THE SMALLEST POLYODOX. 



THOMAS BARB01R 



An article which appeared in a recent BUM ( M ,i< .\i. Hi i i I n\ 

 h>- hanforth. entitled a "74 mm. I'olvodon" 1 - reminded me th.it 

 sonic yeai I had seen -ome -mall -pecimens of Polyodon 



in the -tudv collection of Fi-he- in the Mu-eum of ( "omparat i\ e 

 Zoology. \ n xamination < >f the rn.in.-ri.il pre-erved th'-re re- 

 V'-aled tli' 'tuple-, tin- smallest hitherto recorded, as well 



afl other- which an- anion- the -nialle-t known. Tin- three im- 

 portant example- are .V> mm.. .^7 mm. and 05 mm. lon^. The 

 la-i iii-lix idual \\a- -ome\\ h.n drii-d and ua- ol.viou-ly -imilar 

 in form an<l development to the spreimeii de-cribed and figured 

 1>\ I >aiiforili. The -nialle-t ha- been l>adl\ -o| teiied am 1 -\\ olh-n 

 li\- immei-ion in \\eak aleuhol. Thi> individual \\a- collected 

 in Ark.ui-a- l-\ Mi < .. Stollev and canu- to tin- museum hi-lore 

 0. 1 he other t\\o -mall -|ieiini.-n- a- \\ell a- three more. 

 which are 80 mm. ,85 mm. and 03 mm.. < a me from near St. 1 .oui-, 



MO., and \\eie Collected in September. 1 x - J. 1-v a I >i . l ; .a -till. ill. 



The\ \\ere iii the private collection of Professor l.oni- Agassiz 

 which vva- aci|iiired by llar\'ard 1'niver-itv a- the foundation 

 lor the Mii-eimi < :npaiati\'e Zool". '. lhe-e live example- 

 have been kept in -troiu clear alcohol and are well preserved. 

 Tin- example of \~ mm. then is the important -pecimen in that 

 it i- the Miialle-t known which is reasonably well pre-erved. 



1'ioic or ('. II. 1 igenmann, who ha- seen thi- -pecimen. -n^- 



ed that it wa- probably about three month- old. in which 

 Case the c^ lav in- would lake place in July. If thi- wen- not 

 really tin it i- 'jiiite po--ible that I )anforth'- individual 



whiih was about ;, in. he- Ion- was not the -wift-^rown vdimu of 

 the year but a -peeimen which had lived over one winter. < '.row th 

 mav be verv -low or alnio-t arre-ted during the cold month- in 

 the latitude of St. l.oiii-. It. a- i- quite po--ible, the .^7 mm. 

 \OUHL; wa- reallv much \-oim_uer than three month-, then this 



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