THE FISHES OF LAKE VALENCIA, VENEZUELA 



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 INTRODUCTION 5 " ! ' 



Though the fishes of tropical lakes have often been studied 

 by systematists, morphologists, and those interested in geo- 

 graphic distribution, they have received scant attention from 

 ecologists. There are indeed few situations where ecological 

 investigations can be made in tropical fresh-water lakes. Most 

 of the lakes in Central Africa are brackish or salty. In South 

 America, the large lakes in the Amazon basin all fuse with the 

 rivers during the rainy season; those on the west coast are at 

 great altitudes and have a very scanty fish fauna. Lake 

 Valencia was selected from among those in northern South 

 America and Central America because it seemed to present 

 typically lacustrine conditions and to promise a reasonably 

 varied and abundant fish fauna. 



The writer carried on investigations in Lake Valencia and 

 the rivers draining into it from July 4 to July 31, 1918; then 

 studied the rivers between the lake and the coast to August 5, 

 fishing in the Rio Tuy and its tributaries at El Concejo and 

 Caracas. 



The University of Wisconsin granted a special fund for 

 travelling expenses; Dean C. H. Eigenmann induced the 

 University of Indiana to furnish a complete outfit of nets and 

 fishing tackle; and the Zoological Laboratory at the University 

 of Wisconsin generously provided the remainder of the outfit, 

 except a deep sea thermometer and apparatus for gas analysis 

 which were loaned by Mr. C. Juday of the Wisconsin Geological 

 and Natural History Survey. 



In Venezuela the government officials and many private 

 citizens showed the greatest interest and courtesy. The writer 

 is particularly indebted to two Americans, Dr. H. Pittier and 

 Mr. Carl Magnus; an Englishman, Mr. Charles Lazzari; and 



