USA > Vermont > History of Vermont, natural, civil, and statistical, in three parts, with a new map of the state, and 200 engravings > Part 27
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Rays, P. 12, V. 6, D. 8, A. 9, C. I2.
llisrony .- The only specimen which I have seen of this fish was the one from which the preceding description and fig- ure were drawn. It was taken in Bur- lington during the drought in August, 1-T1, in a small cove, whose communica- tion with the Winooski river had been ent off' by the subsiding of the water. This fish may be the young of the prece- ding species, but finding so many points of' difference, I have thought it best to introduce a separate description.
ORDER III .- Molaropterygii- Subbrachiali.
Fishes of this order have their gills pectinated, or comb-like, and the ventral fins very near the pectoral, either before, beneath, or a very little behind.
I .- GADIDE, OR COD-FISH FAMILY. GENUS LOTA .- Curier.
Generic Characters .- Body elongated, one anal and two dorsal fins ; the second dorsal and the anal tin long ; cirri more or less numerous.
THE LING OR METIIY.
Lote maculosa .- LE SUEUR.
Rich, Fauna Boreali, p. 218. Kirtland's Report, 190. Bost. Jour. Nat. thist. IV-21. Gadas maculosus, Le Su. Jour. Acad. Nat. Sci., Phil., 1-83.
DESCRIPTION .- Body thick ; back near- ly straight from the snout to the tail; abdomen capacious, and often flabby when not distended with food or spawn ; head broad and much depressed; upper jaw longest, with the upper lip extending considerably beyond the jaw ; snout point- ed ; orbit elliptical ; eyes rather small and nearly round, pupil bluish black, iris grayish golden. Above varied with brown- ish, olive and fuliginous, darkest on the head ; sides obscurely spotted with whi- tish ; belly yellowish, rusty-white, with ruddy tinges ; lateral line commences above the gill opening and runs a straight course to the middle of the tail : nostrils double, the anterior lengthened into short cirri ; the cirrus depending from the tip of the under lip reddish brown ; all the fins brownish with their margins black- ish ; ventral fins before the pectoral, slen- der and pointed ; pectorals broad and rounded ; first dorsal short ; second dor- sal commences nearly over the vent, and extends to the base of the caudal ; whole outline of the caudal rounded; anal fin commences about an inch behind the be- ginning of the second dorsal, and termi- nates a little anterior to the termination of the dorsal ; teeth small and card-like on the jaws, palate and throat : tongue fleshy and smooth. Length of the largest of three specimens before me 23 inches, head, to the upper partof the gill opening, 4, first dorsal 1.5, second dorsal 9.5, anal 8.3, height of the dorsals and anal 1, of the jugular and pectorals 3, cirrus on the lip 1.3; orbit .f by 5, distance between
147
FISHIES OF VERMONT.
CHAP. 5.
THE EEL-POUT.
THE COMMON EEL.
the orbit 1.2; vent 1 inch nearer the snout | to be compressed at the sides, at the ex- than to the extremity of the tail.
Rays, B. 7, V. G, P. 20, D. 10-74, A. Ge, C. 40.
IHISTORY .- This fish, which is quite common in lake Champlain and its tribu- taries, I have referred to Le Sueur's spe- cies the Girlus maculosus, as agreeing more nearly with his description than with any other to which I have access. There are, however, several differences between them. In Le Sueur's species the jaws nre said to be equal ; in ouis, the upper jaw is uniformly longest ;- in his the lat- eral line is said to be in the middle of the body ; in ours, anterior to the vent, it is much nearer the back than the belly. Our fish bears considerable resemblance to the Lota brosmiana described by Dr. Storer in the Boston Journal of Natural History, vol. IV, page 58. But it differs from his description and figure in having the upper jaw longest, in having the snout more pointed and less orbicular, &.c. Judging from the descriptions with- out specimens for comparison, I should say that our fish differs as much from cith- er of the species referred to, as they differ from each other, and that they either con- stitute three distinct species, or are all varieties of the same species.
