forming nearly half the length of the head ; scales very large; developed rays of
the dorsal 26 to 29; anal rays 9; ventral 10; scales 7-37 to 41-6; coloration dull brown-
ish-olive, not silvery ; fins dusky; size very large, reaches a length of nearly three feet
and a weight of 20 to 30 pounds.
Habitat, Mississippi Valley, generally abundant in the larger streams.
Diagnosis —This species is at once distinguished from the other Buffalo
Fishes by the large terminal mouth and very thin smooth lips.
Habits.--This species abounds in the Ohio River and its larger tribu-
806 FISHES-CATO STOM II) AE.
taries in company with the species of Bubalichthys and Carpiodes. It
reaches a considerable size, a well grown specimen weighing 15 to 25
pounds. It is used everywhere as food, and sells readily, but the flesh is
full of small bones, scarcely worth the picking. According to Professor
Forbes it feeds chiefly on Entom08tracans.
GENUS 15. BUBALICHTHYS, Agassiz .
Bubalichthys, AGASSIZ, Am. Journ. Sci. Arts, 1805, 92.
Sclerogmathus, GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes, Brit, Mus, vii, p. 22, 1868,
Catostom u8 et Carpiodes, sp, of authors.
Type, Carpiodes wru9, Agassiz.
Etymology, boubalos, buffalo ; ichthus, fish.
Head moderate or rather large, deep and thick, its superior outline rapidly rising, its
length about four in that of the body ; eye moderate, median or rather anterior in posi-
tion ; suborbital bones comparatively narrow ; fontanelle always present and widely
open ; mouth moderate or small, more or less inferior, the mandible short, little oblique,
or typically quite horizontal, the mandible less than one-third the length of the head;
the premaxillaries in the closed mouth below the level of the lower part of the orbit;
lips rather thin, thicker than in Ichthyobus, the upper protractile, narrow, plicate, the .
plicae sometimes broken up into granules; lower lip comparatively full (for a Buffalo-
fish), faintly plicate, the plicae broken up into granules, the lower lip having the general
ſh-shaped form seen in Carpiodes ; jaws without cartilaginous sheath ; muciferous system
well developed ; opercular apparatus well developed, but less so than in Ichthyobus, the
operculum strongly rugose; isthmus moderate ; pharyngeal bones triangular, with large
teeth, which increase in size from above down ward ; teeth compressed, their grinding
edge blunt, slightly arched in the middle, and Provided with a little cusp along the
inner margin, which is hardly detached from the crown, and does not rise above the
surface; gill-rakers of anterior arch slender and stiff above, growing shorter downward ;
body ovate or oblong, the dorsal outline more or less arched, the sides of the body com-
pressed, the ventral outline curved also, but to a less degree ; scales very large, about
equal over the body, their posterior outlines somewhat serrate ; lateral line well deve-
loped, nearly straight, with 35 to 42 scales, 12 to 14 in a cross-series from ventrals to
dorsal; dorsal fin beginning near the middle of the body, Somewhat in advance of the
ventrals, its anterior rays elevated, their height about equal to half the base of the fin,
the number of rays in the dorsal ſin ranging from 25 to 32 ; caudal fin well forked, the
lobes about equal, not falcate ; anal fin comparatively long and rather low, of eight or
nine developed rays; ventrals moderate, 10 rayed; pectorals rather short ; sexual
peculiarities, if any, unknown ; coloration dull daik-brown, nearly plain, not silvery;
fins olivaceous or more or less dusky; air-bladder with two chambers; size quite large.
In general appearance, the species of Bubalichthys bear a considerable resemblance to
those of Carpiodeº. The form is, however, courser than that of any Carpiodes, the dorsal
fin is lower, and the coloration is darker and duller. The species reach a larger size
than do those of Carpiodes, but whether larger or not than the species of Ichthyobus I am
unable to say. In external appearance, Bubalichthys is intermediate between Carpiodes
and Ichthyobus, the one species, bubalug, resembling Carpiodes most, the other, wru9,
being most like Ichthyobug.
BIG-MOUTH BUIFFALO. 807
28. BUBALICHTHYS URUs Agassiz.
Big-Han outined Buffalo ; Black Buffalo ; MHongrel Buffalo.
?? Amblodon niger, RAFINE QUE, Journal de Physique, Phila., 1818, 421. (Entirely un-
recognizable.)
?? Catostomus niger, RAFINESQUE, Ichth. Oh, 1820, 56. (Unrecognizable ; more likely
Cycleptus elongatus.)
Bubalichthys miger, AGASSIZ, Am. Journ Sci. Arts, 2d series, xix, 1855, 195—Jordan,
Fishes of Ind., 222, 1875; Bull. Buffalo Soc, Nat. Hist, 1876, 95; Man. Vert., 1876,
298.-NELSON, Bull. No. 1, Ills. Muq. Nat. Hist, 1876, 50.-JORDAN and CCPELAND,
Check List, 1876, 158.-JORDAN, Proc, Acad. Nat. Sci, Phila, 1877, 75.-JorDAN
and GILBERT, in Kiip part's Rept., 1876, 53.—Jorda N, Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., ix, 1877,
34; Man. Vert., 2d Ed., 328.
Carpiodes wrw8, AGASSIZ, Am. Journ. Sci. Arts, 1854, 355.
Bubalichthys wrw8, AGAssiz, Am. Journ, Sci, Arts, xix., 1855, 193,-PUTNAM, Bull. Mus.
Comp Zool, 1863, 10,—JorDAN, Fishes of Ind., 1875, 222; Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., xii,
1878, 209.—JORDAN and COPELAND, Check List, 1876, 158.
Bubalichthys bonabw8, AGASSIZ, Am. Journ. Sci. Arts, 24 series, xix, 1855, 195.-JORDAN
and COPELAND, Check List, 1876, 158,
Description.—Body much less elevated and less compressed than in the preceding, the
back not at all carinated ; axis of body above ventrals about at the lateral line, ald but
very little farther from the dorsal outline than from the ventral ; depth 3 to 4+ in length;
head very stout, strongly transversely cºnvex, thicker, larger, and less pointed than in
the next, about four in length ; eye about equal to snout, 5% in head, much smaller than
B. bubalus ; mouth large, considerably oblique, opening well forward; Imandible longer
than eye ; dorsal fin lower and less rapidly depressed than in the next, the longest ray
scarcely half the length of the base of the fin; anal fin rounded, its rays not rapidly
shortened, the middle ones not much shorter than the longest ; colors very dark ; fins
all black ; scales 8-41-7; dorsal 30; anal 10.
Habitat, Mississippi Valley, in all the larger streams,
Diagnosis.--From the other species of this genus, B. urus may be known
by the larger mouth, and the less elevated and compressed body. Its
colors are darker than those of any other of the Buffalo-fishes.
Habits.--This species occurs in the Ohio River and its larger tributaries,
but is rather less abundant than either the preceding or the next. It
reaches a considerable size, and is of Some value as a food fish.
29. BUBALICHTHIYS BUBALUS Agassiz.
Buffalo-ſish ; Small- amouthed Buffalo ; High-backed Buffalo.
Catoglomus bubalus, KIRTLAND, Rept, Zool. Ohio, 1838, 168; Boston Journ, Nat. Hist., v,
1845, 266.-STORER, Synopsis, 1846, 424. (Not of Rafinesque).
Bubalichthys bubalw8, AGASSIZ, Am. Journ Sci, Arts, 2d Series, xix, 1855, 195.-JORDAN,
Fishes of Ind., 1875, 222; Proc. Acad. Nat Sci, Phila, 1877, 75; Bull. U. S. Nat.
Mus., xii, 1878, 206.-JokDAN and COPELAND, Check List, 1876, 158,-JORDAN and
GILBERT, in Klippart's Rept., 1877, 53.
808 RISHES-CATO STOMIDAE.
?? Carpiodes taurus, AGASSIz, Am. Journ. Sci. Arts, 1854, 355. (Not identifiable.)
?? Bubalichthys taurus, AGASSIZ. Am. Journ. Sci. Art, 2d series, xix, 1855, 193.−JORDAN
and COPELAND, Check List, 1876, 158.
?? Carpiodes vitulus, AGASSIZ, Am. Journ. Sci. Arts, 1854, 356. (Not identifiable.)
?? Bubulichthys vitulus, AGASSIZ, Am. Journ. Sci. Arts, 2d series, xix, 1855, 193.—JORDAN
and COPELAND, Check List, 1376, 153.−JoRDAN and GILB ERT, in Klip part's Rept.,
1876, 53.
Sclerogmathw8 wrus, GUNTIIER, Cat. Fishes, Brit. Mus., vii, 1868, 22.
Jothyobus cyanellus, NELSON, Bull. No. 1, Ills. Mus. Nat. Hist., 1876, 49. —Jordan and COPE-
LAND, Check List, 1376, 158 —Jord AN, Proc. Acad, Nat. Sci. Phila., 1877, 73; Man.
Verb., 2d Ed., 1878, 323.−JoRDAN and GILBERT, in Klippart's Rept., 1876, 53.
Bubalichthys altw8, NELSON, MSS, 1877.-Jo RDAN, Pcoe N 16. Sci, Phila., 1877, 73; Man.
Vert., 2d Ed., 1878, 324.
JBubalichthys bubalinus, Jorda N, Bull U. S. Nat. Mus., ix, 1867, 50 ; Man. Vert., 2d Ed.,
1878, 325.
Description —Body considerably elevated and compressed above ; the dorsal region
Subcarinate, belly thicker; depth 24 to 2% in length ; axis of body above the ventrals
below the lateral line and nearly twice as far from the back as from the belly; head
moderate, triangular in outline when viewed from the side, four in length ; eye equal
to snout, four to five in length of head, much larger than in B. urus; mouth quite
Small, notably smaller and more inferior than in B. wrug mandible about equal to eye;
dorsal fin elevated in front and rapidly declined, the highest ray Teaching much
beyond the middle of the fin, the seventh ray about half the length of the third or
longest ; anal rays rapidly shortened behind, the middle rays much shorter than the first
long ones; scales 8-39.6; dorsal 29; anal 10; ventrals 10; coloration paler, the lower
fins slightly dusky.
|
Habitat, Mississippi Valley, abundant in the larger streams.
Diagnosis —To's species has the highest back and Smallest mouth of
any of the Buffalo fishes.
Habits.—Its habits re indentical with those of wrus and Ichthyobus
bubalus. It reaches about the same size as the others, and is of similar
value as food. i
GENUS 16. CARPIODES. Rafinesque.
Carpiodes, RAFINEsquiº, Ich. Oh., 1820, £6. (As subgenus of Catostom u8.)
Sclerognathus, VALENCIENNES, Hist. Nat, des Poissons, xvii, 1844, 472.
Type, Catostomus oyprinus, LeSueur.
Etymology, Latin carpio, a carp; i.e., carp. like.
Head comparatively short and deep, sometimes conic, sometimes blunt, its length
ranging from 3% to 5 in that of the body, its upper surface always rounded ; eye moder-
ate, median or anterior in position ; suborbital bones well developed, their depth more
than half that of the fleshy portion of the cheek below ; fontanelle always present, well
developed ; mouth always small, horizontal and inferior, the mandible less than one-
third the length of the head, the lips thin, the upper protractile, narrow, the lower
quite narrow, V-shaped, or rather U-shaped, behind ; both lips feebly plicate or nearly
smooth, the plica, often more or less broken up; jaws without cartilaginous sheath;
muciferous system moderately developed ; opercular apparatus well developed, the sub-
CARP SUCKER. 809
opercle broad, the operculum in the adult more or less rugose ; isthmus moderate;
pharyngeal bones remarkably thin and laterally compressed, with a shallow furrow
along the anterior margin on the inside, and another more central one on the outline of
the enlarged surfaces; teeth very small, compressed, nearly equally thin along the
whole inner edge of the bone, forming a fine' comb-like crest of minute Serratures;
their cutting edge rises above the inner margin into a prominent point. Gill-rackers of
anterior arch slender and stiff above, becoming reduced downward. Body ovate or ob-
long, the dorsal outline more or less arched, the ventral outline more nearly straight,
the depth from one-half to one-third the length, the sides compressed ; the back notably
So, forming a sort of carina; caudal peduncle short and deep ; Scales large, about equal
over the body, their posterior margins slightly serrate; lateral line well developed,
nearly straight, 34 to 41 scales; 12 to 15 scales in a cross-row from dorsal to ventrals;
dorsal fin beginning near the middle of the body, somewhat in advance of ventrals, fal-
cate, its anterior rays very much elevated and usually filamentous, their height rang-
ing from one-half to one and one-third the base of the fin, the number of developed rays
ranging from 23 to 30; caudal fin well forked, the lobes equal ; anal fin comparatively
long and low, emarginate (in males 2), its number of developed rays usually 8; ventrals
shortish, with usually 10 rays : pectorals short ; sexual peculiarities little marked ; in
some species, at least, the males in spring have the snout minutely tuberculated ; colora-
tion always plain ; pale olivaceous above, white below, but hardly silvery, the fins all
partaking of the color of the region to which they belong ; air-bladder with two cham-
bers. Size medium or rather large.
ANALYSIS OF SPECIES OF CARPIODES.
*Dorsal fin with its anterior rays shortened, one-half to three-fourths as long as the
base of the fin.
a. Head short, 4% to 5 in length ; anterior rays of dorsal short, notably thickened
and Osseous at base. * & º * e CARPIO. 30.
aa. Head medium, 3% to 4% in length; anterior rays of dorsal not thickened.
b. Body oblong, the depth 2% in length ; scales 6-37-5. . . CYPRINUs. 31.
bb, Body short, the back arched, the depth 2% in length, scales about 8-40.6.
THOMPSONI, 32.
aaa, Head long, 3% in length ; eye nearly median. º º ſº BISON. 33.
**Dorsal fin with its anterior rays about equal to the length of the base of the fin.
o, Muzzle conic, projecting. e e e e o VELIFRR, 34.
Co. Muzzle very abruptly obtuse.
d. Front margin of lower jaw notably in advance of the eye.
CUTISANSERINUs. 35.
dd. Front margin of lower jaw not in advance of the front margin of the eye,
the snout being extremely blunt. & º e e DIFFORMIS. 36.
30 CARPIODES CARPIO (Rafinesque) Jordan.
Big Carp Sucker; Olive Carp Sucker.
Catostomus carpio, RAFINESQUE, Ich, Oh, 1820, 66.
Carpiodes carpio, JORDAN, Bull. Buffalo Soc. Nat. Hist, 1877, 95; Man. Wert., 1876, 297;
Proc Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila, 1877, 72; Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., ix, 1877; Man. Vert.,
2d Ed., 1878, 321; Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., xii, 1878, 200,—NELson, Bull. No. 1, Ills.
Mus. Nat. Hist., 1876, 49.—JORDAN and COPELAND, Check List, 1876, 158.—Jordan
and GILBERT, in Klippart's Rept., 1876, 63.
810 FISHES-CATOSTOMIDAE.
Carpiodes mummifer, CoPE, Proc. Am. Philos. Soc. Phila., 1870, 484.
Degoription,-Body fusiform, more elongate than in the other species, compressed, but
not much arched; head quite short ; muzzle short, but projecting much beyond the
mouth ; eyes small, anterior 43 in head ; first rays of dorsal short, extremely stout and
OSSeous at base, the insertion of the first ray nearer the end of the muzzle than the base
of the caudal fin ; cºlor pale, as in all the other members of the genus; head 4} to 5;
depth 24 to 3; D., 30; scales 7-36-5. Length, 1 to 13 feet ; the largest species of the
genus.
Habitat, Ohio Valley, etc., abundant, often ascending smaller streams.
Diagnosis.-This species may usually be readily distinguished by the
Small head and the thickened anterior rays of the dorsal.
Habits.-This is the commonest species of its genus in the Ohio River,
and it is often found in the streams of the interior of the State. It has
not yet been recorded from Lake Erie. Like the others, it is used as food,
but never highly valued.
31. CARPIODES CYPRINUS (LeSueur) Agassiz.
Easter ºn Carp Sucker; Nebraska. Carp Sucker; Rio Grande Carp.
Catostom u8 cyprinus, LESUEUR, Journ. Acad. Nat, Sci., Phila, i, 1817, 91.
Labeo cyprinus, DEKAY, New York Fauna, part iv, Fishes, 1842, 194,
Solerogmathus cyprimw8, CUVIRR and VALENCIENNES, Hist, Nat, des Poissons, xvii, 1844,
474 —STORER, Symopsis, 1846, 427. .
Carpiodes eyprinus, AGASSIZ, Am. Journ, Sci. Arts, 2d series, xix, 1855, 191,–GUNTHER,
Cat. Fishes Brit. Mus. vii, 1868, 24.—Cop B, Proc. Am. Philos, Soc, Phila., 1870, 484.—
JORDAN, Fishes of Ind., 1875, 292; Man. Vert., 1876, 997; 2d Ed., 1878, 323 —UILLER
and LUGGER, Fishes of Maryland, 1876, 140.—JORDAN and COPELAND, Check List,
1876, 458. -
Carpiodes vacca, AGASSIZ, Am. Journ. Sci. Arts, 1854, 356.-Jord AN, Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus.,
1878, 198, xii.
Carpiodes tumidw8, BAIRD and GIRARD, Proc. Phila Acad. Nat. Sci., 1854, 28.
Iotiobus tumidus, GIRARD, U. S. Mex. Bound. Surv., Ich., 34, pl. xxx, 1859, f. 1–4.
Ichthyobus tumidu.8, Jordan and Coprºla ND, Check List, 1876, 158.
Carpiodes damali8, GIRARD, Proc. Acad, Nat. Sci. Phila, 1856, 170; U. S. Pac. R.R. Expl.,
X, 1858, 218, pl. xlviii, f. 1-4-Copiº, Proc. Acad. Nat, Sci., Phila, 1865, 85.-Jordan
and COPELAND, Check List, 1876, 155,
Carpiodes grayi, COPE, Proc. Am. Philos. Soc. Phila., 1870, 482.-JORDAN and COPE-
LAND, Check List, 1876, 158.-CoPE and YARRow, Wheeler's Expl. W. 100th Mer., v,
Zool., 1876, 681.
DeBoription.—Body oblong, not much elevated ; head moderate, the muzzle prominent
but rather bluntish ; front scarcely concave between the eyes, the profile forming a
nearly uniform curve; eye small, nearly six in head ; anterior rays of dorsal not thick-
ened, moderately elevated, nearly three-fourths as long as the base of the fin, the first
ray nearly midway from snout to base of caudal; color pale; head 3% to 4% in length ;
depth 24; D., 24 to 27; scales 6-37-5. Length, one foot.
Habitat, New England to Alabama, Nebraska and Mexico.
JAKE CAR P. 811
Diagnosis.-This species may usually be readily known from the closely
related O. velifer by the lower dorsal, and from C. thompsoni by the slen-
derer body and larger scales.
Habits.--This is the common Carp Sucker of Eastern Pennsylvania and
of the Southern and Southwestern States. It has not yet been noticed in
Ohio, but it doubtless occurs here.
32. CARPIODES THOMPSONI Agassiz.
w
Liu Ke Carp.
Catostomus cyprinus, THOMPSON, Hist, Vt., 1842, 133.
Carpiodes thompsoni, AGAssiz, Am. Journ. Sci. Arts, 2d series, xix, 1865, 191—COPE, Proc.
Acad. Nat. Sci Phila., 1864, 285; Proc. Am. Philos. Soc. Phila, 1870, 483.-Jordan,
Man. Vert, 1876, 997; 2d Ed , 1878, 322; Ball. U. S. Nat. Mus., xii, 1878, 193,-JoB-
DAN and Copp LAND, Check List, 1876, 158.-Jordan and GILBERT, in Klippart's
Rept., 1876, 53.
Ichthyobus thompsoni, NHLSON, Bull, No. 1, Ill. Mus. Nat. Hist., 1876, 49.
Description —Body short and stout, the back much arched, head moderate, the muzzle
somewhat pointed; eye small, (+ in bread : tip of lower jaw much in advance of the nos-
trils; maxillary reaching line of orbit; anterior suborbital large, deep, roundish ; dor-
sal fin with its anterior rays not thickened, elevated, their length about two thirds that
of the base of the fin; origin of dorsal about midway between snout and base of caudal;
color pale; head 4 to 44; depth 24; D., 27; scales 8-39 to 41-6. Length one foot.
Habitat, Great Lakes, abundant.
Diagnosis.—This species may usually be known by the short body in
connection with the comparatively low dorsal fin.
Habits.-This fish is as yet recorded only from the great lakes. It is
abundant in Lake Erie, and is sold by the fishermen as Carp, or SOme-
times, especially after being split and salted, as Lake Shad. I have ex-
amined many specimens from Sandusky Bay.
33. CARPIODES BISON Agassiz.
Long-headed Carp Sucker.
Carpiodes bison, AGAssiz, Am Journ. Sci. Arts, 1854, 355; 1855, 190.—COPE, Proc. Am.
Philos. Soc. Phila., 1870, 483–Jordan, Man. Vert., 1876, 297; 2d Ed., 1878, 322;
Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., ix, 1877, 50 ; xii, 1878, 197, −JORDAN and COPELAND, Check
List, 1876, 158.—Jo RDAN and GILBERT, in Klippart's Rept., 1876, 53.
Ichthyobus bison, NELSON, Bull, No. 1, Ills. Mus. Nat. Hist., 1876, 49.
Description.—Body oblong, the back not much arched; head quite long ; muzzle elon-
gate-conic, so that the eye is nearly median in position, the middle of the length of the
head falling in front of its posterior margin ; eye large, 43 in head ; lips well developed ;
anterior rays of the dorsal fin Lot thickened, laot much shorter than the base of the fin;
color pale ; head 3; ; depth 3 ; D., 27; Scales 7-40-5, Length, one foot.
Habitat, Ohio Valley, not very common.
812 FISHES-CATO STOM ID AE.
Diagnosis.-This species may usually be known by the large head.
Habits.-I have seem but very few specimens of this species, all from
the lower Ohio. It is probably rare in this State.
34. CARPIODES v ELIFER (Rafinesque) Agassiz,
Carp Sucker; Skinnaback; Quill back Sailor Similiang Sucker;
Spear–ſish.
?? Catostomus amigopterus, RAFINESQUE, Ich Oh, 1820, 46. (Description at Second hand
and unrecognizable.)
Catostom u8 velifer, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh, 1820, 56.
Carpiode6 velifer, KIRTLAND, Rep. Zool. Ohio, 1838, 168 —AGASSIz, Am. Journ. Sci. Arts,
2d Series, xix, 1855, 191.-Cople, Proc. Am. Philos Soc. Phila., 1870, 482–JORDAN,
Fishes of Ind., 1875, 222; Bull. Buffalo Soc. Nat. Hist., 1876, 95; Man, Vert., 1876,
297; 2d Ed., 1878, 321; Bull, U. S. Nat. Mus., ix, 34, 1877–Jord AN and CoPELAND,
Check List, 1876, 158.-Jordan and GILBERT, in Klippatt's First Report Ohio Fish
Commission, 1877, 87.
Mchthyobus velſer, NELSON, Bull. No. 1, Ills. Mus. Nat. Hist., 1876, 49.
Sclerognathw8 cyprinus, KIRTLAND, Bost. Journ Nat. Hist., V, 1846, 275. (In part; not of
Cuv, and Val.)
Description.—Body rather deep, the back arched; head moderate, the muzzle conic,
projecting, obtusely pointed ; end of the mandible reaching to opposite the nostrils;
anterior suborbital as deep as long ; eye moderate, 4 to 4% in head ; first rays of dorsal
very high, inserted nearer muzzle than base of caudal ; color pale ; head 3}; depth 2+
to 2% ; D., 26; scales 7-37-5. Length, one foot. -
Habitat, Great Lakes and Mississippi Valley.
Diagnosis.-This is the only species with the snout conical and the
long rays of the dorsal longer than the base of the fin.
Habits.-This species is abundant in the Ohio River, where it is usually
known as Quillback, Spear-fish, and Sailor, its lower finned relative, C.
carpio, being usually known as Carp. I have seen none from Lake Erie,
but as it occurs in the lakes of Western New York, it will doubtless be
found there.
35. CARPIOD is CUTISANSERINUS Cope.
Long-ſimmed Carp Sucker; Quillback.
Carpiode6 cwtibamberinw8, COPE, Proc. Am. Philos. Soc. Phila., 1870, 481,–Jordan and
CoPELAND, Check List, 1876, 158.-Jordan, Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., 9, 1877, 50; xii,
1878, 195; Man. Wert, 2d Ed., 321, 1878.-JorDAN and GILBERT, in Klippart's Rept.,
53, 1876,
Carpiode6 8elene, Cope, Proc. Am. Philos. Soc. Phila., 1870, 481.-Jordan and Coplºla ND,
Check List, 1876, 168,-JORDAN and GILBERT, in Klippart's Rept., 1876, 73.-Jordan,
Man. Vert., 2d Ed., 1878, 321.
Ichthyobus difformis, NELSON, Bull. No. 1, U. S. Nat. Mus., 1876, 49.
JDEFORMED CARP SUCKER. 813
Description.—Body short and deep, the back arched, head thick, the muzzle notably
blunt but less so than in C. difformis ; anterior edge of mandible in advance of the
orbit ; the maxillary just reaching the line of the lower rim of the orbit ; eye smallish,
4% in head ; anterior rays of dorsal longer than the base of the fin inserted about mid-
way between snout and base of caudal ; head 4 ; depth 2; ; D., 26; Scales 7-37-5,
Length, one foot.
Habitat, Mississippi Valley, generally abundant,
Diagnosis.-This is one of the species with a very blunt head and very
high dorsal fin. The head is normal in appearance, not distorted as in
C. difformis. -
Habits.--This species is abundant in the Ohio, and is not usually dis-
tinguished by the fishermen from C. velifer.
The name, cutisangerinus (goose-skinned), alludes to the presence of
minute tubercles on the snout of the male in the spawning season.
36. CARPIODES DIFFORMIs Cope.
Deformed Carp Sucker.
Carpiodes difformis, COPE, Proc. Am. Philos. Soc. Phila., 1870, 480.-Jordan, Man. Vert.,
1876, 297; 2d Ed., 1878, 321 ; Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1877, 72 ; Bull, U. S. Nat,
Mus., 9, 1877, 50 ; xii, 1878, 195,-JORDAN and COPELAND, Check List, 1876, 158.-
JoRDAN and GILBERT, in Klippart's First Report Ohio Fish Commission, 86, pl. xiii,
f. 21, 1877,
Description.—Body short and deep, the back considerably arched; head very thick,
the muzzle exceedingly blunt, almost truncate, so that the anterior edge of the mandi-
ble is in line with the anterior rim of the orbit, and the Inaxillary reaches to the an-
terior edge of the pupil; anterior suborbital bone deeper than long ; eye large, 34 to 4
in head; dorsal fin with its anterior rays very long, longer than the base of the fin; the
first ray of the dorsal nearer the muzzle than the base of the caudal; head 44; depth
2+; D., 24; scales 6-34-4. Length, one foot.
Habitat, Ohio Valley.
Diagnosis.--This species resembles a monstrosity of the preceding,
which indeed it may really be.
Habits.-But two or three specimens of this species are now known, all
from the Wabash and lower Ohio.
GENUS 18. CYCLEPTUS. Rafinesque.
Cycleptus, RAFINESQUE, Journal de Physique, de Chimie et d’Histoire Naturelle, Paris,
1819, 421.
Rhytidostomus, HECKEL, Fische Syrien8, Russeggers Reisen, 1842, p. 1023.
Catostomw8 et Sclerogmathw8, sp., AUCT.
Type, Cycleptus migré8cens, Rafinesque, = Catostomus elongatus, LeSueur.
Etymology, kuklos, round; leptos, small. “The name means small, round mouth.”
(Rajinesque.)
814 ſ? IS HES-CATO STOM IIDAE.
Head very small, short and slender, its length contained six to seven times in that of
the body, its upper surface rounde (l; eye quite small, nearly median, not very high up,
its length six to eight in that of the side of the head ; suborbital bones rather small and
quite narrow ; fontanelle entirely obliterated by the union of the parietal bones; mouth
small, entirely inferior, overlapped by the projecting snout, the upper lip thick, pen-
dent, covered with three to five rows of tubercles, the outer quite large, the inner small;
lower lip moderate, formed somewhat as in Catostom u8, but less full, incised behind ;
jaws without cartilaginous sheath ; muciferous system not greatly developed ; opercular -
apparatus not greatly developed, the operculum smooth and narrow ; isthmus moderate;
gill-rakers moderately long, soft ; pharyngeal bones strong, the teeth stout, increasing
in size downwards, rather wide apart, ; body elongate, moderately compressed, not much
elevated, the caudal peduncle long, the greatest depth contained four to six times in
length ; scales moderate, about equal over the body, not closely imbricated, with wide
exposed surfaces, the number in the lateral line from 55 to 60, and about 17 in a trans-
verse series from dorsal to ventrals; edges of scales serrate ; lateral line well developed,
nearly straight ; fins rather large ; dorsal fin beginning in front of ventrals and
ending just before anal, of about 30 rays, strongly falcate in front, the first and second
developed rays in length more than half the length of the base of the fin, the rays
rapidly shortened to about the eighth, the length of the remaining rays being nearly uni-
form and all short ; caudal fin large, widely forked, the lobes about equal ; anal fin
quite snuall, low, of 7 or eight developed rays, scaly at base ; Veutrals moderate, with
ten rays ; pectorals elongate, so newhat falcate ; sexual peculiarities somewhat marked ;
the males in spring with a black pigment ; the head then covered with small tubercles;
air-bladder with two chambers, the anterior short, the posterior elong ite. But a single
species of this singular genus is as yet known. It is found in the waters of the Mis-
sissippi Valley, and, although not a rare fish, it is by no means as generally abundant as
are many others of its family.
37. CYCLEPTUs ELONG ATUS (LeSueur) Agassiz.
HE "ack Horse ; Gouard-seed Stacker; WHiss buri Sucker; Suckere.
Catostomus elongatus, LESUEUR, Journ. Acad, Nat. Sci. Phila., 1817, 10.3.−RAFINESQUE,
Ich. Oh, , 1820, 60–KIRTLAND, Rept. Zool. Ohio, 1833, 16- ; Boston Journ. Nat. Hist,
v., 1845, 267.--DEKAY, New York I’auna, part iv, Fishes, 1842, 20.3.−CUVIER et
VALENCIENNES, Hist. Nat, des Poiss., xvii, 1844, 455.-STORER, Synopsis, 1846, 422.
Cycleptus elongatus, AGAssiz, Am. Journ. Sci. Arts, 2d series, xix, 1855, 197—JORDAN,
Fishes of Ind., 1875, 222; Bull. Buffalo Soc, Nat. Hist., 1876, 95 (name only); Man.
Vert., 1876, 298; 2d Ed., 1878; Bull, U. S. Nat. Mus., ix, 1877, 38; xii, 1878, 189—
NHLSON, Bull. No. 1, Ills. Mus, Nat. Hist., 1876, 50.—JORDAN and COPIELAND, Check
List, 1876, 158 (name only).-Jordan and GILBERT, in Klippart's Rept., 1876, 53
(name only)
Sclerogmathus elongatus, GUNTHER, Cat Fishes Brit. Mus., vii, 1868, 23.
Cycleptus migrescene, RAFINESQUE, Journal de Physique, 1818, 421; Ich. Oh, 1820, 61.
Description.—Body elongate, the depth four to five in length ; head six to six and
a half ; eye small, six to seven in length of head ; longest ray of dorsal a little longer
than head ; pectorals rather longer than head ; coloration very dark, the females oliva-
ceous and coppery, the males chiefly jet black with coppery shadings ; fins dusky ; dorsal
39; scales 9-56-7. Length, 1% to 24 feet; weight, 2 to 15 pounds.
Habitat, Mississippi Valley.
BLACK.- HORSE SUCKER. 815
Diagnosis.-This species may be known by the small head and long
dorsal.
Habits.--It is not rare in the Ohio River, but it seldom ascends the
Smaller streams. At the Falls of the Ohio it is frequently but irregularly
taken, and is sold under the name of Gourd-Seed Sucker. It is also called
Missouri Sucker and Black Horse. According to Dr. Kirtland, “it
migrates down the river at the approach of winter. It is esteemed more
highly for food than any other of the family.”
GENUS 19, CATOSTOMUS. LeSueur.
Całostomus, LESUEUR, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila, i, 1817, 89
Hypentelium, RAFINH squh, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci., Phila, i, 1818, 421.
Decactylus, RAFINESQUE, Ichthyologia Ohiensis, 1820,
IIylomyzon, A GAssiz, Am. Journ. Sci. Arts, 1855, 205.
Minomus, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1856, 173.
Acomw8, GIRARD, Proc Acad. Nat. Sci., Phila., 1856, 173.
Type, Cyprimus catostomus, FoRSTH R = Catostomus longirostrum, LHSUEUR.
Etymology, kato, low ; 8toma, mouth.
Head more or less elongate its length ranging from three and a half to five in body,
its form varying considerably in the different subgenera, ; eyes rather small, high up,
median or more or less posterior in position ; suborbital bones narrow, longer than broad,
much as in Myxostoma , fontanelle always present, usually widely open, in two species
reduced to a narrow slit, but never wholly obliterated ; mouth rather large, always in-
ferior, and sometimes notably so ; the upper lip thick, protractile, papillose; the lower
lip greatly developed, with a broad free margin, deeply incised behind, so that it forms
two lobes, which are often more or less separated ; mandible horizontal, short, not one-
third the length of the head and not reaching to opposite the eye; lower jaw usually
without distinct cartilaginous sheath; opercular apparatus moderately developed, not
rugose; pharyngeal bones moderate ly strong, the teeth shortish, vertically compressed,
rapidly diminishing in size upwards, the upper surface of the teeth nearly even, or some-
what cuspidate ; body oblong or elongate, more or less fusiform, subterete, more or less
compressed ; scales comparatively small, typically much smaller and crowded anteriorly,
the number in the lateral line ranging from about 50 to 115, the number in a transverse
series between dorsal and ventrals from 15 to 40; lateral line well developed, straight-
ish, somewhat decurved anteriorly; fins variously developed ; dorsal with its first ray
nearly midway of the body, with from nine to fourteen developed rays; anal fin short
and high, with probably always seven developed rays; ventrals inserted under the mid-
dle or posterior part of the dorsal, typically with ten rays, in one subgenus usually nine,
the number often subject to variation of one ; caudal fin Esually deeply forked, the
lobes nearly equal ; sexual peculiarities not much marked, the fins higher in the male
and the anal somewhat swollen and tuberculate in the spring ; breeding males in some
species with a rosy or orarge lateral band ; air-bladder with two chambers; vertebrae
in C. teres and C. nigricans 45 to 47.
“The skeleton in Catostomus is distinguished by the comparative want of solidity, cer-
bones consisting merely of a network of osseous matter. There is a large and broad fon-
tanelle on the upper surface of the head, separating the parietal bones, and leading
\
816 FISHES-CATO STOMIDAE.
directly into the cerebral cavity. The occipital process is below the anterior vertebrae,
enlarged into a bladder-like swelling, which is not solid, but consists of a delicate
network only. The prefrontal is advanced to the anterior part of the orbit. The jaw-
bones are very feeble, the intermaxillary being reduced to a thin lamella, which does not
descend to the middle of the maxillary. The anterior part of the mandible is horizontal,
thin and slightly dilated. The apophyses of the four anterior vertebrae are very strong
and long.”—(GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes Brit Mus., vii, 13)
This genus as at present restricted comprises three well-marked groups, which may be
accepted as subgenera, under the names Catostomus, Decadactylus, and Hypentelium One
of these groups, Hypentelium, has been considered as a distinct genus, on account of the
differences in the form of the head and in the squamation. These differences are, bow-
ever, individually of subordinate value, and should probably be held to designate a sub-
generic section, rather than a distinct genus, i
The genus Catostomw8 is, next to Myacostoma, the most rich in species. It is much the
most widely distributed of the genera of Suckers, some of its members abounding in
every river of North America, and one of them being found in Asia. Only three of them
are found in Ohio.
ANALYSIS OF SPECIES OF CATOSTOMUs.
*Scales much crowded and reduced in size anteriorly.
f Scales very small, about 100 in lateral line. (Subgenus Cato&tomw8.)
LONGIROSTRIS 38.
tf Scales median, 65 to 85 in the lateral line (Subgenus Decadactylus.) TEREs, 39.
“Scales not crowded, nearly equal over the body, 48 to 55 in the lateral line. (Sub-
genus Hypentelium.) ſº * º ſe ſº ſº g & NIGRICANS. 40.
38. CATOSTOMUs LONGIROSTRIs LeSueur.
Long-nosed. Sucker; Northern Suncºrer; Red-sided Sucker.
Cyprinus calostomus, FORSTER, Philos. Trans., lxiii, 1773, 145, tab.6.—SCIINEIDER, ed.
Bloch., 1802, 444. 4.
Catostomus longirostrum, LESUEUR, Journ. Acad. Nat, Sci Phila., 1817, 102–THOMPSON,
Hist. Wt., 1842, 135.—CUVIER and VALENCIENNES, xvii, 1844, 453.−STORER, Synopsis,
1846, 421–Jordan and Cope LAND, Chack List, 1876, 156,
Catostomus longirostrib, DEKAY, New York Fauna, part iv, Fishes, 1841, 203.—JorpAN
and GILBERT, in Klippart's Rept., 1877, 54.—Jordan, Bull. U. S. Nat, Mus., xii, 1878,
175.
Catostomus hudsonius, LESUFUR, Journ. Acad. Nat Sci. Phila., 1817, 107,-CUVIER and
WALENCIENNES, FIist. Nat. des Poissons, xvii, 1844, 459,-STORER, Synopsis, 1846,
419.—AGASSIZ, Am. Journ. Sci. Arts, 2d Series, xix, 1855, 208.-GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes
Brit. Mus., vii, 1868, 13.—JorDAN, Man. Vert., 1876, 293.−NELSON, Bull, No. 1, Ills.
Mus. Nat. Hist, 1876, 48. *
Catostomus forsterianus, RICHARDSON, Franklin's Journal, 1823, 720; Fauna Bor.-Amer.,
iii, Fishes, 1836, 116.—DEKAY, New York Fauna, part iv, Fishes, 1842, 203.−CUY1BR
and VALENCIENNES, Hist. Nat, des Poissons, xvii, 1844, 463.−STORER, Synopsis, 1846,
419.-PUTNAM, Bull. Mus. Comp. Zool., 1863, 10,—JorDAN and CopFLAND, Check
List, 1876, 156.
Acomw8 forsterianus, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1856, 172.
COMMON SUCKER. 817
Cotostomus aurora, AGAssiz, Lake Superior, 1850, 360, pl. 2, f, 3-4; PUTNAM, Bull. Mus.
Comp. Zool., 1863, 10.
Acomºus aurora, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci, Phila., 1856, 173.
Acomºus griseu8, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1856, 174; U. S. Pac. R. R. Expl.,
x, 1858, 222, pl. xlix.
Catostomus grigeu8, GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes Brit, Mus., vii, 1868, 14.—JORDAN and COPE-
LAND, Check List, 1876, 156.
Całogtomus griseum, Copic, Hayden's Geol. Surv. Wyoming, 1870, 434,
Catostomw8 lactarius, GIRARD, Proc. Acad, Nat, Sci. Phila., 1856, 174.—JORDAN and COPE-
LAND, Check List, 1876, 156.
Acomw8 lactariw8, GIRARD, U. S. Pac. R. R. Expl., X, 1858, 223.
Description.—Body elongate, subterete; head quite long and slender, depressed and
flattened above, broad at base but tapering into a long snout, which considerably over-
hangs the large mouth ; lips thick, coarsely tuberculate; the upper lip narrow, wit,
two or three rows of papillae ; jaws without cartilaginous sheath ; eye rather Small,
behind the middle of the head; fontanelle large ; scales very small, much crowded for-
wards; color dusky above, pale below, the males in spring with a broad rosy lateral
band, and with the head and anal fin profusely tuberculate, the tubercles on the head
small; head 4% to 4% in length; depth 4% to 44; D., 10 or 11 ; lat. 1, 95 to 114; 26 to 31
scales in a cross series from dorsal to ventrals. Length, 13 to 2 feet.
Habitat, Great Lake region to Alaska, very abundant throughout British America.
Diagnosis.--This is the only Ohio Sucker which has more than 70
Scales in the lateral line.
Habits.--This fish is quite abundant in Lake Erie, where it is taken
with other species in the net. It does not often ascend the streams, and
is almost never seen in waters tributary to the Ohio. It is a fish of
northern distribution and likes cold, clear waters.
39. CAToSTOMUs TEREs (Mitchell) LeSueur.
Commanmoga Sucicer; WIaite Sun clºer; Brook Sucker; Fine-
scaled Sucker.
LeCyprin commerooniew, LACEPEDE, Hist. Nat, des Poiss., v., 1803, 502, 508.
Catogtoww8 commerSoni, JORDAN, Man, Vert., 2d Ed., 1878, p. 329.
Cyprèrug oatostoºnw8, PECK, Mem, Am. Acad., ii, 18–, pt. 2, p. 55, pl. 2, f. 4. (Not of
Forster.)
Cyprinus tores, MITCHILL, Lit, and Phil. Trans, New York, i, 1814, 458.
Cztogdom u8 terés, LESUEUR, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1817, 108–THOMPson, Hist.
Vt., 1842, 134.—CUVIER and VALENCIENNES, xii, 1844, 468.-STORER, Synopsis, 1846,
423.—AGASSIZ, Am. Journ, Sci. Arts, 2d series, xix, 1855, 208 –GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes
British Mus., vii, 1868, 15.--Coer, Proc. Am. Philos. Soo Phila, 1870, 468.-Jordan,
Fishes of Ind., 1875, 221; Man. Vert., 1876, 293; Bull, U. S. Nat. Mus., ix, 1877, 37;
xii, 1878, 166.-NELSON, Bull. No. 1, Ills, Mus. Nat. Hist., 1876, 48.-JorDAN and
CoPELAND, Check List, 1876, 156.-Jordan and GILBERT, in Klippart's Rept., 1876,
53; ib., 1878, 84, pl.xii, f. 18–19.
52
818 FISHES-CATO STOMIDAE.
Catostomus communis, LESUEUR, Journ. Acad, Nat. Soi, Phila., i, 1817, 95-DEKAY, New
York Fauna, part iv, Fishes, 1812, 196.--CUvik R and VALENCIENNES, Hist, Nat, des
Poissons, xvii, 1844, 496,-KIRTLAND, Boston Journ. Nat. Hist, v, 1845, 265 —STORER,
Synopsis, 1846, 421,–COPE, Journ. Acad. Nat, Sci., Phila., 1868, 236 —UHLER and
LUGGER, Fishes of Maryland, 1876, 138.
Catostomus bostoniensis, LESUEUR, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1817, 106.—STORER,
Rept Ich. Mass, 1838, 84; Synopsis, 1846, 423 ; Hist. Fishes Mass., 1867, 290, pl.
xxii, f. 3–CUVIER and VALENCIENNES, Hist, des Poissons, xvii, 1844, 432–PUTNAM,
Bull. Mus. Comp. Zool, 1863, 10.-GILL, Canadian Nat., Aug , 1865, p 19.—THOREAU,
Week on Concord and Merrimack, 1868, 38,
Catostom u8 flexuosus, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh, 1820, 59.
Catostomus hudsonius, RICHARDSON, Franklin’s Journal, 1823, 717. (Not of LeSueur.)
Cyprinus (Catostomus) hudsonius, RICHARDSON, Fauna Bor-Am., Fishes, 1836, 112.
Cyprimus (Catostomus) reticulatus, RICHARDSON, Fauna Bor.-Am , Fishes, 1823, 303.
Catostomus gracilis, KIRTLAND, Rept. Zool. Ohio, 1838, 168.
Catostomus migricans, STORER, Rept. Ich, Mass., 1838, 86 (not of LeSueur) —THoMPSON,
Hist. Vermont, —, 1842,
Całostom u8 pallidus, DEKAY, New York Fauna, part iv, Fishes, 1842, 200.—STORER,
Synopsis, 1846, 426.
Catostomus awreolus, CUVIER and VALENCIENNES, Hist, Nat, des Poiss., xvii, 1844, 439.
(Not of LeSueur.) – GUNTHER, Cat Fishes Brit. Mus., vii, 1868, p. 16.
Catostom u8 forsteriamus, AGASSIZ, Lake Superior, 1850, 368 ; Am. Journ, Sci. Arts, 2d
series, xix, 1855, 208. -
A comw8 forsterianus, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat, Sci., Phila., 1856, 173,
Catostom u8 8wcklii, GIRARD, Proc. Acad, Nat. Sci., Phila., 1856, 175; U. S. Pac, R. R.
Expſ , x, 1858, pl. li, 266 –COPE, Hayden’s Geol. Surv. Wyoming, 1870, 1872, 434.
Catostomus guckleyi, JORDAN and COPE LAND, Check List, 1876, 156.
? Catostomw8 teacamus, ABBOTT, P1 oc. Acad. Nat. Sci Phila , 1860, 473.−JORDAN and Cope-
LaND, Check List, 1876, 156.
Catostomw8 chloropteron, ABBOTT, Proc. Acad. Nat, Sci. Phila., 1860, 473.−COPE, Proc.
Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1869, 85.
Catostomus chloropterus, JORDAN and COPELAND, Check List, 1876, 156.
Catostomus alliculus, CoPE and YARROW, Wheeler's Expl. W. 100th Mer., w, Zool, 1876,
677,-JORDAN and COPRLAND, Check List, 1876, 1:56.
Morogloma trigignatum, (COPE) COPIC and YARROW, Wheeler’s Expl. W. 100th Mer., v.,
Zool, 1876, 679.
Jºrimyzon trigignatus, JORDAN and CoPELAND, Check List, 1876, 157.
Description —Body moderately stout, subterete, heavy at the shoulders; head rather
large and stout, conical, flattish above; snout moderately prominent, scarcely over-
passing the mouth ; mouth rather large, the lipo strongly papillose, the upper moderate,
with two or three rows of papillae ; jaws without cartilaginous sheath ; fontanelle
large; scales crowded anteriorly, much larger on the sides than below; coloration oliva-
ceous, sometimes dusky ; males in Spring with a faint rosy lateral band ; young brown-
ish, more or less mottled, sometimes with two or three confluent lateral blotches which
sometimes form a faint lateral band ; head 4 to 4% in body (3% to 4+ in young); depth 4
to 4% in length, varying with age, the young slender; scales 10-64 to 70-9, Length, 1 to
14 feet.
Habitat, all waters of the United States, east of the Rocky Mountains.
FIOG SUCKER. 819
Diagnosis.--This is the only Sucker in Ohio having 65 to 70 scales in
lateral line.
Habits.--This species is the most common of the Suckers, Swarming in
every pond and stream in Ohio, and is the one to which the name Sucker
primarily belongs. It varies much in size, color and form in the differ-
ent streams. Its flesh is soft and poor, and of little value for food. It
bites at a small hook baited with a worn, and is one of numerous tribe
of boy’s fish, which may be found on every urchin's string.
40. CATOSTOMUs NIGRICANS LeSueur.
HHog Suncker; Hog Mauliet; Hog Molly ; Craw 1-a-Bottom ; Stone
He oiler; Storne Toter; Stone Blugger; Hamm maner-head; Mud Sucker.
a. Subspecies nigricans.
Cotostomus migricans, LESUEUR, Jonrn. Acad. Nat. Sci, Phil., 1817, 102—DEKAY, New
York Fauna, part iv, Fishes, 1842, 202.-CUVIER and VALENCIENNES, Hist, Nat, des
Poiss , xvii, 1844, 453 –KIRTLAND, Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist., v., 1845, 272.—STORER,
Synopsis, 1846, 421–CoPE, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila, 1868, 236; Proc. Am. Philos.
Soc, Phila., 1870, 468.-GUNTHER, Cat Fishes Brit. Mus., vii, 1868, 17.-UHLER
and LUGGER, Fishes of Maryland, 1876, 138.-JORDON, Ann. Lyc, Nat. Hist N. Y.,
xi, 1877, 345; Ball, U. S. Nat. Mus., xii, 1878, 162.
Coto8tomus migrams (8ic), KIRTLAND, Rept. Zool, Ohio, 1838, 168.
Hylomyzon nigricans, AGASSIZ, Am. Journ. Sci. Arts, xix, 1855, 205–PUTNAM, Bull. Mus.
Comp. Zool., 1863, 10.-JORDAN, Fishes of Ind., 1875, 221.
Hypentelium nigricans, JorDAN, Bull. Buffalo Soc. Nat. Hist., 1876, 95; Man. Vert., 1876,
294; 3d Ed., 1878. –NELSON, Bull. No. 1, Ills. Mus. Nat Hist., 1876, 48.-Jordan and
CoPELAND, Check List, 1876, 156.—Jordan and GILBERT, in Klippart's Rept., 1876, 53.
Catostomus maculosus, LESUEUR, Journ, Acad, Nat. Sci. Phila., 1817, 103.−DEKAY, New
York Fauna, part iv, Fishes, 1842, 203,-CUVIER and VALENCIENNES, Hist, Nat, des
Poiss., 1844, 454,-STORER, Synopsis, 1846, 422,-UHLER and LUGGER, Fishes of
Maryland, 1876, 139. -
Froglossum macropterum, RAFINESQUE, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci., Phila., 1817, 420.-CUVIER
and VALENCIENNES, xvii, 1844, 486.--StorFR, Synopsis, 1846, 428,
Hypentelium macropterum, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh, 1820, p. 68,-KIRTLAND, Rept. Zool.
Ohio, 1838, 168
Catostomus acanthopus, RAFINESQUE, Ich, Ohio., 1820, 57.
? Catostomus 2 megastomus, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh, 1820, 59. (Most likely mythical.)
Catostomus planiceps, CUVIER and VALENCIENNES, Hist. Nat. des Poissons, xvii, 1844, 450,
pl. 516–STORER, Synopsis, 1846, 426.
e aa. Subspecies etowanus.
Catostomus migricans, var, etowanus, JorDAN, Ann. Lyc Nat. Hist. N. Y., xi, 1877, 345.
Dé8cription.—Body stout and heavy in front, tapering off rapidly from the shoulders
to the tail, nearly cylindrieal behind ; head quadrangular, broad and flat above, with
vertical sides; the interobital space transversely concave; frontal bone thick, broad
and short; fontanelle short and rather small; mouth large, the upper lip very thick,
820 FISHES-CATO STOMID AE.
strongly papillose, with a broad free margin, on which are eight to ten series of papillae;
lower lip greatly developed, strongly papillose, considerably incised behind, but less so
than in the other species of this genus ; pectoral fins very large ; scales moderate, not
crowded anteriorly, nearly equal over the body; eye rather small, four and a half to five
in head ; color olivaceous; sides with brassy lustre; belly white ; back brown, with
several dark cross-blotches, irregularly arranged, obsolete in old individuals ; lower fins
dull red with dusky shading ; head 4 to 4% in length; depth 4% to 5; D., 11 ; V., 9;
scales 7-50.5. Length, one to two feet.
Habitat, New York to North Carolina, west to the Great Plains and Texas.
Diagnosis.--This is the only Sucker having the eye sockets so elevated
that the space between them on the top of the head is transversely con-
Ca,Ve.
Habits.-This fish is extremely abundant in every running stream in
Qhio, where its singular, almost comical form is familiar to every School
boy. It delights in rapids and shoals, preferring cold and clear water. Its
powerful pectorals render it a Swifter swimmer than any other of its
family. Its habit is to rest motionless on the bottom, where its mottled
colors render it difficult to distinguish from the stones among which it
lies. When disturbed, its darts away very quickly, after the manner
of the Etheostomoids. They often go in small Schools. I have never
found this fish in really muddy water, and when placed in the aquarium
it is the first fish to die as the water becomes foul. Although called the
Mud Sucker in the book, it is most characteristically a fish of the run-
ming streams. This species reaches a length about two feet, and is often
caught in its spawning Season by means of a spear or snare. It is, like
the preceding, a “boy’s fish,” and not worth the eating.
GENUS 20, ERIMYZON. Jordan.
Moxostoma, AGASSIz, Journal Science and Arts, 1854, 200. (Not of Rafinesque.)
Erimyzon, Jordan, Bull, Buff Soc. Nat, Hist., 1876, 95.
Teretulus, COPE, Synopsis of Fishes of N. C., 2d ed., Addenda, 1877. (Not of Rafinesque.)
Cyprinw8, Catostomus, and Labeo, sp. EARLY AUTHOR8.
Type, Cyprinus oblongw8, Mitchill, Cyprinus bucetta, Lac.
Etymology, eri, an intensive particle ; muzo, to Suck.
Head moderate, rather broad above ; mouth moderate, somewhat inferior, the upper lip
well developed, freely protractile, the lower moderate, infolded, A-shaped in outline, pli-
cate, with 12-20 plica on each side; lower jaw without cartilaginous sheath, rather stronger
than usual, and oblique in position when the mouth is closed, the mouth thus similar to
that of Ichthyobw8 ; eye moderate, rather high up, placed about midway of the head;
suborbital bones considerably developed, not very much narrower than the fleshy por-
tion of the check below themu, the posterior suborbital concavo-convex, about twice as
long as deep, sometimes divided, the anterior somewhat deeper than long, sometimes
divided into two, sometimes united with the preorbital bone, which is well developed
CHUB SUCKER. 821
and much longer than broad; opercular bones moderately developed, scarcely or not rugose;
fontanelle evident, rather large; gill rakers rather long, about half the diameter of the eye
in length; isthmus moderately developed, about the width of the eye; pharyngeal bones
weak, teeth quite Small, slender, and weak, rapidly diminishing in length upwards,
each tooth narrowly compressed, with a cusp on the inner margin of the cutting sur-
face, and some inequalities besides; Body oblong, rather shortened, heavy forwards and
considerably compressed; scales rather large, more or less crowded forwards, some-
times showing irregularities of arrangement, the longitudinal radiating furrows much
stronger than usual, the scales rather longer than deep, but so imbricated in the adult
that the exposed surfaces appear deeper than long ; lateral line entirely wanting; scales
in the longitudinal series from head to base of caudal 35 to 45 in number; Scales in
transverse row from base of ventral to dorsal 12 to 18; dorsal fin rather short and high,
with from 10 to 14 developed rays, the number usually 11 or 12; beginning of dorsal fin
rather nearer snout than base of caudal ; pectoral fins moderate, not reaching ventrals;
the latter not to vent ; ventrals under a point rather in advance of the middle of dorsal;
their rays normally nine, but occasionally eight to ten ; anal fin high and short, more or
less emarginate or bilobed in adult males; caudal fin moderately forked or merely lun-
ate, its two lobes about equal ; air-bladder with two chambers.
This genus has a very wide range, one of its two known species probably occurring in
all the streams of the United States east of the Rocky Mountains.
41. ERIMYZON SUCETTA (Lacipede) Jordon.
Chub. Sucker; Creek Fish; MIuliet; Sweet Sucker.
Cyprinw8 8wcetta, LACEPKDE, Hist, Nat, des Poissons, v, 1803, 606, 610.
Catostomus bucetta, LESUEUR, Journ. Acad. Phila., 1817, 109.—DEKAY, New York Fauna,
part iv, Fishes, 1842, 203.
Catostomw8 8wceti, CUVIER and VALENCIENNES, Hist. Nat, des Poissons, xvii, 1844, 466.—
STORER, Synopsis, 1846, 419.
Moa:08toma 8wcetta, AGASSIZ, Am. Jour. Sci. Arts, 2d series, xix, 1855, 202–PUTNAM, Bull.
Mus. Comp. Zool., 1869, 10. .
JErimyzon 8wcetta, Jordan, Man. Vert., 1876, 291; 2d Ed., 319; Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., xii,
1878, 144 —Jordan and COPELAND, Check List, 1876, 157.
Cyprinus oblongw8, MITCHILL, Lit, and Phil. Trans. New York, 1, 1814, 459.
Catostomus oblongus, LESUEUR, Journ. Acad. Nat, Sci., 1817, 108.—THOMPson, Hist, Vt.,
1842, 134. (Synonymy, but not description, which applies to M. macrolepidotum.)—
CUVIER and VALENCIENNES, Hist. Nat, des Poissons, xvii, 1844, 411–STORER, Syn-
opsis, 1846, 423.
Labeo oblongus, DEKAY, New York Fauna, part iv, Fishes, 1842, 193,
Moxostoma oblongum, AGASSIZ, Am. Journ. Sci Arts, 2d series, xix, 1855, 203.−PUTNAM,
Bull. Mus. Comp. Zool., 1863, 10.-GILL, Canadian Nat., p. 19, Aug., 1865.—GUNTHER,
Cat. Fishes Brit. Mus., vii, 1868, 21.-CoIPE, Proc. Am. Philos. Soc. Phila., 1870, 468.
—Jordan, Fishes of Ind., 1875, 211 (name only).-UHLER and LUGGER, Fishes of
Maryland, 1876, 140.
Erimyzon oblongue, JORDAN, Bull. Buffalo Soc. Nat. Hist., 1876, 25 (name only; gen-
eric diagnosis of Erimyzon); Man. Vert., 1876, 294; Ann. Lyc. Nat. Hist., xi, 1877,
346; xi, 1877, 365; Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., ix, 1877, 36.—NELSON, Bull, No. 1, Ills.
Mus. Nat. Hist., 1876, 48.—JORDAN and CoPELAND, Check List, 1876, 157 (name
only).
822 FISHES-CATO STOMIDAE.
Teretulus oblonguê, JORDAN and GILBERT, in Klippart's Rept., 1876, 53 (name only);
1877, 85, pl. xii, f. 20.
Catostom u8 gibbosus, LESUEUR, Jour. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., i, 1817, 92.—STORER, Rept,
lchthy. Mass., 1838, 183; Synopsis, 1846, 420; Hist. Fishes Mass., 291, 1867, pl. xxii,
f. 4.—KIRTLAND, Hamilton Smith's Annals of Science.
Labeo gibbosus, DEKAY, New York Fauna, part iv, Fishes, 1842, 194,
Caloglomus tuberculatw8, LESUEUR, Journ. Aoad. Nat, Sci. Phila., i, 1817, 93.−DEKAY,
New York Fauna, part iv, Fishes, 1842, 199,-CU VIER and VALIENCIENNES, Hist.
Nat. des Poissons, xvii, 1814, 444.—THOREAU, Week on Concord and Merrimack,
1868, 38. -
Catoglomus vitlatus, LESUEUR, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1817, 104.—DEKAY, New
York Fauna, part iv, Fishes, 1842, 203.—CUV. and VAL, xvii, 1844, 459.--STORER,
Synopsis, 1846, 422.
Catostomus fasciolaris, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh., 1820, 58.
Labeo elegan 8, DEKAY, New York Fauna, part iw, Fishes, 1812, 192.
Catostom u8 elegang, STORER, Synopsis, 1846, 425.
Labeo e8.opus, DEKAY, New York Fauna, part, iv, l’ishes, 1842, 195.
Catostomus e80pu8, STORER, Synopsis, 1846, 425.
Labeo elongatus, DEICAY, New York Fauna, part iv, Fishes, 1842, 195.
Moxostoma anigurus, AGASSIZ, Am. Journ, Sci. Arts, 2d series, xix, 1855, 202. (Not of
Rafinesque.)
Moa:08toma lenwe, AGASSIZ, Am. Journ, Sci. Arts, 2d Series, xix, 1855, 203.−PUTNAM, Bull.
Mus. Comp. Zool., 1863, 10.—GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes Brit, Mus, vii, 1868, 21.
Erimyzon lenwig, JORDAN and COPELAND, Check List, 1876, 157.
Moxostoma claviformis, GIRARD, Proc, Aead. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1856, 171 ; U. S. Pac. R. R.
Expl., x, 1858, 219, pl. xlviii, f. 5-9.
Erimyzon claviſormis, JORDAN and COPELAND, Check List, 1876, 157.
Moſco8toma kennerliyi, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat Sci., Phila., 1856, 171; U. S. Mex. Bound.
Surv., Ichth, 35, 1859, pl. XX, f. 4-6.
Moxostoma Campbelli, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat, Sci. Phila, 1856, 171; U. S. Mex. Bound.
Surv. Ichth, 35, 1850, pl. XX, f 4.6.
Erimyzon campbelli, JoBDAN and COPELAND, Check List, 1876, 157.
Description.—Body oblong, compressed, becoming gibbous with age, the ante-dorsal
region more or less elevated in the adults; the depth 33 in length, ranging from 23 in
adults to 4 in young; head Stout, Short, about 4+ in length (4 to 4%), the interorbital
space wide and depressed, the lower parts narrower, so that it is Solne what wedge-
shaped downward ; eye not large, 4% in head (4} to 5%); mouth protractile downward
and forward, the mandible oblique ; scales usually closely imbricated and more or less
crowded forward, but often showing Various irregularities in arrangement, about 43
(39-45) in a logitudinal series and 15 (14 to 16) in a transverse series between the ven-
trals and the dorsal ; fin-rays somewhat variable, the dorsal with 11 (10 to 13) developed
rays, the anal with 7, and the ventrals with 9 (rarely 8) ; coloration varying with age ;
never distinct series of black spots along the rows of scales ; young with a broad black
lateral band bordered above by paler; in some specimens from clear water, this band is
of a jet-black color and very distinct ; in others, it is duller; later this band becomes
broken into a series of blotches, which often assume the form of broad transverse bars;
in adult Specimens, these bars disappear, and the color is nearly uniform brown, dusky
CHUB sucKER. 823
above, paler below, every where with a coppery or brassy, never silvery, lustro ; the fins
are dualcy or smoky brown, rarely reddish-tinged ; sexual differences strong ; the males
in spring with usually three large tubercles on each side of the snout, and with the anal
fin more or less swollen and elmarginate ; adult 8pecimeus with the back gibbous and
the body strongly compressed, in appearance quite unlike the young ; maximum length
about 10 inches.
Habitat, all waters of the United States east of the Rocky Mountains.
Diagnosis —This is the only Sucker in Ohio without a lateral line which
has not a series of black spots along the rows of Scales on the sides of the
body.
Habits.--This species, like the two preceding, abounds in every brook
and pond in the State of Ohio. It is one of the very smallest of the Suck-
ers, rarely reaching the length of a foot. It is more than usually tenac-
ious of life, and bites readily at a small hook, but is of very little value
as food. The young are rather handsome fishes, the black lateral band
being sometimes very distinct. In the aquarium they feed upol algae
and the offal of other fishes. In the stomachs of specimens examined
by Prof. Forbes, only confervae, diatoms, and mud were found.
GENUS 21. MINYTREMA. Jordan.
Minytrema, JORDAN, Man. Vert, 2d ed., 1878, 318.
Catostomus, PtychoStomus, Mosco8toma, and Erimyzon sp., AUTHORS.
Type, Catostomus melanops, Rafinesque.
Etymology, minus, reduced ; trema, aperture, in allusion to the imperfections of the
lateral line.
Species with the form, squamation, and general appearance of Myro8toma, but with
the air bladder in two parts, as in Erimyzon, and the lateral line imperfect, in the very
young entirely obsolete, in half-grown specimens showing as a succession of deepened
furrows, in the adult with perfect tubes, but interrupted, these tubes being wanting on
some of the scales, especially posteriorly; head moderate, rather broad above ; mouth
moderate, inferior, horizontal, the upper lip well developed, freely protractile, rather
small, infolded, A-shaped in outline, plicated, with 12 to 20 plicae on each side; lower
jaw without cartilaginous sheath; eye moderate, rather high up, placed about midway
of the head. Suborbital bones considerably developed, not Very much narrower than
the fleshy portion of the cheek below them, the posterior suborbital concavo-convex,
about twice as long as deep, sometimes divided, the anterior somewhat deeper than
long, often divided into two, sometimes united with the preorbital, which is well
developed and much longer than broad. The number and form of these bones, except
as to their depth, are not constant in the same species, and do not afford specific char-
acters; opercular bones well developed, not much rugose; fontanelle evident, rather
large; gill rakers rather long, in length about half the diameter of the eye; isthmus
moderate; phi: ; y lºg al bunt s , ssentially as in Mya:08toma : body rather elongate, sub-
terete, becoming deep and rather compressed with age ; scales rather large, nearly
equal over the body, the radiating furrows not specially marked ; lateral line as above
824 FISHES-CATO STOMIDAE.
described, interrupted in the adult, but with perfect tubes, imperfect in partly grown
specimens, entirely obsolete in the young ; scales in a longitudinal series 44 to 47 in
number, 12 to 14 in a transverse series from dorsal to ventrals; dorsal fin rather short
and high, with about 12 developed rays, beginning rather nearer the snout than the
base of the caudal ; pectoral fins moderate, not reaching ventrals, the latter not to vent;
ventrals rather in advance of the middle of the dorsal, their rays normally 9, rarely 8 or
10; anal fin high and short, often more or less emarginate in males; caudal fin moder-
ately forked, the lobes about equal; air-bladder with two chambers ; males in spring
with the head covered with many small tubercles.
But one species of this genus seems to be known. It is widely distributed in the
waters of the Western and Southern States.
This genus has been recently separated from Erimyzon, on account of the peculiar-
ities of the lateral line, The form of the body, the form of the mouth, and the charac-
ter of the squamation differ considerably in the two genera.
42. MINYTREMA MELANOPS (Rafinesque) Jordan.
Striped Sucker; Sand Sucker; Spotted Sucker; Black-
mosed. Sucker.
Catostomus melanopa, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh, 1820, 57.-KIRTLAND, Boston Journ. Nat. Hist.,
v, 1845, 271–STORER, Synopsis, 1846, 424.
Catostomus melanopsis, KIRTLAND, Zool. Ohio, 1838, 168.
Ptychoglomus melanops, AGASSIZ, Am. Journ. Sci. Art5, 2d Series, xix, 1855, 204,-COPE,
Proc. Am. Philos. Soc. Phila., 1870, 483.
Jörimyzon melamop8, JORDAN, Bull. Buffalo Soc Nat. Hist, 1876, 95; Man, Vert, 1876,
294; Ann. Lye. Nat. Hist. N. Y., xi, 1877, 347–NELSON, Bull. No. 1, Ills. Mus. Nat.
Hist., 1876, 48 —JorpAN and COPELAND, Check List, 1876, 157.
Minytrema melanops, JoBDAN, Man. Wert, 2d Ed., 1878, 318; Bull. U. S. Nat, Mus., xii,
1878, 158. - -
Catostomus fasciatus, (LESUEUR MSS.) CUV. and VAL., Hist. Nat. des Poissons, xvii, 1844,
449.-STORER, Synopsis, 1846, 426–GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes Brit. Mus., vii, 1863, 19.
Moſcostoma victoria, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1856, 171; U. S. Mex. Bound,
Surv., Ichth., 1859, 35 pl. xx, f. 1-3. -
Ptychoslomus haydeni, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1856, 172; U. S. Pac. R. R.
Expl., x, 1858, 220, pl. xlix, f. 1-4.
Teretulu.8 haydeni, JORDAN and COPELAND, Check List, 1876, 157.
Teretulus 8wcetta, Jorda N and GILBERT, in Klipparl’s Rept. Fish Comm. Ohio, 1877, 53.
(Supposed to be C. 8wcetta, Lacepede, as it was perhaps in part the C. 8wceti of Cuv.
and Val, and of Bosc.)
Frimyzon aucetta, Jordan, Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., x, 1877, 35.
{}
Description.—Body oblong, little compressed, the young nearly terete, the adults
deeper-bodied; the dorsal region not elevated ; depth about four in length, varying
from three in adults to four and a half in the young; head not very large ; four and a
half in length of body (44 to 4%); not specially depressed; mucous pores rather strong;
eye small, five to six in head; mouth quite inferior, horizontal, rather small; scales
large, firm, regularly and smoothly imbricated, in 46 (44-47) longitudinal series and
13 (12 to 14) transverse series, not crowded forwards ; fin-rays usually, dorsal 12,
anal 7, ventrals 9; coloration dusky, with usually a black blotch behind the dorsal
STRIPED STUCKER. 825
fin ; top of head black; lips pale; each scale along the sides with a small, more or less
distinct blackish spot at its base, these spots forming interrupted longitudinal lines
along the rows of scales; these lines are usually very distinct, especially in the adult,
but young specimens often show them faintly ; sides and belly silvery, with a coppery
lustre; sexual peculiarities moderately marked; very old males with the head covered
with small tubercles in spring ; no great changes with age, either in form or coloration ;
size large ; maximum length about 18 inches.
Habitat, Great Lakes to South Carolina and Texas.
Diagnosis.—This species may be best known by the coloration, each
Scale along the sides having a conspicious dark spot, which forms dark
Stripes along the series of scales.
Habits.-This species is abundant in the lake regions, and grassy ponds
throughout Ohio. It is fond of clear sluggish waters. It is often taken
in nets in Lake Erie, but is more common in the basini of the Ohio. It
is a handsome fish, and the young being very tenacious of life are at-
tractive aquarium fishes. It may be used as food, but as a food fish is
more saleable than edible.
GENUS 22, MYXOSTOMA. (Rafinesque) Jordan.
Catostomw8, sp. LESUEUR, and of all writers till 1855. º
Moco8toma, RAFINESQUE, Ichthyologia Ohiensis, 1820, 54. (Proposed as a subgenus for
those species of Catostomw8 with eight wentral rays and the caudal lobes unequal;
type C, ani8wrus, Raf.)
Teretulus, RAFINESQUE, Ichthyologia Ohiensis, 1820, 57. (As a subgenus, to include
those species of Catostomus with nine ventral rays; no type designated—most of the
species recorded belong to the present genus. C. aureolus, LeSueur, is the species
first mentioned, and to this species and its relative the name Teretulus was after-
wards restricted by Professor Cope.)
Ptychoglomw8, Agassiz, American Journal of Science and Arts, 1855, p. 203. (No type
designated ; the species mentioned are P. aureolus, P. macrolepidotus, P. duquesnii,
and P. melanopó. P. aureolus has been considered the type of the genus.)
Teretulus, CoIPE, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci, Phila., 1868, 236.
Moxostoma, JORDAN, Manual of Vertebrates, 1876, 295.
Myxostoma, JORDAN, Ann. Lyc, Nat. Hist., 1877, 348. (Corrected orthography.)
Etymology, muco, to suck; 8toma, mouth.
Type, Catostom u8 ani8wrw8, Rafinesque.
Body more or less elongate, sometimes nearly terete, usually more or less compressed;
head variously long or short, its length ranging from three and a half to five and a half
in that of the body; eye usually rather large, varying from three to six times in the
length of the side of the head, its position high up and median or rather posterior; sub-
orbital bones very narrow ; fontanelle on top of head always well open, the parietal
bones not coalescing ; mouth varying much in size, always inferior, the mandible being
horizontal or nearly so; lips usually well developed, the form of the lower lip varying,
usually with a single median fissure ; the lips with transverse plicae, rarely somewhat
papillose; jaws without cartilaginous sheath; muciferous system considerably developed;
826 FISHES-CATOSTOMIDAE.
opercular bones moderately developed, nearly smooth ; isthmus broad ; gill-rakers
feeble; pharyngeal bones rather weak, the teeth moderate, strongly compressd, the
lower five or six much stronger than the others which diminish rapidly in size upward,
each with a prominent internal cusp ; scales large, quadrate, nearly equal over the body
and not crowded anteriorly, usually about 44 in the lateral line, and about 12 series
between dorsal and ventrals ; lateral line well developed, straight or anteriorly curved ;
fins well developed, the dorsal inserted about midway of the b dy, its first ray8 usually
nearer snout than caudal, the number of rays usually 13 (11 to 17); anal fin short and
high, emarginate in old males, with seven rays ; ventrals inserted under middle of dor-
sal, usually with nine rays; caudal fin deeply forked ; air-bladder with three chamberg ;
skeleton essentially as in Catostom w8, the vertebrae (in M. carpio) 27-14; Sexual pecu-
liarities little marked, the males in the spawing season (March to June) with the lower
fins reddened, and the anal rays swollen and tuberculate.
Species numerous and very closely related, abounding in all waters of the United
States, east of the Rocky Mountains,
ANALYSIS OF SPECIES OF MYXOSTOMA.
*Lower lip infolded, A-shaped when viewed from below, with a distinct median
crease, in which the two halves of the lip meet forming an acute angle ; mouth
Small ; dorsal rays 16. & ſº e e ſº & e VELATUM. 43.
*"Lower lip full, its posterior edge truncate, not infolded or A-shaped.
a. Dorsal rays 12 to 14.
b. Caudal fin with the upper lobe falcate, much longer than the lower.
ANISURA. 44.
bb. Caudal fin symmetrical,
o, Mouth very small; head short, 5 to 5% in length. . . . AUREOLUM. 45,
co. Mouth rather large ; head larger, 4 to 5 in length.
MACROLEPIDOTUM, 46.
aa. Dorsal rays 15 to 18; mouth large. te e tº e . CARPIO. 47.
43. MyxosToMA VELATUM (Cope) Jordan.
Small-moutin Red Horse ; W Haite Nose.
Catostom u8 ani8wrus, KIRTLAND, Boston Journ. Nat. Hist, v, 1845, 269 (with plate). (Not
of Rafinesque.)—STORER, Synopsis, 1846, 424.
PtychoStomus amigurw8, JORDAN, Bull. Buffalo Soc. Nat. Hist, 1876, 94 (name only).
Moco8toma ani8wrug, JORDAN, Man, Vert., 1876, 295.
Teretulus amigurw8, NELSON, Bull. No. 1, Ills. Mus. Nat. Hist, 1876, 49.-JORDAN and
COPELAND, Check List, 1876, 153 (name only).
Moacostoma ani8wrum, JoBDAN, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci, Phila., 1877, 72, 80.
Moxostoma amigura, Jorld AN and GILBERT, in Klippart's Rept., 1877, 53 (name only).
Mya:08toma amigura, Jord AN, Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., x, 1877, 33.
Ptychostomw8 velatw8, CoPE, Proc. Am. Philos. Soc., 1870, 471.
Moxostoma velatum, Jordan, Man. Wert., 1876, 296.
Teretulus velatum, NELSON, Bull, No. 1, Ills. Mus. Nat. Hist., 1876, 49.
Teretulus velatw8, Jordan and Copiti,AND, Check List, 1876, 158.
Moxostoma velata, Jordan and GILBERT, in Klippart's Rept., 1876, 53 (name only).
GOLDEN RED HORSE. 827
Mya:08toma velata, JorDAN, Man. Vert., 2d Ed., 1878, 317; Bull, U. S. Nat. Mus., xii,
1878, 132.
Ptychostomus collaphus, COPE, Proc. Am. Philos, Soc. Phila., 1870, 471.
Description —Body stout, deep, compressed, the back elevated; head short, heavy, flat-
tish and broad above, thick through the checks; eye rather large, midway in head, four
to five in its length ; II, uzzle rather prominent, bluntish, overhanging the very small
mouth ; fins very large ; the dorsal long and high, its height five-sixths the length of the
head ; pectorals nearly reaching ventrals; mouth quite small, the lips plicate, the lower
lip infolded, A shaped when viewed from below, with a distinct median crease, in which
the two halves of the lips meet, foriuing an acute angle ; color silvery, Smoky above,
lower fins red ; head 3% to 44; depth 3 to 4 ; D. 15 to 17; scales 6-42-5. Length 1 foot.
Habitat, Upper Mississippi Valley to Georgia and North Carolina, widely distributed,
but not generally abundant.
Diagnosis—This species may be known by the small and contracted
mouth, in connection with the presence of 15 or more dorsal rays.
Habits.—This species is frequently taken in the Ohio River and its
tributaries, but it is not abundant any where in the west. In Some of
the streams of North Carolina, it is the commonest species. It is little
valued as food. This seems to be the species called White Nose by Dr.
Kirtland, but more than one species is apparently included in his
description.
44. MYXOSTOMA ANISURUM (Rafinesque) Jordan.
H_ong-tailed Red Horse.
Catostom u8 ani8wrus, RAFINESQUE, Ichthyologia, Ohiensis, 1820, 54.
Mya:08toma ani8wra, JORDAN, Man. Vert , 2d Ed., 1868, 315.
Ptychostom u8 breviceps, COPE, Proc. Am. Philos. Soc. Phila, 1870, 478,
Teretulus breviceps, JORDAN and COPELAND, Check List, 1876, 157. (Name only.)
Mo.co8toma breviceps, Jorda N and GILBERT, in Klippart's Rept., 1876, 53. (Name only.)
Mycostoma breviceps, JoBDAN, Bull, U. S. Nat. Mus, 1877, 9, 50. (Name only.)
Description —Body compressed, the back somewhat elevated ; head short, conic,
flattish, formed as in M. aureolum; mouth very small, the lips plicate, the lower full and
truncate behind ; dorsal fin short and high, falcate, the anterior rays being elevated,
and the free border deeply incised, the height of the largest rays being half greater than
the base of the fin ; caudal fin with the upper lobe much longer than the lower, falcate,
at least in the adult ; colors olivaceous, sides silvery with coppery reflections ; head
5%; depth 34 ; D. 12 or 13; scales 6.46-5. Length one foot.
