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II

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B R 1 T I S H F I S H E S.

LONDON :

PRINTED 11V SAMUEL BENTLEY,
Dorset Street, Fleet Street.

A

HISTORY

BRITISH FISHES.

BY

WILLIAM YARRELL, V.P.Z.S. F.L.S.

ILLUSTRATED BY NEARLY 400 WOODCUTS.

IN TWO VOLUMES.

VOL. II.

LONDON:

JOHN VAN VOORST, 3, PATERNOSTER ROW.

M.DCCC. XXXVI.

Digitized by the Internet Archive
in 2018 with funding from
University of Toronto

https://archive.org/details/historyofbritish02yarr_2

BRITISH FISHES.

ABDOMINAL

MALACOPTERYGII. SALMON ID JE *

THE SALMON.

smolt, young, grilse, first year.

Salmo salar, Linn/Eus.

,, ,, Bloch, pt. i. pi. 20, female.

,, ,, ,, pt. iii. pi. 98, male in autumn.

,, ,, Salmon, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. 382.

,, ,, ,, Flem. Brit. An. p. 179, sp. 40.

Generic Characters. — Head smooth ; body covered with scales ; two dorsal
fins, the first supported by rays, the second fleshy, without rays ; teeth on the
vomer, both palatine bones, and all the maxillary bones ; branchiostegous rays
varying in number, generally from ten to twelve, but sometimes unequal on the
two sides of the head of the same fish.

The Salmon is so well known for its quality as an arti¬
cle of food, as well as for the immense quantities in which
it is taken, that it requires no other claims to recommend
it strongly to our notice ; and probably, in no country

* The family of the Salmon and Trout.

VOL. TT.

R

2

SALMONIDE.

of the world, in proportion to its size, are the fisheries so
extensive, or the value of so much importance, as in the
United Kingdom.

The history of the Salmon, and of the species of the
genus Salmo , in this work, will extend to a considerable
length ; and some doubts existing as to the extent of their
identity with the species of the Salmonida generally which
are taken in the rivers or lakes of other countries of Europe,
from the want of specimens with which to make actual
comparative examination, the account of the species here
inserted will be confined more particularly to a detail of
what is known of them in this country only.

Of the species existing in this country, the characters and
specific distinctions admit of considerable detail : too much
reliance has been placed upon colour, without resorting
sufficiently to those external indications, founded on organic
structure, which may with greater certainty be depended
upon.

In the scale of the relative value of parts affording cha¬
racters for distinction, the organs of digestion, respiration,
and motion are admitted by systematic authors to hold
high rank ; and in the hope to induce sportsmen to become
zoologists — so far at least as to enable them to determine
the various species they may meet with by a reference to
those external characters which are the most important, —
the specific distinctions in the genus Salmo will be illus¬
trated by referring to the number and situation of the
teeth, the form of the different parts of the gill-covers,
and the size, form, and relative situation of the fins.

The outlines here introduced represent a front view of
the mouth, and a side view of the head, of a common
Trout. Of the first figure on the left hand, No. 1 marks

SALMON.

3

the situation of the row of teeth that are fixed on the cen¬
tral bone of the roof of the mouth, called the vomer :
Nos. 2, 2, refer to the teeth on the right and left palatine
bones ; and the row of teeth outside each palatine bone
on the upper jaw are those of the superior maxillary bones :
No. 3, refers to the row of hooked teeth on each side
of the tongue, outside of which are those of the lower
jaw-bones. The Trout is chosen as showing the most
complete series of teeth among the Salmonidce, ; and the
value of the arrangement, as instruments for seizure and
prehension, arises from the interposition of the different
rows, the four lines of teeth on the lower surface alternating
when the mouth is closed with the five rows on the upper
surface, those on the vomer shutting in between the two
rows on the tongue, &c.

