The Stone Cat; Little Yellow Cat 



adipose fin adnate to the back; a poison gland at the base of the 

 pectoral spine. 



This genus, which contains but a single species, is close to 

 Schilbeodes (the mad-toms), the species all having the poison 

 gland and the adnate adipose fin, and all being small fish, lurk- 

 ing among weeds in stony brooks. 



Stone Cat ; Little Yellow Cat 



Noturus flavus Rafinesque 



Head about 4^ in length, its width 5^; depth 5f; dis- 

 tance from snout to origin of dorsal about 3 in length; A. about 

 1 6. Body elongate, the head depressed, broad and flat, nearly 

 as broad as long; middle of body subcylindrical; caudal peduncle 

 compressed; a strong keel on back between dorsal fin and 

 adipose fin, the latter deeply notched; dorsal spine very short; 

 pectoral spine retrorsely serrate in front, slightly rough or nearly 

 entire behind, its length \ distance from snout to origin of 

 dorsal; caudal rounded behind; humeral process very short and 

 sharp. 



Colour, nearly uniform yellowish brown, sometimes blackish 

 above; fins edged with yellow. Length, a foot or more. Great 

 Lakes region, and westward and south to Montana, Wyoming 

 and Texas, rather common, especially westward. 



This is the only one of the catfishes with adnate adipose 

 fin attaining sufficient size to give it any food value. Ordinarily 

 it is used as food only in those regions where food fishes are 

 not numerous. 



Related to the stone cat, are in America, ten or a dozen 

 species of small catfishes belonging to the genus Schilbeodes, and 

 known as mad toms. They are all very small, none of them ex- 



34 



