Omida I. a he Fishes 305 



Mcwan (_''!. \t. 141)) i'ihiikI C>iinrni>ii Suckers >i)a\vniii;,' 111 lk-flK;c l^ke, 

 at Ithaca, X. V., in April and in Mav. He has stu<hf<l the (lcvfl<i](nifnt fmni the 

 ej^g up to alxjut two inches in length and has given figures of the ditTcrciit stages. 

 Knib<xly ('15, p. 22J) notes the growth of young Common Suckers as follows: 

 Five months, 2 inches long; one year, 3 to 4 inches long; two years, 6 to 7 inches 

 long. }lulibs and Creaser ('24) have studied the growtli of young Common 

 .Suckers from Douglas Lake, Michigan, taken from June 5 to August 16, 19JI. 

 In these J2 days, the fish grew from alwut 15 mm to 50 mm. 



Oneida I^ke fish studies were not carried on by us at the time suckers sjiawn, 

 but several streams enter the lake, and these undoubtedly furnish them s])awning- 

 groun<Is ; and possibly they spawn to some extent in marshes, as they do about 

 Cayuga l-ake (.Mien, '14, p. 56). Mr. J. D. Black tells us that they spawn in 

 Mlack Creek at Cleveland. Some aj^H-ar to spawn late, for specimens from the 

 Hrewerton market in May contained a large number of nearly ripe eggs. 



< )ur many collections of young from the lake showed a season's growth. 

 Those taken in June. 191O, were an inch or a little less in length. Ten collections 

 made at this time contained about 250 fish. (See numbers in first group under 

 Oneida Kecf)rds below.) In early July many little suckers were taken in shallow 

 lake-water, in nine collections; they ranged in size from I to lYi inches, while 

 in late July all found were about I'j inches long, and none as small as an inch. 

 In .^eptemlier, Ii>i5, young suckers ajipeared uncommon on the lake shoals. About 

 thirty fish were taken and they were mostly from two to three inches in length. 

 Our three fall collections contained many specimens between three and fnur inches 

 long, the usual dimensions attained by suckers in Oneida I^tke during their first 

 season. The suckers taken or seen by us from the deep water of Oneida Lake 

 measured from alK)Ut eight ( Xo. 3^) to seventeen and a half inches (Xo. 351). 

 \ market collectiun ( N.i. 6_'7) contained young averaging about eight inches long. 



Ifiil'ilat. Common .Suckers thrive under a variety of conditions. Forbes 

 ( "86, p. 10) finds that they inhabit nearly all lakes and streams in regions where 

 they alM)und. In small streams they dwell in the deepest parts. Fowler ('06, 

 1>. 157) descriln-s their habit of bunching in deep p*iols of streams, when they 

 .ire easily disturUd by a snilden movement on the Ixmk, or by a sha<luw. which 

 will cause them suddenly t" seek shelter near bank or rocks. Ilubbs and Creaser 

 ( '24. p. 37J) descriln- the movements of young Common Suckers, stating that on 

 re.iching a length of aliout 30 mm. they move into areas of rather dense but 

 shallow vegetation. 



In lakes, the largest Suckers live in deep water while the small ones frecpient 

 the marginal shallows and tributary streams, often in large schtmls. Hankinson 

 ( 'oR, p. 20J) found large ones in water as deep as 80 feet, in Walnut I^ike, but 

 they appeared most abiuulant in water from 15 to 40 feet deep; the maximum 

 depth of the lake was a trifle over KM) feet. Rcighard ('15, p. 22^) found 

 Common .Suckers in all habitats in Douglas I-nke. In Septemlier one was caught 

 ill ~2 feet of water, but in July ami .\ugust none was taken lielow 43 feet, which 

 is the depth of the thcmi<x-line. lielow which they do not appear to live in sununer. 

 Hankinson Cif'. p. 144') found Common Stickers alxiut a foot anil a lialf long 

 common in water a« shallow as .*v feet, in I.ake ,"sui>erior. Leathers ("ii. p. J46) 



