14 PKELIMINARY REPORT 



Order RHOMBOOANOIDEA. 



Family LEPISOSTEIDjE. The Gar-fishes. 

 Body slender, cylindrical, covered with diamond-shaped scales 

 which are very evenly distributed over the body; jaws long and 

 set with sharp, prominent teeth; upper jaw longiest; vomer and 

 palatines covered with teeth; tongue toothless; nostrils near the 

 end of the snout; air-bladder somewhat lung-like and joined by a 

 tube to the cesophagus, thus aiding in respiration. Tail heterocer- 

 cal ; pyloric cseca many. One genus and two species known at pres- 

 ent in Minnesota. 



Genus LEPISOSTEUS Lac6pSde. 

 KEY TO THE SPECIES OF LEPISOSTEUS. 



A. Snout slender and more than twice the length of the head. . . osseus. 

 AA. Snout broad and not much longer than the head, without 



snout platostomus. 



Lepisosteus osseus (Linnsens). Common Gar-pike Long-nosed Gar. Bill-flah. 



Snout more than twice the length of the rest of the head ; large 

 teeth of the upper jaw in one row in the adult. Olivaceous on the 

 biick and sides and pale below ; vertical fins and the posterior part 

 of the body with circular black spots ; young with a vertical black 

 stripe. Head contained three times in the length. Dorsal with 

 eight rays. Anal 9. Ventrals 6. Pectorals 10. Lateral line with 62 

 scales. An interesting fish whidi reaches a length of five feet, and 

 is found in nearly every lake and stream in Minnesota. Specimens 

 have been recorded from the Mississippi River, Minneapolis (Uni- 

 versity 1874, 1880); Minnesota River, Ortonville (Woolman & Cox, 

 1892) ; Otter Tail River, Breckenridge (Woolman, 1892, Report U. 

 S. Fish Comm., 1893, p. 369), Lake Washington, near Mankato, very 

 common (Cox, 1894). 



Lepisosteus platostomus Bafinesgue. Short-nosed Oar. 



Snout equal to or a little longer than the rest of the head; 

 much broader than in the preceding species. General characters 

 much the same as those of L. osseus. Head 3^ in the length. Depth 

 8. Dorsal with 8 rays. Anal 8. Ventrals 6. Lateral line with an 

 average of 56 scales. When mature, this species reaches a length 

 of 2 to 3 feet. But two specimens have been recorded from the 

 state, and these are in the University Museum. They were taken 

 from the Mississippi at Minneapolis, near the University. 