The Ling is held in very low estima- tion as an article of food, the flesh being tough and the flavor unpleasant. This fish is one of the greatest gormandizers found in our waters. If he can procure food, he will not desist from eating so long as there is room for another particle in his capacious abdomen. He is frequent- ly taken with his abdomen so much dis- tended with food as to give him the ap- pearance of the globe or toad-fish. The smallest of the three before me, when my description was made, being 16 inches long, was so completely filled with the fishes swallowed, that their tails were plainly seen in its throat by looking into its mouth. On opening it, I found no less than 10 dace, L. petchellus, all about the same size, and none of them less than 4 inches long. Seven of these were en- tire, and appeared as if just swallowed. Upon the others, the digestive process had commenced.
THE BEL-POUT.
Lota compressa .- LE SUEUR.
Jour. Acad. Nat. Sci., 1-84. Storer's Report, 131.
DESCRIPTION .- Color of the back and sides yellowish brown, variegated with darker brown spots; gill cover and snout darkest ; abd men whfish. Body in front of the first doisal cylindrical, beginning
tremity of the pectorals, gradually becom- ing more so towards the tail, so that the caudal rays appear a membranous prolon- gation of the body ; body covered with minute scales, looking like cup-shaped depressions ; lateral line straight, con- spicuous. Head much compressed ; eyes circular ; nostrils double ; a minute cir- rus rises from the back of each anterior nostril, and from the tip of the chin ; up- per jaw longest ; jaws and palate armed with minute tecth. First dorsal lighter than the body, situated the length of the head back of head, short; second dorsal long, reaching to the tail ; anal, the same length as the dorsal ; caudal rounded; most of the fins margined with black. Length of the specimen 6 mches, head I. Rays could not be counted on account of the fleshy texture of the fin-membrane.
Hisrony .- This fish is found in Con- necticut river and its tributaries. Not having obtained a specimen of it, I have copied Dr. Storer's description. It was first described by Le Sueur, from a speci- men obtained at Northampton.
ORDER IV .-- MALACOPTERYGH-APODES.
Fishes of this order have long bodies, a thick skin, and no ventral fins.
MURÆENIDA, OR EEL FAMILY. GENU'S MURENA .- Linnaeus.
Generic Characters .- Body cylindrical, elon- gated, covered with a thick and smooth skin ; the scales very small, lubricated with copious mucous secretion ; mouth with a row of teeth in each jaw, and a few on the anterior part of the vomer ; pec- toral fins close to a small branchial aperture ; no ventral fins ; dorsal fin, anal fin and caudal fin united.
THE COMMON EEL.
Murcan vulgaris.
Murena anguilla, Lin. et. Pen. Angudla arutiros. tris, Yarrell, Bijt. Fishes, 11-281. A. valgiris Trans. Lit. and Phi. Soc. N. Y., 1-360.
DESCRIPTION,-Specimen 31 inches in length ; from the tip of the suont to the base of the pectorals 3.6, to the vent 13.3, to the commencement of the anal 13.8; circumference just before the eyes 2.3, one and a half inch from the tip of the
148
NATURAL HISTORY OF VERMONT.
PART I.
THE BLACK EEL.
THE SILVER EEL.
upper jaw 3.7, at the base of the pectorals ] length : from the tip of the snout to the 5, at the commencement of the dorsal 6.5, base of the pretorals 8 inches ; circumfer- ence of the body back of the head, at the comunencement of the pectorals, 3.4 inch- es; at the commencement of the dorsal fin 3.4 ; around the head 32, at the dis- tance of 1.5 from the snout; in front of the eyes 1.7; from the tip of the lower jaw to the anal fin 105 inches ; width of the body over the pectorals 1.2, pupil black, iris golden ; width between the eyes .4; lateral line indistinct. Color grayish brown above ; yellowish white beneath, with a tinge of red about the tail .- Storer. of the anal 5.7, distance between the eyes .6, height of the pectorals 1.4, base .6. Body cylindrical; color above dark olive brown, extending down low upon the sides ; belly white, or yellowish white, sometimes with a ruddy tinge; lateral line irregular, indistinct, and above the middle of the body, before the vent, be- hind it, medial and straight to the middle of the tail; jaws narrow and rounded at the end ; lower jaw longest, tipped with brown ; lips fleshy ; a broad band of small, short teeth in each jaw and upon the vo- mer ; eye over the angle of the mouth, pupil black, iris golden ; nostrils near the eyes; a short fleshy cirrus on each side of the snout ; small mucous pores on va- rions parts of the head ; gap of the mouth small ; gill opening small and under the anterior origin of the peetoral fin, which is pointed ; dorsal, caudal and anal fin united. Pectoral rays 12. Veut 3 inches nearer the snout than to the extremity of the tail.
