146 BOOK OF THE BLACK BASS. 



olive or yellowish-white, but often pale green while the 

 large-mouthed Bass will be of a dark green coloration, 

 and sometimes quite dusky. 



Then, again, in some waters, no distinct coloring is 

 apparent, the fish presenting merely a pale or faded ap- 

 pearance; especially is this likely to be the case in large 

 streams much subject to overflow, and whose waters are 

 often muddy or discolored. Hence, as may be surmised, 

 color is not an important factor in the differentiation of 

 the Black Bass species. 



While some have no distinct markings, others are 

 marked by dark, maculated, transverse or vertical bars; 

 some, again, by longitudinal or lateral bands ; and still 

 others by mottled lines, dusky spots, or finger marks. 

 Usually when Bass are so marked, the mottled bands run 

 lengthwise in the large-mouthed species, while the small- 

 mouthed Bass is marked by transverse bars or finger 

 marks; but these distinctions are not infallible, for the 

 small-mouthed Bass of the Southern States often exhibits 

 well-defined mottled lines running lengthwise along the 

 series of scales. 



After being taken out of the water, the colors and 

 markings change materially ; generally, the brighter colors 

 fade rapidly, while the dusky spots, bars, or bands become 

 more distinct; this change of color is more frequently ob- 

 served in the small-mouthed species. Sometimes, how- 

 ever, the markings will disappear, and the sides of the 

 fish will assume a uniform coloration. 



Then, again, the colors of the Black Bass frequently 

 change with each season of the year; and there is, more- 

 over, always a marked difference in the colors and mark- 

 ings of the fish at different stages of its growth. In the 



