392 REPORT OF COMMISSIONER OF FISH AND FISHERIES. 



29. Catostomus ccmmersonii (Lacepede). Common White Sucker. Milk River (as 

 Catostomns sucklii type, Girard, 1856 and 1858); upper Missouri and tribu- 

 taries (as Catostomus sucklii, Suckley, 1860) ; Kansas (as Catostomus chloropteron 

 type, Abbott, 1860) ; Kansas River near Fort Riley (as Catostomus chloropteron, 

 Cope, 1863); Platte River (as C. sucklii, Cope, 1871); Five Forks and bead- 

 waters of Milk River (as C. teres, Jordan, 1878) ; Slmnganunga Creek and 

 Kansas River, Topeka (as C. teres, Gilbert, 1884); Hundred and Two River, 

 Bedford, Iowa, and Maryville, Mo. ; Blackwater Creek, Brownsville, Saline 

 County, Mo. ; and Flat Creek, Sedalia, Mo. ; Osage River, Clinton. Mo. ; 

 Grand River, Clinton, Mo., and Tabo Creek, Calboun, Mo. (as C. teres, Jordan 

 & Meek, 1885); common over the State [of Kansas] (as C. teres, Graham, 

 1885) ; Shunganunga Creek and Kansas River, Topeka (as C. teres, Gilbert, 

 1885) ; Shunganunga and Wild Cat creeks, and Kansas and Osage rivers (Cra- 

 gin, 1885a); Blacksmith Creek, Shawnee County, Kans. (as C. teres, Gilbert, 

 1886) ; Solomon River, Beloit, Kans. ; north fork of Solomon River, Lenora, 

 Kans. ; Saline River, Wakeeuey, Kans. ; Smoky Hill River, Wallace, Kans. 

 (Hay, 1887) ; north fork of Solomon River, Logan, Kans. ; Middle Beaver Creek, 

 Smith County, Kans. (as C. teres, Gilbert, 1889) ; Big Piney River, Cabool, 

 Mo. ; Marais River, Dixon, Mo. ; Niangua River, Marskfield, Mo. (as C. teres, 

 Meek, 1891); South Platte River, Denver (as C. teres sucklii, Jordan, 1891); 

 Big Sioux River, Sioux City, Iowa; Boyer River, Arion, Iowa (Meek, 1892); 

 Middle, Crow, Chicken, Cottonwood, and Hat creeks, S. Dak., and Belle 

 Fourche River, Belle Fourche, S. Dak. (Evermann, 1893); Poplar River, 

 Poplar, Mont. (Eigenmanu, 1894) ; Floyd River at Lemars and Sioux City, 

 Iowa (Meek, 1894) ; Dakota River at La Moure and Jamestown (Woolman, 

 1896). 



This is apparently the most abundant sucker in the region covered by these 

 investigations, as may be seen from the following list of localities from which 

 we obtained it: Enemy Creek, Mitchell; Dakota River, Mitchell; Firesteel 

 Creek, Mitchell ; Rock Creek, Mitchell ; Crow Creek, Chamberlain ; Prairie 

 Creek, Scotland; Emanuel Creek, Springheld; Choteau Creek, Springfield; 

 canal at Niobrara; Bazile Creek, Niobrara; Verdigris Creek, Verdigris; 

 pond at Creighton; Spring Creek at Bazile Mills; Elkhorn River at Ewing; 

 Long Pine Creek, Long Pine; Niobrara River, Marsland; Chadron Creek, 

 Chadron; Lone Tree Creek, Chadron; Wood Creek, Grand Island; Dismal 

 River, Dunning; Deer Creek, Glenrock ; North Platte River, Glenrock ; North 

 Platte River, Douglas; French Creek, Custer; small creek at Hill City; 

 Beaver Creek, Buffalo Gap; Ckeyenue River, Hot Springs; Cheyenne River, 

 Edgemont; Red water Creek, Spearfish; Beaver Creek, Newcastle; Clear 

 Creek, Clermont; Powder River, Arvada; south fork of Tongue River, Sher- 

 idan; Big Goose Creek, Sheridan. In October, 1892, it was found at the 

 following places: Middle Creek and Belle Fourche River at Belle Fourche; 

 Crow Creek at Gammon's ranch, near Spearfish ; Chicken Creek, near Spear- 

 fish; Rapid Creek, Rapid City, S. Dak. ; Cottonwood Creek, Edgemont, and 

 Hat Creek, Ardmore, S. Dak. 



We have spent a good deal of time in studying this large amount of mate- 

 rial and have found it extremely difficult to reach any satisfactory conclu- 

 sion regarding the status of this and the other species of Catostominw of the 

 Missouri Basin. Among the individuals which we refer to this species there 

 is great variation, particularly in the size and arrangement of the scales, the 

 number of dorsal fin rays, and in the mouth. Such of these variations as 

 can be well presented in tabular form are given in the following table. The 

 localities are arranged approximately, beginning with those farthest east 

 and ending with those farthest west at which this species was found : 