Habitat, Ohio Valley.
Diagnosis.--This species is very close to M. aureolwm, and may indeed
be the male of that species. It may be known from the other Red Horse
by the inequality of the lobes of the caudal.
Habits.-ſ have seen a few specimens of this in the United States
Museum, obtained in the Cincinnati market. Prof. Cope’s types came
from Western Pennsylvania, further than this nothing is known of its
habits or distribution.
828 FISHES-CATO STOMIDAE.
45. MYXOSTOMA AUREOLUM (LeSueur) Jordan.
Goidem Red Horse; Lake Mullet.
Catostomus aureolus, LESUEUR, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila, i, 1817, 95.—KIRTLAND,
Rept. Zool, Ohio, 1838, 168; Boston Journ. Nat. Hist., iii, 1840, 349 —DIEKAY, New
York Fauna, part iv, Fishes, 1842, 201,–STORER, Synopsis, 1846, 420.-AGASSIZ,
Lake Superior, 1850, 357.-GUNTHER, Cat, Fishes Brit, Mus. vii, 1868, 16. (In part ;
description apparently copied and confused.)
PtychoStomw8 aureolus, AGASSIz, Am. Journ. Sci. Arts, 2d series, xix, 1855, 204.—PUTNAM,
Bull. Mus, Comp. Zool., 1863, 10,—CoPE, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci, Phila., 1864, 285;
Proc. Am. Philos. Soc. Phila., 1870, 476.
Moxostoma aureolum, Jordan, Man. Vert., 1876, 295.
Teretulus aureolum, NELSON, Bull. No. 1, Ills, Mus, Nat. Hist, 1876, 49.
Teretulus aureolus, JoBDAN and CoPELAND, Check List, 1876, 157. (Name only.)
Moa:08toma awreola, Jordan and GILBERT, in Klippart's Rept., 1876, 54. (Name only.)
Mya:08toma aureola, Jordan, Man. Wert. E. U. S., 2d Ed., 1878, 314; Ball, U. S. Mus, xii,
124, 1878. -
Catostomus lesueurii, RICHARDson, Franklin's Journal, 1823, 772.
Cyprinus (Catostomus) sueurii, RICHARDson, Faun. Bor.-Am, Fishes, 1836, pp. 118, 303.
Catostomus 8weurii, CUV. and VAL., Hist, Nat des Poissons, xvii, 1844, 475,-STORER, Sy-
mopsis, 1847, 425, -
Catostomus 8weuri, DEKAY, New York Fauna, part iv, Fishes, 1842, 203.
Ptychoatomus 8weurii, COPE, Proc. Am. Philos. Soc. Phila., 477, 1870.
Teretulus 8weurii, JORDAN and Cork LAND, Check List, 1876, 157. (Name only.)
Catostomus maorolepidotus, GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes Brit. Mus., vii, 1868, 18. (Excl. syn.)
Debcription.—Body moderately elongate, compressed, the back somewhat arched; head
comparatively short, low and small ; mouth small, somewhat overpassed by the snout ;
lips plicate; lower lip full, truncate behind ; coloration bright yellowish-brown, not
silvery, lower fins bright red; head 5 to 5%; depth 3%; D. 13; scales 6-42 to 48-5.
Length, 12 to 18 inches.
Habitat, Ohio Valley and Great Lake region and northward,
Diagnosis.-This species may be known from the Common Red Horse
by the shorter bead and smaller mouth. -
Habits.—This handsome Sucker is very common in Lake Erie, and is
found, though less abundantly in the Ohio River. It is confounded by
the fishermen with the Common Red Horse, and is of similarly little
value as food.
46. MyxoSTOMA MACROLEPIDOTUM (LeSueur) Jordan.
Common Red Horse ; Mullet; White Sucker; Large-scaled
Sucker.
a, var. macrolepidotum,
Catostomus macrolepidotum, LESUEUR, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci, Phila, i, 1817, 94,-DEKAY,
New York Fauna, part iv, Fishes, 1842, 202–CUVIER and WALENCIENNES, Hist. Nat.
COMMON RED HORSE, 829
des Poissons, xvii, 1844, 447–STORER, Synopsis, 1846, 420,-UHLER and LUGGER,
Fishes of Maryland, 1876, 140.
Ptychostomus macrolepidotum, AGASSIZ, Am. Journ. Sci. Arts, 2d series, xix, 1855, 204.—
Copſ, Proc. Am. Philos. Soc. Phila., 1870, 475.-JORDAN, Fishes of Ind., 1875, 221.
(Name only.)
Moa:08toma macrolepidotum, JORDAN, Man. Vert., 1876, 296.
Teretulus macrolepidotum, NELSON, Bull. No. 1, Ills. Mus. Nat. Hist., 1876, 49.
Teretulus macrolepidotus, JORDAN and COPELAND, Check List, x, 1876, 157. (Name only.)
Moxostoma macrolepidota, JORDAN and GILBERT, in Klippart's Rept., 1876 53 (name
only); Man. Vert. E. U. S., 2d E°., 313, 1878; Bull. U. S. Na us, xii, 1878,
120.
Catostomw8 oneida, DEKAY, New York Fauna, part iw, Fishes, 1842, 198—STORER, Syn-
opsis, 1846, 425. -
Ptychostomus oneida, Cope, Proc. Am. Philo. Soc. Phila., 1870, 476.
Ptychostomus robustw8, CoPE, Proc. Am. Philos. Soc. Phila, 1870, 473.
Teretulus robustus, JORDAN and COPELAND, Check List, 1876, 157 (name only).
Plychoatomus congestus, Copi, and YARROW, Lieutenant Wheeler's Expl. W. 100th Mer.,
V, 1876, - (not of Girard.)
Habitat, North Carolina to Vermont, and northwestward—through the Great Lake
Region and Upper Mississippi, the only form of the species occurring east of the
Alleghany Mountains. (Also in Arizona.)
b. var. lachrymale (Cope) Jordan.
Ptychostomus lachrymalia, CoPE, Proc. Am. Philos. Soc. Phila., 1870, 474.
Teretulus lachrymali8, JORDAN and COPELAND, Check List, 1876, 157 (name only).
Myxostoma duquesnii, var. lachrymalis, Jordan, Ann. Lyo. Nat. Hist. N. Y., xi, 1877, 349.
Myacostoma macrolepidota, var. lachrymalis, JORDAN, Man. Vert , 2d Ed., 1878, 313.
Habitat, North Carolina to Alabama.
o, var, duquesnii (LeSueur) Jordan.
Catostomus duquesnii, LESUEUR, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1817, 105.-RAFLNESQUE,
Ich. Oh, 1820, 60–KIRTLAND, Rept. Zool. Ohio, 1838, 168; Boston Journ. Nat. Hist,
v., 1845, 268,-DEKAY, New York Fauna, part iv, Fishes, 1842, 203 –CUyIER and
VALENCIENNES, xvii, 1844, 458–Stoker, Synopsis, 1846, 423–GUNTHER, Cat.
Fishes Brit. Mus, vii, 1868, 18–URLER and LUGGER, Fishes of Maryland, 1876, 139.
PtychoStomw8 duquesnii, AGASSIZ, Am. Journ. Sci. Arts, 2d series, xix, 1855, 204.
Teretulus duquesnii, CoPE, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci, Phila, 1878, p. ——NELSON, Bull, No. 1,
Ills. Mus. Nat. Hist., 1876, 49; Jorda N and COPELAND, Check List, 1876, 157 (name
only).
Ptychostomus duquesni, CoPE, Proc. Am. Philos. Soc. Phila, 1870, 476–Jordan, Bull.
Buffalo Soc. Nat. Hist., 1876, 95.
Moxostoma duquesnii, Jordan, Man. Wert., 1876, 295.
Moxostoma duquesnei, JoRDAN and GILBERT, in Klippart's Rept., 1876, 53 (name only).
Myxostoma duquesnii, Jordan, Ann. Lyc, Nat. Hist, 1877, 349; Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., ix,
1877, 37,
Mycostoma macrolepidota, war, duquesni, JoFDAN, Man. Wert., 2d Ed., 1878, p. 313; Bull,
U. S. Nat, Mus. xii, 120.
830 FISHES-CATO STOM ID AE.
Catostomus erythrurw8, RAFINESQUE, Am. Month, Mag, and Crit. Rev., 1818, 345; Ich.
Oh., 1850, 59.—KIrTLAND, Rept. Zool. Ohio, 1838, 168.
Ptychostomus erythrurus, CoPE, Proc. Am. Philos. Soc. Phila., 1870, 474 —Jordan, Fishes
of Ind., 1875, 221 (name only).
Teretulu.8 erythrurus, JORDAN and COPELAND, Check List, 1876, 157 (name only),
Rutilus melamurw8, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Ob., 1820, 51.
Description.—Body stoutish, compressed, varying to moderately elongate; head stout,
moderately long; mouth moderate or rather large, not very small, nor very much over-
passed by the muzzle; lips thick, strongly plicate ; lower lip full, truncate behind ; dor-
sal fin moderate, not falcate, its rays 12 to 19—usually 13 in number ; scales large ; col-
oration olivaceous; sides pale or silvery, with bright reflections ; lower fins red or
orange in the adult ; head 4 to 5; depth 33 to 44; scales 6-45-5. Length 18 to 24 inches,
Habitat, Great Lake Region to Georgia and Arizona.
Diagnosis.--This species may be known by presence of a rather large
mouth, and a moderate dorsal fin.
Habits.—Two varieties of the Common Red Horse may be recognized in
Ohio. One (var. duquesnö) is the common form in the streams of the
Southern two thirds of the State. This form is more silvery in color;
the body and head are more elongate, and the mouth is larger; the
other (var. macrolepidotum) is common in Lake Erie, and in all these
respects forms a transition towards the short headed, small-mouthed
and high-backed Myºcostoma aureolwm. Both varieties reach a large size,
and are used as food, although their value is not great. The species is
found in all clear waters in the west, and ascends the small streams in
May, for the purpose of spawning. It is not very tenacious of life, and
in the aquarium dies on the least suspicion of impure water.
47. MyxoSTOMA CARPIo (Valenciennes) Jordan.
Carp Munilet; White Lake Mullet.
Catostomus carpio, VAL., Hist. Nat, des Poiss., xvii, 1344, 457.-STORER, Synopsis, 1846,
426 –GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes Brit, Mus, vii, 1868, 20.
Ptychostomus carpio, COPE, Proc. Am. Philos. Soc. Phila., 1870, 476.
Moſco8tomvug carpio, JORDAN, Man. Wert, 1876, 303.—JoFDAN and GILBERT, in Klippart's
Rept. Fish Comm. Ohio, 1877, 53 (name only).
Teretulus carpio, NELSON, Bull, No. 1, Ills. Mus, Nat. Hist., 1876, 49.—Jordan and COPE-
LAND, Check List, 1876, 157 (name only).
Myrostona carpio, Jordan, Man. Wert. E., U. S., 2d Ed., 1878, 312; Bull. U. S. Nat, Mus,
xii, 1878, 118.
Description.--Body deep, strongly compressed, the back somewhat elevated ; head
large, broad above; mouth large, with full lips, which are strongly plicate; lower lip
full, truncate behind; eye large; dorsal fin high and large, more developed than in any
other species of this genus, the first ray about as long as the base of the fin, the rays 15
to 18 in number; coloration very pale and silvery, the lower fins pale; head 33 to 44;
depth 34; D, 17; scales 5-43-4. Length 18 to 24 inches.
Habitat, Ohio River and Great Lake Region.
BIG-JAWED SUCKER. 831
Diagnosis —This species may be known by the presence of about 17
dorsal Spines and a large mouth.
Habits.-This is a large species frequently taken with M. macrolepido-
tum in Lake Erie. I have also seen several from the Ohio River at Cin-
cinnati and Marietta. It is a species of northern distribution.
GENUS 23. PLACOPHARYNX. Cope.
Placopharyna, COPE, Proc. Am. Philos. Soc. Phila., 1870, 477.
Type, Placopharyna, carinatus, Cope.
Etymology, plaa, a broad surface; pharuga, pharynx.
This genus is identical with Myxostoma in a'l respects, except in the development of
the pharyngeal bones and teeth. The pharyngeal bones are very strong and the teeth
on the lower half of the bone are much reduced in number (6 to 10). They are nearly
cylindrical in form, being little compressed, and with a broad, rounded or ſlattened
grinding surface. In Fize and form, these enlarged teeth are extremely irregular. The
upper teeth are small, and compressed as in Myxostoma. The mouth in Placopharyna is
larger than in any species of Mya:08toma and the lips are much more developed.
But one species is known.
48. PLACOPHARYNX CARINATUS Cope.
Big-jawed Sucker.
Placopharyma carinatus, COPE, Proc. Am. Philos Soc. Phila., 1876, 467—JORDAN, Fishes
of Ind., 1875,221 (name only); Man, Vert, 1876, 296; 2d Ed., 1878, 311; Proc. Acad.
Nat. Sci. Phila., 1877, 72; Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., ix, 1877, 50 (name only); xii, 1878,
108; Bull. U. S Geol. Surv., vol. iv., 1877, No. 2, p. 417,-NELSON, Bull, No. 1, Ills.
Mus, Nat. Hist., 1876, 49.—JORDAN and COPELAND, Check List, 1876, 158.—JORDAN
and GILBERT, in Klippart's Rept., 1877, 53 (Uatue only).-KLIPPART, First Report of
Ohio Fish Coimmission, 1877, 86.
Description —Body oblong, moderately compressed, heavy at the shoulders; head very
large ; eye small, behind the middle of the bead ; mouth extremely large, the lower jaw
oblique when the Inouth is closed, the mouth thus opening forward as well as down-
ward ; lips very thick, coarsely plicate, the lower lip full and heavy, truncated behind;
head above evenly rounded (carinate, according to Professor Cope); color brassy-green
above, pale below ; lower fins red ; head 3%; depth 3}; D. 13 ; scales 6–45–6; W. 9.
Length 18 to 24 inches.
Habitat, Mississippi Valley and Upper Great Lakes.
Diagnosis.-This large coarse species may be certainly known only by
the examination of its pharyngeal teeth.
Płabits—This fish is probably common in the Western Rivers, but owing
to its great similarity of form to the Common Red Horse, has been over-
looked by most naturalists. The writer has met with the following
specimens: (a) a complete skeleton of a very large specimen found by Dr.
J. M. Wheaton in the Scioto River near Columbus; (b) two young speci-
832 FIS HES-CATO STOMIDAE.
mens obtained in Illinois River by Professor A. W. Brayton; (c) a pair
of pharyngeal bones taken by Dr. G. M. Levette from a specimen taken in
the Wabash at Terre Haute, where the fish is said to be abundant; (d) a
pharyngeal bone and air-bladder from a specimen taken in Detroit River
by Professor Baird; (e) a pharyngeal bone from “post pliocene" deposits
at the Falls of the Ohio by Dr. John Sloan, and (f) many specimens
taken in fish traps in French Broad River where it is the most abundant
of the Suckers. Excepting Professor Cope’s original type, the above
mentioned are the only specimens on record.
GENUS 24. QUASSILA BIA Jordan and Brayton.
Lagochila, JorDAN and BRAYTON, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila, 1877, 280 (preoccupied in
conchology as Lagochilus).
Quasailabia, (JordAN and BRAYTON) Jordan, Man. Vert., E., U. S., 2d Ed., 1878, 401.
Type, Lagochila lacera, Jordan and Brayton.
Etymology, Latin, qua&8w8, broken or torn ; labia, lip
Body elongated, not much compressed, not elevated ; head shortish, conical, with
lengthened snout, its length four and a half to five in body, the opercular region being
reduced, so that the eye is well backwards; suborbital bones marrow ; fontane le large,
widely open ; mouth large, singular in structure, inferior, the upper lip not protractile,
greatly prolonged, its surface closely plicate; lower lip much reduced, divided into two
distinct elongate lobes, which are weakly papillose; the Split between these lobes ex-
tends backwards to the edge of the dentary bones which are provided with a horny plate
as in the western genus Panto&tew8; the lower lip is entirely separated by a deep fissure,
from the upper at its angle; the skin of the cheeks forms a sort of cloak over this fis-
sure, the crease separating this skin from the lips extends down on the under side of the
head; muciferous tubes well developed ; fins moderate, of the same type as in Myanob-
toma; scales large, the lateral line well developed and nearly straight, with about 45
scales in its course; air-bladder in three parts.
But one species is known, one of the most singular of American fished.
49. QUASSILABIA LACERA Jordan and Brayton.
HHare-Hip Sucker; Split-mmouth Suucker; WHay Suncker of the
Scioto ; Cut-lip.
Lagochila lacera, JoFDAN and BRAYTON, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila, 1877, 280,—Jorg>AN,
Man, Wert, 2d Ed., 1878, 311.
Quasailabia lacera, JoRDAN, Man, Vert, 2d Ed., 1878, 406; Bull, U. S. Geol. Surv. Terr.,
1878,418; Bull. U.S. Nat, Mus., xii, 1878, 106.
Description.—Head short, conical, with lengthened snout, the region between the eyeſ}
flattened and with prominent mucous ridges; cheeks and lower part of head tumid;
opercle very small, its greatest length scarcely greater than the diameter of the eye;
four and one-third in length of head, two in length of snout, its situation thus quite in-
ferior; length of top of head one and two-thirds in distance from the snout to the base
HARE-LIP SUCKER. 833
the dorsal; body slender; dorsal fin low ; color olivaceous or bluish-brown above; sides
and belly silvery; lower fins faintly orange ; head 4%; depth 4% ; D. 12; A. 7 ; V, 9;
scales 5.45-5. Length 1 to 13 feet.
Habitat, Ohio Valley.
Diagnosis.-This species will be known at sight from the fact that its
under jaw is “hare-lipped,” i.e. the fleshy lip is split to the bone.
Habits—This species was first taken by Professor Brayton and the
writer in Chickamauga River in Georgia, a tributary of the Tennessee.
Later, we obtained a third specimen in Elk River, Tennessee. In April,
1878, much to my surprise, a fine large specimen was sent to me by Mr.
J. H. Klippart of the Ohio State Fish Commission. This specimen was
taken in the Scioto River, and Mr. Klippart tells us that the species is
well known to the fishermen at Columbus, who call the fish “May
Sucker,” as it spawns in May. That So conspicuous a species should so
long have eluded the ichthyologists in the Ohio Basin, is extremely re-
markable. The habits of this species are doubtless similar to those of
allied Red Horse.
FAMILY IX. CY PRINIDAE. T H E CARPs.
Cyprinoid fishes with the margin of the upper jaw formed by the premaxillaries alone,
and the lower pharyngeal bones well developed, falciform, nearly parallel with the gill
arches, each provided with one to three series of teeth in small number, from three to
seven in the main row, and a less number in the others; head naked ; body almost
always scaly; barbels two or four (absent in most of our genera and not large in any);
belly usually rounded, rarely compressed, never serrated; gill openings moderate,
separated by an isthmus; no adipose fin ; dorsal fin short in American species (elongate
in many old world forms); ventral fins abdominal; air-bladder usually large, commonly
divided into an anterior and posterior Jobe, rarely wanting; stomach without append-
ages, appearing as a simple enlargement of the intestine. Fishes of moderate or small
size, inhabiting the fresh waters of the old world and of North America. Genera about
two hundred; species nearly a thousand; excessively abundant where found, both in
individuals and in species, and from their great uniformity in size, form and coloration,
constituting one of the most difficult groups in Natural History in which to distinguish
genera and species. The genera found in Ohio, with the exceptions of Campostoma,
ExogloS8wtº, Chro8ómw8, and few others, are all very closely related, and are separated by
characters which, though reasonably constant, are often difficult to determine. From
time to time different authors have proposed to throw most of these small genera into the
genus Letºci&ow8, a procedure, which, without further discussion, may be said to have
always led to confusion. The spring or breeding dress of the male fishes is often pecu.
liar. The top of the head and often the fins, or various portions of the body are covered
with small tubercles, outgrowths from the epidermis. The fins and parts of the body
in young spring males are often charged with bright pigment, the prevaling color of
which is red, although in some genera it is satin-white, yellow, or black.
53
834 FISHEs—CYPRINIDAE.
NOTE.-The student will find it necessary from the first to examine very carefully the
teeth of these fish, as only by dental characters can most of the genera be recognized.
The pharyngeal bones lie behind the gills, inside of and parallel with the shoulder gir-
dle. They can be removed by inserting a pin or small hook under the shoulder girdle.
They should be carefully cleaned, and in most cases they can be examined only by aid of a
lens. Usually a principal row of four or five larger teeth will be found, in front of
which is a set of one or two smaller ones. The two sides are usually but not alway8
symmetrical, therefore both must be examined. Thus “ teeth 2, 4-5, 1, indicates two
rows of teeth on each side, on the one side four in the principal row and two in the
lesser, on the other side five in the main row and one in the other. “Teeth 4-4,” in-
dicates a single row of four on each pharyngeal bone and so on.
In most of our genºra, these teeth—or the largest ones, are “raptorial,” that is
hooked inward at the tips. A “grinding ” or “Inasticatory " surface, is an excavated area
in the concavity of the hook or at its base. Sometimes a lateral bevel on the edge
of the tooth so resembles a masticatory surface as to “deceive the very elect ’’ until the
Question as to its actual concavity is tested by a pin or other similar object. Sometimes
the masticatory surface is very narrow and confined to one or two of the teeth. In the
present state of our knowledge, the presence or absence of this surface must be taken
as a generic character.
ANALYSIS OF GENERA. OIF CYPRINIDAE.
*Species native, with the dorsal short and without Serrated spine.
f Intestinal canal more or less elongate (more than twice as long as head and body);
peritoneum (lining of abdominal cavity) dark ; teeth not strongly hooked, with
grinding surface.
a. Intestinal canal 6 to 9 times length of body, coilad around the air-bladder ; teeth
4.4 or 1, 4–4, 0. ſº e e de CAMPOSTOMA. 25.
aa. Infestinal canal 2 to 4 times length of body, below the air bladder and not coiled
around it,
b. Teeth 5-5 or 4-5 ; anal fin short ; scales minute ; lateral line imperfect.
CHROSOMU.S. 26.
bb. Teeth 4.4; scales rather large, -
c. Dorsal fin with its rudimentary ray slender, firmly attached to the first
developed ray ; lateral line complete. e tº HYBOGNATHUS, 27,
co. Dorsal fin with its rudimentary ray rather stout, Spine-like, connected by
a membrane to the first developed ray (a black spot on front of dorsal
fin, above the base).
d. Lateral line incomplete, e e * © e PIMRPIIALES, 28.
dd. Lateral line complete. g e e º . HYBORIIYNCIIUS. 29.
f f intestinal canal short, less than twice the length of head and body ; peritoneum
pale; teeth well hooked.
f Abdomen behind ventral fins, not compressed to an edge ; anal basis moderate or
short.
e. Lower jaw three-lobed ; the dentary bones forming the middle lobe, being united
their whole length ; upper jaw not protractile ; teeth 1,4-4, 1, without grind-
ing Burface. * tº tº © e e EXOGLOSSUM, 30.
ee. Lower jaw not three-lobed, the dentary bones distinct, except at their
Symphysis.
CARPS. 835
f. Teeth in the main row 4-4.
g. Maxillary without barbel.
h. Teeth 4-4 or 1, 4 4, 1 or 0.
i. Bones of head without cavernous chambers; lips thin ; teeth with grind-
ing surface. &
k. Lateral line complete. t & & e & HUDSONIUS, 31.
kk. Lateral line incomplete. . & g * $ . CHRIOPE. 32.
hh. Teeth 2, 4-4, 2.
Č. Teeth without grinding surface; lateral line complete; anal basis rather
long, e * g & tº MINNILUS. 33.
tl, Teeth with grinding surface; lateral line complete.
m. Dorsal fin inserted well behind ventrals; anal basis long (rays 10
to 13). Q g e ſº * LYTHRURUS. 34.
mm, Dorsal fin inserted over or a little behind ventral ; anal basis short
(rays 7 to 9). e * g g & & & LUXILUS. 35.
ić. Suborbital, interopercle and dentary bones much dilated, cavernous,
crossed by mucous channels (readily seen by looking at the head of
the fish from below ; teeth 1, 4-4, 0, $ . ERICYMBA. 36.
iii. Lips thick, fleshy, the lower enlarged behind; month small, inferior;
teeth 4-4, without grinding surface. . . PHENACOBIUs. 37.
gig. Maxillary with a small barbel at or near its extremity (sometimes minute
in Rhinichthys).
ty. Upper jaw not protractile; scales small ; dorsal behind wentrals.
RHINICHTHYs, 38,
tvm. Upper jaw protractile.
o, Teeth 1,4-4, 1 or 4.4.
p Teeth with grinding surface, 4-4; body elongate. . ERIMYSTAX, 39.
pp. Teeth without grinding surface. . * . CERATICHTEYs. 40.
oo. Teeth 2, 4-4, 2, without grinding Surface. tº • COUESIUS. 41.
ff. Teeth 2, 5-4, 2 or 1, or 2, 5-5, 2, without grinding surface.
q. Maxillary with a minute, lateral barbel (obscure or invisible in young speci-
mens); scales moderate or large. ge e tº • SEMOTILUS. 42.
.gq Maxillary without barbel; scales small.
r. Lateral line complete. e - * TELESTES. 43.
rr. Lateral line incomplete. * & & e PHOXINUS. 44.
£f Abdomen behind wentral fin compressed to an edge ; anal basis elongated.
8. Teeth 5-5, with grinding surface; lateral line complete ; anal rays 10 to 18.
NOTEMIGONUs. 45.
**Species introduced from Asia through Europe, with long dorsal fin preceded by a
serrated spine.
t. Barbels none. ſº e tº & * g CARASSIUS. 46.
tt, Barbels four. tº * * e * ge CYPRINUS. 47.
GENUS 25. CAMPOSTOMA. Agassiz,
Campostoma, AGASSIZ, Am. Journ. Sci. Arts, 1855, 219.
Type, Rutilw8 anomalus, Rafinesque,
Etymology, kampe, curve; 8toma, mouth.
836 FISHES-CYPRINIDAE.
Body moderately elongated, little compressed ; mouth normal, the jaws with a hard
sheath ; premaxillaries protractile ; no barbel; teeth 4-4 or 1, 4-4, 0, with oblong grind-
ing surface and but little hook; air-bladder suspended in the abdominal cavity, and
entirely surrounded by many convolutions of the long alimentary canal; herbivorous;
sexual difference very great; scales moderate; lateral line present ; dorsal nearly over
ventrals ; anal basis short ; no spines. The singular arrangement of the intestine in re-
lation to the air-bladder is peculiar to Campo'8toma among all known fishes, Several
species are known, all American ; fishes of moderate size and bright colors, swarming in
the brooks and rock-pools of the interior of the United States,
50. CAMPOSTOMA ANOMALUM (Rafinesque) Agassiz.
Stone Roller; Stone-toter; Steel-backed WIinnow.
Rutilus anomalum, RAF, Ich, Oh., 1820, 52.
Campostoma amonalum, AGASSIz, Am. Journ. Sci. Arts, 1855, 218.-JORDAN, Ann. Lyc,
Nat. Hist. N. Y., 1876, 325, and of most writers.
Eacoglossum lesueurianum, KIRTLAND, Rept. Zool. Ohio, 1838, 169, 193 (not of Raf.).
Eacoglossum ºpinicephalum, CUV. et VAL., xvii, 1844, 489.
Eacoglossum dubium, KIRTLAND, Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist, v, 1842, 272,
Campostoma dubium, COPE, Cyp. Penn., 1866, 395.-GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes Brit. Mus., vii,
1868, 183. -
Chondrostoma pullum, AGASSIZ, Am. Journ. Sci. Arts, 1854, 357.
Campostoma formosulum, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat, Sci. Phila., 1856, 176; U. S. Mex.
Bound. Surv. Ich., 1859, 41.
Campostoma hippops, callipteryx, mormyrus, and gobioninum, COPE, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci.,
Phila., 1864, 284,
Description.—Body oblong, moderately compressed, the back somewhat elevated ; the
head moderate, rounded above, with nearly vertical cheeks; mouth moderate, Subin-
ferior; scales deep, rather small and crowded anteriorly; fins moderate, the dorsal fin
nearly over the ventrals ; color brownish or nearly black, with a brassy lustre above,
the scales more or less mottled with dark; a dark vertical bar behind opercle ; iris
usually orange ; dorsal and anal each with a dusky cross-bar about half way up, the
rest of the fin olivaceous, or, in Spring males, fiery orange; males in spring with the head
and often the whole body covered with rather large rounded tubercles; in no other
American fish are the nuptial appendages so extensively developed ; head 43 ; depth
44; D. 8; A. 7; lat. l. 53; teeth 4-4. Length 4 to 8 inches.
Habitat, Western New York to Minnesota and southwest to the Rio Grande.
Diagnosis.--This fish may be known from all other of our minnows by
the great length and peculiar arrangement of the intestines.
Habits.--This species is extremely abundant in every stream in Ohio.
It spawns early in spring, and it ascends in great numbers all the run-
ning streams, even the very smallest. Later it retires to the deeper
places in the creeks, where it may be readily recognized by its quick
motions and dusky colors. Most of the specimens Seen are comparatively
small, but occasionally an old male may be noticed in the Spring, with
RED-BELLIED MINNOW. 837
its entire body rough and gray with tubercles, and with its vertical fins
gaily variegated with black and orange. Such individuals appear to
have exhausted their vitality and die quickly in confinement, and are
often found dead. Young individuals are active and hardy in the
aquarium, where they feed on confervae and diatoms.
The Stone Roller is too small to be of any value as food, but with other
of our larger Cyprinoids, is caught and valued by Small boys.
GENUS 27. CHKOSOMUS. Rafinesque.
Chro80mu8, RariNESQUE, Ichthyologia, 1820, 47.
Type, Luacilus erythrogaster, Rafinesque.
Etymology, chro8, color; 80ma, body.
Body moderately elongate, little compressed; jaws normal; no barbels; teeth 45 or
5-5 moderately hooked, with oblong grinding surface; alimentary canal about twice
as long as the body; peritoneum more or less black; scales very small ; lateral line short
or wanting ; dorsal behind ventrals ; anal basis short ; size small ; colors in Spring
\brilliant. The brilliant little fishes which compose this genus, bear a superficial re-
semblance to the species of Phocimw8, but their relation is probably nearer Pimephales and
Hybognathug. All are American.
51. CHROSOMUs ERYTHROGASTER Rafinesque.
H&ed-bellied MHiramow.
Luxilus erythrogaster, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh, 1820, 47.-KIRTLAND, Rept, Zool. Oh, 169;
Bost. Journ, Nat. Hist., 1844, iv, 23.
Chrogomw8 erythrogaster, RAF, Ich. Oh., 1820, 47.-AGASSIZ, Am. Journ. Sci. Arts., 1854,
359, (?) 1855 (reprint). —PUTNAM, Bull. M. C. Z, 1863, 8–CoPE, Cyp. Penn., 1866,
391 ; Journ. Phila. Acad. Sci., 1869, 233.—JORDAN, Man. Vert, 2d Ed., 1871, 302,
and of most authors.
Leuciscw8 erythrogaster, STORER, Synopsis, 1846, 410.-GUNTHER, Cat Fishes, vii, 217.
? Chr08omw8 co8, COPE, Proc. Phila. Acad, Sci., 1868, 233.−GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes, vii, 248.
–Joro AN, Man. Vert , 1876, 284.
Chrogonus pyrrhogaster, Jordan, Bull. Buff. Nat. Hist. Soc., 1876, 94 ; Man. Vert. 284.
(Proposed for C. erythrogaster, Auct., the C. erythrogaster of Raf, being perhaps C. eo8.
It is best however to follow the prevailing nomenclature.)
Description — Body oblong, tapering each way from the middle, little compressed ; head
moderate, rather pointed ; mouth moderate, terminal, oblique, the jaws about equal; fins
rather small, the dorsal and anal fin rather high and short ; caudal long ; scales quite
smáll, firmly attached but not much imbricated ; lateral line developed for less than
half the length of the body ; color brownish olive, with a dusky dorsal line, and ofter
some blackish spots; two black lateral bands as above described, between these
bright silvery area; belly below the lower band abruptly silvery; females obscurely
marked ; males in the spring with the belly and the interspace between the lateral bands
bright scarlet ; base of the vertical fins also bright scarlet ; in high coloration the body
is everywhere minutely tuberculate, and the fins are bright yellow ; head 4%; depth 44;
D. 7; A. 8; lat. l. 85; teeth usually 5-5, sometimes 4-5. Length, two to three inches.
838 FISHES-
Habitat, Ohio Valley to Red River of the North, in clear brooks.
Diagnosis –This the only little Minnow in Ohio having long intestines
and minute Scales.
Habits.--The habits of this species are almost identical with those of
Campostoma anomalum, with which in the north it is usually associated.
It is, however, still more closely confined to the clear streams having
their sources in springs. It is the most graceful of our minnows, and, in
the breeding season, perhaps the most brillantly colored. In the
aquarium, it is very hardy, and is altogether more desirable than any
other of our species of Cyprinoids. This species seldom reaches a length of
more than three inches.
GENUS 27. HYBOGNATHIUS. Agassiz.
Hybogmathus, AGASSIZ, Am. Journ, Sci. Arts, 1855, 223.−GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci.,
Phila., 1856, 176, 180.
Type, Bybogmathw8 muchalis, Agassiz,
Etymology, hubo6, gibbons; gnathos, jaw, the tip of the lower jaw having a slight pro-
tuberance.
Body more or less elongate and compressed ; mouth horizontal ; jaws normal, rather
sharp-edged, the symphysis prominent ; no barbels; upper jaw protractile; teeth 4-4,
cultriform with an oblique grinding surface and scarcely any hook; alimentary canal
elongated, about four times length of body; peritoneum black; scales large ; lateral
line continuous ; dorsal over ventral ; anal basis short ; size moderate.
Species numerous, the typical and largest one found in most streams east of the
Rocky Mountains, the others mostly southwestern,
50. HYB, GNATHUS NUCHALIS Agassiz.
Silvery WHimaphow.
Hybogmathw8 muchalis, AGASSIz, Amer, Journ. Sci, Arts, 1855, 223,-JORDAN, Man, WeIt., “
2d Ed., 1876, 289, and of many authors. g
Hybogmathus argyritis, GIR ARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila, 1856, -; U. S. Pac. R. R.
Surv., x, 1859, -,-COPE, Proc. Am. Philos. Soc, 1870, −.—JORDAN, Man. Vert., 2d
Ed., 1878, 289, and of most writers. -
Pſybogmathus evangi, GIRAIRD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1856, -.
Hybogmathus regius, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1856, --JORDAN, Man. Wert,
2d Ed., 1876, 289. -
Hybogmathus osmerinus, COPE, Proc. Am. Philos. Soc., 1870, −.
Description.—Body elongate, comparatively slender; head moderate, rather short, the
front comparatively steep ; eye large, rather longer than the muzzle, about four in
head ; upper jaw heavy ; lower jaw thin ; scales large and silvery ; lateral line decurved ;
about twelve large scales in front of the dorsal ; olivaceous green above, translucent in
life ; sides clear silvery, with bright reflections; fins unspotted ; head 4% ; depth 4+; D.
8; A. 1; teeth 4-4; lat. 1, 38. Length, 5 to 7 inches.
FAT HEAD. 839
Habitat, New Jersey to the Upper Missouri and South ward *
Diagnosis.-This is the only silvery large-scaled minnow found in
Ohio, which has long intestines and black peritoneum.
Babits —This graceful species is found in abundance in the small
streams flowing into the Ohio River. It is rare in the interior, and
probably seeks the river channels. Its breeding habits are unknown to
me, and the males and females are similarly colored, and do not develop
horny tubercles. In the Potomac River, what I consider to be the same
species, is used for food, being sold with its relative, Hudsonius storerianw8,
under the name of Smelt.
GENUs 28, PIMEPHALES. Rafinesque.
Pimephales, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Ohiensis, 1820, 52.
Type, Pimephales promela 8, Rafinesque,
Etymology, pimeles, fat ; kephale, head.
Body short and stout, little compressed; head short aud rounded ; mouth small, in-
ferior; upper jaw protractile; no barbels; teeth 4-4 with grinding surface, not strongly
hooked; dorsal over ventrals, its first rudimentary ray separated from the rest by a
membrane; anal basis short ; intestinal canal elongate ; peritoneum black; scales rather
small ; lateral line incomplete.
Small fish of American waters. In all the know a species there is a black blotch on the
dorsal fin in front, about half way up. The breeding males have the head swollen and
black, and the snout armed with a few disproportionately large nuptial tubercles.
53. PIMEPHALES PROMELAS Rafinesque.
Fat Head ; Black Head.
Pimephales promelas, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh, 1820, 94.—KIRTLAND, Rept. Zool. Ohio, 1838,
194; Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist, iii, 1838, 475–STORER, Synopsis, 1846, 418–AGAssiz,
Amer. Journ, Sci. Arts, 1855, 230—PUTNAM, Bull. M. C. Z, 1863, 8,-GUNTHER, Cat.
Fishes, vii, 1868, 181,–JORDAN, Ind. Geol. Surv., 1874, 224; Bull, Buff. Soc. Nat.
Hist., 1876, 94; Man. Vert., 1876, 275; 2d Ed., 1878, 288, and of writers generally.
Pimephales fasciatus, GIRARD, Proc Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila, 1856, 180; Pac. R. R. Surv., x,
234.
Plargyrus melanocephalus, ABBOTT, Proc. Phila. Acad. Sci., 1860, 325.
Pimephales milesii, COPE, Proc. Acad. Sci. Phila, 1864, 282–GUNTHER, Cat, Fishes, vii,
1868, 181,–Jordan, Man. Vert., 1876, 276.
Pimephales agaasizii, CoPE, Cyp. Penn., 1866, 391.
Description.-Body very short and deep, head short, and everywhere convex, almost
globular in adult males; mouth Small, inferior, horizontal ; scales deep, closely imbri.
cated ; olivaceous, the dorsal with a large black bar across it, nearly halfway up, most
distinct anteriorly, appearing as a simple dusky shade in young ; male fish dusky, the
*As here defined, more than one species may be included, but if so, the author is unable
to distinguish them.
840 FIS HES-CYPRINIDAE.
head jet black, with several large tubercles on the snout in spring, a dusky shade along
sides of the caudal peduncle; head 44; depth 4 ; D. I, 7; A 7; lat. 1, 47; teeth 4.5
Length 2% inches.
Habitat, Ohio Valley to the Upper Missouri, abundant.
Diagnosis.-Among Ohio fish, this small species may be known at sight
by the short, thick head and small mouth. -
Habits.-This species is most abundant in the small and often muddy
brooks which flow directly into the Ohio River. It does not appear to
like a Sandy or gravelly bottom, and as it feeds on mud and Algæ, it is
Seldom found in company with such species Ericymba and Chr080mus.
GENUS 29. HYBORHYNCHUS. Agassiz.
Hyborhynchus, AGASSIZ, Am. Journ, Sci. Arts, 1855, 233.
Type, Minmilus motatus, Rafinesque.
Etymology, hubos, gibbous ; rhugehog, snout.
This genus differs from Pimephales only in having the lateral line complete, and the
maxillary often provided with a rudimentary or obsolete barbel. The species are more
elongate than those of Pimephale6 and reach a larger size. The coloration and nuptial
dress is similar in the two genera.
\ } ‘. .
\! A ( , ,
60. HYBoRHYNCHUS NOTATUS (Rafinesque) Agassiz.
Blue ant-mnosed Mim ºn OW.
? Minnilw8 notatus, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh, 1820, 47.
Hyborhynchw8 notatus, AGASSIZ, Am. Journ. Sci. Arts, 1855, 222,-COPE, Cyp. Penn., 1866,
392; Journ. Phil. Acad. Sci., 1869, 235.-GUNTHER, Cat, Fishes, vii, 182–JORDAN,
Bull. Buff. Acad, Sci., 1876, 94; Man, Wert, 2d Ed., 1878, 288, and of writers generally.
? Hyborhynchus Supercilio3u8, COPE, Journ. Pbila. Acad. Sci, 1869, 234.—JORDAN, Man.
Vert., 2d Ed., 1878, 289, (Specimens with an obsolete maxillary barbel.)
D08cription,-Body rather elongate, not elevated, moderately compressed; head
moderate, the muzzle blunt and convex, top of the head depressed ; cheeks vertical;
mouth small, inferior, horizontal ; fins small, the dorsal moderate, the first ray distinct
and spine like in the males, slender in the females; anal small ; caudal short ; scales
moderate, deep, closely imbricated ; scales in front of the dorsal small and crowded;
£ye moderate; Kolor olivaceous, little silvery, sides bluish ; a black spot on the dorsal
fin in front, near the base ; a dusky shade at base of caudal ; males in Spring with black
on the dorsal Inore extended, and the head wholly black ; Snout with about fourteen
disproportionately large tubercles; head 4%; depth 5 ; D. 8; A, 7; lat 1.44; teeth 4-4.
Length, 4 inches.
Habitat, Ohio Valley and Great Lake Regions, abundant.
iDiagnosis.—The presence of a dark spot on the anterior rays of the
dorsal distinguishes this plain species from all the others with long in-
testines or teeth 4-4.
CUT-LIPS. 841
Habits.--This species swarms in all the streams in the State of Ohio,
ascending small and even muddy brooks. It is a species of feeble organ-
ization and without bright colors. Old males in the spring are rather
curious-looking little fishes.
GENUS 30. EXOGLOSSUM. Rafinesque,
Eacogloggum, RAFINEsquiº, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci., Phila., i, 1818, p. 420.
Type, Eacoglobbum legweurianum, Raf. = Cyprimus maxillingwa, LeS.
Body moderately elongate, little compressed ; dentary bones nearly straight, connected
throughout their length ; mandible much contracted, incurved, with a fleshy lobe on each
side of it at the base, the middle thus resembling a projecting tongue; teeth hooked,
without grinding surface, 1, 4.4, 1; no barbels; premaxillaries not projectile ; air-blad-
der normal; alimentary canal not elongate; scales moderate; dorsal line present ; fins
without spines ; dorsal slightly behind ventral ; anal basis short.
A single species known, singularly distinguished from all the other Cyprinoid fishes
by the structure of the lower jaw.
61, ExoGLossum MAXILLILINGUA (LeSueur) Haldeman.
Cut-lips; Day Chub; Nigger Chnb.
Cyprinus maſcillingwa, LESUEUR, Jour. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila, i, 1817, 85.
Eacogloggum maxillingwa, HALDEMAN, Rupp. Hist. Lancaster Co., 1844, 474.—AGASSIZ, Am.
Journ. Sci. Arts, xix, 1855, 215;-Cope, Trans. Am. Philos. Soc. 1866, 360,—GUNTHER,
Cat. Fishes, Brit. Mus., vii, 188.—JoRDAN, Man. Wert, 2d Ed., 308, and of other
writers generally. -
Eacoglosgwm legweurianum, RAFINESQUE, Journ, Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila, i, 1818, 420.
Description —Body rather stout, little compressed; head large, broad and flatish above,
with tumid cheeks; mouth moderate, slightly oblique, the end of the maxillary not
reaching the line of the orbit ; upper jaw longer than lower; scales rather crowded an-
teriorly, those in front of the dorsal small ; color olivaceous, smoky or dark above ; a
blackish bar behind opercle, and a dusky shade at the root of the caudal in the young ;
fins unmarked; head 44; depth 5; D, 8; A. 7; lat, l. 53; teeth 1-4-4-1. Length six
inches.
Habitat, Western New York to West Virginia.
Diagnosis.—This is the only minnow in America in which the two
dentary bones or forks of the lower jaw are united in one for their whole
length.
Habits.-This singular fish has not yet been recorded from Ohio. As,
however, it is very abundant in the Susquehanna River, and its occur-
rence in the Kanawha River has been noticed, it will probably be found
in the eastern part of the State. Its habits resemble those of Compostoma
anomalwm, preferring clear rock-pools, but not haunting rapids. Accord-
ing to Professor Cope, “its stomach usually contains abundant remains
of Phygas, Pisidia, and other small mollusca, which form its food. The
842 FISHES-CY PRINIDAE.
Shovel-like mandible would appear to be adapted for removing these
creatures from their hold on the rocks and bottom, while the great
Strength of the pharyngeal walls and muscles enables the fish to crush
the shells before mastication with the pharyngeal teeth.” It takes the
hook readily, and is therefore a “boy's fish.”
GENUS 31. HUDSONIUS. Girard.
Hudsonius, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila, 1856, 210.
Hybopsis, COPE, Trans. Am. Philos. Soc., 1866, 385 (not of Agassiz).
Photogenis, COPE, Trans, Am. Philos. Soc., 1866, 379 (in part).
Type, Clupea hudsonia, DeWitt Clinton.
Etymology, Hudson River.
Body oblong or elongate; mouth rather small, horizontal or somewhat oblique; jaws
normal; no barbels; teeth 4:4 or 1, 4.4, 1 (in one species 1, 4.4, 2), hooked, with grind-
ing surface; scales large; lateral line complete ; dorsal fin inserted nearly over ven-
trals; anal fin short. A very large genus including our smallest and feeblest minnows,
together with some of our largest species.
This genus, as now understood, comprises three well marked subgenera, which have
under one name or another been sometimes taken as genera. These are:
1. Hudsoniw8 proper, including silvery species of large size, with short heads ; dorsal
fin inserted in front of the ventrals; teeth two rowed; scales not closely imbrica'ed ;
fins plain. These species bear a close resemblance to Hybogmathw8.
2. Miniellus (Jordan), including Small, plain species, with rather large head ; dorsal
fin inserted over ventrals; teeth one-rowed; scales large, not closely ium bricated; fins
plain. These are the smallest and most insignificant of American Cyprinidae, and may
be usually known from the young of larger species by the large scales before the dorsal,
3. Photogenig (Cope), including species of moderate size ; compressed ; dorsal fin in-
serted behind the base of the ventrals; teeth two-rowed; scales deeper than long,
closely imbricated; dorsal fin with a dark blotch on its upper posterior portion ; males
in spring with the snout, etc., tuberculate, and the fins charged with satin-white pig-
ment. The members of this group closely resemble certains forms referred to Cliola, and
in some degree certain Species of Luacilw8. Besides the following, several other southern
and western species perhaps occur within our limits.
ANALYSIS OF SPECIES OF HUDSONIUS,
* No black blotch on posterior rays of dorsal; dorsal not inserted behind ventrals; scales
not closely imbricated.
t Head short, about 4% in length. g § * te STORERIAN US,
ft Bead comparatively long; 3% to 4 in length.
a. Mouth inferior, horizontal.
b. Lateral line 34 ; pectorals reaching ventrals. e © * VOLUCH;LLUS.
bb. Lateral line 36; head stoutish ; pectorals short.
aa. Mouth terminal, oblique.
e * STRAMINEUS,
0. Lateral line 35. e © & e tº ſº ITRETENSIS,
co. Lateral line 44. e • tº tº o H/EMATURUS,
** A black blotch on posterior rays of dorsal ; dorsal inserted behind ventrals ; scales
deeper than long, closely imbricated. . e gº • ANALOSTANUS,
LAKE MINNOW. 843
62. HUDSONIUS STORERIANUs (Kirtland) Jordan.
Lake Minn OW.
Leuciscus storerianus, KIRTLAND, Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist, y, 1845, 30–GUNTHER, Cat,
Fishes Brit. Mus., vii, 250.
Hybopsis storerianus, Cope, Trans. Am. Philos. Soc., 1866, 380, and of authors.
Hudsonius amarus, GIRARD, Proc. Acad, Nat. Sci Phila., 1856, 210.
Hybopsis amarus, Jordan, Ann. Lyc, Nat. Hist. N. Y., 1864, 279.
Hybopsis phaënna, CoPE, Proc. Acad, Nat. Sci. Phila., 1864, 279.
Description.—Body elongate, considerably depressed in adults; head quite short, the
muzzle blunt, decurved, shorter than the very large eye, which is three in head : top of
the head flattened, somewhat concave between the orbits ; greatest depth of the head
nearly three-fourths its length; mouth moderate, nearly horizontal, the jaws nearly
equal; the maxillary extending to the eye; lateral line nearly straight, slightly
decurved anteriorly; eighteen scales before the dorsal; coloration very pale, sometimes
a dusky spot at base of the caudal, especially in the young; sides with a broad silvery
band; pectorals not reaching ventrals, the latter not to vent ; caudal fin long ; head 4%;
depth 44; D. 8; A, 8; scales 5-39 4; teeth 1, 4-4, 0 or 1. Length 4 to 8 inches.
Habitat, Great Lake Region to New Jersey and south to Georgia, east of the
Alleghanies.
Diagnosis—This handsome fish may usually be best known by the
small size of the head and mouth, compared with other large scaled species
with short intestines.
Habits. This fish is abundant in Lake Erie, where it reaches a Con-
siderable size. It seldom ascends the small streams, but is taken in
seines in the waters of the lake. The largest I have seen were about eight
inches long, and it is said to grow much larger. Dr. Kirtland also found
it only in the lake.
Hudsonius fluviatilis Girard (Clupea hudsonia, Clinton) is also said to in-
habit Lake Erie, but I have never seen specimens from the lakes. It
has teeth 1, 4-4, 2, and usually a dusky caudal Spot.
63. HUDSONIUs volucKLLUS (Cope) Jordan.
Hybogmathus volucellus, COPE, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1865, 283.
Hybopsis volucellus, CCPE, Trans. Am. Philos. Soc., 1866, 881, and of writers.
Leuciscus volucellus, GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes, Brit. Mus., vii, 1868, 260.
Description.—Body moderately stout; head depressed, elongate, the vertex plane, the
muzzle elongate ; fins more elongate than in most of the related species ; the pectorals
reaching the wentrals; caudal peduncle slender; eye three and one-third in head; oliva-
ceous, a slight dusky lateral shade; no dorsal stripe ; fins plain ; head 3%; depth 4; D.
8; A. 8; scales 4-34-5; teeth 44, Length 2% inches.
Habitat, Southern Michigan to Wisconsin.
844 FISHES-CYPRINIDAE.
Diagnosis-This species much resembles H. Straminew8, but differs in
proportionately greater length of the pectorals. It is found in the streams
of Southern Michigan and Wisconsin, and doubtless in northern Ohio
also, though I have not seen it. Nothing is known of its habits.
64 HUDSONIUs STRAMINEUs (Cope) Jordan.
Straw-colored Minmow.
Hybognathus stramineus, Cope, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila, 1864, 283.
Hybopsis 8trantineu8, CoPE, Trans, Am. Philos. Soc., 1826, 331—JoRDAN, Man. Vert, 2d
Ed., 1878, 291. -
Description.—Body moderately stout, little compressed; head rather broad, with
rounded angles; mouth small, inferior, horizontal; snout very obtuse; eye large, 3 in
head ; fifteen rows of scales in front of the dorsal fin; pale olivaceous; sides little sil-
very; usually a darker dorsal band; fins all plain; head 4; depth 5; scales 5-36-4; teeth
4-4. Length, 2% inches.
Habitat, Ohio Valley and Lake region, abundant in small streams.
Diagnosis.--This insignificant fish may be known by its large Scales,
and, in general, by the absence of all peculiarities.
Habits—This fish, the feeblest in structure of all our minnows, and one
of the smaliest and dullest colored, occurs in considerable abundance
throughout the State, mostly inhabiting the small streams. It is found
in company with Hyborhynchus notatus, which it considerably resembles.
The individuals of the latter are much more abundant.
A related species which is found in Kentucky and Virginia, and may occur in Ohio, is
Hudsonius micro8tomw8 (Raf.) Jor. (Minnilw8 micro8tomus Raf., Bybopsis longiceps Cope),
characterized as follows:
Body elongate, the caudal peduncle not contracted; mouth inferior, horizontal, small,
the maxillary not reaching the line of the eye; fins rather short ; eye large, three and a
half in head; fourteen scales before the dorsal; preorbital bone much longer than
deep : olivaceous, translucent, a silvery lateral band, along which is a black speck at
the origin of each tube of the lateral line; D, 8; A. 7; scales 5-33-2; teeth 4-4. Length, 2%
inches.
65. HUDSONIUS FRETENSIS (Cope) Jordan.
Hybopsis fretensis, CoPE, Trans. Am. Philcs. Soc. Phila., 1866, 382.-JORDAN, Man. Wert.,
2d Ed., 1878, 292.
Description —Body slender and compressed, resembling hotropis ; head convex between
orbits; mouth quite oblique, the middle of the maxillary being opposite the line of the
pupil; maxillary not reaching to orbit; eye three and a half in head ; seventeen rows of
scales in front of the dorsal; lateral line decurved ; olivaceous, a dark median dorsal
band, a plumbeous silvery lateral shade; cheeks silvery ; a dark spot at the base of the
SILVER FIN. 845
caudal ; fins plain ; head 4; depth 5; D. 8; A, 8; scales 6-35-3; teeth 4-4. Length 2%
inches.
Habitat, Michigan to Illinois,
Diagnosis.--From the other species of this genus, this species may be
known by its resemblance in form, and structure of mouth to the genus
Mönnilus.
Habits.—I have never seen this fish in life, and known nothing of its
habits.
66. HUDSONIUS HAEMATURUS (Cope) Jordan.
Red-tailed Minnow.
Hybopsis hazmaturus, CoPE, Trans. Am. Philos. Soc. Phila, 1866, 382–JORDAN, Man.
Vert. 2d Ed., 1878, 292.
Leuciscus has maturw8, GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes Brit. Mus., vii, 259.
Description.—Body stoutish ; muzzle little obtuse ; mouth moderate, terminal, oblique,
the maxillary extending to the orbit; eye three and a half in head; lateral line nearly
straight ; plumbeous above ; head dusky above ; a dusky lateral band, not shining ; a
dusky spot at base of caudal ; caudal fin dull red in life ; twenty-one rows of scales in
front of dorsal; head 4 ; depth 44-5; D, 8; A, 7; Scales 7-44-4. Length 24 inches.
Habitat, Great Lake Region, not abundant.
Diagnosis.--From the other members of this genus, H. haematurus may
usually be known by its smaller Scales. -
Babits.-This species has as yet only been recorded from tributaries of
Lake Michigan, but it doubtless occurs in Northern Ohio. Nothing
distinctive is known of its habits.
66. HUDSONIUS ANALOSTANUs (Girard) Jordan.
Silver Firm.
Lucilus kentuckiensis, KIRTLAND, Boston Journ. Nat. Hist., v., 1845, 27, pl. 8, f. 3 (not of
Ratinesque). -
Cyprimella kentuckiensis, CoPE, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1864, 279.
Hypsilepig kentuckiensis, COPE, Trans. Am. Philos. Soc., 1866, 371.
Leuciscus kentuckiensis, GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes, Brit. Mus., vii, 261.
Cyprinella analog.tama, GIRARD, Proc Acad. Nat, Sci. Phila., 1859, 58.
Hypsilepis analostamw8, COPE, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila , 1867, 166.
Leuciscus analogtanus, GUNTHER, Cat. Fish, Brit. Mus., vii, 256.
Lucilw8 amalostamw8, JORDAN, Man, Vert., 2d Ed., 1878, 294.
Photogenis spilopterus, COPE, Trans. Am. Philos. Soc, 1866, 378.
Ileuciscus 8pilopterus, GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes, Brit. Mus., vii, 254.
Description.—Body moderately elongate, somewhat compressed, the dorsal and ven-
tral outlines regularly and gently arched; head rather short and deep; mouth rather
small, quite oblique, the lower jaw received within the upper when the mouth is closed;
eye small, four and a half in head; leaden silvery, bluish in the males; edges of scales
816 FISHES-C Y PRINIDAE.
dusky : a dark vertebral line; a large black spot on the upper posterior part of the
dorsal ; paired fins and lower part of the belly, as well as the tips of the anal and
caudal, and the front and upper parts of the dorsal charged with clear satin-white pig-
ment in males in spring; in full breeding dress the dorsal pigment with a greenish
lustre ; no creamy band at base of the caudal ; males with the head and front covered
with small tubercles; head 44; depth 34; D, 8; A. 8; scales 5-38-3; teeth 1, 4.4, 1 the
edges more or less distinctly serrate. Length 4 inches.
Habitat, Ohio Valley, Great Lake Region, and eastward.
Diagnosis.-The dark blotch on the last rays of the dorsal sufficiently
distinguishes this elegant fish from all others found in Ohio.
Habits.—This species abounds in all the clear streams in the State of
Ohio. The male in the breeding season is one of the most beautiful of
our minnows, on account of the satin-white lustre of its sides and fins.
It is therefore desirable as an aquarium fish. The species is not used
for food.
GENUS 32. CHRIOPE. Jordan.
Chriope, Jordan, Bull. U. S. Geol. Surv. Terr., 1878.
Type, Hybopbig bifrematus, Cope.
Etymology, chreia, want ; ope, aperture, from the imperfections of the lateral line.
Body moderately elongate ; mouth normal ; no barbels; teeth 4-4, with grinding sur-
face ama hook, the edges more or less crenate ; scales large, not closely imbricated ;
lateral line wanting posteriorly; dorsal fin over ventrals ; anal fin short ; species of
small size differing from Budsoniw8 chiefly in the incomplete condition of the lateral line.
But two species are known, C. bifrenate (Cope), of the Eastern and Middle States, a
handsome little fish with a jet-black burnished lateral band, and the following.
.68. CHRIOPE HETERODON (Cope) Jordan.
Northern Chariope.
Alburnops heterodon, CoPE, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1864, 281.
Hybopsis heterodon, COPE, Trans, Am. Philos, Soc, 1866, 382.
Leuciscus heterodon, GUNTHER, Cab. Fishes Brit Mus., vii, 261.
Hemitremia heterodon, JORDAN, Man. Vert., 2d. Ed., 1878, 303.
Description —Body moderately stout, the back compressed and elevated; head rather
pointed, the muzzle acuminate ; mouth oblique, the lower jaw projecting, the upper
lip opposite the upper rim of the pupil; maxillary extending to opposite front of orbit ;
thirteen scales in front of dorsal; eye three in head ; color olivaceous ; a blackish dorsal
band; sides with a leaden or dusky band; head 4 ; depth 4; D. 8; A. 8; scales 5-36-3;
the lateral line extending about half the length of the body; teeth 4.4, often crenate.
Length 2% inches.
Habitat, Michigan to Wisconsin.
Diagnosis.--From other Small minnows with large scales, this plain
species may be known by the incomplete lateral line.
ROSY-FACED MINNOW. 847
Habits.—This species was first described from Detroit River, and there-
fore it will probably be found in tributaries of Lake Erie in Ohio. Noth-
ing distinctive is known of its habits.
GENUs 33, MINNILUS. Rafinesque.
? Notropia, RAFINESQUE, Amer. Monthly Mag., ii, 1818, 209 (momen ineptum).
JMinnilug, RAFINESQUE, Ich Ob., 1820, 45.
Alburnellus, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1856, 193.
Epigema, Cope, and Jordan, Proc. Acad. Nab. Sci. Phila., 1877, 77.
Type, Minnilug dinemus, Raf.
Etymology, from the vernacular Minnow ; French, menuise; Latin, minus, Small.
Body elongate, somewhat compressed : mouth oblique, terminal, normal ; no barbels;
teeth 2, 4-4, 2, hooked, with entire edges and no grinding surface; scales thin, usually
large ; the lateral line continuous, somewhat decurved ; exposed surface of scales
broad ; dorsal fin over or behind ventrals; anal basis elongate, its rays eight to twelve :
species of small size, graceful form and delicate coloration.
Our species may be referred to two subgenera characterized as follows:
Episema, Cope and Jordan. Dorsal fin inserted directly over ventrals.
Mimmilw8, Rafinesque. Dorsal fin inserted well behind ventrals.
It does not appear best to retain the name Notropia for this genus, for the following
reasons: 1. The typical species is not certainly identified. It is perhaps as likely to
have been Notemigonw8 chrysoleucus as Minnilus dinemw8. 2. Even if the identification
were certain, the name Notropis is subject to rejection as an inept name, as the back is
not at all keeled in any species.
ANALYSIS OF SPECIES OF MINNILUs.
*Dorsal fin inserted well behind ventrals (Minnilw8),
a. Head proportionately long, 3 4-5 in length ; body compact ; eye moderate, 4 in
head. g º § tº * * RUBRIFRONS. 69.
aa. Head proportionately small, 4% in length ; body elongated, compressed ; eye
large, 3% in head. g & ſº tº DIN EMU.S. 70.
aaa. Head moderate, 4} in length ; cye large, 3% in head; body compressed.
PHOTOGENIS. 71.
**Dorsal fin inserted directly over ventrals (Episoma).
b Eye extremely large, 23.5 in head ; anal rays 9. o o ARIOMMUS, 72.
bb. Eye large, 3 in head ; anal rays 8. e * tº SCABRICEPS. 73.
69. MINNILUs RUBRIFRONS (Cope) Jordan.
Rosy-faced MHiramow. 3.
Alburnus rubrifrons, COPE, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1865, 85; Trans. Am. Philos.
Soc., 1866, 388, -
Leuciscus rubrifrong, GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes, Brit. Mus., vii, 1868, 255. i
Minnilw8 rubrifrong, JorDAN, Man. Wert, 1st Ed., 1876, -.
Notropis rubrifrong, Jordan, Man. Wert, 2d Ed., 1878, 296.
Description,-Body moderately elongate, the back scarcely elevated, the caudal pe-
duncle somewhat contracted ; head longer than in the other species, conic and
848 FISHES--CY PRINIDAE.
rather pointed; mouth rather large, very oblique; upper lip above the line of the mid-
dle of the pupil, the maxillary reaching to opposite the eye; eye moderate, anterior, 4 in
head; olivaceous above, the scales with darker edges; sides silvery ; a dark Vertebral
line; males with the snout tuberculated in the spring, the forehead, opercular region,
and base of the dorsals being flushed with red; head 3 4-5; depth 4%; D, 8; A. 10; Ecales
6-39-3; teeth 2, 4–4, 2, little hooked, one of them sometimes showing a sort of grinding
face. Length 2% inches.
Habitat, Ohio Valley.
Diagnosis—This is a much smaller species than M. dinemus. It has
also a notably larger head and Smaller eye.
Habits.--This elegant little fish is very abundant in the Southern part
of Ohio. It frequents clear waters and rapids of the larger streams. In
the breeding season it is very handsome. -
70. MINNILUs DINEMUs Rafinesque.
Emerald Mimmow ; Rosy MHimmow ; Lake Silverside.
? Notropis atherinoides, RAFINESQUE, Am. Month. Mag., ii, 1818, 204 (erroneous and un-
certain; may be Notemigonus),-JORDAN, Bull, Ills Lab, Nat. Hist., ii, 1878, 60.
Minnilus dinemus, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh, 1820, 45.—Jordan, Man Wert, 1st Ed., 1876.
Notropis dinemus, Jordan, Man, Vert., 2d Ed , 1878, 296, and elsewhere.
Alburnus rubellus, AGASSIZ, Lake Superior, 1850, 364. Ay
Leuciscw8 rubellw8, GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes Brit. Mus., vii, 1868, 254.
Minmilw8 rubellw8, Jordan, Man. Vert., 1st Ed., 1876, -.
Notropis rubellus, JORDAN, Man. Vert., 2d Ed., 1878, 296.
Alburnellus dilectus, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1856, 193.
Alburnellus jacutus, COPE, Trans. Am. Philos. Soc., 1866, 387.
Alburnellwg arge, COPE, Trans, Am. Philos. Soc., 1866, 387.
Leucigw8 copii, GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes, Brit. Mus., wii, 1868, 205.
Description.—Body long and slender, compressed, the back not elevated ; head slen-
der, conic, proportionately shorter than in the other species; mouth moderate, very
oblique ; upper lip on a level with the lower part of the pupil; maxillary not reaching
to the front of the eye; eye large, rather longer than the snout, three and one-fourth in
head; fins low, the dorsals well behind the ventrals, the tips of the ventrals extending
to about the middle of the dorsal ; lateral line decurved ; color translucent green above,
sides bright silvery ; scales above finely punctate, but not enough to render them dark
edged, nor to form blotches along the sides; a faint dark vertebral line ; males in spring
with the snout and the base of the dorsal fin rosy ; head 4%; depth 5%; D, 8; A. 11 ;
scales 5-38-3; teeth 2, 4-4, 2. Length 5 inches.
Habitat, Ohio Valley and Great Lake Region, frequenting the river channels and the
lakes.
Diagnosis.-This species is perhaps the slenderest of our minnows. It
may be known by its form, its silvery coloration and the size of its
anal fin.
WHITE-CHEEKED SHINER, 849
Habits.--This elegant fish is exceedingly common in Lake Erie, and
throughout the State it is one of the most abundant of the Minnow8. It
frequents the large bodies of water, and is seldom seen in Small streams.
It delights in clear lakes and in the deep water at the foot of a milldam
or waterfall, Off the wharves in the lake, they are often caught by boys
with dip-mets, who sell them to fishermen as bait.
I find considerable variation in this species both in form and color.
Lake specimens (rubellus) are usually brilliantly silvery. Some river
specimens (dinemw8, jaculus) are much slimmer than others, the depth
Sometimes forming less than one-sixth of the length. These slender
specimens have been described as a distinct species, and they may really
be, but at present, I am unable to define them as such. Again,
deep-bodied specimens with rather smaller eye, have been determined as M.
dilectus (Girard). They are probably not specifically different.
Name.—The specific name, dinemus (two-threaded), refers to the pre-
sence of two lateral lines, i.e., the true lateral line, and a color-streak
above it. It is an objectionable and perhaps misleading name, but as it
has priority, I do not feel authorized to reject it. The still earlier name
atherinoides, perhaps belongs to this species, but it may have been based on
the young of Notémigonus.
71, MINNILUs PHOTOGENIS (Cope) Jordan.
White-cheeked Shimer.
Sqalius photogenis, CoPE, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1864, 280.
Leuciscus photogenis, GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes, Brit. Mus., vii, 252.
Minnilw8 photogenis, Jordan, Man Wert., 1st Ed., 1876, -.
Notropis photogenis, JORDAN, Man. Vert., 2d Ed., 1878, 297.
Photogenis leucops, COPE, Trans. Am. Philos. Soc., 1866, 379, and elsewhere.
Description.—Body slender, compressed; head moderate; mouth quite oblique, lower
jaw scarcely projecting ; maxillary not reaching orbit ; back broad ; dorsal fin inserted
Roehind middle of body a little behind ventrals; lateral line decurved; eye large, three and
a third in head; color olivaceous, with brown vertebral and dorsal lines; sides and
below bright silvery; cheeks silvery ; head 4+; depth 5%; D. 8; A, 10; scales 6-40-3.
Length 3 inches. -
Habitat, Ohio Valley and southward.
Diagnosis.-This species much resembles the young of the preceding.
Its eye is not so large, and the dorsal fin is not as far back. The anal
fin is also smaller.
Habits.-This species is rarely seen in the State of Ohio. It occurs in
Some tributaries of the Ohio, in West Virginia, and probably will be found
54
850 FISHES-CYPRINIDAE.
in the streams running from the hills on the Ohio side of the same river.
It has a wide distribution in the Alleghany region of the South. The
Species is subject to considerable variation. -
72, MINNILUs ARIoMMUs (Cope) Jordan.
Big-eyed Shimer,
Photogenig ariommuş, COPE, Trans. Am. Philos, Soc., 1866, 388; Proc, Acad. Nat Sci.
Phila., 1867, 164,
Cliola ariomma, JordAN, Man, Vert., 2d Ed., 1878, 298.
Epidema ariomma, JorDAN, Bull. Ills, Lab. Nat. Hist., 1878, 60.
Description.—Body Stouf, moderately elevated, somewhat compressed; head heavy,
broad above, the snout moderate, somewhat decurved ; mouth moderate, oblique, its
jaws equal, the upper lip on a level with the middle of the pupil, the maxillary reaching
the front of the eye; eye very large, two and three-fifths in head, much longer than
Snout, larger than in any other American Cyprinidae ; fins moderate, the dorsal directly
opposite Ventrals, the tips of the ventrals opposite the last dorsal ray; scales large;
fifteen in front of the dorsal; lateral line much decurved ; olivaceous, scales above dark-
edged ; sides and below bright silvery ; no red; head 34; depth 44; D, 8; A, 9; scales
6-39-2; teeth 2, 4-4, 2. Length 5 inches.
Habitat, Ohio Valley,
Diagnosis.-The great size of the eye, larger than in any other min-
now chiefly distinguishes this species.
Habits.-This species is abundant in White River, Indiana, in which
stream the original type was taken. It there frequents the river chan-
nel, in company with dinemus, a species which it much resembles both
in size and color. It doubtless occurs in Southern Ohio, but I have no
Specimens from that State. In fact, with the single exception of a
specimen from Kentucky, preserved in the United States Museum, I
have seen no specimens except from White River, and none others have
been recorded. This species is very handsome, and is desirable for
aquaria.
73, MINNILUS SCABRICEPs (Cope) Jordan.
Rough-headed Shimaer.
Photogenis 8Cabriceps, COPE, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phil., 1867, 166.
Cliola 8cabriceps, Jordan, Man. Vert , 2d Ed., 1868, 298.
I'pigema 8cabriceps, JORDAN, Bull. Ills. Lab. Nat. Hist., 2, 1878, 60.
Description.—Body rather stout, little compressed, the back slightly elevated ; head
rather stout and broad, the muzzle bluntish, somewhat decurved; mouth rather small, ter-
minal, oblique; tho maxillary 1eaching the front of the orbit; lateral line decurved ; fins
rather small, eye large, three in head; color plain olivaceous, scales dark-edged above;
sides white, with a lateral band formed of dusky specks, this band running through the
RED-FIN. 851
eye, around the snout ; males tuberculate in the spring; head 4; depth 44; D, 8; A, 8,
scales 6-38-3; teeth 2, 4-4, 2. Length, 3% inches.
Habitat, Ohio Valley.
Diagnosis.--This species resembles the preceding, but reaches a smaller
size, and has a smaller eye. Its coloration is duller.
Habits.--This species is found in most of the tributaries of the Ohio,
but is not very abundant. It seems to frequent mostly the Small streams
and brooks in company with Hyborhynchus notatus and Ericymba buccata.
GENUS 34, LYTHRURUS. Jordan.
JLythrurus, JoBDAN, Man. Wert, 1st Ed., 1876, 272.
Type, Semotilus diplasmius, Raf.
Etymology, luthron, blood; oura, tail.
Body somewhat elongate, strongly compressed ; mouth normal, oblique; no barbels;
teeth 2, 4–4, 2, with grinding surface ; intestinal canal short; scales small, closely im-
bricated; lateral line continuous, decurved ; fins large ; dorsal well behind ventrals
(with a black spot at its base in front in all known species); anal fin long ; its rays ten
to twelve ; size small; breeding colors brilliant, the fins being deep red in the males
in spring. Four species are known in the Mississippi Valley. These are closely
related, and may perhaps all be varieties of L. diplasmius. Only L. diplasmius has
as yet been noticed in Ohio, but L. cyanocephalw8, Copeland, a small compact species
resembling a Pimephales may be looked for in Northwestern Ohio. L. araeus, Cope, a
slender silvery species like a Minnilus may be found in Southern Ohio, and L. atripes,
Jordan, a species with the anal black-spotted like the dorsal, may occur in the sluggish
streams tributary to the Ohio River. We have, however, no evidence that any of these
Species have a claim to be noticed in this report.
74. LYTHRURUs DIPLEMIUS (Rafinesque) Cope.
Red-finn.
f Semotilus diplenius, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh., 50. &
Hypsolepis diplemius, PUTNAM, Bull. M. C. Z., 1863, 7.
FIypsilepis diplºmia, COPE, Proc. Phila. Acad. Sci., 1864, 279; Cyp. Penn., 373; Proc.
Phila., Acad, 1867, 162.—Jord AN, Ind. Geol. Surv., 1874, 223.
Leuciscw8 diplomius, GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes, vii, 250 (not of Kirtland).
Lucilw8 diplasmia, Jordan, Bull. Buff. Nat. Hist, Soc., 1876, 94.
Lythrurus diplaimius, JoBDAN, Man. Vert., 1st Ed., 1876, 285; 2d Ed , 1878.
?? Rutilus * ruber, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh, 52 (probably L, ardeus).
Rutilus compressus, KIRTLAND, Rept. Zool. Ohio, 169 (probably not of Raf).
, Leucigous compressus, KIRTLAND, Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist, iv, 306–StoRER, Synopsis, 469
(probably the female of this species).
*
Description.—Body elongate, compressed, little elevated ; the caudal peduncle notably
long; head long, conic, rather pointed ; mouth large, moderately oblique, the premax-
illary on the level of the pupil, the maxillary extending to opposite the eye; lower jaw
somewhat projecting; eye moderate, about equal to the muzzle, 34 in head; scales
closely imbricated, crowded anteriorly, the ante-dorsal scales about 30; dorsal fin high,
852 FISHEs—CYPRINIDAE.
inserted about midway between ventrals and anal; pectorals not reaching ventrals, the
latter to the vent; caudal fin long; coloration dark steel-blue above, pale or silvery
below, the males often showing traces of 8 to 10 cross-bars; a conspicuous spot at the
base of the dorsal in front, the fins otherwise all plain ; males with the anterior dorsal
region and the head profusely covered with small whitish tubercles, the belly and lower
fins being of a bright brick red in spring ; females very pale olive, sometimes colorless;
head 4+; depth 4+; D. 7; A, 11 ; 9-47-3; teeth 2, 44, 2. Length 33 inches.
Diagnosis.—The Red-fin may be known from all the other minnows of
similar appearance by the presence of a black spot at the base of the dor-
sal, in front. The only other species similarly marked, Semotilus corpor-
alis, has a larger head, and a short anal fin of 7 or 8 ray8.
Habits.--This species is very abundant throughout Ohio, especially in
the southern part of the State. It is especially fond of small, clear
streams. The male fish in the spring is one of the most brilliant of our
fishes, being Sometimes almost violet-colored, and later of a fine brick-
red. The female is usually very pale, with a delicate purplish luster.
GENUS 35. LUXILUS. Rafinesque.
Lua ilus, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh, 1820, 47.
Hypbolepis, BAIRD, MSS., AGASSIZ Am. Journ. Sci. Arts, 1854, 359.
Alburnops, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1856, 194.
Plargyrus (Raf.), GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1856, 195.
Hydrophlox, JoBDAN, Man. Vert., 2d Ed., 1878, 292.
Type, Lucilus chrysocephalug, Rafinesque ; Cyprinus cornutus, Mitch.
Etymology, Latin, luſc. light, in allusion to the vernacular name shiner.
Body oblong, more or less compressed; mouth normal; no barbels; teeth 2,4-
4, 2, hooked, with masticatory surface; intestina) canal short ; scales large, more or
less closely imbricated along the sides of the body, so that the exposed surfaces are
higher than long; lateral line continuous, decurved; dorsal over or slightly behind
ventrals; anal fin short ; breeding coloration usually very brilliant; the male flushed
with red, and with the snout tuberculate. As here understood, this is a large genus,
including a considerable number of species, most of them Southern in their distribution.
There are three well-marked subgenera: Luwilw8 proper, including large species, with
the scales very closely imbricated, and much deeper than long ; the dorsal over the
ventrals and the jaws even ; type D, cornulw8.
Coccotia, Jor., including rather large species, with the scales less closely imbricated,
but still deeper than long; dorsal behind ventrals and lower jaw projecting; type L.
Coccogeniø.
Alburnopa, Grd. (Hydrophlox), Small species with the scales normal; the jaws equal
and the dorsal somewhat behind the Ventrals. These fishes resemble certain species of
Hudsonius, but the males are brilliantly colored. Type, L, blennius.
Only L. cornutus, the largest and best known of the species of the genus has been
observed in Ohio.
** ~, SHINER. 853
} . , - . . * *
* / ; , . . . . . . .
•' …" . .”
75 Luxilus consutus (Mitch) Jordan.
Shimer; Red-ſin; Rough-head.
Cyprinus cornutus, MITCHILL, Am. Monthly Mag, and Crit. Rev., 1817, 298 (brief men-
tion); Am. Monthly Mag., 1818, 324 (description).
Leuciscus cornutus, STORER, Bost. Journ, Nat. Hist., ix, 1822, 182; Synopsis, 1840, 409.-
Dw KAY, Fishes N. Y., 1842, 207.-GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes, vii, 1868, 249.
Hypanſepia cornutus, Storek, Fishes Mass., 1855, 284.—CoPE, Proc. Phila. Acad. Sci., 1864,
279,-PUTNAM, Bulletin M. C. Z., 1863, 7.
