( 71 ) 
THE FOOD OF ILLINOIS FISHES. 
By S. A. FORBES. 
But little has been written on the food of the fresh water fishes of this 
country, and n o thing whatever, so far as I can learn, on the food of the fishes of 
of this state. I have not found anything more elaborate than a short paper* by 
Prof. S. I. Smith, of Y ale College, on the food of a few specimens of White Fish, 
Red Horse ( Myxostoma aureolum ), Yellow Perch and Sturgeon ( Acipenser 
rubicundus), from Lakes Superior and Erie. An item f relating to the food of 
the White Fish was published by Dr. Stimpson, of the Chicago Academy of 
Sciences, in 1870, and a few scattered notes of single observations occur in 
various papers on classification. J 
The importance of the subject, both to the scientific student and to the 
practical fish breeder, seems to warrant more systematic work ; and a 
methodical investigation has therefore been begun at the State Laboratory, 
the first results of which are given in the following memoranda. 
PURPOSES OP THE INVESTIGATION. 
A thorough knowledge of this subject should contribute something to 
our theories of distribution, since the food of those forms having appetites 
at all discriminating must have much to do with their range. Light might 
even be thrown upon past distribution, and the causes be suggested of ex- 
tensive migrations. The chosen haunts of different groups within their hab- 
itat, are probably determined largely by their gastronomic needs and pref- 
erences. Do the wide-spread species eat similar articles throughout their range, 
or are they wide-spread because they are omnivorous, or because their food 
habits are more flexible than those of other fishes On the other hand, are 
the narrowly limited species ever restricted by the local character of their 
food % 
* Report of U. S. Commissioner of Fish and Fisheries, Pt. II, p. 690. 
t American Naturalist, Sept. 1870, p. 403. 
X A paper by Dr. C. C. Abbot in the Report of the U. S. Fish Commissioner for 
1875-6 ’will also repay examination. 
