504 NEW YORK STATE MUSEUM 



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and arranged in folds like the bellows of an accordion. When 

 folded the mass was about 8 to 12 inches long, but was capable 



k 



of being drawn out to a length of 3 or 4 feet. Spawning in the 

 aquarium took place at night and was observed by William 

 Maynard, who describes it as follows. " The female remained 

 quiet in one spot on the bottom of one of the hatching aquaria 

 tanks, one or more of the males hovering over and about her 

 with pectoral fins vibrating with intense activity. The males 

 would at times lie close alongside of her and at other times 

 endeavor to force themselves under her with the evident inten- 

 tion of assisting in the extrusion of the eggs." Mr Seal remarks 

 that " the roe when taken from the dead fish not yet ripe is in 

 a single compact mass, covered by a thin membrane; but in 

 spawning the mass separates, one side being spawned before 

 the other." This was noticed in a specimen which had spawned 

 one side and appeared to be unable to get rid of the other. It 

 was stripped from her and artificially fertilized successfully. 

 Mr Seal believes that the yellow perch spawns at the age of 

 one year. 



The yellow perch thrives moderately in captivity, though sus- 

 ceptible to attacks of fungus, which are easily overcome by the 

 use of brackish water. Its food in captivity consists chiefly of 

 chopped Ijard clams; sometimes live killifish are used. 



Genus PERCINA Haldeman 



Body elongate, slightly compressed, covered with small, 

 ctenoid scales; lateral line continuous; ventral line with en- 

 larged plates which fall off, leaving a naked strip; head 

 depressed, rather pointed, the mouth being small and inferior, 

 overlapped by a tapering, subtruncate, piglike snout; upper 

 jaw not protractile, maxillary small, exposed; teeth on vomer 

 and palatines, gill membranes scarcely connected; dorsal fins 

 well separated, the first the larger, of 13 to 15 spines, the second 

 dorsal rather longer than the anal, which has two spines, the 

 first of which is usually the shorter; pectorals symmetric, 

 rounded or bluntly pointed, their rays 14 or 15, their spines 

 moderate; ventral fins well separated, the interspace about 