Plargyrus cornutus, GIRARD, Proc. Phila, Acad. Sci., 1856, 196. -
Hypsilepis cornutus, CoPE, Cyp. Penn., 1866, 372; Proc. Phila. Acad, Sci., 1867, 158; Journal
Phila. Acad. Sci., 1868, 292.—Jordan, Ind. Geol. Surv., 1874, 223.-UHLER and
LUGGER, Fishes of Md., 1876, 148, and of late American writers.
Hypsilepis cornutus, vars gibbug, frontalis, ceraginus, cornutus, cyaneu8, COPE, Proc. Phila.
Acad. Sci., 1867, 167.
Lucilus cornutus, RAFINEsque, MSS. Fishes of the Susquehanna-JORDAN, Bull, Buff. Nat,
Hist. Soc., 1876, 94; Manual Vert., 1876, 286; 2d Ed., 1878, 283, and elsewhere.-
NELSON, Bull Ills. Mus. Nat Hist., 1877.
Cyprinus megalops, RAFINESQUE, Aun. Monthly Mag., 1818, 121 (has probably priority of
description).
Cyprinw8 melamurw8, RAFINESQUE, l.c., 1818, 121.
Luzilus chrysocephalus, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh, 1820, 48.
Semotilw8 deplemia, KIRTLAND, Rept. Zool. Ohio, 1838, 168 (not of Raf.).
Leuciscw8 diplemia, KIRTLAND, Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist, v, 1846, 276.-STORER, Synopsis, 411.
Argyreu8 rubripinnis, HECKEL, Russeger's Reisen, 1843, 1040.
Leuciscus gibbogus, STORER, Proc. Bost. Soc, Nat. Hist., July, 1845; Synopsis, 1846, 418.
Hypsolepis gibbosw8, AGASSIZ, Amer. Journ. Sci. Arts, 1854, 358.
Plargyrug gibbogus, GIRARD, Proc. Phila. Acad. Sci., 1856, 191.
Leuciscus plagyrus, KIRTLAND, Bost. Journ, Nat. Hist., W, 1845, 26.
Leuciscw8 plargyrw8, STORER, Synopsis, 1846, 410.
Ieuciscw8 frontalis, AGASSJZ, Lake Superior, 1850, 368.
Hypsilepis frontalis, AGASSIZ, Am. Journ. Sci. Arts, 1854, 359–PUTNAM, Bull. M. C. Z.,
1863, 7.
Plargyrus frontalis, GrrARD, 1, c.
Leuciscw8 gracilis, AGASSIz, Lake Superior, 1850, 370.
Plargyrus gracilis, GIRARD, l.c.
Hypsilepis gracilis, COPE, Proc. Phila. Acad. Sci., 1867, 157.
Plargyrw8 typictus, GIRARD, l.c., 195.
Plargyrus argentatus, GIRARD, l.c., 196.
Plargyrw8 bowmani, GIRARD, l.c., 186, and Pac. R. R. Surv., x, 263, 1858.
Hypsilepis obesus, COPE, Proc. Phila, Acad. Sci., 1867, 157 (not L. obesus, Storer, fide
Agassiz) j
Description.—Body elongate, compressed in the young, in the adult short, compressed,
with the anterior dorsal much swollen ard gibbous ; head rather heavy, compressed,
rounded between the eyes, the snout bluntish, moderate, nearly horizontal, the jaws.
nearly equal, the lower somewhat inclined ; eye moderate, four to five in head ; max-
illary scarcely reaching front of eye; the premaxillaries below the level of the eye;
scales always deeper than long on the flanks, becoming extremely so in the adults;
854 FISHES--CYPRINIDAE.
lateral line decurved ; dorsal moderate, inserted directly over ventrals in the young,
thrown somewhat backward in the adult by the growth of the post-occipital region ; pec-
torals barely or not reaching ventrals, the latter about to vent ; region in front of the
dorsal typically with about 23 scales; coloration dark steel-blue above, the scales
with dusky edges, the bases also dusky ; a gilt line along the back and one along each
side, these distinct only when the fish is in the water ; belly and lower part of the sides
silvery, or bright rosy in spring males; dorsal fin somewhat dusky, the other fins plain,
the lower fins all rosy in spring males; head dark above ; a dark shade behind scapula;
lower jaw and region in front of dorsal to the tip of the snout covered with small tuber-
cles in spring males; females and young fishes are plain olivaceous above and silvery
below; head 44; depth 34, varying much with age; D. 8; A, 9; scales 6-41-3; teeth
2, 4-4, 2 with rather narrow grinding surface.
This species is extremely variable and Beveral varieties have been indicated by name by
Professor Cope. It is, however, unnecessary to describe them here. Length, 5 to 8
inches.
Habitat, in all waters east of the Great Plains, except in the South Altantic States
(wanting in streams between the Neuse and the Alabama), everywhere the most
abundant fish,
Diagnosis.-The adult Shiner may be known at once by the dispro-
portionately great depth of the Scales on the sides, the exposed portions
being very much higher than long. The young can only be distin-
guished from certain species of Minnilw8, Hudsonius, etc., by careful dis-
crimination.
Płabits.-In every permanent stream in Ohio, this is the most abundant
fish. In all small brooks, and in quiet places in every river, the young
will be found in myriads, and a good part of the food of the Black Bass
and other predacious species is formed by this fish. It reaches a consid-
erable size, but is scarcely used as food except by pot fishers and boys.
The flesh is soft and very Soon spoils after death, hence the name Rot-
ten gut or Rot-gut Minnow, frequently given to it in the South,
GENUS 36. ERICYMBA. Cope.
Ericymba, CoPE, Proc. Acad. Nat, Sci. Phila., 1865, 88.
Type, Ericymba buccata, Cope.
Etymology, eri, an intensive particle; kumba, a cavity, in allusion to the mucous
channel.
Body oblong, moderately compressed ; muzzle broad ; interopercle and bones of the man-
dible with easternally visible mucous chambers largely developed ; lips thin ; no barbels; teeth
1, 4-4, 0, without grinding surface, hooked, the edges entire ; scales rather large ; lat-
eral line continuous; dorsal fin above ventrals; anal basis short ; silvery fishes of
rather Small size ; known at once from all other minnows by the cavernous bones of the
head. But a single species is now known,
SILVER-JAWED MINNOW. 855
76. ERICYMBA BUCCATA Cope.
Silver-jawed Minnow.
Jºricymba buccata, COPE, Proc. Acad, Nat. Sci. Phila., 1865, 88,-GUNTEER, Cat. Fishes
Brit. Mus., vii.-JORDAN, Man. Wert, 2d Ed., 299.
Description.—Body fusiform, rather elongate, little compressed, the back not elevated ;
head rather long, somewhat depressed above, with broad and prominent muzzle; mouth
rather small, horizontal, Subinferior, the lower jaw considerably shorter than upper;
upper lip below level of pupil; maxillary not reaching to eye; dentary bones dilated,
the mucous channels conspicuous cross lines ; opercle small; eye large, four in head;
fins small, dorsal over ventrals; scales moderate, the lateral line nearly straight; mid-
dle of the belly scaleless; fifteen scales before dorsal; color olivaceous, rather pale;
sides bright silver with bluish reflections; a dark dorsal streak, conspicuous posteriorly;
fins plain: males without tubercles or, bright colors; head 3 5-6 ; depth 5; D. 8: A, 8;
scales 5-33-3; teeth 1, 4-4, 0. Length 5 inches.
Habitat, Ohio Valley.
Diagnosis.-This species is known at once from all other minnows by
the cavermous condition of the bones of the lower jaw.
Habits.-This graceful and interesting little fish is abundant in most
streams tributary to the Ohio. It prefers clear, gravelly or Sandy streams,
and often ascends the small brooks. Most specimens Seen are small.
The males do not undergo any special changes in color or form in the
breeding Season.
GENUs 37. PHENACOBIUS. Cope.
Phenacobius, COPE, Proc, Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1867, 96.
Sarcidium, CoPE, Hayden's Geol. Surv., 1870, 1872, 440.
Type, Phenacobius teretulus, Cope. -
Etymology, phenax, deception ; bios, life, the species having the appearance of herbiv-
orous minnows, but with the teeth and intestines of the carnivorous,
Body elongate, subterete ; mouth small, inferior, with thickened lips, the lip of the
lower jaw developed as a conspicuous lobe on either side, presenting a slight resemblance
to the lower jaw of Exoglossum ; no barbels; premaxillaries protractile; dorsal fin in-
serted in advance of ventrals; anal basis short ; intestinal canal not elongated, peri-
toneum pale; teeth 44, hooked, without grinding surface; scales rather small; lateral
line continuous, Species of rather small size, bearing a considerable resemblance to
young suckers. Three or four species are known, mostly of southern distribution,
77. PHENACOBIUs TERETULUS Cope.
Phenacobius teretulus, COPE, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila, 1867, 96.—Jordan, Man. Vert.,
2d Ed., 299.
Sarcidium scopiferum, COPE, Hayden’s Geol. Surv. Terr., 1872, 440 (probably same),
Phenacobius 8copiferus, JORDAN, Man. Vert, 2d Ed., 1878, 299; Bull, Hayden's Geol. Surv,
Terr., 1878; Bull, Ills State Lab. Nat. Hist., ii, 1878, 61.
Phenacobiw8 teretulus, var. liosternus, NELSON, Bull, Ills. Mus. Nat. Hist., i, 1876, 46.
56 FISHES-CYPRINIDAE.
. Description.—Body slender, little compressed, the back elevated, the caudal peduncle
Stout ; head stout, the muzzle elongate, obtusely decurved, heavy ; mouth small, in-
felior, horizontal, the maxillary not reaching to the eye; lips weakly plicate; isthmus
wide ; lateral line nearly straight ; eye large, high up, three and a half in head; pale
yellowish, the scales above dark-edge?: snout blackish ; a plumbeous lateral band; fins
plain ; head 4%; depth 4 + ; D, 8: A., 7; scales 6-43-5; teeth 4-4. Length 33 inches.
Habitat, West Virginia to the Rio Grat, de.
Diagnosis.--From other small minnows, this species may be known by
the thickened lips, in connection with the short intestines and the num-
ber (4-4) of the teeth.
Habits.--This species has not yet been recorded from Ohio. P. teretulus
occurs in the streams of West Virginia, and P. scopiferus which I take to
be the same species or a variety of it is found in Illinois. We may there-
fore look for it in the streams of Southern Ohio. Little distinctive is
known of the habits of this species. Professor Cope found it in the
Kanawa, abundant in the river channel and in the mouths of tributaries.
GENUS 38. RHINICHTHYS. Agassiz,
Argyreus, HECKEL, Russegger's Reisen, 1843, i, 1040 (preoccupied in Entomology),
Rhinichthys, AGAssiz, Lake Superior, 1850, 350.
Type, Cyprinus atronagua, Mitch.
Etymology, rhin, snout ; ichthus, fish,
Body rather elongate, not much compressed ; mouth small, subinferior, normal; the
upper jaw not protractile; the upper lip continuous with the skin of the forehead; a bar-
bel terminal, on the maxillary; teeth usually 2, 4–4, 2, hooked, without grinding sur-
face; intestinal canal short; scales very suiall; lateral line continuous; dorsal fin inserted
behind the ventrals; anal basis short ; coloration dark, rosy in Spring.
Species of rather small size, aboanding in all clear brooks in the United States, east
of the Rocky Mountail S.
ANALYSIS OF SPECIES OF RHINICHTHYS.
*Body elongate, the depth about 5 in Iength; barbel rather long; snout much pro-
jecting. tº e tº & wº te CATARACTAE, 78.
** Body compact, the depth 4 to 43 in length; barbel minute; snout little projecting.
ATRONASUS, 79.
78. RHINICHTHYS CATARACTIE (Valenciennes) Jordan.
Long-nosed Dace ; Niagara Gudgeom.
Gobio cataracia, CUv, and VAL., Hist. Nat des Poissons, xvii, 1842, 315, pl. 483.
Ceratichthys cataracta, CoPE, Trans, Am. Philos Soc. Phila, 1866, 365-GUNTHER, Cat,
Fishes Brit. Mus., vii, 176.
Rhinichthys cataraotaº, Jordan, Man. Vert, 2d ed., 1878, 307, and elsewhere.
Ileuciscus masutus, AYRES, Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist, iv., 1843, 2, 99, and of authors.
LONG-NOSED DACE. 857
Rhinichthys nagutus, AGASSIZ, Lake Superior, 353.−GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes Brit, Mus.,
vii, 189, and of most writers.
Argyreu8 maðutus, COPE, Trans. Am. Philos. Soc., 1856, 369.
Rhinichthys marmoratus, AGASSIZ, Lake Superior, 1850, 354–GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes Brit.
Mus., vii, 189.
Description.—Body elongate, little compressed, not elevated ; head long, the muzzle
flattened, narrowed and extremely prominent, the mouth being entirely inferior and
horizontal ; eye nearly median, its diameter contained twice in the length of the
snout, about five times in head; isthmus wide ; barbels evident ; lateral line commenc-
ing opposite the upper posterior angle of the opercle, decurved ; pectoral fins enlarged
in the males, a small fatty lobe in the axils; color olivaceous or dark green, paler below,
with numerous dusky punctutations, the back often almost black, some of the scales
usually irregularly darker, producing a mottled appearance; no black lateral band;
young Specimens with a dusky lateral shade ; a blackish spot on the opercle ; males in
spring with the lips, cheeks and all the fins crimson ; head 4, depth 5; D. 8; A. 7;
scales 14-65-8; teeth 2, 4-4, 2. Length 5 inches.
Habitat, New England, Middle States, and Great Lake Region, in clear cold water.
Diagnosis —This species may be known by the very projecting Snout
in connection with the barbels and the very small scales.
Habits.—This species is fond of clear swift waters, as is the trout. It
haunts the rapids and rock pools, and its motions are swift and powerful.
In the State of Ohio, it is not a very common species, but it is found in
tributaries of Lake Erie, and sometimes in the lake itself. It also occurs
in the southeastern part of the State.
Name.—This fish was first described from specimens sent from Niagara
Falls to the Museum at Paris. It was therefore named Gobio cataractae or
“Gudgeon of the Cataract.”
79. RHINICHTHYs ATRONASUs (Mitchill) Agassiz.
Black-nosed Dace ; Rockfish.
War. atromaSw8.
Cyprinus atronasus, MITCHILL, Trans. Lit. and Phil. Soc. New York, i, 1814, 460.
Leuciscus atronasus, DEKAY, New York Fauna, Fishes, 1842, 205, and authors,
Argyreus atromagus, COPE, Cyp. Penn., 1866.
Rhinichthys atronasus, AGASSIZ, Lake Superior, 1850, 354.—GUNTHER, Cat. Fish, Brit.
Mus., vii, 191, and of nearly all recent writers.
var. obtugw8.
Rhinichthys obtusus, AGASSIz, Am. Journ, Sci. Arts, 1854, 357.-JORDAN, Man. Vert.,
1876, 280; Ann. N. Y. Lyc, Nat. Hist., 1876, 331.
Argyreus dulcio, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1856, 185.
Argyreus obtusus, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1856, 185.
Rhinichthys obtusus, GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes Brit. Mus., vii, 1868, 190,
858 FISHES-C Y PRINIDAE.
Rhinichthys lunatus, COPE, Proc. Phil. Acad. Sci., 1864, 278; Journ. Phila. Acad. Sci.,
1869, 228—JORDAN, Ind. Geol. Survey, 1874, 223; Man. Vert., 281.
Argyreu8 lunatus, CoPE, Proc. Am. Phil. Soc., 1870.
Description —Body moderately elongate, little compressed; head moderate, rather
broad and flattened above; snout moderate; mouth small, horizontal, subterminal, the
lower jaw included; barbel minute, but probably always present; upper lip on the
level of the lower part of the pupil; maxillary not reaching nearly to the eye; eye
Small, nearly median, one and one-half in snout, four and one-half in head; fins rather
Small ; dorsal fin well back; scales quite small, somewhat imbedded; lateral line
decurved; color blackish above, some of the scales irregularly darker; a black band
passing from the snout through eye and along the sides of the body; a pale streak below
this ; belly silvery; males in spring with the lateral bands and the lower fins, and some-
times the whole body bright crimson; males in later summer with the lateral band
Scarlet or orange, the red color growing fainter later in the season; head 4; depth 4};
D. 7; A. 7; lat. 1. 64; teeth 2, 4-4, 2. Length 3 inches. -
War. obtusus (Ag) a southwestern form may be thus characterized:
Very similar to R, atronagus, but usually rather stouter, the head a little shorter, and
the coloration somewhat different; back olivaceous, mottled with darker; sides with
a rather faint brownish band margined above and below with paler; belly silvery; a
dusky blotch in the middle of the base of the dorsal fin; males with the pectoral fins en-
larged, and with the lateral band rosy ; head 4; depth 44; D. 7; A, 7; scales 1463.8;
teeth 2, 4-4, 2, Length 3 inches.
Habitat, New England to Alabama, War, atronasus in the region from Cleveland east-
Ward to Maine and Virginia, War. obtusus in the Upper Lake Region, Ohio Valley and
Southward to Georgia and Alabama.
Diagnosis.-This species may be known by its small scales and dark
colors in connection with the position of the mouth. Its shorter snout
distinguishes it at once from the preceding.
Habits.-This species is one peculiar to the clear small brooks and
Spring runs. In suitable localities it is excessively abundant. It is a
Very Swift and active fish, and the males in spring and Summer are
brilliantly colored.
GENUS 39. ERIMYSTAX. Jordan.
Erimyataa., JORDAN (nova).
Type, Leuciscw8 diggimilia, Kirtland.
Etymology, eri, an intensive particle; mustaa, barbel (moustache).
Body elongate; mouth inferior, with the lips somewhat thickened ; a well developed
barbel at the posterior end of the maxillary; teeth 4-4, hooked, with narrow grinding
surface; scales rather large ; lateral line continuous; dorsal fin in advance of ventrals;
anal basis short; size medium. A single species known, in coloration and habits bear-
ing some resemblance to the Etheostomoid fishes.
SPOTTED SHINER. 859
80. ERIMYSTAX. DISSIMILIs (Kirtland) Jordan.
Spotted Shimer.
IZuarilus diggimilis, KIRTLAND, Boston Journ. Nat. Hist., v., 1840, 341.
Ceratichthys dissimilia, Copiº, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1864, 277; Cyp. Penn., 1866,
368,-GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes Brit. Mus, vii, 177.-Jordan, Man. Vert., 2d Ed., 1878,
306, and of writers generally.
Description.—Body long and slender, little compressed, with long caudal peduncle ;
head long, rather flat above, the snout somewhat bluntly decurved, projecting a little
beyond the rather small horizontal mouth ; lower jaw included ; both jaws with the
skin hard in front, forming a sort of tip laterally ; barbels considerably shorter than
pupil; Inaxillary not reaching nearly to orbit; eye very large, high up, somewhat
directed upward, rather behind the middle of the head, forming more than one-third
the length of the head; opercle small; dorsal rather large, its posterior border oblique ;
anal small ; caudal well forked ; pectoral rather long ; scales rather large, twenty-two
in front of dorsal ; lateral line nearly straight; olivaceous, sides silvery, with a bluish
lateral band, which is widened into several dusky spots, formed by dark punctutations
and most distinct posteriorly; a dusky band on head, through eyes and snout, fins plain ;
head 4% ; depth 5% ; D. 8; A. 7; Scales 6-47-5; teeth 4-4. Length 5 inches.
Habitat, Ohio Valley and Lake region.
Diagnosis.--This species may be known by the long and slender body
and the peculiar coloration, the bluish black lateral blotches being found
in no other of our species. #
Habits.-This species seeks large bodies of water, being most abundant
in the lakes and in the channels of the large streams. I have never seen
it in Small brooks, and it is seldom taken in the rivers in small seines,
except at very low water. It reaches a considerable size for a minnow
and as it takes the hook, it is frequently seen on the small boy’s “string
of fish ’’ along the Ohio. According to Dr. Kirtland it is often used to
“bait the hook on “sett’ limes. ’’
GENUS 40. CERATICHTHYS. Baird.
Ceratichthys, BAIRD, 1853.−GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat, Sci. Phila., 1856, 212, and of authors,
Hybopsis, AGASSIZ, Am. Journ. Sci. Arts, 1854, 358,
Nocomis, COPE, Proc. Acad. Nat, Sci. Phila., 1856, 190.
Erimemw8, JORDAN, Man. Vert., 1876, 279.
Type, Semotilus biguttatus, Kirt.
Etymology, keras, horn ; ichthu.8, fish.
*
Form various; mouth terminal or inferior, with lips thin or somewhat fleshy; a conspic-
uous barbel terminal on the maxillary; premaxillaries projectile; teeth 4:4 or 1, 4-4, 1
or 0, hooked, without grinding surface ; scales rather large; lateral line continuous;
dorsal fin inserted over, in front of, or slightly behind ventrals; anal basis short ; size and
coloration various.
A large genus embracing a wide range of forms. Of the numerous species, but two
have as yet been found in Ohio. These two bear little resemblance to each other, and
may may be taken as representatives of distinct subgenera.
860 FISHES-GY PRINIDAE.
ANALYSIS OF SPECIES OF CHRATICHTIIYS.
“Mouth subinferior; scales large, about 36 in lateral line; eye very large; silvery
(subgenus Hybopsis). e * * * * e AMBLYOPS, 87.
**Mouth terminal ; scales medium, about 41 in lateral line; eye moderate; not
silvery (subgenus Ceratichthys). © e º ë te BIGUTTATUS, 82.
81. CERATICHTHYs AMBLYOPs (Rafinesque) Girard.
Big-eyed Claub.
var. amblop3.
Rutilus amblops, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh, 1820, 51.
Ceratichthys amblops, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila, 18; 6, 213.-JorDAN, Man.
Vert., 2d Ed., 306.
Nocomis amblops, JORDAN, Ann. Lyc. Nat. Hist. N. Y., 1876, 328.
war. gracilis.
Hybopsis gracilis, AGASSIz, Amer, Journ. Sci. Arts, 1854, 358.-JORDAN, Ann. Lyc. Nat.
Hist, N. Y., 1876, 331.
Gobio vermalia, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1856, 188; U. S. Pac. R. R. Surv,
1858, 249.
Hybopsis winchelli, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat, Sci. Phila., 1856, 211.
Nocomig winchelli, JorDAN, Ann. Lyc. Nat. Hist., 1876, 330.
Ceratichthys winchelli, Jordan, Man. Wert., 2d Ed., 306.
Ceratichthys hyalinus, COPE, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci., Phila, 1868, 236 —GUNTHER, Cat.
Fishes Brit. Mus., vii, 179, and of authors,
Description.—Body moderately elongate, little compressed, heaviest anteriorly; head
large, the muzzle rather long, the profile very blunt; eye unusually large, larger than in
most of our minnows, its diameter about one-third the length of the side of the head ;
mouth rather small, inferior, horizontal ; barbels well developed ; fins moderate, the
dorsal inserted over the base of the ventrals; scales large ; color translucent above,
sides and below bright silvery ; a plumbeous lateral band, sometimes faint, sometimes
shining blackish ; top of head and a streak through the eye dark; no vertebral band ;
fins unspotted ; males in spring not tuberculate and without red markings ; head 4 ;
depth 4%; scales 5-40-3; D. 8; A, 8; pharyngeal teeth 1, 4-4, 1. Length 3 inches.
Habitat, Mississippi Valley. War. gracilis, Tennessee and southwards.
Diagnosis.—This species may be known by the presence of a very
large eye in connection with the maxillary barbels and large silvery
Scales. -
Habits.—This species is abundant in all tributaries of the Ohio River,
It frequents clear Sandy or gravelly streams, and seeks the river chan-
nels rather than the Small brooks. The male in Spring, So far as known,
never becomes tuberculate, and the fins are never red, characters which
help to distinguish this species from its ornate Southern relative,
Ceratichthys rubrifrons.
HORNY-HEAD. 861
82. CERATICHTHYs BIGUTTATUS (Kirtland) Girard.
Horny-head; Hormed Dace ; River Chub ; Jerker.
Catoatom u8 melanotus, RAF (NESQUE, Ich. Oh, 1820, 56.
Ceratichthys melamotus, JorDAN, Man. Vert., 1875, 278.
Semotilus biguttatus, KIRTLAND, Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist., iii, 1840, 344.
Leuciscus biguttatus, DEKAY, Fishes N. Y., 1842, 214.—STORER, Synopsis, 413.
Ceratichthys biguttatus, BAIRD and GIRARD, Proc. Phila. Acad. Sci., 1856, 213—PUTNAM,
Bull. M. C. Z., 1863, 8.-Cope, Cyp. Penn., 1866, 366; Journ. Phila. Acad. Sci., 1868,
226; Proc. Am. Philos. Soc., 1370, 459.-GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes Brit. Mus, vii, 178.-
Jordan, Ind. Geol. Survey, 1874, 223.-JORDAN and CoPELAND, Bull. Buff.
Soc. Nat. Hist., 1876, 149.—NELSON, Bull. Ills. State Mus., 1876.-UHLER and LUG-
GER, Fishes of Md., 144.—CoPE and YARROW, Lieut. Wheeler's Survey, 1876, and of
most late writers.
Nocomis biguttatus, CoPE and JordAN, Proc. Phil. Acad. Sci., 1877.-JORDAN, Ann. Lyc.
Nat. Hist. N. Y., 1876, 355. -
Leuciscus croceus, STORER, Proc. Bost. Soc Nat. Hist, July, 1845; Synopsis, 1846, 419.-
AGAssiz, Am. Journ. Sci. Arts, 1854, 359.
Nocomig nebrascensis, GIRARD, Proc. Phila. Acad. Nat. Sci., 1856, 213; Pac. R. R. Surv.,
x, 1858, 254. --
Nocomig bellicus, GIRARD, Proc. Phila. Acad. Sci., 1856, 213.
Ceratichthys cyclotis, COPE, Proc. Phila. Acad. Sci., 1864, 277; Cyp. Penn., 365; Proc. Am.
Philos. Soc., 1874, 113,-GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes, vii, 178.
Ceratichthys 8tigmaticus, COPE, l.c., 366.-GUNTHER, l. c.
Description.—Body rather robust, not elevated, little compressed ; head large, rather
broadly rounded above, the snout conical, bluntish ; mouth rather large, Subterminal,
little oblique, the lower jaw somewhat the shorter; the upper lip somewhat below the
level of the eye, and the maxillary not reaching to the front of the eye; eye small,
median, very high up ; suborbitals very narrow ; preorbitals large ; fins moderate, the
dorsal rather posterior, slightly behind the insertion of the ventrals; caudal broad,
little forked ; scales large and nearly equal over the body, not crowded anteriorly;
eighteen rows in front of the dorsa) ; lateral line rising opposite upper posterior angle
of opercle, somewhat decurved ; color bluish olive, sides with bright green and coppery
reflections; a curved dusky bar behind the opercle; scales above with dark borders;
belly pale, but not silvery ; rosy in Spring males; fins all pale Orange, without black
spots ; males in spring with a crimson spot on each side of the head; the adults with the
top of the head swollen, forming a sort of crest, which is sometimes a third of an inch
higher than the level of the neck, and is covered with large tubercles; young with a
dark caudal spot ; barbel well developed ; head 4 ; depth 4; ; D. 8; A, 7; scales 6 41-4;
teeth 1, 4-4, 1 or 1, 4-4, 0. Length 6 to 9 inches.
Habitat, Pennsylvania to Utah Basin, abundant in all streams north and south. ,
Diagnosis.-This familiar species may in general be known by its
large size and lack of silvery lustre, in connection with the presence of
the barbel. It has no spot on its dorsal fin, and its scales are not
crowded anteriorly. -
Habits.-This fish is found in every stream in the State of Ohio. It
reaches a considerable size and is nearer a “game fish” than any other of
º
862 FISHES-CYPRINIDAE.
its family in the State, as it takes the hook readily and energetically
and it may be eaten when properly fried. The catching of this fish is
the principal excitement of the average “summer boarder” at many
places in the South and west. The male of this species, in the spring,
has the head extravagantly covered with tubercles, hence the name
“Horny-head.” This species is less disposed to ascend small streams than
the “Horned Dace ’’ (Semotilus corporalis), and is hence often called the
River Chub, the other being the Creek Chub. A fisherman of Rock Castle
River, in Kentucky, has told me that the young of this species makes the
best bait for the Black Bass, as “it will swim longer than any other
with a hook in its body.” These are almost the identical words used by
Rafinesque, concerning his still unidentified “Indian Chubb,” Luſcilus
kentuckiemºsis.
GENUS 42, COUESIUS. Jordan.
Couesius Jord AN, Bull. Hayden's Geol. Surv. Terr, 1878.
Type, Leucosomus dissimilis, Girard.
Etymology, dedicated to Elliott Coues,
Body elongate, mouth terminal, normal ; a well developed barbel at the posterior
end of the maxillary; teeth 2, 4.4, 2, hooked, without masticatory surface ; scales
rather small ; lateral line continuous; dorsal fin over or slightly behind ventrals'; anal
basis short. This genus comprises four or five species, all of large size and northern
distribution. They resemble the species of Šemotilus, but differ in dentition and in the
position of the barbel.
83. Couesſ US PROSTHEMIUs (Cope) Jordan.
Haake Chub.
Ceratichthys prosthemius, COPE, Trans. Am, Philos. Soc. Phila., 1866, 365.-JORDAN, Man.
Vert., 2d Ed., 1868, 307.
Ceratichthys plumbeus, GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes Brit. Mus., vii, 176 (probably not Gobio
plumbew8, Ag, ), -
Description.—This fish is of the average size of Semotilus corporalia, but of a much
more slender form ; the outline is fusiform, the head being Small, and the muzzle broad
and abruptly descending ; back compressed medially ; first dorsal ray midway between
the end of the muzzle and the origin of the caudal, considerably longer than the first
ray of the anal, its base longer than the base of the anal; ventrals opposite the first ray
of the dorsal, not reaching to the vent ; end of maxillary not reaching to opposite the
orbit; mouth terminal, small; muzzle obtuse; isthmus narrow ; barbels well developed;
head and upper part of body blackish ; a plumbeous band above the lateral line, white
below ; head 4; depth about 4; D. 8; A. 8; scales 11-63-8 ; teeth 2, 4-4, 2. Length six
or seven inches. & *
Habitat, Great Lake region,
CHUB. 863
Diagnosis.--From other large chubs with a barbel, this species may be
known by the presence of two teeth in the lesser row in the pharyngeals.
Habits.-This species has thus far only been recorded from the Upper
Lakes. It is probably not abundant in Lake Erie, and does not, so far as
is known, ascend the streams.
A closely related species (Couesius dissimilis), with the mouth larger
and Somewhat oblique, occurs in the Upper Lakes.
GENUS 42. SEMOTILUS, Rafinesque.
Semotilus, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh., 1820, 49.
Leucogomus, HECKEL, Russegger’s Reise, 1843, i, 1042.
Cheilomemus, BAIRD, Storel’s, Fish. Mass. 1855, 288.
Type, Semotilus, Raf = Cyprinus corporalia, Mit.
Etymology, 86ma, banner, i.e., dorsal fin; tilus, supposed by Rafinesque to mean
spotted.
Body robust ; mouth terminal, the upper jaw protractile; a small barbel on the maxil-
lary just above its end ; intestinal canal short ; teeth 2, 5-4, 2, hooked, without mastica-
tory surface; scales moderate; lateral line continuous; dorsal more or less posterior to
wentrals ; anal basis short ; species of large size. This genus differs from Telestes in the
presence of a maxillary barbel; and from the European genus Gobio in the presence of
but two, instead of three, teeth in the lesser row.
But three or four species are known, divisible into two well marked Subgenera,
Leucodomus-Scales rather large, not crowded anteriorly; dorsal nearly over ventrals,
without black spot at its base.
Semotilué.-Scales Small, Smaller and crowded anteriorly; dorsal well behind Ventrals,
with a black spot at its base in front.
The single representative of Leucosomus, Somotilus builaris (Raf.) Jor, the great Chub
or Fall fish of Pennsylvania and the Eastern States may perhaps occur in the eaStern
part of Ohio. This species is much the largest of the eastern Cyprinidae, and may be
known from S. corporalia, by the absence of the black dorsal spot, and by the other
characters noticed above. In the young of both species the barbel is usually too small to
be appreciated. j - - - - - *.
* ,
#
\-º'-'
84. SEMOTILUS CORPORALIS (Mitchell) Putnam.
Chub; Horned Dace; Creek Chub; smaller Fair-fish.
CUprinus corporalis, MITCHILL, Am. Monthly Mag., ii, 1817, 289, and 1818, 324.
Leuciscus corporalis, DEKAY, Fishes N. Y., 1842, 213. -
Semotilw8 corporalis, PUTNAM, Bull. M. C. Z., 1863, 8; in Storer's Fishes Mass., 256–CoPE,
Cyp, Penn., 362, 1866; Proc. Phil. Ac. Sci., 1865, 85; Hayden's Geol. Sury. Terr.,
1870, 442, and 1871, 472–ABBOTT, Am. Nat., April, 1870, 12–JORDAN, Ind. Geol.
Surv., 1874, 223; Bull. Buff. Soc. Nat. Hist., 1876, 94 ; Man, Vert., 1876,278.
Bull. U. S. Mus., vi, 1876, 64; and of most late U. S. writers,
Leucosomus corporalis, GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes, vii, 269.
Cyprinus atromaculatus, MITCHILL, Aun. Monthly Mag., ii, 1817, 324.
Leuciscus atromaculatus, DEKAY, Fishes N. Y., 1842, 210,—StoRER, Synopsis, 1846, 409,
—GooDE,
864 FISHES-CYPRINIDAE.
Semotilus atromaculatus, GIRARD, Proc. Phil. Acad. Sci., 1856, 204; Pac. R. R. Rept., 1858,
283.−AB botT, Am. Nat, April, 1870, 13.
Leucosomw8 atromaculatw8, COPE, Proc. Phila. Acad., 1861, 223.
Semotilus dorsali8, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh., 1820, 49.-KIRTLAND, Zool. Ohio, 1838, 160;
Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist., iii, 184, 345–GIRARD, Pac. R. R. Surv., 283.
Leucibous dorsali8, STORER, Synopsis, 411.
Semotilus cephalus, RAFINEsquE, Ichthyologia Ohiensis, 1820, 49.-KIRTLAND, Zool. Ohio,
169; Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist, iii, 1840, 345–GIRARD, Pac. R. R. Survey, 1858, 283,
Leuciscus cephalub, DEKAY, Fishes of N. Y., 214, 1843,-STORER, Synopsis, 409.
Leuciscw8 iris, CUV. and VAL., xvii, 1844, 253.
? Leuciscus rotengulus, CUV. and VAL., xvii, 1844, 318.—STORER, Synopsis, 416.
Leuciscus 8toreri, CUV. and VAL., xvii, 1844, 319.
Leuciscus pulchelloides, AYRES, Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., iii, 157.
Leuciscus incraggatus, GIRARD, Proc. Phila. Acad, Sci., 1856, 190; Pac. R. R. Surv., 1858, 252.
Semotilus macrocephalus, GIRARD, Proc. Phila. Acad, 1856, 204.
Leucogomw8 macrocephalus, GIRARD, Pac. R. R. Surv, 252.
Leucosomus pallidus, GIRARD, Proc. Phila. Acad. Sci., 1856, 190; Pac. R.R. Surv., 251.
Semotilus pallidus, COPE, Cyp. Penn., 363.
Semotilus corporalis, var. pallidus, JORDAN, Man. Wert, 1876, 279.
Semotilus speciosus, GIRARD, Proc, Phila. Acad. Sci., 1856, 204; Pac. R. R. Surv., 1858, 283.
Semotilus hammondi, ABBOTT, Proc. Phila. Acad. Sci., 1860, 474.
Description.—Body stout, the dorsal outline arched in front of the dorsal, the body
tapering backwards from a point considerably in advance of the dorsal, so that the base
of that fin is oblique ; head large and heavy, broad and rounded above ; snout broad,
mouth broad, oblique,\the lower jaw slightly included, the upper lip just below the
level of the pupil, the maxillipºy barely reaching the front of the pupil; maxillary bar-
bel small, not evident in specimens of less than two or three inches in length ; eye rather
small about five in head ; scales small, considerably crowded and reduced anteriorly,
about thirty series in front of the dorsal fin ; lateral line beginning at upper posterior
angle of the opercle, and considerably decurved ; fins small, the dorsal about midway
between ventrals and anal ; color dusky bluish above; sides with a vague dusky band,
black in the young, disappearing in the adults; belly creamy, rosy tinted in the males
in spring ; dorsal fin always with a conspicuous black spot at the base in front, which
is bordered with red in the male ; a dark vertebral line; scales everywhere edged with
dark punctutations; a dusky bar behind opercle; males with the snout coarsely tuber-
culated in spring ; head 3%; depth 4; D. 7; A, 8; scales 9-58-6 (those in the lateral line
varying from 52 to upwards of 65); teeth 2, 5-4, 2; length 10 inches.
Habitat, Western Massachusetts to Dakota and South Georgia.
Diagnosis.-But two of the Ohio Cyprinidae, possess the characteristic
color mark of a black spot at the base of the dorsal in front. These are
Semotilus corporalis and Lythrurus diplasmius. These are in other respects
very different. In cases of doubt, the latter may be distinguished by the
greater number of rays (10 to 12) in the amal fin.
Habits.-This species, the largest of the Cyprinidae of Ohio, abounds in
every brook, bayou or clear pond in the State. It takes the hook
readily, and makes fair food if fried crisp without delay.
RED-SIDED SHINER. . 865
GENUs 43. TELESTES. Bonaparte.
Telegtes, BONAPARTE, Fauna Italica, Pisc.
Tigoma, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila , 1856, 205.
Siboma, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci, Phila , 1856, 209.
Clinostomw8, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila..., 211.
Gila, sp. Cope, etc., (not of Baird and Girard),
Type, Leuciscus muticellus, Bonaparte. (Italy.)
Etymology, telestes, perfect.
This genus as here understood includes a very wide range of forms, agreeing in having
the mouth normal, large or small, without barbels; teeth 2, 4-5, 2 or 2, 5-5, 2 without
grinding surface; dorsal more or less posterior, usually behind the ventrals; scales
moderate or small, the lateral line complete; caudal fin without a great number of re-
current rudimentary rays The species are numerous in Europe, Asia, and Western
America. The single species thus far noticed in Ohio, belongs to the subgenus Clinog-
tomus, distinguised by the enormous mouth, projecting lower jaw, backward dorsal, and
gmall Scales.
85. TELESTEs ELONGATUS (Kirtland) J r lan.
Red-sided Shiner.
Luxilus elongatw8, KIRTLAND, Rept. Zool, Ohio, 1838, 169, 192; Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist.,
ii, 389.
Leuciscus elongatw8, CUV. et VAL., xvii, 404.—GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes Brit. Mus., vii, 245.
Clinoatomus elongatwg, GIRARD, Proc. Ac. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1856, 212.
Gila elongata, Jo RDAN, Man. Vert., 2d Ed., 1878.
Leuciscus productw8, STORER, Synopsis, 1846, 164.
Squalius proriger, CoPE, Proc, Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1864, 280.
Clinostom u8 proriger, COPE, Cyp. Penn., 1866, 375.
Leucigous proriger, GUNTHER, Cat. Fish. Brit. Mus., vii, 246.
Description—Body elongate, compressed; head long, rather pointed; mouth very
large, oblique, the lower jaw notably projecting, with a small knob at the symphysis;
upper lip on the level of the pupil; maxillary extending to the middle of the orbit;
posterior angle of the opercle acute; eye moderate, nearly four in head; scales very
small; fins short and high, the dorsal somewhat behind ventrals; lateral line decurved ;
color dark bluish, the scales mottled with paler; sides with a broad black band; belly
more or less silvery; the front half of the lateral band bright crimson in spring males,
the belly and lower fins more or less reddened, a dark vertebral band; head 4; depth
5; D. 8; A. 9; scales 10-70-5; teeth 2, 4-5, 2, Length 4 inches.
Habitat, Great Lake Region and Ohio Valley.
Diagnosis—The great size of the mouth and the small size of the scales
distinguish this species from all other minnows found in Ohio.
Habits.-This is one of the most brilliant of our minnows. It fre-
quents clear, cold streams, and is therefore more abundant in the tribu-
taries of the lake than in those of the Ohio River. It is unsurpassed as
an aquarium fish.
55
866 FISHES--CYPRINIDAE.
GENUS 44. PHOXINUS. Agassiz.
Phocinus, AGAssiz, Mem. Soo. Sc. Neufchatel, 1, 37.
Type, Cypinus phoaximus L. = Phoacimus lavis Ag.
Etymology, phowinos, a minnow, from phoros, tapering,
Body stout; mouth normal, without barbels; teeth 2, 5-5, 2, or 2, 5-1, 2, hooked, with-
out grinding surface; scales small, but little imbricated; lateral line incomplete or want-
ing; dorsal fin behind ventrals, anal basis short ; species of small size and brilliant col-
oration; found both in Europe and America. The resemblance to Chro80mw8 in form,
Squamation, and coloration is considerable, but the feeth and ałimentary canal are quite
different. Three species are known in America, and two or three in Europe.
86. PHoxtNUs NECGAEUS Cope.
New Workd Mira ºn OW. .
oacimus neogasus, COPE, Trans. Am. Philos. Soc., 1866, 375.-GUNTIER, Cat. Fish. Brit.
Mus, vii, 247–Jordan, Man. Wert., 2d Ed., 1878, 302.
Description.—A stout little fish, with the head large, short, and blunt anteriorly; mouth
rather small, oblique, terminal, reaching about 10 the front of the eye; eye moderate,
rather longer than muzzle; color blackish, a black lateral band, above which is a pale
streak; a dark spot at base of caudal; belly pale, crimson in the males in spring;
head 34-5; depth 4 1-5; D, 8; A, 8; scales 18-77-12; lateral line developed on about 24
scales; teeth 2, 5-4, 2. Length 2% inches. -
Habitat, Southern Michigan to Minnesota.
Diagnosis.-This species may be known by its very small scales and in.
complete lateral line. From Chrosomus érythrogaster it may be best known
by the presence of two rows of teeth.
Habits.-This little fish has been thus far noticed only in Southern
Michigan, Southern Wisconsin, and Northern Illinois. It doubtless oc.
curs in North-western Ohio. Its habits are probably very similar to
those of Telegtes clongatus. - -
GENUS 45. NOTEMIGONUS. Rafinesque.
Notemigonus, RAFINHSQUE, Journal de Physique, 1819, 421.
Stilbe, DEKAY, Fishes N. Y., 1842, 204,
JAcucosomus, GIRARD, 1853 (not of Heckel = Semotilus). -
Luxilus, GIRARD, Prºc. Phil. Acad, Sci., 1856, 203 (not of Raf.). (Type C. cryboleucus,
Mitch.)
Plargyrus, PUTNAM, Bulletin M. C. Z., 1863, 7 (not of Raf.).
Stilbius, GILL, Can. Naturalist, 1865, 18.
Type, Notemigonus auratus, Raf = Cyprimus chrygoleucus, Mit.
Etymology, moto8, back; hemi, half; gonw8, angle, the back being almost keeled.
I3ody deep, strongly compressed; the belly somewhat carinate behind the ventral
fins, the scales not crossing it ; head small ; jaws normal ; mouth oblique; no barbels;
teeth 5-5, hooked, with grinding surface, the edges more or less crenate; the alimentary
canal moderate, rather longer than body, but hardly to be considered elongate; 3cales
GOLDEN SHINER. 867
moderate; lateral line much decurved, continuous; dorsal fin much behind wentrals;
anal basis moderately elongate; the rays 10 to 13; species of large size, all American,
closely related to the European genus Abramig, from which they differ in the shorter
anal, Abramás having from 25 to 45 rays in that fin.
87. NoTEMIGONUS CHRYSOLEUCUS (Mitchill) Jordan.
Golden Shigaer.
Cyprings chrysoleucue, MITCHILL, Rept. Fishes N. Y., 1814, 23; Trans. Lit. and Phil. Soc.,
i, 1845, 459.
Rutilw8 chrysolewcus, RAFINESQUE, Ich Oh, 1820, 48.
Cyprinus (Leuciscus) chrysoleucus, RICHARDSON, Fauna Bor.-Am., iii, 1837, 122.
Leuciscus chrysoleucus, STORER Rept. Fishes Mass., 1839, 88.—THOMPSON, Hist Vermont,
1842, 136–KIRTLAND, Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist., iv., 1843, 305.
Notemigonus chrysoleucus, Jorda N, Ball. U. S. Mus., x, 1877, 65; Man. Vert., 2d Ed., 1878,
301. *
Motemigonus auratºs, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh., 1820, 40.
Abramis versicolor, DEKAY, Fishes N. Y., 1842, 191.
Ieucisou.8 versicolor, STORER, Syn., 1846, 415.
Stilbe versécolor, AGASSIz, Am. Journ. Sci. Arts, 1854, 359.
Leuciscº's obesw8, STORER, Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., July, 1865, p. —; Synopsis, 1846,
418.
Stilbe obesa, AGASSIZ, Am. Journ. Sci. Arts, 1854, 359.
Luzilus obesus, GIRARD, Proc. Phil. Acad. Sci., 1856, 203.
Leuciscus americanus, STORER, 1846, 408. (Not of Linnaeus.)
Leugosomus americanw8, GIRARD, Storer's Fishes Mass., 1853, 283,
Buzilw8 americanus, GIRARD, Proc. Phil. Acad. Sci., 1856, 203.
Plargyrus americanus, PUTNAM, Bull. M. C. Z, 1863, 7. -
Stilbius americanus, GILL, Can. Nat., Aug., 1865, 18–Jordan, Ind. Geol. Surv., 1874, 224.
Stilbe americana, Cope, Cyp. Penn., 1866, 389–ABBOTT, Am. Nat., 1870, 14–GooDE,
Bull. U. S. Museum, vi, 1876, 64.—UHLER and LUGGER, Fishes of Maryland, 1876,
145,
Abramis americanus, GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes, vii, 1868, 305.
Notemigonus americanus, JokDAN and CoPELAND, Check List, 1876, 155.-JORDAN, Ann.
N. Y. Lyc, Nat. Hist., 1877, 344, Bull. Buff. Soc. Nat. Hist, 1876, 93; Man. Vert.,
1876, 291,-NELSON."Bull, Ills. Mus., 1876, 48.
Luxilus 8eco, GIRARD, Proc. Phil. Acad. Sci., 1856, 203; Pac. R. R. Surv., 1858, 281.
Notemigonw8 seco, JoBEAN and COPELAND, Check List, 1876, 155—Jordan, Ann, N. Y.
Lyc., 1877, 365.
Description.-Body moderately elongate, strongly compressed; head short, subconic,
compressed, the top of the head convex, the profile of the head continuous with that of
the back; mouth small, oblique, the upper lip on the level with the upper part of the
pupil, the maxillary not reaching the front of the eye; eye moderate, about four in .
head; fins medium; color clear greenish above; sides silvery with bright golden reflec-
tions; ſins yellowish, the tips of the lower fins eometimes orange in spring males; head
4; ; depth 3; D, 8; A, 12–14; scales 12-51-3; teeth 5-5. Length 12 inches.
868 FISHES-CY PRINIDAE.
Habitat, Maine to Alabama and Texas, north to Minnesota. Every where abundant
except in the South Atlantic States, where it is superseded by the southern N. ameri-
Camw8 (L.).
Diagnosis.--This species bears little resemblance to our other Ohio
Cyprinidae. In general, it may be known by the long anal fin, and by the
carinated belly, over the middle line of which (behind the ventral fins)
the scales do not pass.
Habits.--This large species is especially characteristic of sluggish
waters. In every lake, pond, or bayou in Ohio it is extremely abundant ;
in weedy bayous most of all. The yellow pond lily is its favorite shel-
ter. Shallow ponds, left in the Spring by the overflowing of Some stream,
will often be found full of them, their companions in distress in such
cases being often Amiurus 22nthocephalus and natalis, Umbra limi, E803,
Salmoneu8, and Erimyzon. Sucelta. This fish in form and coloration Some-
what resembles a Shad, and it has been frequently taken for such by
careless observers. Rafinesque himself placed it among the Glupeidae,
which fact accounts for the general neglect of his name, Notemigonus.
GENUS CARASSIUS. Nilsson.
Carassius, NILSSON, Prodromus.
Type, Cyprinw8 caraggiuº, L; Caraş8ius vulgaria, Nilss.
Etymology, from ICarab8 or Karausch, the vernacular name of the European Crucian Carp.
Body oblong, compressed and elevated; mouth terminal, without barbels; teeth 4-4,
molar not compressed ; scales large ; lateral line continuous; dorsal fin very long, with
a stout spine, which is serrated behind; anal short, with a similar spine; large species,
of the fresh waters of Europe and Asia, often domesticated. One species, the familiar
Gold-fish, is here domesticated, and has become naturalized in Some streams.
CARASSIUS AURATUS (Linnaeus) Bleeker.
Gold-Fish.
This fish, native of the fresh waters of China, and domesticated in all parts of the
world as an aquarium fish, is too well known to need description. There are twenty
species in the fresh waters of Ohio, more beautifully colored than this coarse and
gaudy fish, and more desirable for aquarium purposed in every respect, except that of
tenacity of life. *
GENUS CYPRINUS. Linnaeus.
Cyprinus, LINNAEUS, Systema Naturae, i, 525.
Type, Cyprinw8 carpio, L.
Etymology, kuprinos, Carp.
Body short and deep, resembling that of a Buffalo-fish; head heavy; mouth anterior,
rather narrow, with four long barbels; dorsal fin long, with a strong, Berrated spine;
anal short; scales large, reduced in number, or wanting in some of the domesticated
varieties; teeth molar-like, 1, 1, 3-3, 1, 1. Europe and Asia, one species; introduced
into America,
CARP. 869
CYPRINUS CARPIO Linnaeus,
Carp.
This well known fish was originally a native of Asia, from whence it has been intro-
duced into Europe and America. In domestication it has split up into many varieties?
I am not aware that it has as yet become naturalized in any part of Ohio. As a fish for
Ordinary pond culture it has no equal.
F A M H L Y X , D OR O S O M A T II) AE. T H E G IZ Z A. R. D
S H. A. D. S.
Herring-like fishes, with the mouth entirely toothless, small, subinferior, oblique, over-
lapped by the bluntish snout, maxillary bone narrow and short, of a single piece, not
reaching to opposite the middle of the eye, and forming but a small part of the lateral
margin of the upper jaw; mandible short and broad, its rami enlarged at base; gill-
Takers slender, comparatively short; gill membranes not united; branchiostegals 5 to
7 in number, fourth branchial arch with an accessory branchial organ; head short,
body-ovate, elevated, strongly compressed, covered with rather large, deciduous scales;
no lateral line; belly closely compressed, its edge retrorsely serrated; dorsal fin about
midway of the body, usually behind ventrals; pectorals rather long, with an accessory
scale; anal very long and low; caudal forked; stomach stout, muscular, gizzard-like.
Genera two, with about a dozen species inhabiting the coasts and rivers of most warm
regionS.
ANALYSIS OF GENERA OF DOROSOMATIDAE.
*Last ray of dorsal fin produced into a filament. & e & DOROSOMA, 46.
GENUS 46. DORQSOMA, Rafinesque.
Dorogoma, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh, 1820, 39.
Chatoeë8w8, CUVIER, Regne Animal, 2d E i., 1828.
Type, Dorosoma notata, Raf., Clupéa heterurus, Raf.
Etymology, doro8, lance; 8oma, a body.
As here understood, this genus includes all those Dorosomatidae which have the last
ray of the dorsal fin prolouged into a filament. The species of this genus are properly
marine, but most of them ascend fresh waters, and individuals of some species are perma-
nently resident there.
870 -
4 IFISHES-DOROSOMATIDAE.
88. DoRosom A CEPEDIANUM (LeSueur) Gill.
Gizzardà. Shad; HHickory Shhindă.
var, cepedianum (East Coast, marine form.)
Dřegalops cepediana, LESUEUR, Journ, Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., i, 1817, 361.
Chatoes.8w8 Cepedianw8, CUV. et VAL, Hist. Nat, des Poiss., xxi, 99.—GUNTHER, Cat. Fish.
Brit. Mus., vii, 409. -
3Doro8oma cepedianum, GILL, Cat, Fish. East Coast, 1861, 55, and elsewhere, and of late
writers generally.
Doxysoma cepediana, JORDAN, Man. Vert., 2d Ed., 1878, 279.
Chatoesgus in Sociabilis, ABBOTT, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci., Phila., 1860, 365.
War. hełerwrº.
Clupea heterwrus, RAFINEs QUIC, Amer. Montbly Mag., 1818, 354.
Dorysoma cepediana heterura, JORDAN, Bull. U. S. Nat, Mus., ix, 1877, 13; Man. Verb.,
2d Ed., 1878, 280, and elsewhere.
Dorogoma notata, RAFINIESQUIv, Ich, Oh., 1820, 40, and of some authors. -
Chatoegbus elliptieu8, KIRTLAND, Rept. Zool, Ohio, 1838, pp. 169, 195.-KIRT3,AND, Bost.
Journ. Nat. Hist, iv, 235, pl. 10, fig, 1.
Description —Body ovate, much compressed, but not greatly elevated, axis of body
considerably nearer dorsal than ventral outline; mouth small, inferior, the snout.
rounded ; eye twice the length of Snont, 4} in head ; length of top of head 33 in dis-
†ance to origin of dorsal ; dorsal fill beginning midway between Spout and middle of
base of caudal, the last or filamentous ray being about € gual to the length of the
head and more than twice the base of the fin; pectorals scarcely reaching ventrals; 13
in bead; ventrals reaching half way to abal, 2 1-6 in head ; vent about midway be-
tween snout and tip of caudal; base of amal a little origor than head, three times the
height of its longest ray; caudal fin widely forked, the lobes nsually unequal, largely
scaly at base; depth of caudal peduncle half length of head ; color bluish above,
sides silvery, often with golden reflections; fins plain ; young with a large blackish
blotch on each side behind the head, over the pector...] fins, this disappearing with
age; head 4 ; depth 23, , D. 11; A, 30; W, 8; 12t. ). 56; 20 scales from dorsal to Yen-
trals; 17 Scutes in front of ventrals, 12 behind. Length 12 to 15 inches.
Habitat, Atlantic and Gulf coasts of United States from New York to Texas, entering
streams and often becoming land-locked in ponds. War. heterarus, in all large streams
of the Mississippi Basin, escaped through canals into Lake Michigan and Lake Erie.
Diagnosis.-This fish may be known by its serrated belly and small,
toothless mouth, and by the filament on the dorsal fin.
Habits.—This species is abundant in the Ohio River. It apparently
prefers the deeper waters, and Seldom ascends the smaller streams. It
has, however, entered the canals, and specimens are now frequently
taken in Lake Erie. Mr. Klippart states that “before the construction
of the Ohio Canal it was not found anywhere north of the divide, or
GIZZARD SHAD. 871
water shed between the lake and the Ohio River. It abounds in the
Licking Reservoir, and is a great nuisance to the fishermen, who some-
times find that two-thirds of all the fish in the net are these “herring,’
as they term them.” This gpecies feeds upon weeds, i.e., vegetable debris,
algae, confervae, desmids, and diatoms.
As a food fish, the Gizzard Shad is almost worthless. The flesh is soft,
coarse, and insipid, as well as full of bones, Mr. Klippart states that it
ls sometimes split and salted on Lake Erie and shipped with other fish
of low grade as “Lake Shad.” He also states that “forty years ago it
was esteemed an excellent fod fish Cn the Cincinnati market,” which, if
true, shows either that the Cincinnatians do not now buy fish for their
good looks (for the gizzard Shad is a handsome fish), or else in forty
years they have progressed a long way toward epicureanism.
The popular name “Gizzard Shad" is given in given in allusion to the
gizzard-like form of the stomach, which resembles that of a hen.
“Hickory Shad" is said to allude to a fancied resembance between the
stomach and a hickory nut.
Synonymy.—This fish is now considered as a form or variety of the
common Eastern Gizzard Shad, which is a Salt water fish, although, like
the Shad, it freely enters the rivers. The oldest name for the Western
form is heterurus of Rafinesque, given in allusion to the inequality of
the lobes of the tail. The difference between heterwrum and cepedianum,
is not great, the greater arch of the back in cepedianum being the main
difference.
F A MILY XI. C. L. U P E ID AE. T H E H E R R IN G S.
Clupeoid fishes, with the mouth moderate or rather large, terminal, the jaws nearly
equal ; the maxillary composed of about three pieces, not extending beyond the eye;
dentition extremely various, the teeth typically feeble; gill-rakers more or less elongate,
slender; gill openings wide, the membranes not united ; branchiostegals rather few :
body compressed, the belly serrated ; scales moderatº or rather large, deciduous; no lat-
eral line; caudal fin forked ; dorsal fin moderate, nearly median, nearly opposite the
ventrals (which are absent in a foreign genus); anal fin moderate or long, genera
about twelve, although a much greater number has been described ; species about 120,
inhabiting all seas, some of them ascending or remaining in fresh waters; many of
them are highly valued as food fishes; others are coarse and full of small bones; most
of the species are closely related to the typical genus Clupea, but the variations in the
position of the rudimentary teeth are extremely great. These variations have given
rise to a great number of generic names, most of which are probably useless.
S72 FISIHES-CLUPEID AE.
ANALYSIS OF GENERA OF CLUPEIDAE,
* No teeth on the vomer; no dorsal filament; scales cycloid.
f Cheeks deeper than long ; teeth, wanting or on the jaws only. . . . ALOSA,
ff Cheeks longer than deep ; tongue and often jaws also with more or less devel-
oped teeth. * & & e § e e ſº e POMOLOBU.S. 47.
GENUS ALOSA. Cuvier.
Alosa, CUVIER, Regne Animal, 2d Ed , 1829.
Type, Clupea alosa, L.; Alosa vulgaris, Cuv.
Etymology, Latin alausa or alosa, a name applied by early writers to the Shad, from
This genus differs from Pomolobus chiefly in the form of the cheeks, which are higher
the E glish Allis or German, alge, allied to the Latin, haleø
than long, the horizontal process of the ope, cle being very short; the body is deeper
than in the other genera, and there are no teeth except sometimes a few cadacous ones
in the jaws. The propriety of retaining Alasa as a genus distinct from Pomolobus is not
very evident; but until the whole group can be reviewed, it is best to follow custom.
A LOSA SAPIDISSIMA (Wilson) Storer.
Conan annona Słn tº d.
Clupta alosa, MITCHILL, Trans, Lit. and Phil. Soc., i, 1814, 449 (not of Linraeus).
Clupea gapidissima, WILSON, Rees' E. cyclopedia, Amer. Ed , 181.
Clupea sapidissima, RAFINItsour, Am Monthly Mag., ii, 1818, 205.
Alosa sapidissima, STORER, Synopsis Fish, N. A., 458, and of nearly all late writers.
Alosa prastabilis, DEKAY, New York Fauna, Fishes, 1842, 255-STORER, Hist. Fish.
Mass., and of writers.
Description —Body stout, elliptical, compressed ; month moderate, usually entirely
toothless; lower jaw rather longest, its tip fitting into an emargination of the upper;
dorsal fin median, beginning rather in front of the ventials; ventral Serrations strong;
color bluish or olivaceous, sides silvery ; usually a dusky blotch on sides behind head,
sometimes followed by one or more smaller ones ; in older Specimens these become obso-
lete; head 44 in length; depth &#; D 15; A, 19; lat, l. 60; scutes 21, 15. Longth 1
to 2 feet.
Habitat, New Eugland to Gulf of Mexico, ascending streams to spawn,
Diagnosis—The true shad may be known by its serrated belly and
rather large mouth, which is usually totally destitute of teeth.
Habits —As this familiar and excellent fish is not indigenous to the
waters of Ohio, its habits may be briefly treated here. It is found along
the whole Atlantic Co.,st of the United States, and ascends all suitable
streams in the spring for the purpose of Spawning. Its migrations in the
sea extend from the South northward in the Spring, returning in the fall.
In Ohio Shad have been introduced into the Ohio River, but as they mi-
grate southward in the summer, the chance of their returning next sea
SKIPJACK. 873
son to the same district, or even the same State, is not very great.
Several large individuals have already been taken in the Ohio. As to the
value of the Shad as a food fish in Ohio, the following note by Mr. Klip-
part, seems to contain the gist of the matter.
“People from the East, who, in their childhood, were accustomed to
Shad as a food fish, have imbibed very strong prejudices in its favor; but
people accustomed to White-fish at first, never learn to esteem the Shad
as highly as Eastern people do. Non-migrating fishes will find greater
favor as food fish, while any sort of game fish will be greatly preferred by
the sportsman.”
GENUs 47. POMOLOBUS. Rafinesque.
Pomolobus, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh, 1820, 38.
Iowala, Melttta, etc., CUV. et VAL., Hist. Nat, des Poiss., xx.
Alaugella, GILL, Proc Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1861, 36, etc.
Type, Pomolobus chrysochlorig, Rafinesque.
Etymology, poma, operculum ; lobos, lobe.
No teeth on the vomer; feeble or caducous teeth present on some one or more of the
bones of the mouth (rather stout in one species); lower jaw rather the longest, its lips
fitting into the emargination of the upper; gill rakers rather long ; dorsal fin median,
beginning rather in advance of ventrals, its last ray not filamentous; ventral serrations
strong; body oblong, compressed ; scales medium, posteriorly entire. Species 60 or 70,
in all seas, some of them entering or remaining in fresh water.
This genus is divisible into several groups or subgenera, Pomolobus proper being re-
presented by a single American fresh water species. It is distinguished by its stronger
dentition, the teeth at the Symphysis of the lower jaw being larger than in other
Clupeida, and there are some teeth on the premaxillaries and the tongue. The Ameri-
can marine species (Alewife, etc.,) belong to the subgenus Meletta, with teeth on the
tongue only. Both Pomolobus and Alosa are distinguished from Clupea by characters of
little importance.
89. POMOLOBUS CHRYSOCHLORIs Rafinesque.
Skipjack; Ohio Shad.
Pomolobus chrysochloris, RAFINFSQUE, Ich. Oh, 1820, 38–GILL, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci.,
Phila., 1861, 33–JORDAN, Man. Vert, 2d Ed., 1878, 279, and of most late writers
who have noticed the species, -
Alosa chrysochloris, KIRTLAND, Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist., iv, 307, pl. 15, fig. 3,
Description —Body elliptical, much compressed, not elevated; mouth rather large,
terminal, oblique, the teeth in the jaws better developed than in other shad-like fishes;
caudal peduncle rather deep, its depth about twice the width of the eye; color brilliant
blue, with green and golden reflections, silvery below; head 4; depth 54; D, 18; A. 18;
lat. l. 55; 17 scutes behind ventrals. Length 8 to 12 inches.
Habitat, Mississippi Valley and Gulf of A exico; generally abundant in the larger
streams, and escaped through the canals into Lakes Erie and Michigan.
874 FISHES-HYODONTIDAE.
Diagnosis.--From all other Ohio fishes, this species may be known by
the Serrated belly, in connection with the projecting lower jaw.
Habits.-In regard to distribution, habits and value as food this
Species is essentially like the Gizzard Shad. It is found only in the
larger rivers and ponds, never ascending the small streams. Compara-
tively lately, it has made its way into the Lakes. It is migratory to Some
extent, but whether individuals ever descend from Ohio to the Gulf of
Mexico, is not yet known. It is a handsome fish, but it does not reach a
very large size, and its flesh being dry and bony, it is not valued as food.
The name Skipjack alludes to its habit of leaping from the water. It
feeds upon Small fishes, insects and probably crustaceams.
F A MILY X II. H. Y O DO N TID AE. T H E M O O N E YES ,
Clupeoid fishes with the mouth moderate, oblique, terminal, the jaws about equal,
the maxillary reaching to about opposite the middle of the eye; maxillary small, slender,
without supplemental bones, articulated to the end of the premaxillary, and forming
the lateral margin of the upper jaw ; eye exceedingly large, much longer than the thick,
bluntish snout ; dentition greatly developed, nearly every bone in the mouth being
provided with bands of teeth; premaxillary and mandible provided with rather Stout vill-
iform teeth ; maxillaries with feeble teeth; tongue with two marginal rows of very long
oanines, between which is a band of close set, shorter, almost paved teeth ; womer with
a similar long series of paved teeth, but without canines; palatines with long series of
close set teeth, a similar series on the pterygoids and on the sphenoid bone; sides of
lower jaw shutting within the upper, so that the dentaries fit against the palatines ;
gill membranes entirely separate, the branchiostegals eight to ten in number; scales
large, brilliantly silvery, cycloid; lateral line distinct, straight ; body oblong,
compressed, rather deep, belly with ordinary scales, rounded or carinated ; dorsal fin
well back, beginning opposite the vent; ventrals well developed;, caudal fin strongly
forked. A single genus, with about three species, inhabiting the fresh waters of North
America, remarkable for their brilliantly silvery coloration.
GENUS 48. HYODON. LeSueur.
Hiodon, LESUEUR, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila, i, 1818, 364.
Glossodon, RAFINESQUE, Amer. Monthly Mag., ii, 1818, 354.
Amphiodon, RAFINESQUE, Journal de Physique, 1819, 421 (alogoides).
Clodalus, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh, 1820, 43.
Gloagodon, HECKEL, Russegger's Reisen, i, 1843, 1033.
Elattoniatius, GILL and JORDAN, Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., x, 1877. (Subgenus.)
Type, Hiodon tergisw8, LeSueur.
Etymology, huoeides, hyoid bone, i.e., bone shaped like the letter upsilon; odon, tooth
(in allusion to the toothed tongue),
Generic characters not separable from those of the family.
Moon-EYE. 875
90. HYodon TERGISUs LeSueur.
Moom-eye; Toothed Herring; “Silver Bass.”.
Hiodon tergisus, LESUEUR, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., i, 1818, 364.
Hyodon tergigua, DEKAY, New York Fauna, Fishes, 265.-KIRTLAND, Bost. Journ, Nat.
Hist... v., 1846, 33.3—CU v. et VAL, Hust. Nat, des Poiss., xix, 309.-GIRARD, U. S.
Pac. R. R. Expl., Fish., 1859, 332.—GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes Brit. Mus, vii,375–JORDAN,
Man. Vert., 2d Ed., 1878, 277, and of all recent authors.
Hiodon clodalus, LESUEUR, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila, i, 1818, 367.
Glossodon harengoides, RAFINESQUE, Amér. Monthly Mag., 1818, 354.
Gloggodon helerurw8, RAFINESQUE, Amer. Monthly Mag., 1818, 354.
EIyodom vernalis, RAFLNESQUE, Ich. Oh, 1820, 43.
Cyprimus (Abramis?) &mithii, RICHARDSON, Fauna Bor.-Amer., iii, 1836, 110.
Leuciscus 8mith% of copyists,
Gloagodon smithii, HECKEL, Russegger's Reisen, 1843, 1033, (as a new genus of Cyprinidae).
Description,-Body oblong, closely compressed ; belly in front of ventrals very slightly
transversely carinated, the edge obtuse; belly behind ventrals with the edge Somewhat
sharp ; head short and blunt, the eye very large, much longer than the Snout, .
three in head ; pectoral fins shorter than head, not reaching nearly to the ventrals; dorsal
fin nearly as long as high in front ; color brilliantly silvery, the back slightly darker;
head 44-3; depth 3 ; D. 12; A. 23; scales 5-58-8. Length about a foot.
Habitat, Canada, Great Lake Region and entire Mississippi Valley ; abundant in
the larger streams and lakes.
Diagnosis.—The Moon-eye may be known among Ohio fishes by its
compressed form and brilliant white color, in connection with the sharp
teeth and very large eye. This species may be known from the next
by the number of developed rays (12) in the dorsal fin.
Habits.—This fish frequents the large rivers and lakes, very seldom
ascending small streams. It probably retires to deep waters in the win-
ter. It is a vigorous and “gamey ’’ fish, usually freely taking the minnow
or fly, and it is abundant both in Lake Erie and the Ohio, so that it is
often taken in large numbers in Seines. From its great beauty, it is usually
salable where not well known, but its flesh is poor, and, like most
of its relatives, its bones are small and numerous. Dr. Estes considers it
“one of the smartest of fishes. They will come up, taste a fly, let go and
be gone before the angler has time to strike, Therefore to be a Moon-
eye fly-fisher, one must be very sharp. and not read a book while cast-
ing,” (Estes-Hallock, Sportsman's Gazetteer, 327). The Moon-eye feeds
on insects, crustacea and small fishes. f
91. HYODON ALOSOIDES (Rafinesque) Jordan and Gilbert.
Amphiodon alogoides, RAFINESQUE, Journal de Physique, Paris, 1819.
Hyodon amphiodon, RAFINESQUE, Ichthyologia Ohiensis, 1820.
Hyodon chrysopsis, RICHARDSON, Fauna Boreali-Amer., iii, 1836, 232.-Jordan, Bull, U. S.
Nat. Mus, x, 1877, 68.—Jordan, Man. Wert, 2d Ed., 1878, 277.
876 FISHES-SALMONIDAE.
Description.—Body closely compressed, becoming deep in the adult; eye moderate,
smaller than in other species, about 34 in head, the maxillary reaching to beyond its
middle; back less arched, snout blunter and more elevated than in B tergisus, mouth
larger and more oblique; pectorals longer and ventrals shorter than in H, tergisus; belly
carinated both before and behind ventrals; bluish, sides silvery, with golden luster;
head 4 34; depth 34; D. 9; A, 32; scales 6.56 7.
Habitat, Ohio River to the Saskatchawan; common northward.
Diagnosis.-From Hyodon tergisus, this species may be known by its
Short dorsal, of but nine developed rays, and by the carination of the
whole ventral edge.
Habits.-Nothing distinctive is known of the habits of this species.
Originally described by Rafinesque from the Falls of the Ohio, its occur-
rence Southward has been overlooked until very lately. In 1836 it was
found in the Saskatchawan River by Sir John Richardson, and later by
Dr. Coues in the Upper Missouri. In 1880 the writer obtained numer-
Ous Specimens at the Falls of the Ohio, and was thus enabled to recog-
nize the Amphiodon alosoides of Rafinesque. The species will doubtless
be found in all the larger rivers of the Northwest. A third species,
Hyodon selenops, Jordan and Bean, occurs in the rivers of the Southern
States, but has not yet been seen in Ohio.
FAMILY TX III. S A LM O N ID AE. T H E S AL MO N S.
Body oblong or elongate, covered with cycloid scales; head naked ; mouth terminal,
Varying much in size and form ; maxillary forming the lateral margin of the upper jaw,
provided with a supplemental bone, premaxiilaries not protractile ; teeth various, some-
times wanting ; gills four, a slit behind the fourth ; pseudobranchiae present, but often
Small or rudimentary; gill-rakers moderate; gill-membranes not connected, free from
the isthmus; branchiostegals 6-20; no barbels; dorsal usually median, not greatly
elongate; adipose fin present; caudal fin forked; anal fin moderate or rather long;
ventrals moderate, nearly median ; pectorals placed low ; lateral line present ; abdomen
rounded; air-bladder large; stomach coecal or siphonal, the pyloric coeca few or many,
Sometimes obsolete; ova generally large, falling into the cavity of the abdomen before
exclusion ; genera about 20; species 125, a large and varied family. Its members in-
habit chiefly the fresh waters of northern regions, many of them being anadromous, run-
ning up from the sea to spawn in the rivers. One genus, Itetropinna, is found in New
Zealand, and the species of Microstoma, Argentina, and Silub are mostly deep Sea fishes.
In economic importance this family ranks among the very first, and the Salmon and
Trout in all northern regions are the choicest prize of the angler,
ANALYSIS OF GENERA OR SALMONIDAE.
a Pyloric coeca many; stomach siphonal.
b. Jaws toothless or nearly so; scales large. (Coregonina.)
0. Maxillary short and broad. fº ſº ſº © tº . COREGONUS. 49.
bb. Jaws with distinct teeth ; scales mostly small. (Salmoninée.)
PILOT FISH. - 877
d. Anal fin elongate of 14 to 17 rays. © e e ONCORHYNCHUS, 50.
dd. Anal fin short, of 9-11 developed rays,
e. Womer flat, its toothed surface plain; teeth on the shaft of the Vomer in
alternating rows or one zigzag row, those on the shaft placed directly
on the surface of the bone, not on a free crest (posterior vomerine teeth
sometimes deciduous); species black-spotted. . . SALMO, 51.
ee, Vomer boat-shaped, the shaft strongly depressed ; scales very small, about
200 in the course of the lateral line; species not anadromous,
f. Shaft of vomer with a raised crest, bearing strong teeth, the crest pos-
teriorly free; a baud of stout, recurved teeth on the hyoid bone ;
species gray-spotted. º e e e e CRISTIVOMER. 52.
ff. Shaft of vomer without raised crest, entirely toothless; species crim-
son spotted, the lower fins with marginal bands of black and plain.
SALVELINUS. 53.
GENUS 49. COREGONUS. Linnaeus.
Coregonus, LINNAEUS, Syte ma Naturae, 1758 (artedì).
Argyrosomw8, AGASSIZ, Lake Superior, 1850 (artedì).
I’ro8opium, MILNER, Mss., Jordan, Man. Wert., 2d Ed., 1878 (quadrilateralia).
Allosomus, Jordan, Man. Wert., 2d Ed., 1878 (tullibee).
Type, Salmo (Coregonus) lavaretus, L.
Etymology, korre, the temples ; gonos, angle.
Body oblong or elongate, compressed ; head more. or less conic, compressed, the form
of the snout varying considerably ; mouth small, the maxillary short, not extending
beyond the orbit, with a well developed supplemental bone ; teeth extremely minute,
if present ; scales rather large, cycloid, about 80 in the course of the lateral line; dor-
sal fin moderate, caudal fin deeply forked, anal fin somewhat elongate, of about 14 rays ;
ventrals well developed ; pseudobranchiae large ; gill-rakers varying from short and
thick to very long and slender; air-bladder very large ; stomach horse-shoe shaped,
with many—about 100—pylorio casca : ova small ; species about 40, inhabiting the clear,
fresh waters of Northern Europe, Asia, and America, in arctic regions descending to the
sea. The group, as here defined, includes a number of sections characterized by minor
modifications of structure, some of which have been considered as genera. It seems to
us that the number of distinct species has been overestimated by previous writers, and
the difficulty of distinguishing species is greater, and the geographical range of each
one is much wider than has hitherto been generally supposed. The species are highly
valued for food ; the coloration is very uniform, bluish above, the sides and below sil-
very or olivaceous.
This genus may be subdivided as follows:
* Premaxillaries broad, placed vertically or turned inward, overlapping the tip of the
lower jaw ; the outline of the muzzle, therefore, bluntish or truncate,
t Preorbital short and very broad; gill-rakers very short, thick, few in number;
supraorbital short, ovate; maxillary short and rather broad, not reaching to the
line of the eye; the small supplementary bone narrow and sharply elliptical ;
mouth very small ; the snout more or less produced. (Progopium, Milner.)
QUADRILATERALIS.
878 FISHES-SALM ONIDAE.
ti Preorbital long and narrow ; gill-rakers long and slender; supraorbital oblong
maxillary comparatively long, the supplemental bone ovate, rather broad.
- - (Coregonus.)
# Tongue toothless, or nearly so; back elevated. e e CLUPEIFORMIS.
# Tongue with about three series of small teeth; body elongate, compressed, the
back not elevated. tº e tº ſº ſº e gº ſº LABRADORICUS. "
** Premaxillaries narrow, placed more or less horizontally; mandible elongate, often
projecting; the outline of the muzzle pointed; all the bones of the head more or
Mess elongate. -
§ Body elongate, subfusiform, the dorsal and ventral curves not equal ; Scales
small, uniform, convex behind ; gill-rakers long and slender. (Argyro80mw8,
Agassiz.)
a. Lower jaw shorter, included; premaxillaries oblique, their anterior mar-
gin in front below level of pupil; scales bright silvery, not punctate.
- E[OYI.
aa. Lower jaw mole or less projecting; premaxillaries nearly horizontal,
their anterior margins in front, not below, the pupil; scales punctu-
late with black. o te * g & ARTEDI, NIGRIPINNIS.
§§ Body short, deep, compressed, shad-like; curve of the back similar to that
of the belly; scales large, larger forwards, rather closely imbricated,
the posterior margin little convex. (Allogom w8, Jordan.) TULLIB H.E.
92. CoREGONUS QUADRILATERALIS Richardson.
Pilot-ſåsh; Shad Waiter; Round Fish; Menomomee White-ſish.
Salmo (Coregonus) quadrilateralia, RICHARDSON, Franklin's Journal, 1823, 714.
Coregonus quadrilateralia, GUNTHER, Cat, Fish, Brit. Mus., vi, 176.-JORDAN, Man. Wert,
2d Ed., 1878, 276, and of authors generally, -
Coregonw8 novaeangla, PRESCOTT, Amer. Journ. Sci. Arts, xi, 1851, 342.
