62 COPEIA 



1. Carp, Cyprinus carpio. This is undoubt- 

 edly the most abundant species. It probably escaped 

 into the Colorado River from private fish ponds in 

 Arizona. I saw several specimens, all of good size 

 (3 to 10 pounds) at Cormorant Island. 



2. Bony-tail, Gila elegans. Said to be not un- 

 common; I saw no specimens. 



3. Humpback Sucker, Xyrauchen cypho. 

 Rather common; I saw several specimens. They all 

 had a starved appearance. 



4. Colorado River Trout, Salmo pleuriticus. 

 Although the water of the Salton Sea is quite brack- 

 ish, strongly alkaline, and very warm, this trout 

 seems to thrive in it amazingly well. It is said to be 

 fairly common. I saw one fine example about 16 

 inches long. It was in excellent condition, albeit 

 somewhat bleached in color. 



5. Common mullet, Mugil cephalus. Next to 

 the Carp, the most common species. Numerous 

 examples were seen. It is said to reach a large size 

 (as much as 6 pounds) and to be unusually fine as 

 a food-fish. 



6. Desert Cyprinodont, Cyprinodori macu- 

 larius. This interesting little fish was found in 

 Figtree John spring in a small oasis near the north 

 end of the lake some 7 miles southwest of Mecca. 

 This spring or water hole was grown up thickly with 

 cattails {Typha hit i folia) and the surface of the 

 water was covered with a thick coating of alga? of 

 various species. The water was only a few inches 

 deep and quite warm, perhaps as warm as 90° to 100° 

 on hot days. The fish, however, were active and ap- 

 parently in good condition. I caught a number of 

 them and succeeded in bringing two alive to San 

 Francisco. One of them died a few days ago, the 

 other is still alive and doing well. 



This cyprinodont appears to be found in many 

 of the isolated springs and water-holes in the deserts 



