580 NATUEAL HISTORY OP AQUATIC ANIMALS. 



spawned, they return to the sea. They never take the hook. Many fish go up the rivers into 

 ponds earlier or later in the spring to spawn, viz, salmon, Shad, Alewives, tomcod, smelts, etc., 

 and many good laws have been made in I^ew England to prevent the obstruction of their passage 

 by weirs, etc., aa they are of great benefit to the inhabitants near these rivers and ponds." 



From 1861 until 1880 nearly all American zoologists were contented to consider the various 

 kinds of river Herrings as members of a single species, which was designated Pomoloibus pseudo- 

 harengus, the specific name pseudo-harengus having originated in Wilson's article in volume ix of 

 the American edition of Eees' Encyclopaedia. There is no positive evidence to prove that this 

 volume was published prior to Mitchill's work on the "Fish of ISTew York," which appeared in 

 1815, and in which the names now accepted by us were first proposed. The American edition is 

 said bj' Allibone to have been in course of publication from 1809 to 1820. There is, however, no 

 date upon the title-page of volume ix, and consequently the priority of the name pseudo-harengus 

 over the others is doubtful. At any rate, the description given by Wilson is so vague that it 

 cannot well be assigned to one species in preference to the others.' If it is to be assigned to 

 either, it most assuredly belongs to the species which Mitchill calls G. vernalis, and which is cha- 

 racterized by its long head, large eye, and high fin. Wilson, however, did not distinguish the two 

 species, and his intention was evidently to include them both under one name. The only specific 

 characteristic given is the date of its advent, which, according to him, precedes that of the Shad 

 by about three weeks. Since there is no statement of the locality where this occurs, this also is 

 quite indefinite. Taking into consideration also th« fact that Wilson's article was published 

 anonymously in a book without date, I think we can safely set aside the name pseudo-harengus and 

 consider that the two names used by Mitchill in the discussion of his spring and summer Herrings 

 are definitely assigned to these two species. 



The attention of the zoologists of the Fish Commission was first called to the probable exist- 

 ence of two species by the persistent opinions of the fishermen of the Potomac, who recognized 

 two forms — differing in habit and in general appearance — which they called the "Branch" Herring 

 and the "Glut" Herring respectively. The late Mr. Milner, in the course of his river work, as 

 early as 1876, came to the conclusion that the two forms were specifically distinct, but the problem 

 was not definitely worked out until 1879. The announcement of the discovery of the two species 

 and a definition of their characters were first published in the report of the Virginia Fish Com- 

 mission for 1879. 



These species may easily be distinguished from each other by the following characters: C. 

 wstivalis is more elongate in form, has a lower body, less elevated fins, and smaller eyes than G. 

 vernalis. The proportions of the bones of the head in G. wstivalis differ from those in G. vernalis, 

 as also does the coloration of the lining of the abdomen, which in G. cestivalis is black, and in G. 

 vernalis gray. 



The popular names applied to these fishes differ in almost every river along the coast. G. 

 vernalis is known along the Potomac River as the "Branch" Herring; on the Albemarle River as 

 the "Big-eyed" Herring and the "Wall-eyed" Herring; in Canada it is known as the "Gaspe- 

 reau" or "Gasperdt." It is preeminently the "Alewife" of New England; the "EUwife" or 

 "Ellwhop" of the Connecticut River. The other species, C CBsti^^aZts, undoubtedly occurs occa- 

 sionally in its companj', but is probably not common in the Connecticut and Housatonic Rivers, 

 and in many parts of Massachusetts is distinguished by another name. 



'" Psf«fl'o-/iareH(;i(s (American Herring). Body above ash-color, inclining to dull greenish-blue; sides and belly 

 silvery ; no spots on the sides ; head small, tapering ; under jaw little longer; ascends onr rivers irom the sea with the 

 Shad to deposit tlieir eggs in shallow water; they are about three weeks in advance of the Shad; well tasted either 

 fresh or salted, but not so fat as Europe an Herring." 