IfisToRY .- The Common Eel, found in Connecticut river, and in the streams and ponds in this state on the east side of the Green Mountains, I suppose to belong to this species. Not having obtained speci- mens of this and the following species, I can only give Dr. Storer's description of them. In some of the ponds this Eel grows to a very large size. They are fre- quently taken at the outlet of Barnard pond weighing 8 or 10 pounds.
IlISTORY .- This is the common Eel in Vermont, on the west side of the Green Mountains, and also in Canada, where it is taken in very large quantities, When skinned and skilfully cooked it is an agreeable and nourishing artiele of food, and is by many considered one of our best fishes ; some, however, find it difficult to surinount the prejudice occasioned by its slender snake-like appearance. The or- dinary weight of those taken in our streams is from 1 to 3 pounds. By com- paring the above description with the two following, it will be seen that this Eel dif- fers very materially from those found in other parts of New England, particularly in the relative position of the pectoral fins. By comparing our Eel with the de- seription and figure of the Sharp-nosed Eel, Anguilla acutirostris, in Yarrell's Brit- ish Fishes, vol. II, p. 284, I find the agree- ment in the position of the fins, &e., so perfect, that I have little doubt that they belong to the same species, and that the Cominon Eel of the St. Lawrence and its tributaries is identical with the Common Eel of Great Britain. Between our fish and Yarrell's figure there are some slight differences. In the figure the head is too broad, and the middle rays of the pectoral fins are too short. In our fish the middle rays are longest, making the fin appear pointed.
THE BLACK EEL. "urena bostaniensis .- LE SUEUR.
Journal Acad. Nat. Science, Phil., 1 -- 87. Storer's Report, page 157.
THE SILVER EEL.
Murata argentes .- LE SUEUR.
DESCRIPTION .- Specimen 23 inches in length ; from the tip of the snout to the base of the pectorals 74 inches; circum- ference of the body back of the head at the commencement of the pectorals 34, around the head Is ineh from the suont 3, in front of the eyes 1.4, at the origin of the dorsal 35; from the tip of the lower jaw to the anal fin 93 ; width of the body over the pectorals .7; width between the eyes .3. Lateral line exceedingly dis- tinet, appearing to divide equally the darker colored back from the beautiful lighter silvery abdomen For the extent of 6 inches in front of the anal orifice, a well marked line or furrow resembling in appearance the lateral line .- Storer.
IlisTony .- The fish known by the name of Silver Eel on the east side of the Green Mountains in this state, I suppose to be- long to this species, but I have had no opportunity for deciding the point by the examination of specimens.
II. CARTILAGINOUS FISHIES.
1. STURIONIDEE, OR STURGEON FAM- ILY.
Fishes of this Family have free bran- chie, wide gill openings, an operenlum,
DESCRIPTION .- Specimen 23 inches in | but no rays in the gill membrane.
149
FISHES OF VERMONT.
CHAP. 5.
THE ROUND-NOSED STURGEON.
THE SHARP-NOSED STURGEON
GENUS ACIPENSER .- Linnaus.
Generic Characters .- Body elongated, which, with the head, is provided with rows of radiated bony prominences ; snout pointed, conical ; mouth placed on the under surface of the head, tubular, and without teeth.
ROUND-NOSED STURGEON. Acipenser rubicundus .- LE SUEUR.
