Notes on a collection of fishes from eastern Georgia

(1)

284 PEOCEEDINGS OF UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM.

goat." I very soon

saw

1113-error,but not liking to riskasnapshot, tried to

head

the animaloff,but withoutsuccess.

The

tracks are enor-

mous

forthesizeofthe animal. Ifound

many

of theirdustingplaces.

The

earthis

pawed up

untilquitea depressionisformed,in

which

they roll

and

lie

by

thehoitr.

They

are

somewhat

likethose ofthebighorn, but the

numerous

very long white hairs left in the dust

show

the presenceof the goat. Ispoke to

my

guide (Charles

McWhirk,

Corval- Es,nearMissoula, Montana,) about getting

some

skins

and

skeletons thiswinter,

and he

saidhe

would do

soif

any

one

"made

itworthhis while." If

you

desire

them

^Ithink

you had

better write to

him

per- sonallyaboutit. I tried to explain to

him how

the skins should be prepared.

According

to the recent orderofthe

War Department he

can turn

them

over to the quartermaster at Fort Missoula,forty-five miles distant,forshipmenttotheNational

Museum.

Thisaccountis notsocompleteasIcouldwish,butIsenditas bet- terthan none,asthe goatissolittle

known. What

I

have

written ap-

phes

to their habits in the Bitter-Koot Eange.

They

are also found ratherplentifully inthe

main

rangeof theEockies near Flathead Lake.

Several

have

been caughtalive,

and

the Indianssometimes bringinthe kids,butthe lattersoondie.

Nothing

of special ornithological interest here now, but the winter faunainthislatitudewillbe

worthy

of §tudy.

Very

truly,yours,

JAMES

C.

MEREILL.

IVOTES

OIV

A

COLiIiECTIOIV

OF FISHES

FROITI

EASTER'V OEOROIA.

By TARLETOiV H. BEAIV.

The

UnitedStatesNational

Museum

received,

December

15,1879,from Mr.A. Graves, postmasterat

McBean,

Ga.,fivespeciesof fresh-water fishes,oneof

which

is here described as

new

to science. Mr.

Graves

writes that the fishes

were

collected in

McBean

Creek,

which

^"isthe dividingline

between Burke and Eichmond

Counties,

and

iswithin

two hundred

yardsof

McBean

Station,on

Augusta and Savannah

Eailroad.

Itempties into the

Savannah

Eiver,about seven miles from this station."

The

local

names

are those transmitted

by

Mr. Graves.

The

speciesof Centrarchidcv

have

allbeen previously recorded

by Prof

D.S.

Jordan,from Georgia.

1. Chasnobryttusgulosiis (C.

&

V.)GiU.—

"Warm

MouthPerch";

"Yaw

Mouth Perch".

23509a. D. IX,11;

A.

Ill, 9.

23509h. D.

X,

10; A.Ill,9.

The

firstventral ray,the tips ofthe anal, caudal,

and

dorsal rays,

and

ofthe

membranes between

thedorsal spines are crimson.

Sped-

(2)

PROCEEDINGS OF UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM. 285 men

23509a has a crimson spot half as longas the eye

on

the sheath

under

the lastfour dorsal rays.

The

pectorals ofboth

examples

are yellow.

2. Xystroplites heros^(B.

&

G.)Jor.—"Bream".

23510a. D.

X,

10; A.Ill, 10. (Soft dorsal injured.) 23510h. D.

X,

12;

A.

Ill, 11.

23510c. D.

X,

12;

A.

Ill, 12.

23510(?. D.

X,

12;

A.

Ill, 12.

These agree with the types^ofPomotisheros B.

&

^G.

3.Xenotis sanguinolentus^(Ag.)Jor.—"Red-bellyPerch".

23511a. D.

X,

11;

A.

Ill, 10.

235111). D.

X,

11; A.Ill, 10.

23511c. D.

X,

12;

A.

Ill, 11.

23511(/. D.

X,

11;

A.

^Ill,10.

The

throat,the breast,

and

the belly areorange red; thesoft dorsal

and

the anal

have

a

narrow margin

of the

same

color; the external caudal raysaretipped with the same.

The

pectorals are yellow.

The

sides are indistinctly

banded

withblack.

4.

Esox

americanus Gmel.

—

"Pike".

23512. B.

XII

; D.Ill,12; A. IV,10.

Length,7-i%inches(186 millimeters).

All thefinsare yellow.

