An Authentic History of Lancaster County Part 3

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OF LANCASTER COUNTY.

577

maculatus,

the

moccasin; varies

in

different localities

and

seasons

and

resembles

P.

jibbosus

and P.

catesbei.appendix (Ichthelis appendix)

has a

prolonged rounded point

to the

operculum.

BRITTUS

flavescens—a name suggested

by the

writer

for a

butter-yellow species caughtat Safe Harbor, apparently undescribed, resembling

a

Brittus

and the

butter-fishof Western waters.

Prof.

Cope

saw the

specimen

and

deemed

it new and un

named.FAMILY ETHEOSTOMIDJE.This family, recently established, embraces several genera

of

small species

and ap

pears

to be

exclusively limited

to the

fresh waters

of the

northern portions

of the

Western Hemisphere.

Prof.

S. S.

Haldeman describes

two

species

of

PERCINA,

as a

sub-genus.

The P.

nebulosa

and P.

minima.

The

PILEOMA

belongs here.

The

Boleosoma tessellatum,is abundant near Lancaster,

in a

small stream emptying into

the

Conestoga belowthe Railroad Bridge, Having

no

swimming-bladder

it is not

seen suspended

in the

water,

but

always

at the

bottom.

We

have also

a

species

of

ETHEOSTOMA,

described

as

new

by

Prof.

E. D.

Cope,

in the

Proceedings

of the

Academy

of

Natural Sciences

of

Philadelphia,

for

September

and

October,

1864,

from

a

specimen sent

him

from

the

Conestoga, near Lancaster, which

he

named, peltatum, Stauffer.

It is a

beautiful littlefish, with broad black markings over

the

opercle,

and

around

the

eyes.

The

only otherfish belonging

to

this order found

in the

county known

to

me,

is the

COTTDS

viscosus,Hald., found

in a few

localities,

in

clear spring water flowing through meadows, bordered

by

turf

and

having

a

shallow pebbly bottom. This fish

is

rather slimy,

and 3

incheslong.

The

spines

are

stout. Fishes

of

this genus

are

properly called bull-heads.

Our

species

was

first described

by

Prof,

S. S.

Haldeman,

in

1840.

OBDEB

II.

MALAGOPTEBI.This order embraces fish having

all the

fin-rays soft

and

cartilaginous, with

the

exception

of the

first

in the

dorsal

and the

first

in the

pectoral,

as in the

FAMILY

SILURID^E—Cat-fishes.

These have

the

skin naked, mouth bearded with long filaments

and a

second adiposeor fatty dorsal

fin. Our

cat-fish were formerly embraced

in the

genus

PIMELODUS,

which

are all

South American fishes. They

are now

divided into

six

genera,

of

whichwe have

the

AMINURUS

lynx,

a

large headed black species with

a

rounded caudal

fin, and fin

higherthan long

at its

insertion,nebulosus.

(A.

albidus?)—has

the

anal

fin

short

but

broad

on the

base—a beautifullight colored

and

gracefully shaped cat-fish frequently taken

in the

Conestoga.We have

two

other undescribed cat-fish belonging

to the

genus

ICHTH^ELURUS,

Baf.

(Ictalurus Cope).—J.

P.

McCaskey, September

9th,

1863, broughtme

a

specimen taken

at

Shenk's Ferry—nine inches long,

of a

yellowish

or

paleolive color, having

a

silvery reflective

and

metallic blue

on the

sides, lateral linestraight, dorsal 'spine serrated, nape

of the

neck depressed—anal

fin

wide

and

long, light colored, with prominent veins

or

blood vessels ramified over

the

fins.This

I

named, Ichthaelurus McCaskei.

The

other species, taken

by J. B, Ke

vinski, Sept.

1863,

Head moderate, body tapering, tail deeply furcated, colordorsally black, sides slate colored, abdomen whitish.

The

anal

fin

long

and

moderately high. From

its

gyrating motions when drawn from

the

water,

I

should have named

it I.

gyrans,

but

this name

is

appropriated already

to a dis-

.

88

578 AUTHENTIC HISTORYtinct species

so I

have named

it,

Ichthaelurus Kevinskii. Several specimensof blind cat-fish have been taken

in the

Conestoga,

two

sent

to Prof.

Cope,

of

which

he

published

a

long account

in the

Proceedings

of the

Academy

of

Natural Sciences

of

Philadelphia,

for 1864, p.

231. Another specimen

was

takenin November, 1865. This proves

to be a new

genus

and

species, named

by Prof.

Cope,

GRONIAS

uigrilabris.

The

stone cat-fish, distinguished by having

the

supraoccipital separated, tail rounded, confluent with

the

adipose

or

second dorsal—known

as

NOTURUS

marginatus—(also

SILURUS

gyrinus,) concludes this Family.FAMILY

SALMONID^:—Salmon.

Fish having

an

adipose

fin and

scaly bodies, constitute this family.

All the

raysof

the

fins

are

soft.

Our

common brook trout

is the

SALMO

fontinalis

of

Mitchill.These

are

very variable

in

color,

and may

embrace various species.FAMILY

CLUPEID^E—Herring.

