334 Fishes of the Ohio 
body. Mouth medium size; jaws furnished with numerous 
minute teeth; upp@yjaw projecting. Eyes circular, situated 
above and behind the angles of the mouth. 
Body smooth, compressed laterally behind the ventrals. 
Lateral line nearly straight. 
Dorsal fin short and little elevated. i 
Adipose fin small and narrow, and does not reach as far 
behind as the termination of the base of the anal fin. 
Caudal fin entire, truncate. 
Anal fin rounded on its anterior angle, acute at its posterior 
termination. 
Ventral fins sub-circular, short. : 
Pectoral fins short, serrated on the posterior and superior 
edge of the spinous ray, the serratures pointing obliquely up- 
wards, inwards and backwards. 
Length. 1 have seen them four feet long, weighing from 
seventy to eighty pounds; but they frequently grow much 
larger. Rafinesque says that they sometimes weigh two hun- 
dred pounds. 
Color. The upper surface of the head and back is oliva- 
ceous ; the sides and beneath, coppery-yellow ; and the fins 
often orange or reddish. 
Hab. Lake Erie, Ohio River, and their tributaries. 
D. 1—7; C. 945; V. 1—1; Pi 1—1; A Se 
Rafinesque says the anal fin has only 15 rays ; in my spec 
men, 24 can be distinctly seen. 
Observations. This is the handsomest and most gracefully 
formed of any of the western cat-fish. The yellow epp. 
color seems to be a permanent character, in all localities, and 
under all circumstances. "The general contour of the fish, as 
well as the color, will distinguish it from every other species. 
Its lateral barbs are usually short, and reach only half the 
length of the head. 
It readily bites at a hook, and is also taken in seines. The 
young are valued as an article of food. 