Body elongate, not elevated, nor much compressed, the back rather broad, the form
rather more terete than in any of the other species; mouth very small and narrow, in-
ferior, the broad maxillary not reaching to opposite the eye, 5% in head ; head long, the
snout compressed and bluntly pointed, but not strongly decurved ; mandible originating
under middle of eye, 3% in head; adipose fin small; gill-raker short and stoutish ;
snout scarcely below level of lower edge of eye; preorbital wider than pupil; head 5
in length; depth 4%; D 11; A. 10; scales 9-80 to 90-8; color dark bluish above, silvery
\below. Length about 1 foot,
Habitat, deep, cold lakes, New Hampshire, Upper Great Lake Region, and northward
to Alaska. I have seen no specimens from Lake Erie, but it undoubtedly occurs there.
Diagnosis.--From the other species of White-fish found in the Great
Lakes, this species may be known by its short, blunt gill-rakers and
broad preorbital.
Habits—Little distinctive is recorded of the habits of the Menomonée
White, fish. It is never taken in large numbers; it inhabits considera-
ble depths, and the stomach is often found to be filled with Fmall shells,
COMMON WEHITE-FISH. 879.
93. CoREGoNUs clupe IFORMIs (Mitchill) Milner.
Counrnon White-fish.
Salmo clupeifornia, MITCHILL, Amer. Monthly Mag., ii, 1818, 321.
Coregonus clupeiformis, MILNER, Mss., in Jordan, Man. Vert., 2d Ed., 1878, 362. (Not of
authors generally – C. artedi.)
Coregonus albus, LESUEUR, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., i, 1818, 231,–GUNTHER, Cat.
Fishes Brit. Mus., vi, 184, and of most authors."
Coregonus otbego, DE witT CLINTON, Med. Phil. Regist, iii, 183, the “Otsego Lake Bass.”
Coregonus richardsoni, lation and 8apidiggimus, GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes Brit. Mus., vi,
185, 186, -
Description.—Body oblong, compressed, always more or less elevated, and becoming
notably so in the adult ; head comparatively small and short, the snout bluntish, ob-
liquely truncated ; maxillary reaching just past front of orbit, about four in head ; eye
large, 4 to 5 in head; color olivaceous above; sides white, but not silvery ; width of pre-
orbital Jess than half that of pupil ; lower fins shortish ; gill rakers moderate, slender,
two-thirds diameter of eye, about 50 below angle of arch; tip of snout on level of pupil;
tip of lower jaw on level of lower part of eye; head 5 in length ; depth 3 to 4; D. 11;
A. 11; scales 8-74-9. Length, 20 inches. “The average white-fish is of two or three
pounds weight, a large one six or seven ; rare specimens are caught, however, of much
greatar weight, sometimes turning the scales at 20 pounds.”—Stockwell,
Habitat, large bodies of water; Great Lakes and northward.
Diagnosis—This species may be known from other White-fishes by the
Small mouth and short lower jaw, in connection with the slender gill-
rakers and narrow preorbital. The young are much slenderer than the
adult, and the variations due to food and condition are very great. Old
fishes usually have a considerable fleshy hump at the shoulders, and the
head seems disproportionately small.
Habi's.-The following account of the spawing habits is from the pen
of Dr. G. A. Stockwell, of Port Huron, Michigan (in Hallock's Sports-
man’s Gazetteer, 4th edition, 332, 1878):
“The spawning begins in November, terminating in December, and is indicated by
the fish leaving deep water and appearing in immense numbers on rocky shoals,
Formerly they frequented the streams for this purpose, but at the present time, there
are but few streams emptying into the Great Lakes that are free from saw-mills and
their attendant dust, which is offensive to these fish. At the first day's netting on the
spawning beds, the catch is wholly males, apparently well stocked with milt; on the
second, a few females appear, plump with spawn The proportion of females increased
day by day until a week or ten days when there are two or three and often four times
as many females as males, after which they gradually disappear, until the latter pre-
ponderate as they are the last as well as first upon the beds. The best opinion seems to
be that the males precede the females only to prepare the ground; especially a8 they at
that time assume an extraordinary roughness of scales and employ themselves constantly
in scraping up gravel on which the spawn is subsequently deposited. Some, however,
believe that the mere inclination to milt causes them to seek the proper position with-
880 FISHES.—SALMONIDAE.
out reference to the presence or absence of the females; others still are of the opinion
that they precede only to wait for the females, and do not commence milting until
spawning begins. The latter opinion is undoubtedly the true one, for Mr. Milner has
established the fact that the act of Spawning in the female and milting in the male is
carried on at the same time, and with a slight though decided orgasm. The males have
been accused of lingering for the purpose of feasting on the spawn, but this is contrary
to nature and undoubtedly a slander. The most careful of observers assures me that the
males who linger on the beds are employed in covering the spawn.”
“The White-fish has been known since the time of the earliest explorers as pre-emin-
ently a fine flavored fish. In fact, there are few table-fishes its equal. " " To be
appreciated in its fullest excellence, it should be taken fresh from the lake and broiled,
Father Marquette, Charlevoix, Sir John Richardson, explorers, who for months at a
time had to depend on the White-fish for their staple article of food, bore testimony in
their writings to the fact, that they never lost their relish for it, and deemed it a
special excellence that the appetite never became cloyed with it.”—Milner,
Food.—The food of the White fish was for a long time an unsolved
problem, as nothing but slime is usually found in their stomachs. It is
now known that they feed mainly on Small Crustacea and Mollusks in-
habiting deep waters, organisms which are digested in the stomachs of
those fishes taken in the pound nets, before the fishes are taken from the
Water. -
Mr. Milner observes (Rept. Comm. Fish and Fisheries, 1872-73, p.
44):
“To Dr. P. R. Hoy, of Racine, we think, belongs the credit of first discovering the
character of their food. On opening the stomachs of numerous White-fish, he at first
failed to determine the character of the stomach-contents, until after washin g the half-
digested mass in a basin of water, he found the sediment to be full of small crustacea,
whose existence in the lake had never before been suspected.
“My examination and preservation of the stomach contents from all quarters of the
lakes, confirmed Dr. Hoy's observations and discovered a few other small forms of life as
the food of the White-fish.
“The invertebrates found were, of Crustaceans, Species of the families Gammarida, and
Mysida ; of the Mollusks, species of the genus Pisidium; and certain insect-larvae.”
The White fish very rarely takes the hook, and is in no sense a game-
fish. It is taken in all the great Lakes in very great numbers, formerly
with Seines, but now chiefly by means of gill-nets and pound nets. Among
the fishes of Ohio, it is the most important both as to quantity taken and
quality as food. Attempts at artificial propogation have been very suc-
cessful. The fullest and best account of the habits of the White fish is
to be found in the Report of the U. S. Comm. of Fish and Fisheries,
1872 3, pp. 43-64, written by the late Prof. Jas. W. Milner. To this
report, the reader is referred for further details. -
MUSQUAN RIVER WHITE-FISH. 881
94. CoREGONUS LABRADORECUS Richardson.
Musquam River White-fish ; Labrador White-fish; “Whiting ” of
Lake Winnepise ogee.
Coregonus labradoricus, RICHARDSON, Fauna Boreali-Amer, iii, 1836, 206,-GUNTHER,
Cat. Fishes Brit. Mus., vi, 176, and of authors generally.
Coregonus neohantonien8 is, PRESCOTT, Amer. Journ. Sci. Arts, xi, 1851, 342.
Description.—Body rather elongate, compressed, the back not elevated; head rather
long and slender, compressed; mouth rather small, the jaws equal, the maxillary reach-
ing to the front of the pupil; maxillary bone broad, rather short, its supplementary
piece ovate ; tongue with about three series of distinct small teeth; mandible reaching
middle of eye; eye large, 4% in head ; supraorbital bone long and rather narrow ;
bluish black above, silvery below ; scales with dark punctulations; fins all dusky ; dor-
sal fin high in front, the last rays short ; gill rakers slender; head 4} in length; depth
4+; D. 11; A. 11; scales 9-80-8. Length about 15 inches.
Habitat, Great Lake Region to the Adirondacks, White Mountains and northward,
in cold, clear lakes.
Diagnosis.—This species may be known from the Common White-fish
by its slenderer body, larger mouth and evidently stout small teeth, the
form of the mouth readily separates it from the “Lake Herring ” and its
relatives. !
Habits.-Little distinctive is recorded of the habits of this species. It
is very abundant in Canada and northern New England, but I have
seen no specimens from Lake Erie, and do not know that it occurs there.
It is said to rise to the fly in the Canadian Lakes.
95. CoREGONUS Hoy I (Gill) Jordan.
Lake Moom-eye; Cisco of Lake Mighigan.
Argyrosomus hoyi, GILL, MSS., Hoy, Trans. Wis. Acad., 1872, 100 (name only) —JoRDAN,
Amer. Nat, March, 1875, 135.—MILNER, Rept. U. S. Fish Com'r for 1872–3, 86.
Coregonus hoyi, JORDAN, Man. Wert., 2d Ed., 1868, 275.
Body rather elongate, compressed, the back somewhat elevated ; head rather long, in
form intermediate between Coregonus and Argyro80mus; mouth rather large, terminal,
the lower jaw evidently shorter than upper, even when the mouth is open; tip of muz-
zle rather bluntly truncate; maxillary reaching to opposite middle of pupil, about 6 in
head; mandible extending to posterior margin of pupil; supraorbital narrow ; suborb-
ital rather broad ; premaxillary on level of lower part of pupil; preorbital narrow ;
pseudobranchiae very large; fins low, the free margin of the dorsal very oblique; eye
very large, 3% in head; tongue with traces of teeth ; gill-rakers slender, about
25 below angle, rather long, nearly as long as eye; color bluish above, sides
and below rich silvery, brighter than in any other of our Coregoni, much as in Hyodon
and Albula; lateral line almost straight; head 4%; depth 44; D. 10; A, 10; scales 7-75-7.
Length 7 or 8 inches; Weight rarely more than half a pound.
56
882 FISHES-SALMONIIDAE.
Habitat. Lake Michigan, Lake Superior; one specimen in the National Museum from
Lake Ontario, Said to occur in small lakes in the interior of Michigan.
Diagnosis.—This species may be known from the Lake Herring, which
it resembles in form, by the shortness of its lower jaw, which fits within
the upper, as in the White fish, and by the pure silvery luster of the scales,
which have mone of the dusky punctulations as in the other Coregoni.
Habits —Little is known of the habits of this Cisco. Dr. Hoy, its dis-
coverer, writes, “This little beauty never approaches shoal water, where
Argyrosomus clupeiformis (arted) is only found. About 30 or 40 fathoms
is as near shore as it has ever been captured here.” (Racine, Wisconsin.)
Prof. Milner observes, “The Cisco of Lake Michigam, not to be con-
founded with the Cisco of Lake Ontario, is a fish frequenting the deep
waters. It is taken in considerable quantities at depths of from 30 to
70 fathoms, and is the principal food of the Salmon or “Mackinaw
Trout.” Prof. Milner further remarks that the depth of 50 fathoms
“may be considered in the deeper lakes the zone of the Mackinaw Trout
and of the Cisco throughout the Spring, Summer, and fall, with the ex-
ception, in the case of the Trout, of the spawning season.”
96. CoREGONUS ARTEDI LeSueur.
Lake HHerring ; MHickaiga an HHerrint g : Cisco.
Coregonus artedi, LESUEUR, Journ. Acad. Nab, Sci, Phila, i, 1818, 231.-Jordan, Man.
Wert, 2d Ed., 274.
Corogonus clupeiformis, DEKAY, New York Fauna, Fish., 1842, 248, pl. 60, f. 198 – GUN-
THER, Cat. Fish. Brit. Mus., vi, 198, and of many recent authors (not Salmo clu-
performis, Mitch ).
Argyrosomus clupeiformis, MILNER, Rept, U. S. Fish Comm., 1872–3, 65, and of most rec-
ent Aumerican writers. *
Salmo (Coregonus) lucidus, RICIIARDSON, Fauna Bor-Am, 1836, iii, 207.
Salmo (Coregonus) harengus, RICHARDSON, Fauna Bor.-Amer, iii, 1836, 210.
Argyrosomus bisco, JORDAN, Amer, Nat, 1875, 136. (Local variety in lakes of Indiana
and Wisconsin.)
Body elongate, compressed, little elevated; head compressed, rather pointed; mouth
rather large, the maxillary reaching about to the middle of the pupil, about '3' in head,
the mandible 24 in head ; preorbital bone long and slender; suborbital broad; supraor-
bital nearly as long as eye, about four times as long as broad; adipose fins very small ;
eye 4 to 5 in head; gill-rakers very long aud slender, as long as eye, 25 to 30 below the
angle; bluish black or greenish above; sides silvery ; scales with dark specks; fins
mostly pale; pectoral and anal dusky-tinged; head 43 ; depuh 4: ; D, 10; A. 11; scales
8-76 7. Length about a foot. The usual length is rather less than a foot, and the weight
9 to 10 ounces. The largest seen are about 19 in ches long and two pounds in weight.
Habitat, Great Lakes and northward to Alaska and Labrador; very abundant, usually
frequenting shallow waters. In numerous small lakes in Indiana and Wisconsin (Ge.
neva, Tippecanoe, Oconomowoc, LaBelle, etc.) is the modified var, 8isco (Argyrosomus
sisco, Jordan, Amer. Nat, 1875, 136), which lives in the deep waters, coming into shal-
low waters to spawn in December.
LAKE MOON-EYE. 883
Diagnosis.—From our other White fish this species may be known by
its slender, herring-like form and projecting lower jaw.
Habits.-The Lake Herring is found throughout the lake region in
enormous numbers. It inhabits comparatively shoal waters and goes
about in vast schools, “crowding into the pound-nets in masses until the
cribs are filled to the surface of the water. In Lake Erie frequently a
corner of the net is lowered, and a large proportion of them allowed to
escape before the remainder are thrown into the boat. Although they
have been taken in this way for years, there is no apparent diminution
in their numbers. Perhaps the little disposition on the part of the fish-
ermen to catch them, in some measure accounts for this fact, though
there must be as well Some natural advantages in their prolificity and
in the tenacity of life of the egg. They are little sought after, because
they are not a favorite fish in the market, being rather deficient in qual-
ities as a fresh or salt fish, though having no objectionable fl vor. They
are small and thin when opened, and become shrunken when pickled.
>k >{< >{< The profit on them to the fishermen is less than any
other fish handled from the lakes, because of the low price they com-
mand in the market, and the expense of dressing and packing is much
greater than in White-fish, Trout, or Pike, because of their smaller size.
Differing from the White-fish in the construction of the mouth, it being
terminal, they more readily take a bait, and may be fished for with hook
and line with a suitable bait. Insects are the best for this purpose,
though they are frequently taken with a minnow. The contents of the
stomach have been obtained in but a few instances, the fish being taken
almost exclusively in the pound nets, and in these they have generally
remained long enough to digest the stomach contents. A few specimens
from Seines in the Detroit River were found to contain insects and a few
of the Gammaridae, but no remains of vertebrates, though the Herring are
frequently taken with a minnow bait. They are found, by examination
of their stomachs during the Spawning Season, to be spawn eaters of the
worst character, their stomachs being crammed with White-fish ova, and
considering the great numbers of the Herring and their vicinity to the
spawning grounds, the destruction they effect must be very great.”
(Milner.)
The spawning season is about the last of November. It is thought
that this species does not migrate for the purpose of spawning, but re-
mains in the shoal waters, where it is commonly taken.
In the deep lakes of Northern Indiana (Tippecanoe, Eagle, etc.), and
in similar lakes in Eastern Wisconsin (Geneva, the Oconomowoc Chain,
etc.), a fish is found, known as the Cisco, which is generally thought to
884 FISHES-SALMONIDAE.
be a different species from the Lake Herring. This opinion I formerly,
held, and introduced it into nomenclature, giving the fish the name of
Argyrosomus Sisco. I find, however, no structural character distinguishing
the Cisco from the Lake Herring, and I have no doubt that they are spe-
cifically identical, the Cisco being a local variety, modified in its habits
by its residence in the smaller lakes.
The following account of the habits of the Cisco of Lake Tippecanoe
is furnished by Judge J. H. Carpenter, of Warsaw, Indiana (see Jordan
Amer. Nat., 1875, 135).
“Some years ago, probably five, these fish were discovered on the north side of Tip-
pecanoe Lake, by Isaac Johnson, and at each return of their spawning season, which is
the last of November, they have reappeared in large numbers. They are not seen at
any other season of the year, keeping themselves in the deep water of the lakes. The
general opinion is that they will not bite at a hook, but Mr. Johnson says that he has
on one or two occasions caught them with a hook, $ # * * 3.
“The Spawning Season lasts about two weeks, and they come in myriads into the
streams which enter the lakes. There are large numbers of persors who are engaged
night and day taking them with small dip-nets. They are caught in quantities that
would surprise you could you witness it. Those who live in the neighborhood put up
large quantities of them, they being the only fish caught in the lakes which will bear
salting. Some gentlemen who have been fishing to-day (December 8, 1874) inform me
that the run is abating, and that in a few days the fishes will have taken their depar-
ture for the deep water of the lakes, and will be seen no more until next November.”
A correspondent (“H. S. W.”) gives the following account of the Cisco
of Geneva Lake, Wisconsin:
“This graceful, silvery fish is found in largest numbers in the water of Lake Geneva,
Wisconsin. It is seen and caught there only about ten days in the year, usually in the
month of June, coming to the surface of the lake from the deeper spots to feast upon
the Cisco fly, somewhat similar to the common sand-fly, only larger, which appears at
that time and again disappears after the fish have had all they want of them. The fish
go in schools and are caught best when the weather is warm and the flies are thickest,
usually from six to ten o’clock in the morning. A very small hook and light line is
used, no sinking or bobber. The fly is used for bait, the fish jumping for it frequently
before it strikes the water. At times the water is kept in a constant ferment, and many
of the fish can be seen part way out of water at once. When they are biting, the
sportsman who is most active gets most fish. The Cisco fish average from six inches to
a foot in length, a slender, graceful, silvery fish. They do not make a very strong fight
for life; if it were not for the rapid biting, a fisherman would miss the looked for ex-
citement in the sport.”
97. CoREGONUS NIGRIPINNIS (Gill) Jordan.
Blue-fim ; Black-fin.
Argyrodomus migripinnig, GILL, MSS. in Milner's Rept., U. S. Fish Comm, 1872 3, 87.
Coregonus nigripinnis, JORDAN, Man. Wert., 2d Ed , 1878, 275.
TULLIBEE. 885
Description.—Body stout, fusiform, compressed ; head stout; mouth large, the lower
jaw projecting; eye rather large, longer than snout, about four in head ; teeth very
minute as in C, artedi, but appreciable on premaxillaries and tongue; gill-rakers very
numerous, long and slender ; lower fins long; color dark bluish above ; side.8 silvery,
with dark punctulations; fins all blue-black ; head 44; depth 3%; D. 10; A. 12; Scales
7-86.6, Length, 15 to 18 inches; average weight, 14 pounds.
Habitat, deep waters of Lake Michigan. Not yet noticed in Lake Erie. Especially
abundant in Grand Traverse Bay.
Diagnosis.--From the Lake Herring, the larger size, stouter form, and
especially the deep blue-black color of the lower fins readily distinguish
it.
Habits.--This species is as yet known only from the deep waters of
Lake Michigan where it is found in company with Coregonus hoyi. It is
occasionally seen in the markets of Chicago, Sometimes in considerable
numbers. Its qualities as a food fish are probably similar to those of the
White-fish.
98. CoREGONUs TULLIBEE Richardson.
Tuilibee; “MHongrel White-fish.”
Salmo (Coregonus) tullibee, RICHARDSON, Fauna Bor.-Amer, iii, 1836, 201.
Coregonus tullibee, GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes Brit. Mus., vi, 199.
Argyrogomw8 tullibee, JORDAN. Man. Vert., 2d Ed., 361.
Description.—Body short, deep, compressed, shad-like, the dorsal and ventral curves
similar; caudal peduncle short and deep; head conic, compressed, much as in C, mig-
ripinnis ; mouth large, the maxillary as long as the eye, extending past the front of the
pupil, its supplemental bone narrowly ovate, with prolonged points; jaws equal when
closed; eye large, as long as snout, four and a half in head; preorbital narrow ; supra-
orbital elongate, rectangular; scales anteriorly considerably enlarged, their diameter
half larger than the diameter of those on the caudal peduncle; color bluish above; sides
white, punctate with fine dots; each scale with a silvery area, these forming a series of
distinct longitudinal stripes; head 4 ; depth 2; D. 11; A. 11; scales 8-74-7. Length,
18 inches.
Habitat, Great Lakes and northward.
Diagnosis —The Tullibee has the deep, compressed form of the Shad,
with the projecting lower jaw of the Lake Herring. These particulars
distinguish it at once from the other White-fishes.
Habits.-Scarcely anything is known of the habits of the Tullibee. It
is certainly not abundant in any of the Great Lakes, although probably
occuring in all of them. I once received a photograph of a Tullibee, from
Dr. E. Sterling, of Cleveland, Ohio. The specimen had been taken in
Lake Erie and Dr. Sterling informed me that it was known to the fisher-
men as the “Mongrel Whitefish,” they thinking it to be a hybrid
between the White-fish and the Lake Herring.
886 FISHES-SAL MONIDAE.
GENUS 50. ONCOREIYNCHUS. Suckley.
Oncorhynchus, SUCI&LEY, Ann. Ly c. Nat. Hist. N. Y., 1871, 312.
Type, Salmo 6 coulcri, Rich., Suckley, = Salmo kisutch, Walbaum, not Salmo 800wleri,
Richardson, which is Salmo gorbw8cha, Walbaum.
Etymology, oglos, hook; rugkos, snout.
Body elongate, subfusiform or compressed ; mouth wide, the maxillary long, lanceo-
late, usually extending beyond the eye; jaws with moderate teeth, which become in the
adult male enormously enlarged in front; Vomer long and Larrow, flat, with a series of
teeth both on the head and the shaft, the lattor series comparatively short and weak;
palatine with teeth ; tongue with a marginal series on each side ; teeth on vomer and
tongue often lost with age ; no teeth on the hyoid bone; branchiostegals more or less
increased in number ; Scales moderate or small ; dorsal fin moderate ; anal fin compara-
tively elongate, of 14–20 rays ; pyloric appendages in increased number; gill-rakers
rather numerous ; ova large ; sexual peculiarities (in lypical Species) very strongly
developed ; the SL out in the adult males greatly distorted ; the premaxillaries prolonged,
hooking over the lower jaw, which in turn is greatly prolonged and somewhat hooked
at tip ; the teeth of these bones also greatly enlarged ; a fleshy hump is developed
before the dorsal fin, and the scales of the back become imbedded in the ſlesh. Salmon,
mostly of large size, ascending the rivers tributary to the North Pacific in North
America and Asia, now being introduced into Atlantic waters. The genus includes the
largest of the Salmon family, and the noblest of our food fishes. One of the five known
species has been introduced into Various eastern streams and lakes,
99. OscoRHYNCHUs ChouichA (Walbaum) Jordan and Gilbert.
Quin an at Saimao ºn ; fl{iang Sai maho ºn ; Claoui cina ; Coſſuthnºia Salm on ;
Chaist anook Salman on ; Saw-kwey ; Spring Salgal orn ; Sacrammento
Szal Hºnora.
Salmon tshawytscha (Chouicha), WALBAUM, Altedi Pisc., 1792, —.
Salmo orientalis, PALLAS, Zoogr. Rosso-Asiat., iii, 1811.
Salmo quinmat, RICHARDSON, Fauna Bor.-Amer., iii, 1836, 319, and of most late writers.
Oncorhynchus quinuat, GUNTHER, Cat, Fishes Brit. Mus, vi, 158.-Jordan, Proc. U. S.
Nat. Mus, , i, 69.
Salmo quinmat, confluenlw8, and argy, ew8, SUCKLEY, Monogr. Salmo, 105, 109, 110.
Description.—Color dusky above, often tinged with olivaceous or bluish ; sides and
below silvery ; head dark slaty, with metallic lustre, usually darker than the body and
little spotted; back, dorsal fin, and tail usually profusely covered with round black
spots; these are sometimes very few, but very rarely altogether wanting ; tail with a
peculiar metallic silvery pigment ; male about the spawning season (October) blackish,
more or less tinged or blotched with dull red ; head conic, rather pointed in the females
and spring lnales ; jaws not emarginate either in front or on sides; maxillary rather
slender, the small eye rather behind its middle ; teeth small, longer on sides of lower
jaw than in front ; womerine teeth very few and weak, disappearing with age; in
the males in late summer and fall the jaws become elongate and distorted, and the an-
terior teeth much enlarged, as in the related species; the body then becomes deeper,
more compressed, and arched at the shoulders; preopercle very convex; opercle strongly
convex; body comparatively robust, its depth greatest near its middle ; ventrals in-
Serted behind middle of dorsal, ventral appendage half the length of the fin; caudal, as
QUINNAT SALMON. 887
usual in this genus, strongly forked, on a rather slender caudal peduncle ; flesh red and
rich in spring, becoming paler in the fall as the spawning season approaches; head 4 ;
depth 4+; B. 15, 16 to 17-19, the number oa the sides usually unlike ; D. 11; A, 16; gill-
rakers usually 9–14 (i. e., 9 above the angle and 14 below); pyloric coeca 140-160; scales
usually 27-150-20, the number in a longitudinal series varying from 140-155, and in
California specimens occasionally as low as 130. 155. Length, 36 inches. Usual weight
in the Columbia River 22 pounds, elsewhere 16-18 pounds, but individuals of 70 pounds
have been taken.
Habitat, Ventura River to Alaska and Northern China, ascending all large streams;
most abundant in the Columbia and Sacramento Rivers, where it is the principal Sal-
mon. Upwards of 35,000,000 pounds are now taken every spring in the Columbia River,
most of them canned for exportation. It ascends the large streams in spring and sum-
mer, moving up without feeding until the spawning season, by which time many of
those which started first may have travelled nearly a thousand miles. After spawning,
most of them in the upper waters perish from exhaustion. Pt is by far the most valua-
ble of our Salmon. It has been introduced by the Fish Commission into many eastern
streams.
Diagnosis.--The Quinnat Salmon at any age, may be known at once from
the Salmon and Trout native in the Great Lake Region, by the long anal
fin, which contains about 16 developed rays.
Habits.-The following account of the habits of the Quinnat Salmon
may be interesting in view of the attempts now being made to natura-
lize the species in Ohio waters. This account was originally written
for the Popular Science Monthly and published (May, 1881, pp. 1-6) under
the title of “Story of a Salmon :''
“In the realm of the Northwest Wind, on the boundary-line between the dark
fir-forests and the sunny plains, there stauds a mountain, a great White cone two
miles and a half in perpendicular height. On its lower mile, the dense fir-woods cover
it with never-changing green ; on its next half mile, a lighter green of grass and bushes
- gives place in Winter to white; and, on its uppermost mile, the snows of the great Ice
age still linger in unspotted purity. The people of Washington Territory Say that this
mountain is the great “King-pin of the Universe,” which shows that, even in its own
country, Mount Rainier is not without honor.
“Flowing down from the southwest slope of Mount Rainier is a cold, clear river fed
by the melting snows of the mountain. Madly it hastens down over white cascades and
beds of Shining sands, through birch-woods and belts of dark firs to mingle its waters
at last with those of the great Columbia. -
“This river is the Cowlitz, and on its bottom, not many years ago, there lay half-
buried in the Sand a number of little orange-colored globules, each about as large as a
pea. These were not much in themselves, but, like the philosopher's monads, each one
had in it the promise and potency of an active life. In the water above them, little
suckers and chubs and prickly sculpins were straining their mouths to draw those
globules from the sand, and vicious-looking crawfishes picked them up with their blun-
dering hands and examined them with their telescopic eyes. But one, at least, of the
globules escaped their scientific curiosity, else this story would not be worth telling.
“The sun shone down on it through the clear water, and the ripples of the Cowlitz
888 FISHES-SALMONIDAE.
said over it their incantations, and in it at last awoke a living being. It was a fish,
a curious little fellow, only half an inch long, with great, staring eyes which made
almost half his length, and a body so transparent that he could not cast a shadow. He
was a little salmon, a very little salmon, but the water was good, and there were flies,
and worms, and little living creatures in abundance for him to eat, and he soon became a
larger salmon. And there were many more little salmon with him, some larger and some
smaller, and they all had a merry time. Those who had been born soonest and had
grown largest used to chase the others around and bite off their tails, or, still better,
take them by the head and swallow them whole, for, said they, ‘Even young salmon
are good eating,” “Heads I win, tails you lose ’ was their motto. Thus, what was once
two small salmon became united into one larger one, and the process of ‘addition,
division, and silence,’ still went on.
“By-and-by, when all the salmon were too small to swallow the others, and too large
to be swallowed, they began to grow restless and to sigh for a change. They saw that
the water rushing by seemed to be in a great hurry to get somewhere, and one of them
suggested that its hurry was caused by something good to eat at the other end of its
course. Then all started down the stream, salmon-fashion, which fashion is to get into
the current, head up-stream, and so to drift backward as the river sweeps along.
“Down the Cowlitz River they went for a day and a night, finding much to interest
them which we need not know. At last, they began to grow hungry, and, coming near
the shore, they saw an angle-worm of rare size and beauty floating in an eddy of the
stream. Quick as thought one of the boys opened his mouth, which was well filled with
teeth of different sizes, and put it around that angle worm. Quicker still he felt a sharp
pain in his gills, followed by a smothering sensation, and in an instant his comrades
saw him rise straight into the air. This was nothing new to them, for they often leaped
out of the water in their games of hide-and-seek, but only to come down again with a
loud splash not far from where they went out. But this one never came back, and the
others went on their course wondering.
“At last they came to where the Cowlitz and Columbia join, and they were almost
lost for a time, for they could find no shores, and the bottom and the top of the water were
so far apart. Here they saw other and far larger salmon in the deepest part of the current,
turning neither to the right nor left, but swimming straight on up just as rapidly as they
could. And these great salmon would not stop for them, and would not lie and float
with the current. They had no time to talk, even in the simple sign-language by which
fishes express their ideas, and no time to eat. They had an important work before them
and the time was short. So they went on up the river, keeping their great purposes to
themselves, and our little salmon and his friends from the Cowlitz drifted down the
stream.
“By-and by the water began to change. It grew denser, and no longer flowed rapidly
along, and twice a day it used to turn about and flow the other way. And the shores
disappeared, and the water began to have a different and peculiar flavor—a flavor which
seemed to the salmon much richer and more inspiring than the glacier-water of their
native Cowlitz. And there were many curious things to see ; crabs with hard spells and
savage faces, but so good when crushed and swallowed | Then there were luscious squids
swimming about, and, to a salmon, squids are like ripe peaches and cream for dinner.
There were great companies of delicate sardines and herring, green and silvery, and it
was such fun to chase them and to capture them.
QUINNAT SALMON. 889
“Those who eat only sardines, packed in oil by greasy fingers, and herrings dried in
the smoke, can have little idea how satisfying it is to have one’s stomach full of them,
plump, and silvery, fresh from the sea.
“Thus they chased the herrings about and had a merry time, Then they were chased
about in turn by great sea-lions, swimming monsters with huge half-human faces, long
thin whiskers, and blundering ways. The sea-lions liked to bite out the throats of the
salmon, with their precious stomachs full of lucious sardines, and leave the rest of the
fish to shift for itself.
“And the seals and the herring scattered the salmon about, and at last the hero of
our story found himself quite alone, with none of his own kind near him. But that did
not trouble him much, and he went on his own way, getting his dinner when he was
hungry, which was all the time, and then eating a little between-meals for his stomach's
sake.
“So it went on for three long years; and at the end of this time our little fish had
grown to be a great, fine salmon, of forty pounds' weight, shining and Silvery as a new
tin pan, and with rows of the loveliest round black spots on his head, and back, and
tail. One day, as he was swimming about, idly chasing a big sculpin, with a head So
thorny that he never was swallowed by anybody, all of a sudden the salmon noticed a
change in the water around him.
“Spring had come again, and the south-lying snow-drifts on the Cascade Mountains
once more felt the ‘earth was wheeling sunward,” and the cold snow-waters ran down
from the mountains and into the Columbia River, and made a freshet on the river, and
the high water went far out into the sea, and out in the sea our salmon felt it on his
gills; and he remembered how the cold water used to feel in the Cowlitz when he was
a little fish, and in a blundering, fishy fashion he thought about it, and wondered
whether the little eddy looked as it used to, and whether caddice worms and young
mosquitoes were really as sweet and tender as he used to think they were ; and he
thought some other things, but, as a salmon’s mind is located in the optic lobes of his
brain, and ours in a different place, we can not be certain, after all, what his thoughts
really were. What he did we know. He did what every grown salmon in the ocean
does when he feels the glacier-water once more upon his gills. He became a changed
being. He spurned the blandishments of soft-shelled crabs. The pleasures of the table
and of the chase, heretofore his only delights, lost their charms for him. He turned his
course straight toward the direction whence the cold fresh water came, and for the rest
of his life he never tasted a mouthful of food. He moved on toward the river-mouth, at
first playfully, as though he were not really certain whether he meant anything, after
all. Aftewards, when he struck the full current of the Columbia, he plunged straight
forward with an unflinching determination that had in it something of the heroic.
When he had passed the rough water at the bar, he found he was not alone ; his old
neighbors of the Cowlitz and many more, a great army of salmon, were with him. In
front were thousands; pressing on, and behind them, were thousands more, all moved
by a common impluse, which urged them up the Columbia. §
“They were swimming bravely along where the current was deepest, when suddenly
the foremost felt something tickling like a cobweb about their noses and under their
chins. They changed their course a little to brush it off, and it touched their fins as-
well. Then they tried to slip down with the current, and thus leave it behind. But
no—the thing, whatever it was, although its touch was soft, refused to let go, and held
them like a fetter; and, the more they struggled, the tighter became its grasp. And
890 FISHES-SALMONIDAE.
the whole foremost rank of the salmon felt it together, for it was a great gill-net, a
quarter of a mile long, and stretched squarely across the mouth of the river. By-and-
by men came in boats and hauled up the gill net and threw the helpless salmon into a
pile on the bottom of the boat, and the others saw them no more. We that live outside
the Water know better what befalls them, and we can tell the story which the salmon
could not.
“All along the banks of the Columbia River, from its mouth to nearly thirty miles
a way, there is a succession of large buildings, looking like great barns or warehouses,
built on piles in the river, and high enough to be out of the reach of floods, There are
thirty of these buildings, and they are called canneries. Each cannery has about forty
boats, and with each boat are two men and a Jong gill net, and these nets fill the whole
river as with a nest of cobwebs from April to July ; and to each cannery nearly a thou-
sand great Salmon are brought in every day. These salmon are thrown in a pile on the
floor ; and Wing Hop, the big Chinaman, takes them oue after another on the table,
and with a great knife dexterously cuts off the head, the tail, and the fins ; then with a
sudden thrust removes the intestiues and the eggs. The body goes into a tank of water,
and the head goes down the river to be made into salmon-oil. Next, the body is brought
on another table, and Quong Sang, with a machine like a feed-cutter, cuts it into pieces
just as long as a one-pound can, Then Ah Sam, with a butcher-knife, cuts these pieces
into S' rips just as wide as the can. Then Wan Lee, the China boy, brings down from the
loft, where the tinners are making them, a hundred cans, and it, to each can puts a
Spoonful of salt. It takes just six salmon to fill a hundred cans. Then twenty China-
men put the pieces of meat into the cans, fitting in little strips to make them exactly
full. Then ten more solder up the cans, and ten more put the cans into boiling water
till the meat is thoroughly cooked, and five more punch a little hole in the head of each
can to let out the air. Then they solder them up again, and little girls paste on them
bright colored labels showing merry little Cupids riding the happy salmon up to the
canliery-door, with Mount Rainier and Cape Disappointment in the background; and a
legend undel neath says that this is ‘Booth’s ’ or ‘Badollet's Best,' or “Hume's' or
‘Clark's ' Gr “Kinnery's Superfine Salt-water Salmon.' Then the cans are placed in
cases, forty-eight in a case, and five hundred thousand cases are put up every year. Great
ships come to Astoria and are loaded with them, and they carry them away to London,
and San Francisco, and Liverpool, and New York, and Sydney, and Valparaíso, and
Skowhegan, Maine; and the man at the corner grocery sells them at twenty cents a
C3, El.
“All this time our salmon is going up the river; escaping one net as by a miracle,
and soon having need of more miracles to escape the rest; passing by Astoria on a for-
tunate day, which was Sunday, the day on which no man may fish if he expects to sell
What he catches, till finally he came to where nets were few, and, at last, to where they
ceased altogether. But here he found that scarcely any of his many companions were
With him, for the nets cease when there are no more salmon to be caught in them. So
he went on day and night where the water was deepest, stooping not to feed or loiter on
the way, till at last he came to a wild gorge, where the great river became an angry tor
rent rushing wildly over a hung staircase of rocks. But our hero did not falter, and,
Summoning all his forces, he plunged into the Cascades. The current caught him and
dashed him against the rocks; A whole row of silvery scales came off and glistened in
the Water like sparks of fire, and a place on his side became black and red, which, for
a Salmon, is the same as being black and blue for other people. His comrades tried to
QUINNAT SALMON. 891
go up with him ; and one lost his eye, one his tail, and one had his lower jaw pushed back
into his head like the joints of a telescope. Again he tried to surmount the Cascades,
and at last he succeeded, and an Indian on the rocks above was waiting to receive him.
But the Indian with his spear was less skillful than he was wont to be, and our hero e8-
caped, losing only a part of one his fins, and with him came one other, and henceforth
these two pursued their journey together.
“Now a gradual change took place in the looks of our salmon. In the sea he was
plump and round and silvery, with delicate teeth, and as bandsome and symmetrical a
mouth as any one need wish to kiss. Nºw his silvery color disappeared, his
skin grew slimy, and the scales sank into it; his back grew black and his sides turned
red—not a healthy red but a sort of hectio flash. He grew poor, and his back, formerly
as straight as need be, now developed an unpleasant hump at the shoulders. II is eyes
—like those of all enthusiasts who forsake eating and sleeping for some ſofter aim—
became dark and sunken. His symmetrical jaws grew longer and longer, and meeting
each other, as the nose of an old man meets his chin, each had to turn aside to let the
other pass. And his beautiful teeth grew longer and longer, and projected from his
mouth, giving him a savage and wolfish appearance, quite unlike his real disposition.
For all the desires and ambitions of his nature had become centered into one. We do
not know what this one was, but we know that it was a strong oue, for it had led him
on and on, past the nets and horrors of Astoria, past the dangerous Cascades, past the
spears of the Indians, through the terrible flume of the Dalles, where the mighty river is
compressed between huge rocks into a channel narrower than a village street ; on past
the meadows of Umatilla and the wheat-fields of Walla Walla ; on to where the great
Snake River and the Columbia join ; or up the Snake River and its eastern branch, till
at last he reached the foot of the Bitter-Root Mountains in the Territory of idaho,
nearly a thousand miles from the ocean, which he left in April. With him still was
the other salmon which had come with him up the Cascades, handsomer and smaller than
he, and, like him, growing poor aud ragged and tired. At last, one October afternoon,
they came together to a little clear brook, with a bottom of fine gravel, over which the
water was a few in ches deep. Our ſish painfully worked his way to it, for his tail was
all frayed out, his muscles were sore, and his skin covered with unsightly blotches.
But his sunkon eyes saw a ripple in the stream, and under it a bed of little pebbles and
sand. So there in the sand he scooped out with his tail a smooth, round place, and his
companion came and filled it with orange-colored eggs. Then our salmon came back
again, and, softly covering the eggs, the work of their lives was done, and, in the old
salmon-fashion, they drifted tail foremost down the stream.
“Next morning, a settler in the Bitter-Root region, passing by the brook near his
house, noticed a ‘dog salmon' had run in there and seemed “mighty nigh tuckered
out.’ So he took a hoe, and wading into the brook, rapped the fish on he head with it,
and carrying it ashore threw it to the hogs. But the hogs had a surfeit of salmon-
meat, and they ate only the soft parts, leaving the head untouched. And a wandering
naturalist found it there, and sent it to the United States Fish Commission to be iden-
tified, and thus it came to me.” f
892 FISHES-SALMONIDAE.
GENUS 51. SALMO. Linnaeus.
Salmo (artedì), LINNAEUs, Systema Naturae, 1758.
Fario, CUVIER and VALENCIENNES, Hist. Nat. Poiss., xxi, 294 (argenteus).
Salar, CUVIER and VALENCIENNES, Hist. Nat. Poiss, xxi, 319 (fario).
Trutta, SIEBOLD, Susswagger fische, 319 (fario).
Type, Salmo 8alar, L.
Etymology, Latin Salmo, a Salmon; from Salio to leap.
Body elongate, somewhat compressed; mouth large; jaws and tongue toothed as in
o her genera ; Vomer flat, its shaft not depressed ; a few teeth on the chevron of the
vomer, behind which is a somewhat irregular single or double series of teeth, which are
sometimes deciduous with age; teeth on the palatine; scales large or small, 100.200 in
a longitudinal series; dorsal and anal fins short, of about 11 rays each ; caudal fin trun-
cate, emarginate, or forked, its peduncle comparatively stout; sexual peculiarities var-
iously developed; the males in typical species with the jaws prolonged and the front
teeth enlarged, the lower jaw being hooked upwards at the end, and the upper jaw
emarginate or perforate. In some species these peculiarities are little marked. Species
of moderate or large size, black-spotted, abounding in the rivers and lakes of Northern
America, Asia, and Europe, from the Atlantic Ocean ; one or two species, marine and
anadromous.
But one species of this genus occurs in the Atlantic waters of America, the Common
Marine Salmon of Europe and America. As attempts have been made to introduce this
species into the waters of Ohio, we give an account of it here.
100. SALMO SALAR Linnaeus.
Sea Salmon ; Commanhorn Salmon.
Salmo balar, LINNAEUS, Syst. Naturae ; GUNTHER, Cat, Fishes Brit. Mus., vi, 1758, 2, and
of nearly all authors.
Salmo 8ebago, GIRARD, Proc. Acad, Nat. Sci. Phila., 1853, 380, a local variety, land locked
in the lakes of Maine.
Salmo gloveri, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat, Sci. Phila., 1854, 85, young or pair-form.
Body moderately elongate, symmetrical, not greatly compressed; head rather low ;
mouth moderate, the maxillary reaching just past the eye, its length 24-3 in head ; in
young specimens (parrs) the maxillary is proportionately shorter; preoperculum with
a distinct lower limb, the angle rounded ; scales comparatively large, rather largest
posteriorly, silvery and well imbricated in the young, becoming imbedded in adult males;
vomerine teeth little developed, those on the shaft of the bone few and deciduous;
scales large (lat. l. 120); caudal fill well forked, truncate in old individuals; no hyoid
teeth ; sexual differences strong; breeding males with the lower jaw hooked upwards,
the upper jaw emarginate or perforate to receive its tip ; coloration in the adult brown-
ish above, the sides more or less silvery, with numerous black spots on sides of head,
on body, and on fins, and numerous red patches along the sides in the males; young
specimens (parrs) with about 11 dusky cross-bars, besides black spots and red patches,
the color, as well as the form of the head and body, varying much with age, food, and
condition; the black spots in the adult often X shaped, or XX shaped ; head 4 ; depth
4; B. 11; D. 11; A. 9; scales 23-120-21 ; vertebrae 60; pyloric coeca about 65.
MACKINAW TRO UT. 893
Habitat, North Atlantic, ascending all suitable rivers in Northern Europe, and the
region north of Cape Cod; sometimes permanently land-locked in lakes, where its
habits and coloration (but no tangible specific characters) change somewhat (in Amer-
, ica) var. 86bago,
Diagnosis.--From our Lake Trout and Brook Trout the Salmon may read-
ily be distinguished by the much larger Scales and the presence of round,
black spots on the body and fins. From the Quinnat Salmon, the At-
lantic Salmon may be known by the short anal fin, which has but nine
or ten perfect rays.
Habits.-The habits of the Common Salmon are too well known to need
discussion here. It inhabits the Northern Atlantic on both sides, and
in the spring ascends all suitable streams to spawn, being especially
abundant in the Canadian rivers. The land-locked Salmon (Salmo salar,
war. Sebago) of the lakes of Maine differs in no structural respect, but
has different habits resulting from its restriction. This form has been
especially recommended for introduction into the lakes of the Western
States.
GENUS 52. CRISTIVOMER. Gill and Jordan.
Cristivomer, GILL and Jordan, Man. Wert. 2d Ed., 1878, 356.
Type, Salmo mamaycush, Walbaum.
Etymology, Latin, crista, crest ; womer, vomer.
Body elongate, moderately compressed; head long; mouth very wide, the strong
maxillary reaching beyond the eye; teeth on the jaws and tongue as in the other genera,
but stronger; a band of strong recurved teeth on the hyoid bone; vomer boat-shaped,
the shaft much depressed, provided with a raised crest, which is posteriorly free, and
which is provided with a persistent series of strong teeth; scales small, 175–220 in the
lateral line; fins moderate; anal fin short; last rays of dorsal and anal not prolonged;
caudal fin forked; sexual peculiarities not strongly marked; species of large size, gray-
spotted, inhabiting the lakes of the northern parts of America
This genus should probably be regarded as a section or sub-genus under Salvelinus.
There is probably but one species, the Siscowet of Lake Superior (Salmo siscowet, Agas-
siz), being apparently a local variety of Cristovomer namaycush, distinguished chiefly by
its extreme fatness. At least, we have failed to find any structural difference of any
sort, by which the two species may be distinguished.
101. CRISTIVOMER NAMAYOUSH (Walbaum) Gill and Jordan.
Mackinaw Trout; Great Lake Trout; Large Togure.
Salmo mamaycush, WALBAUM, Artedi piscium, 1792–GUNTHER, Cat. Fish. Brit. Mus., vi,
123, and of most authors.
Salmo amethystimus, MITCHILL, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1818, 410 (Great Lakes),
Salmo hoodi, RICHARDSON, Fauna Bor-Amer, iii, 1836, 83.—GUNTHER, Cat. Fish, Brit.
Mus, vi, 151 (Arctic America).
894 FISHES-SALMONIDAE.
Salmo confinis, DEKAY, N. Y. Fauna Fish. 1842, 238 (Lakes of New York).
Salmo 8ymmetrica, Salmo pallidus, RAFINESQUE (Lake Champlain); Salmo adirondacus,
NORRIS (Adirondacks); Salmo toma, HAMDEN (Maine), etc.
War, 8iscowet.
Salmo 8iscowet AGASSIZ, Lake Superior, 1850, 333.
Description —Body elongate, covered with thin skin, there being no special develop-
ment of fatty tissue under the skin ; head very long, its upper surface ſlattened; mouth
very lange, the maxillary extending much beyond the eye, the head and jaws propor-
tionately lengthened and pointed ; teeth very strong; caudal fin well forked ; general
coloration dark gray ; sometimes pale, often almost black; everywhere with rounded,
paler spots, which are sometimes reddish tinged; head usually vermiculate; fins often
mottled ; dorsal and caudal reticulate with darker; eye large, 4} in head; maxillary
nearly half the length of the head; interorbital space nearly 4; head 4; depth 4; D.
11; A. 11; l. l. 185-205. Length 2 to 4 feet. Average weight about 4 pounds. Speci-
mens of 50 to 80 pounds weight are sometimes taken.
Habitat, Lake Region and Lakes of Northern and Western New York, New Hamp-
shire, and Maine to Montana and northward, very abundant, in the larger bodies of water,
varying somewhat in Bize, form, and color in the different lakes. *
Description of war. 8:300wet (Agassiz), Siscowet Salmon,
Body short and deep, covered with thick skin, there being an excessive tendency to
the developmer t of fatty tissue ; head very short and deep, its upper surface broad and
short, covered by a skin so thick as to completely hide the bones; no distinct median
carina ; mouth very large, its gape narrower than in C. mamaycush ; teeth weaker than
in C. mamaycush, its supplemental bone also shorter and broader; maxillary a little more
than half the length of the head; caudal fin well forked ; Scales sum all, about 175 in the
lateral line; coloration as in C. mamaycubh, but usually paler ; fin-rays the same.
Habitat, Lake Superior ; abundant, but not yet found elsewhere. This form is very
close to the preceding, but differs in the shortness and breadth of the bones of the head
aud in the extreme fatness of the flesh.
Diagnosis —The Lake Trout, when adult, may be readily known by its
large size and gray spots. The young much resembles the Brook Trout,
and has equally small Scales. It can always be distinguished (a) by the
presence of teeth on the median line of the vomer, behind the front
patch, and (b) by the presence of a patch of distinct, stout teeth on the
hyoid bone or root of the tongue. The Brook, Trout has teeth on the
front of the womer only, and on the margin of the tongue.
Habits.-The wide range of this species and the great variety in the
waters which it inhabits, and the food on which it lives, render it more
than usually subject to variations in size, color, and appearance. It is
stated similar variations occur in its habits, but as I have seen the fish
alive only in the Great Lakes, I have no means of verifying these state-
ments. The following general account is condensed from Milner (Rept.
U. S. Fish Commr., 1872-3, 38).
MACKINAW TROUT. 895
The Trout of the Great Lakes is one of three most numerous fishes
(Trout, White-fish, Lake Herring), and except the Stu (geon it attains
the greatest weight of any of the lake fishes. It is captured almost ex-
clusively by the gill-nets, though the pound-nets in Some portions of the
lakes take them during the spawning season, and in the winter a
great many are caught in the bays, through holes cut in the ice.
As compared with the White, fish, their merits as a fresh fish are rela-
tive to taste, though most people prefer the latter. Salted Trout are in-
ferior to salted White fish, and bring a lower price in the market.
Their migrations, so far as known, are confined to the spawning season.
They do not ascend the rivers, and although they occur in inland lakes
connected with the main lake by rapids, there seems to be no knowledge
of their ever having been seen or taken in the outlets. At other times
than the spawning period, they remain chiefly in deep water, a depth of
thirty fathoms being the most favorable ground for their capture. In
the shallow waters of Lake Erie, in the western part of the lake, they
are scarcely found at all, though numerous in the deeper portion, east of
the city of Cleveland.
The Lake Trout is a ravenous feeder, The fishermen say of him that
“he always bites best when he is fullest.”
In Lake Michigan the food of the White-fish was ascertained to be
chiefly the Cisco (Coregonus hoyi). The prevailing motion that they feed
largely on White fish has not been confirmed by observations. During
most of the year they live in deeper water than that in which the young
White-fish are found.
Their exceeding voracity induces them to fill their maws with singular
articles. When steamers pass, the refuse from the table is eageriy seized
by the Trout. I have taken from the stomach a raw peeled potato and
a piece of sliced liver, and it is not unusual to find pieces of corn cobs in
the green season, and in one instance I heard of a piece of ham bone.
They are readily taken with a hook, baited with pieces of fish. They
are a sluggish fish to pull in, taking hold of the bait with a tug at the
line, and then allowing themselves to be pulled to the surface, with no
more vibration in the line than if a heavy sinker was the weight at the
end. f
The spawning season is toward the last of October, about a month
earlier than that of the White-fish. The localities selected for spawning
are usually rock bottoms in seven to ninety feet of depth. The decrease
in numbers of the Lake Trout is not as apparent as in the White-fish.
The pound-nets have not made the extensive inroads upon their num-
896 FISHES SAL MONIDAE.
bers, and none but mature fishes are taken. The larger ones are less
numerous, and it is claimed that the average weight of the Trout is less
than in former years.
Like other Salmonoids, the Lake Trout has proved to be well adapted
to artificial culture. The one drawback with them is the difficulty of
obtaining the spawn in October, when the rough weather renders a visit
to the spawning grounds a matter of hardship and danger.
Herbert says, “A coarse, heavy, stiff rod, a long and powerful, oiled
hempen or flaxen line, on a winch, with a heavy sinker; a cod-hook
baited with any kind of flesh, fish, or fowl is the most successful, if not
the most orthodox or Scientific, mode of capturing him. His great size
and immense strength alone give him value as a fish of game; but when
hooked, he pulls strongly and fights hard, though he is a boring, deep
fighter, and seldom, if ever, leaps out of the water like the true Salmon
or Brook Trout.”
The species or variety known as the “Siscowet” has thus far only been
seen in Lake Superior. Its habits are thus summed by Mr. Milner:
“With the rare exceptions of young specimens found near the shore,
it is taken entirely with gill-nets in deep water. It is a remarkably fat
fish, and as a fresh fish, is very inferior for the table. Even boiled, it is
oily and rank in flavor. As a salt fish packed in brine, it is most excel-
lent, and is universally admitted to surpass either White-fish or Trout.
Its range of depth is outside of forty fathoms. How much deeper than
this it may be found, I cannot tell, as no fishing at greater depth than
fifty fathoms came under my observation in Lake Superior. The stom-
achs were found to be filled with a Cottoid. This seemed to be its entire
article of food in the vicinity of the Apostles' Islands.
“They spawn earlier in the fall than any other of the Salmonoids in
the lakes. By the latter part of August, the spawn in some of them is
ripe and running freely, while in the month of September the females
are all ripe and depositing spawn. They seemed to have no migratory
instinct at this season, but were taken while spawning in the same wi-
cinity, where they had been taken for weeks previously.”
GENUs 53, SALVELINUS. Richardson.
Salvelinus (Nillson), RICIIARDSON, Fauna Bor.-Amer., iii, 1836.
Baione, DEKAY, New York Fauna, Fishes, 1842.
Elmbla, RAPP.
Type, Salmo &alvelinw8, L.
Etymology; an old name of the European Charr; German, Salbling.
PROOK TROUT. 897
Body moderately elongate; mouth large or small; teeth as in Cristivomer, but rather
weaker, the hyoid patch rudimentary or wanting, and the vomer without the raised crest,
with a few teeth on the chevron only; scales very small, 200-250 in a longitudinal row ;
fins moderate, as in Cristivomer, the caudal forked in the young, truncate in Some species
in the adult ; sexual peculiarities not strongly marked, the males with the premaxil-
Jaries enlarged, and a fleshy projection at the tip of the lower jaw; coloration dark,
with round, crimson spots, and the lower fins with marginal bands of black, reddish,
and pale; species numerous in the clear streams of the northern parts of both conti-
nents, sometimes descending to the sea, where they lose their variegated colors and be-
come nearly plain and silvery; the members of this genus are in general the smallest
and handsomest of the trout. But one species is found in the Eastern United States;
another very similar is found west of the Cascade Range, and several inhabit the waters
of Arctic America.
102. SALVELINUs FontLNALIS (Mitchill) Gill and Jordan.
Brook Trout; Speckled Trout; Salmon Trout of Canada.
Salmo fontinalis, MITCHILL, Trans. Lit. and Phil. Soc. N. Y., i, 435–GUNTHER, Cat.
Fishes Brit. Mus., vi, 152, and of nearly all authors.
Salvelinus fontinalis, Jordan, Man. Vert., 2d Ed., 1878, 360; Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus.
i, 81.
Salmo canadensis, HAMILTON SMITH, in Griffith's Cuvier, 1834, 474.
Salmo immaculatus, H. R. STORER, Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist., vi, 1850, 364 (based on large
sea-run specimens, the so-called “Canadian Salmon Trout”).
Salmo hudsonicw8, LUCKLEY, Ann. Lyc. Nat. Hist. N. Y., 1861, 310.
Description.—Body oblong or elongate, moderately compressed, not much elevated;
head large, but not very long, the snout bluntish, the interorbital space rather broad;
mouth large, the maxillary reaching more or less beyond the eye; eye large, usually
somewhat above the line of the axis of the body; caudal fin slightly lunate in the adult,
forked in the young ; adipose fin small ; pectoral and ventral fins not especially elon-
gate; red spots on the side, rather smaller than the pupil; back mostly without spots,
more or less barred or mottled; dorsal and caudal fins mottled or barred with darker;
lower fins dusky, with a pale, usually orange band anteriorly, followed by a darker one ;
belly in the males often more or less red; sea-run individuals (“Canadian Salmon
Trout”) are often nearly plain, bright silvery, many local varieties distinguished by
shades of color also occur; head 43', depth 44; D, 10; A. 9; scales 37-230-30; gill-rakers
about 6-11. Length 18 inches or less. Weight + pound to 10 pounds or more, depend-
ing on food, locality, size of stream, etc. t
Habitat, clear, cold streams from Pennsylvania to Dakota and northward to the Arc-
tic Circle, southward in the Alleghanies to the head waters of the Savannah, Chatta-
hoochee, Catawba, and French Broad. In Ohio the species is, I am told, confined to
one or two small streams in Ashtabula county. f
Diagnosis.-The Brook Trout is too well known to need especial de-
scription here. It can, only by any possibility, be confounded with the
young of the Lake Trout among Eastern fishes. The absence of teeth
57
898 FIS HES-SALMONIDAE.
on the hyoid bone and on the shaft of the vomer distinguish it from the
latter. Its Scales are much smaller than those of the Atlantic Salmon
or of the Quinnat. &
Babits.--It is the favorite game fish of America, pre-eminent in wari-
ness, in beauty, and in delicacy of flesh. It inhabits all clear and cold
waters within its range, the large lakes and the smallest ponds, the timi-
est brooks and the largest rivers, and when it can do so, without soiling
its aristocratic gills on the way, it descends to the Sea and grows large
and fat on the animals of the ocean.
Although a bold biter, it is a wary fish, and it often requires much
skill to capture it. It can be caught with artificial or natural flies, min-
nows, crickets, grasshoppers, grubs, the spawn of other fishes, or even
the eyes or cut pieces of other Trout. It spawns in the fall, and its
period of spawning ranges from September to late in November. It be-
gins to reproduce its kind when it is two years old, at which age, it
measures some six inches in length. In May and June Trout de-
light in rapids and Swiftly running water, and in the hot months of mid-
summer, they resort to deep, cool, and shaded pools. In August and
September, on the approach of the spawning season, they gather around
the mouths of cool, gravelly brooks, whither they resort to make their
beds (Hallock).
It is hardly necessary to enter into a detailed discussion of the habits
of the Brook Trout in this paper. Every one of my readers,
“Born beneath thc fishes' sign
Of constellations happiest,”
has his own Trout story to tell, which the next generation may believe
or not.
For, in the words of Myron H. Reed, “This is the last generation of
Trout fishers. The children will not be able to find amy. Already there
are well-trodden paths by every stream in Maine, in New York, and in
Michigan. I know of but one river in North America by the side of
which you will find no paper collar or other evidence of civilization. It
is the Nameless River.
Not that Trout will cease to be. They will be hatched by machinery
and raised in ponds, and fattened on chopped liver, and grow flabby and
lose their spots. The Trout of the restaurant will not cease to be. He
is no more like the Trout of the wild river than the fat and Songless
Reed Bird is like the Bobolink. GroS8 feeding and easy pond life ener.
vate and deprave him.
“The Trout that the children will know only by legend is the gold-
TROUT PERCH. 899
Sprinkled, living arrow of the White Water; able to zigzag up the cata-
ract ; able to loiter in the rapids, whose dainty meat is the glancing
butterfly.”
F. A. M II, Y X I V . P E R C O P S I D AE . T H E T R O U T
P E R C H E S.
Body moderately elongate, somewhat compressed, the caudal peduncle long and slen-
der; head conical, pointed, naked ; mouth small, horizontal ; maxillary short, narrow,
without supplemental bone, not reaching to the large eye; margin of upper jaw formed
by premaxillaries alone, which are short and not protractile; teeth very small, villiform
on premaxillaries and lower jaw only; tongue short, adherent; gill-membranes sepa-
rate, free from the isthmus; pseudobranchae present; branchiostegals six; gill-rakers
short, tubercle-like; opercle with entire edges ; lower limb of the preopercle well de-
veloped, the angle nearly a right angle, its inner edge with a raised crest ; bones of the
head cavernous, as in Acerina and Ericymba : cranium with a raised crest, which does
not extend to the occiput; scales moderate, rather thin, adherent, their edges strongly
ctenoid ; lateral line continuous; dorsal short, median ; ventrals anterior, just in front
of the dorsal, 8-rayed; pectorals narrow, placed rather higher than usual ; anal small;
caudal forked ; adipose fin present, Sun all; stomach siphona), with about 10 well devel-
oped pyloric coeca ; ova rather large, not falling into the abdominal cavity before exclu-
sion ; air-bladder present ; Small fishes of the fresh waters of the cooler parts of Amer-
ica; a single genus, with probably but one species. The group is one of special interest,
as it combines with ordinary 8almonoid characters the structure of the head and mouth.
of a percoid, resembling notably the European genus Acerina.
GENUS 54. PERCOPSIS. Agassiz.
Percopsis, AGASSIZ, Lake Superior, 1850, 284.
Salmoperca, THOMPSON, 1853.
Type, Percopsis guttatus, Agassiz.
Etymology, perke, perch ; opsis, appearance.
The characters of the genus are included above.
103. PERCOPSIs GUTTATUs Agassiz.
Troublº Percia.
Peroopsis guttatus, AGAssiz, Lake Superior, 1850, 286–GUNTHER, Cat. Fish. Brit. Mus.,
vi, 207.-Jordan, Man, Vert. 2d Ed., 1878, 270,
Salmoperca pellucida, THOMPSON.
Pale olivaceous, a silvery stripe along the lateral line, becoming obsolete forwards;
upper parts with obscure, round dusky spots made of dark points. Head slender and
conical ; mouth small, subinferior, maxillary not nearly reaching front of orbit; caudal
peduncle long and slender; peritoneum silvery; head 3 4-5 in length; depth about
4+; D. 1 ; A. 8; Lat. 1, 50. Length about 6 inches.
Habitat, Great Lake Region, extending southward to the Delaware, Ohio and Kansas
Rivers; abundant only in tributaries of the Great Lakes.
900 FISHES-PERCOPSIDAE.
Diagnosis.-This is the only fish which combines the adipose fin of the
Salmon, with the small, rough scales of the perch.
Habits.--Little is known of the habits of the Trout Perch. It is found
in the open lakes and in the small streams. I have seen it taken with
hook and line from the wharves at Chicago, and I have found it among
schools of minnows in small streams of Northern Wisconsin. One or
two specimens have been obtained by Dr. Sloam in the Ohio River. It
spawns in spring, and its ova are comparatively large like those of the
Trout. They are excluded through an oviduct.
F A M I L Y A M B L Y O PSID AE . T H E C A V E-FIS H E S.
Body moderately elongate, compressed behind; head long, depressed; mouth rather
large, the lower jaw projecting; premaxillaries long, scarcely protractile, forming the
entire margin of the upper jaw ; jaws and palatines with bands of slender, williform
teeth; branchiostegals about 6; gill-rakers very short ; pseudobranchiae concealed ;
gill-membranes more or less completely joined to the isthmus; head naked, the surface
sometimes crossed by papillary ridges; body with Small, cycloid scales, irregularly
placed ; no lateral line; vent jugular, close behind the gill-openings; Ventral fins small
or wanting; pectorals moderate, inserted higher than in most soft-rayed fishes; dorsal
without spine, nearly opposite the anal; caudal truncate or rounded; cranium without
median crest; stomach coe bal, with one or two pyloric appendages; air-bladder present ;
ovary single; some, and probably all, of the species are ovoviviparous; in two of the
genera the eyes are very rudimentary and hidden under the skin, and the body is trans-
lucent and colorless ; fishes of small gize, living in subterranean streams and ditches of
the Central and Southern United States; three genera and four species are “all of the
family yet known, but that others will be discovered, and the range of the present
known species extended, is very probable. The ditches and small streams of the low-
lands of our Southern coast will undoubtedly be found to be the home of numerous in-
dividuals, and perhaps of new species and genera, while the subterranean streams of
the central portion of our country most likely contain other species” (Putnam).
None of this family have yet been recorded from Ohio, and I am not aware of the ex-
istence of any cave streams in the State in which it is likely that they will be found.
I give here a brief account of the characters of the species found in the caves of Ken-
tucky and Indiana, as they belong to the general fauna of the Ohio Valley.
ANALYSIS OF GENERA OF AMBLYOPSIDAE,
a. Eyes rudimentary, concealed under the skin; body colorless.
b. Ventrals present, small, • e t te * AMBLYOPSIS.
bb. Wentrals obsolete, iº & tº e g ſº TYPHLICHTHYS.
aa. Eyes well developed ; body colored ; no ventrals. º g CHOLOGASTER.
GENUs. AMBLYOPSIS. DeKay.
Amblyopsis, DEKAY, New York Fauna, Fishes, 1842, 187.
Type, Amblyopsis 8pelaºw8, DeKay.
Etymology, amblue, blunt ; opsis, vision.
SMALL BILIND FISH. 901
Eyes rudimentary, concealed under the skin; surface of head crossed by vertical,
tactile ridges; gill-membranes fully joined to isthmus; ventral fins present, quite small,
close to anal; colorless fishes of small size, inhabiting the cave streams in the limestone
regions of the Western States.
AMBLYopSIS SPELAEUs DeKay.
Larger Blind Fish of the Mammoth Cave.
Amblyopsis ºpelaew8, DEKAY, New York Fauna, Fishes, 1842, 147.-WYMAN, Amer. Journ.
Sci. Arts, 1843, 94; Ann. Mag. Nat. Hist., xii, 1843, 298; Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist.,
1850, 349, and elsewhere.—THOMPson, Ann. Nat. Hist, 1844, 112,-TELLKAMPF,
Müller's Arch., 1844, 381.—AGASSIz, Amer. Journ. Sci. Arts, 1851, 127.—PoEY, Mem.
Cuba, 104.—GUNTHER, Cat. Fish. Brit. Mus., vii, 1868, 2.—PUTNAM, JorDAN, and of
all writers generally. &
Description.—Colorless; mouth comparatively large, the length of its cleft about equal
to the base of dorsal ; pectorals reaching front of dorsal ; caudal long, rather pointed ;
one pyloric coecum ; head 3 in length ; depth 4}; D. 8; W. 4. Length 5 inches.
Habitat, subterranean streams of Kentucky and Indiana. Mammoth Cave, etc.
GENUS TYPHLICHTHYS. Girard.
Typhlichthys, GIRARD, Proc. Acad, Nat. Sci. Phila., 1859, 62.
Amblyopsis, sp., GUNTHER,
Chologastér, sp., G.ILL.
Type, Typhlichthys 8wbterraneu8, Girard.
Etymology, tuphloé, blind; ichthus, fish.
This genus may be known by its blindness and by the absence of the ventral fins.
TYPHLICHT HYs suDTERRANEUs Girard.
Small-blind Fish.
Typhlichthys subterraneus, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1859, 62, and of Patnam,
Jordan, and late writers generally.
Amblyopsis 8pelabus, variety without ventral fins, GUNTHER, J. c.
Description.—Colorless; head rather blunter and broader forwards than in A, spelaeus ;
mouth smaller, its cleft shorter than base of dorsal; pectorals scarcely reaching dorsal;
one pyloric coecum ; D. 7 or 8; A, 7 or 8. Length, 2 inches.
Habitat, subterranean streams of Kentucky, Tennessee, and Alabama.
GENUS CHOLOGASTER. Agassiz,
Chologaster, AGASSIZ, Amer. Journ. Sci. Arts, xvi, 1853, 135.
Type, Chologaster cornutus, Agassiz (from South Carolina).
Etymology, cholos, deficient ; gaster, belly, (from the lack of ventral fins).
This genus has the general characters of Amblyopsis, but differs in the absence of ven-
tral fins and in the fully developed condition of the eyes, which are small and lateral;
the species are not pellucid, but colored like ordinary fishes ; no papillary ridges;
pyloric coeca 2.
902 FISHES--CYPRINOIDONTIDAE.
CHOLOG ASTER AG ASSIZI Putnam.
Chologaster agaS8izi, PUTNAM, Amer. Nat, 1872, 30, Mammoth Cave.—JorDAN, Man,
Wert, etc.'
Description.—Uniform light brown ; ſins somewhat speckled ; head four in body, its
length scarcely greater than the greatest depth ; pectorals roaching little more than
half way to front of dorsal ; D 9 ; A, 9. Lºngth, 1+ inches.
Habitat, subterranean streams in Tennessee, Kentucky, and Southern Illinois.
FAMILY XV. CYPR IN O DO N TID AE. THE
C Y PR IN O DO N T S.
Body oblong or moderately elongate, compressed behind, depressed forwards, covered
with rather large cycloid Scales, which are adherent and regularly arranged; no lateral
line; head scaly, at least above ; mouth terminal, smalſ, the lower jaw usually project-
ing; margin of the upper jaw formed by the premaxillaries only ; premaxillaries strong, .
extremely protractile; teeth incisor-like or villiform, sometimes present on the womer,
but usually in the jaws only ; lower pharyngeals separate, with cardiform teeth ; gill-
membranes somewhat connected, free from isthmus; gill-rakers very short and thick;
branchiostegals 4-6; pseudobranchite none; dorsal fin single, inserted posteriorly, of
soft rays only, rarely with a single spine or rudimentary spinous dorsal; caudal fin
not forked; ventral ſins abdominal, rarely Wanting ; pectoral fins inserted low ; no
adipose fin; stomach not coecal, without pyloric appendages; air-bladder simple, often
wanting, Sexes usually unlike, the fins being largest in the males. Most all are ovo-
viviparous, the young well developed at time of birth. Fresh-water fishes of Southern
Europe, Asia, Africa, and America, Some of them occurring in bays and arms of the sea.
They are mostly of small size, and the species are very difficult of determination.
Genera 30; species about 140,
ANALYSIS OF GENERA OF CYPRINODONTIDAE.
a. Dorsal fin beginning in advance of anal. g s & ſº FUNDULUS. 55.
ag, Dorsal fin beginning behind origin of anal. o ſº o ZYG ONECTES. 56,
GENUS 55. FUNDULUS. Lacepede.
Fundulus, LACEPADE, Hist. Nat, des Poissons, V, 1803, 37.
Hydrargyra, LACEPEDE, Hist. Naf. Poiss., v., 1803, 378 (8wampinus).
Xenigma, JoBDAN, Ann, Lyc. Nat. Hist, N. Y., 1876, 322 (8tellifer),
Adinia, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci, Phila., 1859, 117 (multifasciata).
Type, Fundulus mudfish, Lac. = Cobilio heteroclitus L.
Etymology, Latin, fundub, the bottom, in allusion to the supposed mud-loving habits.
Body rather elongate, little elevated, compressed behind; mouth moderate; jaws,
each with two or more series of pointed teeth, usually forming a narrow band; bones of
the mandible firmly united ; scales moderate ; branchiostegals 4 to 6; preopercle, pre-
orbital, and mandible with mucous pores; dorsal and anal fins similar, moderately
developed or rather large, the dorsal usually inserted in front of the anal; ventrals well
developed; airbladder presert ; sexes differing in color, size, and development of the
fins, the anal fin in the male normal; intestinal canal short ; species very numerous,
mostly American, inhabiting fresh waters and arms of the sea. They are the largest in
size of the Cyprinodonts, and Some of them are very brightly colored.
BARREI) [ILLIFISH. 903
104. FUNDULUS DIA PHANUS (LeS.) Agassiz.
Barred Háil Éiſis in ; To othed NH in now.
Hydrargyra diaphana, LESU E U R, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila, i, 1817, 130.
Fundulub diaphanus, AGASSIZ.—Joſ: DAN, Man. Vert., 1876, - ; Man. Vert. 2d Ed., 1878,
262.
Hydrargyra multi/a8ciala, LESUg U-ſk, Joura. A cad. Nat, Sci. Phila., i, 1877, 131.
Fundulus multifasciatus, CUV. et VAL., H.18% Nat. des Poiss., xviii, 200.-COPE, Proc. Acad.
Nat Sci. Phila , 1865, 78 –STORER, Hist. Fishes Mass., 1867, -,-GUNTHER, Cat.
Fishes Brit. Mus., vi, 1866, 324,-Copk, and YARRow, Wheeler's Rept , Surveys, etc.,
Fishes, 1877, --, and of most recent writers.
DeBCription.—Body elongated, somewhat compressed, the head flattened above and
moderately broad ; depth 4% to 5 in length ; head 3% ; eye large, 3-3% in head, a little
less than the width of the interorbital space; Inouth Inoderate, of the usual form
among Cyprinodonts ; vent about midway between middle of caudal and front of eye;
scales rather large, in 38 to 40 transverse rows; D, 12 or 13; A, 11 or 12; W. 6; branch-
iostegals 5; color olive-brown, more or less translucent ; sides silvery with 12 to 16
dark olive-brown cross bands, somewhat undulating or irregular, rather narrower than
the interspaces; dorsal region irregularly spotted with darker ; fins unspotted. Lengſh,
3 inches.
Habitat, this species occurs abundantly in the brackish waters along our eastern
coast. It also ascends all streams to their sources, being especially fond of the cold
spring water in which they take their rise. It has been taken in various streams of
Michigan, Wisconsin, Ohio, and even in Colorado, and in all waters in the State of New
York, LeSueur’s original types were from Saratoga Lake.
Diagnosis. –This species may be known at once among our small fishes
by the posterior dorsal, all of Soft rays, in connection with the dark bars
on the side.
Babits.-In Ohio, this species will be found chiefly in the small lakes
and ponds in the northern part of the State. Its size is too small for it
to attract special attention. Like all the members of its family, it is ex-
tremely tenacious of life.
GENUS 56. ZYGONEJTES. Agassiz.
Zygonectes, AGASSIZ, American Journ. Sci. Arts, 1554, 135.
Micristiw8, GILL, Canadian Naturalist, August, 1865, p. 24. (Type, Fundulus zonatus
CUV. and VAL )
IFundulus, Haplochilus, and Paccilia, sp. of authors.
Type, Poecilia olivacea Storer, - Semotilus notatus, Raf. A
Etymology, zugos, a yoke (in pairs); nectes, swimmer, from the supposed habit of
swimming at the surface of the water in pairs.
This genus is closely related to Fundulus, differing chiefly in the small size and
posterior position of the dorsal, which has usually less than ten rays and is commonly
inserted behind the front of the anal fin; the species are smaller in size than those of
904 FISHES-CYPRINODONTIDAE.
Fundulus, and different in appearance, so that we feel reluctant to unite the two gen-
era, although the technical differences are very slight. Species all American, Surface
Swimmers, feeding upon insects.
The species are quite numerous, but have been little studied.
The following article from the pen of John A. Ryder, on the develop-
ment of a species of this genus is almost the only attempt at the study
of the breeding peculiarities of the Cyprimodonts:
“Since we have taken up our temporary residence at Cherrystone, Virginia, we have
found this interesting genus of cyprinodonts in great abundance in fresh and brackish
water streams, also in a fresh water pond in the vicinity, a few miles south of where
our station is located. In the latter situation three forms have been collected, all of
which are in breeding condition—we will not say spawning condition, as they do not, as
do most other fishes, commit their ova to the care of the element in which they live,
but carry them about in the ovary, where they are impregnated and where they develop
in a very remarkable manner.
“Of the manner of impregnation we know little or nothing, except the evidence
furnished by the conformation of the external genitalia of the two sexes. In the adult
male, which measures one and one-eighth of an inch in length, the anal fin is strangely
modified into an intromittent organ for the conveyance of the milt into the ovary of
the female ; a tubular organ appears to be formed by the three foremost anal rays, but
one which is greatly prolonged and united by a membrane. At the apex these rays are
somewhat curved toward each other, and thus form a blunt point, but the foremost one
of the three rays is armed for its whole length with ridges at its base and with sharp
recurved hooks at its tip, the other two at their tips similarly with hooks, and between
their tips are two small fenestra or openings which possibly communicate directly with
the sperm ducts from the testes. The basal elements of the fins are aggregated into a
cylindrical columnar truncated bony mass, which is prolonged upward into the cavity
of the air-bladder for the distance of nearly the eighth of an inch ; from it a series of
fibrous bands pass to the dorsal and posterior wall of the air-bladder to be inserted in
the median line. Whether this bony column serves to steady the fin in the act of copu-
lation, or whether it serves to give passage to the sperm duct, is an unsettled question
with the writer. The modified anal fin of the mala measures a third of an inch in
length. Other peculiarities of the male are noticeable—for instance, the more ab-
breviated air-bladder or space which also occupies a more oblique position than in the
female. The most remarkable difference presented by the male as compared with the
female, however, is his inconsiderable weight, which is only 160 milligrames, while that
of the gravid female is 1,030 milligrames or nearly six and one-half times the weight of
the male.
