The mountain minnow was common at the lower and middle Neosho stations
throughout the period of study, and increased in abundance from 1957 to
1959. It was taken only in 1959 at the upper Neosho station, where it
was rare. This species does not occur in the Marais des Cygnes River.
The largest numbers were found in 1959 at the lower Neosho station,
where this fish occurred most commonly in moderate current over clean
gravel bottom. The mountain minnow, like _Hybopsis x-punctata_, was
common in late June and early July but few were found in late August,
1959. The near-absence of this species in collections made in late
August is responsible for the apparent slight decline in abundance from
1957 to 1959, as shown in Table 11. Metcalf (1959) found mountain
minnows most commonly in streams of intermediate size in Chautauqua,
Cowley and Elk counties, Kansas. The predilection of this species for
permanent waters resulted in an increase in abundance during my study.
With continued flow, this species possibly will decrease in abundance in
the lower mainstream of the Neosho River. I suspect that the species is,
or will be (with continued stream-flow), abundant in tributaries of
intermediate size in the Neosho River Basin.
#Pimephales vigilax perspicuus# (Girard)