PISHES OF THE CONNECTICUT LAKES. 19 



cannibalism. The best places to plant fry or fingerlings are in the 

 smaller spring brooks flowing into the lakes or streams. It is unnec- 

 essary to say that the brooks should be protected so far as possible. 

 To be more specific, it is suggested that Coon Brook would be an 

 excellent place in which to plant young fish in stocking First Con- 

 necticut Lake. West Inlet and Moose Brook would be admirable 

 localities connected with Second Lake. There are no very choice 

 tributary streams of Third Lake, but possibly two little brooks enter- 

 ing the north end would prove satisfactory. The so-called " Main 

 Inlet " in the southw^est corner seems wholly unsuitable. 



THE FISHES AND THEIR HABITS. 



As previously noted, there are but few native species known in 

 these waters. Regarding these, however, there are a few peculiarities 

 worthy of mention. The small size attained by the individuals of 

 some of the species in First and Second lakes is striking, particu- 

 larly of the long-nosed sucker {Catostomus catostomus), chub-min- 

 now {Couesius pluTnbeus)^ and blob {Cottus gracilis). In Vermont 

 the sucker attains a large size, an individual in our collection from 

 Caspian Lake measuring 15 inches in length; specimens from First 

 and Second lakes average 4.62 inches in length, ranging from 3.75 to 

 5.12 inches. This is especially noticeable, since the other sucker {G. 

 com.mersonii) reaches a much larger size, our collection containing 

 specimens ranging from an inch to a little over 16.25 inches long. 

 The chub minnow is a dwarf compared with specimens from Ver- 

 mont and northern Maine, Vermont specimens ranging from 4.18 to 

 4.62 inches long, and northern Maine up to 6 inches in length. In 

 Round Pond and Third Lake, however, this species is considerably 

 larger than in First and Second lakes, specimens measuring a little 

 over 5 inches in length. The blob, or sculpin, in all the localities 

 where it was collected was very small, the largest, a specimen from 

 Mud Pond Brook, measuring less than 3 inches in length, wdiile from 

 the Aroostook River in Maine we have specimens nearly 5 inches, and 

 from a tributary of the Androscoggin River specimens reaching a 

 length of 4 inches. We can offer no suggestion regarding the cause 

 of the diminutiveness of these fishes in First and Second lakes, as most 

 of them seem plump and healthy, though many of the suckers and 

 chub minnows are affected with tapeworms. In some instances the 

 stomach and intestine are so full of them that the abdominal cavity is 

 greatly distended. The question of food supply is one of the first to 

 suggest itself, but there is no evidence that there is more food in 

 Round Pond and Third Lake than in the others mentioned. The 

 result of the study of the plankton and stomach contents of these 

 fishes may throw some light on the subject. 