Occasionally caught

in the

Susquehanna.

The

green herring

is a

species which

is

almost identical with Mitchill's

CLUPEA

vernalis;

but our

Susquehanna herring havethe upper

jaw

distinctly notched,

(the

distinctive mark

of the

genus ALOSA,)but

it dif

fers

in

some respects from

the

ALOSA

menhaden

or

moss-bunker,

and is

more like

our

Hickory shad,

ALOSA

tyrannis.

The

true Susquehanna shad

is the

ALOSA

praestabilis.FAMILY

SAURID^E—Gar-pike.

The common hard-scaled

gar of the

Susquehanna,

is the

Lepidosteus osseus.There seem

to be

several species,

or at

least distinct varieties.

The

banded

or

greenGar belongs

to the

EsocnxE

or

Pike family,

and is the

Belone truncata; also, calledBill-fish.

The

common pike belongs

to the

genus Esox.

We

have variable species;the

E.

reticulatus

and

umbrosus.FAMILY

ANGUILLID^:—Eels.

ANQUILLA

macrocephala, Lesueur,

the

bull-headed, black

or

winter

eel,

also short-nosed

eel.

tenuirostris,

the

sharp-nosed

eel.

argentea?

The

silver

eel of the

fisherman

is a

variety

of

this;

its

white abdomenseparated

by a

lateral line from

the

color above.FAMILY CYPRINID^E.

Prof.

E. D.

Cope,

has

published

a

synopsis

of the

CYPEINIDJE

of

Pennsylvania,which

is

full

and

complete.

EXOGLOSSUM

maxillingua

is

distinguished

by its

lobed under lip,

a

common fish whichtakes

the

hook readily.

The

only species.

SBMOTILUS

rhotheus,

the

chub

or

fall fish.

The S.

corporalis also called chub,

has

smaller scales,

and a

dark shade across

the

eyes.

CERATICHTHYS

biguttatus, abounds

in all the

streams

in the

State, except those entering into

the

Delaware.

It is

called

the

homed chub, from

the

numerous tubercles

on the

vertex

and

muzzle.

In the

breeding season they

are

often

of a

livelyred

and

yellow color,micropogon, taken

in

Mill creek.

Mr.

Cope says

"I

only know this species fromspecimens sent

me by my

friend

J.

Stauffer

of

Lancaster," whether

it

occurs

in

any

of the

other hydrographic basins

is not yet

known.

The

head

is

shorter,convex,

a

dark lateral

and

median dorsal band, caudal peduncle slender.

OF LANCASTER COUNTY.

579

ARGYREUS

nasutus,

the

Dace, Rhinichthis

Ag;

Chondrostoma Heck.,

is

found

in

boisterous

and

rocky streams,

and

takes

the

hook with

the

spring

of a

trout,astronasus,

the

black-nosed Dace, Mitch.,

is a

favorite

for

Aquaria.

In

Spring theyare briUiantly colored with vermilion

red and

orange, found

in the

small streamin

the

Dillerville swamp. Another, /which

I

suppose

to be the A.

lunatus,

is

occasionally

met

with.

STILBE

americana (abramis versicolor, deKay.)

Its

young

are the

minnows

and

shiners.Other small species

are the

CLINOSTOMUS

funduloides

and C.

margarita.

HYPBILEPIS

(Plargyrus, Baf.)

kentuckiensis.cornutus.

HYBOPSIS

procne.

Prof.

Cope

has it

from

the

Delaware, Schuylkill

and

Susquehanna,where

I

originally

saw it, but not

further westward,hudsonius,

and a

specimen closely allied

to

FUNDULUS

multifasciatus, peculiar

in

having

a

series

of 13

bluish vertical bands—metwith

in

several localities near Lancaster. Also what

I

called

the

CYPBINBLLA

analostoma,

and the

MOXOSTOMA

oblongum. These latter

are

without

a

lateralfine, taken

in

Mill creek.The Sucker Family comes next

in

order.

The

hammer-head, stone-roller

or

spottedsucker,

CATOSTOMUS

longirostris,

a

variety

of C.

communis

or

black sucker,

of a

muchlighter color, accords with

the

description

of C.

pallidus.

The

large scaled sucker,C. aureolus,

is

much like

the C.

macrolepidotus, which latter

I

consider

the

long-finnedchubsuckeror Susquehanna carp;

the

other,

the

golden sucker

or

common Susquehannamullet,

or

mullet sucker.

The

LABBO

cyprinus

and

CARPIODES

cyprinus,

are

namesapplied

to the

Susquehanna carp.A more extended investigation

may

reveal other species. This embraces

all

knownto

the

writer. With respect

to the

cartilaginous fishes,

we

have

the

lamprey,

AMMO-

CC3TUS bicolor.

The

colored mud-lamprey, and

a

parasitic species, perhaps

PETEOMYZON

nigricans, which attaches itself

to

other fishes,

and is the

bluish lamprey. These

are

only

met

with

in the

Susquehanna river,

as far as now

known.

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