FISHES OF THE CONNECTICUT LAKES. 29 



The mud chub spawns in earl}- summer, at which time the body of 

 the male becomes of a darker hue and the pectoral and ventral fins 

 are often of a bright orange color, and there are horny excrescences 

 on the snout and top of head. This chub readily takes a hook baited 

 with worm, piece of fish, or any kind of flesh, and frequently an arti- 

 ficial fly. 



6. Bronze Minnow. Leuciscus neogmus (Cope). 



Head 4.11 (3.83 to 4.18) in length without caudal; depth 5 (4.60 to 5.50) ; 

 eye 4 (4 to 4.50) in head; snout 4 (3.55 to 4.50) ; dorsal 8; anal 8; scales 85 

 (82 to 90). 



Head rather short, broad, and blunt; snout short, equaling eye; eye large; 

 mouth large, very oblique, maxillary I'eaching to nearly below front of pupil, 

 jaws even ; teeth 1, 5-5, 2. Body stout and chubby ; origin of dorsal much 

 nearer base of caudal than tip of snout ; scales very small ; lateral line of about 

 17 pores, not reaching a point above insertion of ventrals ; dorsal rounded, the 

 middle rays longest; pectoral and ventral pointed; caudal deeply forked. 



The above description is taken from a specimen 3.33 inches in length and 

 from 8 other specimens collected in pools in a field near Indian Stream August 

 4. These 8 were the largest of many collected ; they range from about 2 to 3.50 

 inches long, and are all females. The pharyngeal teeth are uniformlj' 5 in the 

 main row and 1 or 2 in the other. 



Top of head, snout, and back brownish olive with sharply defined edge from 

 upper border of eye to upper base of caudal ; a stripe from eye along axis of 

 body to base of caudal, terminating in a small distinct black spot ; the area 

 between the dark of the back and the lateral stripe presenting the appearance 

 of a broad lighter stripe from upper posterior border of eye to upper base of 

 caudal ; a narrow stripe from nape along median line of back, passing each 

 side of base of dorsal, reuniting behind and continuing to upper base of caudal ; 

 entire lower part of body from tip of lower jaw to base of caudal pale; fins 

 all dusky; entire fish with a brassy or bronze luster, whence the name bronze 

 minnow. Males often with red along the side. 



Distinguished from the red-bellied minnow, the only fish in this region with 

 which it could be confounded, externally by the larger mouth and the arrange- 

 ment of stripes. In some specimens the sides of back may be somewhat lighter 

 than at the margin of the dark color, giving the appearance of a second dark 

 stripe bordering the lighter area above the lateral stripe. This is less distinct 

 than in the other species, and if broken up into spots at all it is so broken 

 anteriorly. Instead of posteriorly as in Chrosomus. This stripe-like appearance 

 usually terminates or blends with the dark color of the caudal peduncle before 

 reaching the base of the caudal fin. Internally this species has well-marked 

 diagnostic characters, having a much shorter alimentary tract and 2 rows of 

 pharyngeal teeth. 



In our opinion the generic name Plioxinus should be retained for this minutely 

 scaled fish, differing so markedly in this and other respects from other species 

 designated as Leaciscus. There is a greater difference between the subgenus 

 Phoxinus and other members of the genus Leuciscus than there is between 

 Leuciscus as a whole (leaving out Phoxinus) and Scmotilus. 



The bronze minnow^ feeds upon small insects, eggs, larvse, worms, 

 and vegetable matter. The stomachs of some examined contained 

 large amounts of fine algae. It seems to prefer water characterized 



