■182 Bulletin 4y, United States N'ational Museum. 



sides; tip of nose and sides of jaws dark, under part of lower jaw white; 

 dorsal pale red, anal darker red; adipose fiu red; veutrals and pectorals 

 smoky, some red at base. Color of breeding female essentially the same, 

 rather darker on the sides. Length 2 feet ; weight 3i to 8 pounds. 

 Klamath and Rogue rivers northward to Kamchatka and Japan ; gen- 

 erally abundant, especially northward ; ascending streams in spring to 

 great distances, and often frequenting mountain lakes in fall, spawning 

 in their small tributaries; one of the most graceful of the Salmonidce, 

 scarcely inferior to the Quiunat when fresh, but the flesh more watery 

 and less valuable when canned. The principal salmon of Alaska. 



The Redfish is known to ascend to the small lakes of Alaska, British 

 Columbia, Washington, Oregon, and Idaho, and to spawn in their inlets. 

 Dr. Beau has observed it at Karluk Lake in Alaska, Dr. Dawson and 

 Prof. John Macoun in British Columbia, Prof. 0. B. Johnson at Lake 

 Washington, Dr. Gilbert at Wallowa Lake in Oregon, while we have 

 recently studied it on its spawning beds in the inlets to Alturas, Pettit, 

 and Big Payette lakes in Idaho. This species enters the Columbia River 

 with the spring run of the Chinook Salmon, but does not reach the lakes 

 of Idaho until August. We observed them spawning in the shallow water 

 of the inlets on beds of fine gravel and sand, which they scooi) up into 

 considerable heaps. The temperature of the water at Alturas and Pettit 

 lakes, September 12, was 45° F., and the same temperature was found 

 at Big Payette Lake September 27, 



Two distinct and widely difterent sizes of the Redfish are found sexu- 

 ally mature, the large form described above, and a small form which is 

 mature at a foot or less in length ; and no specimens of intermediate size 

 have been observed. The average weight of six spawning fish of the 

 large form examined at Alturas Lake was 3 pounds 3^ ounces, the mini- 

 mum and maximum being 2 pounds 5 ounces (a spent female), and 3 

 pounds lOA ounces. The average weight of twenty-nine individuals of 

 the small form obtained the same day and from the same stream was 6J 

 ounces, the extremes being 4i (a spent female) and 9 ounces, respectively. 



These little fish, which have been known as the Little Redfish or Ken- 

 nerly's Salmon, have been regarded as being a landlocked variety, dis- 

 tinct from 0. nerka. We are not able to discover any structural difierences 

 between the two. We have found them breeding at the same time and 

 in the same stream. The mutilations and frayeil-out fins point to the 

 probability of their haviug made the long journey from the sea; indeed, 

 Dr. Gilbert has traced their migration from the mouth of the Columbia to 

 Wallowa Lake. There is no more evidence that they are landlocked than 

 that the large ones are, and if they are not younger individuals of the 

 regular nerlia, they should be assigned specific rather than subspecific rank. 



The fins of the little Redfish were observed to be frayed oat and muti- 

 lated quite as generally as were those of the large ones, and many dead 

 ones of each size were seen. It is doubtful if any which ascend to the 

 Idaho lakes ever return to the sea, but all probably die after spawning. 



The color of the breeding male of the small Ibrm is dirty red, brightest 

 on middle of side; back with about 15 round black spots before the dorsal 



