48 Rafinesque's Description of the 



Terminating this imperfect sketch, I must express a hope that 

 Mr. Shrapnell, who has pursued the study of our Gloucestershire 

 geology with uncommon ardour, and excellent local opportuni- 

 ties, will do justice to the subject with his pen and his pencil. 

 In the leisure of a rural life, he cannot want time. 



Art. IV. Description of the Silures or Catfshes of the River 

 Ohio. By C. S. Rafinesque, Professor of Botany artd 

 Natural History in the Transylvania University of Lex- 

 ington, in Kentucky. 



[Communicated by the Author.] 



The ichthyology of the Ohio had never been explored, until I 

 undertook the task in 1818 and 1819. I have ascertained 

 already that about one hundred species of fishes live in that 

 river, nine-tenths of which were undescribed species, and very 

 few are similar to those living in the Atlantic rivers. I have 

 sent to the Journal d'Hist. Naturelle, edited by Mr. Blainville 

 at Paris, the description of many new genera detected in the 

 Ohio, and I now intend to describe the species of the genus 

 silurus, which I found in it. They amount already to eleven 

 species and six varieties, which I shall divide into three sec- 

 tions, according to the shape of their tails. It must be noticed 

 that I only reckon in the genus silurus, those species which 

 have two dorsal fins, the second of which is adipose and distinct 

 from the tail ; when they have this last fin united with the 

 tail, they form my genus noturus. All the silures of the Ohio 

 have eight barbs near the mouth in four unequal pairs, one 

 above, two below, and one lateral. 



Sect. 1. Silures with forked tails, 

 I. Silurus macvlatus. Spotted catfish. Body elongated, whitish, 

 with small unequal brown spots on the sides, lateral barbs 

 black, reaching the pectoral fins, upper jaw longer, eyes elliptic, 

 lateral line straight, raised at the base ; spinous ray of the 

 pectoral fins longer and serrated inside, anal fin with 27 rays, 

 tail unequally forked, the upper part longer. 



This species is not uncommon, I have seen it at Pittsburgh, 

 and in the Kentucky river, usual length about a foot ; it does 



