THE SUNFISHES 



among the gifts of the tribe with fins ; fortunately, 

 there is nothing tedious to do, or tiresome to listen 

 to, in the sprightly food-seeking, active life of a fish. 

 The warmouth takes the fly, as well as natural 

 baits, but is not so combative as its relative, the 

 rock bass. 



There is a little sunfish, which seldom grows 

 more than three inches long, that is found in 

 Charles River at Boston, and it is one of the most 

 beautiful of the sunfish family. It has no common 

 name, except that of" sunfish," but is exceptionally 

 gifted with a technical lengthy appellative, — 

 Enne 'acanthus obesus, which means " nine " " spine," 

 and " fat." The color is olivaceous above the 

 median line, with five to eight blackish cross-bars 

 and a spot, just behind or on the gill-cover, of vel- 

 vety black, bordered with purple ; the spots on the 

 body and fins are golden or purplish, and on the 

 cheeks are lines and spots of similar coloration, — a 

 beautiful fish, but one of the smallest of the family. 



Of the other sunfishes popularly so-called, only 

 four species are indigenous to the waters of New 

 England and Eastern Canada. Of these the best 

 known is the " common sunfish" (Eupomotis gibbo- 

 sus y the derivation of the generic name being rather 

 confusing ; the specific, gibbosus, " formed like the 

 full moon," is doubtless in reference to the com- 

 103 



