Uiuiilii Lake rislus 481 



from the lake, and were found midir a variety of conditions, but with a very evi- 

 dent jjrefcrencc for areas witli abundant plant growth. Except the very young 

 under an inch in length, which were sftmetinies found in compact schools of 

 thousands, the little I^rge-niouthed Hass were solitary. The solitary individuals 

 were usually two or three inches long, and out in water four or five feet deep. 

 Large-mouthed Bass near a foot in length were sometimes caught. Fishes of 

 this size apjiearcd to lurk in lily and rush growths of the deeper shoals. The 

 larger Ijass of the lake ven,- probably live in ten or more feet of water, but few 

 notes on these were obtained. 



The Large-mouthed Hlack Bass is a lake or pond fish, but it (tften alxjunds in 

 deep, sluggish rivers and sometimes is found thriving in deep pools of creeks. 

 Forlx'S and Richardson ('o<j, p. 267) observed a general distribution in Illinois. 

 They say: "Our data show a fairly equal distribution of this species throughout 

 the various situations open to it, the ratios for lowland and upland lakes, for 

 creeks, and smaller rivers being api)ro.\imately equal, and those for the larger 

 rivers alxjut half as large." An indifference to warm and muddy water is men- 

 tioned. Milner ('74, p. 35) writes of this bass as inhabiting, in I-akc Michigan, 

 the zone between shore and the dejjth of 60 feet, but not the deei)er waters. 

 Shelforil ('13, pp. in, 115, 120), in his detailed studies of the distribution of the 

 fish in streams entering Lake Michigan, found it only in the lower courses. In 

 the series of ponds studied in nuich detail (pp. 139, 156) the sjx-cies was found 

 only in the one near I^ke Michigan. Bean ('03. p. 492) notes that this black 

 bass seeks deep places in cold weather and often hil)crnates untlcr rocks, sunken 

 logs and in the mud. In the summer its favorite localities are uiuler overhanging 

 and brush-covered banks and among atpiatic plants. In such ])laces it lies in wait 

 for its ]>rey. Lvermann and Clark ("jo, j). 414) fouiul that the I-irge-mouth 

 prefers lakes, bayous and other sluggish waters, and that in the small lakes of the 

 U|)per Mississippi Valley it is most abundant in those of moderate or shallow 

 depths. Mankinson (\tH, p. 213) found it dwelling chiefly in the jMind weed zone 

 in Walnut I-ake. Michigan, but in spring it was common in shallow water. Hen- 

 shall ('iij, p. 3J) says that it prefers stiller waters than the Small-mouth, is more 

 at home in weedy situations and will thrive in fpiiet mossy |Minds with muddy 

 IxJttoms where the Small-mouth cannot; but on the other hand the I-nrge-mouth 

 can exist wherever the tjther can : that "It is better able to withstan<l the vicissitudes 

 of climate and temjx?rature, ami has a wonderful adaptability that enables it to l)e- 

 come reconcile*! to its environment." 



I'ood. The fiMxl of a nine-inch I-irge-mouthed Bl.ick Bass taken at John- 

 son's Bay July il, M)!**, consisteil of crawfish fragments, a siuall fish, ami fila- 

 mentous algae: that of an eight-inch s|>ecimen front Tixldygut B.iy, July 17, I9J6, 

 of fragnjents of two small fish that could not Ik- identifie<l. 



Forl)cs ('80, p. 4J ) gives the results of his studies of the fool of thirty-one 

 examples of this s|>ecies from Illinois (see also Baker, 'i'>, p. lS«>). The very 

 young, 1 1 inch long and iiiuler, had eaten mostly entomostracans. I-irger ones, i JJ 

 inches and muler. had taken ciilonuistracans only to the extent of Jf,'"r. while the 

 rest of the food was largely insects and mintite fish. Two s|xx:imens (2-3 inches 

 long) ha<l eaten only insects, chiefly Corixa (com]>are with Ilankinson. *JO. p. 111. 



