The Fallflsh 



In the Snake River this minnow is one of the most abundant 

 fishes, and is locally known by the misleading names "fresh-water 

 herring" and "whitefish," and, at one place, they are even called 

 trout. The name "whitefish" for this minnow is rather more 

 than local in its application, as it is used not only on Snake River, 

 but at Flathead Lake and perhaps elsewhere. At the salmon 

 fisheries along the Columbia and Snake rivers it is quite abun- 

 dant, and, after salmon fishing has begun, schools of 30 to 50 or 

 more can be seen at any time. They are particularly attracted by 

 the offal thrown into the river when the salmon are dressed, and 

 by throwing a few salmon eggs into the water, good-sized schools 

 could be called up at any time. 



This fish seldom attains a greater length than a foot, and is, 

 like most members of the family, a bony species; nevertheless, it 

 possesses some importance as a food-fish. At some places in the 

 Columbia basin it is served as "whitefish" at the hotels, and 

 elsewhere it is peddled over the country as "trout'' or "fresh-water 

 herring." It takes the hook readily and possesses considerable 

 game qualities. The best bait seems to be salmon spawn, but it 

 will bite at almost anything, a piece of liver, a grasshopper, or a 

 fish's heart or eye. It will fight vigorously for a time, and 

 large individuals will often continue the fight until brought to net. 



Head 4-f; depth 4^; eye 5; snout $\\ D. 8; A. 8; scales 

 12-77-7; teeth i or 2,5-5,2 or i. Body moderately slender; head 

 bluntly conic; interorbital space broad, convex; mouth horizontal 

 or nearly so, the maxillary not reaching front of eye; suborbital 

 bone wide; preorbital elongate; teeth hooked in the young, some 

 of them becoming blunt with age. Colour, dark olivaceous above, 

 yellowish silvery on sides, white or pale beneath; a dark or red- 

 dish lateral band, below which is a pale stripe, under which is a 

 dark stripe which extends about to vent; fins pale; belly and sides 

 with much red in breeding males. 



Fallfish 



Semotilus corporalis (Mitchill) 



Length a foot to 18 inches. Abundant from the St. Lawrence 



basin to the James, east of the Alleghanies, in clear, swift streams, 



rock pools, below dams or falls, and in clear lakes; not found 

 west of the Alleghanies. 



73 



