The parrot minnow was found only in downstream habitats. Collection C-4 (June 3) on Rock Creek was made about ½ mile from the mouth of this tributary of Big Caney and the creek here had almost the same character as the river proper. The presence of other channel fishes such as Ictiobus bubalus indicates the downstream nature of the creek. Some males of P. vigilax in breeding condition were taken in this collection.
At C-1, only one specimen was found in a turbid, isolated pool with bedrock bottom. At A-1 only one parrot minnow was taken; it was in deep, fairly quiet water near the bank.
Other collections outside the three-county area revealed the following: In the Neosho River, several parrot minnows were found in quiet backwaters and in shallow pools. In the Verdigris River three were taken directly under water spilling over the dam at this station, while others were found, together with P. promelas, in the mouth of a small creek that provided a backwater habitat with mud bottom.
Cross and Moore (1952:405) found this species only at stations in the lower portion of the Poteau River. Farther west the minnow may ascend the smaller sandy streams to greater distances. Moore and Buck (1953:23) took parrot minnows at six of 15 stations on the Chikaskia River and found the species as far upstream as Drury, Kansas. Elliott (1947), in comparing the South Ninnescah and Spring Creek fish faunas, found only P. vigilax and P. promelas on the sandy, "flatter" Ninnescah and only P. notatus and P. tenellus on Spring Creek, an upland, Flint Hills stream in Greenwood County.
Pimephales promelas Rafinesque: Stations A-2, A-3, W-3, W-4, G-9, B-1, M-1, E-4 (E&F, C-136).
Occurrences of the fathead minnow were scattered, but included all streams sampled except Big Caney.
Three of the collections were in small intermittent streams where conditions were generally unfavorable for fishes and in one instance extremely foul. Two of these stations had turbid water and all suffered from siltation.
In Middle Caney Creek the species was rare but in the Elk River (June 28) more than 100 specimens, predominantly young, were taken. This station consisted of a large isolated pool with a variety of bottom types. Water was turbid and the surface temperature was high (93° F.). In different parts of the pool the following numbers of specimens were taken in single seine-hauls: 15 over shallow bedrock; 35 over gravel (1½ feet deep); 50 over mud bottom (1 foot deep).
P. promelas was found also in the large, flowing rivers: Arkansas, Walnut, Verdigris, and Neosho. The species was scarce in the Arkansas River, and was found principally in muddy coves. In the Walnut (W-3), this minnow comprised 7.65 per cent of the fish taken and was common in quiet pools.
Campostoma anomalum Rafinesque: Stations W-4, G-4, C-1, C-3, C-5, C-6, C-7, C-8, C-9, C-10, C-11, C-12, C-13, C-14, C-15, C-16, C-17, C-18, B-3 (E&F, C-131, C-136).