“The female, as already stated, is larger than the male, and measures one inch and
three-fourths in length. The liver lies for the most part on the left side. The intestine
makes one turn upon itself in the fore part of the body cavity and passes back along the
floor of the abdomen to the vent. The air-bladder occupies two-fifths of the abdominal
cavity, and at its posterior end the wolffian duct traverses it vertically, to be enlarged
near the outlet into a fusiform urinary bladder of very much the same form as in many
embryo fishes, as demonstrated by Professor Kupffer and myself. The ovary is a simple,
impaired organ which lies somewhat to the right and extends from the anterior portion
of the body cavity to the hinder end, and serves to fill up its lower moiety when fully
developed. The ova, when full grown, are each enveloped in a sac or follicle supplied
DEVELOPMENT OF CYPRINO DONTS. 905
with blood from a median vascular trunk which divides and subdivides as it traverses
the ovary lengthwise, in a manner similar to that of the stem to which grapes in the
bunch are attached. In this way it happens that each egg or ovum has its own inde-
pendent supply of blood from the general vascular system of the mother, from which the
material for the growth and maturation of the egg is derived, and which afterward
becomes specialized into a contrivance by which the life of the developing embryo
is maintained while undergoing development in their respective follicles in the ovary
or egg-bag. The ova develop along the course of the main vessel and its branches, as
may be learned upon examining a hardened specimen, where the very immature ovarian
eggs are seen to be involved in a meshwork of connective fibrous tissue, which Serves
not only to strengthen the vessels but also afterwards enters into the structure of the
walls of the ovarian sacs or follicles externally,
“The very immature eggs measure from less than a hundredth of an inch up to a
fiftieth, and on up to a twelfth of an inch, when they may be said to be mature. They
develop along a nearly median rachis or stalk which extends backward and slightly
downward and which gets its blood supply very far forward from the dorsal aorta. The
ova, after developing a little way, are each inclosed in a follicle, the Graefian follicle,
ovisac, ovarian capsule, membrana granulosa of Won Baer, or membrana cellulosa of Coste.
As the egg is matured there is a space developed about it which is said to result from the
breaking up of the granular layer of cells covering it. This space is filled with fluid,
and in this liquid, which increases in quantity as development proceeds, the embryo of
Zygomected or top-minnow, is constantly bathed. There is no trace whatever in the egg of
this figh of an independent egg membrane, as is the case with all known forms which spawn
directly into the water, and which is usually, if not in all cases, perforated by one or
more mycropolar openings or pores for the entrance of the spermatozoon. This fact
raises the question whether the egg membrane or zona radiata usually present in the ova
of water-spawning fishes is not entirely absent in all the viviparous species. Whether
Rathke has recorded anything on this point in his account of the development of Zoarces,
the viviparous blenny, I am not able to say at present, as I do not have access to his
memoir. Suffice it to say, however, that with very cautious preparation, staining and
dissection of the follicles inclosing the ova of Zygonectes, I have completely failed to dis-
cover what I could regard as an egg membrane, although personally familar with the
appearance of the coverings of the ova of more than twenty species, embracing fifteen
or more families. The coma radiata or covering of the egg in other bony fishes is said to
be secreted from the cells lining the follicles and is composed of a gelatinoid substance,
and it is often perforated all over by a vast number of extremely fine tubules called pore
canals by their discoverer, Johannes Mueller. No such structure existing as a covering
for the egg of Zygonectes, we are in a position to ask the qmestion why such a unique con-
dition of affairs should exist in this case ? The answer, it would appear to us, is not far
to seek. In the case of eggs which ordinarily hatch in water it is necessary that they
should be supplied with a covering more or less firm and capable of protecting the con-
tained embryo, which in the case of the top-minnow is not needed, because the embryo is
developed so as to be quite competent to take care of itself as a very well organized lit-
tle fish when it leaves the body of its parent. Nature will not waste her powers in an
effort to make useless clothes for such of her children as do not need them : on the con-
trary, she is constantly utilizing structures economically, and often so as to serve more
than one purpose. This is the apparent answer to the query with which we started,
“The follicles or sacs containing the ova are built up internally of flat, polygonal
cells of pavement epithelium, and externally of a network of multipolar, fibrous, con-
9()6 FISHES-CYPRINODONTIDAE.
nective tissue cells and minute capillary blood vessels, with cellular walls, which
radiate in all directions over the follicle from the point where the main arterial vessel
joins the follicle, and which, together with its accompanying veins and investment of
fibroſis tissue, constitutes the stalk by which the follicle and its contained naked ovum
is suspended to the main artorial trunk and vein. The capillary system ends in a
larger venous trunk, which also follows the course of the main median arterial trunk
back to the heart by way of the Cuvierian ducts The very intricaté m 3sh-work of fine
Vessels which covers the follicle supplies the developing fish with fresh oxygen, and also
8èrves to Garry off the carbonic dioxide in much the same way as the placenta or after-
birth performs a similar duty for the young mammal developing in the uterus of its
parent. There is this great difference, however, between the fish and the mammal. In
the former there is no uterus; the development takes place in the foliicle in which the
eggs have grown and matured; there is no true placenta, but respiration is effected by
a follicular mesh-work of blood vessels, and the interchange of oxygen and carbonic
dioxide gases takes place through the intermediation at first of the ſluid by which the
embryo is surrounded in its follicle, and later, when blood vessels and gills have
developed in the embryo, they too become accessories to aid in the oxygenation of its
blood In the mammal there is a uterus; the egg must leave its ovarian follicle and be
Conveyed to the uterine cavity before a perſectly normal development can begin ; there
is a fully developed richly vascular placenta joined to the foetus, the villi or vascular
loops of which aro insinuated between those developed on the maternal surface of the
uterine cavity. In both fish and mammal, however, this general likeness remains; that
there is no immediate vascular connection between mother and outbryo. In both the
respiration of the embryo is effécted by the transpiration of gases through the inter-
mediation of membrane and ſluids, oxygen being constantly supplied and carbonic
dioxide carried off by monns of a specialized portion of the blood system of the maternal
Organism.
“Taere is still another difference which distinguishes the developing fish from the
mammal which has not been noticed, The body of the foruler is built up by gradual
brausformation or conve sión of the substance of the yelk into the various structures
Which make up its organization, In other words, the young fish obtains no nutrition
from its parent ; there is merely a 1eorganization of the stored protoplasm of the yelk
Sac. In the mammal, on the other hand, the embryo receives nourishment through the
placental structures, though there is a yelk at an early stage; the largest proportion
of the embryo is built up from the protoplasm supplied from the blood system of the
parent. Judging from the large size of the young of Some viviparous fishes, such as in
Embtoloca, it is possible that there may be some exceptions to the rule indicated above.
‘‘Besides the very intricate network of capillary vessels which covers the follicles of
the ovary of Zygoneotes a large opening of a circular or oval form makes its appearance
in the wall of each one at or near the point of attachment of the vascular stalk by which
they are Supported. This opening appears to increase in size as the young fish develops;
whether it is present during the earliest stages of the intraſollicular development of the
embryo I do not know, as I did not have an opportunity to Be3 those phases. A branch
from the main nutritive vessel frequently lies near the margin of the opening, curving
around it. Whether this opening serves the sºme purpose as thc micropyle of ova pro-
vided with a membrane would appear very probable, as it is difficult to see in what
other manner the milt, which is probably introduced into the ovarian cavity by the
male, could reach the ovum through the wall of its follicle. The opening into the fol-
licle may be named the follicular foramem. Through it the cavity in which the embryo
DEVELOPMENT OF CYPRINODONTS. 907
lies is brought into direct communication with the general ovarian space, which, sin-
gularly enough appears to be occluded from without by a temporary closure or plug-
ging up of the oviduct or canal from the posterior end of the ovarian eac, a state of
affairs, which, if it can be confirmed, approximates, or, to some extent, resembles, the
condition found to obtain in a pregnant mammal, where the uterine os or mouth is tem-
porarily occluded during gestation.
“We found ourselves unable to determine the species of the form, the structure of
which is described above ; none of those described in Jordan’s Manual appear to agree
with our species (Gambusia patruelis, B. & G,-D. S. J.). It may be, as some of us have
surmised, that the isolation of the form on the eastern peninsula of Virginia for a great
length of time may have served to develop specific characters, and that it is undescribed.
We leave the determination of the species to the systematic ichthyologists.
“Thus far our account has dealt only with the structure of the adults and the pecu-
liar contrivances by means of which reproduction is effected ; we will now take up the
discussion of the egg and embryo. &
“The globular vitellus m >asures about a line in diameter including the embryonic or
germinal portion. The germinal protoplasm probably occupies a peripheral position
covering the nutritive or vitelline portion of the egg as a continuo is envelope with
strands of germinal matter running from it through and among the corpuscle3 of the
vitellus. This peripheral germinal layer, when the egg is ready to be fertilized, mi-
grates toward one pole and assumes a biscuit shape. This is essentially the history of
the formation of the germinal disk of the Teleostean egg as worked out independently by
Professor Kupffer and the writer. Little of a trustworthy character is known of the
history of the germative vesicle and spot, which bear the same relation to the egg as
the mucleus and nucleolus do to the substance of the cell of the ordinary type. When
cleavage of the germinal disk has began, it is the first positive evidence that impregnation
has been 8wccessful. The disk then begins to spread over the vitellus or yelk and soon
acquires the form of a watch glass with its concave side lying next the surface of the
yelk. Coincident with the lateral expansion of the germinal disk, a thickening appears
at one point in its margin which is the first sign of the appearance of the embryo fish.
With its still further expansion, the embryo is developèd more from the margin of the
disk toward its centre ; in this way it happyns that the axis of the embryo lies in one of
the radii of the disk; its head toward the centre, its tail at the margin.
“But before the embryo is fairly formed, a space appears under the disk limited by
the thickened rim of the latter, and the eum bryo at one side. This space, the segmenta-
tion cavity, is filled with fluid and grows with the growth of the germinal disk, as the latter
becomes converted into the blastoderm, and does not disappear until 80metime after the embryo
has left the egg as a young fish ; and then it often remains as a space around the yelk sac
for as long as a vestige of the latter remains, as may be seen in the young of Cybium,
Parephippus, Gadus, Elecate, and Syngmath us. In regard to this point, I hold views en-
tirely different from any other observers, but inasmuch as the writer bas had opportu-
nities for the study of the development of a greater number of species representing a
greater number of families than any previous investigator, and because the observa-
tions are based on material studied without the use of hardening re-agents which either
deform or obliterate the segmentation cavity, and also because it was found to be present
in all of the forms which were sufficiently well studied, it is believed that it will be found
in the developing ova of most or all Teleosteam fishes, Should this prove to be the fact, the
Teleostean egg will be as distinctly defined in respect to the sum of the developmental char-
908 FISHES-CYPRINO DONTIDAE.
acters which it presents from the developing ova of other vertebrates, as the adult Teleost
is the from remaining classes of the sub-kingdom to which it belongs. The floor of the cav-
ity appears to be formed by the hypoblast or innermost embryonic layer, while its roof is
formed by the epiblast or outermost skin layer. Gradually this blastoderm, which has
been derived by cleavage from the germinal disk, grows over the yelk, no part of its epi-
blast layer being in direct contact with the hypoblast below on account of the presence
of the intervening film of ſluid, except at its rim. The embryo also appears to be in
fixed contact with the yelk. The blastoderm grows at about an equal rate all around
its margin ; the point where the edges of the blastoderm finally close is almost directly
Opposite the site where the germinal disk first appeared ; the closure at last occurs just
behind the tail of the embryo where a little crater-like elevation marks the point at
Which it disappears. The embryo now lies along a meridian of the blastoderm; its head
at the original germinal pole, its tail at the other. The growth of the blastoderm over
the yelk is greatly facilitated by the film or fluid contained in the segmentation cavity,
OVer which it can glide as it grows without friction. This view seems to me to be the
most rational yet proposed in explanation of the method by which the blastoderm grows
laterally in all directions down over the yelk. In some cases the yelk sac is frequently
much absorbed before the outer epiblastic sac begins to collapse. This is the case with
Cybium after it leaves the egg and proves very conclusively that the outer sac is en-
tirely free, laterally and ventrally from the inner one containing the yelk.
“There are two principal methods by which the yelk is absorbed ; the one where a
more or less extensive net-work of vessels is developed over the surface of the yelk, and
through which all, or nearly all, of the blood passes to reach the venous end of the
heart; in many cases no such net-work is ever developed, as for instance, in the shad,
maekerel, cod, and bonito. To the former class the young top minnow belongs. Its
yelk is orange-colored and imbedded in it superficially are a great number of refrin-
gent oil globules of small size. There appears to be a sinus beneath the head, con-
tinuous with the segmentation cavity in which the heart is developed. The body of the
young fish lies in a groove or furrow on the surface of the yelk, This is the youngest
state in which I have seen Zygoneotes and explains why I have given the preceding gen-
eral account of the development of a young fish. The somites or segments of muscle
plates had been developed for some time. The heart, brain, intestine and organs of
Sense were defined.
“The next important stage observed was when the yelk sac was in great part ab-
Sorbed and the fish nearly ready to hatch, or more properly to leave its follicle and the
body of its parent. The extraordinary acceleration of development, noted in almost every
detail of structure was such as I had never witnessed in any other species of young fish.
The bones of the skull, although still cartilaginous, were advanced to a condition not
Seen in the shad until it has been hatched for three weeks or more. There were inter-
maxillary elements with teeth ; pharyngeal patches of teeth ; the brain was pretty well
roofed over by the cartilaginous cranium ; the branchiosteges were developed in cartil-
age; the opercles completely covered and concealed the gills, the opercular elements
being differentiated; the gills already bore branchial leaflets; the neural and
hapmal arches of the vertebrae were developed in cartilage; there was a lagena attached
to the auditory capsule; scales covered the sides and back and were developed in
pockets of the dermal epithelium ; in five, all the fins were already developed except the
ventrals with the same number of rays as in the adult. All this, and yet the yelk sac
was still not absorbed. I have never seen in any fish embryos of the same age an in-
DEVELOPMENT OF CYPRINU) DONTS. 909
star ce where scales were developed or where the fins had approximated their adult con-
dition so nearly as in this case, The only instance known to me at this writing where a
continous dorsal and ventral median fin-fold is never developed, is in the case of
Syngnathus, where the caudal rays are developed before the dorsal ones. Whether the
unpaired fins of Zygoneotes are, or are not, derived from such a fold would be an inter-
esting observation. A marked acceleration is also noticeable in the development of the
brain, a study of which by means of sections, as compared with that of the adult, has
furnished me with some valuable clues in following up the developments of Teleostean
genera.
“To sum up, this fish begins an independent career as far developed as when the shad,
Cod, mackerel, bonito, and many other fishes are from three to six weeks old. By so
much he has the advantage over these types in the struggle for existence in that he is
ready to feed, to pursue his prey discriminately, as soon as he is born, while the other
forms alluded to are comparatively helpless until some time after they have absorbed
their yelk sac, although most of them by that time have acquired mandibular, maxillary,
or pharyngeal teeth or both. The Fish Commission authorities need never be uneasy
about the fate of the top minnows; they will take care of themselves; their species is
sure of survival. But our study, it would seem to the writer, has not been in vain,
because, even though the fish is too small to be of any practical value, it has taught us
that where Nature has so effectually provided for the protection of the young fish she
does not require one adult to produce as many embryos. In Zygonectes twenty-five to
thirty young is perhaps the limit of production for a single female ; in Apeltes, or the
four-spined stickleback, the male of which is provided, according to my observations,
with a spinning apparatus, with which he fabricates a nest in which the young are
hatched and taken care of, the number of eggs is from fifteen to twenty. Contrasting
these small numbers with 100,000 to 3,000,000, the number of ova easily matured in a
single season by a single female of many anadromous and marine species, which have
heavy, adhesive or floating eggs, it would appear that the quantities of germs produced
by different species of fishes is in some way proportioned to their chances of survival.
Otherwise we are at a loss to explain the enormous fertility of many marine forms ; the
astounding fertility of the oyster and clams is another instance illustrating this princi-
ple, where ova are matured by the tens of millions and where barely one out of a million
survives so as to attain adult age.
“Certain adaptations of structure are also plainly noticeable on a comparative study of
fish ova. Thus the egg membrane of floating eggs is extremely thin, thinner than that
of heavy or adhesive eggs, while the thickest membranes are those provided with exter-
nal filamentous appendages. The most thinly clad hatch out soonest. May it not be
that the thinness of the envelope of the egg has some relation to the rapidity with
which the oxygenation of the egg is effected and consequently with the rapidity of tis-
sue and embryonic changes ; And, finally, who would undertake to say that all of
these modifications of the embryonic envelope are not snch as could be developed by
natural selection so as to favor the survival of the greatest number of embryos ?
“Before closing I wish to state that it is the oviduct of the female in some cyprinodonts
that is prolonged into a tube at the anterior edge of the anal fin, as I have lately learned.
This difference, as compared with Zygomeotes, would be usefnl as a general character, as
suggested by Colonel Marshall McDonald, to whose unselfish, helpful interest I am
deeply indebted for assistance in manifold ways while the investigation of the material
Was in progress upon which the foregoing account is based.—Forest and Stream.
910 _FISHES-CYPRINoDONTIDAE.
__ *—s
105. ZygoNECTEs NoTATUS (Rafinesque) Jordan.
Top Himnow ; Top Sw1 Emmaner.
Semotilus * molatus, RAFINK's QUE, Ich. Oh, 1820, 86.
Zygomecies motatus, JoBBAN, Man. Wert, 2d Ed., 1878, 264, and elsewhere.
Poecilia olivacea, STORER, Proc, Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist, July, 1845; Synopsis, 430.
Zygomected olivaceu8, AGASSIz, Amer. Journ. Sci. Arts, xvii, 1854, 353,-JORDAN, Man.
Verb., 252.
Fundulus tenellus, BAIRD and GIRARD, Proc. Phila. Acad., 1853, 289.
Zygomecies tenellus, GIRARD, Proc. Phila. Acad. Sci., 1859, 60.
Zygomectes lateralis, AGASSIZ, Journ. Sci, Arts, 1854, 353.
Zygoneclé8 zomalub, AGASSIZ, Amer. Journ. Sci. Arts, 1854, 353.
Zygonectes pulchellw8, GIRARD, Proc. Phila. Acad. Sci., 1853, 113–JORDAN, Ind. Geol.
Surv., 1874, 218,
Haplochilus pulchellus, GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes Brit, Mus., v., 1866, 314.
Fundulus aureus, COPE, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila, 1865, 78.
Baplochilus aureu8, GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes Brit. Mus., vi, 1866, 315.
Description.—Body rather slender, compressed behind ; head low, depressed, and rather
elongate, the snout somewhat produced, the lower jaw scarcely projecting; interorbital
space broad, its width about half length of head; eye large, less than snout, about three
in head; fins moderate, the dorsal and anal elevated in the males; teeth in a broad
band, the outer series considerably enlarged and canine-like; coloration brownish-olive,
with a broad, dark purplish-black lateral band running from tip of snout through eye
to base of caudal; darker in males than in females; young specimens have the edges
of the band serrated ; a few series of small, black dots along the side of the back; dor-
sal, caudal, and anal fins dotted with black; top of head with a conspicuous translucent
spot in life, which fades in spirits; concentric striae on scales, strong; head 4; depth;
4}; D. 9; A. 11; scales 34x11.
Habitat, all waters of the basin of the Mussissippi, and in southern tributaries of the
Great Lakes. *
Diagnosis.--This is the only Ohio fish with the caudal fin rounded be-
hind, the head flattened above, and a purplish-black lateral band which
passes around the nose.
Habits.--This is a very common species in the basin of the Mississippi.
It frequents still waters, especially canals and ponds made by overflow
of creeks in the spring. In open rivers it is found chiefly in still,
weedy places. Where found, it always swims near the surface, and may
be recognized as far as seen by one expert in little fishes. It is too small
for food, but is sometimes used for bait. Its beauty and extreme hardi-
mess render it a desirable aquarium fish to those few who prefer our
graceful native fishes to the gaudy and vulgar gold-fish,
106. ZYGONECTES DISPAR Agassiz.
Striped Top Mimmow.
Zygomeotes dispar, AGASSIz, Amer, Journ. Sci. Arts, 1854, 253.−NELSON, Bull, Ills. Mus.
STRIPED TOP MIN NOW. 911
Nat. Hist, 1876, 42–Jordan, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1877, 67; Man. Vert , 3
Ed., 1878.
Debcription.—Body short and deep, much compressed; head short and very broad, the
flat, interorbital space being two-thirds of its length, and barely twice the diameter of
the eye, the distance between the eyes above greater than the distance between them
below ; Snout broadly rounded; fins moderate; dorsal much smaller than anal; outer
Series of teeth scimewhat enlarged ; coloration pale olive, bluish in life; a very distinct
brownish line along the edges of each row of scales, appearing wavy or serrated as it
follows the scales; about ten of these longitudinal stripes are present ; males with
the lines interrupted, appearing as series of dots, and further marked by about nine
dark cross bars; adults with a dark blotch below the eye, and sometimes cor ſlnent with
it ; oviduct free from anal fin; head 3%; depth 3} ; dorsal 7 ; A. 9; Scales 35-10.
Length 2% inches.
Habitat, Lakes and sluggish streams from Ohio to Iowa.
Diagnosis.-The dark, lengthwise stripes of this species at once distin-
guish it from the other Top Minnows found in Ohio.
Habits.—This species seems to prefer the waters of the large streams
and lakes. As yet it has only been taken in Illinois, where it is widely
distributed, and in Indiana and Ohio, the lakes tributary to the Wabash,
Illinois, and Maumee. It swims near the surface, with a languid motion,
as if it were very hard work. -
Another species of this type, Zygonectes melanops (Cope) Jordan, known
by the absence of stripes and the presence of a still more conspicuous
black spot below the eye, occurs in Southern Illinois, and may be looked
for in the bayous of Southern Ohio.
F A MILY X W I. U M B R ID AE. T H E M U D M IN NO W S.
Body oblong, broad anteriorly, compressed behind ; head large, flattened above :
mouth moderate, the maxillary without distinct supplemental bone; bards of villiform
or cardiform teeth on premaxillaries, lower jaw, vomer, and palatimes ; pre maxillaries
not protractile ; lateral margin of upper jaw formed by the broad, short maxillaries,
which are toothless; lower jaw the longer; gill-openings wide, the membranes scarcely
connected; gill-rakers little developed ; branchiostegals 6–8; scales moderate, cycloid,
covering head ard body; lateral line obscare or wanting; dorsal fin moderate, posterior
in advance of anal; Ventrals small, close to anal; pectorals inserted low ; caudal fin
rounded ; stomach without blind sac ; no pyloric coeca ; pseudobran ch' ae hidden, gland-
ular, air-bladder simple; sexes similar; carnivorous fishes, living in mud or among
weeds at the bottom of clear, sluggish streams and ponds, extremely tenacious of life,
like the Cyprinodontida: ; oviparous; genera 2; species 3; Umbra crameri of Austria;
Dallia pectoralia, of Alaska; and Umbra limi. The family is very close to the Esooida,
differing mainly in the smaller mouth and weaker teeth.
ANALYSIS OF GENERA OF UMBRIDAE,
a. Pectorals narrow, few (12-15) rayed ; ventral rays 6; scales moderate.
UMBRA, 57.
912 |FISHES-UMBRIDAE.
GENUS 57. UMBRA, Muller.
Umbra (Kramer Elench, Anim. Austr, Infer, 1756), MULLER, Abhand. Akad. Wissench,
Berl., 1842, 188.
Melamura, AGASSIz, Amer. Journ, Sci. Arts, 1864, 135.
Type, Umbra crameri, Muller, from Southern Austria.
Etymology, Latin, winbra, shade.
Body oblong, covered with cycloid scales of moderate size, without radiating striae;
no lateral line; head shortish, little depressed; eye rather small ; cleft of mouth mod-
erate ; ventral fins 6-rayed, below or slightly in front of dorsal; anal fin much shorter
than dorsal ; pectorals rather narrow, rounded, placed low, with 12–15 rays, which are
much jointed; caudal rounded ; preopercle and preorbitai with mucous pores; branch-
iostegals 6; gill-rakers short, thick; size small.
107. UMBRA LIMI (Kirtland) Gunther.
Mud Minamo w; Mud Dace ; Dog Fish.
Hydrargyra limi, KIRTLAND, Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist., iii, 1840, 277.
Melanura limi, AGASSIZ, Amer. Journ. Sci. Arts, 1855, 217.-JORDAN, Man. Wert, 2d Ed.,
1878, 265, and of many American writers.
Umbra limi, GUNTHER, Cat. Fish. Brit, Mus., vi, 1867, 232, and of many writers,
War. ? pygmaea.
Hydrargyra fusca, THOMPSON, Nat. Hist. Wt, 1842, 137.
Hydrargyra atricauda, DEKAY, New York Fauna, Fishes, 1842, 220.
Melamura annulata, AGASSIZ, Amer. Journ. Sci. Arts, 1855, 217 (after Rafinesque's, which
species appears, however, to be a true EaogloS8wm).
Leuciscus pygmaºw8, DEKAY, Fishes N. Y., 1842, 214.
Melanura pygma'a, BAIRD, Ninth Smithson. Rept., 1855,
Umbra pygmaea, BEAN, Mss., Jordan, Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., x, 53.
Fundulus fuscus, AYREs, Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist., iv, 296.
Description.—Dark-green or olive, mottled, sides with irregular, narrow, pale bars,
these often obscure or wanting; a distinct black bar at base of caudal; whitish stripes
sometimes present along the row of scales; head 3% in length; depth 44; B. 6; P. 14;
D. 14; A. 8; W. 6; Lat. 1, 35; L. trans. 15. Length 2 to 5 inches.
Habitat, Lake Champlain to Delaware and Minnesota, chiefly northward, occasional
or rather rare in the Ohio Valley.
Diagnosis.-This species is the only small fish found in Ohio with a
rounded caudal fin, and a black bar across the tail.
Habits.-This singular and interesting fish is very abundant in the
grassy or weedy streams and ponds in the northern part of Ohio. In the
southern part of the State it is less common, but may be occasionally
taken. Its ability to survive in mud after the water has evaporated is
remarkable, and instances are recorded where it has been actually
plowed up in plowing through a dried up pond or swamp. Prof. Baird
says, “A locality which, with the water perfectly clear, will appear des-
MUD MINNOW. 913
titute of fish, will perhaps yield a number of mud fish on stirring up the
mud at the bottom and drawing a Seine through it. Ditches in the
prairies of Wisconsin, or mere bog-holes, apparently affording lodgment
to nothing beyond tad-poles, may thus be found filled with Melanurus.”
It, however, is fond of the muddy bottoms of clear, quiet waters, and is
seldom found in streams which are constantly turbid.
The name Dog fish, frequently applied to the species, comes from its
resemblance to the young of Amia calva, and many fishermen maintain
stoutly the identity of the two. The entire dissimilarity of the dorsal
fins of Amia and Umbra will separate them at sight.
The Mud-minnow of the coast streams from New York southward,
shows some differences from the Mud-minnow of the Great Lake Region,
and is possibly a different species, Umbra pygmaea, (DeKay) Bean.
F A MIL Y X W II. E S O C ID AE. T H E PIK E S.
Body elongate, not elevated, more or less compressed ; head long ; the snout much
prolonged and depressed; mouth very large; its cleft forming about half the length of
the head ; lower jaw the longer; upper jaw not protractile, most of its margin formed
by the maxillaries, which are quite long and provided with a supplemental bone; pre-
maxillaries, vomer, and palatines with broad bands of strong, cardiform teeth, which
are more or less movable; lower jaw with strong teeth of different sizes; tongue with
a band of small teeth; head naked above; cheeks and opercles more or less scaly; gill-
openings very wide; gill-membranes separate, free from the isthmus; gill-rakers tuber-
cle-like, toothed ; branchiostegals 12–20; scales small ; lateral line weak, obsolete in
young specimens, developed in the adult ; dorsal posterior, opposite and similar t
anal; caudal fin emarginate; pectoral fins small, inserted low ; ventrals rather post-
erior; vent normal; no adipose fin; no barbels; stomach not coecal, without pylorio
appendages; pseudobranchiae glandular, hidden ; air-bladder simple. Fishes of mode-
rate or large size inhabiting the fresh waters of the northern parts of Europe, Asia, and
North America. Genus one; species about six, one of them cosmopolitan, the rest all
confined to America. The species are all noted for their greediness and voracity.
GENUS 58. ESOX. Linnaeus.
E803, LINNAEUS, Systema Naturae, 1758 (lucius).
Lucius, RAFINESQUE, Indice d'Ittiol. Sicil., 1810 (lucius).
Picorellus, RAFINESQUE, Ich, Oh., 1820, 70 (vittatus).
Muscalongus, Jordan, Klippart's Second Rept, Ohio Fish Commr., 1878, 92 (nobilior).
Type, E803; lucius, L. g
Etymology, Latin, E803, a pike, probably from i908, equal, oxus, sharp,
The characters of the genus are included above. There are three sections of the
genus which may be defined as follows:
Picorellus, RAFINESQUE,-Branchiostegals 12 to 14; cheeks as well as opercles entirely
Soaly; species of generally small size, greenish, barred or reticulated with darker
(species, 8almoneu8).
58
914 FISHES-ESOCIDAE.
E803, LINNAEU.S.—Branchiostegals 14 to 16; cheeks scaly; lower half of opercle bare;
species of rather large size, light spotted on rather daik ground (species, lucius).
Muscalongus, JoBDAN.—Branchiostegals 17 to 19; lower half of cheeks as well as
opercles, bare ; species reaching an immense size, black-spotted on a lighter ground
(species, mobilior).
108. ESGX SALMon EUs Rafinesque.
Little Pickerel.
E80a: 8almoneu8, RAFINFSQUE, Ich. Oh, 70.-JORDAN, Bull. Buff. Soc. Nat. Hist., 1876,
96.-Jof DAN, Man. Wert, 2d Ed., 1878, 267, and of late writers,
Picorellus 8almoneu8, Jordan, Man. Vert., 1st Ed., 256.
Egoz vermiculatus, LESUEUR, Cuv. and Val., Hist, Nat, des Poiss., xviii, 333.
E803, lineatus, LESUEUR, Cuv. and Wal., 1, c., xviii, 335.
E80a lugubrosus, LESUEUR, Cuv, and Val., xviii, 338.
Egoz umbrosus, KIRTLAND, Cleveland Annals of Science, 1855, 79.—CoPE, Proc. Phila.
Acad. Sci., 1865, 79; Cyp, Penn. (Trans, Amer, Phil, Soc.), 1866, 408.
Esoa, cypho, COPE, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci, Phila, 1865, 78.—GUNTHER, Cat, Fish. Brit.
Mus, vi, 230.-JorDAN, Man, Wert., 2d Ed., 267, and of most writers.
Esoa, porosus, CoPE, Trans. Amer. Philos. Soc., 1866, 408.
Description.—Body moderately stout, somewhat compressed ; head rather short, the eye
being exactly in the middle of the head ; eye large, less than three times in anout, about
six in head ; cheeks and opercle entirely scaly; caudal well folked ; color green or gray-
ish; sides with many cºrved streaks, sometimes forming bars, but more usually form-
ing marmorations or reticulations, the color extremely variable, sºmetimes quite plain;
sides of head usually variegated ; a dark bar downwald from eye and one forward ;
base of caudal sometimes mottled ; other fins usually plain ; head 3% ; depth 5–6; D, 11 ;
A. 11; Lat. 1, 105, Smallest of all the Pikes. The longth about a foot,
Habitat, entire Ohio Valley and in streams tributary to the Great Lakes from the
South ; also in the Upper Mississippi Valley.
Diagnºsis.—From the other Ohio Pikes, this species may be known by
its entirely 8Caly opercles, and its Small size and slender form.
The nearly related Eastern species, E803, reticulatus, LeSueur, the com-
mon Pickerel of the seaboard States differs in having the snout longer,
and the branchiostegals more numerous, 14 or 15 in number.
Habits.-This little fish is found throughout the State, but is especially
abundant in the ponds and streams tributary to the Ohio. It swarms in
the spring in ponds formed by the overflow of the creeks. Thousands
of them are destroyed yearly by the drying of such ponds. In the
spring it ascends all Small streams, and it is often found in temporary
brooks in cornfields and other unexpected places, remote from its native
waters. People finding pickerel thus stranded often ºffirm stoutly that
they “rain down.”
This species is too small to be of any importance as food. I have not
seen any of more than the length of a foot.
COMMON PIKE. 915
Its habits are like those of its Eastern relative, E803, reticulatw8, which
Thoreau describes as “the swiftest, wariest, and most ravenous of fishes,
which Josselyn calls the River Wolf. It is a solemn, stately, ruminant
fish, lurking under the shadow of a pad at moon, with still, circumspect,
voracious eye; motionless as a jewel set in water, or moving slowly along
to take up its position ; darting from time to time at such unlucky fish
or frog or insect as comes within its range, and swallowing it at a gulp.
Sometimes a striped snake, bound to greener meadows across the stream,
ends its undulatory progress in the same receptacle.”
109. Esox LUCIUS Linnaeus.
Commmon Pike; Lake Pickerel.
* Synonymy for European Specimens.
Lucius, BPLLON, De Aquat., 296.-RONDELET, ii, 188.—SALV., 94, 95.-SCHONEVELDE,
44.—ALDROVANDI, De Pisc., 630.-Jons.TON, iii, t. 3, c. 5, t. 29, f. 1.--CESNER, De
Pisc., 500.-WILLOUGHBY, 236, tab., 5, f 2.—RAY, Syn., 112.—KLEIN, Miss. Piso., v.
74, tab. 20, f. 1.
Esoa, No. 1, ARTEDI, Synon., 26; Gen. p. 10, and Spec. 53,-GRONOVIUS, Zoophyl, No. 361
Esoa lucius, L., Syst, Nat., i, 516 —BLOCH, Fische Deutschl., i, 229, t. 32; Bl. Schn., 390,
—LACEPRDE, v. p. 297.-REISINGER, Prod, Ichth. Hung, 47.—DONONAN, Brit. Fishes,
v, pl. 109.-FLEM., Brit. Ann., 184.—JURINE, Mem. Soc. Phys. et Hist. Nat. Geneve,
iii, 1825, 231, pl. 15.—ERKSTROM, Fische Morko, 78. –FRIEs and ERKSTROM, Scand.
Fisk, 49, t. 10–NILSSON, Prodr. 36, and Scand. Faun. Fisk., 348,-PALLAs, Zoogr.
Ross -As., iii, 336.—PARNELL, Wern. Mem., vii, 272–YARRELL, Brit. Fishes, 1st Ed.,
1 pl., 383; 2d Ed, 1 pl., 434; 3d Ed., 1, 343,-SELYS-LONGCH., Faune Belge, 223.−
CUv, and VAL., xviii, 278.-KROYER, Danm. Fisk., 236–GRoNovi Us, Syst. Ed. Gray,
146.-GUNTHER, Fische des Neckars, 107.—RAPP, Fische des Bodensees, 11–HECKEL
and KNER, Susswasserfische, 287,-SIEBOLD, Susswasserfische, 325 —GUNTHE R, Cat.
Fishes Brit, Mus., vi, 226, and of all authors since Linnaeus.
The Pike; Hecht; Brochet ; Lucio or Luzzo, Gädda (Sweden).
Symonymy for American Specimens.
Esox estor, LESUEUR, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila, i, 1818, 413.--GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes
Brit. Mus., vi, 1867, 228 (Excl. syn. pars. Not of Richardson, DeKay, and others,
which is E. mobilior, Thompson).
Esox lucius, var. e8tor, JORDAN, Man. Vert., 1876, 255.-NELson, Bull, Ills. Mus. Nat.
Hist., 1876.-JORDAN and COPELAND, Check List Fishes, 1876, 143.
Esox lucius, RICHARDSON, Fauna Bor.-Amer. Fishes, iii, 1836, 124.—DEKAY, New York
Fauna, Fishes, 1842, 226.-STORER, Synopsis Fishes N. A., 1846, 438—CoPE, Proc.
Acad. Nat, Sci, Phila., 1865, 79–CopF, Trans. Amer, Philos, Soc. Phila., 1866, 408.-
GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes Brit. Mus., vi, 1867, 227—JoRDAN, Bail. U. S. Nat. Mus., x,
1877, 55–JoRDAN, Man. Vert, 2d Ed., 1878, 266–Jordan, Bull, U. S. Geol. Surv.
Terr., 1878, 432.
* Copied from Gunther Cat. Fishes Brit. Mus., vi, 1867, p. 286.
916 FISHES-ESOCIDAE,
E803, reticulatus, Kirtland, Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist, v, 1846, 233, pl. 10, f. 2 (not LeSueur,
first carefully distinguished from the Muskallunge). -
E803, deprandu.8 (LESUEUR), CUV. and VAL., xviii, 1846, 336–CoPE, Proc. Acad. Nat,
Sci, Phila., 1865, 79; Trans. Amer. Philos. Soc. 1866, 408.-GUNTHER, Cat, Fishes
Brit. Mus., vi, 1867, 2.
E803, borew8, AGASSIZ, Lake Superior, 1850, 317.
E803; lucioides, AUCT. -
Description.—Body elongate ; the head very long ; eye midway in head, 6% in its
length, in specimens 18 inches in length ; mouth proportionately rather larger than in the
other pikes; the palatine teeth much larger than those of the womer, except in front, the
two series about equal in length; scales a little larger than in the Muskallunge; lower
two-thirds of the opercle, or from the eye downward, naked; cheeks scaled; the scales
on the lower half of the cheeks smaller than those of the upper; coloration bluish or
greenish-gray, with many yellowish white spots rather smaller than the eye, and ar-
ranged somewhat in rows ; eye yellow ; vertical fins with rounded, black spots; scales
of the back with shiny, triangular specks. Young fishes are often darker and scarcely
spotted, but marked with yellowish-white bars, directed downward and forward, which
later break up in spots; sides of head with 3 or 4 horizontal, whitish bars, one of them
bounding the scaly part of the operculum ; head 3%; depth 5; D, 17; A. 16.; W. 11; Lat. 1,
120–125; B. 15. European specimens have mostly but 13 or 14 branchiostegals. Length
2 to 4 feet. • -
Habitat, waters of Northern North America, from the Great Lake Region to Alaska,
and in all waters of Northern Asia and Europe, one of the most widely diffused of fresh
water fishes. It is occasionally taken in tributaries of the Ohio River, but is very
abundant in Ohio in the northern part only.
Diagnosis.--This species may be known at once by its spots, which are
pale or yellowish on a darker ground, and by its scaly cheeks and half-
bare operculum.
Habits.-The Pike is very abundant in all the streams and ponds trib-
utary to Lake Erie, as well as in the lake itself. In the tributaries of
the Ohio it is less common, although frequently taken. It, however,
prefers cool waters. It is an important fish in the markets, and is read-
ily sold, although it is not a fish of the very first grade.
This species has long served as the emblem of rapacity among fishes.
“They are mere machines for the assimilation of other organisms,” feed-
ing freely on any animate thing which they can catch, and fortunately
they can Sometimes catch each other. -
It is stated that Dr. E. T. Sturtevant once “put two young Pickerel
about five inches long in a trough with a great quantity of little Cypri-
noids of about one inch in length. These two Pickerel ate 122 Minnows
the first day, 130 the second day, and 150 the third day, and increased one
inch in length in forty-eight hours.” In this statement, the rate of
growth is, of course, exaggerated ; but they will unquestionably devour
Minnows till the tail of the last one hangs out of the mouth, there being
no room to Swallow it. -
MTUSKAL LONG.E. 917
The Pike is a gamey fish, taking the hook readily. Fishing for it
through the ice, when the skating is good, is considered an exhilarating
pastime.
Prof. Cope observes: “For ourselves we do not join in the condemna-
tion visited on the Pike by some, and have a liking for its flesh. If its
increase can be restrained instead of favored, in waters which produce
the best species, it will cease to inflict much injury by its voracious
habits, for it naturally haunts still or grassy waters, where it devours
fishes inferior to itself, as Eels, and Cat-fish, and frogs. On the other
hand, we do not think the Pike needs any protection, as he has many
natural advantages in the struggle for life; but he should not be de-
stroyed except for the table.” (Rept. Fish Commr. Penn, for 1879–1880,
107.)
110. Esox NobTLIOR Thompson.
MIuskallonge ; Mascalonge ; Maslº in onge; Great Pike.
“Egoz masquinongy MITCHILL '' (Quoted, “Mirror, 1824, 297,” but it is not there; I cannot
find the description anywhere).
E803, estor, RICHARDSON, Fauna Bor.-Amer., ii, 127-KIRTLAND, Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist.,
v, 338, and of several writers (not of LeSueur, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci, Phila, i, 1818,
413; nor of GUNTIIER, Cat. Fish. Brit, Mus., vi, 228, E. lucius).
E80a, mobilior, THOMFSON, Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist, 1850, 163, 173, 205 —CoPE, Proc. Acad.
Nat. Sci, Phila., 1865, 79–JoRDAN, Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., x, 54; Maa. Vert, 2d Ed.
266, and of all late writers.
Description —Body elongate; the general form as in E. lucius, but the head rather
larger; eye about midway in head; interorbital space transversely concave, with a
prominent middle ridge; maxillary reaching to opposite middle of orbit; lower half of
cheeks and opercles scaleless, the scaly region about as wide as the eye and bounded by
an irregular line running parallel with the profile; color dark-gray, sides with round,
dark spots of a grayish-black hue, nearly the color of the back on a ground color of
grayish silvery; belly white; fins black spotted; head 3%; depth 6; D. 17; A. 15; V.
12; B. usually 18; Lat. 1, 150 Length 3 to 6 feet or more, by far the largest of the Pikes,
and the largest game-fish of American fresh waters.
Habitat, entire Great Lake Region and lakes of British America, seldom ascending
rivers except to spawn Said to occur sometimes in the Ohio River, but we have no
certain information of its capture there.
Diagnosis-This species may at once be known by being dark-spotted on
a lighter ground color. Most writers who have mentioned it have con-
founded it with the Common Pike, although Dr. Kirtland (l.c.) has well
pointed out the difference.
“The ground color on the sides of the Muskallunge is always light, a
mixture of golden and silvery luster, maculated with dark oblong or
roundish spots, while on the other the ground coloring consists of dark
918 FISHES-ATHERINIDAE.
reticulations, relieved with irregular, yellowish spots not placed in rows.
Our fishermen say that the Muskallonge is spotted with black, and the
Pike with yellow.”
Habits.—The Muskallonge is much less common than the Pike, and is
found almost exclusively in the deep waters of the lakes, “except for a
few days in spring, when it runs into the mouths of rivers to spawn.”
It reaches an immense size. Dr. Kirtland mentions one more than five
feet in length, and weighing over sixty pounds. The largest one of
which I have a record was six feet long and weighed eighty pounds. It
is highly valued for food. Dr. Kirtland informs us that “epicures con-
sider it one of the best of fishes of the West,” and Mr. J. L. Beaman af-
firms that “as a food fish there is nothing superior to this. He ranks
with the Salmon and Speckled Trout, and surpasses the Black and
Striped Bass. The meat is almost as white as Snow, fine-grained, micely
laminated, and the flavor is perfect.”
The Muskallunge is as voracious as the Pike, and eighty pounds of Mus-
kallunge represents several tons of Minnows, White-fish, and the like.
It is not a common fish. Its great size and voracity perhaps account for
this. “It is a long, slim, strong, and swift fish, in every way formed for
the life it leads, that of a fierce and dauntless marauder.” (Hallock.)
F A MILY X VIII. A T H E R IN ID AE. T H E SIL W E R SID E S.
Body elongated, more or less compressed, covered with rather small cycloid or crenate
scales; sides with a bright, distinct Silvery band in all known species; lateral line ob-
solete; teeth small, sometimes wanting; premaxillaries protractile or not ; gill-mem-
branes separate, free from the isthmus; pseudobranchiae present ; dorsal fins well sepa-
rated, the anterior of a few feeble spines; ventrals subabdominal, of one spine and five
soft rays; vertebrae numerous, Small, carnivorous fishes of warm regions, usually
swimming in schools near the shore; a few species in permanently fresh water; genera
about seven ; species forty-five. Only one of the American species inhabiting fresh
water.
a. Mouth very oblique; the upper juw plane above, concave within ; the lower jaw
correspondingly convex, the very protractile premaxillaries forming a peculiar
roof-like beak. . o * ſº º e g ſº . LABIDESTHES, 59.
\
GENUS 59. LABIDESTHES. Cope.
Labideðthes, Copiº, Proc. Amer. Philos. Soc, Phila, 1870, 455.
Type, Chiro8toma 8ioculum, Cope.
Etymology, labia, a pair of forceps; estheo, to eat.
Silversides, with the premaxillary bones prolonged anteriorly into a roof-shaped
beak of elongate form, reaching posteriorly to the line of the orbit, extremely pro-
tractile; teeth in several series; lower jaw as long as upper; no palatine teeth; body
RIVER SILVERSIDE. 919
wery elongate, translucent ; dorsal spines four; scales smal!. This genus contains but
a single species, peculiar to the fresh waters of the Western States—a small fish, very
slender and graceful, and of delicate organism.
111. LAB IDESTHES SICCULUS Cope.
River Silverside; Skipjack.
Chiro8toma 8icculum, CoPE, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1865, 81.
Labideðthes bicculus, CoPE, Proc. Amer. Phil. Soc., 1870, 455.-JORDAN, Man. Vert, 1st
Ed., 1877, 2d Ed., 1878, 261.
Description.—Form very slender, the depth contained 6 to 7 times in length; the head
about 4%; eye large and round contained 3} times in the length of the side of the head,
and 13 times in the length of the snout ; top of head and muzzle plane, the latter con-
vex transversely, its tip about even with that of the lower jaw ; front with a median
ridge; teeth slender and simple; scales small ; in 14 longitudinal and 75 transverse
series; anal fin very long, nearly one-third the length of the body; first dorsal short,
with 4 very weak spines; D, 1 ; V. 10; A I 22; Ventrals I, 5; color very clear, trans-
lucent olive; in life quite transparent; above dusted with black points; sides with a
very distinct, silvery band, which covers one row and two half rows of scales, edged
above with plumbeous; cheeks silvery. Length 3 to 4 inches.
Habitat, Michigan to Tennessee, west to IDwa, Detroit River (Cope), Sandusky Bay,
Clinch River (Cope), Cumberland River, Illinois River, Wisconsin River, and in myst
streams of Ohio and Indiana.
Diagnosis.—This is the only fish found in Ohio with a long, slender
body, two dorsal fins, and a bright, silvery stripe along the sides.
Habits —This little creature is one of the most singular and elegant
of our fishes. It occurs in great abundance where found, and is espec-
ially numerous in clear pools left in Summer by the fall of the waters in
the stream which has filled them. It swims near the surface, and often
throws itself out of the water, for which reason it is known to Indiana
boys by the name of “Skipjack.” It is an attractive creature in the
aquarium, but from its delicacy of organization hard to keep alive.
F A MILY XIX. A P H R E D O D E R ID AE. T H E PIR. A. T E
P E R C H E S.
Body oblong, moderately compressed, covered with chenoid scales; dorsal fia single,
high, with but three or four spines, which are rapidly graduated, the first being quite
short ; ventral fins thoracic, without distinct spine, and with seven soft rays; mouth
moderate, the lower jaw slightly projecting, the maxillary reaching to the anterior
border of the eye; teeth in villiform bands, on jaws, vomer and palatines; pharyngeals
narrow, the lower separate, with Williform teeth; preorbital, preopercle and other bones
of the head strongly serrated ; branchiostegals six ; gill membranes free from the
isthmus; air-bladder simple; pyloric coeea about twelve; scales moderate, ctenoid; no
920 FISHES-APHREDODERIDAE.
lateral line; vent always anterior; its position varying with age, being behind the ven”
trals in the young and jugular in the adult, a singular fact, first noted by Prof. S. A.
Forbes. A single species in this remarkable family is known. This inhabits the low-
land waters, ditches and bayous of the Mississippi Valley and Atlantic coast,
GENUS 60. APEIREDODERUS. Le Sueur.
Aphredoderus, LeSueur, CUV. et VAL, Hist. Nat, des Poiss, ix, 1838, 329.
Sternotremia, NELSON, Bull. Ills. Soc. Nat. Hist., i, 1876, 39.
A8termotremia, Nelson, JORDAN, Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., x, 1877, −.
Aphrodedirus, COPE. Aphododerus, JORDAN, corrected orthography.
Type, Aphredoderw8 gibbogus, LeSueur, = Scolopsis 8ayamw8, Gilliams.
Etymology, aphodo8, excrement; dere, the neck or throat, from position of the vent.
Characters of the genus included above. The body in the known species is rather
short, compressed, thickened and bluntish forward; the general color is olivaceous, and
a dark bar is present below the eye and at the base of the caudal fin.
The study of the position of the vent in this genus has developed some singular
things. It becomes evident from the examination of a large series that the position of
the vent is not a character of generic importance, as was supposed when the genus
Sternotremia was proposed, nor is it apparently an individual or a sexual character as
has since been suggested. The observations of Professor Forbes, verified by myself, ap-
pear to show that the position of the vent is dependent on the age of the fish. In the
adult, the vent is jugular, close behind the little projecting knob at the throat. In the
youngest specimens examined, it is more or less behind the ventral fins. In specimens
intermediate in size, its position is intermediate, the degree of advancement being pro-
portionate to the size of the fish.
Occasional irregularities occur, but the above rule holds so generally that it cannot
be merely accidental. From it, I infer that in the very young, the position of the went
will be found to be as usual in Percoid fishes, as in the young Flounder the eyes
are symmetrical, the aberrant characters being developed with age.
This moving forward of the vent seems to be simply due to the lengthening of the
horizontal part of the intestine or “rectura” of the fish. Aphododerus 8ayanus is one of
the most highly interesting of our fishes and a complete study of its embryology would
be very desirable.
A closely related family Jºlaggomatidae, with a single known species Elaggoma zomatum
occurs in the streams and ponds of Southern Illinois and may be found in Ohio. It is
perhaps the smallest of all spinous fishes. In Elab8oma, the vent is normal in position
and the ventral rays are in the normal number I, 5. The dorsal fin is rednced in size as
in Aphredoderus. -
112. APHREDODERUs SAYANUS (Gilliams) Dekay.
Pirate Perch.
Scolopsis sayanus, GILLIAMS, Journ. Acad, Nat. Sci. Phila., iv., 182—, 81.
Aphredoderus gayanus, DEKAY, New York Fauna, Fishes, 1842, 35,-BAIRD, Ninth Smith-
sonian Rept., 1855, 326–GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes Brit, Mus., i, 271, and of authors
generally. -
PIRATE PERCH. 921
Aphododerub 8ayanus, JORDAN, Man. Vert., 2d Ed., 249.
Aphredoderud gibbogus, (LeSueur) CUV. and VAL, Hist, Nat, des Poiss., ix, 1833, 418.
Sternotremia isolepia, NELSON, Bull. Ills. Mus. Nat. Hist., 1876, 39.—JORDAN, Proc. Acad.
Nat. Sci. Phila., 1877, 71 (specimens with vent posterior).
Aetermotremia isolepia, NELSON, Bull. U. S. Nat. Museum, x, 1877, −.
Aphododerug ibolepia, JorDAN, Man. Vert., 2d Ed , 1878,249.
Aphrodedirus cookianus, Jordan, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila, 1877, 60 (waters of
Maumee River, specimens with vent anterior).
Aphododerw8 cookianus, JORDAN, Bull. U. S. Mus., x, 1877, −.
A8ternotremia megotrema, JORDAN, Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., x, 1877, - (specimens with vent
intermediate.)
Description.—Body broad, stout, elevated at the dorsal, the depth 33 in length, with-
out caudal; head large, broad and stout, 3 in length, its greatest thickness a little more
than half its length, its depth at the pupil a little less; mouth wide, lower jaw longest :
maxillary reaching anterior margin of eye; eye moderate, 4% in snout, its posterior mar-
gin of eye; eye moderate, 4% in snout, its posterior margin nearly midway of head, 1} ,
in snout, and in interorbital space; lower posterior angle of cheek about a right angle :
fin rays D.III., 11; A. II., 6; W. 7; B. 6; pyloric coeca 12; beginning of dorsal much
nearer snout than base of caudal, base of dorsal 1 4-5 in distance from Snout to first ray ;
pectoral as long as from snout to opercular margin ; tips of pectorals not reaching as far
as those of ventrals; ventrals considerably more than half length of head, reaching four-
fifths the distance to anal; long anal spine 2% in head ; caudal rounded; scales very
small, strongly ctenoid, not easily seen along the middle of the body, largest on cheeks
and on opercles; 48 to 55 series along sides; color dark olive, appearing bronze in
spirits, profusely speckled with dark points, which give the fins a dark color; a dark
bar at base of caudal and a light one behind it. Length 3 to 4 inches.
Habitat, Maumee River. Calumet River. Wabash River, tributaries of the Missis-
sippi and lower Ohio Rivers. South to Arkansas, also in coastwise streams from New
York to Louisiana. It is found only in sluggish alluvial waters among weeds, and its
presence in the west seems to have been quite overlooked until lately.
Diagnosis.--This species will be always known among Ohio fishes by
the presence of a continuous dorsal fin with three or four distinct spines.
Habits.-Its habits are little known. It is said to be quite voracious,
and appears only at night. It is too small to be of value for food, but
will doubtless take the hook if encouraged.
FAMILY C E N T R A R C H ID AE. T H E SUN - FIS H E S.
Perch-like fishes with a single dorsal fia; six (rarely seven) branchiostegals; the
pseudobranchiae reduced in size and partly concealed, and the body more or less deep and
compressed, the regions above and below the axis of the body nearly equally developed
and corresponding to each other; dorsal fin either continuous, or more or less deeply
notched; the spines six to thirteen in number, depressible in a slight groove; anal fin
with three to nine spines, the soft rays in dorsal and anal being from nine to eighteen
922 FISHES-CENTRARCHIDAE.
in number; ventral fins thoracic, each with one spine and five soft rays; caudal fin
either slightly forked or lunate, or else rounded; mouth terminal, usually more or less
oblique; the protractile premaxillaries forming the lateral margins of the upper jaw ;
villiform teeth on jaws and vomer, and usually on palatines also ; teeth sometimes
present on tongue and pterygoid bones; pharyngeal bones provided with teeth which
are conical and acute in most cases, but sometimes more or less rounded or truncate;
gill-rakers of anterior branchial arch, exhibiting various degrees of development, long,
setiform and numerous in Pomozy8 and Centrarchus, shorter and less numerous in the
others; maxillary bone in most cases broad and flat, with a small, supplemental bone
lying parallel with it, on its posterior margin. In a few species of Lepomis this bone is
minute or obsolete, and the maxillary is reduced in size; body covered with scales,
which are rarely strongly ctenoid, and are sometimes cycloid; cheeks and opercles scaly;
opercular bones usually nearly or quite entire ; the preopercle commonly slightly den-
tate at its angle; operculum (Lepomis, Chanobryttus) provided sometimes at its upper pos-
terior angle with a more or less prolonged flap, which is always black, usually with pale
edging; in other cases the operculum ends behind in two flat points, with a membra-
nous border. In all cases a more or less distinct, dusky spot is present at that point.
Coloration usually brilliant ; ground color olive-green, varied in some cases with yel-
low, orange, or blue. The species of Lepomis are in partleular very brightly colored, and
many of the others are among the most ornate of our fresh water fishes.
All the Centrarchida are North American, and with one exception (Archoplites interrup-
tus, of the Sacramento River), all the species are confined to the Eastern and Southern
United States and neighboring parts of Cana ia and Mexico. About twenty-five species
probably exist, although more than a hundred have been described. All of them which
reach a sufficient size are valued as food fishes. All of them in habits are carnivorous,
Voracious, and “gamey.” Most of them construct rinde nests in the spawni g season,
which they defend with much spirit.
Many of the species have a wide range, and are subject to considerable variations
from the diff rences of food, water, and other causes. This is especially true in regard
to the species of Micropterus and Lepomis. The latter genus is one of the most difficult
among out fishes, in which to distinguish species.
The family Centrarchidae was first distinguished by Dr Gunther in 1859, as tribe
Gry&tina, and more fully defined in 1860 by Dr. Holbrook, under tho name Ichthelidae.
In 1864 Dr. Gill first circumscribed it under the name Centrarchidae, the names Iohthelidab
and Grystida, being considered untenable, as the genera called Grybtes and Ichthelić had
both received prior names Micropterus and Lepomis. Its relations are very close to the
Serranidae and other Percoid groups, from which it can scarcely be distinguished as a
true family.
ANALYSIS OF GENERA OF CENTRARCIIIDAE.
* Body more or less short and deep, compressed ; dorsal fin not deeply notched.
a. Dorsal and anal fins about equal, the soft portion of the latter longest and most
posterior; opercle emarginate ; gill-rakers Setiform, very long, finely dentate,
in large number; caudal fin emarginate. &
b. Spinous dorsal shorter than soft part, the spines 5 to 8 in number, rapidly grad-
uated ; anal spines normally 6; body compressed and elongate ; mouth large.
POMOXY.S. 61.
GENERA OF CENTRARCHIDAE. 923
bb. Spinous dorsal longer than soft part, the spines about 12 in number, not rap-
idly graduated; anal spines normally 8; body deep ; mouth moderate.
CENTRARCHUS 62.
aa. Dorsal fin much longer than anal fin, the base of the former 14 to 3 times that of
the latter; the soft parts of the two fins about equal, of 8 to 14 rays, and end-
ing at the same vertical behind.
c. Body comparatively short and deep; compressed; anal spines well-developed,
dorsal spines strong, not separated by a deep notch from the 80ft ray8.
d. Tongue and pterygoid bones toothless; mouth moderate or small.
e. Operculum ending behind in an entire convex process or flap, which is al-
ways more or less black; dorsal spines normally 10; anal spines 3; the
soft rays in each fin about 10; caudal fin emarginate.
f. Lower pharyngeal bones with the teeth, or most of them, coarse, rounded
or truncate above, i. e., teeth paved; the bones themselves broad and
COD C8, V6). º & tº © e * e o EUPOMOTIS. 63.
ff. Lower pharyngeal bones narrow, with the teeth all, or nearly all, conio
and sharp. º º ſº º e LEPOMIS. 64.
dd. Tongue and pterygoid bones with teeth; mouth large.
g Operculum ending behind in a convex flap; anal spines 3.
CHAENOBRYTTUS. 65.
gg. Operculum emarginate behind ; anal spines usually 6.
AMBLOPLITES. 66.
** Body elongate, not greatly compressed; dorsal spines 10; anal 3; dorsal fin nearly
divided into two fins by a deep notch; caudal emarginate ; opercle emarginate ;
mouth very large; supplemental maxillary bone well developed.
MICROPTERUS. 67.
GENUS 61. POMOXY.S. Rafinesque.
Pomoris, RAFINESQUE, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila , 417 (annularis).
Pomozy8, GILL, Amer. Journ. Sci. Arts, 1864.
Hyperistius, GILL, Amer. Journ. Sci. Arts (hexacanthus).
Type, Pomoris annularis, Raf.
Etymology, poma, opercle; orw8, sharp.
Dorsal and anal fins about equal in extent, the soft portion of the latter longest and
most posterior, the two fins being obliquely opposed ; spinous dorsal little developed,
shorter than soft part, continuous with it, the spines 5 to 8 in number, rapidly gradu-
ated; anal spines normally six; body compressed and rather elongate; mouth large;
lower jaw longest ; supplemental maxillary bone well developed; gill-rakers setiform,
very long, about 20 in number, armed with teeth; palatine teeth present; opercle emar-
ginate behind; scales nearly smooth. f
This genus contains, so far as is known, but two species; both of which are described
below :
ANALYSIS OF SPECIES OF POMOxYs,
a. Dorsal Spines 6. e e © ſº & e ANNULARIS. 113.
aa. Dorsal spines 7 or 8. & e º º º . SPAROIDES. 114.
924 FISHES-CENTRARCHIDAE.
113. Pomoxys ANNULARIS Rafinesque.
Crappie ; New Light; Campbellite ; Batchelor; Bride Percle
Strawberry Perch; Chimguapim Perch ; Sac-a-lai.
Pomoa;is annularis, RAFINESQUE, Amer. Monthly Mag., 1818, 14; Journ. Phila. Acad. Nat.
Sci., 1818, 417; Ichth. Oh., 1820, 33.-GIRARD, U. S. P. R. R. Surv., 1858, 6.
Pomozy8 annularis, Jordan and COPELAND, Proc. Acad Nat. Sci. Phila, 1876.-NELSON,
Cat. Fishes Ill., 1876, 37.-GILBERT and KLIPPART, Rept. Ohio Fish Comm., 1877,
77–JorDAN, Man. Vert., 1876, 231; Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., No. 10, 1877, 37; Ann. N.
Y. Acad, Sci., vol. i., 1877, 97; Man, Vert., 1878, 247; Bull, Hayden’s Geol. Surv., vol.
iv. 1878, 437; Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., No. 12, 1878, 47, 76—BEAN, U. S. Nat. Mus.,
1880, 99,
Cichla 8toreria, KIRTLAND, Rept. Zool, Ohio, 1838, 191.
Pomory8 8torerius, GILL, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1865.
Pomozig mitidus, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., Nov., 1857, p. 200; U. S. Pac. R. R.
Surv., 1858, 6.
Centrarchus mitidus, GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes Brit. Mus., i, 1859, 257.
Pomory8 protacanthus, GILL, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila, 1865,
Pomoay8 intermedius, GILL, Proc. Acad, Nat. Sºi. Phila., 1865.
Pomoxys brevicauda, GILL, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila. 1865.
Description.—Body elongate, the depth usually about 2% in length of body, the profile
more or less strongly S-shaped, owing to the projecting snout, depressed occipital
region and strongly prominent, thickened ante-dorsal area ; head long, about 3 in length,
the mouth very wide, the mandible being about as long as the pcctorals ; eye large,
about 4 in head; fin rays, dorsal VI, 15, the spines varying from V to VII; anal VI, 18, the
spines frequently but five in number ; the number of spines is subject to considerable
variation, but the normal number both in dorsal and anal is six ; the proportions of the
spines also vary somewhat ; lateral line with about 42 scales (36 to 48); color, clear sil-
very olive, mottled with dark olive green, the green being chiefly on the upper part of
the body and having a tendency to form narrow vertical bars ; dorsal and caudal mot-
tled with green; anal pale, scarcely marked at all; soft rays of dorsal and anal very high,
but still lower than in P. sparoides. This species reaches the length of about a foot. The
form varies much with age, large specimens having the body much deeper and more
compressed than is the case with young fishes.
Diagnosis.--From all our species except the next, the presence of this
fish may be known by about six spines both in the dorsal and anal. The
S-curve to the profile and the larger mouth characterize this species. A
good color mark is the pale color of the anal which in P. 8paroides is
Strongly mottled. The normal number of dorsal spines is Seven in P.
8paroides and six in P. annularis.
Habitat.—This species belongs properly to the Lower Mississippi Valley,
being most abundant from Missouri South. It occurs in large numbers
in the Ohio River and its larger tributaries where it is valued as a pan-
fish. It possesses some of the “gamey ’’ qualities of the Black Bass but
to a less extent. It prefers still waters and ponds and Seldom ascends
small streams. It is rarely taken in Lake Erie.
\
GRASS BASS. 925
114. POMOxYs SPAROIDEs (Lacepede) Girard.
Calico Bass; Grass Bass; Bar Fish ; Bitter Head ; Tim Mouth;
Sand Perch ; Sac-a-lai.
Centrarchus sparoides, CUV. and VAL., iii, 1829, 88, pl. 48.
Pomozig aparoides, GIRARD, U. S. P. R. R. Surv., 1858, 6.
Cantharug nigromaculatus, (LeSueur, MSS.) CUV. and VAL., Hist. Nat. Poiss, 1828, 8.
Centrarchw8 hexacanthus, CUV. and VAL., vii, 1831, 458.—KIRTLAND, Bost. Journ. Nat.
Hist., iii, iv., 1842, 480.-DEKAY, Fauna N. Y., Fishes, 1842, 31.—STORER, Syn., 1846,
299.-GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes Brit. Mus., i, 1859, 257.
Pomoa is hexacanthus, Holbrook, Ichthy. S. C., 1860, 39.—PUTNAM, Bull. M. C. Z., i, 1863,
6.—Copé, Proc. Amer. Philos. Soc., 1870, 451.-ABBOTT, Rept. U. S. Fish Com., 1875,
1876, 837.—Jordan, Man. Vert., 1876, 231.—NELSON, Cat. Fishes Ill., 1876, 37.—
GILBERT, Rep. Ohio Fish Com., 1877, 77.
Hyperistius heavacanthus, UHLER and LUGGER, Fishes of Maryland, 1876, 111.
Pomozis migromaculatw8, GIRARD, U. S. P. R. R. Surv., 1858, 6.-JORDAN, Bull. U. S. Nat.
Mus, No. 10, 1877, 37; Ann. N. Y. Acad. Sci., i, No. 4, 1877, 97; Bull, U. S. Nat.
Mus., No. 12, 1878, 47, 76; Bull. Hayden's Geolog. Surv., ii, 1878, 437; Man. Wert.,
1878, 247.-GooDE, Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus., ii, 1879, 114–BEAN, U. S. Nat. Mus.,
1880, 99.
Hyperistius carolinensis, GILL, Amer. Journ, Sci. Arts, 1864, 93 (without description).
Description.— Body oblong, elevated, greatly compressed, the depth being nearly half
the length, the head one-third ; profile more regular than in the preceding species, the
projections and depressions being less marked ; head much deeper and shorter than in
P, annularis, the mouth considerably smaller, the mandible being considerably shorter
than peotorals; snout projecting, forming an angle with the descending profile ; fins
very high; anal rather larger than dorsal, its height being from one-fourth to ope fifth of
the length of the fish without caudal fin; dorsal VII, 15, varying to VIII spines,
very rarely WI; anal VI, 18, varying to V, 17; lateral line with 40 to 42 scales; color a
bright silvery olive, mottled with clear olive green, the dark mottlings gathered in irre-
gular small bunches, rather than in lines or bars and covering the whole body and the
soft rays of the anal as well as those of the caudal and dorsal fins; usually a dusky
opercular spot. This species reaches a length of a little more than a foot.
Diagnosis.—This species may be known by the presence of 6 anal and
7 dorsal spines, and by the presence of dark markings on the anal fin
and the region about it.
Habitat.—This species is widely distributed. It occurs in abundance
in the Great Lake Region, and in the upper part of the Mississippi Val-
ley, and in the Missouri, Eastward it has been found in the Delaware
and Potomac, the rivers of Carolina and in the Alabama River. In the
middle region it is less abundant, being replaced by the preceding spe-
cies. I have seen but few specimens from the Ohio Valley. In the
Great Lakes, this species is taken in large numbers. In the ponds and
lakes of Northern Indiana and Ohio, it is also abundant. As a food fish
it is most excellent.
926 FISHES-CENTRARCHIDAE.
Storer, and after him Kirtland and others, have confounded this fish
with P. annularis. The synonym carolinensis, Gill, was given on the pre-
sumption that the Carolina fish was specifically different from that in-
habiting the Great Lakes, which, however, does not seem to be the case.
Both this species and the preceding have been recommended for the
stocking of ponds.
GENUS 62. CENTRARCHUS. Cnvier and Valenciennes.
Centrarchus, sp., CUVIER et WALENCIENNES, Hist. Nat, des Poissons, iii, 1829, 84.
Centrarchus, AGASSIz, American Journal Sci. Arts, 1854.
Eucentrarchw8, GILL, Amer. Journ. Sci. Arts, 1864, 92 (irideus, name only).
Type, Labrus irideu8, Lacepede.
Etymology, kentrom, spine ; archog, anus, from the many anal spines.
Dorsal and anal fins about equal in extent, the soft portion of the latter longest and
most posterior, the two fins being obliquely opposed ; spinous dorsal longer than soft
part forming angle with it, the spines normally about 12 in number, not rapidly
graduated ; anal spines normally 8; body deep, compressed ; mouth moderate; lower
jaw longest; supplemental maxillary bone well developed; teeth on palatines; gill
rakers setiform, very long, in large number (25 to 30) on anterior gill arch, armed with
small teeth; scales nearly smooth; opercle emarginate, ending in two flat points;
caudal fin emarginated, But one species of this genus is now known.
Synonymy —The name Centrarchus was first proposed for Ambloplite6 rupestria, Cen-
trarchus irideus, and Pomozy8 8paroides under the names of C, a neu8 (LeSueur), C, pen-
tacanthus (C. & W.), C. irideus (Lac,), and C. 8paroides (Lac.). No type was assigned.
Afterwards (1832) species of Pomozyg (hea:acanthus) and of Chaenobryttus (gulogus and
viridis) were added by Cuvier and Valenciennes. Later (1842) DeKay added two nom-
inal species of Micropterus (fasciatus and obscurus). In 1854, Prof. Agassiz revived the
Rafinesquian genera, Ambloplites, Pomoa;is, and Calliurus for species then referred to
Centrarchus, properly retaining the name Centrarchus for the species belonging to the
original genus which had not previously been made types of other genera, i. e., O. iridew8.
In 1864, Prof. Gill suggested the name Eucentrarchus for Centrarohus irideu8 to be used
in case of the general adoption of the rule requiring that the first species mentioned
under a new genus should be considered its type, unless some other type was specified.
The species first mentioned under Centrarchus was C, aneu8, and under this view, Cen-
trarchus would be a mere synonym of Ambloplites. The general common sense of natu-
ralists has, however, rejected the “first species' rule as impracticable and undesir-
able.
115. CENTRARCHUs MACROPTERUs (Lacepede) Jordan.
Słaining Bass; Large-ſimmed Bass.
Labrus macropteru0, LACEPEDE, Hist. Nat. Poiss., iii, 447.
Centrarchus macropterus, JoBDAN, Bull. U. S. Nat, Mus., No. 10, 1877, 361; Bull, U. S.
Nat. Mus., No. 12, 1878, 36; Bull. Hayden's Geol. Surv., iv., 1878, 437; Man. Wert,
1878, 246. t
Labrus irideus, (Boso MSS.) LACFPEDrº, Hist, Nat, Poiss., iv, p. 716, pl. 5, f, 3.
SHINING BASS. 927
Centrarchus irideus, CUv. et WAL., iii, 1829, 89.-DEKAY, Fauna N. Y., Fishes, 1842, 31.-
STORER, Syn, 1846,291,-GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes Brit. Mus, i, 1859, 257.-HOLBROOK,
S. C., 1860, 18.—PUTNAM, Bull. M. C. Z., i, 1863, 6–CoPE, Proc. Amer. Philos. Soo.
1870, 451.-Jordan, Man. Vert., 1876, 230; Ann. N. Y. Acad. Soc., i, 1877, 97; Bull.
U. S. Nat. Mus, No. 10, 1877, 36; Man. Wert., 1878, 246; Bull. Hayden's Geol. Surv.,
iv, 1-78, 437; Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., No. 12, 1878, 47.-NILson, Cat. Fishes Ill. 1876,
37.-BEAN, U. S. Nat. Mus., 98.
Eucentrarchus irideu8, GILL, Am. Journ. Sci, and Arts, 1844, 93.
Description.—Body very short, Euborbicular, the snout projecting at a considerable an-
gle; back and belly closely compressed ; the greatest thickness of the body being
through the opercular region ; top of head broad and flattish, the interorbital space being
about € qual to eye; mouth small, very oblique, almost vertical, the maxillary scarcely
reaching the middle of eye; eye very large, about 3 in head; head 3 in length of body;
greatest depth 2; dorsal XI to XIII, 12 or 13; anal VIII, 13 or 14 ; lateral line
with 37 to 43 scales; color silvery green, with about 20 horizontal dark stripes along the
rows of scales, the number of stripes becoming abruptly smaller on caudal pedunche
where there are 8 or 9; a black spot on last rays of dorsal ; a blackish bar below eye.
Length of 4 to 6 inches.
Diagnosis.—This species may be known at once among our fresh water
fishes by the presence of 7 to 9 spines in the anal fin, and 11 to 13 in the
dorsal.
Habitat —North Carolina to Southern Illinois and southward, in deep
and sluggish streams of the lowland. It has been found in abundance
by Prof. S. A. Forbes in Southern Illinois near Cairo. It has not yet
been noticed in Ohio, but is to be looked for in the bayous of the Ohio
River. Where abundant, as in the Carolinas, it is of considerable value
for food.
GENUS 63. EUPOMOTIS. Gill and Jordan.
Pomotia, sp, CUy, et VAL., Hist. Nat, des Poiss., iii, 1828, and of authors generally (not
of Rafiner que, 1819 or 1820, Lepomis).
Euponotis, GILL and JoFDAN, Field and Forest, 1876, p. —.
Type, Sparus aureus, Walbaum, = Pomotia vulgaris, C. & W. = Peroa gibbosa, L.
Etymology, eu, well ; poma, opercle; ow8, ear.
Dorsal fin much more developed than anal fin, the base of the former more than twice
that of the latter, the soft parts of the two fins about equal and terminating at the same
vertical behind ; dorsal spines 10, rather high ; anal spines 3; caudal fin emarginate;
mouth small, with equal jaws; maxillary without supplemental bone, not reaching to
orbit; no palatine teeth ; gill rakers short, blunt and week, undifferentiated, destitute
of teeth; lower pharyngeal bone broad, concave, with at least the middle teeth usually
conic : scales ctenoid; opercular flap moderately developed, rounded ; colors brilliant
or rather plain ; all the known species have the opercular flap tipped with scarlet. Three
or four species of Eupomotia are now known, most of them of southern distribution.
Some of the species of Lepomis approach so closely to these, that the propriety of the
separation of the genus Eupomotis from Lepomis must be considered very doubtful.
928 FISHES-CENTRARCHIDAE.
116. EUPOMOTIs GIBBOSUs (Linnaeus) Jordan.
Common Sum-fish ; Pumpkinseed; Summy.
Perca fluviatilis gibboga ventre luteo CATESBY, Nat. Hist. Carolina, etc., iii, tab. viii,
1730.
Perca gibbosa, LINNAEUS, Systema Naturae, Ed. xi, 1760, 293, (based on Catesby).
Lepomis gibbogus, McKAY, MSS.
Sparus aureus, WALBAUM, Artedi Pisc., 1792, 290, (based on Catesby.)
Pomotis aureu8, GILL, Amer. Journ. Sci, and Arts, 1864, 93; Syn. Fishes Gulf of St. Law-
rence and Bay of Fundy, 1865, 6–UHLER and LUGGER, Fishes of Maryland, 1876,
113.
Eupomotis aureus, GILL and JORDAN, Field and Forest, v, 2, 1877, p. 190.-NELSON, Rept.
U. S. Fish Com., 1875–76, 790, 796–GILBERT, Ohio Fish Com., 1877, 80.—JorDAN.
Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., No. 10, 1877, 35; Ann. N. Y. Acad, Sci., i, 1877, 98; Bull.
Hayden's Geol. Surv., iv., 1878, 436; Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., No. 12, 1878, 15; Man,
Wert., 1878, 244.—GooDE, Proc. U. S. Nat, Mus., ii, 1879, 114,-GooDE and BEAN,
Bull. Essex Inst., 1879, 18.—BEAN, U. S. Nat. Mus., 1880, 98.
Labrus auritus, WALBAUM, Artedi Pisc., 1792, 243, (not of Linnaeus).-SHAW, Zool., iv,
1805, p. 482.-MITCHILL, Mem. Fish. N. Y., 1815, 403.
Pomotis auritus, GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes Brit. Mus., i, 1859, 261. –PUTNAM, Bull. M. C. Z.,
i, 1863, 6–Jordan, Man, Wert, 1876,238—NELSON, Cat. Fish, Ill., 1876,38.—ABBott,
Rept. U. S. Fish Com., 1875–76, 837.
Morone maculata, MITCHILL, Rept. Fishes N. Y., 1814, 19.
Pomotig maculatus, COPE, Proc, Amer. Philos. Soc., 1870, 45.
Sparus moca.8inug, RAFINESQUE, Prec. des Iec. Som., 1814, 19.
Pomotis vulgaris, CUV. et VAL., iii, 1829, 91–Cuvier, Regne Anim, Ill. Poiss., 1829, pl.
10, f. 3.-JARDINE, Natural. Libr., i, Perches, 1835, 162.—RICHARDSON, Fauna Bor.-
Amer, 1836, p. 24, pl. 76–STORER, Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist, ii, 300.-KIRTLAND,
Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist., iii, iv., 1841, 470–THOMPSON, History of Vermont, 1842,
130.—DEKAY, New York Fauna, Fishes, 1842, 31.-AYRES, Bost. Journal Nat. Hist,
1842, 10, 258.-STORER, Syn., 1847, 292-LINSLEY, Cat. Fishes Conn.—AGAssiz,
Lake Superior, 1850, 293.−HERBERT, Frank Forester's Fish and Fishing, 1850, 200,—
PERLEY, Cat. Fishes New Brunswick and Nova Scotia, 1852, 5.—STORER, History
Fishes Mass., 1867, 12.-GILL, Tenth Ann. Rept. Smithsonian Inst., 1847, 258,-
JACKSON, Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist. (nest and habits).-HOLBROOK, Ichthy. S. C.,
1860, 8–Holm ES, Rept. on Fishes of Maine, 1862, 71.—NELSON, Rept. U. S. Fish
Com. 1875–76, 699.
Pomotia catesbei, CUV. and VAL, Hist. Nat, des Poiss., vii, 1831, 469.-STORER, Syn.,
1846, 291,-DEKAY, Fauna N. Y. Fishes, 1842, 33.
