THE TALE OF THE FISHES 



in deposits of the cold Pleistocene Period. But the 

 close relationship that exists between the Sunapee saib- 

 ling and the common fontinalis, and the existence of an 

 intermediate form in Dublin Pond, N. H., half way 

 along in the process of differentiation, with structural 

 peculiarities, points of coloration, and habits peculiar 

 in part both to the ancestral saibling and the derived 

 brook trout, establishes my contention that our beauty 

 of the brooks, as conditions changed in post-glacial 

 time, differentiated from this quaternary charr. 



The distinguishing features of the Sunapee fish 

 are the presence of basi-branchial teeth as described be- 

 tween the lower extremities of the first two gill arches; 

 the total absence of mottling or vermiculation on the 

 dark sea-green back and excessively developed fins; in- 

 conspicuous yellow spots without a suggestion of areola ; 

 a slightly emarginate tail ; a small and delicately shaped 

 head, diminutive aristocratic mouth, liquid planetary 

 eyes, and a generally graceful build; a phenomenally 

 brilliant nuptial coloration, recalling the foreign appel- 

 latives of "gilt charr" and "golden saibling." 



It hugs the pure polar depths of the lake at a tem- 

 perature of 38 to 45 degrees Fahrenheit under the pres- 



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