FOREST, FISH AXD GAME COMMISSION. 32/ 



included ; eye moderate ; maxillary scarcely reaching front of eye, the premaxillaries 

 below level of eye ; scales thin, closely imbricated, always deeper than long, especially 

 anteriorly, becoming extremely deep in the adult ; lateral line decurved ; dorsal fin 

 moderate, inserted directly over the ventrals in the young, but thrown somewhat 

 backward in the adult by the growth of the nuchal region ; pectorals barely reaching 

 ventrals, the latter reaching the vent ; region in front of the dorsal typically with 

 about 23 scales, the number ranging from 15 to 40. 



Color, dark steel-blue above, the scales with dusky edges and bases ; a gilt line 

 along the back and one along each side, these distinct only when the fish is in the 

 water; belly and lower part of sides silvery, bright rosy in spring males; dorsal fin 

 somewhat dusky, other fins plain, the lower fins all rosy in spring males ; head dark 

 above ; a dark shade behind the shoulder ; lower jaw and region in front of dorsal to 

 tip of snout covered in spring males with numerous small tubercles ; females and 

 young plain olivaceous above and silvery below. 



The adult Common Silverside may be readily known by the disproportionately 

 great depth of the scales on the sides, the exposed portions being very much higher 

 than long. Specimens from the Great Lakes and the mouths of small streams flow- 

 ing into them have only 13 to 18 scales before the dorsal and have been recognized 

 as a subspecies under the name Notropis cornutiis frontalis (x\gassiz), while in northern 

 Michigan occurs a form — Notropis cormitus cyancus (Cope) — with the scales in front 

 of dorsal very small, 31 to 40 in number, and the color extremely dark. In the 

 Roanoke River and its mountain tributaries is a closely related species, known as 

 Notropis cerasinus (Cope). This species has the scales 6-37-3, with only 15 before the 

 dorsal, and the color very brilliant steel-blue, the sides always marked with irregular 

 blackish cross-blotches and bars formed by the broad dark edges of some of the 

 scales. The males in spring are flushed with pink and the fins are all deep red. This 

 species, never exceeds 3 or 4 inches in length. In the Roanoke, Neuse, and Tar 

 rivers is another closely related species, Notropis albeoliis (Jordan), which has a 

 sharper snout, longer caudal peduncle, longer fins, and paler coloration than typical 

 Notropis cormitus, which is not found in coastal streams south of the James. 



blender ^i\'^Zr^\([.Z,— Notropis atherinoides Rafinesque. 



This minnow occurs in the Great Lakes region from New York westward to Win- 

 nipeg, and southward in the Mississippi Valley to Arkansas and Tennessee. It is 

 probably most abundant in the Wabash and Ohio valleys, in the river channels and 

 larger creeks. 