DESCRIPTION .-- General color bluish gray above, white with brushes of ruddy beneath ; all the fins of a brownish hue, und slightly ruddy, with the outer margin whitish ; form rounded, elongated and ta- pering regularly to the candal ; head roun- ded ; snout short and rounded ; upper part of the head with a bony covering ; three rows of small and slightly develop- ed bony tubercles without spines extend- ing the whole length of the body, one on the back, and one on each side along the lateral line. Plates or tubercles on the lateral line 31 or 32; also a few plates be- tween the dorsal and anal, and the can- dul; but there are no ventral rows as there are in the oxyrhynchus and most other species. Eyes rather small, prominent, iris dark golden ; nostrils double and large ; for equal cirri suspended in a transverse line between the mouth and end of the snout, but nearest the latter, being 2 in. from the snout and 23 from the mouth ; cirri 24 inches long, round the size of a goose-quill at the base, and tapering to a point ; color brownish white excepting their poirts, which are red ; mouth under side of the head, tubular, ovate, 3 in. by 2 in., and capable of 2 in- ches protrusion. All the fius thick. The anal commences 43 in. behind the vent, and a little behind the middle of the dor- sal. Color of the intestines dark ; stom- ach a thick sack resembling a fowl's giz- zard. Length of the specimen before .ne 4 ft. 2 inches ; weight 263 lbs. Length of the head to the total length as I to 5; distance between the eyes 4 in., from the eyes to the end of the snout 43; from the nose to the commencement of the dorsal 37 inches.
IlistoRY .- This fish is quite common in lake Champlain, and grows to a. very large size. It is frequently taken in the seine measuring more than G ft. in length, and weighing 100 pounds or more. Its flesh, though not generally very much esteemed, it properly cooked is very good eating. When eaten fresh it is usually
cut into slices and fried in butter, with suitable seasoning ; but whether eaten fresh or salted, the skin should always be taken off before it is cooked, as the oil contained in that imparts a disagreeable flavor. The Indian method of capturing the Sturgeon in lake Champlain, according to Charlevoix ('Travels, Vol. I-119), was as follows : ' Two men placed themselves in the two ends o"a canoe. The one behind steered and the other stood pp holding a dart in one hand, to which one end of a long cord was fastened, and the other end fastened to the canoe. When he saw a Sturgeon within his reach, he threw his dart and endeavored to strike where there were no scales. If the fish was wounded he darted off, drawing the canoe pretty swiftly after him, but usrally died after swimming about 150 paces, and was then drawn in by the cord.'
THIE SHARP-NOSED STURGEON. Acipenser oxyrhynchus .- MITCHELL ..
DESCRIPTION .- Body elongated, taper- ing ; form pentagonal, with the angles covered with rough, radiated bony plates, each having a saddle-like base and a spor- like process arising from its centre and hooking backward, and usually termina- ting in a sharp point ; the rest of the skin roughened by small scabrous patches of bony matter, resembling the spicula of minute crystals ; head encased in a bony covering, and lengthened into an acute, conical snout ; mouth on the under side of the head, ovate, toothless, and protrac- tile ; four cirri depending in a cross row between the mouth and the end of the snout, a little nearest the latter. The opereulum is a single radiated bony plate ; eyes rather small, the anterior part of the orbit just midway between the point of the snout and the posterior margin of the operenlumin ; nostrils before the eyes, dou- ble, lower orifice much largest. Color grayish brown above, yellowish white be- neath. Bony plates 12 between the en- casemen . of the head and the dorsal fin, one of which rests upon the base of the dorsal, and is usually without a spine ; be- tween the dorsal and the caudal is usual- ly one large plate and two or three smal- ler ones ; lateral plates variable, but gen- erally 28; ventral plates from 8 to 10; the spur-like processes longest and most pointed in the smaller specimens ; usual I length from 2 to 3 feet.
150
NATURAL HISTORY OF VERMONT.
PART L
THE BLUE LAMPREY.
THE MUD LAMPREY.