Pomotia ravenellii, CUV. and VAL, Hist, Nat, des Poiss., vii, 1831, 465.-DEKAY, Fauna
N. Y., Fishes, 1842, 33–STORER, Syn., 1846, 293,-JORDAN, Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus., ii,
1878, 225. -
Pomotis luna, GIRARD, Proc. Acad, Nat, Sci, Phila, Nov., 1857, p. 201; U. S. Pac. R. R.
Surv., 1858, 22.
Description.—Body deep, very gibbous, both dorsal and ventral outlines strongly
curved; depth in adult, a little more than half its length without caudal, the head a
little more than a third; eye large, 8 to 44 in head, about equal to flap; mouth small,
comMon’suN-FISH. 929
the maxilliary scarcely reaching to orbit; profile usually forming an angle above eye,
the antedorsal region being very convex; fins well developed, the spines of the dorsal
rather high-higher than in any other of our species with blue cheek stripes; the spines
as long as from snout to past pupil; pectoral fins long, reaching to anal; opercular flap
moderate, broad and short, bluntly rounded, black except a broad edge on the lower
posterior part, which in life is always bright scarlet; in spirits this scarlet tip becomes
Whitish, but it is always present and is always a striking feature; fin rays; dorsal X, 10;
anal III, 10; lateral line with 36 to 45 scales; coloration very variable according to
the surrounding of the fish ; back greenish-olive, usually dark ; sides profusely spotted
with orange; belly orange-yellow ; lower fins orange, the upper olivaceous, with the
membranes closely spotted with orange and olive, with clear blue wavy streaks; colors
varying from blackish olive to a pale yellowish olive; adult specimens usu, illy most
brilliantly colored. Length 6 to 8 or 10 inches,
Habitat, this species is most abundant and best known of all the Centrarchidae, and it
is the one to which the name of Sun-fish is most commonly given. It is found in great
abundance, throughout New England, Canada, the entire Great Lake Region, all the
tributaries of the Upper Mississippi from Illinois northward; throughout the Middle
States, and southward in all the streams flowing in to the Atlantic, at least, as far as
Georgia. It seems, however, to be entirely absent in the Lower Mississippi region and in
the southwest generally. Its place being taken by the allied Eupomotis notatus.
Diagnosis.-This species may always be known by the peculiar form
and coloration of the opercular flap, in connection with the Small mouth
and high spines. No other species in Ohio, has a broadly rounded oper-
cle, black, tipped with bright Scarlet. Very young specimens resemble
the young of some of the species of Lepomis, but an attentive examination
will show the differences.
Habits.-In Ohio Eupomotis gibbosus is the most abundant of the Cen-
trarchidae in Lake Erie and its tributary streams. It also occurs in large
numbers in the head waters of the Wabash, Scioto and other streams
tributary to the Ohio, which have their rise in the northern portion of
the State. I have, however, never seen a specimen from the Ohio River
nor from the lower course of any of its larger tributaries, and I doubt if
it ever occurs in these, unless introduced through the canals. The same
peculiarities of local distribution may be noticed in two other species
whose range is nearly co-extensive with that of the present species Perca
americana and Stizostedium vitrewm.
The Common Sun fish is taken in Lake Erie in large numbers for the
market. Although Small it is deservedly valued as a pam-fish.
Any kind of bait large enough for it to swallow it takes with vigor
and persistence.
The following account of the nest building habits of this species—
which are shared to a greater or less extent by all the Centrarchidae, so
far as known—is given by Dr. Holbrook (Ichthyol. S. Car, p. 10):
59
930 Fishes—crºwanchior.
“This fish prefers still and clear waters. In the spring, the female prepares herself
a circular nest, by removing all reeds or other dead aquatic plants from a chosen spot
of a foot or more in diameter, so as to leave bare the clean gravel or sand ; this she ex-
cavates to the depth of three or four inches, and then deposits her spawn, which she
watches with the greatest vigilance; and it is curious to see how carefully she guards
this nest against all intruders; in every fish, even those of her own species, she sees
only an enemy, and is restless and uneasy till she has driven it away from her nursery.
We often find groups of the nests placed near each other along the margin of the pond
or river that the fish inhabits, but always in very shallow water; hence they are liable
to be left dry, in seasons of great drought. These curious nests are frequently encircled
by aquatic plants, forming a curtain around them, but a large space is invariably left
open for the admission of light.”
Thoreau (Week on Concord and Merrimack) thus spoke of this fish :
“It is the most common of all, and seen on every urchin's string; a simple and inof-
fensive fish, whose nests are visible all along the shore, hollowed in the sand, over
which it is steadily poised through the summer hours on waving fin. Sometimes there
are 20 to 30 nests in the space of a few roads, two feet wide by half a foot in depth and
made with no little labor, the weeds being removed, and the sand shoved up on the
sides, like a bowl. Here it may be seen early in summer assiduously brooding, and
driving away minnows and larger fishes, even its own species, which would distnrb its
ova, pursing them a few feet, and circling around swiftly to its nest again ; the min-
nows, like young sharks, instantly entering the empty nests, meanwhile, and Swallow-
ing the spawn, which is attached to the weeds and to the bottom on the sunly side. The
spawn is exposed to so many dangers that a very small proportion can ever become fishes,
for besides being the constant prey of birds and fishes, a great many nests are made so
near the shore, in shallow water, that they are left dry in a few days, as the river goes
down. These and the Lampreys are the only fishes' nest that I have observed, though
the ova of some species may be seen floating on the surface. The breams are so careful
of their charge that you may stand close by in the water 2nd examine them at your
leisure. I have thus stood over them half an hour at a time and stroked them familiarly
without frightening them, suffering them to nibble at my finger harmlessly, and seen
them erect their dorsal flns in anger when my hand approached their ova and have even
taken them gently out of the water with my hand ; though this cannot be accomplished
by any sudden movement, however dexterous, for instant warning is conveyed to them:
through their denser element, but only by letting the fingers gradually close about them
as they are poised over the palm and with the utmost gentleness raising them slowly to
the surface.
“Though stationary, they keep up a constant Sculling or waving motion with their
fins, which is exceedingly graceful, and expressive of their humble happiness, for unlike
ours, the element in which they live is a stream which must be constantly resisted. From
time to time they nibble the weeds at the bottom or overhanging their nests or dart after a
fly or worm. The dorsal fin besides answering the purpose of a keel, with the anal, serves to
keep the fish upright, for in shallow water where this is not covered, they fall on their sides.
“As you stand thus stooping over the bream in its nest, tho edges of the dorsal and
caudal fins have a singular dusty golden reflection, and its eyes which Stand out from
the head, are transparent and colorless. Seen in its native element, it is a very beauti.
ful and compact fish, perfect in all its parts, and looks like a brilliant coin fresh from
the mint, It is a perfect jewel of the river, the groen, red, coppery, and gold on reflec
cowoff ºrism. 931
tions of its mottled tides being the concentration of such rays as struggle through the
floating pads and flowers to the sandy bottom, and in harmony with the sunlit brown
and yellow pebbles. Behind its watery shield it dwells far from many accidents inev-
itable to human life.”
117. EUPoMoTIS NOTATUS (Agassiz) Jordan.
Pomotis notatus, AGASSIz, Amer. Journ. Sci. and Arts, 1834, 302.—JORDAN, Man. Wert,
1876, 940.
Lepomis notatus, COPE, Proc. Amer. Philos. Soc., 1870, 453.
Xystroplutes notatus, Jordan, Ann. N. Y. Acad. Sci., i, 1877, 99; Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus, No
10, 1877, 35; Bull. Hayden’s Geol. Surv., iv., 1878, 436; Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., No. 12,
1878, 61.
Eupomotia palltdus, JORDAN, Bull. U. S. Nat, Mus., x, 1877; Man. Wert, 2d Ed., 1878,
244 (not Pomotia pallidus, Agassiz.)
Description—A large stout species, of an elongate form; head 3 in length; depth about
2+; general aspect of Lepomis pallidus, but the mouth larger, reaching front of eye;
eye large, 4 in head ; iris red; scales very large, 45 in the lateral line; four rows on the
cheek; spines high and strong, the longest as long as from snout to past the middle of
pupil; pectoral fins long, but not reaching anal; gill-rakers stronger than in E. gib-
b08w8, much more strongly dentate; the pharyngeal bones as in that species are broad and
strong, covered with large subtruncate teeth ; color in spirit pale brassy green, without
traces of blue or orange; opercular flap short and rounded, shorter than in Eupomotig
gibbosus, black, with a wide pale border chiefly below and behind.
Habitat, Lower Mississippi Valley, the specimens described from the Mississippi Val-
ley at St. Louis. Others examined from Alabama River (Bean coll.). Agassiz's types
were from the Tennessee River in Alabama. Some of these sent to me by Professor Gar-
man, belong to the present species formerly erroneously identified by me with
the Pomotis pallidus of Agassiz. This species probably occurs in the Ohio River in Ohio,
but no specimens from this State are on record.
Diagnosis.-This Sun-fish resembles among Ohio species Lepomis pal-
lidus, from which it may be known by the paved teeth and by the colora-
tion of the ear flap.
GENUS 64, LEPOMIS. Rafinesque.
Lepomis, RAFINESQUE, Journal de Physique, etc., 1819, (type Labrus auritus, Linnaeus,
and of Gill, Cope, and many recent writers, not of Rafinesque, 1820).
Pomotis, RAFINESQUE, Journal de Physique, etc., 1819 (same type); Ich, Ohiensis, 1820
(not of Holbrook and recent writers).
Apomotis, RAFINESQUE, Journal de Physique, etc. (cyanellus).
Ichthelis, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Ohiensis, 1820 (auritus).
Telipomis, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Ohiensis, 1820 (cyanellus),
Bryttus, CUVIER and VALENCIENNES, Hist, Nat. Poiss. (punctatus).
Iohthelis, Hold Rook, Ich. S. Car, 1860 (auritus and pallidus).
Calliurus and Bryttw8, GIRARD, U. S. Pac. R. R. Surv., 1858.
Lepiopomus, Jordan, Ann. N. Y. Lyceum Nat. Hist., 1877 (corrected orthography).
Menotis, Jorda N, Proc, Acad, Nat, Sci., 1877, 76 (fallar).
932 - rismes—cºncunx.
Xystroplites, JORDAN, Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., x, 1878 (gilli),
Hélioperca, JORDAN, Ann. N. Y. Lyc, Nat. Hist (pallidus).
Type, Labrus auritus, L. -
Etymology, lepis, Scales; poma, opercle.
Dorsal fin much more developed than anal, its base twice or more that of the latter
the soft parts of the two about equal and terminating at the same vertical behind ; dor-
sal spines ten ; anal spines three ; caudal fin emarginate ; mouth moderate or rather
large, with equal jaws; maxillary with a supplemental bone, which in some species is
very minute or obsolete ; pharyngeal bones with conic teeth which are usually, but not
always sharp; palatine teeth present or obsolete; no teeth on the tongue or pterygoids;
gill-rakers comparatively short, sometimes very weak; operculum with a rounded flap
which is usually more or less elongate. Species of moderate or small size, usually
brightly colored. The number of species is quite large and there is considerable diver-
ity of form among them,
Synonymy.—The synonymy of this genus has been complicated in several ways. In
the first place the typical species, Labrus awritus, was very poorly described by Linnaeus,
so that it can be only identified by circumstantial evidence. The name has been often
but in my opinion erroneously referred to Eupomotia gibbogus. The genus Lepomis was
framed in 1819, to include all the Sun fishes, but the Labrus auritus, L. was expressly
indicated as its type. The sub-genus Pomotić was proposed to include this typical
species and such others as had long opercular flaps. In 1820, Rafinesque without assign-
ing any reason changed the name of his genus of Sun-fishes from Lepomis to Ichthelis, and
transferred the name Lepomis to the Black Bass. It will be evident from the above that
the name Pomotis and Ichthelis of Rafinesque, being simple synonyms of Lepomis cannot
be used for any of our genera of Sum-fishes so long as Lepomis is available." A more ex-
tended study of this group leads me to doubt the propriety of the numerous subdivisions
of this genus, formerly admitted by me. The following observations of Mr. McKay on
the genus Lepomis (Proc, U. S. Na5. Mus., 1880, 88), I quote with full eydorsement:
“This genus as uniderstood by me, includes Apomotia, Xenotis, Bryttus, Helioperca,
Xystroplites, and Eupomotis of authors. Apomotić has been separated from Lepomis on
account of the large size of the supplemental maxillary. On careful comparison, this is
found to be scarcely larger than in one or two other species of Lepomis It disappears
by degrees, but seems to exist in all of the species, though so so small as to be inappre-
ciable. I have even found it present in large specimens of L. pallidus. Its presence in the
species is only a character of degree, therefore not generic. Till the group had been more
fully studied, Xenotis was supposed to contain a large number of species, and was separated
from Lepomis principally for convenience Śake, and on the slight character of the feeble
gill rakers. By comparison of a very large series of the alleged species from Professor
Jordan's collection, I have come to the conclusion that they are all forms of single spe-
cies (L megalotis). The gill-rakers are usually rather more feeble than in the rest of the
species of Lepomis, but this again is a question of degree. Bryttus has been distinguished
from Lepomis by the presence of palatine teeth. This is also a question of degree and is
subject to the most perfect gradation. I have found it impossible to retain Xygtroplites
and Eupomotis also, as there is a complete gradation in the character of the pharyngeals,
between Lepomis proper and Xystroplites, and again between Xystroplite6 and Eupomotia,
both as to the width and form of the bones themselves and the form of the teeth.”
loss-raiſº SUN-FISH, 933
118. LEPC MIS MEGALOTIs (Rafinesque) Cope.
Long-eared sun-fish; Red-bellied Brearml.
Ichthelia aurita, RAFINEsquk, Ichth. Oh, 1820, 29.
Lepomis auritus, COPE, Journ, Acad. Nat. Soc. Phila., vi, 1869, 221.
Ichthelib megalotis, RAFINEsquiº, Ichth. Oh., 1820, 29.—Jorda N, Man. Vert., 1876, 237.-
NELSON, Cat. Fishes Iſl., 1876, 38. -
Lepomia megalotis, CoPE, Journ. Acad, Nab. Sci. Phila, vi, 1869, 220.
Xenotis megalotis, Jordan, Ball. U. S. Nat. Mus., No. 10, 1877, 36; Ann. N. Y. Acad, Sci.,
i, No. 4, 1877, 98; Bull. Hayden’s Geol. Surv., iv., 1878, 436; Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus.,
No. 12, 1878, 76; Man. Vert., 1878, 242.
Pomotig mitida, KIRTLAND, Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist., iii, iv., 1841, 472.—STORER, Syn.,
1844, 294. -
Lepomis mitidus, COPE, Proc. A ner. Phiios. Soc., 1870, 453.
Pomotia breviceps, BAIRD and GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci., Phila, vi, 1853, 309,-GIRARD,
U. S. P. R. R. Surv, 1858, 28; Marcy’s Expl. Red River, La., 1853, pl. xiii, 246.
Xenotis breviceps, Jordan, Bull, U. S. Nat. Mus., No. 10, 1 77, 36; Bull. Hayden's Geol.
Surv., iv., 1878, 436.
Pomotis aquilem&is, BAIRD and GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., vi, 1853.−GIRARD,
U. S. Pac, R. R. Surv., 1858, 25; Ichth. Mex. Bound., 1859, 7.
Xenotis aquilensis, Jordan, Bull, U. S. Nat. Mus., No. 10, 1877, 36.
Pomotić fallaw, BAIRD and GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., vii, 1854, 24.—GIRARD,
U. S. Pac. R. R. Surv., 1858, 27; Ichth. Mex, Bound., 1859, 8.
Ichthelis fallax, Jordan, Man. Vert., 1876, 238.
Menotis fallaw, JORDAN, Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., No. 10, 1877, 36; Bull, Hayden's Geol.
Surv., iv, 1878, 436. s
Pomotia convexifrong, BAIRD and GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci., Phila., vii, 1854, 24.
Pomotis nefastus, BAIRD and GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., vii, 1854, 24.
Pomotis haºmatodes, (Agassiz Mss.), WAILES, Rept. on Agric. and Geol. Miss., 1854, 334.
Pomotis 8anguimolentus, AGASSIZ, Am. Journ. Sci. and Arts, 1854, 304.
Ichthelis 8anguinolentus, Jordan, Man. Vert., 1876,238.-NELSON, Cat. Fishes Ill., 1876, 36.
Xenotis sanguinolentua, JORDAN, Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., No. 10, 1876, 23, 36; Ann. N. Y.
Acad, Sci., i, No. 4, 1877, 98; Man. Vert., 1878, 242; Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., No. 12,
1878, 31, 46, 61; Bull, Hayden’s Geol. Surv., iv., 1878, 436,-BEAN, Proc. U. S. Nat.
Mus., ii, 1879, 285; U. S. Nat. Mus, 1880, 98.
Pomotis inscriptus, AGASSIz, Amer. Journ. Sci, and Arts, 1854, 302.
Lepomis inscriptus, COPE, Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., vi, 1869, 221, 225.
Ichthelis inscriptus, Jori AN, Man. Wert, 1876, 237,-NELSON, Cat. Fishes Ill., 1876, 38.
Xenotis inscriptus, Jordan, Ann. N. Y. Acad, Sci., i, 1877,98; Bull, U. S. Nat. Mus., No.
10, 1877, 33, 42; Man. Vert., 1878, 243; Bull. U. S. Mus., No. 12, 1878, 46, 61; Bull.
Hayden's Geol. Surv., iv., 1878, 436.
Pomotis popeii, GIRARD, U. S. Pac. R. R. Surv., 1858, 26.
Yenotis popii, JORDAN, Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., No. 10, 1877, 36; Bull. Hayden's Geol.
* Surv., 1878, 436.
Lepomis oculatus, COPE, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila, vi, 1869, 221.
Lepiopomus oculatus, Jordan, Ann. N. Y. Acad. Sci., i, 1877, 99.
Lepomis peltastes, COPE, Proc. Amer, Philos. Soc. 1870, 434.
934 FISHEs—CENRARCHIDAE.
Aenotis peltastes, Jordan, Bull. U. S. Nat, Mus, No. 10, 1877, 36; Ann, N. Y. Acad. Sci.,
i, 1877, 98; Man, Vert., 1878, 243; Bull, Hayden's Geol. Surv., iv., 1878, 436–BEAN,
U. S. Nat Mus., 1880, 98,
Ichthelis macrochira, Jordan, Man. Vert., 1876, 236 (not of Rafinesque) —NELSON, Cat.
Fishes Ill., 1876, 38. º
Ichthelis anagallinus, NELSON, Cat, Fishes Ill., 1876, 38 (meo Cope).
Xenotis 8olis, Jordan, Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., No. 10, 1877, 22, 36 (mec Cuv, and Wal.);
Bull. Hayden’s Geol. Surv., iv., 1878, 436.
Xenotis lythrochloris, Jordan, Ball. U. S. Nab, Mus., ix, 1877; Bull. U. S. Nat, Mus., 10,
1877, 40; Ann Acad, Sci N. Y., i, 1877, 98. $ -
Xenotis aureolus, Jordan, Bull. Hayden's Geol, Surv., iv., 1878; Bull, U. S. Nat. Mus, No.
10, 1877, 36, 41; Man, Vert, 1878, 243, .
Description.—Body deep and rather short, the occiput depressed, and the profile high
and strongly curved ; dorsal outline convex; depth more than half the length; head
with flap a little less; eye 13 in flap ; dorsal spines low, lower than in the other species
except L. cyanellus, in adults shorter than from snout to middle of eye; pectorals not
reaching vent; opercular flap very long in adult, always with a broad pale edge which
is pinkish behind and bluish in front ; in young specimens the flap exhibits every stage
of development, no two individuals being alike in this respect; colors very brilliant,
more so than in any other of our Sun-fishes, but fading rapidly after death. The gen-
eral color of an adult specimen is brilliant blue and orange, the black chiefly blue, the
belly entirely orange, the orange forming irregular longitudinal rows of spots, the blue
in wavy vertical lines along the series of scales; vertical ſins with the soft rays blue and
the membranes orange, sometimes fiery red; Ventral and anal dusky blue, appearing
blackish when folded; lips blue ; cheeks with blue and orange Stripes; top of head
and neck black; iris bright red; fins unspotted; young Specimens with the ear-flap
small, and the coloration variously dull; D. X, 10; A. III, 10; lat. 1, 40.
Habitat : This species očcurs in great abundance throughout the Ohio Valley, and,
rather more sparingly in tributaries of Lake Erie, Lake Michigan, and the Upper Mis-
sissippi. . -
Diagnosis.-Among Ohio species, when fully grown, it may usually be
known by the large ear-flap which always has a pale margin. The
young fishes may best be known by the small and feeble gill rakers. No
other of our fresh-water fishes appears in a greater variety of forms and
it is not surprising that such a long array of nominal Species should
have been based on it. -
Habits.—This species seems to prefer deep still places in rivers and
clear ponds, avoiding muddy water and small brooks. It reaches a
length of six to eight inches, takes the hook readily, and is of some value
as a pam-fish. -
119. LEPOMIs HUMILIS (Girard) Cope. ,
Orange-spotted Sun-fish.
Bryttus humilis, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila, Nov., 1857; U. S. Pac, R. R. Surv.,
1858, 21.
Lepomis humilis, CoPE, Journ. Acad. Nat, Sci. Phila, 1868, 223,
chain-sif, SUN-FISH, 935
Lepiopomus humiliš, Jordan, Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., No. 10, 1877, 35; Bull. Hayden's
Geol. Surv., iv., 1878, 435.
Lepomig anagallinus, COPE, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phil, vi, 1869, 221.
Ichtheliº anagallinus, Jordan, Man. Vert, 1876, 237.
Lepiopomus anagallinus, Jordan, Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus, No 10, 1877, 35; Ann. N. Y. Acad.
Sci., i, 1877, 99; Man. Verb., 1878, 240; Bull. Hayden's Geol. Surv., iv., 1878, 435.
Description.--A small, elongate, brightly colored species, resembling somewhat the
young of Lepomis cyanellus; depth 2+ in length; head about 3; caudal peduncle and fin
more than one-third the total length; mouth rather large; mucous cavities large; gill-
rakers long, about as in Lepomis cyanellus; scales large; 33 to 36 in the course of the
lateral line ; fins well developed; dorsal spines rather high, the longest as long as from
snout to past the pupil; coloration brilliant ; general color greenish, the fins and sides
with mottings of a darker green (a very characteristic feature); sides in adults with
many very distinct salmon red spots, very conspicuous in life, slowly fading in spirits ;
opercular flap rather large, with a very wide crimson border which entirely surrounds
the black; no blue cheek stripes; a black dorsal spot (on Cope's type, and on specimens
in the Smithsonian Institution from Indian Territory; my Kentucky specimens, how-
w ever, do not show it). Length three inches. -
Habitat, Kentucky to Kansas (Cope, type). Missouri (Cope), Salt River, Ken-
tucky (Jordan, extremely abundant, many specimes sent by Mr. W. M. Linney), Indian
Territory (specimens in U. S. Nat. Mus). Lepomis humilić has not yet been noticed in
Ohio, but it doubtless occurs in small rocky streams in the southern part of the State.
Diagnosis.--This is our sm illest Sun fish, and one of the most brilliantly
colored ; the very wide red Imargin of the ear-flap, and the green mot-
tling of the vertical fins, easily distinguish it in connection with the
long gill rakers. It is of little value as food from its small size.
120. LEPOMIS MACROCHIRUS Rafinesque.
Chain-sided Sun-fish.
Lepomis macrochirus, RAFINESQUE, Journ. de Phys., 1819, 420.
Ichthelis macrochira, RAFINESQUE, Ichth. Oh, 1820, 26. -
Lepiopomus macrochirus, JORDAN, Ann. N. Y. Acad. Sci., i, 1877, 99; Bull. U.S. Nat. Mus.,
No. 10, 1877, 35; Bull. Hayden's Geol, Surv., iv., 1878, 435; Man. Vert, 1878, 239.
Lepomis nephelus, Cope. Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci., Phila, vi, 1869, 222.
Chaenobryttw8 mephelus, Jo RDAN, Man, Vert., 1876, 235.
Telipomis nephelus, NELSON, Cat. Fishes Ill., 1876, 37.
Description,--Small, bright-colored species of a regularly oblong form ; depth 2 2-5 in
length; mouth large, larger than in most of the species of this genus, approaching that of L.
cyanellus; head somewhat pointed; mucous cavities large ; scales moderate, about 42 in
the lateral line, 5 rows on the cheeks; fins well developed; pectorals elongate, reaching
anal ; dorsal spines rather higb, much as in the preceeding species; coloration in life,
bright with lustre; general color a brilliant steel-blue with many dark bronze-orange
spots so arranged that the ground color forms a series of vertical chain-like bars very
conspicuous in life; soft rays of the vertical fins mottled with brown and the anal more
936 FISHEs—CENTRARCHIDAE.
or less edged with pale orange; no black dorsal spot; no blue cheek-stripes, but the
sides of head with a purplish lustre; opercular flap small, bordered below with silvery,
In spirits the coloration is that of a young Chanobryttus antistius, closely spotted or
clouded with brown, so that the pale ground color appears in irregular vertical chain-
like bars. The young resembles that of Dupomotia gibbogus very much, and older speci-
mens look like the young of Choenobryttus. In both cases, the generic character will
serve for identification. This species reaches a length of about four inches. • -’
Habitat, Ohio and Mississippi Valleys from Pennsylvania to Illinois, Kiskiminitas
River, Western Pennsylvania (Cope), White River (Jordan), Ohio River (Rafinesque,
Jordan), Illinois River (Forbes, Nelson, Jordan).
Diagnosis.-The chain like bars and peculiar mottled coloration best
distinguish this species. The large mouth is also a point of importance.
This fish is of no value as food, but its activity, hardiness, voracity and
beauty commend it as an inhabitant of the aquarium.
Lepomis macrochirus, although one of the very earliest described of our
Sun-fishes has been overlooked by most late writers. It is not by any .
means rare, but it is somewhat select in its localies, preferring clear
weedy ponds and streams. e
121. LEPOMIS PALLIDUs (Mitchill) Gill and Jordan.
Biune Sum-fish ; Copper-mosed Breama; Pollardee.
Labrus pallidus, MITCHILL, Trans Lit, and Philos, Soc. N. Y. 1814, 407.
Lepomis pallidus, GILL and Jolto AN, Field and Forest, 1877–NELSON, Rept. U. S. Fish
Com., 1875-76, 790, 796.-BEAN, Proc. U. S. Nat, Mus., 1880, 97.-Jordan, Man, Vert.,
3d Ed., 241. -
Lepiopomw8 pallidus, JORDAN, Ann, N. Y. Lyc, Nat. Hist, 1876, 316; Ann, N. Y. Acad.
Sci., i, 1877, 99; Bull U. S. Nat. Mus., No. 10, 1877, 35; Man, Vert., 1878, 241; Bull.
U. S. Nat. Mus., No. 12, 1878, 40, 46, 60, 76; Bull. Hayden's Geol. Surv., iv., 1878, 436,
Helioperca pallida, GILBERT, Ohio Fish Com., 1877, 80–Jordan, Ann, N. Y. Lyc. Nat,
Hist., 1876, 355.
Lepomis appendia, MITCHILL, Suppl. to Mem. Fishes N. Y. 1818, 217.
Pomotis incisor, DEKAY, Fauna N. Y., Fish, 1842, 33.-STORER, Syn., 1846, 293.—AGAssiz,
Amer. Journ. Sci. and Arts, 1854, 302,-WAILES, Report on Agric, and Geol. Miss,
1854, 334.
Iohthelis incisor, HOLBROOK, Ichthy. S. C., 1860, 12–PUTNAM, Bull, M. C. Z, 1863, 6.—
Jordan, Man. Vert., 1876, 235,-NELSON, Cat, Fishes Ill., 1876, 36.-ABBOTT, Rept.
U. S. Fish Com., 1875–76, 838. #
Lepomis inci30r, GILL, Amer. Journ. Sci, and Art., 1864, 93.
Lepiopomis incibor, GooDE, Proc. U. S. Nat, Mus., ii, 1879, 114–GooDE and BEAN, Proc.
U. S. Nat. Mus., ii, 1879, 139.
Pomotia gibbogus, CUV. and Val., Hist. Nat. Poiss., vii., 1831, 467.-DEKAY, Fauna N. Y.
& Fishes, 1842, 33–STORER, Syn., 1846, 293–JORDAN, Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus., ii,
1879, 225.
- gº Pº
BLUE SUN-FISH. 937
Pomotia macrochira, KIRTLAND, Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist, iii, iv., 1841, 469 (neo Raf.)
Pomotis speciosus, BAIRD and GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila, vii, 1854, 24–GIRARP,
U. S. P. R. R. Surv., 1858, 23; Ichth. Mex. Bound. 1859, 5–GUNTHER, Cat, Fishes
Brit. Mus., i, 1859, 263,
Lepomis 8peciosus, CoPE, Proc. Amer. Philos. Soc., 1870, 453.
Ichthelis incisor, var.? speciosus, Jordan, Man. Vert, 1876, 236.
Ichtheliº 8peciosus, NELSON, Cat. Fishes Ill., 1876, 37,
Pomotis obscurus, AGAssiz, Amer. Journ. Sci. and Arts, 1854, 302.
Ichthelis incisor, var,? obscurus, Jolºd AN, Man. Vert, 1876, 236.
Lepiopomus obscurus, JorDAN, Ann. N. Y. Lyc, Nat. Hist, 1876, 317; Ann. N. Y. Acad.
Sci., i, 1877, 99; Bull. U. S. Nat, Mus., No. 10, 1877, 35; Bull. U. S. Nat. Mos., No.
12, 1878, 56, 60, 76; Man. Verb., 1878, 242; Bull. Hayden's Geol. Surv., iv., 1878, 436,
Lepomia megalotis, a, COPE, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci., Phila, vi, 1869, 220 (nec Raf.); Proc. *
Amer. Philos. Soc., 1870, 452. -
Lepomis longispinia, COPE, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci Phila., vi, 1869, 220.
Lepomia ardesiacus, COPE, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci. Pnila., vi, 1869, 222,
Lepomis purpure8cens, CoPE, Proc. Almer, Philos. Soc., 1870, 454.
Description.—This species is the most widely diffused of all our Sun fishes and it is
every where one of the most abundant. Like Lepomis megalotis it is subject to very great
variations in form, coloration, and general appearance, yet it is usually, of all Sum-fishes,
the Species most readily recognized. The body is deep and compressed, rather elongate,
with slender caudal peduncle when young; short, deep and almost orbicular in Very old
specimens; the head is moderate, about one-third the length, with short snout, large
eye, and steep, though usually concave profile ; the depth of the body is about half the
length, in old specimens somewhat more ; the mouth is quite small, the maxillary not
reachiag eye; the opercular flap is large, entirely black, with a narrow margin at base.
nearly as broad as long in adults; in young specimens the flap is usually quite small and
broader than long; fin large ; dorsal spines very high, often higher than soft rays in
young, their length about equal to the distance from snout to posterior margin of eye;
pectoral fins very long and falcate, reaching beyond beginning of allal; scales moder-
ate ; those on cheeks in about 6 rows; lateral line with 45 to 48; coloration, adults dark
olive or bluish-green ; belly and lower parts more or less coppery ; no blue Stripes on
the cheek; a large dusky or “inky’ spot on the last rays of dorsal and anal; specimens
in spirits are usually nearly uniform pale olive or even silvery ; young specimens show
several undulating or chain-like transverse olive bars and a bright purplish lustre in
life. Length 6 to 10 inches, rarely longer.
Habitat, entire Great Lake Region. Mississippi Valley and all streams of the Gulf
States. Also in all Atlantic streams from Delaware. River to Florida, everywhere abun-
dant. Throughout Ohio, it occurs in abundance in small ponds, large specimens are,
however, rarely found except in the Lake and larger rivers.
Diagnosis.—This species may be known under all circumstances by the
dusky blotch on the last rays of the dorsal in connection with high
spines and the absence of blue stripes on the cheek.
Habits.-In the Lakes where it attains a large size it is valued as a pan
- fish, ranking with Ambloplites rupes’ris and Eupomotis gibbosus. It abounds
in every stream in Ohio.
938 FISHES-CENTRARCHIDAE.
122. LEPOMIs CYANELLUS Rafinesque,
Green Sun-fish ; Red-eye.
Lepomis oyamellus, RAFINESQUE, Journ. de Phys., 1819, 420,
Ichthelis oyamella, RAFINESQUE, Ichth, Oh., 1820, 27.
Chaemobryttus cyanellus, JORDAN, Man. Vert., 1876, 234.
Telipomis cyanellus, NELSON, Cat. Fishes Ill., 1876, 37.
Apomotia cyanellw8, JORDAN, Ann. N. Y. Acad. Sci., i, 1877, 100: Bull, U. S. Nat. Mus.,
No. 10, 1877, 35; Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., No. 12, 1878, 76; Bull. Hayden’s Geol. Surv.,
iv, 1878, 435; Man, Vert, 1878, 239–BEAN, Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus., 1880, 97.
Ichthelis melamops, RAFINESQUE, Ichth. Oh., 1820, 27.
Lepomis melamops, COPE, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., vi, 1869, 22.
Chaemobryttus melamops, COPE, Proc. Am. Philos. Soc, 1870, 452,
Chapmobryttw8 cyanellus, var. melanops, Jorda N, Man. Vert, 1st Ed., 1876, 934.
Pomolis longulus, BAIRD and GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat, Sci., Phila, vi, 1853, 391,-GIRARD,
in Marcy’s Expl. Red River, La., 1853, 245, pl. xii.
Calliurus longulw8, GIRARD, Ichth, Mex, Bound, 1859, 5; U. S. P. R. R. Surv., 1858, 16.
JBryttus longulus, BAIRD and GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci, Phila, vii, 1854, 25–GUNTHER,
Cat. Fishes, Brit Mus., i, 1859, 258.
Calliurug diaphanus, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila, Nov., 1857; U. S. Pac. R. R.
Surv., 1858, 13.
Calliurus formosus, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci., Phila., Nov., 1857, 200; U. S. P. R. R.
Surv., 1858, 14. - •
Calliurus microps, GIRARD, Proc. Acad, Nat. Sci. Phila, Nov., 1357 ; U. S. P. R. R. Surv.,
1858, 17.
Lepomis microps, COPE, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila , 1869, 222.
Telipomis microps, NI, LSON, Cat, Fishes Ill., 1876, 37, -
Bryttus 8ignifer, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila, Nov., 1857; U. S. P. R. R. Surv.,
1858, 20.
Apomotis signifer, Jordan, Bull U. S. Nat. Mus., No. 10, 1877, 35; Bull, Hayden's Geol,
Surv., iv., 1878, 435.
JLepomis mineopas, COPE, Journ. Acad, Nat. Sci, Phila., vi. 1869, 223.
Chonobryttus mineopas, CoPE, Proc. Am. Philos. Soc., 1870, 452.
Description —Body oblong, varying to elongate, often short and deep, especially in
northern specimens, the depth usually about 2% in length ; the head about 3 ; mouth
pretty wide, the maxillary reaching nearly to middle of eye; lower jaw rather longest ;
fins rather small, the dorsal spines very low, the longest scarcely longer than snout ;
scales always small, about 46 in the course of the lateral line ; opercular flap short and
small, less than eye, broadly margined with pinkish, the black confined to the bony
part of the flap ; colors extremely variable, the prevailing shade usually green, with a
strong brassy lustre on sides, becoming usually yellow below ; often nearly all deep
green, often with the blue predominating, sometimes in northern specimens nearly black;
each scale usually with a sky blue spot and more or less of gilt edging, which gives an
appearance of pale lines along the sides; besides the blue Spots, some specimens, usually
young or half-grown ones, are crossed by verbical bars of a brassy olive, or sometimes
almost black color; many adults are further marked by sprinklings of black dots ; ver-
tical fins marked with green and blue, the anal almost edged in front with pale orange;
in very young specimens, the vertical fins are of a dull red color; ventrals usually yel-
GREEN SUN-FISH. 939
lowish; iris red; cheeks with narrow wavy stripes of bright blue; usually a round black
Spot on last ray8 of dorsal and anal behind, the latter, and sometimes both, obsolete.
A Species extremely variable both in form and coloration, yet easily recognizable at
Bight. As is the case in many species, specimens from tributaries of Lake Michigan in
Wisconsin are deeper-bodied and darker-colored than those from the Ohio River. This
Species reaches a length , of about eight inches, but they are usually seen of a much
Bmaller size -
Habitat ; Lepomis cyanellw8 abounds throughout the entire Mississippi Valley and in all
the streams tributary to the Gulf of Mexico. It occurs more sparingly in the tributaries
of the Great Lakes, and has not been noticed at all east of the Mountains. Throughout
the Ohio Valley, it is one of the most abundant of fishes, occuring in every pond, and
ascending, small streams, where in may be found lurking in deep holes and under every
projecting root. It is too small to be of much account as a food fish and is valued
chiefly by the boy.
Diagnosis.-The elongated body, large mouth and low spines at once dis-
tinguish this species. It is the only species in Ohio which has but three
anal Spines, and a distinct supplemental maxillary bone, which has no
teeth on the tongue.
GENUS 65. CHAENOBRYTTUS. Gill.
Calliurus, AGASSIz, Am. Journ. Sci, and Arts, 1854 (not Raf).
Chaenobryttag, GILL, Am. Journ. Sci, and Arts, 1864, 92.
Glossoplites, JoFDAN, Man. Vert., 1876, 233. -
Type, Calliurus melamop3, Girard, = Pomotis gulosus C. & V.
Etymology, chaino, to yawn; bryttus, an allied genus = Apomotis.
Dorsal fin much more developed than anal fin, its base about twice that of the latter,
the soft parts of the two fins nearly equal and terminating at the same vertical behind;
dorsal spines strong, ten in number; anal spines three ; caudal fin emarginate ; dorsal
fins not notched; mouth very large, the maxillary reaching to opposite the posterior
margin of the eye, very broad and flat, with a very large supplemental bone; palatine
teeth very strong; a conspicuous patch of teeth on the tongue and on the pterygoid
bones ; gill-rakers long, very strong, armed with strong teeth : opercle ending behind
in a large but rather short rounded process or flap ; lower jaw longest ; body stout,
heavy, moderately elongate; aspect and dentition of Ambloplites. This genus contains
so far as is known but two species, both large, stout Sun-fishes, voracious in habit, re-
rembling Bass. The second species, Chaºnobryttus gulogus (Cuv. and Val.) Cope, occurs
only in the South Atlantic and Gulf States.
123. CHAENOBRYTTUs ANTISTIUS McKay.
War-mouth ; Wide-maeuth Sum-fish ; Black Sun-fish ; Red-eyed
Breann.
Chaºnobryitw8 gulosus, COPE, Proc. Acad, Nat. Sci. Phila., 1865, 84 (Michigan, not Cem-
trarchus gulogus, Cuv. and Val.) —JORDAN, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci., Phila, 1877, 43;
Ann. Lyc, Nat. Hist, N. Y., 1877, -; Bull, U. S. Nat. Mus., x, 1877, −; Man, Vert.,
2d Ed., 237.
940 FISHES--CENTRA RCHIDAE.
Lepomis gulogus, CopF, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1869, 223.
Chasmobrytius melamops, NKLSON, Bull. Ills. Mus. Nat. Hist., 1876, (not Calliurus melanops,
Gra.).
Gloğ8oplites melanops, JorDAN, Man, Vert., 1876, 223, 317.
Chanobryttus antistius, McKAY, Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus., 1881, 88.
Description.—Body heavy, deep and thick, stouter and thicker than in the southern
Chaºnobryttus gulogus; depth 24 in length ; head about 23; mouth large, its maxillary
reaching nearly to posterior margin of eye—the supernumerary bone strong; scales on
the cheeks in 7 to 9 rows, rather smaller than in gulosus; mucous pores about head very
large ; opercular flap rather large and broad but not long ; dorsal inserted anteriorly,
the first spine being over the ear-flap ; spines very stout, the longest as long as from
Snout to middle of eye; color in spirits very dark, almost black; three oblique bands
across the cheeks and a black opercular spot, pale-margined below, as large as the eye;
young specimens are profusely mottled, as are the young of Ambloplites, and further-
marked with vertical chains of spots; in life, adults dark olive-green above, sides green-
ish and brassy, with blotches of pale blue and bright coppery red, the red predomina-
ting ; belly bright brassy yellow, profusely mottled with bright red ; lower jaw chiefly
yellow ; iris bright red; opercular spot as large as eye, black, bordered below with cop-
per color; 3 or 4 wide dark red bands radiating backward from across cheeks and oper-
cles ; separated by narrow pale blue interspaces; upper fins barred with black, orange,
and blue, the former color predominating ; lower fins dusky ; a small black spot on last
rays of dorsal, with a few dusky specks around it. This species is best distinguished
from Ch. gulogus, by the position of the dorsal, the first spine being situated over the
opercular lobe, while in C. gulogus the first spine is situated directly over the posterior
portion of the base of the pectorals. Length 8 to 12 inches.
Habitat, Lake Michigan. Mississippi Valley, chiefly northwestward. Michigan
(Cope), Lake Michigan (Jordan), Illinois River (Forbes, Nelson), Wabash River (Jordan).
This species has not yet been recorded from Ohio, but it doubtless occurs in the west-
ern part of the State and in the Ohio River. - sº
It is a stout, voracious species, strongly resembling the Rock Bass. It is “gamey,”
and is, where abuyidant as in the Upper Mississippi, valued as a pan-fish, All the speci- -
men's examined from the Gulf States, belong to the allied species or variety C. gulosus.
Diagnosis.--This is the only one of our Ohio fishes which has teeth on
the tongue, three spines in the anal fin, and ten in the single dorsal
fin.
GENUS 66, AMBLOPLITES. Rafinesque.
Ambloplites, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh, 1820, 83.—AGASSIZ, Am. Journ, Sci. and Arts,
1854, −.
Centrarchus, CUV. and VAL., 1831, and of many authors.
Type, Lepomis iothéloides, Raf. = Bodianw8 rupestris, Raf.
Etymology, amblub, blunt ; oplité8, armed.
Dorsal fin much more developed than anal fin, the soft parts of the two fins about
equal and terminating at the same vertical behind ; dorsal fin with 11 or 12 (10 to 13)
spines; anal normally with 6 (5 to 7); caudal fin emarginate ; scales ctenold; mouth
large, teeth on vomer, palatine and pterygoid bones; a single large patch of teeth on
ROCK BASS. 941
the tongue; lower jaw longest ; a well-developed supplemental maxillary bone; gill-
rakers long and strong, about ten of them on the anterior arch longer than the rest, and
armed with teeth ; operculum without flap, ending in two flat points.
The synonymy of this genus requires no special remark. The name Amblo-
plite6 was first suggested by Rafinesque as a sub-genus of his Lepomig (1820,
micropterus) but without characterization of any importance. In 1854, the genus was
first established and characterized by Prof. Agassiz who retained Rafinesque's name as
by the laws of nomenclature he was obliged to do. But one species of Ambloplite6 is
Certainly known.
124, AMBLOPLITEs R UPESTRIS (Rafinesque) Gill.
Rock Bass; Goggle-eye; Red-eye; Lake Bass.
Bodianus rupestris, RAFINESQUE, Amer. Month. Mag, and Crit. Rev., 1817, 120.
Ambloplites rupestria, GILL, Proc. Acad. Nat, Sci, Phila., 1860, 20,—CCPE, Journ. Acad.
Nat, Sci. Phila., vi, 1869, 217 ; Proc. Amer. Philos. Soc., 1870, 451.-GILBERT, Ohio
Fish Com., 1878, 79.—NELSON, Rept. U. S. Fish Com., 1875–76, 790, 792, 796–Jordan,
Man. Vert., 1876, 231; Ann, N. Y. Acad. Sci., i, 1877, 100; Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., No.
10, 1877, 34; Man, Vert., 1878, 237; Bull. Hayden's Geol. Surv., iv., 1878, 435; Bull.
U. S. Nat. Mus., No. 12, 1878, 40, 46, 60, 75.—GooDE, Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus., ii, 1879,
114,-BEAN Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus., 1880, 97, and of all recent American writers.
Ichthelis erythrops, RAFINESQUE, Ichth Oh., 1820, 29.
Cichla anea, LESUku R, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila, 1823, 214.
Centrarchus aneus, CUv. et VAL, iii, 1829.-KIRTLAND, Zool. Ohio, 1838, pp. 168, 191,-
DEKAY, Fauna N. Y., Fishes, 1842, 27.--THOMPSON, Hist, of Vermont, 1842, 31.-
STORER, Syn., 1846, 289.-GUNTHER, Cat. Brit. Mus., i, 1859, 256.
Ambloplites aneu8, GIRARD, U. S. P. R. R. Surv., 1858, 8.
Centrarchw8 pentacanthus, CUV. ºt WAL. iii,, 1829, 88.—DEKAY, Fauna N. Y., Fish., 1842,
30.-STORER, Syn., 1846, 290.
* Ambloplites cavifrong, COPE, Journ. Acad, Nat. Sci, Phila., vi, 1869, 217.—Jordan, Man,
Vert., 1876, 231; Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., No. 10, 1877, 34; Bull. Hayden's Geol. Surv.,
iii, 1878, 435; Man. Vert., 1878, 237.
Description.—Body oblong, the depth about 2% in length; head 3 in length, the profile
convex, eye about equal to snout, 3% to 3% in head, about equal to length of opercle;
cheeks with about eight rows of Scales and a naked area ; dorsal spines stout, rather
low ; D. XI, 11 ; A. VI, 10; lateral line with about 40 scales; general color, a brassy
olive-green, with much dark mottling, the young irregularly blotched with black, the
adult more uniformly colored, each scale with a Equarish dusky blotch, these forming
more or less distinct longitudinal stripes; fins dark olive the soft rays more or less
barred ; iris red. This species reaches the length of about a foot.
Habitat, Vermont and Lower Canada to Great Lake Region. Minnesota, Dakota,
and southward to Texas ; chiefly west of the Alleghanies.
Diagnosis.-This species may be known at once as the only one in
Ohio having 10 to 12 Spines in the dorsal and 5 to 7 in the anal.
Habits.-This familiar fish is abundant in all streams, lakes and ponds
of Ohio. Like all the larger Centrarchidae it is an excellent pan fish, and
942 FISHES-CENTRARCHIDAE.
is deservedly valued as food. It is a free biter, but anglers consider it
destitute of game. It is recommended for propagation in ponds.
GENUS 67. MICROPTERUS. Lacepede.
Micropterus, LACEPEDE, Hist. Nat, des Poiss., iv., 1802, 325.
Calliurus, RAFINESQUE, Journ. de Physique, 1819, 420.
Lepomis, RAFINEsquE, Ich. Oh, 1820, 30. (Not of Raf., 1819.)
Aplites, RAFINESQUE, Ich, Oh., 1820, 30.
Nemocampsis, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh., 1820, 31.
Dioplites, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh, 1820, 32.
Aplesion, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh, 1820, 36.
Huro, Cuv, and VAL, Hist. Nat, des Poiss., ii, 1828, 124.
Grystes, CUV. and VAL, Hist. Nat, des Poiss., iii, 1829, 54.
Type, Micropterus dolomieu, Lacepede.
Etymology, mikros, Small; pteron, fin. The dorsal fin in the typical specimen having
been injured, its posterior rays detached and bitten off short, were taken by Lacepede
for a separate fin. -
Body elongate, ovate, compressed, the back not much elevated; head oblong, conic ;
mouth very large, oblique, the broad maxillary reaching nearly to or beyond the pos-
terior margin of the eye, the supplemental bone well developed; lower jaw prominent;
teeth on jaws, vomer, and palatines, usually none on the tongue; preopercle entire ;
operculum ending in two flat points, without cartilaginous flap ; branchiostegals
normally 6; scales rather small, weakly ctenoid; lateral line continuous; dorsal fin
divided by a deep notch, the spines low and rather feeble, 10 in number; anal spines 3,
the anal fin much smallér than the dorsal, caudal fin emarginate; size large,
The two species of this genus are among the most characteristic game
fishes of America. The synonymy of the genus and of both species has
been very much confused; but, in our opinion, the momenclature now
adopted, after numerous changes, must hereafter be accepted.
The following article, contributed by the present writer to Forest and
‘Stream (Nov. 28, 1878) gives a resume of the matter of the momenclature
as generally understood, before the more critical examination of the sub-
ject, made by Dr. Henshall in his “Book of the Black Bass.”
Since the publication of the name Micropterus pallidus (Raf.), Gill and Jordan, as a
gubstitute for Micropterus nigricans for the scientific name of the Large-mouthed Black
Bass, I have received numerous congratulations, Verbal and written, from brother fish-
ermen on the appropriateness of the name selected, and I presume that my colleague in
this matter, Professor Gill, has had a similar experience. Lately a correspondent of
Forest and Stream, Mr. A. F. Clapp, suggests that the name Micropterw8 8almoides be like-
wise “stamped out. ” to make room for some more appropriate appellation. It seems
timely, therefore, that we should “rise and explain.” -
The pame Micropterw8 pallidus is not a name of our own selection, but a name which,
FOCK BASS. 943.
by the laws of scientific nomenclature, we are bound to use. By the operation of these
laws every genus must bear the oldest (generic) name bestowed on any of its members,
unless this name has been previously used for something else, or is glaringly false (not
simply irrevelant or inappropriate), or is otherwise ineligible; every species must bear
the first (specific) name imposed upon it (unless, as before, it be for one reason or
another ineligible), and the proper name of any species must be made by combining the
above mentioned specific and generic names.
This is the law on the subject, and, as elsewhere, the law is usually, though not al-
ways simply right. We accept many meaningless, or even objectionable names, to
avoid the confusion attendant upon arbitrary changes. Were it not for these rules
science would ever suffer, as it has much suffered in the past from the efforts of the
improvers of nomenclature—men who invent new names for old objects, for the purpose
of seeing their own personal designations, Smith, Jones, Brehm, Reichenow, or what
not, after them. In the words of “a right Sagamann,” John Cassin: “There is not,
evidently, any other course consistent with justice and the plainest principles of right
and morality, and, in fact, no alternative, unless, indeed, an operator is disposed to set
himself up for the first of all history, as is said of an early Chinese emperor. The latter
course, in a degree, singular as it may appear, is not entirely unknown to naturalists,
especially to those who regard science as a milch cow rather than a transcendent god-
dess, a distinction in classification first made by the great poet Schiller.”
Now, as to the names of our species of Bass, I take it for granted that the reader
knows (a) what a Black Bass is, and what it is not (b); that there are two species of
Black Bass, the large-mouthed and the small-mouthed, the latter being with most
anglers the Black Bass par eaccellence, the other the off horse, and (c) what the difference
between them is. In any event you will find it written in Professor Gill’s most excel-
lent paper, “On the Species of the Genus Micropterus,” in the “Proceedings of the
American Association for the Advancement of Science in 1873.”
The earliest published notice of a Black Bass with a scientific name was one of the
small-mouthed kind, sent to Lacepede from South Carolina. This specimen bore with
it the name of “trout,” after the abominable, contemptible, and pernicious and other-
wise detestable custom of our erring Southern brethren of calling a black bass in the
river, or a weak fish in the sea a “trout.” Now, we may presume that the great French
naturalist was puzzled by this name, and put on his spectacles to see what in the
world could be “trout-like" about such a fish, with its coarse scales and spinous fins.
To him it looked more like a wrasse or cunner, Labrus, than a trout; but no matter, it
must resemble a trout somehow or the Americans would not call it so. So he put it
down in his great work as Labrus salmoides, the trout-like Labrus, to the everlasting
injury of the fish, the name is not only senseless, but bad Latin, the proper form of the
word being Salmonoides. ... • -
Lacepede had another specimen of the Black Bass, without label, and from an un-
known locality. This one had the last rays of the dorsal broken and torn loose from
the rest, and was otherwise in a forloin condition. This specimen he considered as a
genus distinct from the other, and he gave it the name of Micropterus dolomiew– “ Dolo-
mieu's small tin.” Dolomieu was a friend of Lacepede, who had about as much to do
with the fish as George Washington or Victor Hugo. No one could tell, either from
figure or description, what this Micropterus dolomiew was; but Cuvier, thirty years later,
found the original type and pronounced it. Black Bass, in poor condition, and declared
that the “genus and species of Micropterug ought to disappear from the catalogue of
fishes.” - -
944 FISHES-CENTRARCHIDAE.
Then the versatile and eccentric Professor Rafinesque appeared upon the scene, and
in rapid succession gave the small-mouthed Black Bass names enough for a whole fam-
ily. First, he called it Bodianus achigan, being told that the Canadian voyageurs knew
the fish as l'achigan. Then afterward specimens of different sizes appeared as Calliurus
punctulatus, Lepomis trifasciata, Lepomis flexuolaris, Lepomis 8almonea, Lepomis notata, and
Etheostoma calliura. Soon after Le Sueur, with a lofty scorn for Rafinesque and his
doings, named specimens of different sizes, Cichla fasciata, Cichla ohiensis, and Cichla
minima. Lastly, DeKay, in 1842, called it Centrarchus obscurus, and we hope this may be
the last.
Now, the name 8almoides being the oldest is, of course, the one to be adopted. But
suppose “we stamp it out.” Is Micropterus dolomiew any better ? Out with it !
Micropterus achigan * Just as bad. I fear that the “stamping out” process would have
to be continued too long. You may spell it 8almonoides if you like, but you cannot get
rid of it.
Now, for the large-mouthed Bass. The oldest desription we find is that of a young
specimen from the Ohio by Rafinesque, in 1820, as Lepomis pallida. The description is
poor enough, and not altogether correct, but the name is a happy inspiration, as good
as 8almoides is bad. Soon after (1822) Le Sueur described the same fish from Florida as
Cichla floridama, a name which would be well enough if it were confined to the streams
of the orange groves, but it seems rather narrow in view of the fact that the fish is
found in Mexico and Manitoba, and every where between.
Next, a specimen came to Cuvier and Valenciennes, under the title of “Black Bass of
Lake Huron.” To their eyes the fish was black enough, but not a bass, i. e., Labraa, and
they called it Huro migricans, the “Black Huron,” making a new genus for it, because
their specimen had but six dorsal spines, the last four having been broken off, leaving
two dorsal fins. The colored figure, which they published, remained a standing puzzle
for some time.
In Dr. Kirtland's private copy of his own fishes of Ohio he had carefully drawn off
and colored a copy of Cuvier's figure of his Black Huron, and had all his life sought for
such a fish in the lakes and never found it. About a year before his death Dr. Kirtland
asked me if I had ever seen that fish or could tell him what it was, and I had the
pleasure of informing him what the monster really was. Next, in 1854, Professor
Agassiz, thinking that this fish in the Tennessee River could not be the same as in Lake
Huron, called it Gryates nobilis, a good name enough, but thirty-four years too late. In
the same year specimens from Texas were named Grysles nuecensis by Baird and
Girard, but the fish is found in other streams than the Rio Nueces. Then a meaty and
excellent name, Gry&tes megaStoma, was given by Mr. Garlick in 1857, which closes the
American synonymy, but the disease has broken out in France again, and Messrs.
Vaillant and Bocourt, of Paris, who ought to know better, have again described it as
Dioplites triculii and Dioplites variabilis. The poorest business a French naturalist can
engage in is that of describing new species of American fishes, A good share of our
cumbersome and confusing synonymy is due to Gallic assistance.
Now, in 1873, Prof. Gill, in his masterly review of these species, followed the thread
back only to Huro migricans in 1828, and so called the big-mouthed black bass, as he was
bound to do, Micropterub nigricans. The names floridanus and pallidus were presumed
by him to refer to the other species, for the reason that he had never seen a big-
mouthed Black Bass either from the Ohio River or from Florida. In 1876 Prof. Goode
had collected it in Florida, and so felt bound to restore Le Sueur’s name, and to call it
ROCK BASS. 945
Micropterus floridanus. In 1877 I called Prof. Gill's attention to the fact that there were
big-mouthed as well as small-mouthed Black Bass in the streams where Rafinesque
fished, and he agreed with me at once that the Lepomia pallida of Rafinesque was the
big-mouth, which is why the big-mouthed Black Bass, Oswego Bass, Grass Bass, and
Bayou Bass is Micropterus pallidus (Rafinesque) Gill and Jordan, at present date, and
such may it ever remain. ...”
Now, as to the name of the genus itself, the difficulty is just as great. The name
Micropterus is unquestionably the oldest. But (a) we are perhaps not absolutely certain
that the original Micropterug dolomieu was a Black Bass at all; (b) it was described as
distinct under the erroneous impression that it had a little adipose fin behind the dor-
sal, and (c) the name (small fin) refers to this imaginary peculiarity, and is, therefore,
incorrect.
On the other hand, the Black Bass really has smaller fins than any of its relatives,
and the name has, therefore, a certain appropriateness. I think, with Prof. Gill, that
it should be retained, although Prof. Cope and others, as good authority as we are, are
inclined to demur.
Next comes Calliurus (beautiful tail), not a bad name, for the young Bass have the tail
ornamented with black, white, and yellow, but not a very good name. Then comes
Lepomis (scaly opercles), previously applied to the sunfishes, and, therefore, not usable
for a Bass. Then comes Rafinesque's Aplites, Nemocampsis, Dioplites, and Aplesion, un-
worthy of any attention, although for some reason Dioplites has kept up a sort of life,
while the other three have wholly died.
Next comes the name Huro for the large-mouthed, and Gryates for the small mouthed.
Of course the two do not belong to separate genera. The name Gryates was given as a
translation of the name Growler, under which name the Black Bass was sent to the
museum at Paris. Thus, our two species are often called in foreign books the Black
Huron (Huro migricans), and the Salmon-formed Growler (Gryates salmoides). The name
Gryºtes is a graceful one, and has been used more frequently than any other, but there
are seven names ahead of it on the record, and first come first served, and synonymy
take the hind most.
The names Labrub, Bodianus, Cichla, and Centrarchus belong to wholly different fishes, g
and were given by different authors through mistakes as to the relationship of the
Black Bass.
I trust that this hasty and rather rambling account will be of some service to the
numerons class of my fishing brethren who like to be right in their use of names, and
who want to know, you know, but who, like Wilhelm Tell, cannot “lange briifen oder
wählem.”
The above account contains two fallacies, which vitiate the momen-
clature there adopted, namely, the assigning of priority of date to the
name Labrus 8almoides, and the supposition that this name referred to
the Small-mouthed Bass. These errors came from an examination of a
reprint of Lacepede, and were exposed on the receipt of a copy of the
original edition. These are: (a) the earliest published notice of a
Black Bass was under the name of Micropterus dolomiew. This notice re-
ferred to one of the small-mouthed species, which must, therefore, of
course, be known as Micropterus dolomiew. (b) The second notice in point
60
946 FISHES –CENTRARCHIDAE.
of time was the Labrus Salmoides of Lacepede. As shown by Dr. Hen-
shall, there is no doubt that this notice referred to the large mouthed
species, which being also a Micropterus, must be called Micropterus
8almoides.
A full discussion of these questions may be found in the “Book of the
Black Bass,” by Dr. J. A. Henshall, published as these sheets are pass-
ing through the press, to which admirable memoir the reader is referred.*
The confusion existing in regard to the proper vernacular name of the
two species of Black Bass is portrayed in the following article, from the
pen of Dr. Henshall: -
The genus Micropterus, Black Bass, includes but two species: Micropterus 8almoides
(Lac.) Gill, the small-mouthed Bass, and Micropterus pallidus (Raf.) Gill and Jordan, the
large-mouthed Black Bass, or, as it is sometimes called, the Oswego Bass. Possibly, no
genus of fishes has been the occasion of so much confusion, scientifically and popularly,
as the Black Bass. This is owing, no doubt, to its extensive habitat and wide-spread
distribution ; the original habitat of both Species being the great basin of the St. Law-
rence, the whole Mississippi Valley, or almost the entire range of country lying between
the Alleghany and the Rocky Mountains, and the South Atlantic States from Virginia
to Florida. It would naturally be expected, in view of this extraordinary and expansive
habitat, to find differences of conformation, color, and habits; indeed, it is surprising
that the variations are not more marked, and the number of species consequently
greater when one considers the great natural differences and conditions of the numerous
waters and varieties of climate to which this genus is native. We find, however, that
the most striking difference is in color, which will run from almºst black through all
the shades of slate, green, olive, and yellow to almost white, and, indeed, these varia-
tions in color can be found in almost any one State, and to a great extent in any one
stream or lake, at different seasons of the year. Slight dissimilarities of contour and
some diversity of habits also exist. But all of these differences obtain, not only with
regard to Black Bass, but to most other genera of fresh water fishes, and depend on
well known natural causes. I lived for ten years in Wisconsin, where there were twenty
lakes abounding in Black Bass within a radius of eight miles of my residence, and from
close and constant observation of the characteristics of the Black Bass in them, I could
almost invariably tell upon being shown a string of bass in what particular lake they
had been caught.
Without going into a specific and detailed analysis of the two species of Black Bass,
it will be sufficient to Say, that, as a general rule, the small-mouthed Bass is more
trimly built and of a darker or more sombre hue than the other variety, where they both
inhabit the same water; the large-mouthed Bass being rather a coarse looking fish, with
a much larger mouth, larger Scales, thicker through the shoulders, with more depth of
body, more pendulous belly, and growing to a larger size, with the color more inclined
* Book of the Black Bass, comprising its complete, scientific, and life history,
together with a practical treatise on angling and fly fishing, and a full description
of tools, tackle, and implements | by | James A. Henshall, M.D. “I am, sir, a
brother of the angler.”—IZAAK WALTON | Fully illustrated | Cincinnati | Robert Clarke &
Co. 1881,
BLACK BASS, 947
to shades of green. The color of the small-mouthed variety sometimes approaches
shades of olive or yellow; and there will often be more or less red in the iris of the eye, in
some instances shading down to orange or yellow. This latter distinction, however,
like the double curve at the base of the caudal fin, and the more forked tail—which
have been mentioned as distinguishing characteristics of the small-mouthed variety—
cannot be depended on, as one or all of these distinctions are often lacking.
The former name of the large-mouthed species, Micropterug nigricans (C. & V.) Gill,
has been very wisely discarded by Professors Gill and Jordan, who have substituted
therefor the more descriptive title of Micropterus pallidus. This has been done in jus-
tice to Rafinesque, whose priority of description of this species certainly entitles him to
this acknowledgment. Ichthyologists have, at various times, given to the genus num-
erous appellatives, and to the species more than thirty specific names, while laymen in
different sections of the country have contributed their quota of Vernacular names,
among which may be mentioned: Black Bass, Bass, Black Perch, Jumping Perch,
Trout, Black Trout, Chub, Green Bass, Moss Bass, Oswego Bass, etc. In almost every
issue of the Forest and Stream correspondents write of Bass, Bass fishiog, Bass tackle,
etc., meaning Black Bass in each instance, and take it for granted that the legion of
readers of that widely circulated journal will understand what particular kind of Bass
is meant. Now, this is all wrong, and is owing to the culpable carelessness, or perhaps,
in some instances, to a want of proper information, and is a habit that ought to be re-
formed. Let us call things by their names—a spade a spade, or a quail a quail. It is
just as easy to right the distinctive name “Black Bass” as the general name “Bass.”
Bass is a very vague term at best, meaning one thing in one part of the country and a
totally different thing in another. Along the Eastern coast it means either a Striped
Bass or a Sea Bass; in the West it may be either a Black Bass, a Rock Bass, a White
Bass, or a Silver Bass; while in Otsego county, New York, it means an Otsego Bass,
which is not a Bass at all. Then again, your correspondents write of the real Black
Bass, meaning generally M, 8almoides, the small-mouthed species, seeming to imply that
the other species is not real, or at least is not the Black Bass, but something else—a.
kind of p8eudo variety. Others, in writing of the large-mouthed species, M. pallidus—
owing to its former name, M. nigricans—have called it the real Black Bass, under the
impression that, as it was named migricans, i. e., black, the other variety must be some
other color, and was not the Simon pure article. Now, one species is not more real than
the other; the small-mouthed variety is regarded as the type species, because it was the
first to be described. It is thought by some to be a gamier fish than the large-mouthed
variety; indeed, I have sometimes thought so myself; but this notion, like the gusta-
tory superiority of the canvas-back among ducks, the delectable excellence of the brook
trout among fish, or the exquisite ambrosial flavor of Veuve Cliquot among wines, exists
more in the imagination than in reality. Both varieties of the Black Bass are equally
good as game fish, and equally good for the table. The term “Black Bass,” then, is
distinctive, and should always be used when alluding to the genus generally. In writ-
ing of the different species, they should be mentioned as the small-mouthed, Black Bass,
or the large-mouthed Black Bass, as the case may be, no matter whether the color be
black, green, or yellow. Every reader will then know exactly what is meant, and much
of the confusion and uncertainty that now prevail will be cleared away.
948 FISHES-CENTRARCHIDAE.
ANALYSIS OF SPECIES OF MICROPTERUS.
a. Mouth smaller, the maxillary in the adult not extending beyond orbit; scales
smaller, 72–75 in the lateral line; 10–12 series above the lateral line; color of
young more or less barred or spotted, without dark lateral band.
DOLOMIEU. 125.
aa. Mouth very large, the maxillary in the adult extending beyond the orbit ; scales
rather large, 65–70 in the lateral line; 7–8 series above lateral line; last spines
of dorsal very short, so that the fin is almost divided into two ; young with a
blackish lateral band. tº º tº e e ū . º. SALMOIDES. 126.
125. MICROPTERUs Dolomieu.” Lacepede.
The Small-m outlined Black Bass.
Micropterus dolomiew, LACEPEDE, Hist. Nat. Poiss., iv, 325.-HENSHALL, Book of the
Black Bass, 1881, 84. -
Bodianus achigan, RAFINESQUE, Monthl. Mag, and Critic, Rev., 1817, 120.
Micropterus achigan, GILL, Rept, Commr. Ag., 1866, 407.
Calliurus pumotulatus; RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh, 1820, 26.
Lepomis trifasciata, flezuolaris, 8almonea, and notata, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh, 1820, 31, 32.
Etheostoma calliura, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh., 1820, 36. tº
Cichla fasciata, ohiengis and minima, LESUEUR, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., ii, 216, 218,
220.-KIRTLAND, Zool. Oh, 1838, 191.
Centrarchus fasciatus, KIRTLAND, Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist, v, 1842, 28.—DHKAY, New
York Fauna Fishes, 1842, 28. -
Gry&tes 8almoides, CUV. and VAL., Hist, Nat Poiss., iii, 1854, 54, and of numerous authors.
Micropterus 8almoides, GILL, Proc. Am. Ass. Adv. Sci., B. 1873, 55.—JorDAN, Man. Wert,
E. U. S., 2d Ed., 1878, 236; Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus., ii, 1880, 218, and of most recent
American Writers.
Centrarchus obscurus, DEKAY, New York Fauna, Fishes, 1842, 30.
Body ovate-fusiform, becoming deeper with age; head large ; mouth large, but
smaller than in M. 8almoides, the maxillary ending considerably in front of the hinder
margin of the orbit; scales on the cheek minute, in about 17 rows; scales on the trunk
comparatively small ; dorsal fin deeply notched, but less so than in M. 8almoides ; color-
ation quite variable, the young dull, golden green, with bronzed lustre, darker spots
along the sides, which tend to form short vertical bars, but never a dark lateral band,
usually three bronzed bands radiating from eye across cheeks and opercles; a dusky
spot on point of operculum ; belly white; caudal fin yellowish at base, then black, with
white tips; dorsal with bronze spots, its edge dusky. In some waters the fin-markings
are obsolete, but usually they are very conspicuous in the young. Southern specimens
usually have the scales of the lower part of the sides with faint dark streaks; adult
specimens have all these marks more or less wholly obliterated, and become ultimately
of a uniform dead-green, without silvery luster; head 34; depth 3+ ; D X, 13; A. III,
10 or 11; scales 11–74–17. Length 1 to 2 feet. Average weight when adult 4 or 5 pounds.
Habitat, all streams of United States from Vermont and Western New York to South
Carolina, Arkansas, and Dakota, preferring clear or cold waters.
* For full synonymy, see ( Henshall) “Book of the Black Bass.”
SMALL-MOUTHED BLACK BASS. 949
Diagnosis.-The small-mouthed Black Bass may always be certainly
distinguished from the other species by the Smaller Scales, there being
70 to 80 in the lateral line. The color of the young is always a per-
fectly reliable distinctive mark.
Habits.-In Ohio this species is everywhere abundant in the proper
localities. As compared with Micropterus 8almoides, it is a fish of the
running waters, having little liking for warm and grassy ponds, bayous,
or lakes.
The writer can add little new to our knowledge of this most excellent
game fish. I, therefore, confine myself to making extracts from Some of
the many writers who have sounded the praises of the Black Bass.
The following article, by Dr. J. A. Henshall, first appeared in Forest
and Stream.
Those who have tasted the lotus of salmon or trout fishing in that Utopian clime of
far away, while reveling in its absthetic atmosphere, and surrounded by a misty halo of
the spray of the waterfall, or enveloped by the filmy gauze and irridescent haze of the
cascade, have inscribed tomes, sang idyls, chanted paeons, and poured out libations in
honor and praise of the silver spangled salmon or the ruby studded trout, while it is left
to the vulgar horde of Black Bass anglers to stand upon the mountain of their own
doubt and presumption, and, with uplifted hands, in admiration and awe, gaze with
dazed eyes from afar upon that forbidden land—that terra incognita, and then, having
lived in vain, die and leave no sign.
It is then with a spirit of rank heresy in my heart; with smoked-glass spectacles on
my nose to dim the glare and glamour of the transcendent shore; with the scales of
justice across my shoulder–M. 8almoides in one scoop and M. pallidus in the other—I
pass the barriers and confines of the enchanted land and toss them into a stream that
has been depopulated of even fingerlings by the dilettanti of salmon and trout fishers;
for I would not, even here, put Black Bass in a stream inhabited by salmon or brook
trout. While watching the plebian interlopers sporting in an eddy, their bristling
spines and emerald sides gleaming in the sunshine, I hear an awful voice from the ad-
jacent rocks exclaiming, “Fools rush in where angels fear to tread l’ Shade of Izaak
Walton defend us! While appealing to Father Izaak for protection, I quote his words:
“Of Which, if thou be a severe, sour complexioned man, then I here disallow thee to
be a competent judge.” -
Seriously, most of our notions of game fish and fishing are derived from British
writers; and as the salmon and trout are the only fishes in Great Britain worthy of
being called game, they, of course, form the themes of British writers on game fish,
Americans, following the lead of our British cousins in this, as we were wont to do in
all sporting matters, have eulogized the salmon and brook trout as the game fish par
excellence of America, ignoring other fish equally worthy. While some claim for the
Striped Bass a high niche in the list of game fish, I feel free to assert that, were the
Black Bass a native of Great Britain, he would rank fully as high in the estimation of
British anglers as either the trout or the salmon. I am borne out in this by the opinions
of British sportsmen, whose statements have always been received without question.
W. H. Herbert (Frank Forester) writing of the Black Bass, says: “This is one of the
950 FISHES-CENTRARCHIDAE.
finest of the American fresh water fishes; it is surpassed by none in boldness of biting,
in fierce and violent resistance when hooked, and by a very few only in excellence upon
the board.” Parker Gilmore (“Ubique”) says: “I fear it will be almost deemed her-
esy to place this fish (Black Bass) on a par with the trout; at least, some such idea I
had when I first heard the two compared; but I am bold, and will go further. I con-
sider he is the Superior of the two, for he is equally good as an article of food, and much
stronger and more untiring in his efforts to escape when hooked.” Mr. Gilmore again
says: “Americans have reason to be proud of the Black Bass, for its game qualities
endear it to the fisherman, and its nutty, sweet flavor to the gourmand.”
Now, while salmon fishing may be the highest branch of piscatorial sport; and while
trout fishing in Cal ada, Maine, and the Lake Superior region justifies all the extrav-
agant praise bestowed upon it, I am inclined to doubt the judgment and good taste of
those anglers who snap their fingers in contempt of Black Bass fishing, while they will
wade a stream strewn with brush and logs, catch a few trout weighing six or eight to
the pound, and call it the only artistic angling in the world ! While they are certainly
welcome to their opinion, I think their zeal is worthy of a better cause. The Black
Bass is eminently an American fish, and has been said to be representative in his char-
acteristics. He has the faculty of asserting himself and making himself completely at
home wherever placed. He is plucky, game, brave, and unyielding to the last when
hooked. He has the arrowy rush and vigor of a trout, the untiring strength and bold
leap of a salmon, while he has a system of fighting tactics peculiarly his own. He will
rise to the artificial fly as readily as the salmon or the brook trout, under the same
conditions; and will take the live minnow or other live bait, under any and all circum-
stances favorable to the taking of any other fish. I consider him, inch for inch and
pound for pound, the gamest fish that swims. The royal Salmon and the lordly trout
must yield the palm to a Black Bass of equal weight. That he will eventually become
the leading game fish of America is my ofb expressed opinion and firm belief. This re-
sult, I think, is inevitable, if for no other reasons, from a force of circumstances
occasioned by climatic conditions and the operation of immutable natural laws, such as
the gradual drying up and dwindling away of the small trout streams, and the conse-
quent decrease of brook trout both in quality and quantity; and by the introduction of
predatory fish in the same waters with trout. Another prominent cause of the decline
and fall of the brook trout is the erection of dams, saw mills, and factories upon trout
streams, which, though to be deplored, cannot be prevented ; the march of empire and
the progress of civilization cannot be stayed by the honest, though powerless protests
of anglers. But, while the ultimate fate of the brook trout is sealed beyond peradven-
ture, we have the satisfaction of knowing that in the Black Bass we have a fish equally
worthy, both as to game and edible qualities, and which, at the same time, is able to
withstand and defy many of the causes that will in the end effect the annihilation and
extinction of the brook trout.
As I have stated long since in the Forest and Stream, the Black Bass will exhibit game
Qualities that will at once convince and surprise the most skeptical salmon or trout
fishers, if they will angle for him with as suitable and delicate tackle as they employ
for his more favored congeners of the tribe Salmonidoº. It is high time, then, that
anglers and sporting writers should accept the situation, accord to the Black Bass his
just due, and acknowledge him as the coming game fish of America.”
As to the edible qualities of the Black Bass little need be said. Aside from its at-
tractiveness to anglers as a game fish, its flesh is of the very best. “Few better pan
SMALL-MOUTHED BLACK BASS. 951
fish are known to epicures. He is thick, solid, and heavy; has little waste and few
bones about him; is sweet, tender, and juicy, and when well cooked makes a dish fit
for a king.”— Hallock,
The following account of the breeding habits of the Black Bass is
abridged from Dr. Henshall’s “Book of the Black Bass.” The habits of
both species are usually the same :
“Black Bass are very prolific, the females yielding fully one fourth of their weight in
spawn. The period of spawning extends from early spring to midsummer, according to
the section of country and temperature of the water, being always earlier in warm or
shallow waters.
“The Bass leave their winter quarters in deep water abºut a month or six weeks
before the spawning season, at which times they can be seen I unning up streams and
in the shallow portions of lakes in great numbers. Soon afterwards, the males and
females pair off and prepare for breeding.
“They select suitable spots for their nests, usually upon a gravelly or Sandy bottom,
or in rocky ledges, in water from eighteen inches to three feet deep in rivers, and from
three to six feet deep in caves and ponds ; and, if possible, adjacent to deep water or
patches of aquatic plants, to which the parent fish retire if disturbed. -
“The nests are circular saucer-like depressions, about.twice the length of the fish in
diameter. They are formed by the Bass, by fanning and Scouring from the pebbles all
sand, silt, and vegetable debris, by means of their fins and tails, and by removing
larger obstacles with their Imouths. This gives to the beds a bright, clean, and white
appearance, which in clear water can be seen at a distance of several score yards. I
have seen hundreds of such liests in groups, almost touching each other, in the clear
water lakes of Wisconsin, Michigan, and Minnesota.
“Sometimes the nests are formed upon a muddy bottom, with a pavement or foun-
dation of small sticks and leaves, from which the mud and slime have been washed and
scoured.
“The females deposit their eggs on the bottom of the nests, usually in rows, which
are fecundated by the male, and become glued to the pebbles or sticks contained therein.
The eggs are hatched in from one to two weeks, depending on the temperature of the
water, but usually in eight or ten days.
“After hatching, the young fry remain over the bed for three or four days, when they
retire in o deep water, or take refuge in the weeds or under stones, logs, and other
hiding places.
“During the period of incubation the nests are carefully guarded by the parent fish,
who remain over them, and by a constant motion of the fins create a current, which
keeps the eggs free from any sediment or debris. After the eggs are hatched, and while
the young remain on the nests, the vigilance of the parent fish becomes increased and
unceasing, and all suspicious and predatory intruders are driven away.