The second figure represents, in outline, a side view of
the head, of which No. 1 is the preoperculum ; No. 2,
the operculum ; No. 3, the suboperculum ; No. 4, the
interoperculum ; No. 5, the branchiostegous rays : the four

4

SALMONID.E.

last parts together forming the moveable gill-cover. The
different fins are sufficiently indicated by being coupled, when
referred to, with the name of the part of the body of the
fish to which they are attached.

The external appearance of the adult Salmon during
the summer months, when it is caught in the estuaries
of our large rivers, is too well known to require much
description. The upper part of the head and back is
dark bluish black ; the sides lighter ; the belly silvery
white ; the dorsal, pectoral, and caudal fins dusky black ;
the ventral fins white on the outer side, tinged more or
less with dusky on the inner surface ; the anal fin white ;
the small, soft, fleshy fin on the back, without rays, called
the adipose, fat fin, or the second dorsal fin, is of the
same colour nearly as the part of the back from which
it emanates. There are mostly a few dark spots dispersed
over that part of the body which is above the lateral line,
and the females usually exhibit a greater number of these
spots than the males.

These colours, differing but little, are, however, in a
great degree common at the same period of the year to
the three species that are the most numerous, as well as
the most valuable ; namely, the true Salmon, the Bull-
Trout, and the Sea or Salmon Trout ; which are also fur¬
ther distinguished from the other species of the genus Salmo
by their seasonal habit of moving from the pure fresh
water to the brackish water, and thence to the sea, and
back to the fresh water again, at particular periods of the
year. Further specific distinctions are therefore necessary ;
and those that will be pointed out as existing constantly
in these species will, it is hoped, enable observers to iden¬
tify not only each of these, but also the other species of the
genus, at any age or season.

SALMON.

5

The vignette above represents the form of the different
parts of the gill-cover in the three species just named ;
of which the figure on the left hand is that of the Salmon,
the middle one is the gill-cover of the Bull-Trout, and
that on the right hand is the gill-cover of the Sea or
Salmon Trout : the differences are immediately apparent
when thus brought into comparison.

In the Salmon, the posterior free edge of the gill-cover,
as shown in the left-hand figure, forms part of a circle ;
the lower margin of the suboperculum is a line directed
obliquely upwards and backwards : the line of the union
of the suboperculum with the operculum is also oblique,
and parallel with the lower margin of the suboperculum ;
the interoperculum is narrow vertically, and its union with
the operculum is considerably above the line of the junc¬
tion between the suboperculum and the operculum. The
teeth of the Salmon are short, stout, pointed, and re¬
curved : as stated in the generic characters, they occupy
five situations at the top of the mouth ; that is, a line of
teeth on each side of the upper jaw, a line on each palatine

6

SALMON I D.E.

bone, with a few only on the vomer between the palatine
bones : the teeth on the vomer seldom exceeding two in
number, sometimes only one, and that placed at the most
anterior part ; no other teeth extending along the vomer as
in the Salmon -Trout, and more particularly so in some
of those Trout that do not migrate.

The inner surface of the pectoral fin is in part dusky :
the tail very much forked when young ; the central caudal
rays growing up, the tail is much less forked the second
year, and by the fourth year it is become nearly or quite
square at the end.

The descriptions of the gill-covers of the other species
will be given in the account of the fish to which they
belong ; but it may be remarked here, that looking at
the form of the three gill-covers, it will be obvious that a line
drawn from the front teeth of the upper jaw to the longest
backward projecting portion of the gill-cover, in either spe¬
cies, will occupy a different situation in respect to the
eye ; that the line will fall nearest the centre of the eye
in the first, that of the Salmon, and farthest below it in the
second, that of the Bull-Trout.

As further specific distinctions in the Salmon, I may
add that, according to Dr. Richardson, the csecal appen¬
dages are in number from sixty-three to sixty-eight ; and
several observers have stated the number of vertebrae to be
sixty, which I have repeatedly found to be correct.