HISTORY .- This fish is occasionally ta- ken in lake Champlain, and is here known by the name of Rok Surgeon. It seldom exceeds 3 feet in length or 20 pounds in weight, but is much more generally and highly esteemed as an article of food than the preceding species, some even ranking it as one of our best fishes for the table. This, like the preceding, should be skin- ned before it is cooked, and for the same reasons.
II .- CYCLOSTOMIDE, OR LAMPREY FAMILY.
Fishes of this family have their jaws fixed in an immoveable ring. Their bran- chic are fixed with numerous openings.
GENUS PETROMYZON .- Linnaus.
Generic Characters .- Body cel-shaped ; mouth circular, armed with tooth-like processes; lips formuing a continuous circle around the mouth ; seven openings on each side ef the neck, leading to seven branchial cells ; no pectoral or ventral fins ; dorsal, anal aud caudal fus formed by an ex- tension of the skin on those parts.
THE BLUE LAMPREY.
Potromyzon nigricans .- LE SUEUR. Trans. Am. Phil. Soc. N. S. 1. 385. Storer's Rep. 197.
DESCRIPTION .- Color above dark bluish gray, beneath and fins dingy white; sev- eral rows of blackish dots about the head and neck. Anterior third of the body cylindrical ; the posterior two-thirds flat- tened laterally, and very much so toward the tail ; head slightly flattened above and terminated in an oblique, oval or circular mouth, which is armed within with nu- merous yellowish, spinous teeth, project- ing from widened bases, and surrounded by a fleshy lip which is margined with a row of fine papilla ; a small white spot on the top of the head between the eyes, in front of which is a spiracle. The first dorsal commences in the middle of the fish, the separation between the dorsals merely a notch ; the length of the first dorsal contained 43 times in the second. Length of the specimen before me 5 inch- es,-head, to the eye, I inch, to the vent 34, width of the mouth .4.
HISTORY .- The fresh water Lampreys, or Lamprey-Eds, as they are more com- monly called, resemble, in their habits, the Blood-Sucker much more than the
ordinary fishes. They obtain their sub- sistence principally by attaching them- selves by their mouths to the bodies of larger fishes, and drawing nourishment from them by suction ; for this purpose their mouth and tongue are admirably adapted, the latter acting in the throat like the piston of a pump, while the cir- cular lips of the former adhere closely to the side of the fish, and by these means the softer parts of the larger fish are drawn into the mouth and swallowed by the par- asite. When a Lamprey once fastens himself, in this manner, upon a large fish, he adheres with such force as to baflle all the efforts of the fish to rid himself of his un welcome incumbranee. Fishes are fre- quently taken in the seine with Lampreys still adhering to them, and others with deep depressed wounds upon their sides, affording indubitable proof of their having been attached. The fresh water Lam- preys seldom exceed 6 or 8 inches in length, and no account is made of them as an article of food.
GENUS AMMOCETES .- Dumer.
Generic Characters .- Form of the body, the branchial apertures and fins, like those of the Lam- preys ; upper lip semi-circular, with a straight, transverse under lip; mouth without teeth, but furnished with numerous short membranous cirri.
THE MUD LAMPREY.
Ammocates concolor .- KIRTLAND.
Boston Journal Nat. Ilistory, vol. ftt. p. 423, pl. 28.
DESCRIPTION .- Form nearly cylindri- cal for two-thirds the length, then grad- ually flattened to the extremity of the tail, where it is quite thin ; color yellow- ish brown above, gradually becoming lighter towards the belly, but without the dividing line between the lighter and darker parts, mentioned by Le Sueur in his description of the A. bicolor. Eyes so minute as hardly to he seen by the naked oye ; nostrils on a light colored disk on the upper part of the head in front of the eyes ; upper lip longer than the lower, in the form of a horse-shoe, protractile and capable of being closed so as to conceal the lower one; small papilla on the in- side of the lips and fringes within tho month. The branchial openings, seven in number, commence below and a little back of the eye, and extend back ward, passing obliquely downward, the aper- tures appearing like short oblique slits. Sides with an anunlar, or ribbed appear- ance. The fin, which is of' a dull yellow- ish color, commences near the middle of the back, passes round the tail and termi- nates just behind the vent. About three
151
INVERTEBRAL ANIMALS OF VERMONT.
