212 FISHES OF ILLINOIS 



This little top-minnow, rare in Illinois and taken by us but 

 twenty times, all in the northern half of the state, is, in fact, a 

 northern species in the United States, found outside Illinois in 

 the lakes and ponds of Ohio, Indiana, Michigan, and Wisconsin, 

 and in the Missouri basin as far south as the Kansas River. 

 The typical form (Fundulus diaphanus) occurs from the head- 

 waters to the brackish mouths of coastwise streams from 

 Quebec, New Brunswick, and Maine to Cape Hatteras, and in 

 the lakes of New York State. Our Illinois examples of menona 

 have been mainly taken from upland lakes of the headwaters 

 of the Fox and Des Plaines, from the headwaters of the Rock 

 River, from the lakes of the Calumet series, and from pools 

 near Bloomington, in McLean county. In Wolf and Calumet 

 lakes it was most frequent near shore among weeds and rushes, 

 in clear water and over a bottom of sand. 



The food of eight specimens from the northeastern lakes 

 comprised insects, both aquatic and terrestrial, amphipod 

 Crustacea (Allorchestes) , various Entomstraca, especially those 

 living upon the bottom, a few thin-shelled univalves (Planorbis), 

 and the seeds of plants which had fallen into the water, these 

 last taken in quantity too large to have been accidental. 



Females moderately distended with large eggs were taken 

 by us in Sand Lake Aug. 3, 1887, a fact which indicates a late- 

 spawning period. Dr. Eigenmann, however, found the eggs 

 of this species in grassy bottoms of Indiana lakes June 24. 



FUNDULUS DISPAR AGASSIZ 



(MAP LXIV) 



Agassiz, 1854, Amer. J. Sci. and Arts, 353 (Zygonectes). 



J. & G., 341 (Zygonectes) ; M. V., 86 (Zygonectes) ; J. & E., I, 658; N., 42 (Zygonectes) ; 

 J., 52 (Zygonectes); F., 72 (Zygonectes); F. F., I. 6, 72 (Zygonectes); L., 21. 



Length, 2^ inches; body rather short and deep, compressed, caudal 

 peduncle short; depth 3.5 to 4.3; greatest width about % of greatest 

 depth; depth caudal peduncle 1.5 to 1.9 in its length. Color (females) light 

 olive, with 9 or 10 wavy longitudinal lines of brown traversing each side 

 along the lower edges of the rows of scales; no distinct* transverse bars; 

 dorsal and anal with a few faint dusky spots; caudal plain; adult males and 

 females with a triangular bluish blotch below eye, and a smaller blotch above 

 and in front of it, the two blotches more or less confluent with similar color 

 in the eye itself. Males with irregular longitudinal rows of reddish brown 



* Females \ l /% inches long taken in Wolf Lake South Chicago, in August, 1003, had faint 

 vertical bars. These disappeared at times and on one occasion when apparent in direct side 

 view disappeared at other angles. These females were in all other respects typical. 



