152 REPORT OF XEW JERSEY STATE MUSEUM. 



black blotch. Fins below yellowish-orange, dorsal and caudal 

 dull olive. Length 2^ inches. Budd Lake. 



The most abundant of all our small fishes in streams of fresh 

 water. They are seldom found in the creeks or wider streams in 

 such abundance as in the small brooks of clear water, particularly 

 if rapid. They also like the quiet little pools or deeper places. 

 Here they may often be seen swimming persistently against the 

 current, sometimes gaining a few inches or again slipping back 

 perhaps further, and then darting suddenly away when disturbed, 

 only to be seen, however, back again repeating the same perform- 

 ance over and over. One may scoop ever}^ individual from the 

 brook before they will desert a favorite place entirely. This is a 

 most beautiful species and in life is found to vary considerably 

 even in the same stream. I have found as many as a dozen dif- 

 ferent individual variations in a single broofe in the spring of the 

 year. Ordinarily in life the adult male is a beautiful olivaceous- 

 brown on the upper surface, each scale with defined though only 

 slightly darker edges, and the whole region all specked or dotted 

 with blackish. IMedian line of back only very slightly paler. 

 Below white with silvery, showing tints of purplish and bluish 

 in some lights. Jaws whitish. Opercle with green and golden 

 reflections in some examples. A dusky or blackish-brown band 

 laterally from snout through eye to base of caudal and also re- 

 flected on bases of median rays of latter. A brassy or coppery 

 line reflected along dark lateral band above, but narrow. 

 Dorsal and caudal dilute brown. Pectoral golden basally, 

 otherwise whitish. Ventral and anal dilute brownish-white. A 

 rather common more or less russet variety has back brown and 

 upper surface of head slightly tan-color. Lower surface of head 

 and body white. On the back each scale has a slightly darker 

 edge, though not those of lateral band. A black band encircles 

 snout through iris to opercle. After this it becomes bright russet 

 and continues to base of caudal, where it is with more or less 

 blackish medianly. Back and lateral band also with small black 

 specks or granulations, mediandine of back paler. Dorsal, caudal 

 and anal dilute olivaceous more or less tinged with russet, espe- 

 cially latter two fins. Pectoral deep brick-red except lower rays, 

 which are white. Axil of pectoral bright red. Ventral dilute 