The

skincovering thedorsal

and

caudalrays, however,^is^blackish.

5.Hudsoniusetiryopasp.nov.

Teeth 1,1-1,_1,with a

narrow

grinding surface

on

thefirst

two

ofthe longseries.

23513 a. D.Ill, 7; A.II, 7^; V.I,7; P.I, 13; C.

+,

19,

+;

^L.^lat.

38; L. trans. 6

+

^5.

23513 h. D. Ill, 7; A.II,6; V.I,7; P.I,13; C.

+,

19,

+;

^L.^lat.

38^; L. trans. 6

+

^5.

The

greatest height of the

body

equals the length ofthe longest dorsal ray; it is slightly less thanthelengthofthe head,

and

iscon- tained in the lengthof body, without caudal, 5 times.

The

lengthof the

head

is contained 4 to4.^timesin thesame. In specimen 23513

a

the length ofthe pectoral equals the greatest height ofthe

body;

in specimen 235136 ^it equals the length ofthe

head

without the snout.

The

long diameterofthe eyeequals J-of thelengthofthe head.

The

lengthofthe ventraliscontained6 to_6.Jtimesinlengthof

body

with- outcaudal.

The

distance of the origin ofthe dorsalfrom the snout equals twice the length of the head,

and

equals the distance ofthe ventral from the snout.

The

^longest anal ray equals in length the longestventral ray.

The

^length^{of the}^anal^basisequals ^ the^greatest height ofthe body.

The

length ofthe upper

jaw

equals the short

(3)

286 PROCEEDINGS OF UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM.

diameterof theeye.

The

lengthof thelower

jaw and

that ofthepost- orbital portion ofthe

head

are eqnal. There isablacklateral

band

following the course ofthelateral line

and

continuedaround thenose,

most

distinct inthe

young

specimen.

United States National Museuji,

WashingtoUj December 18, 1879.

DESCRIPTION OF A NEW SPECIES OF

ATIIUfSUS(A.

PONDEKOSIJS)

FROi^I

THE

JTIISSISSIPPI

RIVER.

By TAKLETO.\ H. BEAIV.

The United

States National

Museum

received from Dr. J. G.

W.

Steedman,of Saint Louis, Mo.,

chairman

of theMissouri Fish

Commis-

sion,

on

the 8th of

November,

1879,aCatfish

which weighed

150

pounds

atthetimeofshipment. After

comparing

thiswiththeother described speciesof

Aminrus

I

am

unable to identifyitwith

any

ofthem.

The most

distinguishing character of the species is its

many-rayed

anal,in

which

itresemblesIchthcclurusratherthan Amiurus,

though

ithas the skull-structureof thelatter.

The

specimen Avhichforms the tyi^eofthe present description

was

sent at the recpiestof Prof. Spencer F.Baird,United States

Commis-

sioner ofFish

and

Fisheries, to

whom

Dr.

Steedman

wrote the following information:

"Your

letterrequestingtheshipmentto

you

of alarge Mississippi Catfish Avas received this morniug. T'pon visiting our

market

thisP.

M.

Iluckily found

two—

one of144 lbs.,the other150 lbs.

The

latter Ishi])to

you

to-night

by

express,

...

1purchased

itfrom anold fish-dealer of30 years'experienceinour

market

^-,

and

he assures

me

that the largest Mississippi Catfish he has

met

inthattime weighed 198 pounds.

(He

says he has heardof Cattish weighing 250

and

300pounds,but

he

does notbelieve the stories.) This istheonly variety,hesays,

which

reaches 100lbs. Thereisanotherspecies

which

sometimesattains05lbs.in weight.

My

informant (and heispractical authority

among

us) enumerates six well-markedvarietiesof Catfish in theMississippiwaters ^"

The

admissionofthis s]ieciesintothegenus

Amiurus

Avillnecessitate amodification ofthedefinitionof thegenusso farasthelimitsof varia- tion inthe anal raysareconcerned;

and

willleaveonlythe lack of con- tiguity

between

the suj)ra-occipital

and

the second interspinal todis- tinguish

Amiurus

fromIchthcvlurus.

A

plaster cast

and

the skeleton of the typeare preserved.

Description.— The

catalogue

number

of the type is 23388; its length, totheorigin of themiddle caudalrays,is57.2 inches, to the

end

ofthe

same

rays,61 inches.

The

distancefrom the middleofthebase ofthecaudaltothe

end

ofthe

upper

caudallobeis8 inches.