Even to gnat hi (PLECTOSPONDYLI)

Group of physostome, fresh-water fishes of small size: with the pelvic fins abdominal in position, with coalesced neck vertebræ and no interclavicles. The principal families included are the Catostomidæ (Suckers) and Cyprinide (Minnows). In both there are no teeth on the jaws, but in the former many, and in the latter few teeth on the pharyngeal bones. Suckers have thick lips, the upper protruding beyond the lower. The length does not exceed 2 ft. Of the Minnows there are nearly 2,000 species, widely distributed. Some of the genera included are represented by Carp, Chub, Dace, Roach, Shiner, and Stone Rollers: in America half the species are Minnows ( No trop is or Minnilus ), and exist only east of the Rocky Mts. The males of some species during the breeding season become covered with tubercles, or else brilliantly colored, usually red and silvery. Among the large Cyprinoids is the Carp, which may attain a length of 18 inches. It has a leathery skin and a few scattered large scales. It has been introduced from Europe, and may be raised in ponds in which aquatic plants grow. It is omnivorous.