584 REPORT OF COMMISSIONER OF FISH AND FISHERIES. 



LIST OF FISHES FOUND IN VERMONT. 



Family PBTROMYZONIDJE. The Lampreys. 



1. Fetromyzon marinus Linnams. Great Sea Lamprey; " Blue Lamprey." 

 Recorded from Vermont by Thompson, who says : 



" The fresh-water lampreys, or lamprey-ecls, as they are more commonly called, 

 resemble in their habits the blood-sucker much more than the ordinary fishes. They 

 obtain their subsistence principally by attaching themselves by their mouths to 

 the bodies of larger fishes, and drawing nourishment from them by suction ; for 

 this purpose their mouth and tongue are admirably adapted, the latter acting in 

 the throat like the piston of a pump, while the circular lips of the former adhere 

 closely to the side of the fish, and by these means the softer parts of the larger fish 

 are drawn into the mouth and swallowed by the parasite. When a lamprey once 

 fastens himself in this manner upon a large fish he adheres with such force as to 

 baffle all the efforts of the fish to rid himself of his unwelcome incumbrance. 

 Fishes are frequently taken in the seine with lampreys still adhering to them, and 

 others with deep depressed wounds upon their sides, affording indubitable proof of 

 their having been attached. The fresh-water lampreys seldom exceed 6 or 8 inches 

 in length, and no account is made of them as an article of food." 



2. Ichthyomyzcm concolor (Kirtland). Silver Lamprey; " Mud Lamprey." 

 Recorded from \Vinooski River by Thompson : 



"During the drought in September, 1841, I found large numbers of these fishes, 

 which had buried themselves in the mud at the bottom of the small coves along the 

 banks of Wiuooski River, from which the water had evaporated. This fish is known 

 in many places by the name of mud-eel, or blind-eel." 



Family ACIPBNSERIDiE. The Sturgeons. 



3. Acipenser rubicundus LeSueur. Lake Sturgeon; " Iloelc Sturgeon." 



Mr. Thompson regarded the round-nosed sturgeon and the rock sturgeon as two 

 different species, but we now know that the latter is simply the young of the former. 

 Concerning the latter he says: 



"This fish is occasionally taken in Lake Ckamplain, and is here known by the 

 name of rock sturgeon. It seldom exceeds 3 feet in length or 20 pounds in weight, 

 but is much more generally and highly esteemed as an article of food than the pre- 

 ceding species, some even ranking it ao one of our best fishes for the table. This, 

 like the preceding, should be skinned before it is cooked, and for the same reasons." 



Sturgeon are still occasionally taken in Lake Champlain, according to Mr. A. S. 

 Hilliker, of Alburg Springs. Fishermen are said to catch them sometimes with 

 grappling hoohs fastened to poles; these hooks are said to be most used in the rivers 

 at the foot of the falls. 



Mr. Titcomb says sturgeon weighing 75 pounds and over are often taken in Lake 

 Champlain. 



Family LEPISOSTEIDiS. The Gar Pikes. 



4. Lepisosteus osseus (Linnaeus). Long-nosed Gar; "Billfish." 

 Concerning this species Thompson has the following interesting remarks: 

 "This singular fish was described by Samuel Champlain as an inhabitant of the lake 



now bearing his name more than two hundred years ago. He called it chausarou, 

 which was probably the Indian name. The Indians assured him they were often seen 

 8 or 10 feet long, but the largest he saw was only 5 feet long and about the thickness of 

 aman's thigh. It is considered a very voracious fish, and when any of them are taken 

 or seen in the water the fishermen calculate upon little success in taking other kinds. 