CHAP. 6.
FRESH WATER AND LAND SHELLS.
fourths of an inch from the commence- ment is a considerable depression in the fin for more than half an mch, but it does not amount to a division. The fin rays are white, minute and forked. The long- est of three specimens before me 5.3 inch- es ; from the snout to the posterior brau- chial opening 1.1, to the vent 4.1. Rays too small to be counted.
flistony .- This fish agrees very well with Kirtland's description excepting the | Eel.
depression in the dorsal, and that the broadest part of the dorsal is some dis- tance behind the vent. During the drought in September, 1811, I found large num- bers of these fishes, which had buried themselves in the mud at the bottom of the small coves along the banks of Wi- nooski river, from which the water had evaporated. This fish is known in many places by the name of Mud-Eel, or Blind-
CHAPTER VI.
INVERTEBRAL ANIMALS OF VERMONT.
Preliminary Observations.
Invertebral animals are snch animals as nre destitute of a spine or back bone, and are so exceedingly numerous that, with the exception of the molluscous animals, we shall not even attempt to give a eata- logne of them. The animals of this great division are extremely various in their structure, habits, and dispositions. Some have their bodies protected by a shelly covering, while others have their bodies and limbs surrounded by crustaceous plates, while, again, others have no other covering than a soft and tender skin A few only of them have red blood, and none of them possess all of the five senses. In many cases the sexes are united in the same individual, and in some cases the species is continued by a process some- what resembling vegetation. They all afford eminent manifestations of the wis- dom and skill of the Creator ; and, though generally regarded as insignificant and contemptible, many of them contribute largely to the comfort and interest of man, while a still greater number are employed in annoying and injuring him.
SECTION I .- MOLLUSCA. Fresh- Water and Land Shells.
Prepared expressly for this work, By CHARLES B. ADAMS, A. M., Professor of Natural History, Middlebury College.
FAMILY PERISTOMIANA.
GENUS PALUDINA.
Generic Characters .- Shall emil ; whort couves, modify ing the aperire, which is ovate or
nearly orbicular, with the margins united. Oper- culman thin, corneous, concentric. Animal with the head short ; rostrum small and truncate ; ten- tacles slender, with the eyes ou an enlargement at their base ; foot broad, thin.
Paludina decisa .- SAY.
DESCRIPTION .- Shell ovate-conic, with revolving rows of bristly filaments when young, smooth when mature, green ; apex truncate ; whorls six, convex ; suture deep ; spire a little longer than the aper- ture, which is pyriform ; umbilicus very small. Length 1.25 inch ; breadth 0.75 inch ; divergence of the spine 58º.
REMARKS .- This species is very com- mon in ponds and streams, and is found near the water's edge partly buried in mud or sand. Sometimes they are found crawling at the distance of a few feet from the water. They are viviparous, and produce their young in May. These, at birth, are furnished with a shell about an eighth of an inch in diameter, globular, and of a pale horn color, and are nearly transparent. In the progress of growth, the shell becomes proportionally more elongate, and the part which was formed previous to birth is invariably broken oti. They are very rarely found heterostrophe. One such individual, of the size of a pea,
152
NATURAL HISTORY OF VERMONT.
PART 1.
FRESH WATER AND LAND SHELLS.
was found in Otter Creek, in Middlebury. Paludinu integra .- SAY.
DESCRIPTION .- This species so much resembles the preceding, that a formal de- scription is unnecessary. Les apex is not truncated, so that, with a greater diver- gence of the spire, it is, nevertheless longer than that she !!. It is also thicker, and the whorls are less conve . This shell is common in the western states, but it is extremely rare in Vermont, oply three or four specimens having been obtained in lake Champlain. Length 1.3 inch ; breath 0.75 inch ; divergence of the spire, 63 -.
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