40 tT. S. BUREAU OF nSHEPJES. 



On August 21 breeding in this pool had fallen to an average of 

 34 per sample, while inside the screen only one larva was found. Of 

 tiie seven fishes (Table 5, No. 2876, p. 37) remaining within the 

 screen on this date three contained Culex larvae and one a pupa, the 

 remaining contents being chiefly copepods with a few^ insects. Other 

 experiments gave more or less similar results but offer only cumula- 

 tive evidence or include some element of doubt. Enough is known of 

 the blue-spotted sunfishes to recommend placing them on the list of 

 species for stocking plant-grown ponds and streams. 



LONG-EARED SUNFISH (Lepomis auritus). 



The long-eared or red-bellied sunfish is abundant throughout all 

 of the Atlantic and Gulf Coast States from Maine to the mouth of 

 the Mississippi River. Thriving best in the larger streams and 

 ponds it is less likely to come into contact with mosquito breeding 

 than are other species. In small ponds it is almost always associ- 

 ated with the much more abundant common sunfish. For these 

 reasons it was given little detailed attention. In only two cases were 

 any mosquito larvae found in the stomachs, and little specific e^^dence 

 of the value of this species as a mosquito discourager can be offered. 

 Nevertheless, the young frequent the shallow^s aloncr with those of 

 the common sunfish, and it is probable that they will eat mosquito 

 larvae under similar circumstances. In stocking a pond it seems 

 desirable that the two species should be introduced together, inas- 

 much as it is probable that a given body of water would maintain 

 a larger number of the two combined than of the common sunfish 

 alone. For food see Table 6, page 39. 



COMMON SUNFISH (Eupomotis gibbosus). 



From Maine the native waters of the common sunfish or pumpkin 

 seed extend southward to Florida and westward to Minnesota. It 

 is, perhaps, the most widely and best known of all of our fresh- 

 water fishes. While absent from few bodies of water of any de- 

 scription (along the Atlantic coast it even meets the oyster in brack- 

 ish waters), the species is especially abundant in clear brooks, ponds, 

 and lakes. In small ponds it is often present in enormous numbers 

 and becomes dwarfed, probably owing in part to the limitation of 

 the food supply. Under such conditions mosquitoes are rarely found 

 breeding, even where there is a fairly dense growth of vegetation. 



This last observation, together with its promising characteristics — 

 namely, its wide distribution, abundance, fecundit}^, adaptability, 

 hardiness and instinctive aggressiveness, alertness and curiosity — 

 led the author to study this fish more extensively than any other, 

 especially as the statements of previous writers regarding its anti- 

 mosquito value varied greatly. Seal (in Smith, 1904, p. 108) gives 

 it a leading place among native fresh-water fishes, while others, as 

 Hildebrand (1919, p. 15) consider it of very doubtful value. As will 

 be seen, the author's results show that these conflicting opinions can 

 be harmonized and on the whole are at least confirmatory of the high 

 value placed upon it Iby Seal. 



Previous studies of the food of the common sunfish have dealt al- 

 most exclusively with the adults. Pearse (1918, p. 260) reports 