“Their anxiety and solicitude for their eggs and young, and their apparent disregard
of their own safety at the time is well known to poachers and pot fishers, who take
advantage of this trait, and spear or gig them on their nests.
“I have also known Some who call themselves anglers, who take the Bass at this
time in large numbers, with the minnow or craw-fish. Of course, the Bass does not
*bite’ at this season Voluntarily, but when the bait is persistently held under their
952 FISHES-CENTRARCHIDAE.
noses, they at first endeavor to drive it away or remove it from their nests, and finally,
I think, swallow it in sheer desperation.
“After the young Bass leave the spawning beds, their food at first consists of animal-
culae, larvae, insects, and the ova of other fish; as they grow older and larger, they
devour worms, tadpoles, and small fish, and later in life, they vary their diet with craw-
fish, frogs, mussels, and water-snakes, until, attaining a weight of two pounds, they will
bolt anything from an angle worm to a young musk-rat.”
126. MICROPTERUs SALMoIDEs º (Lacepede) Henshall.
The Large-Mouthed Black-Bass.
Labrug salmoides, LACEPEDE, Hist. Nat. Poiss, iv., 1802, 716.—Gry&tes salmoides, HOL-
BROOK, Ich. S. Car., 1860, 28.-Micropterug balmoides, HENSHALL, “Book of the
Black Bass,” 1881, 110. - -
Lepomis pallida, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh, 1820, 20–Micropterus pallidus, Jordan, Bull. U. S.
Nat. Mus., x, 1877; Man. Vert., E., U. S., 2d Ed., 1878, 236, and elsewhere.
Ciohla floridana, LESUEUR, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci, Phila., ii, 1822, 219.
Huro migricans, CUVIER and VALENCIENNES, Hist. Nat. Poiss., ii, 1828, 124, and of var-
ious copyists.-Micropterw8 migricans, GILL, Proc, Ass. Adv. Sci., B, 1873, 70, and of
various writers. -
Gryates mobilior, AGASSIZ, Amer. Journ. Sci. Arts, xvii, 1854, 298.
Gryates nuecensis, BAIRD and GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila, vii, 1854, 25.
—Dioplites muecensis, GIRARD, U. S. Pac. R. R. Surv., x, Fishes, 1858, 4.
Description.—Body ovate-fusiform, becoming deeper with age, moderately compressed;
head large; mouth very wide, the maxillary in the adult reaching beyond the eye, in
the young shorter; scales on the cheek in about 10 rows, scales on the trunk compara-
tively large; lingual teeth sometimes present; dorsal fin very deeply notched; colora-
tion of the young dark-green above, sides and below greenish-silvery ; a blackish stripe
along the sides from opercle to the middle of the caudal fin; three dark oblique stripes
across the cheeks and opercles; below and above the lateral band some dark spots;
caudal fin pale at base, then blackish, whitish at tip; belly white. As the fish grows
older the black lateral band breaks up and grows fainter, and the color becomes more
and more of a uniform pale, dull green, the back being darker; a dark opercular blotch
usually present; head 34; depth 3; ; D. X, 12; A. III, 11; scales 7–68–16. Length 1 to 2%
feet. Average weight of the adult fish 6 to 8 pounds.
Habitat, Manitoba to Florida and Mexico and all intermediate regions, preferring
sluggish waters.
There is a prevalent notion among anglers that the Big-mouthed Bass
is the Northern species, and the Small-mouthed the Southern. This arises
from the fact of the great abundance of the present species in many
Northern ponds and lakes unsuited for the residence of Micropterus dol-
omiew. This idea is fallacious. Micropterus 8almoides is found in Mexico
and Florida, as well as throughout Texas. It is, in fact, as characteristic
* For a full synonymy of this species, see Henshall’s “Book of the Black Bass,” p. 110,
LARGE-MOUTHED BLACK BASS. 953
of the bayous of the Gulf States as of the lakelets of Michigan. A still
more wide-spread notion is that Micropterus 8almoides is the Southern Spe.
cies, and M. dolomieu the Northern. The two are certainly native in
Canada and throughout the Alleghany region (except streams flowing
east, north of Virginia) to Alabama and South Carolina. I have myself
taken both species in every considerable river basin within those limits.
The extreme Northern limit from which any Black Bass has been recorded
is the Red River of the North, and the specimens there obtained belong to
Micropterus salmoides. So that Micropterus salmoides has been taken farther
North, farther South, and farther West than its rival species, which can
only claim the Eastern extreme. The simple fact is that both inhabit the
same geographical area; but Micropterus Salmoides takes to bayous, ponds,
and the sluggish rivers of the far South, while Micropterus dolomiew is
found chiefly in running streams. Every Western river contains both
species, but they are not usually taken together in the same part of the
Stream.
Diagnosis—This species may be known from the preceding by the
larger mouth, larger scales, of which there are legs than 8eventy in the
course of the lateral line. The young may be known at once by the
color, the ground here being much paler than in the other, and there
being a broad blackish band along the sides.
Habits.-This species is more sluggish in its habits than the preceding,
and as above noticed, it more often frequents still waters and ponds. In
the aquarium it is less active and less hardy than Micropterus dolomieu.
It reaches a larger size than the Small-mouthed Black Bass. It is not
quite so highly valued as food, but the difference is probably very slight,
or even imaginary.
F A MILY X XI. S E R R A N ID AE. T H E S E A B A S S.
Body oblong or elongate, more or less compressed, covered with adherent ctenoid
scales of moderate or small size; mouth horizontal or little oblique, usually large ; pre-
maxillary protractile ; maxillary broad, with or without a supplemental bone, its pos-
terior part not slipping under the edge of the preorbital; jaws with bands of teeth,
some of the teeth sometimes enlarged and canine-like; no incisors or molar teeth; vomer
and palatines, with bands of williform teeth ; tongue sometimes with teeth ; pterygoids
toothless; gill-rakers usually stiff and rather long, armed with teeth; gills 4, a long
slit behind the fourth ; pseudobranchiae large; lower pharyngeals separate, rather nar-
row, with pointed teeth ; gill-membranes separate, free from the isthmus; branchios-
tegals 7 or 6; cheeks and opercles scaly; preoper cle with its posterior margin more or
less serrate; opercles usually ending in one or two flat points or spines; nostrils double;
lateral line continuous, single, not running up on the caudal fin; skull without cranial
'954 FISHES-SERRANIDAE.
spines, not cavernous; no suborbital stay ; dorsal fin variously developed, continuous
or divided, the spines stiff; anal fin rather short, with 3 spines, which are rarely obso-
lete; ventrals separate, thoracic, I, 5; pectorals well developed; caudal fin truncate,
rounded, or moderately forked, its peduncle stout and not keeled; vertebræ about 25; air-
bladder present, usually rather small, and adherent to the walls of the abdomen; intestinal
canal short, with several or many pyloric coeca ; the stomach coecal. Genera 40; species
about 300, and found in all warm seas, a few in fresh waters.
ANALYSIS OF GENERA OF SERRANIDAE.
a, Dorsal spines ten; anal spines three; branchiostegals seven; teeth all villiform,
without canines, present on jaws, vomer, palatines, and tongue; no supplemental
maxillary bone. {e © e te • U - e. e * ROCCU.S. 68.
GENUS 68, ROCCUS, Mitchill.
Morome, MITCHILL, Report in part on Fishes N. Y., 1814 (in part; a mongrel group com-
posed of species of Perca, Roccus, and Eupomolis wronge, supposed to differ from
I’erca in having abdominal ventrals. The name may be properly considered as a
synonym of Perca.).
Ičoccus, MITCHILL, Report in part on the Fishes of N. Y., 1814, 25.
Lepibema labraac, RAFINESQUE, Ich Oh., 1820, 23.
Roccus and Morome, GILL, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., iii, 1860.
Labraa, CUVIER, Regne Animal, ii, 1817 (not of Pallas, 1811.).
Type, Rocous striatus, Mitchill = Sciaena lineata, Bloch.
Etymology, Rock-fish, a barbarous latinization of the common name “Rock,” applied
by fishermen to Roccus lineatug,
Description.—Body oblong or ovate, compressed and more or less elevated; head con-
ical, scaly above and on sides; mouth nearly horizontal; the jaws equal or the lower pro-
jecting ; premaxillaries protractile; maxillaries large, without supplemental bone, only
the edge of the anterior part slipping under the preorbital; teeth all villiform, in bands
on jaws, vomer, palatines, and tongue ; eye large, orbital ridge a little elevated; pre-
opercle serrate behind and below, the teeth of its lower margin sometimes enlarged;
opercle with two flat spines; preorbital narrow ; pseudobranchiae large; Scales large;
breast scaly; dorsal fins separate or connected at base, the anterior with 9 strong spines;
anal spines well developed ; caudal fin lunate; pectorals small; species about 6, in
America and Europe, inhabiting both fresh and salt waters.
ANALYSIS OF SPECIES OF RO6CUS.
a. Serrae on lower edge of preopercle small, not directed forwards.
b. Teeth on base of tongue; anal spines graduated; lower jaw projecting ; scales
on cheeks almost cycloid ; dorsal fins separate.
o, Teeth at base of tongue in a single patch ; body oblong, compressed (Lepi-
bema, Rafinesque). e * ſº • . & & ſº CHRYSOPS.
bb. No teeth on base of tongue; second anal spine enlarged ; jaws equal; Scales
on cheeks ctenoid; dorsal fins somewhat connected (Morone, Gill).
d. Sides striped with black. & * º & & t INTERRUPTUS,
WHITE BASS OF THE LAKES. 955
127. Roccus chrysops (Rafinesque) Gill.
White Bass of the Lakes; Striped Bass.
Perca chrygops, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh., 1820, 22.
Lepibema chrygopa, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh, 1820, 23.
Labraic chrysops, GILL, Proc. Acad. Sci. Phila, 1860, 20 (not of Girard).
Roccus chrysops, Gill, Proc. Acad. Sci. Phila., 1860, 113 ard 1861, £0.-CoPE, Proc. Acad.
Sci. Phila... 1865, 83–MILNER (1874), Rept. U. S. Fish Commission, 1872–3, 6–
Jordan (1875), Ind. Geol. Surv., 1874, 212; Bull. Buffalo Nat. Hist. Soc., 1876, 92;
Man. Vert., 1876, 226.—NELSON, Bull. Ills. Mus, Nat. Hist, 1876.-JORDAN and COPE-
LAND, Bull. Buffalo Soc. Nat. Hist, 1876, 136 —JoRDAN and GILBERT, Klippart's Rept.
Fish Commissioner Ohio, 1878.-Jordan, Man. Vert., 2d Ed., 1878.
Labraw multilinéatus, CUV1BR and VALENCIENNES, Poissons, iii, 1830, 588–KIRTLAND
Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist., v., 1845, 21.—DEKAY Fishes N. Y., 1842, 24.—STORER,
Synopsis (in Mem. Amer. Acad, New Series, ii), 1846, 274–GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes,
i, 1859, 67.
Labraa, notatus, SMITH, RICHARDson, Fauna Boreali-Americari, iii, 1836, 8.-DEKAY
Fishes N. Y., 1842, 14.—STORER, Synopsis, 1846, 274.—GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes, i,
1859, 67.
Labraa albidus, DEKAY Fishes N. Y., 1842, 13.—STORER Synopsis, 1846, 275.-GUNTHER,
Cat. Fishes, i, 1859, 63.
Labraa' osculatii, FILIPPI, Revue et Mag. Zoologie, v, 1853, 164—GUNTIER, Cat, Fishes,
i, 1859, 65.
Silvery, tinged with golden below the lateral line and with reddish above; sides with
blackish or dusky longitudinal lines, 4 or 5 above the lateral line, 1 through which the
lateral line runs, and a variable number of more or less distinct ones below it, the latter
sometimes more or less interrupted or transposed, so as to appear like ancient church
music; dorsal outline much curved, second anal spine + length of bead; axis of body
rather below the middle of its depth ; head conical, slightly depressed at the nape;
mouth small, nearly horizontal; maxillary reaching middle of pupil; head about 3% in
length; depth about 24; eye large, its diameter equal to the length of the snout ; D.
IX-I, 14; A, III, 12; scales 7–55–13. Length 10 to 15 inches.
Habitat, Great Lake Region, Upper Mississippi and Ohio Valleys and northward.
Diagnosis.—This species may be known from Roccus interruptus, the only
one of the Bass which it particularly resembles, by the fact that the two
dorsal fins are entirely separated. The coloration is much more silvery
and the dark Stripes are less conspicuous in Roccus chrysops.
Habits.--This species is generally abundant in the lakes, where it is
known as the White Bass. Its flesh is very similar to that of the Black
Bass, and is similarly well flavored. In the Ohio River it seems to be
less common, but it is frequently taken. The species frequents chiefly
deep or still waters, seldom ascending small streams. It is said to thrive
well in ponds. It is a gamey fish, although in this respect inferior to
either species of Black Bass.
956 FISHES-PIERCIDAE.
128. Roccus INTERRUPTUs (Gill) J. & G.
Yellow Bass.
Labraa, chrysops, GIRARD, Pac. R. R., Expl., x, 1858, 29. (Not Perca chrysops of Rafinesque.)
Morome interrupta, GILL, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1860, 48,-J ordAN, Man. Vert.,
1876.-GILL, Ich. Capt. Simpson's Report, 1876; JoBDAN, Man. Wert, 2d Ed., 1878,232.
Rocous interruptus, JORDAN and GILBERT, Synopsis Fish N. A.
Description.—Brassy, tinged with olivaceous above; sides with 7 very distinct longi-
tudinal black bands, darker than in the other species, those below the lateral line in-
terrupted posteriorly, the posterior part alternating with the anterior; body oblong-
ovate, with the dorsal outline much arched; head depressed, somewhat pointed, its
profile concave; eyes large, their diameter equaling length of snout ; mouth somewhat
oblique, maxillary nearly reaching middle of orbit; spines very robust, second anal
spine 2-5 length of head; dorsal fins little connected; head 3 in length; depth 2%; D.
IX—I, 12; A. III, 9; Lat, l. 50. *
Habitat, Lower Mississippi Valley, extending up the Ohio to the mouth of the
Wabash or beyond. It does not seem to be very common anywhere except in the Lower
Misissippi, and nothing special is known of its habits, which probably differ little from
those of the White Bass.
Diagnosis.-The Yellow Bass may be known from the White Bass by
the fact that the two dorsal fins are connected by a low membrane. The
color in life is yellow, not silvery, and the black lateral stripes are very
conspicuous.
F A M I L Y X X II. P E R C ID AE . T H E P E R C H E S.
Body more or less elongate, terete or compressed, covered more or less completely with
rather small, ctenoid, adherent Scales; lateral line usually present, not extending on the
caudal fin ; mouth terminal or inferior, small or large, the premaxillaries protractile or
not ; maxillaries large or small, without distinct supplemental bone; jaws, vomer, and
palatines with bands of teeth, which are usually villiform, but sometimes mixed with
canines, occasionally the teeth on the vomer or palatine are absent; head naked or more
or less scaly; preopercle entire or serrate; opercles usually ending in a flat spine; bran-
chiostegals 6 or 7; gills 4, a slit behind the fourth ; gill-membranes free or connected,
not joined to the isthmus; gill-rakers, slender, toothed; pseudobranchiae small or
granular and concealed, or altogether wanting ; lower pharyngeals separate, with sharp
teeth; fins generally large; two dorsals, the first of 6 to 15 spines; anal fin with one or
two spines (three in Percichthys, a fresh water genus from Chili.) Wentrals thoracic, I,
5; pectorals often very large ; caudal lunate, truncate or rounded ; anal papilla often
present ; air-bladder small and adherent, often entirely wanting ; pyloric coeca few ;
vertebrae 30 to 45; genera about 20; species 90 to 100; inhabitants of the fresh waters
of cool regions, most of them being American, and nearly all belonging to the fauna of
the United States. The great majority of the species belong to the sub-family of
Etheo8tomatino, the Darters, all the species of which group are American. They are
YELLOW BASS. 957
among the most singular and interesting of our fishes. They differ from the typical
Percinae in their small size, bright colors, and large fins, and more technically in the
rudimentary condition of the pseudobranchiae and the air-bladder, both of which organs
are usually inappreciable. The preopercle is unarmed, and the number of branchiostegals
is six. An anal papilla is likewise developed, as in the Gobiidae, to which group the
Darters bear a considerable superficial resemblance, a resemblance, however, which in-
dicates no real affinity.
The colors of the Etheostomatinae are usually very brilliant, species of Poetilichthys,
Northonotus, and Diplesium being among the most brilliantly colored fishes known; the
sexual differences are often great, the females being as a rule dull in color and more
speckled or barred than the males. Most of them prefer clear running water, where
they lie on the bottom concealed under stones, darting, when frightened or hungry, with
great velocity for a short distance by a powerful movement of the fan-shaped pectorals,
then stopping as suddenly. They rarely use the caudal fin in swimming, and they are
seldom seen moving or floating freely in the water like most fishes. When at rest, they
support themselves on their extended ventrals and anal fin. All of them can turn the
head from side to side, and they frequently lie with the head in a curved position or
partly on one side of the body.
Ammocrypta, and perhaps some of the others, prefer a sandy bottom, where, by a sud"
den plunge, the fish buries itself in the 8and and remains quiescent for hours at a time,
with only its eyes and snout visible. The others lurk in stony places, under rocks and
weeds. Although more than usually tenacious of vitality from their bottom life, the
Darters are the first to be disturbed by impurities in the water. All the Darters are
carnivorous, feeding chiefiy on the larvae of gnats, and, in their way, voracious. All are
of small size; the largest, Percina, reaches a length of eight inches, while the smallest,
Microperca, is probably the smallest spiny-rayed fish known, barely attaining the length
of an inch and a half. They are of too small size to be used for food, although, accord-
ing to Rafinesque, “they are good to eat, fried.”
The Percinae are represented in America by two genera, and in Europe by the same
two and three others—Acerina, Percarina, and A8pro–the latter bearing a strong external
resemblance to the Etheo8tomatinae, and serving as a connecting link between them and
the more typical forms.
ANALYSIS OF GENERA OF PERCIDAE.
a. Pseudobranchiae well developed; preopercle serrate; branchiostegals 7.
(Percinae.)
b. Canine teeth none; body oblong. tº g * tº e º g PERCA.
bb. Canine teeth in jaws and palatines; body elongate. . . . STIzosTEDIUM.
aa. Pseudobranchiae imperfect or wanting; preopercle entire; branchiostegals 6.
(Etheostomatinae.)
c. Premaxillaries protractile.
d. Body extremely elongate, subcylindrical, translucent, the belly at least
naked ; lateral line complete; gill-membranes broadly united.
6. Anal spine single; anal fin nearly as large as second dorsal.
AMMOCRYPTA.
dd. Body less elongate, opaque, chiefly scaled.
f. Anal spine obscure, normally single; lateral line complete.
* BOLEOSOMA,
ee, Anal spines two, the first commonly the longer. ..
958 - FISHES-PERCIDAE.
g. Gill-membranes more or less broadly united; belly with ordinary scales.
h. Lateral line complete; maxillary adnate to the preorbital.
DIPLESIUM.
gg. Gill-membranes scarcely united ; anal as large as second dorsal.
i. Belly, with enlarged caducous plates. . ë COTTOGASTER,
ii. Belly without enlarged plates, anteriorly naked, posteriorly scaled
like the sides. e ſº § ſº ſº * e IMOSTOMA.
00. Premaxillaries not protractile. *
j. Lateral line complete. - -
k. Ventral line with a series of enlarged, spinous, caducous scales,
or if these are fallen, a naked strip.
l, Mouth small, inferior, beneath a pig-like snout. . . PERCINA.
ll. Mouth larger, the snout not projecting beyond it.
& - ALVORDIUS,
kk. Ventral line without caducous scales
m, Gill-membranes scarcely connected. † g NOTEIONOTUS.
mm. Gill-membranes broadly connected. g tº NANOSTOMA,
jj. Lateral line present, incomplete.
m, Gill-membranes broadly united. . º g ETHEOSTOMA.
mn. Gill-membranes separate, or nearly so, , , PGECILICHTHYS.
jjj. Lateral line obsolete. g * e & sº MICROPERCA.
GENUS 69. PERCA. Linnaeus.
Perca, LINNAEUS, Systema maturae. Ed. x., 1858.
Type, Perca fluviatilis L.
Etymology, Latin, Perca, a perch ; Greek, perché, from perchog, dusky.
Body elongate, fusiform, somewhat compressed; head conical ; its sides mostly scaly;
the operculum chiefly naked and rough-striate, armed with a single spine ; preoperculum
scapular and caracoid bones serrated ; mouth moderate; teeth all in villiform bands;
dorsal fins not connected, the first with about thirteen spines ; anal with two slender
spines; caudal forked; scales small, rough ; lateral line complete; pyloric coeca 3; ver.
tebrae 21—20. -
129. PERCA AMERICANA Schranck.
Yellow Percia ; Rimaged Percia; Co anarmona Percia.
Perca americana, SCIIRANCIC, 17, fide Gill,—Jordan and GILBERT, Klippart's Report Fish
Commr. Ohio, 1877, 65.—JoBDAN, Man. Wert, 2d Ed., 1878.
Perca fluviatilis, var. americana, STIEINDACLINER, Butrage, 1877.
Bodianug flavescens, MITCHILL, Ph. Trans, N. Y., 1815, i, 421.
Centropomus luteu8, RAFINESQUE, Preció deg Dicouvertes Somiologiques, 1814, 19.
Perca flavescene, CUVIER, Regne Animal, 1817–CUV. and VAL, Hist, Nat. des Poissons
ii, 1828, 46.-RICHARDSON, Fauna Borº-Amer, Fishes, 1836, 74.—DEKAY, Nafi. Hist
N. Y., Fishes, 1842, 3,-STORER, Synopsis, 1846, 17.-KIRTLAND, Bost. Journ. Nat
Hist., v., 1847, 337.-AGASSIZ, Lake Superior, 1850, 291,–GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes, Brit
Mus, i, 59, 1859–IIoLBROOK, Ich. S. Car, 1860.-STORER, Hist, Fishes Mass., 1867–
Jordan, Man. Wert, 1876, and of authors generally.
YELLOW PERCH. 959.
Perca 8erratogranulata, CUV. and VAL., Hist, Nat, des Poissons, ii, 1823, 47.—DEKAY,
New York Fauna, Fishes, 1842, 5.
Perca granulata, CUv. and VAL, Hist. Nat, des Poissons, ii, 1828, 48–DEKAY, N. Y.
Fauna, Fishes, 1842, 5.
Perca acuta, CUV. and VAL, Hist. Nat des Poiss., ii, 1828, 49-RICHARDSON, Fauna
Bor.-Amer., Fishes, 1836, 4.—DEKAY, N. Y. Fauna, Fishes, 1842, 6–GUNTHER, Cat.
Fish. Brit. Mus., i, 1859, 60.
Perca gracilia, Cuv. and VAL, Hist. Nat, des Poiss., ii, 1828, 50,—RICHARDSON, Fauna
Bor.-Amer., Fishes, 1836, 4–GUNTHER, Cat. Fish. Brit. Mus, i, 1859, 60.
Description.—Body oblong, rather short, deep, and compressed; mouth moderate, the
maxillary not quite reaching to orbit; lower jaw a little longest : eye moderate, 4% to
5 in head; top of head naked, the bones rough behind ; cheeks with rather large scales,
well imbricated ; opercle naked, and with radiating striae, of which the uppermost
forms a strong, flat spine, below which seven or eight striae end in sharp teeth; gill-
rakers comparatively short, in length about equal to the diameter of the pupil;
pseudobranchiae very small; scales rather small, 55 to 62 in the lateral line, 6 above and
15 to 18 below; first dorsal spine inserted above base of pectorals; head 3% ; depth 3};
fin rays: D. XIII–I, 13; A. II, 8. Color dark-olive above; sides more or less brassy-
yellow ; belly white; about six irregular, dark olive bars on sides; lower fins clear,
pale orange, sometimes whitish, sometimes red ; Second dorsal and caudal yellowish-
olive, somewhat dusky tinged; first dusky yellow at base, a black blotch on the pos-
terior part of the fin; lower jaw, etc., translucent 1 eddish. The coloration varies much
with circumstances, individuals living in weedy streams, being much darker and more
spotted than the average lake specimens are. Length of adult 8 to 12 inches.
Habitat, entire Great Lake Region and upper portion of the Mississippi Valley, and
in all streams east of the Alleghany Mountains, South to Georgia. West of the Alle-
ghanies it does not occur, except in the lake region and in the upper waters of such
streams as the Scioto, Wabash, Illinois, Rock, etc., rising in the same water shed with
streams flowing into the great lakes. In the upper courses of the Wabash, Scioto, etc.,
the Perch is often very abundant, but in the valley proper of the Ohio, into which these
streams flow, it is not found native, a peculiarity of distribution not yet accounted for.
The Perch is voracious and gamey, readily taking the hook, and being a handsome
fish, it usually finds a ready sale for food. Its flesh is, however, much inferior to that
of the Bass or the Pike-Perches, being rather soft, coarse, and insipid.
“The common Perch, Perca flavescens, which name describes well the gleaming, golden
reflections of its scales, as it is drawn out of the water, its red gills standing out in
vain in the thin element, is one of the handsomest of our fishes, and at such a moment
as this reminds us of the fish in the picture which wished to be restored to its native
element until it had grown larger.
“The Perch is a tough and heedless fish, biting from impulse, without nibbling and from
impulse refraining to bite, and sculling indifferently past. It is a true fish, such as the
angler loves to put into his basket or hang on the top of his willow twig, on shady
afternoons, along the banks of the streams. So many unquestionable fish he counts,
and so many shiners which he counts, and then throws away.”—Thoreau.
960 FISHES-PERCIDAE,
GENUS 70. STIZOSTEDIUM. Rafinesque.
Stizostedion, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh, 1820, 23. t
Pomacampsia, RAFINESQUE, Ich Oh., 1820 (Perca migropunotata, Raf.; an erroneously de-
scribed or mythical species.). -
Lucioperca, CUV. and VAL, Hist. Nat, des Poissons, ii, 1838, 110 (Perca lucioperca L.-
Lucioperca 8amdra, C. & V).
Sandrus, STARK, Elements of Nat. Hist., i, 1828, 466. &
Stizostedium, CoPE, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1865, 82, 85 (amended orthography).
Stizostethium, JORDAN, Ann. N. Y. Lyo. Nat. Hist., 1877 (amended orthography).
Centropomus, BLEEKER, 1877 (Centropomus gandat, Lao, ; P. lucioperca L. is the first species
mentioned by Lacepede in his genus Centropomw8—not Centropomus of Cuvier and .
Gill—Centropomus undecimalis Lac., a West India species, having been by them se-
lected as the type of Centropomw8.). g
Cymoperca, GILL and JORDAN, Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., x, 1877, 45 (subgenus, based on
Lucioperca canadensis, Hamilton Smith.).
Mimoperca, GILL and JORDAN, Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., x, 1877, 45 (subgenus, based on
Perca volgensis, Pallas.).
Perca and Centropomw8, sp. early authors.
Type, Stizostedion balmoneum, Rafinesque.
Perches, with the body elongate, little compressed, and the premaxillaries and pala-
times provided with some large teeth, arranged in rows, the rest of the teeth uniform ;
tongue toothless; head conical, elongate, depressed, partly covered with small ctenoid
scales; preoperculum serrated ; operculum armed with one to twenty spines of varying
size, the terminations of rib like elevations on the surface of the bone; dorsal fins sep-
arated, the first with twelve to fifteen spines, the second with seventeen to twenty-
three soft rays. This genus consists of about five species, abounding in the fresh waters
of North America and Europe. They are, of course, carnivorous and voracious, but
are everywhere highly valued for food.
ANALYSIS OF SPECIES OF STIZOSTEDIUM.
Dorsal fins well separated, the Interspace between them more than the diameter
of the eye; the distance from the base of the last spine of the first dorsal, and the first
of the second c qual to the space occupied by the last four to six spines of the first dor-
sal; anal fin II, 12, longer than high ; second dorsal. I, 17 to I, 21; spines of the second
dorsal and anal closely attached to the soft rays; last dorsal spine Scarcely erectile,
more or less firmly bound down by the membrane; canine teeth strong (American
species ).
* Soft dorsal comparatively short (its base one-fourth shorter than that of spinous
dorsal), and with about seventeen short rays; cheeks, opercles, and top of head more
or less closely scaled; body depressed, subterete; size small; pyloric coeca forming two
groups, the primary one of four, unequal, moderate, much shorter than the stomach;
the secondary of few (1-3) rudimentary ones, which are sometimes atrophied.
. CANADENSIS.
* * Soft dorsal rather long (one-sixth shorter than spinous dorsal), with about twenty
soft rays; cheeks and upper surface of head nearly naked; body more compressed; size
large ; pyloric coeca three, subequal, all along (about as long as stomach).
SAUGER. 961
130. STIZOSTETHIUM CANADENSE (C. H. Smith) Jordan.
Sauger; Gray Pike; Sand Pike; Ground Pike; Pickering ;
Pickerel.
.Lucioperca canadensis, C, H. SMITH, MSS., Griffith's Cuvier's Animal Kingdom, X, 1834,
275–RICHARDson, Fauna Bor.-Amer. Fishes, iii, 1836, 17-DEKAY, N. Y. Fauna,
Fishes, 1842, 19.-STORER, Synopsis, 1846, 276.-GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes, i, 1859, 75.
—JORDAN, Klippart's Report, 1877, 225.
Stizostedium canadense, JorDAN, Man. Vert., 1876, 225.-JORDAN and COPELAND, Check
List, 1876, 136.
Stizostethium canadense, JORDAN, Bull.., x, U. S. Nat. Mus., 1877, 48; Man. Vert, 2d Ed.,
1878, 230.
Lucioperca grisea, DEKAY, N. Y. Fauna, Fishes, 1842, 19.-STORER, Synopsis, 1846, 276.
—GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes, i, 1859, 76.—Jordan, Ind. Geol. Surv., 1874, 212.
Stizostedium griseum, MILNER, Rept. U. S. Fish Com., 1872–3.−JORDAN, Man. Verb., 1876,
225 —NELSON, Bull. Ills. Mus. Nat. Hist., 1876, 36.-JORDAN and COPELAND, Check
List, 1876, 136.
Lucioperca borea, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci., Phila, Nov., 1857 (not Okow or Horn Fish,
Richardson, which is S. vitreum.).
Stizostedion borew8, GIRARD, Pac. R, R. Surv., x, 1868, 31.
Stizostedium boreum, JORDAN and COPELAND, Check List, 1876. 136.
Lucioperoa pepinw8, ESTES, Hallock's Sportsman's Gazetteer.
Description.—Body most elongated, more terete than in vitreum proper, with the back
scarcely compressed, so broad that the lateral line may be seen in a view from above;
the back somewhat angulated as it descends to the sides; the depth of the body four
and one-half to five in length ; head quite pointed, about three and one-half in length ;
the slope of the profile greater than in vitrewm ; eye smaller, five to five and one-half
in adult; mouth rather smaller, the lower jaw included ; maxillary reaching to opposite
posterior margin of eye; opercle with a sharp, flat spine, usually a smaller one below
it, and an obscure one above; sometimes two or three smaller ones below, often
none; the position and number of these spines extremely variable; in variety oanadense,
sometimes as many as seventeen of these spines occur; cheeks usually closely scaled,
the hinder third, or less, sometimes naked ; median furrow on top of head closely scaled;
coloration paler and more translucent, the shades less blended than in S. vitreum, olive
gray above, sides considerabiy brassy or pale orange, with much black mottling; the
black gathered into several definite dark areas, the most distinct of these being oppo-
site the second dorsal; two others fainter, at each extremity of the spinous dorsal and
one at base of caudal; these blotches are irregular and diffuse, but wery characteristic;
young specimens are pale orange, with broad, black shades; spinous dorsal, with two
or three rows of round, black spóts, one of each row on the membrane between each
pair of spines; no distinct blotch on posterior part of the fin ; a large black blotch at
base of pectorals; second dorsal with about three rows of irregular, dark spots; caudal
yellowish and dusky, almost barred; fin rays: dorsal XII, 1–17, varying to XIII, 1–18;
anal II, 12; lateral line with ninety two to ninety-eight scales; pyloric coeca four to
seven, four of them larger than the rest, of different lengths, all small and shorter than
the stomach; the usual number is six, but the two small ones are sometimes one or both
absent, sometimes duplicated. Length of adult 10 to 15 inches,
61
962 FISHES-PERCIDAE.
Habitat, St. Lawrence River, Great Lake Region, Upper Mississippi, and Upper Mis-
souri rivers; also in the Ohio, where it has been introduced from the lakes, through the
canals, according to the fishermen,
Diagnosis.-The different form and coloration, particularly the mark-
ings of the dorsal fin, distinguish this species at once from Stizostedium
vitreum. This species has, moreover, always fewer dorsal rays, more
Scaly cheeks, and permanent armature of the operculum.
Remarks,—In comparing Saugers from widely separated localities cer-
tain differences appear, which are perhaps sufficiently constant to indi-
cate distinct varieties. Of these, three are perhaps worthy to be desig-
nated by name. The above description was drawn from the common
Sauger or Sand Pike of the lakes (Lucioperca grisea, DeKay), which should
bear the name of Stizostedium canadense, var. griseum. The Sauger or
Pickering of the St. Lawrence was the original Lucioperca canadensis of
Col. C. H. Smith. It should, therefore, be the typical variety, canadensis.
Its head is rougher and more closely scaled, and the number of spinous
points on the opercle is greater. The “Sand Pike ’’ of the Upper Mis-
souri averages rather slender, with a long, slenderer nose, and more flat-
tened and snake-like head This is the Lucioperca, borea of Dr. Girard,
and may be called var. boreum, if the differences here noted prove at
all constant.
Habits.-The Sauger never reaches a large size, the largest I have seen
being from fifteen to eighteen inches in length. It is abundant every-
where in the Great Lakes, and is valued as food, although less highly
rated than its relative, the Pike-Perch.
It is plentiful in the Ohio River, where it is probably indigenous, al.
though some claim that it has been introduced there through the
canals.
131. STIzosTETHIUM VITREUM (Mitchill) Jordan and Copeland.
war. Vitreum.
Wall-eyed Pike; Glass Eye ; Dory; salmon; Pike-Perch; Okow ;
Hornfish; Greena Pike; Yellow Pāke; Jack ; Jack Sainmoºn.
Perca vitrea, MITCHILL, Supplement Am. Monthly Mag, ii, 1818, 247 (Cayuga Lake).
Stizostedium vitreum, JORDAN and COPELAND, Check List N. Ain, Fresh Water Fishes,
Bull. Buff. Soc. Nat. Hist., 1876, 136.
Stizostethium vitreum, JORDAN, Ann, N. Y. Lyc, Nat. Hist., 1877; in Klippart's Rep. Fish
Commr. Ohio, 1877; Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., 1877; Man. Vert., 2d Fil., 1878.
Lucioperoa americana, CUV. and VAL., ii, 1829, 122–RICHARDSON, Fauna, Bor, Amer.,
iii, 1836, 10,—KIRTLAND, Zool. Ohio, 1838, 192; Bost. Journ, Nat. Hist., iv, 237.—.
THOMPson, Hist, Vt., 1842, 130. –DEKAY, Zool. N. Y. Fishes, 1842, 17.—STORER, Syn-
|BLUE PIKE. 963
opsis, 1846,276.-AGAssiz, Lake Superior, 1850, 294.—JARDINE, Nat. Libr., Perches,
1852, 107.—GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes, i, 1859, 74–Jordan, Ind. Geol. Surv., 1874, 212,
and of writers generally.
Stizostedium americanum, Copk, Proc. Acad. Nat, Sci. Phila., 1865, 82, 85.--COPE, Proc.
Am, Philos. Soc., 1870, 448.-MILNER, Rep. U. S. Fish Com., 1872–3, 426.-JORDAN,
Man. Vert., 1876, 225.-UHLER and LUGGER, Fishes of Maryland, 1876, 110,–NEL-
son, Bull, Ills. Mus Nat, Hist., 1876, 36. *
var. Salmoneum.
Blue Pike (Lake Erie); White Salmon (Ohio River);
Pickerel NO 2.
Perca 8almonea, RAFINESQUE, Am. Monthly Mag., v., 1818, 354; Ich, Oh., 1820, 21.
Stizostediom 8almoneum, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh, 1820, 23. &
Stizostedium 8almoneum, COPE, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1865, 82.-JORDAN, Man.
Vert., 1876, 225.—CopKº, Proc. Am. Philos. Soc., 1870, 449.-JORDAN and COPELAND,
Check List, 1876, 136.—NELSON, Bull. Ills. Mus. Nat. Hist., 1876, 36.
Stizostethium salmoneum, Jordan, Ann. N. Y. Lyc, Nat. Hist., 1877; in Klippart's Report
Fish Commr. Ohio, 1877.-Jordan, Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., x, 1877.
?? Perca migropunctata, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh., 1820, 23 (very erroneous).
?? Pomacampgig migropunctatus, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh, 1820, 23.
Description of var. vitreum —Body elongate, rather slender and subcylindric, becoming
deep with age, the depth if young of 14 inches, 1% to 5 in length; head long, 3% in length ;
mouth large, the maxillary reaching beyond the pupil to posterior margin of orbit, its
length 2% to 3 in head; mandible a little more than half length of head ; eyes large,
less than in salmoneum, shorter than snout and than preopercle, 4% to 5 in head; jaws
- equal, or the lower slightly projecting, its sides somewhat included; cheeks Scaly, vary
ing to nearly smooth, usually a few scales at least behind the eye; opercle with a strong,
flat spine, which is sometimes bifid or trifid, no smaller ones below it; dorsal spines high,
more than half the length of head, as long as from snout to past eye, and 1–3 to 1–5
past opercle; general color a heavy olive, varying considerably, finely mottled with
brassy, the latter color forming indistinct lines, which run obliquely upward and back-
ward along the rows of scales ; sides of head more or less vermiculated ; lower jaw
flesh-colored; belly and lower fins pinkish ; spinous dorsal fin without black spots ex-
cept a large jet black blotch, which involves the membrane of the last two or three
spines; second dorsal and caudal mottled olive and yellowish ; base of pectorals with-
out distinct black spot ; dorsal XII or XIII, 2, 20, or 21; anal II, 12; lateral line with
about 90 scales; pyloric coeca long and large, subequal, three in number; size very
large; this species reaches a length of nearly three feet, and a weight of twenty to
forty pounds,
Habitat, Mississippi Valley, Ohio and Tennessee Valleys, Great Lake Region, and
streams of the Atlantic slope south of New England, north to the fur countries,
Diagnosis.-This species may be most readily known from the preced-
ing by the presence of a single black spot on the posterior part of the
Spinous dorsal, instead of one or two rows of smaller spots on the middle
part of the fin.
The Jack reaches, occasionally, forty pounds, and, like the trout, seeks
964 FISHES-PERCIDAE.
the highest and coolest waters that will float him. It possesses great
activity and strength, and is a ravenous destroyer of perch and
other species. Were it not so superior in every way to all others,
this habit might condemn it ; as it is, we regard it as one of the best
species we possess. In the South it is eagerly bought, and forms the
principal table fish for the various places of resort, where it can be ob-
tained.” (Cope, Rept. Comm. Fish, Penn., 1881, 128.)
In Ohio this is one of the most important food fishes. Great numbers
are annually taken in Lake Erie and shipped to various parts of the
East and South.
Description of var. 8almoneum.-The body is shorter, thicker, and deeper, with slenderer
caudal peduncle, the diameter of which is not much greater than that of the large eye;
the mouth is smaller, the maxillary not reaching quite to the posterior margin of the
pupil, 3 in head; the eye is larger, its diameter equal to the length of the snout or that of
the preopercle; the lower jaw is slightly included; the dorsal spines are evidently consid-
erably lower than in S. vitreum, the longest about equal to the distance from the snout to a
point just short of hinder margin of orbit, about 2+ in head; the coloration is similar to
that of S. vitreum, but the adult is bluer or greener, with scarcely any of the brassiness
characteristic of the latter species; the coloration of the fins is darker, and there are
traces of a blackish horizontal band along the dorsal in addition to the large black blotch
on the hinder rays; young specimens (from Ohio River) are more silvery, with traces of
faint black bars along the back; fin-rays, dorsal XIV—1, 20; anal Il, 13; lateral line with
95 Scales; opercular spine single, as in S. vitrewn ; cheeks largely naked; pyloric coeca
three, large, longer than stomach, as in the preceding variety; size much less than that
of S. vitreum. The largest specimens seen by me were about fourteen inches in length.
Habitat, Lake Erie, Ohio River, and southward to Georgia.
This variety is said to frequent only bayous and inlets, not being taken in the
deeper waters of the lakes, where S. vitreum especially abounds. It also reaches a
Smaller size, according to Mr. Klippart, who asks, “Why does the Blue Pike frequent
the bayous and get to be no more than twelve to fifteen inches in length, and to weigh
not to exceed two or three pounds, if it is identical with the wall-eyed Pike which fre-
quents the deep waters of the lake, and attains a length of three feet and a weight of
eighteen to twenty pounds?” This species, according to Mr. Klippart, is, at the Lake
Erie fisheries, split and salted with the Sauger (S. Canadense), the two together being
known to the commercial world as “Pickerel No. 2,” and bringing about two-thirds the
price of Pickerel No. 1 (S. vitreum).
GENUS 71. AMMOCRYPTA. Jordan.
Pleurolepia, AGAssiz, Bull. Mus, Comp. Zool, i, 1863, 5 (preoccupied among Fossil
Ganoids).
Ammocrypta, JORDAN, Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., x, 1877, 5.
Type, Ammocrypta beami, Jordan,
Etymology, ammos, Sand; kruptog, concealed.
Description.—Body slender and elongate, sub-cylindrical, pellucid in life; head slen-
der ; mouth rather wide, terminals horizontal, the lower jaw included ; premaxillaries
very protractile; teeth on the vomer; Scales thin, ctenoid, little imbricated, present
SAND DARTER, 965
along the region of the lateral line and on the tail, sometimes wanting on the back or
belly; lateral line complete; gill membranes considerably united ; head scaly or naked;
no ventral plates; the belly naked ; dorsal fins moderate, about equal to the anal fin
and to each other; dorsal with about ten 8pines; anal spine single, weak; vertebrae
22 + 22 (A. pellucida) ; darters of moderate or rather large size; inhabiting the sandy
bottoms of clear streams, where they bury themselves entirely excepting the eyes and
snout ; coloration translucent, with bright reflections.
132, AMMOCRYPTA PELLUCIDA (Baird) Jordan.
Sand Darter.
“Etheostoma pellucidum, BAIRD, Mss., 1853.”
Pleurolepis pellucidus, AGASSIz, Bull. Mus. Comp. Zool., 1863, 5–JORDAN and COPELAND,
Am, Naturalist, 1877 (February) 86.-Jordan, Man. Vert, 2d ed., 1878,219–FoRBEs,
Bull, Ills, Lab, Nat. Hist, ii, 1878, and of authors generally.
Description.—Body elongate, nearly cylindrical, the flesh pellucid in life, but of firm,
wiry texture; head long ; cheeks, opercles, and temporal region scaly; operaular spine
small; region in front of dorsal mostly naked ; scales little ctenoid, nearly smooth to
the touch when wet, covering the sides of the body, loosely imbricated, and more or
less imbedded in the skin ; those along lateral line and caudal peduncle, best developed;
maxillary barely reaching to opposite the large eye; eyes high up, separated by a nar-
row, grooved space ; pectorals short, reaching tips of ventrals, half way to vent ; trans-
lucent scales with fine, black dots; a series of small squarish olive or bluish blotches
along the back, and another along the sides, connected by a gilt line; D. X—I, 9; A. I
8; Lat. 1 75 to 80; head 4%; depth 7; length 3 inches.
Habitat, Ohio Valley and Upper Migsissippi, Pennsylvania to Minnesota and Missouri;
abundant in clear streams with sandy bottoms.
Diagnosis—The slim, translucent, cylindrical body distinguishes this
at sight from all other Ohio fishes.
Habits.—This extremely curious little fish lies buried in the sand in
the bottoms of shallow streams, with only its snout and eyes uncovered.
It feeds upon the larva of insects and other small organisms. For a full
account of its habits see American Naturalist for February, 1877, p. 86.
It has, of course, no economic value of any Sort, but as an aquarium fish
it is the most attractive which our waters yield.
Two other species of this genus are found southwestward, and may
perhaps occur in Ohio. These are A. bean; Jor., known by its naked
head and nearly maked body, and A. asprella Jor., known by its small,
rough scales, there being about one hundred in the lateral line. #
GENUs 72. BOLEOSOMA. DeKay.
Boleo8oma, DEKAY, New York Fauna, Fishes, 1842, 20.
Arlina, GIRARD, Proc. Ac. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1859, 64.
JEstrella, GIRARD, Proc. Ac. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1869, 65.
Type, Boleosoma tessellata, DeKay ; Etheostoma olmstedi, Storer.
Etymology, bolis, dartſ; 8oma, body.
966 4. FISHES-PERCIDAE.
Body moderately elongate, fusiform, not translucent ; head small, narrowed forwards,
the profile convex; mouth small, horizontal, the lower jaw included ; premaxillaries
protractile; maxillary not joined to preorbital, except at its insertion; vomerine teeth
present; scales large ; lateral line continuous (rarely wanting on two or three Scales);
belly with ordinary scales; gill membranes little connected ; dorsal spines 7–10, slen-
der; soft dorsal much larger than anal ; anal normally with a single, short, slender
spine, the first soft ray simple but articulate ; vertebrae (B. nigrum) 17 –– 20 ; coloration
olivaceous and speckled, the males with head black in spring ; size small. -
ANALYSIS OF SPECIES OF BOLEOSOMA,
a. Second dorsal with 11 or 12 rays; cheeks and breast mostly naked ; lateral line
with more than 40 scales, its pores usually wanting on 3 or 4 posterior scales.
NIGRUM.
aa. Second dorsal with 13 or 14 rays; cheeks scaly; breast naked ; lateral line com-
plete. * & § & * • iº OLMSTEDI.
133. BOLEOSOMA NIGRUM (Rafinesque) Jordan.
Johnny Darter.
Etheo8toma migra, RAFINESQUE, Ich, Oh., 1820, 37.
Boleosoma migrum, JORDAN, Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., x, 1877, 15.
Boleogoma maculatum, AGASSIZ, Lake Superior, 1850, 305–J ORDAN, Man. Vert., ed. 2, i,
1859, 77.-ForLEs, Bull, Ills. Lab. Nat. Hist., i, 1878, 40, and of many authors.
Boleosoma olmstedi war. brevipinne, COPE, Journ. Ac, Naft. Sci. Phila., 1868, 214.
Boleosoma brevipinme, COPE, Proe. Am. Philos. Soc., 1870, 278.
Boleo80ma mutatum, WAILLANT, Recherches var. les Poiss. d’Eau Douce, 1872, 88.
Description.—Body fusiform, slender; head conical, moderate, the snout, somewhat de-
curved ; mouth small, lower jaw included; cheeks and breast naked (specimens occa-
sionally found with these regions closely scaly); opercles scaly; space before dorsal
mostly scaled; fins high, but smaller and lower than in the other species; coloration
pale olivaceous; back much tessellated with brown; sides with numerous small
W-shaped blotches; head speckled above, mostly black in the males; a black line for-
ward from eye, and sometimes a line downward also ; fins barred; males in the spring
blackish anteriorly, sometimes almost entirely black; tubes of the lateral line obsolete;
on the last, 4 or 5 scales; head 44; depth 5; D. IX-12; A. I, 8; Scales 5–51–9, Length
2% inches.
Habitat, Great Lake region and Mississippi Valley; abundant everywhere in the
Northwest; found in nearly every stream of Ohio.
Diagnosis.--From the other Darters, the genus Boleosoma may be known
by its speckled coloration and absence of distinct anal spines. From its
congerer, B. olmstedi, B. nigrum may be known by the small second dor-
sal of but 12 rays, and by the maked cheeks. The two forms, however,
undoubtedly are subject to intergradation. -
Habits.--This species lurks on the bottom in clear, Small brooks, mov-
TESSELLATED DARTER. 967
ing for a short distance with great rapidity when disturbed, then resum-
ing its former position of quiescence.
134. BOLEOSOMA OLMSTEDI (Storer) Agassiz.
Tessellated Darter.
Etheo8toma olm.8tedi, STORER, Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist., iv., 1842, 61.
Boleosoma olmstedt, AGASSIz, Lake Superior, 1850, 299. –STORER, Fish. Mass., 1867, 30.
—COPE, Proc. Amer. Philos, Soc, 1870, 268, and of nearly all authors.
Perca (Percina) minima, HALDEMAN, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci., viii, 1842, 330.
Boleo80ma tessellatum, DEKAY, New York Fauna, Fishes, 1842, 20,—GUNTHER, Cat. Fish.
Brit. Mus., i, 1859, 77. e
Boleo80ma maculaticeps, COPE, Proc. Amer. Philos. Soc., 1870, 269,
DeBoription.—This species agrees with B. nigrum in all essential respects, except the
following : Cheeks and opercle scaly; lateral line complete, with about fifty scales in
its course; second dorsal comparatively long; D, IX, 14; A.I, 9; coloration essentially
as in the preceding ; size Solue what larger. Length 3 inches.
Habitat, New England to Wisconsin and south to Georgia, replacing B. nigrum north-
ward and east of the Alleghanies. In Ohio probably confined chiefly to tributaries of
Lake Erie.
Habits—Similar to those of Boleosoma nigrum. A species of the related
genus Vaillantia (Vaillantia camura, Forbes, Jordan), occurs in Illinois,
and may be looked for in Southern Ohio. It may be known from the
species of Boleosoma by its incomplete lateral line.
GENUs 73. DIPLESIUM. Rafinesque.
Diplegion, RAFINESQUE, Ichthyologia, Ohiensis, 1820, 37.
Hyostoma, AGASSIZ, Amer. Journ, Sci. Arts, 1854, 305.
Diplegium, JORDAN, Man. Wert, 1st Ed., 1876, 218,
Type, Etheostoma blennioides, RAFINESQUE
Etymology, dig, two ; plesion, near = two dorsals near together.
Body elongate, subterete; head very short and blunt, with tumid cheeks, the profile
very convex; mouth small, inferior, horizontal; premaxillaries protractile, little mov-
able, joined to the forehead mesia)ly by a slight frenum ; maxillary not protractile, ad-
nate for most of its length to the fleshy skin of the preorbital; teeth in jaws strong;
no teeth on vomer or palatines; gill-Inembranes broadly connected; scales moderate;
lateral line complete, no enlarged ventral plates; dorsal fins large, the spinous dorsal
longer and lower than the second of about thirteen spines; anal smaller than second
dorsal with two spines; vertebrae (D. blennioides) 19 plus 22; coloration largely green. ,
}
135. DIPLESIUM BLENNIOIDES (Rafinesque) Jordan.
Green-sided Darter.
Etheostoma blennioides, RAFINESQUE, Journ, de Phys., 1819, 419; Ich. Oh., 1820, 37 (not
of Agassiz).
968 FISHES-PERCIDAE.
Diplegium blennioides, JorDAN, Man. Wert, 1st Ed., 1876, 223.-Jordan and COPELAND,
Amer. Nat, 1876, 339, and in numerous recent papers.
Byostoma newmani, AGASSIz, Amer. Journ. Sci, Arts, 1854, 305.
Peleoma cymatogramma, ABBOTT, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1860, 327.
Hyostoma oymatogrammwm, COPE, Journ. Acad. Nat Sci., 1868, 214.
Hyostoma blennioperca, CopR, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci., Phila, 1868, 214,
Description.—-Body stout, elongate, little compressed ; profile very convex; eyes large,
high up and close together, a transverse depression at the nape and a longitudinal fur-
row between the eyes; mouth small, horizontal, quite inferior; upper jaw concealed in
a furrow under the snout ; scales moderate, those on the belly large, cycloid, not
caducous; cheeks with fine scales; opercles with large ones; neck scaly; chest naked;
anal papilla very large ; anal spines strong; caudal fin emarginate ; lower rays of the
pectorals, and rays of the ventrals and anal enlarged and fleshy in the males; color
olive green, tessellated above; sides with about eight double transverse bars, each pair
forming a Y-shaped figure. These are joined above, forming a sort of wavy, lateral
band. In life these markings are of a clear, deep green; sides sprinkled with orange
dots; head with olive stripes and the usual dark bars; first dorsal dark orange brown
at base, blue above, becoming pale at tip ; Second dorsal and anal of a rich blue green,
with some reddish ; caudal greenish, faintly barred ; young and female specimens are
more or less dull, but the pattern is peculiar ; head 4%; depth 4%; D. XIII, 13; A. II, 8;
Lat. l. 65–78. Length 3 to 5 inches.
Habitat, all streams of the central basin from Virginia to Alabama, Minnesota, and
Ransas, Abundant in all gravelly streams in Ohio.
Diagnosis.--This species may be known by its very blunt head and
small, inferior mouth.
Habits.-Its habits are essentially like those of the species of Boleosoma.
It is a delicate species, perishing at once in foul water.
GENUS 74. IMOSTOMA. Jordan.
Imostoma, JorDAN, Proc. Acad. Nab, Sci. Phila., 1877, 49.
Type, Hadropterus ghwmardi, Grd.
Etymology, eimi, to move; 8toma, mouth.
Body stout and heavy forwards; head broad and blunt; mouth broad, the lower jaw
included ; upper jaw protractile ; vomerine teeth present; sides of the head scaly; body
covered with rather large scales, 56 in the lateral line ; no enlarged ventral plates, the
posterior part of the abdomen scaled like the sides, the anterior part with a naked
strip; lateral line continuous; dorsal fins large, the first larger than the second, often
spines; anal fin large, in male specimens greatly prolonged, reaching the caudal; anal
spines two, the first the larger; dorsal formula X, 15; anal II, 11; pattern of coloration
not well defined, dark blotches on a lighter ground. But one species is known.
136. IMoSTOMA SHUMARDI (Girard) Jordan.
Hadropterus shumardi, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila, 1859, 100.
Imostoma shumardi, JORDAN, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci, Phila, 1877, 49; Man. Wert, 2d Ed.,
1878, 222, and elsewhere.
COTTOGASTER. 969
Description.—Body stout, heavy forward, compressed behind; head broad and thick,
resembling that of Diplegium ; eye large, 3% in head; mouth large and broad, the lower
jaw wide, a little shorter than the upper; maxillary reaching to the eye; cheeks, oper-
cles, and neck scaly; chest naked; belly naked anteriorly, scaly in front of the vent;
scales rather large; dorsal fins large, the first larger than the second, which is smaller
than the anal, though longer; the two dorsal fins well separated; anal fin large, very
deep, in some specimens (males 7) reaching to the caudal ; anal spines strong, the first
the larger; color dark, densely but vaguely blotched with darker; sides with 8–10 ob-
scure blotches, the anterior ones bar-like ; a large black spot on base of spinous dorsal
behind, and a small one in front ; Second dorsal, caudal, and pectorals barred ; a very
strong black suborbital bar, and a faint dark line along muzzle; head 3 2-5; depth 5;
D. X, 15; A. II, 11. Length 3 inches.
Habitat, Wabash River to Illinois and Arkansas; not abundant. Not yet seen in
Ohio.
Diagnosis.—From other Darters of similar appearance, this species is
known by its protractile mouth. -
Habits.-Nothing distinctive is known of its habits.
GENUS 75, COTTOGASTER. Putnam,
# Cottogaster, PUTNAM, Bull. Mus. Comp. Zool., i, 1863, 5.
Rheocrypta, Jordan, Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., x, 1877, 9.
Type, Boleogoma tessellatum, Thompson, not of DeKay.
Etymology, Kottos, Cottus; gaster, belly.
Body rather robust, little compressed ; head moderate, bluntish ; mouth small, the
lower jaw included; premaxillaries protractile; maxillary not adherent to the preor-
bital; teeth on womer; gill-membranes nearly separate ; scales ctenoid, those of the
middle line of the belly enlarged and spinous, falling off at times, leaving a naked strip;
lateral line continuous ; dorsal fins large, the second usually smaller than the first and
smaller than the anal; anal spines two, strong, the first the stronger: size moderate.
137. CoTTOGASTER COPELANDI Jordan.
Rheocrypta copelandi, JoFDAN, Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., x, 1877, 9; Man. Vert. E. U. S.,
2d Ed., 1878, 222, and elsewhere.
Description.—Body rather slender and elongate; head pretty large, rather long, some-
what narrowed, resembling that of Boleosoma ; mouth small, horizontal, subinferior;
eye large, 3% in head; cheeks naked ; opercles and neck each with a few scales; throat
naked; ventral plates well developed ; scales moderate, strongly ctenoid ; color brown-
ish olive, a series of rather small, horizontally oblong black blotches along the lateral
line, forming an interrupted lateral band ; back tessellated; blackish streaks forward
and downward from eye; ventral fins dusky; vertical fins with dusky specks; a black
spot on anterior rays of spinous dorsal ; head 44; depth 53; D XI, 10; A, II, 9; Lat.
1.56. Length 2% inches.
Habitat. This species has thus far been taken only in White River, near Indianapolis,
Indiana.
970 FISHES-PERCIDAE.
Habits—It lives in rapids in clear water, and does not ascend small
streams. .
GENUS 76, PERCINA. Haldeman.
Pércina, HALDEMAN, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., viii, 1842, 330.
Pileoma, DEKAY, New York Fauna, Fishes, 1842, 16. - -
48properca, FIECKEL, MSS, in Canestrini Systema der Percoiden, 1860, 311.
Type, Porca nebulosa, Haldeman = Sciama caprodes, Rafinesque.
Etymology, Latin, Percina, a little perch.
Body elongate, slightly compressed, covered with small ctenoid scales; lateral line
continuous ; ventral line with enlarged plates, which fall off, leaving a laked Strip ;
head depressed, rather pointed, the mouth being small and inferior, overlapped by a
tapering, subtruncate, pig-like snout ; upper jaw not protractile; teeth on Vomer and
palatines; gill-membranes scarcely connected ; dorsal fins well separated, the first the
larger, of 13–15 spines; the second dorsal rather larger than the anal, which has two
Spines, the first of which is usually the shorter; a rudimentary air-bladder and
pseudobranchiae; vertebrae (P. caprodes) 19 plus 22; general pattern of coloration
olivaceous, with dark vertical bands alternately long and short; largest of the darters.
•
138. PERCINA CAPRODES (Rafinesque) Girard.
Log-perch ; Hog-fish ; Rock-fish ; Hog-rºnolly.
Sciaena caprodes, RAFINESQUE, Amer. Monthly Mag, and Crit. Rev., 1818, 354.
Etheo8toma caprodes, RAFINESQUE, Journal de Phys., 1819, 419.-RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh,
1820, 38.-KIRTLAND, Bost. Journ, Nat. Hist., iii, 1841, 346,
Pileoma caprodes, WAILLANT, Recherches Etheost, 1873, 43.
Percina caprodes, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat Sci, Phila., 1859, 66.-JORDAN and COPELAND,
An er, Nat., 1876, 337, and of all recent American writers,
Percina mebulosa, HALDItMAN, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., viii, 1842, 330.
Pileoma semifasciatum, DEKAY, New York Fauna, Fishes, 1842, 16.
Percina bimaculata, HALDEMAN, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1843, 157.
Etheo8toma 26bra, AGAssiz, Lake Superior, 1850, 308.
Description —Body elongate, compressed ; head long and pointed, depressed and
sloping above; mouth small, quite inferior, the maxillary not reaching nearly to the
front of the eye; cheeks and opercles scaly; chest naked, space in front of spinous
dorsal scaly; fins rather low ; color salmon-yellow or greenish, with about fifteen trans-
verse dark bands from the back to the belly, these usually alternating with shorter and
fainter ones, which reach about to the lateral line; a black spot at the base of the
caudal; fins barred ; head 4; depth 6; ; D. XV, 15; A II, 9; Lat. 1, 92. Length 6 to 8
inches, being much the largest in size of the Darters.
Habitat, Quebec to Georgia, Lake Superior, and the Rio Grande, abundant in all
streams, particularly in the basin of the Ohio.
Diagnosis.—From other Darters this species may be known by the
pointed and pig-like nose, and by the zebra-like black bands on the sides.
Habits.-This species thrives in clear, rapid streams with gravelly bot-
toms, and is generally abundant throughout Ohio. It is large enough to
LOG-PERCH. 971
be sometimes taken with a small hook, and is often brought home
by boys. Its flesh is excellent, but it is too small to have any import-
ance as a food fish. -
139. PERCINA MANITOU Jordan.
Percina manitou, Jordan, Proc. Acad. Nat, Sci., Phila, 1877, 53; Man. Vert. 2d Ed. , 1878,
220, and elsewhere. - -
Description.—Body elongate, little compressed; head slender, but less so than in P.
caprodes, the snout being shorter, blunter, and less sloping; eye larger, 3% to 4 in head,
with mouth rather small, little inferior, the maxillary not reaching quite to the eye;
cheeks and opercles with small scales; chest naked ; space in front of spinous dorsal
naked; fins moderate, the height of the soft dorsal less than the distance from the
snout to the preopercle; colors black and olivaceous, the back strongly marbled, the
lateral bars short, not extending up the sides much above the lateral line; the bars
are confluent more or less, and about twenty in number, the last one blotch-like a
round, black caudal spot; dorsal and caudal fins mottled; head 4+; depth 7 ; D. XV,
14; A. II, 10; Lat. 1.90. Length 5 inches. -
Habitat, Lakes of Northern Indiana, Michigan, and Wisconsin ; specimens variously
intermediate between this and the preceding found in the Potomac River (Bean), and
in Illinois (Forbes). This form is usually well marked in color and in other respects; but
it is doubtful whether it can be maintained as a distinct species.
Habits—This form has been thus far chiefly taken in lakes; the other,
(caprodes) in rivers. Whether this is a constant difference, I am unable
to Say. -
GENUS 77. ALWORDIUS. Girard.
Etheo8toma, AGASSIZ, Amer. Journ. Sci. Arts, 1854, 354 (not of Rafinesque).
Alvordius, GIRARD, Proc. Acad, Nat. Sci. Phila., 1859, 67.
Ericosma, JordAN, Ball. U. S. Nat. Mus., x, 1876, 8,
Type, Alvordius maculatus, GIRARD.
Etymology. Dedicated to Major B. Alvord.
Body rather elongate, little compressed ; mouth rather wide, terminal, the lower jaw
included, the snout above not protruding beyond the premaxillaries, which are not
protractile ; teeth on vomer, and usually on palatines also ; gill-membranes separate ;
scales small, ctenoid, covering the body; belly with a median line of enlarged spinous
plates, which fall off, leaving a naked strip ; sides of head scaly or not; lateral line
complete; fins large, the soft dorsal smaller than the spinous or the anal; anal spines
2; dorsal spines 10–15; vertebrae 22 plus 22 (A. aspro), 17 plus 22 (A, evides); coloration
bright; sides with dark blotches. •
Darters of moderate size, having greater powers of swimming freely
in the water than any of the other genera. The species are among the
most graceful in form and elegant in coloration of all American
fishes. This species is very close to Percina, from which it differs only
in the form of the mouth.
972 FISHES-PIERCIDAE,
140, ALvoRDIUS MACRoCEPHALUs (Cope) Jordan.
Etheostoma macrocephalum, CoPE, Trans. Amer. Philos. Soc. Phila., 1866, 401.
Alvordius macrocephalus, JoBDAN, Man. Wert, 2d Ed., 1878, 220.
Description.-Body elongate; head long, eel-like; mouth rather large, maxillary
reaching to opposite anterior margin of orbit; eye shorter than snout, 4+ in head; ven-
tral shields twice as long as other scales; cheeks, opercles, neck, and chest without
Scales; color light brown, with a slightly undulating whitish band from upper angle of
opercle to caudal peduncle; back with dark quadrate spots; sides with nine blackish
longitudinal spots, alternating with smaller ones; streaks downward and forward from
the eye; vertical fins somewhat barred; spinous dorsal with a median blackish band;
head spotted above; head 3}; depth 7; D. XV, 13; A, II, 11; scales 11–77–15. Length
3 inches.
Habitat, Ohio Valley. The known specimens are all from Western Pennsylvania.
Diagnosis.--This species is distinguished from its relatives by its very
large, naked head.
Habits.—Nothing distinctive known.
141. ALvoRDIUS PHoxooEPHALUs (Nelson) Jordan.
Etheo8toma phozocephalum, NELSON, Bull. Ills. Mus: Nat. Hist., i, 1876, 55.
Alvordius phoacocephalus, JoBDAN, Proc. Acad, Nat. Sci, Phila., 1877, 50; Man. Vert, 2d
Ed., 1878, 221, and elsewhere.
Description.—Body rather slender, compressed; head extremely long, narrow, and
taperiug, the snout very acuminate ; mouth large, the maxillary reaching to the eye ;
the lower jaw unusually narrow and long, scarcely shorter than upper; eye about equal
to Snout, 4+ in head; cheeks, opercles, and neck with small scales; chest naked; color
yellowish brown, somewhat as in A. aspro, but the lateral spots smaller and more num-
erous, Scarcely twice the size of the eye, quadrate in form ; a small blackish spot at each
end of the lateral line; head 4; depth 5%; D XII, 13; A. II, 9; scales 12–68–14.
Length 3 inches,
Habitat, Indiana (White River) to Tennessee and Kansas; not very abundant; not
yet noticed in Ohio.
Diagnosis.—Distinguished from the other species of the genus by the
long, slender head. e -
Habits —This species is found in clear, gravelly rivers; it has not yet
been noticed in Ohio, but doubtless occurs in the Southwestern part of
the State.
142. ALvoRDIUs ASPRO Cope and Jordan.
Black-sided Darter.
Etheostoma blennioides, KIRTLAND, Bost. Journ. Nat Hist., iii, 1841, 348, not of Rafinesque.
—VAILLANT, Recherches sur Etheost., 1873, 54, and of many writers.
Alvordius aspro, COPE and Jordan, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila, 1877, 51–JORDAN, Man.
Wert., 3d Ed, 1880, 220.
BLACK-SIDED DARTER. 973
Alvordius maculatus, Jordan, Man. Wert, 2d Ed., 1878, 220 (probably not of Girard).
Description.—Body rather elongate, fusiform, compressed behind; head moderately
elongate, less pointed than in some of the species; mouth moderate, the lower jaw in-
cluded ; maxillary reaching just past the front of the eye; eye about equal to snout,
four in head; gill-membranes little connected; lateral line straight, prolonged to the
eye; opercles with rather large scales; cheeks with very small ones, which are scarcely
visible over its whole surface; chest naked ; neck naked brmore or less Scaly; body
otherwise entirely scaly, the scales simall and rough ; straw yellow or greenish, with
dark tessellations and marblings above, and about Seven large, dark blotches along the
sides, partly confluent, thus forming a moniliform band; fins barred; head 4; depth 6;
D. XIII-XV, 13; A. II, 9; scales 9–65–17.
Habitat, Virginia to Lake Michigan, Tennessee River, and Upper Missouri, an
abundant and variable species.
Diagnosis.--From the other Darters generally, this species is readily
known by the beautiful pattern of the black markings on its sides. From
nearly related species, the stoutish head, partly scaly, will usually dis.
tinguish it.
Habits.-This species, the most graceful of all the Darters, delights in
clear Streams with gravelly bottoms. It is less closely confined to the
bottom and to the shelter of stones than the others, swimming more
freely in the water, while the others rarely rise more than two or three
inches. As an aquarium fish it is “hardier than any other fish as
pretty, and prettier than any other as hardy.”
143. ALVORDIUS VARIATUs (Kirtland) Jordan.
Etheostoma variatw8, KIRTLAND, Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist., iii, 1841, 274.
Alvordius variatus, JORDAN, Man. Vert., 3d Ed., 1880, 220.
? Alvordius maculatus, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci, Phila., 1859, 67.
Etheostoma peltatum, SHAUFFER, MSS.; CoPE, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1864, 232.
Alvordius peltatus, JORDAN, Man, Vert., 20 Ed., 1878, 220.
Dé80ription.—Body moderately elongate, deeper than in 4. aspro; head rather short
and stout; mouth large, the maxillary reaching the eye, lower jaw scarcely shorter than
upper, outer teeth Somewhat enlarged; eyes moderate, about as long as Snout, 3% in
head; head naked with the exception of a few scales on the upper anterior part of the
opercle; neck and breast scaleless; ventral shields larger than in any of the other
species, four times as large as the other scales, 6 to 8 in number, with strong, radiating
points; coloration bright olive, the back with short, brown cross bars; the sides with
broad, brownish shades; black blotch on neck and on opercle; blackish bars downward
and forward from eye ; fins barred, the spinous dorsal with a black band. According to
Dr. Kirtland, the males are further variegated with blue, green, and orange. Head 3};
depth 5; D. XII, 12; A. II, 8; scales 7–53–9, Length 4 inches.
Habitat, Pennsylvania and Eastern Ohio. Not abundant.
º
Diagnosis.-The naked head and large ventral plates distinguish this
Species. -
974 FISHEs—PERCIDAE.
Habits —Nothing distinctive is known of the habits. The peculiar,
enlarged caducous scales of the belly reach a larger development in this
fish than in any other.
144. ALvoRDIUS EVIDEs Jordan and Copeland,
Gilded Darter.
Etheostoma evides, Jordan and CoPELAND, MSS. in Nelson Bull, Ills. Mus, Nat, Hist,
1876, 36. - - - *
Alvordius evides, JORDAN and COPELAND, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila, 1877, 51.
Erico8ma evides, JoBDAN, Bull, U. S. Nat. Mus., x, 1877; Man. Vert, 2d Ed., 1878, 221,
and elsewhere. - .
Description,-Body moderate, somewhat compressed ; head heavy, the profile rather
convex; eye rather large, high, 33 in head; mouth moderate, somewhat oblique, the
lower jaw included; maxillary reaching front of eye; cheeks, neck above, and throat
naked ; opercles with rather large scales; ventral plates little enlarged; fins large;
Second dorsal lower than anal, but with longer base ; coloration extremely brilliant;
dark olivaceous above, tessellated with dark; sides with about seven broad transverse
bars extending from below the lateral line on one side across the back and down the
other side ; these bars are wider than the eye, and are connected along the lateral line
by a faint black stripe ; in the female these bars are black and the intervening spaces
yellowish; in the male the bars are of a dark, rich blue-green, with metallic luster; the
connecting longitudinal line greenish bronze ; just above this line is a luminous yellow-
ish streak, and above in each of the interspaces between the bars is a bright blotch of
bronze-red; entire lower parts of the body of a bright clear yellow, which becomes on
the under side of the head, throat, and branchiostegals a bright orange-red ; blackish
green streaks downward and forward from eye; cheeks orange-red, the color of iron
rust; dorsal fin orange-colored, with a bright, bronze edge, a blackish spot on the last
rays; second dorsal and caudal pale orange ; two luminous spots at base of caudal ; anal
bronze, with a blue-black shading ; ventral fins dark blue-black; pectorals faintly
orange; males with the rays of the ventral and anal fins covered with small corneous
tubercles, exactly as in some Cyprinida; ; female and alcoholic specimens show little of
the bright colors, although the same pattern is preserved ; the dorsal has a dusky Spot
on its posterior rays, and the firls are destitute of the dark bars found in the other
species of Alvordius; head 4%; depth 5%; D. XI, 10; A, II, 8; scales 9–63–9, Length
2+ inches. . . .
Habitat. Thus far taken only in White River, in Central Indiana.
Habits.-It frequents clear and rapid waters. It is one of the most
brilliantly colored of all our fishes.
GENUS 78, NANOSTOMA. Putnam.
Nanostoma, PUTNAM, MSS. ; JorDAN, Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., x, 1877, 6.
Type, Pacilichthys zonalis, COPE.
Etymology, manos, small; 8toma, mouth. .
Body fusiform, not greatly compressed ; mouth small, Subinferior, the premaxillaries
GILDED DARTER. 975
not protractile; vomerine teeth very feeble or wanting; scales large; gill-membranes
broadly connected, no enlarged ventral plates; lateral line complete; dorsals well sep-
arated, the second much larger than anal, higher and shorter than spinous dorsal; dor-
Sal Spines about ten ; anal spines two.
This genus is mainly distinguished from Nothonotus by the broad union
of the gill-membranes.
145. NANOSTOMA ZONALE (Cope) Jordan.
Poecilichthys zonalis, COPE, Journ, Acad. Nat Sci. Phila., 1868, 212, tab. 24, f. 1. (male).
Nanostoma 20malis, JORDAN, Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., x, 1877, 15, and elsewhere.
Nanostoma vinctipeg, JoRDAN, Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus, 1879 (female)
Description.—Body slender, somewhat compressed ; head small, rather short ; the
mouth small, subinferior; Snout decurved, rather obtuse, maxillary not reaching front
of eye; cheeks, opercles, neck, and throat closely scaled ; eye rather large ; teeth very
feeble, those on the vomer not evident, probably none on the palatines; first dorsal
well developed, separated from the second, which is higher and shorter than the spinous
dorsal, and considerably larger than the anal; caudal emarginate; bright olivaceous
above, golden below ; six dark brown quadrate dorsal spots, which connect by alter-
nating spots with a broad, brown lateral band, from which eight narrower dark-bluish
bands more or less completely encircle the belly ; paired, anal, and caudal fins golden,
brown-spotted; middle half of the first dorsal crimson; a series of round, crimson spots
near the base of the second dorsal; occiput, a band on Inuzzle and one below eye black;
a black Spot on operculum and one at base of pectorals; females duller and speckled ;
the ventrals barred ; the lateral bars feebler; head 4+; depth 5; D. XI, 12; A, II, 7;
scales 11–50–12, Length 2% inches.
Habitat, Ohio and Upper Mississippi Valleys, widely diffused but not generally
abundant.
Habits.-Nothing distinctive known.
146. NANOSTOMA TESSELLATUM Jordan.
Hadropterus tessellatus, Jordan, Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus, x, 1877, 7.
Description.—Color olivaceous, the markings obliterated in the type ; body fusiform;
head broad and heavy, entirely naked ; neck scaly; mouth moderate, horizontal, the
lower jaw included, the maxillary extending to opposite front of eye; anal higher than
Second dorsal, but not so long, its spines strong; gill-membranes broadly united; D. X,
12; A. II, 8; Lat. l. 48, Length 2+ inches.
This species is known only from one specimen, in poor condition,
taken in the Alleghany River, at Foxburg, Pennsylvania. h
GENUS 79. NOTHONOTUS. Agassiz.
Nothonotus, AGASSIZ, Bull. Mus. Comp. Zool, i, 1863, 3.
Type, Etheostoma maculata, KIRTLAND. -
Etymology, mothos, prominent ; moto8, back, from the high dorsal fins.
976 FISHES-PERCIDAE.
Body not greatly elongate, usually compressed; head moderate, snout decurved
over a moderate sized sub-terminal mouth, which is horizontal or slightly oblique;
scales various, usually rather large, the lateral line continuous; gill-membranes nearly
separate; fins all large, the spinous dorsal usually rather larger than the Second,
the base of the second dorsal longer than that of the anal; upper jaw not protractile;
teeth feeble, usually not appreciable on the palatines and very feeble on the Vomer;
species of moderate size, among the most beautiful of all fishes. This genus differs from
Paecilichthys only in having the lateral line complete.
147. NoTHONOTUS CAMURUs (Cope) Jordan.
|Blue-breasted Darter.
Poecilichthys camurus, COPE, Proc. Amer. Philos. Soc. Phila., 1870, 262, 265.
Nothomotus camurus, JORDAN, Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., x, 1877, 16.-JORDAN, Man. Wert, 2d
Ed., 1878, 225, and elsewhere.
Description.—Body stout; bead short ; muzzle abruptly decurved, the mouth some-
what inferior; lower jaw included; males very dark olive or blackish, with an obscure
band of a paler shade; belly paler; breast and throat deep rich blue; sides profusely
sprinkled with crimson dots, like a brook trout; these spots sometimes arranged in short
longitudinal series of threes and fours; series of olivaceous lines along the rows of
scales; first dorsal with a black spot at base in front and a crimson one on the margin
between the first and second rays; second dorsal, caudal, and anal crimson, bordered
with yellow, which again is bordered with black or dark-blue on the edge of the fin;
the crimson is deepest next the yellow ; pectoral and ventral fins with a broad,
red margin; females less distinctly marked, olivaceous, somewhat barred ; head 4;
depth 44; D. XI, 13; A. II, 8; scales 7–53–8. Length 2% inches,
Habitat, Ohio Valley, Cumberland River, Tennessee; White River, Indiana; Mahon-
ing River, Ohio; French Creek, Pennsylvania. Not abundant.
Habits.--This species is one of the most brilliant and delicate of all
our fishes. It is found in clear, cold streams, and thus far nowhere in
great abundance. Professor Cope remarks concerning this species and
others discovered by him. -
“All of the above species lie on the bottom, frequently beneath stones, with the head
only projecting, on the lookout for prey. Ordinarily they lie motionless, except occa-
sionally inclining their position and exhibiting their gorgeous colors. The effect of
this is heightened by the crystal clearness of the waters of the Southern mountain
streams, which reflect as well the beauty of a Southern sky and the noble trees and
flowering shrubs that border them in the rich wilderness of the Cumberland Range.
Few more attractive spots to the naturalist can be found, aud among its natural treas-
ures these peculiar little fishes are among the most curious. All the fishes of this group
can turn the head from side to side, and they frequently lie in a curved position or par-
tially on one side of the body.” -
148. NoTHONOTUS MACULATUs (Kirtland) Agassiz.
Etheostoma maculatum, KIRTLAND, Bost. Journ, Nat. Hist., iii, 1840, 276, pl. ii, fig. 3,
Nothonotus maculatw8, AGASSIZ, Bull. Mus. Comp. Zool., i, 1863, 3.−JORDAN, Man. Wert
2d Ed., 1878, 225.
BLUE-BPEASTED DARTER, 977
Description.—Body moderately elongate, deep, and compressed; head long and rather
pointed; mouth pretty large; jaws equal; dorsal fin elevated, the longest rays reaching
caudal; olive-green, sides with rather large spots of brilliant carmine; vertical fins
more or less barred with red and white; head 4; depth 4%; D, XII, 13; A, II, 8; Lat.
l, 60. Length 24 inches.
Habitat. Thus far only known from Mahoning River, Ohio, whence specimens were
sent long ago by Dr. Kirtland to the U. S. National Museum. “It excels in beauty the
speckled trout.”—KIRTLAND.
GENUS 80, ETHEOSTOMA, Rafinesque.
Etheostoma, RAFINESQUE, Journal de Phys., 1819, 419–Jordan, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci.
Phila., 1877, 57. - .
Catonotus, AGASSIz, Amer. Journ. Sci. Arö8, 1854, 305.
Type, Etheostoma flabellaris, RAFINESQUE.
Etymology, “etheo, to strain ; 8toma, mouth.
Body elongate, compressed; mouth terminal, more or less oblique; upper jaw not
protractile; vomerine teeth present, teeth in the jaws strong, the outer series canine-
like; opercular spine well developed; gill-membranes broadly united; scales rather
large; lateral line incomplete; an enlarged, black humeral scale; first dorsal fin low,
considerably lower than the second dorsal, of seven to nine subequal spines, which,
in the males, end in little fleshy knobs; anal fin smaller than the second dorsal, with
two spines, the first of which is always the larger; vertebrae (E. lineolatum) 14 plus 21;
size small; coloration dark; the species are extremely quick in their movements, and
their coloration, although not gaudy as in Pacilichthys, is very elegant.
149, ETHEOSTOMA FLABELLARE Rafinesque.
Etheostoma flabellaris, RAFINESQUE, Journ, de Phys., 1819, 419.-JORDAN, Man. Vert, 2d.
Ed., 1878, 227, and elsewhere.
Etheostoma flabellata, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh, 1820, 36.
Catonotus flabellatw8, PUTNAM, Bull. Mus. Comp. Zool., i, 1863, 3.
Poecilichthys flabellatus, COPE, Proc. Amer. Philos. Soc., 1870, 263, 450.
Etheostoma fontinalis, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh, 86.
Etheostoma limsleyi, H. R. STORER, Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist.
Oligocephalus humeralia, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sei, Phila., 1859, 66.
Catonotus fasciatus, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci., Phila., 1859, 67.
Catonotus kennicotti, PUTNAM, Bull. Mus. Comp. Zool., i, 1863, 3.
Description,-Body elongate, compressed, the back scarcely arched; head long and
rather pointed, entirely, destitute of scales; mouth rather large, terminal, oblique, the
lower jaw notably the longer; eye moderate, longer than the snout, about 4 in head;
opercular spine strong; fins all low, the first dorsal in the males about half as high as
the second, higher in the jemales; caudal large, rounded; anal spines longer in females
* The word Etheo8toma is stated by Rafinesque to mean “various mouths,” the species
known to him, i. e., Pereina caprodes, Diplesium blennioides, and Etheostoma flabellare—
being so different in respect to the form of the mouth, that he conceived that they
might belong to different subgenera.
62
978 FISHES-PERCIDAE.
than in the males; dorsal and anal spines pointed in the female, in the male with
thickened, fleshy tips; scales moderate; lateral line extending about to end of first
dorsal; neck and throat naked ; scales on Bides extending up to the base of the dorsal
fin; color dark, each scale with a dark spot, these forming a series of conspicuous ion-
gitudinal lines along the rows of scales; second ºorsal and caudal conspicuously cross-
barred ; head blackish, with dark stripes 1 adiating from eyo; males furl her marked
with conspicuous dark cross-bars; a black humeral spot ; head 4; depth 5; D, VIII, 12;
A, II, 8; scales 7–53–7. Length 2% inches, *
Habitat, New York, Lake Erie, and Ohio Valley. Very abundant eastward.
Diagnosis—The short, low dorsal, and the projecting lower jaw, distin-
guish this species from all others in Ohio.
Habits.--This species is very abundant in Western New York and
Pennsylvania, Swarming on the bottom of every clear and rocky stream.
It is an active and hardy little fish. It is ſound throughout the Ohio
Valley, but seems to be less abundant westward (Wisconsin and Illinois).
In the Northwest occurs a closely related Species or variety, Etheos-
toma lineolatum (Agassiz), distinguished by the presence of series of very
distinct, black, lengthwise Stripes made of black dots. |
150. Et HEOSTOMA : QAMICEPs Jordan.
Etheostoma squamiceps, JordaM, Bull. U. S. Nat. Mus., x, 1877, 11; Man, Vert, 2d Ed.,
1878, 228. -
Description.—Body rather elongate, considerably compressed, the caudal peduncle
deep ; head Jarge; the ſawa comparatively Short, and 6 qual ; lateral line wanting only
on about ten of the posterior scales, and with occasion ºf tubes behi:; tı the continuous
series; spinous doi Sal low and short, the spines about equal, less than half the height
of the second dorsal; bases of the two dorsals about equal, slightly connected by
membraxies; color dark, without spots, stripes, or bands in spirits; female mottled,
with about six gross blotches; vertical fins cross-barred ; lºwer fins black in the male,
pale in the female; a large black humºral spot; head 31-5; depth 5; D, IX, 12; A. II,
7; scales 5–50–6. Length 2% inches,
Habit:44, Ohio Valley; the kuown specimens being from Russellville, Kentucky, and
from New Harmony, Indiana. Nothing is known of its habits.
GENUs 81. POECILICHTHYS. Agassiz.
Pacilosoma, AGASSIZ, Lake Superior, 1850, 299 (name preoccupied).
Pasculichthys, AGASSIZ, Amer. Journ, Sci. Arts, 1854, 305,
Oligocephalus, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila, 1859, 67.
Aplesion, GIRARD, Proc. Acad. Nat. Soi, Phila, 1859, 102 (not of Rafinesque).
Aatalichthys, WAILLANT, Recherches sur Poiss. Eau Douce, Amer. Septent, Etheostom.,
1873, 106.
Type, Etheoptoma carulea, STORER. &
Etymology, poikilog, variegated; ichthub, fish.
*
BLUE DARTER. 979
Body rather stout and compressed ; head large ; mouth moderate, nearly horizontal ;
vomer with teath ; upper jaw not protractile; scales rather large, the lateral line com-
plete posteriorly, usually on about two-thirds of the length of the body; gill-mem-
branes Bearcely connected ; dorsal spines nine to eleven, their height about two-thirds
that of the soft rays; second dorsal rather larger than first and larger than aſſal; anal
with two well developed spines, the first usually the longer; vertebrae 15–18; size
rather small ; general pattern of coloration vertical blue bars on an olivaceous or
orange ground. The species are quite numerous.
151. POECILICHTHYs VIRGATUS Jordan.
Poecilichthys virgatug, JORDAN, Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus., 1879.
Description.—Body tº lender, form 'd much as in Etheo8toma flabellare; mouth rather
large; head entirely naked ; a naked strip on the nape; preopercle serrulate; humeral
region with an enlarged, black Scºtle-like process; lateral line short, straight, greenish;
each scale with a dark spot, the 89 forming conspicuous longitudinal stripes along the
rows of scales; D IX, 10; A IK, 8; Lat. l. 53. Length 2% inches.
Habitat: Abundant in Cumberland River, in Kentucky; probably also in Southern
Ohio.
Habits.--An active inhabitant of clear mountain streams.
| | |
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\_^ i \_º. 4 º' ... ...*.*, *, * *
152. PCECILIC HTHYS COERULEUS (Storer) Agassiz.
Blue Darter ; Rainbow-fish ; Soldier-fish.
Etheostoma coeruleu8, STORER, Proc, Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., ii, 1845, 47.
Poecilichthys coºrulew8, AGASSIZ, Bull. Mus. Comp. Zool., i, 1863, 3, and of Imany writers.
A8tatichthys caeruleus, VAILLANT, Recherches, 1873, 107.
Poecilichthys variatus, AGAssiz, Amer. Journ, Sci. Arts, 1854, 305–Jordan, Man, Vert.,
2d Ed., 1878, 226.
Poecilosoma erythrogastrum, KIRTLAND, Annals of Science, Cleveland, 1854, 4.
Poecilichthys versicolor, AGAssiz, Amer. Journ. Sci. Arts, 1854, 304.
Poecilostoma transversum, ABBOTT, Proc Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1860, 326.
A8tatichthys pulchellus, VAILLANT, Recherches, 1873, 113.
Description,-Body robust, rather deep and compressed, the back somewhat elevated;
head large, compressed, somewhat pointed ; mouth moderate, terminal, oblique, the
lower jaw Scarcely included, the maxillary reaching front of orbit; neck and breast
usually naked; fins all large, dorsal fins usually slightly connected ; scales rather large;
lateral line straight ; males olivaceous, tessellated above, the spots running together
into blotches; back without black lengthwise stripes; sides with about twelve indigo-blue
bars running obliquely downwards and backwards, most distinct behind, separated by,
bright orange interspaces; caudal fin deep orange, edged with bright blue ; anal fln
orange, with deep blue in front and behind ; soft dorsal chiefly orange, blue at base and
tip ; spinous dorsal crimson at base, then orange, with blue edgings; ventral bluish,
often deep indigo ; cheeks blue; throat and breast orange; females much duller, with
blue or red, the vertical fins barred or checked ; young variously marked; head 3#;
depth 44; D, X, 12; A. II, 7; Scales 5–45–8; the lateral line developed on about 30 to
35. Length 2+ inches. -
980 FISHEs—PERCIDA.
Habitat, Upper Mississippi Valley, Ohio Valley, and tributaries of Lake Erie and
Lake Michigan. In much of the Ohio Valley the mest abundant member of the family,
Swarming in all streams,
Habits. It prefers the channels on gravelly bottoms, seldom ascending
brooks. It is less active than many of its relatives, but is the most
gaudily colored of all. Stories of its having first appeared in different
streams at the time of the outbreak of the late civil war are still extant,
there being Something patriotic about its red and blue coloration. For
Sinailar reasons it is sometimes called “soldier-fish ’ by the very few per-
Sons who know of its existence.
153. POECILICHTHYs SPECTABILIs Agassiz.
Poecilichthys 8pectabilis, Agassiz, Almer. Journ. Sci. Arts, 1854, 304–JORDAN, Man. Vert.,
2d Ed., 1878, 226, and elsewhere.
Description.—Very similar to the preceding, but more elongate and rather more com-
pressed ; the colors somewhat similar, but the upper portion of the sides with distinct
blackish stripes along the rows of the Scales, and the ground color of the back and
sides having a peculiar whitish or bleached appearance; the two dorsal fins usually well
separated; head 4; depth 4%; D, X, 12; A, II, 7; Scales 5–40–7; Lat. l. On 20 to 25
scales. Length 2 to 3 inches.
Habitat, Ohio Valley and Upper Mississippi Valley, with the preceding and nearly
equally abundant, but frequenting chiefly the small brooks and Spring runs.
Habits—If this be a distinct species (which I doubt), and not merely
the brook form of the preceding, it differs from the latter in its place of
abode. It abounds in the little brooks, where it is as plentiful as P.
coeruleus is in its larger streams. -
POE (ILICHTHYS Eos Jordan and Copeland.
Red-side gll iſ) arter.
f
Boleichthys e08, JORDAN and COPELAND, Próc. Acad. Nat. Sci., Phila., 1877, 46.-Jordan,
Man, Vert. 2d Ed., 1878, 228. '•
Description.— Body elongate, slender, somewhat compressed, especially behind, rather
heavy forwalds, with very long caudal peduncle; head long, rounded in front; mouth
small, little otylique, the upper jaw a very little the longer; dorsal fins high, about
equal; caudal truncate; cheeks, opercles, and neck closely scaled ; breast with a median
series of small scales, or Loue; lateral line developed on 22 to 26 scales, arched upward
above pectorals; color dark olive, with Garker markings; ten or twelve dorsal spots or
bars, and, as many short, dark blue bars, not continuous with them ; the inter-
spaces between these bars, as well as most of the wentral region, bright crimson in the
males, nearly plain in the females; lower parts of the sides, cheeks, etc., with various
sharply defined, but irregular black markings; second dorsal, caudal, and pectorals
strongly marked with wavy bands; first dorsal bright blue in the males, with a broad
median band of crimson, speckled in the females; top of head dark ; black streaks
/
LEAST DARTER. 981
downward and forward from eye; head 34; depth 54; D. IX, 11; A, II, 7; Lat. 1, 58.
Length 2% inches.
Habitat, Northwestern Ohio to Minnesota; abundant northwestward; noticed only
in tributaries of the Maumee, in Ohio,
Habits.-This species seems to be found in lakes and their tributaries
more abundantly than is usual in this group. It is a brightly colored
and active little fish.
GENUS 82. MICROPERCA. Putnam.
Microperca, PUTNAM, Bull. Mus. Comp. Zool, i, 1863, 4.
Type, Microperca punctulata, Putnam.
Etymology, mikrog, small; perke, perch.
Body rather short, compressed ; mouth moderate; the jaws about equal, the upper
not protractile; vomerine teeth present ; scales large; lateral line wanting, or on one
or two scales only ; dorsal fin small, Bube qual, well separated, the first with six or
seven spines; anal fin much smaller than second dorsal, with two, or rarely one, spines,
which are well developed ; pattern of coloration greenish, with dusky bars and zigzag
markings; size very small, probably the smallest of the Spiny-rayed fishes.
155. MICROPERCA PUNCTULATA Putnam.
Least Darter.
Microperca punctulata, PUTNAM, Bull. Mus. Comp. Zool, i, 1863, 4.—JORDAN, Man. Vert.,
2d Ed., 1878, 228, and elsewhere. -
Description —Body rather short and deep, somewhat compressed ; the back arched, the
caudal peduncle rather long; head moderate, the snout somewhat decurved ; the mouth
moderate, terminal, oblique ; cheeks naked ; opercles somewhat scaly; neck and chest
naked; scales quite large, strongly ctenoid ; fins all small ; anal spines strong, the first
usually the largest ; coloration olivaceous, the Sides closely speckled and with vague
bars and zigzag markings; second dorsal and caudal barred ; dark streaks radiating
from eye; a dark humeral spot ; head 3%; depth 4%; D. VI to VII, 10; A, II, 6; Lat. 1.
34, Length 1% inches. -
Habitat, tributaries of the Upper Great Lakes and the northern parts of the Mississ-
ippi and Ohio Valleys; abundant northwestward. In distribution and probably in
habits similar to Paecilichthy& eos.
FAMILY XXIII. S CIAE N ID AE. T H E C R O A K E R S.
- ſº
Body compressed, more or less elongate, covered with rather thin, ctenoid scales;
lateral line continuous, extending on the caudal fin; head prominent, covered with
scales; bones of the skull cavernous, the muciferous system highly developed, the sur-
face of the skull, when the flesh is removed, very uneven ; chin usually with pores,
sometimes with barbels; mouth small or large, teeth in one or more series, the outer of
which are sometimes enlarged ; canines often present; no incisor nor molar teeth; no
982 - FISHEs—scIAENIDAE.
teeth on vomer, palatines, pterygoids, or tongue; maxillary without supplemental bone,
Slipping under the free edge of the preorbital; premaxillaries protractile, but not very
freely movable; nostrils double; pseudobranchiae usually large, present in all our
genera; gills 4, a slit behind the fourth ; gill-rakers present ; branchiostegals 7; gill-
membranes Separate, free from the isthmus; lower pharyngeals separate or united ;
preopercle Serrate or not ; opercle usually ending in two flat points; dorsal fin deeply
notched, or divided into two fins, the soft dorsal being the longer, the spines depressible
into a more or less perfect groove; anal fin with one or two spines; ventral fins thoracic,
1, 5 ; pectoral fins normal; caudal fins usually not-forked ; ear bones very large; pyloric
coech usually rather few ; air-bladder usually lacgº and complicated (wanting in Menti-
Cirruð); most of the species make a peculiar noise, called variously croaking, grunting,
drumming, and snoring; this sound is supposed to be caused by forcing the air from the
air-bladder into one of the lateral horns; carnivorous; an important family of about
25 genera and 125 species, found in all warm Beºs, one species being confined to fresh
Waters; many of them reach a large size, and nearly all are valued for food,
GENUS 83. HAPLOIDONOTUS. Rafinesque.
Aplodinotub, RAFINESQUE, Journal de Physique, de Chemie et D'histoire Naturelle, 1819,
418. - :
Amblodon, RAFINESQUE, Journal de Physique, 1819, 421 (based on the pharyngeal teeth
of A grummiens, erroneously ascribed to Ichthyobus bubalus),
Haploidonotus, GILL, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci., Phila., 1861, 103 (corrected orthography).
Eutychelithus, JoFDAN, Man, Vert. E. U. S., 1st Ed., 1876, 242, -
Type, Aplodinotus grunniems, RAFINESQUE.
Etymology, haplois, a simple cloak to fit the body; moto8, the back, in allusion to the
Scaly coating of the base of the Second dorsal, supposed by Rafinesque to distinguish
this genus from Sciaena. -
Body oblong, the snout blunt, the back elevated and compressed ; mouth rather
Small, low, horizontal, the lower jaw included; teeth in villiform bands, the outer
scarcely enlarged; no barbels; pseudobranchiae rather small; gill-rakers short and
blunt ; lower pharyngeals very large, fully united, with coarse, blunt, paved teeth;
preopercle slightly serrate ; dorsal spines strong and high, with a close fitting sheath
at base, the two dorsals somewhat connected; second anal spine very strong; caudal
double truncate; chin with five pores. But one species of this genus is certainly
known. It has a wide distribution in the fresh waters of the United States.
156. HAPLOIDONOTUS GRUNNIENS Rafinesque.
Sheeps-head; Thaumder-purpaper; Drum ama; Bubbler; Gruum ting
Percia; White Perch; Croaker.
Aplodinotus grunnien8, RAFINESQUE, Journal de Physique, Vol. 88, 1819, 418.
Amblodom grummien8, RAFINESQUE, Ich. Oh, 1820, 24,-AGASSIZ, Amer. Journ. Sci. Arts,
1854.—GIRARD, Pac. R. R. Expl. and Surv, x, 1854, 96.
Haploidomotus grunniems, GILL, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., 1861, 104.—Jordan, Man,
Vert., 1876; Man. Wert, 2d Ed., 1878. -
Sciama oscula, LE3UEUR, Journ. Acad. Nat Sci, Phila, 1822, 252–KIRTLAND, Rept. Zool.
Ohio, 1838, 168, 192.
SHEEPS-HIEAD. 983
Corvina ogoula, CU v. et VAL, Hist, Nat. de Poiss., v., 1830, 93.−RICHARDSON, Fauna
Bor.-Amer., iii, 1836, 68 –KIRTLAND, Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist., iii, 1840, 350.-DEKAY,
Fishes N. Y., 1842, 73.−STORER, Synopsis, 1846, 319.-GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes Brit.
Mus., ii, 1860, 297.
Sciaena grigea, LESUEUR, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila , 1822, 254.
Corvina grigea, DEKAY, Fishes N. Y., 1842, 76.
# Corvina richardsoni, CUV. and VAL, Hist, Nót. Poi. 3., v., 100—RICHARDSON, Fauna.
Bor.-Amer., 1836, 64.—GUNTHER, ii, 298 (based on a deformed it dividual).
? Eutychelithus richardsoni, JORDAN, Man. Vert., 18t Ed., 242.
Amblodon concinnw8, AGASSIZ, Auer. Journ. Sci, Arts, 1854, 307. z
Haploidomotus concinnus, GILL, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci, Puila... 1861, 104.—JORDAN, Man.
Vert., 1876.
Amblodon lineatub, AGASSIZ, Amer. Journ. Sci. Arbs, 1854, 307.
Haploidonotus lineatus, GILL, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci, Phila., 1861, 105.-JORDAN, Man. Vert.,
1876.
Amblodon neglectus, GIRARD, U. S. Mex. Bound. Surv., Ighth., 1859, 12.
Haploidomotus neglectus, GILL, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila, 1861, 105.
Description —Body oblong, rather elongate, the front rather Bteep, the outline of the
back posteriorly forming a nearly straight slope with scarcely any curve; the caudal
peduncle rather slender; back very much compressed, its thickuess being very much less
than that of the belly; the greatest depth about one-third of the length ; head oblong,
the silout high and blunt; length of head contained about three and one-half times
in the length of body (without caudal Hu); mouth rather small, rather inferior ; teeth
in a villiform band in each jaw, thºſt of the upper preceded by a row of slightly
larger ones; eyes rather large, placed anteriorly, their diameter about equal to the
length of the snout, and about one-fourth of the length of the side of the head; scales
rather irregular in position, 50 to 54 in the course of the lateral line, seven or eight
rows between the lateral line and the dorsal, and ten or twelve between it and the ven-
trals; fin rays: D. IX-1, 30; A II, 7 ; first of the anal fin short, the second very large
and long, attached to a stout bone; general color grayish-silvery, the back darker, the
Scales considerably punctate with fine dark points. Young specimens are often
marked on the back with oblique lines, caused by the presence of darker spots along
the rows of scales. This species reaches a length of more than two feet and a weight
of forty to fifty pounds; specimens as seen in markets have usually a weight of one to
five pounds,
Habitat, entire Great Lake Region and Mississippi Valley, southward to Georgia and
Texas. It is found chiefly in the channels of the larger streams and in the lakes. It
Seldom ascends the creeks and small rivers,
Diagnosis.—This species is the only one in Ohio which has two amal
spines, whereof the second is very much longer and stronger than the
first.
In the Great Lakes this species is very abundant, and reaches a large
size. It is there known as Sheeps-head, and is very rarely eaten as food.
It has there the reputation of being “ the most worthless fish that swims.”
The flesh has at all times a more or less disagreeable shark-like odor,
which, in lake specimens, is often positively offensive. In the lakes the
984 FISHES-COTTIDAE.
Species is peculiarly liable to the attacks of parasitic entozoa, and great
tumors are often found on different parts of the body. r
In the lakes of Northern Indiana, it is known as Crocus, which name
is a corruption of Croaker, a name given to species of the marine genus
Micropogon in the same family. In the Ohio River it is now usually
known by the name of White Perch, and commands a good price, al-
though compared with the Sun-fishes and Bass, it is very indifferent
food, not better than Suckers, except that the bones are fewer. Farther
south it has the name of Drum, which term is also applied to the species
of the related marine genus, Pogomias.
The names Croaker, Drum, Grunter, Thunder-pumper, etc., refer to a
croaking Sound, which the fish makes when in the water, and which
may be heard in the night by putting the ear close to the water in still,
deep places in rivers inhabited by this species. -
This phenomenon is found in all or most Scienidae, and in many of the
related families, Sparidae, Cottidae, etc. It is always accompanied by a
trembling of the sides of the fish, very perceptible when a fish recently
taken is held in the hand. It is thus explained by Dr. Holbrook (Ichth.
S. Car., 118), in the case of the salt water Drum (Pogonias chromis).
“Cuvier observes that it may depend on the air-bladder. Thongh he says that it has
no connection with the outside atmosphere. DeKay supposes it to be occasioned by the
strong compression of the expanded pharyngeal teeth on each other.
“Frequent examinations of the structure and arrangement of the air-bladder, as well
as observations on the living animal just taken from the water, when the sound is at in-
tervals still continued, have satisfied me that it is made in the air bladder itself; that
the vibrations are made by the air being forced by strong muscular contractions through
a narrow opening from one large cavity, that of the air-bladder, to another, that of the
cavity of the lateral horn ; and if the hands be placed on the sides of the animal, vi-
brations will be felt in the lateral horn, corresponding with each sound.” º
It seems to me certain that the noises proceed from the air-bladder, but it is also cer-
tain that they are produced in Some species (Artédiw8, etc., in which the air-bladder has
but one cavity, and is without the complicity of structure found in Pogonias and most
Sciaenoids. -
The ear bones in Haploidomotus grummiens are largely developed, quadrate
in form, and marked with a rude impress of a letter L. These are com-
monly known as “lucky stones” to boys living where this fish is found.”
FAMILY XXIV. Go TT ID A. T H E S C U L PIN S.
Body moderately elongate, fusiform or compressed, tapering backward from the head,
which is usually broad and depressed; eyes placed high, the interocular space usually
narrow ; a bony stay connecting the suborbital with the preopercle, usually covered by
SCULPIN.S. 985
the skin ; upper angle of preopercle usually with one or more spinous processes ; teeth
equal, in villiform or cardiform bands on jaws, and usually on vomer and palatines; pre-
maxillaries protractile; maxillary without supplemental bone; gills 34 or 4; slit behind
the last gill small, or obsolete; gill-rakers short, tubercle-like or obsolete; gill-mem-
branes broadly connected, often joined to the isthmus; body naked, or variously armed
with scales, prickles, or bony plates, but never uniformly 8caled; lateral line present,
simple; dorsal fins separate or somewhat connected, the spines usually slender, the soft
part elongate; caudal fin separate, rounded ; anal fin similar to the soft dorsal, without
spines; pectoral fins large, with broad procurrent base, the rays mostly simple, the
upper sometimes branched; ventrals thoracic, rarely entirely wanting, the rays usually
less than I, 5; pseudobranchiae present, at least in all our species; pyloric coeca usually
in small number (4–8); air-bladder commonly wanting; genera about 40; species about
150, mostly of the rock pools of Northern regions; many species found in fresh waters,
The majority of the species are of small size and singular aspect. None are valued as
food, the flesh being dry and rather coarse, and the waste consequent on the removal of
the head and skin very great.
The fresh-water species are all small in size. They lurk under stones and in shady
places after the manner of the Darters. They are found only in clear waters, and delight
especially in caves and springs.
All the fresh-water species are, we think, referable to two genera,
a. Gill-membranes nearly free from the isthmus, forming a broad fold across it ; a slit.
behind last gill ; bones of head extensively cavernous; no palatipe teeth,
TRIGLOPSIS,
aa. Gill-membranes fully united to the isthmus; no slit behind last gill ; bones of
head little cavernous; palatine teeth present or not. . g e URAN IDEA.
GENUS 84. TRIGLOPSIS. Girard.
Triglopsis, GIRARD, Proc, Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., iv., 1851, 18.
Piyonotus, GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes B1 it. Mus., ii, 1860, 175 (substitute for Triglopsis, con- .
sidered to be preoccupied), there being a marine genus Triglops Kroger, 1844, in the
Same family.
Type, Triglopsis thompsonii, GIRARd. -
Etymology, Trigla, the Gurnard, a marine genus of another family to which the present
genus bears no special resemblance; opsis, appearance.
Fresh-water Sculpins with the body and head slender and eiongated, the former taper-
ing quite rapidly away towards the tail; both covered with smooth naked skin ; mouth
large; lateral line chain-like; teeth on womer, none on the palatimes; eyes large, the
interorbital area concave; bones of lower part of head extensively cavernous ; a small
but distinct slit behind last gill; gill membranes almost free from the isthmus, forming
a broad fold across it ; preopercular spines, short, straight, simple; fins large, especially
the second dorsal. Small fishes inhabiting the deeper waters of the reat Lakes. A
single species known, thus far found in Lake Ontario and in Lake Michigan. It undoubt-
edly occurs also in Lake Erie, although none has yet come to the notice of any natural-
ist, Most of the Specimens thus far obtained of, Triglopsis thompsonii have been taken
from the stomach of the Ling (Lota maculosa). The relations of the genus Triglopsis are
particularly With the marine genus Cottus, and it seems to be a modified survivor of an
ancient Salt-water species, of the fauna of the basin of the Great Lakes.
986 FISHES-COTTIDAE.
157. TRIGLOPSIs THOMPson II. Girard.
Triglopsis thompsonii, GIRARD, Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat Hist., 1851, 19; Mon, Cottoids, 1851,
65 —Jordan, Man. Vert., 1876; Man Wert., 2d Ed., 1878, 256.
Ptyomotus thompsonii, GUNTHER, Cat. Fishes Brit. Mus., ii, 1860, 175,
Triglopsis stimpsoni, GILL, Mss. (no description published.)
Pala olivaceous, with darker blotches; upper fins faintly banded ; body elongate, Very
slender; bead long, depressed above; snout long and pointed ; eye quite large, nearly
as long as snout, much wider than interorbital space, 4 ia head ; jaws subequal ; mouth
large, the maxillary extending rather beyond mriddle of eye; proopercle with 4 sharp
spines, the upper much shorter than pupil; cavernous structure of skull highly devel-
oped; upper surface of the head smooth; gill-membranes not broadly united, nearly
free from isthmus; dorsal fins well separated ; spinous dorsal short and low, its height
little more than length of snout ; second Jorsal very large, 3 times height of first, its
longest rays about as long as head; anal high, half as high as second dorsal; pectoral
long, reaching past front of anal; ventrals well developed ; literal line chain-like, con-
spicuous; skin perfectly smooth; head 3; depth 6; D. VII–18; A 15 ; V. I., 3; Length
3 inches.
Habitat, deep waters of the Great Lakes, Lake Michigan, Lake Ontario. This Species
inhabits somewhere in the depths of Lake Ontario, but has not yet been Been or caught
alive either by fishermen or naturalists. The manner in which its discovery took place
is as follows: In opening the stomach of the Ling (Lota maculosa), the fishermen of
Oswego, finding it, almost constantly filled with that figh, had entertained the errone-
ous opiniºn that the Ling swallowed its progeny. Professor Baird, who visited that
place in 1830, and heard the story, Secured specimers, which at once enabled him
to recognize in them a fish new to science, although half digested, the skin and the fins
in most cases destroyed. In that state, whom the heat and body alone have preserved
their shape, the elongation of the former and the tapering head of the latter may re-
mind Superficial observers of the elougated head and the tapering body of Lota macwloga.
Attention 6 hould be directed on all fishiºg grounds of the Ling to the contents of the
Stomachs of these fish, as at present the only way kilow of procuring Triglopsis. By
this means, at least, we should become acquainted with its geographic distribution, for
mere remains, when they cannot be mistaken, are always sufficient to establish its
occurrence at any given place, should complete and fresh specimens escape all researches.
(Girard, Mon. Cottoids, 67.)
The specimens from Lake Michigan, to which the name of Triglopsis Stimpsoni has been
given, are not distinguishable from the original types of the Species,
GENUS 85. URANIDEA. DeKay.
Cottw8, 8.p., GIRARD, 1851, and of early writers generally (not type).
Uramidea, DEKAY, New York Fauna Fishes, 1842, 61.
Cottopsig, GIRARD, Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., iii, 1850, 303 (asper).
Potamocottus, GILL, Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist, viii, 1861, 40 (punctulatus).
Tauridea, Jordan and RICE, Man. Vert. E. U. S., Ed. 2d, 1878, 255 (8pilota).
Type, Uranidea quiescens, DeKay = Cottu.8 gracilig, Heckel.
Etymology, owranoë, Sky ; eido, to gaze.
Fresh-water Sculpins with body fusiform, little compressed ; head feebly armed, the
HOY’s COTTUs. 987
preopercular spines generally short, covered by the skin ; skin smooth or vari-
ously prickly, without scales; villiform teeth on jaws and vomer, and in some species
on palatines also ; gill-membranes fully united to the wide isthmus, over which they do
not form a fold; no slit behind fourth gill ; branchiostegals 6; dorsals nearly or quite
Separate, the first of 6–9 slender spines; ventrals I, 3, or I, 4. Fishes of small size, in-
habiting clear waters in the northern parts of Europe, Asia, and Aulerica. The 8pecies
are numerous, and difficult to distinguish, as they are all very similar in form and color-
ation. The development of the palatine teeth in Some of the species is so slight that
their presence cannot well be used as a generic character.
It is not unlikely that other species besides those mentioned below may be found in
Lake Erie or its tributaries.
ANALYSIS OF SUBGENERA AND SPECIES OF URANIDEA,
a. Palatine teeth obsolete ; ventrals (in our species) I, 3 ; skin smooth or nearly so.
(Uranidea.)
b. Preopercular spine prominent, straight, directed backwards, and but little up-
wards. g ſe tº e ë e * ſº HOYI.
bb. Preopercular spine moderate, hooked upwards.
C, Pectorals short, not reaching anal. º g º F PANIC LINI.
Co. Pectorals long, reaching anal. & e e te GRACILIS.
aa. Palatine teeth present ; ventrals (in our species) I, 4.
d. Skin smooth, or prickly in the axil only. cº & (Potamocottus.)
6. Preopercular spine short, hooked ; dorsal rays about VII–17; anal about 12.
RICHARDSONI,
a;. Pectoral rays all simple
gy. Spinous dorsal very low, of six spines; palatine teeth little developed ;
body small and slender. (Subspecies.) • • fe bairdi.
gy. Spinous dorsal well developed of 7 or 8 spines; palatine teeth well de-
veloped ; body robust. (Subspecies.) & tº * carolinae.
a.a. Upper pectoral rays branched. (Subspecies.) . º . wil&omi.
dd. Skin of back and sides covered with prickles.
f. Preopercular spine short ; prickles williform. g º (Coltopsis.)
ff. Preopercular spine long, strongly hooked ; prickles stiff. # (Tauridea.)
SPILOTA,
158. URANIDEA H YI Putnam.
Hoy’s Cottus.
Uranidea hoyi, PUTNAM, Mss.--NELSON, Bull. Ills. Mus. Nat. Hist., 1876, 41 —JORDAN,
Proc. Ac. Nat. Sc. Phila., 177, 63; Man. Vert., Eul. 2d, 1878, 253
Description.—Grayish olive, Speckled and barred ; body rather slender ; female with
the anterior parts of body and above lateral line covered with sparse prickles ; male
apparently smooth ; head narrowed forwards; jaws narrow, about equal; maxillary
reaching front of pupil : preopercular spine prominent, longer than pupil, sharp, almost
straight, directed backwards and but little upwards; below this is another sharp, prom-
inent spine, also nearly straight, directed partly downwards; 1 or 2 minute concealed
988 & FISHES-COTTIDAE.
spines still lower; pectoral fins reaching vent; D. WI-16; A. 11; W. I. 3; P. 13. Length
of specimens 2 1-6 inch. • *
Habitat, Lake Michigan—in deep water; two specimens known,
Female specimen taken 12 miles off Racine, Wis., in 12 fathoms, June 4th, 1875, by Dr.
Hoy ; the male off Milwaukee, June 15th. The specimens are now in bad condition,
from rough handling. The female is distended with ripe eggs, so that the width of the
body is one-third the total length.
This species seems to be quite distinct from all those described by Girard. The peculiar
characters are the number and form of the preopercular spines, the contracted mouth,
the large eyes, the small size of the body, and the length of the ventral fins. This curi-
ous little fish is as yet known only from the waters of Lake Michigan, but its occurrenge
in Lake Erie, also, is not improbable - -
159. URANIDEA FRANKLINI (Agassiz) Jordan.
Cottus franklini, AGASSIz, Lake Superior, 1850, 303.−GIRARD, Monogr. Cott, 53–GUN-
THER, ii, 158,
Uranidea franklini, Jordan, Man. Werff., Ed. 2d, 1878, 252.
? Cottus formosus, GIRARD, Monogr. Cott., 1851, 58.
Uranidea kumilieni, Hoy, Mss.-NELSON, Bull, Ills. Mus. Nat. Hist, 1876, 41–JORDAN,
Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci. Pbila., 1877, 64.
Olivaceous, mºttled ; both dorsals and araal with a broad dark bar on the distal half;
pectorals and caudal broadly blotched with dusky ; jaws equal; preopercular Spine
stout, short, pretty Btrongly hooked upwards and inwards; first dorsal rather bigh, not
much lower than Second ; pectorals short, not reaching anal ; axil prickly, as in L. rich-
ardsoni: head 33 ; depth 5; D, VIII–17; A. 11 or 12, Ley'gth 3 inches.
Habitat, deep waters of the Great Lakes: Lake Superior, Lake Michigan, ? Lake
Ontario.
This small species has not yet been obtained in Lake Erie, although doubtless occur-
ring there. -
160. URANIDEA GRACILIS (Heckel) Putnam.
Sleſadder Miller’s 'H'Haulbag).
Cottus gracilis, HECKEL, Ann. Wiener Mus., ii, 1837, 148–GIRARD, Proc. Am. Assoc. Adv.
- Sc., 18; 0, 401; Proc, Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist., iii, 1850, 189; Mon. Cottoids, 85, 49.
Uranidea gracilig, PUTNAM, Bull, Mus, Comp, Zool, 1868–Jordan, Man, Vert., Ed, 1st,
18; 6, and Ed. 2d, 1878, 252. -
Uranidea quiescens, DEKAY, Nat. Hist, N. Y. Fishes, 1842, 61.
Cottus gobio, AYREs, Bost. Journ, Nat. WHist, 1845, 121 (not of Linnaeus).
Description.—Olivaceous, mottled, upper edge of spinous dorsal red in life ; body rather
slender, fusiform ; preopercular spine moderate, concealed; mouth rather large, the max-
lary reaching nearly to the pupil; pectorals reaching front of anal; ventrals about to
vent ; head 3% ; depth 5 ; D. VIII, 16; A, 12. Length 2% inches.
Habitat, New England and New York; the common Eastern species found “quies-
MILLER’s THUMB. 989
cont” under stones in clear gravelly brooks, after the manner of the Darters. This.
species has not yet been noticed in Ohio, but it may probably be found in tributaries
of Lake Erie, in the north-eastern part of the State.
161. URANIDEA RICHARDSONI (Agassiz) Jordan and Gilbert.
Miller's Thuub ; Blob ; Muffie-jaws; Cave Bull-head.
a, war, richardbomi. (Upper Lakes.)
Cottus richardsoni, AGASSIz, Lake Superior, 1850, 300; GIRARD, Mon. Cott., 1850, 39.—GUN-
THER, ii, 1850, 158.
b. war, bairdi. (Ohio to N. Y.)
Cottus bairdi, GIRARD, Proc. Am. Ass. Adv. Sci., 1850, 410; and Mon. Cott, 44.
c. war, wilsoni. (Ohio Valley.)
Cottus wilsoni, GIRARD, Mon. Cott., 1851, 42.
d. war, alvordi, (Wisconsin and Michigan.)
Cottus alvordi, GIRARD, Mon, Cott., 1851, 46.
e, war. meridiomalis. (Alleghanies)
Cottus meridionalis, GIRARD, Proc. Ass. Adv. Sci., 1850, 410; and Mon. Cott., 1851, 47.
f. War. 20phérus. (Alabama basin.)
Potamocottw8 zopherub, JORDAN, Ann, Lye. Nat. Hist. N. Y., 1876.
g. var. carolinae. (Ohio Valley and southward.)
Potamocottus carolinae, GILL, Proc. Bost. Soc. Nat. Hist, 1861, 40.
Description.—Olivaceous, more or less barred and speckled with darker; fins mostly
barred or mottled ; body slender or stout, tapering regularly backward to the tail; ver-
tex somewhat depressed; interocular space with a groove; preopercle with a short,
sharp spine, little hooked, directed backwards and upwards, mostly covered by the
skin; below this are 2 smaller concealed spines; subopercle with a stoutish Spine,
directed forwards; skin smooth, except the region immediately behind the pectorals,
which is beset with very small sharp prickles ; these are sometimes obsolate ; lateral
line conspicuous, continuous or interrupted behind ; first dorsal low and feeble ; pectoral
fins large, their length nearly equal to that of the head, their tips usually reaching be-
yond the origin of the soft dorsal : ventral fins moderate ; isthmus very broad, the gill-
membranes noi, forming a fold across it; head 34; depth 4–6; D. VI to VIII, 16 or 17;
A, about 12; V. I, 4, Length 3 to 6 inches
Habitat, Middle and Northern States, and probably northward; abounding in all clear
rocky brooks and lakes southward along the Alleghanies.
NotE.-As understood by us, Uranidea richardsoni is a wide spread and abundant species,
varying in different regions, as is the case with most non-migratory species. In this as
990 FISHES-COTTIDAE.
in other species of similar range, the inhabitants of each stream, or of each river-basin,
may show local peculiarities. A number of these forms have received from Dr. Girard
specific names, which are accompanied by detailed descriptions. Large collections of
these fishes reveal the fact that numerous other “species” still exist undescribed, as it
is a rare thing to find a specimen which exactly agrees in all respects with any of the
species in Dr. Girard’s “Monograph of the Fresh-Water Cottoids.” The following forms,
of all of which the writer has specimens, may possibly be recognized as “varieties,”
but of their complete intergradation we have no doubt.
War, richardsoni (Ag) is rather slender, with the vent rather more posterior than usual,
placed midway between the snout and the tip of the caudal ; in the others it is nearly
midway between the snout and middle of caudal, Wisconsin to Lake Superior.
War. bairdi (Girard) is small and slender, with the spinous dorsal very low, and the
palatine teeth less developed than in the other forms. Cayuga Lake, N. Y., to Ohio.
War, wilboni (Grd.) is rather stouter, with stronger palatine teeth, and with some of
the uppermost of the pectoral rays bifurcate, they being entire in the others. Ohio
Walley, Pennsylvania, and Indiana.
War, alvordi (Grd.) is short and chubby, with the first dorsal rather high and joined
by membrane to the Second more than in other forms. Commou in Wisconsin and
Michigan.
War. meridionalis (Grd.) is rather robust, with the dorsal fins scarcely connected, and
the mouth rather larger, the maxillary extending to opposite posterior border of eye;
the preopercular spine is sharp and directed well upward, Pennsylvania to North
Carolina, along the Alleghanies; abundant. --
War. zophera (Jor.) is slender and very dark in color, and more conspicuously varie-
gated ; the palatine teeth well developed. Alabama River.
War. Carolina (Gill) is a very large form, rather robust, reaching a length of nearly
six inches, without axillary prickles, and with the palatine teeth well developed. The
lateral line, as in the othºr forms, is Sometimes continuous and sometimes interrupted.
It abounds in the limestone region from Indiana to Tennessee, and is frequently found
in caves and under railroad culverts.
The following interesting account of the habits of this species is from
the pen of Prof. S. H. Gage, of Cornell University. He terms the fish
the “Cuyuga Lake Star Gazer.”
“This curious little fish Uranidea bairdi, which, when it is full grown, is only about
as long as one's middle finger, justly merits its name, as its eyes are directly on top of its
head. Its salt water cousin is the Sea Robin or the Gurnard, which it resembles in
having very large pectoral fins placed close to the broad head. These fins are so large,
and the head so broad that the fish looks as if it were nearly all head and pectoral fins.
The Star Gazer is so peculiar in form and habits, that in nearly every locality a special
name has been given it. The fishermen of Cayuga Lake call it the “stone fish,” as it is
found almost exclusively under Stones. In the northern part of the State it is called a
“flying fish,” from its rapid movements, and in England it is called the “miller's
thumb,” from the supposed resemblance of its broad, flat head to a miller's thumb.
“The European Star Gazer (Uranidea gobe0) was known to that pioneer in all human
knowledge, Aristotle, who called it Kottus, whence the modern scientific name Cottw8.
MILLER's THUMB. 991
He described its characteristics admirably, saying that it lived under Stones, and that
when the top of the stone was shruck, the fish would come out and dart around with
incredible swiftness, as if the unwonted noise made it crazy.
“The Star Gazer lives in clear, cold brooks, and in the sheltered part of Jakes; and
like many other fishes does not object to eating its smaller brothers and sisters. The
subject of this paper lives near the west shore of the lake, down three or four miles at
least, and is especially abundant at the mouth of cool, 8 pring brooks.
“There are two interestlng points with reference to its eaſing and respiration that
have never been described of any fish in American books so far as I know. Fishes are
very quick in their movements, and very slippery, so that it is not only difficult to catch
them, but to hold them after they are caught. In the Star Gazer, as in many other
fishes, there is a very effectual means of preventing the escape of whatever may be
caught. In both jaws there are very numerous, sharp, conica], recurved teeth, having
a strong hinge on the side toward the throat, and an elastic band on the opposite Bide.
These hinged teeth are set upon a lony base, and from the arrangement of the binge,
they are very readily bent toward the throat, but are immediately straightened by the
elastic band when the pressure is removed ; but after being once straightened the strong
hinge and bony base will not allow them to move farther in that direction. Whenever
a fish is caught the teeth are readily bent toward the throat, thus freely permitting
motion in that direction ; but if by any means the motion teſ, ded fo he in the other di-
rection, the teeth would form a myriad of rigid hooks preventing any escape. In all
the struggles of the prey to escape, every motion toward the 1.hroat won)d be easy, but
motion in the opposite direction would be impossible, so that the very efforts to escape
only render escape the more hopeless. Truly we might, well write over this fearful
portal the gloomy words of Dante, “All hope abandon ye who enter hete.”
“The mechanism of respiration is very complex, but its whole office is to force on r-
rents of water over the gills and so purify the blood. There is one very interesting
point in this mechanism, which has not been described in American books as is stated
above, but which is easily understood. As fishes do not have fleshy lips to securely
close their mouths, it is evident that when there is an attempt to force the wafer filing
the mouth cavity over the gills and out through the gill fissures, it will tend to flow out
through the mouth as well as through the gill fissures To prevent this regurgitation,
and insure the passage of the current over the gills there is both on the floor and roof
of the mouth, just behind the jaws, a crescent shaped membranous curtain. These cur-
tains are attached at their anterior edges, but their posterior exiges float freely. When-
ever water is drawn into the mouth the curtains float up against the roof and down
against the floor of the mouth, offering no resistance whatsoever to the current. When
the mouth is closed to force the water over the gills, the water tends to flow out through
the opening of the mouth, but in doing so it gets above and below the curtains, moving
them.so that their free edges meet, and as they are so fastened in front that they can-
not move further after their edges meet, the current of water is not allowed to go fur-
ther in that direction, and therefore must pass over the gills and out through the fis-
sures. These curtains in the mouth of the fish act precisely like the valves in the heart,
they freely permit a current of fluid in one direction, but not in the reverse.
“The color of the Star Gazer is reddish brown, with deeper transverse bars. In the
spring some of them are entirely black. It is so quick in its movements that it some-
times takes five or ten minutes to catch one. If the fish is frightened out of its hiding
place under a stone, and chased five or ten minutes before being caught, it will not be
992 FISHES-COTTIDAE).
black as when first seen, but of a light gray color. This change of color from black to
gray takes place in five minutes, and sometimes even less, and changes completely the
appearance of the fish. This rapid change of color was so new to me that it was demon-
strated over and over again to make sure there was no mistake The cause seemed
to be the great fright and the light. Upon studying them more carefully in an aquarium,
it was found that when the water became deprived of its oxygen they would pant like
a suffocating animal, and become very pale just as they did when frightened. If the
wafer is changed, these pale fish soon regain their natural color and respire slowly and .
regularly. - .
“It has been known to fishermen from time immemorial that many fishes imitate the
bottom on which they live, changing their color whenever put upon a differently colored
bottom. This fact has been recently studied with great care, and has been very Satis-
factorily explained. It was found that the skin contained very many pigment cells,
which may be expanded into thin sheets or contracted into almost invisible dots. These
cells are of three colors, black, red, and yellow, the black being most abundant. As
they are intimately mingled together, it is evident that a great variety of shades may
be produced by a suitable combination of the colors. If the black cells were contracted,
and the red or yellow cells expanded, the fish would be red or yellow, or if the red cells
were expanded in certain regions, the yellow in others, and the black in others, a spotted
or striped appearance would be given. It was also found that if a fish were put upon
differently colored bottoms frequently, it soon became able to change its color very much
more quickly than at first.
“If the eyes be blinded no change in color takes place, but if the eyes are left perfect,
and a spinal nerve be cut, then the skin supplied by that nerve remains of a natural
tint, although the surrounding skin whose nervous supply has been unaffected, will
change through its whole range of Colors.
“There is one point in the character of the Star Gazer, which is, so far as I know,
unique with fishes. If one be carefully watched at a considerable distance, the respira-
tions, indicated by the alternate opening and closing of the mouth and gill fissures, will
be seen to take place about forty times per minute. Now, if one suddenly moves up very
near the fish, not the slightest motion of the body or of the respiratory apparatus can
be detected, If, however, one remains perfectly still for about half a minute, and
watches the gill covers, he will see them commence to rise and fall very gently, and in
two or three minutes the respirations will be as vigorous as ever. This experiment may
be tried over any number of times and always with the same result. This is equiva-
lent to holding the breath with the higher animals, and is apparently for the same pur-
pose ; viz., to escape detection. This supposition is verified by the following observa-
tion. As was stated above, a fish in impure water respires very rapidly and, with des-
perate effort. No matter how suddenly one moves near a fish in this condition, not the
slightest notice is taken of iſ ; that is, the distress of Suffocation has rendered the fish
indifferent to its Burroundings.
“The paleºtal instincts of the Star Gazer are no less interesting than its purely selfish
ones. If one goes to the west shore of the lake from April to July, and lifts up flat
stones in water twelve to fifty centimetres deep, there will be found clinging to the
under side of many of them an irregular, conical mass of beautiful Salmon colored eggs,
and under the same stone a Star Gazer. If the fish be frightened away, but nothing
else disturbed, it will return in a short time as if to take charge of the eggs. The eggs
are those of the Star Gazer, as is proved by hatching them ; and the belief that the fish
COW-FACED SCULPIN. 993
is there to watch them is irresistible; for it returns to them after being driven away,
and stays on guard from the time the eggs are laid in April until they are hatched in
July. -
“The eggs are laid near the shore in shallow water, but the fish seems to have fore-
thought; for they are never laid above the low water mark of July, hence in April or
May one must look in deeper water for them than in July.
“When the eggs are laid they are mingled with a clear, thick substance like the white
of egg; but this substance hardens almost as soon as it is brought in contact with water,
and is a true hydraulic cement, serving to fasten the eggs firmly together, and to attach
them to whatever they are pressed against. So firmly does this cement hold the eggs,
that they will be broken before separating from each other or from. the stone to which
the cluster is attached.
“Now, if the eggs in the middle of the cluster should hatch first, the fishes would not
only find it hard to get out, but would loosen the cluster from the stone. This does not
occur, but first the outside layer of eggs hatches, and then the next, and so on till all
are hatched. It may seem strange that eggs laid at one time should not all hatch
together; but observation has shown that heat hastens and cold retards the hatching of
the eggs of cold blooded animals as well as those having warm blood. The order in
which the Star Gazer's eggs are hatched becomes intelligible from what has just been
said, when it is remembered that the outside layer of eggs is constantly laved by the
surrounding water, and is first warmed by it, while the deeper layers are not so soon
affected.” -
This species is occasionally taken with the hook in our clear streams.
It bites readily, and is, in its way, voracious. In the aquarium its
movements are interesting, much like those of the Darters; but it is
unable to endure foul water. It is too small to be used for food. The
largest specimens we have seen have been taken in cave streams, in
which waters the species is especially abundant. It does not, however,
go far into the caves, and its eyes are fully developed.
162. URANIDEA SPILOTA Cope.
Cow-faced Scualpink.
Uranidea spilota, CoPE, Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci., Phila., 1865, 82-—BEAN, Proc. U. S. Nat,
Mus., 1881, 127.
Cottopsis spilotus, JORDAN, Bull, U. S. Nat. Mus., x, 1877, 1, and Proc. Acad. Nat. Sci.
Phila, 1877, 61.
Tauridea spilota, JORDAN and RICE, Man. Wert, 2d Ed., 1878, 225.
Cottopsis ricei, NELSON, Bull, Ills. Mus. Nat. Hist., 1876.
Description.—Body moderately elongate, depressed, the head especially so, quite
abruptly contracted opposite the base of anal, the body behind head nearly as deep
as wide; body behind the vent rather slender, subterete, giving a tadpole-like form;
jaws about equal, the lower narrower, but projecting in front; mouth rather contracted,
the maxillary scarcely reaching to eye ; palatine teeth; eye 4+ in head, half wider than
the interorbital space, about equal to snout; eyes close together, entirely superior; head
very broad and flat, as broad or broader than long, including the perpendicular spines,
63
994 FISHES-GAHDIDAE.
its depth half its length; profile rising rapidly from head to base of dorsal, which runs
along a decided ridge or carina; preopercular spine extremely large, more than three
times as large as in other of our fresh-water Cottoids, and as long as the eye; this spine
is hooked backwards, and is slightly spiral, giving the fish a decidedly buffalo-like
or cow-like physiognomy; three spines hooked downwards below the large one, the
lower concealed; a strong spine directed forwards at base of opercle; isthmus as wide
as from snout to middle of orbit; head 33.5; depth 54; fin rays: D. VIII, 17; A 12;
Ventrals 1-4; pectorals 16; branchiostegals 6; base of pectorals crescentic, their tips
just short of anal, the rays all simple; ventrals under pectorals reaching two-tbirds to
vent, their membrane decurrent; dorsal beginning a rifle beyond ventrals, rather
nearer anal than Snout ; vent midway between base of caudal and snout ; depth at first
ray of anal less than half length of head, the thickness at the same point a little more
than one-third ; leas' depth one-fourth of head; candal peduncle slenderer than in any
other Cottoid known to me in our fresh waters; head smooth; space above lateral line
behind head covered with small, stiff prickles, slightly hooked backwards, readily vis-
ible as little black specks when the skin is dry ; axillary region not provided with spines;
Color pale brown, rather finely specked and mottled with darker bro an ; pectorals mot-
tled ; belly while. Length of smaller specimen (Nelson's type) 2 5-6 inches; of
larger 3%.
Habitat, Great Lakes, in deep water; Lake Michigan (Nelson, Rice, Jordan); Lake
Ontario (Jordan) Several specimens of this species are mixed with Girard's original
types of Triglopsis thompsoni, in the United States National Museum; near Hudson’s Bay
(Bean); also in Grand River (Cope). Not yet known from Ohio, but probably occurring
in Lake Erie.
Diagnosis.--From our other Sculpins this species may be known by the
prickly back. Specimens poorly preserved lose these prickles, however.
The species may then be distinguished by the cow-like physiognomy,
due to the great development and curvature of the preopercular spines.
F A MIL Y X X W . G A D ID AE. T H E CO D - FIS H E S.
Body elongate, compressed behind, tapering into the isocercal tail; scale2 small,
cycloid, covering head and body ; lateral like continuous; month large, the teeth
pointed, variously arranged ; gill openings very wide, the membranes separate or nearly
so, free from the isthmus; pseudobranchiae obsolete ; bones of head tº smally unarmed ;
chin usually with a barbel; fins all compºs. d of Goff rays only ; dorsal fin very long,
sometimes divided into two or three fins; an al long, sometimes divided ; caudal free
from dorsal and anal; ventrals narrow ; jugular of 2 to 7 ray8; pyloric coeca numerous ;
air-bladder usually present; genera. 15; species about 70. Fishes mostly of the North-
ern seas, many of them reaching a large size. Several of the most important food fishes,
as the Cod, Haddock, Hake, Pollock, Cusk, etc. belong to this family. A single species
is found in fresh waters.
a. Dorsal fins two, the first well developed : anal fin single; ventral rays six; chin.
with a barbel * º º & * à 0. e . . . p º LOTA,
LAWYER. 995
GENUS 86. LOTA, Cuvier.
Lota, CUVIER, Regne Animal, ii, 1817.
Type, Gadw8 lota, L. : Lofa maculosa, var. vulgaris, BEAN.
Etymology, Latin, lota, the ancient name of the Burbot.
Body long and low, depressed anteriorly, subterete medially, strongly compressed
behind; head large, broad and flattened above, the interorbital space wide and flattened ;
eyes moderate, lateral, anterior; head above and behind eyes Sealy; anterior nostrils
each with a small barbel ; middle of lower jaw with a long one; mouth large, some-
what oblique, the upper jaw the longer; premaxillaries and lower jaw each with a
band of slender, recurved, equa), cardiform teeth; vomer with a broad band of similar
teeth, which extends backwards laterally ; no canine teeth; palatines toothless; gill-
membranes somewhat connected, free from the isthmus; branchiostegals 7 or 8; gill-
rakers very short, dentate; scales very small, cycloid, imbedded in the skin ; lateral
line present; vertical fins scaly; dorsal fins two, separate, the first short, of 10 to 13
well-developed rays; Second dorsal very long, Similar to anal; caudal fin distinct,
rounded ; ventrals slender, long, of about six rays; pectorals moderate, broad. A sin-
gle species known, found in the fresh waters of Europe and North America.
163. Lota MACULosA (LeSueur) Richardson.
Lawyer; H.iang; Burbot; Aleky Trout; NHother of Eeis; Cusk ;
Eel-pount.
War. maculosa (American variety).
Gadus maculosa, LHSUEUR, Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila, i, 1817, 83.
Molva maculosa, LESUER, Mem. du Mus., 1819, 159.
Lota maculosa, RICHARDSON, Fauna Bor.-Amer., 1836, .248,-KIRTLAND, Bost. Journ. Nat.
Hist, iv., 1842, 24.—DEKAY, New York Fauna, Fishes, 1842, 284.—BEAN, Science
News, 1878, 42, and of most American writers.
Gadus compressus, LESUEUR, Journ, Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila., i, 1817, 84.
Lota compressw8, STORER, Synopsis, 1846, 471.
Gadw8 lacustris, MITCHILL, Amer. Month. Mag., ii, 1817, 244 (not of Walbaum).
Molva huntia, LESUEUR, Mem. du Mus., v., 1819, 161,
Gadw8 lota, RICHARDSON, Franklin’s Journa), 1824, 74.
Lota brosmiana, STORER, Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist, iv., 1839, 58.
Lota inormata, DEKAY, New York Eauna, Fishes, 1842, 283.
Lota lacustris, GILL, Canadian Naturalist, 1865,-JoRDAN, Man, Vert., 1st Ed., and of
several late writers (based on Gadus lacustris, WALBAUM ; a worthless description of
some fish, more likely an Amiurus).
Description.—Color dark-olive above, usually thickly marbled with blackish, some.
times nearly plain brownish; belly yellowish or dusky; upper jaw longest ; head
broad, depressed; D, XIII, 76; A, 68; W. 6 or 7. Length 1 to 2 feet.
Habitat, Great Lake Region, and northward to Arctic Sea, Connecticut River, Hudson
River, lakes of New York, Maine, New Brunswick, New Hampshire, Upper Mississippi,
Missouri, etc, ; occasional in Ohio River,
996 FISHES-GADIDAE.
Symonymy, The earliest available specific name of this species (unless we call it
Lota lota) is maculogus LeSueur, as has been shown by Dr. Bean (l.c.). The prior name,
lacubtrig (“Gadus lacustris, Walbaum, 1792), which has been used by Dr. Gill and my-
self, appears not to have been given to this species, nor to anything in particular, and
is, therefore, not available. The earliest name of the European Burbot which
Dr. Bean has found, is Lota vulgaris, Jenyns (1835), The European form is provisionally
considered a variety (var. vulgaris), differing only in the fewer vertebrae (61 instead of
64). Most of the common names of this species have been given in allusion to its re-
semblance to marine Gadoid fishes, as “ling,” “cusk,” etc. *
Diagnosis.-The “Lawyer” or, Burbot may be known from all other
Ohio fishes by the presence of a single barbel on the chim.
Habits—This species inhabits chiefly large bodies of water, particularly
broad, still, or deep rivers and lakes. Its range is entirely northward,
Kansas City and New Albany, Indiana, being the southernmost
points from which it has been recorded. In Ohio it is found in some
abundance in Lake Erie. As an article of food it is not highly valued.
The unattractive appearance of the fish is probably the cause of this,
rather than any bad character of the flesh. The flesh is to my taste
fairly good, although rather tough and destitute of richness, ranking
about with the Cat-fishes, and decidedly better than the flesh of the
“Drum,” or of any of the Suckers. The liver is said to be especially
delicious, but my taste is not sufficiently delicate to distinguish it from
other fish liver, when cooked.
In Europe the Burbot is often boiled and eaten cold with vinegar
and other codiments. So prepared, it is tough and tasteless.
The Burbot “is carnivorous and voracious, having a craving and wonderfully disten-
Sible stomacºl, which makes it an efficient dredge in securing bottom fishes. From this
Source was obtained the rare Sculpin-like fish, Triglopsis thompsoni. It is said to lie in
wait under stones watching for its prey, and to feed principally at night.”—BEAN.
ORDER 9, HEMIBRANCHII. THE HALF-GILLED
FISHES;
No preumatic duct communicating with the air-bladder ; superior branchihyal and
pharyngeal bones reduced in number; inferior pharyngeals separated; ventral fins ab-
dominal or subabdominal; pectoral fins elovated; mouth bounded by premaxillaries
* The following is Walbaum's description of his “Gadw8 lacubtrig:”
“Gadus lacustris, Americanus Mathemeg; Anglis Land Cod, Pennant Arct. Zool.,
Introd., p. 191; Corpus tripedale, 8wperme 8wb8padiceum, inferme griseum; cirri trč8, in mandi-
bula inferiore, quorum medius longitudime duos alio3 vincit ’’
This description is valueless, and applies to no fish. The “Land Cod” of British
America is said to be an Amiurw8, and there is little doubt that the species which how
ered in the “distorted perspective ’’ of Walbaum's mental vision, to borrow an expres-
sion from Dr. Coues, was the Amiurus migricans LeSueur.
IAWYER. - 997
only; interclavicles developed. There are also several important peculiarities in the
shoulder girdle and skull, which separate these fishes from the perch-like forms. The
name hemi, half; bragchia, gills)-alludes fo the reduction in number of the branchihyals.
ANALYSIS OF FAMILIES OF HEMIBRANCHII.
a. Bones of head moderately produced; ventral fins of a stout spine and a rudimen-
tary ray; dorsal fins preceded by free spines; body scaleless, naked, or mailed.
GASTEROSTEIDAE,
F A M IL Y X X W I. G. A S T E R O S T E I D AE.
THE STIC K L E B A C K S.
Body elongate, somewhat compressed, tapering behind to a slender caudal peduncle;
head rather long, the anterior part not produced into a tube; mouth moderate, the cleft
oblique, the lower jaw prominent ; teeth sharp, even, in a narrow band in each jaw;
no teeth on vomer or palatines; premaxillaries protractile; preorbital rather broad ; sub-
orbital plate large, often covering the anterior part of the cheeks, connected with the
preopercles; opercles unarmed ; branchiostegals three ; gill-membranes broadly united,
free, or joined to the isthmus; gill-rakers moderate; no true scales, the skin naked or
with bony plates; dorsal with its spines disconnected, two or more in number; anal
similar to soft dorsal, armed with a single spine; ventral fins subabdominal, each con-
sisting of a single sharp spine and a rudimentary soft ray; middle or sides of belly
shielded by the innominate bones; pectorals short, placed at a considerable distance
from the gill openings from which they are separated by a quadrate, naked area covered
with shining skin ; caudal fin narrow, usually lunate; air-bladder simple; a few pyloric
coeca ; genera. 5, the two mentioned are, however, scarcely worthy of separation from
Gastero8tew8. About twenty species are known, most of them of very wide distribution
in the rivers and bays of northern regions. They are all of small size, and are exceed-
ingly active, pugnacious, and destructive.
“It is scarcely to be conceived what damage these little fishes do, and how greatly
detrimental they are to the increase of all the other fishes among which they live, for it
is with the utmost industry, sagacity, and greediness that they seek out and destroy all
the young fry that come their way.”
The Sticklebacks build elaborate nests in the spawning season. These the male fish
defends with much spirit. -
ANALYSIS OF GENERA OF GASTEROSTEIDAE.
a, Innominate bones joined together, forming a triangular or lanceolate bony piece
on the middle line of the abdomen behind the ventral fins; gill-membranes
posteriorly free from the isthmus.
b. Dorsal spines 4 to 6, in the same line when erected; no caudal keel, EUCALIA. 87
bb. Dorsal spines 8 to 10, not in a right line when erected, but projecting altern-
ately to the right and left ; caudal keel present. . . . PYGOSTEUs. 88.
GENUs 87, EUCALIA. Jordan.
Gastero8tew8 sp., KIRTLAND, STORER, and others. - -
Eucalia, JoRDAN, Man. Wert, Ed. 1st, 1876, 248; Proc. Acad, Nat, Sc, Phila., 1877, 65.
Type, Gasterosteus inconstans, Kirtland.
Etymology, eu, well; kalia, nest.
998 FISHES-GASTEROSTEIDAE.
Smooth-skinned Sticklebacks with the caudal keel undeveloped ; the dorsal spines in
small number and placed vertically in a right line; the spines all unserrated; ventral
plates coalesced into a narrow plate on the median liné between the ventral fins; a dis-
tinct subquadrate post-pectoral plate; caudal peduncle comparatively short and stout ;
gill-membranes posteriorly free from the isthmus.
Small fishes inhabiting the inland brooks and lakes of the Northern United States.
But one species is certainly known, running into two or three varieties. This group is
probably unworthy of generic distinction from Gastero8tow8, from which it differs mainly
in its feeble spines, and lack of armature, and in the freedom of the gill-Inembranes
from the isthmus.
164. EUCALIA INCONSTANs (Kirtland) Jordan.
Brook Stäckleback.
Gasterostew8 inconstans, KIRTLAND, Bost. Journ. Nat. Hist., 1839; STORER, Synopsis, 1846.
–Cople, Proc. Ac. Nat. Sc. Phila , 186.
Apeltig incomátams, JORDAN, Ind. Geol. Surv., 1874, 1875, 217.
Eucalia inconstang, JoBDAN, Man. Vert, 1876, 248; Proc. Ac. Nat. Sc. Phila, 1877, 65;
Man. Vert, Ed. 1, 1878, 259.—NELSON, Bull, Ills, Nat. Hist, Soc., 1876 —JORDAN and
COPICLAND, Check List, 1876. *
Gasterosteus micropus, CoPE, Proc. Ac. Nat, Sci, Phila, 1864, 186.
War. pygmaea,
Gablero8tew8 pygmaeu8, AGASSIZ, Lake Superior, 1850.
Iºwcalia inconstang war. pygmaea, JORDAN, Mau. Vert, 1876, 248; Proc, Ac. Nat. Sc. Phila,
1877, 66.—Man. Verb., Ed. 2d, 1878, 259.
War, Cayuga,
Eucalia inconstang var, cayntga, JORDAN, Man. Vert., Ed. 1st, 1876, 249; Proc. Ac Nat. Sc.
Phila, 1877, 66; Man, Vert., Ed. 2d, 1878, 259.
Description —Males in spring jet black, tinged anteriorly with coppery red ; females
and young olivaceous, mottled and dotted with black; body moderately elongate, little
compressed, the caudal peduncle comparativel y Stouf, not keeled ; skin Smooth, entirely
destitute of dermal plates, the skeletal plates covered by it ; innominate bones small,
lanceolate, covered by the skim ; area in front of pectorals Small ; thoracic processes very
slender and widely separated, covered by Skin ; gill membranes somewhat free from the
isthmus posteriorly; gill rakers short ; dorsal spines low, subequal, in a right line, those
in front lowest, a cartilaginous ridge along their base ; Ventral spines short amd sharp,
serrated; head 3% ; depth 4 ; D, IV—I, 10; A, I, 10. Length 2% inches.
Habitat, sluggish, grassy brooks, from central Ohio, northern Illinois and Kansas
northward; very abundant in the tributaries of the Great Lakes.
Habits.-This interesting little fish is very abundant in many streams
in the northern part of Ohio. It frequents Small brooks, lurking among
the weeds and grass, ready to dart on any luckless minnow or insect that
attracts its motice. In the aquàrium these Sticklebacks are excessively
MANY-SPIN ED STICKLEBACK. 999
quarrelsome, and in default of other game they destroy each other. The
males are more active than the females. In the breeding Season the
males become jet black. In the spring this species, as well as all the
other species of Stickleback, builds a nest for its eggs, and defends this
nest vigorously.
GENUS 88. PYGOSTEUS. Brevoort.
Pygouteus (Brevoort, Mss ), GILL, Cat. Fishes East Coast, Proc. Ae. Nat. Sci., 1861 (not
characterized); Can. Nat., August, p. 8 (reprint), 1865.
Gastero8tea, SAUVAGE, Nouv. Archives du Mus., Paris, 1872.
Type, Gastero8teu8 occidentalia, Cuv. and Val. =G. pungitius L.
Etymology, puge, ruin p ; 08téon, bone.
Body slender, elongate, somewhat compressed ; caudal peduncle very slender, with a
strong keel on each side, which renders it much broader than deep ; skin destitute of
bony plates (except those connected with the pelvis); the plate extending up ward from
the ventral fins well developed, striated ; head rather ſong ; the raouth as in the other
species; naked area in front of pecturals moderate ; backward processes from the
shoulder-girdle below well developed, widely divergent, forraing a V shaped figure, em-
bracing a large naked Space ; dorsal spines moderate, subequal, or the anterior ones
rather highest ; £pines not Set in a right line, diverging alterilately to the right and left,
with more or less regularity ; spines 7 to 9 in number; anal ºpine similar to the others;
innominate bones rather feeble, joined more or less completely on the middle line of the
belly ; ventral spines moderate, finely toothed ; gill membranes free from the isthmus
posteriorly. Perhaps but a single species widely distributed in northern regions, in both
fresh and salt water. The grºup differs from Gasterosteus Imainly in the increased num-
ber of dorsal spines, and the greater freedom of the gill-membranes. It is probably un-
worthy of retention as a distinct genus. - -
165. PYGOSTEUs PUNGITIUS (L.) Gill.
WHabay-spinaed Stickleback.
Gasterosteus pungitius, LINNAEUS, Syst. Na5. 1758–GUNTHER, Cat. Fish, i, 6, BEAN, Bull,
U. S. Nat. Mus., xv., 1879, 129, and of most writers. *
Gastero8tew8 concinnat 8, RICHARDSON, Fauna Bor, Amer, 1836, 57.-GUNTHER, Cat, Fish.,
i, 6,
Gasterosteu8 occidentalis, CUV. aud VAL, Hist, des Poiss., iv., 1829, 509,-DEKAY, New York
Fauna Fishes, 68,-GUNTHER, i, 6.
Pygosteus pungilius, GILL, MSS.
Gasterosteus mainensis, STORER, Bost. Journ, i, 464–GUNTHER, i, 6.
Gastero8teus nebulosus, AGASSIZ, Lake Smperior, 1850.
Pygosteus nebulosus, JoBDAN, Man. Vert., 1876.
Pygosteus occidentalis, war, nebulogus, JokDAN, Man. Vert, Ed. 1, 260.
Gasterosteus delcayi, AGASSIZ, Lake Superior, 1850, 311,–STORER, Hist. Fish, Mass.
Gasteroatea pungitia, occidentalis and blanchardi, SAUVAGE, Nouv. Archiv. Mus. Paris, 1873.
Description.—Olivaceous above, profusely punctulate ; sides irregularly barred with
darker; belly silvery ; body very slender, somewhat compressed, tapering into the very
1000 FISHES-GASTEROSTEIDAE.
long and slender caudal peduncle, which is much depressed and strongly keeled, broader
than deep ; no dermal plates; plates of the skeleton not all covered by skin ; post
pectoral plate well developed, striated ; head shortish, the snout rather blunt; thoracic
processes well developed, widely divergent, forming a V-shaped figure; dorsal spines
moderate, the anterior diverging to the right or left at different angles, the posterior
more nearly erect ; anal spine large, larger than the dorsal spines; in nominate bone
feeble, lanceolate, not carinated, its edges raised; ventral spines moderate, serrulate,
length more than one-third that of head ; gill rakers long and slender; gill membranes
posteriorly free from the isthmus; head 4 ; depth 5%; D. IX—I, 9; A. I, 8. Length 2%
inches.
Habitat, northern parts of Europe and North America, widely distributed, inhabiting
both salt and fresh waters. It is found in rather deep water in the Upper Great Lakes,
and northward to the Saskatchawan, and doubtless beyond. It has not yet been ob-
served in Lake Erie.
I have compared numerous specimens of the lake form (var. nebulosus),
sent me by Dr. P. R. Hoy, from Racine, Wisconsin, with examples of the
common marine form of G. pungitius, and I find no constant difference,
Dr. Bean finds also no difference between theºrine form found in
America (occidentalis) and the common G. pungitius of Europe.
The habits of the lake form have necessarily become Somewhat changed
from those of its marine relatives.
Diagnosis.—This species may be known at once from all other little
fishes found in our fresh waters by the presence of about ten spines in
its dorsal fin, arranged in a zigzag row, and entirely disconnected from
each other.
Habits.-Little distinctive is known of its habits. It has thus far been
found in rather deep water in Lakes Michigan and Superior, and, al-
though not generally common, it may sometimes be found in considerable
numbers. It is a most active and graceful little fish, and with it we
close our series of the Fishes of Ohio.
[Page 1001]
A D D, E N D A A N D E R R A T A
On page 757 for "Genus 2. Scolecosoma. Girard;"
read "Genus 2. Ichthyomyzon. Girard."
The proper type of Ichthyomyzon is Petromyzon
argenteus Kirtl. ; Scolecosoma was based on the
young of the same species.
On page 757 for "2. Scolecosoma argenteum (Kirtland)
Jordan;" read "Ichthyomyzon argenteus (Kirtland)
Girard. wº-
t
On page 764 for "3. Polyodon folium Lace pede;" read
"3. Polyodon spathula (Walbaum) Jordan;" and add
to the synonymy, "Squalus spathula Walbaum, Arte di
Piscium, 1792, 522.T T
On page 781 for "ll. Anguilla vulgaris Turton;"
read "ll. Anguilla rostrata (LeSueur) DeKay."
The American Eel seems to be a distinct species
from the Common Eel of Europe. The following graphic
description of its habits is from the pen of Mr. Wm.
H. Ballou, of Chicago:
"They are among the most voracious of carnivorous
fishes. They eat most inland fishes except the Gar—
fish and the Chub. Investigation of six hundred
stomachs by Oswego fishermen showed that the latter
bony fish never had a place on their bill of fare.
They are particularly fond of game fishes, and show
the delicate taste of a connoisseur in their selections
from choice Trout, Bass, Pickerel, and Shad. They fear
not to attack any object when disposed, and their bite
on human flesh shows even a vicious attitude towards
man. On their hunting excursions they overturn huge
and small stones alike, working for hours if necessary,
beneath which they find species of Shrimp and Cray fish,
of which they are exceedingly fond. Their noses are
poked into every imaginable hole in their search for
food, to the terror of innumerable small fishes.
ADDENDA AND ERRATA
*Eels are to the water what the fish—hawk is to the
air. They are among the most powerful and rapid of
swimmers. Again, they hide in the mud beneath some log
or overhanging rock, and dart out with tremendous fury
on their unsuspecting prey. They attack the spawn of
other fishes open—mouthed, and are even said to suck
the eggs from an impaled female. They fearlessly and
rapidly dive head foremost in the mud—disappearing in
an instant. They are owl—like in their habits,
committing their depredations at night.
"No fish is known to feed upon the grown Eel.
Pickerel, Gar—fish and Bass are supposed to devour the
young fry."
On page 817 for "39. Catostomus teres (Mitchill)
LeSueur;" read "39. Catostomus commersonii
(Lacepede) Jordan."
NOTE.-The present report was prepared by the writer
and submitted by him to Professor Newberry in the year
l878. The first part of the report, from page 735 to
page 848, was printed during the summer of 1881, as
originally written, the writer not seeing
[Page 1001]
[Page 1002]
the proof–sheets. The manuscript of that part of the
work from the Hyodontidae to the end has been revised
by the author in the fall of 1881, and thereby brought
up to date. This will account for several discrepancies
between the nomenclature as given in the lists of Ohio
fishes (pp. 743–753), and that appearing in the text.

It has been found impossible in the printing—office
to which the State of Ohio entrusts its public printing,
to send proof–sheets to the authors for correction. I
am, therefore, under great obligations to Dr. J. M.
Wheat on for the care which he has taken in reading the
proof-sheets in my stead.
Drawings of about one hundred species of Ohio fishes
were prepared for this paper by Dr. E. R. Copeland, of
Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The authorities in charge of the
printing have, however, for some reason not seen fit to
have them engraved.
D. S. J.
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