Commencing, then, with the true Salmon, which ascend
the rivers, in the state as to colour before mentioned, sooner
or later in the spring or summer months, it is observed
that some rivers are much earlier than others, the fish
in them coming into breeding condition and beginning
to spawn at an earlier period.

Rivers issuing from large lakes afford early Salmon, the

SALMON.

7

waters having been purified by deposition in the lakes :
on the other hand, rivers swollen by melting snows in
the spring months are later in their season of producing
fish, and yield their supply when the lake rivers are be¬
ginning to fail. u The causes influencing this,"1”' says Sir
William Jardine, to whom I am indebted for much valuable
information on the Salmonida :, as well as many specimens,
“ seem yet undecided ; and where the time varies much
in the neighbouring rivers of the same district, they arc
of less easy solution. The Northern rivers, with little
exception, are, however, the earliest, — a fact well known
in the London markets ; and going still farther north,
the range of the season and of spawning may be influenced
by the latitude.”1”1 Artedi says , “in Sweden the Salmon
spawn in the middle of summer.”1”1

“ It has been suggested that this variation in the season
depended on the warmth of the waters ; and that those
Highland rivers which arose from large lochs were all
early, owing to the great mass and warmer temperature
of their sources, — that the spawn there was sooner hatched.
There are two rivers in Sutherlandshire which show this
late and early running under peculiar circumstances. One,
the Oikel, borders the county, and springs from a small
alpine lake, perhaps about half a mile in breadth ; the other,
the Shin, is a tributary to the Oikel, joins it about five
miles from the mouth, but takes its rise from Loch Shin,
a large and deep extent of water, and connected to a chain
of other deep lochs. Early in the spring, all the Salmon
entering the common mouth diverge at the junction, turn
up the Shin, and return as it were to their own and warmer
stream, while very few keep the main course of the Oikel
until a much later period.' ”

Dr. Hcysham, in his Catalogue of Cumberland Animals,

8

SALMONID.E.

has supplied similar evidence. “ The Salmon,’1 it is there
observed, “ is plentiful in most of our rivers, in all of which
they spawn ; but they evidently prefer, during the winter
and spring, the Eden to the Esk, the Caldew, or the
Peteril. Although the Esk and the Eden pour out their
waters into the same estuary, and are only separated at the
mouths by a sharp point of land, yet there is scarcely an
instance of a new Salmon ever entering the former until
the middle of April or beginning of May. The fishermen
account for this curious fact from the different temperature
of these two rivers ; the water of the Eden, they allege,
being considerably warmer than the water of the Esk ;
which is not altogether improbable, for the bed of the Esk
is not only more stony and rocky than the Eden, but is
likewise broader, and the stream more shallow ; consequently
its waters must be somewhat colder in the winter season.
It is an undoubted fact, that snow water prevents the Salmon
from running up even the Eden : it is probable this cir¬
cumstance may have considerable effect in preventing them
from entering the Esk till the beginning of summer, when
the temperature of the two rivers will be nearly the same.
The Peteril joins the Eden a little above, and the Caldew at
Carlisle ; yet up these rivers the Salmon never run unless
in the spawning season, and even then in no great num¬
bers.11

The number of fish obtained in the spring in a proper
state for food is small compared with the quantity procured
as the summer advances. During the early part of the
season, the Salmon appear to ascend only as far as the river
is influenced by the tide, advancing with the flood, and
generally retiring with the ebb, if their progress be not
stopped by any of the various means employed to catch
them, which will be explained hereafter. It is observed

SALMON.

9

that the female fish ascend before the males ; and the young1

7 JO

fish of the year, called Grilse till they have spawned once,
ascend earlier than those of more adult age. As the season
advances, the Salmon ascend higher up the river beyond the
influence of the tide : they are observed to be getting full
of roe, and are more or less out of condition according to
their forward state as breeding fish. Their progress forwards
is not easily stopped ; they shoot up rapids with the velocity
of arrows, and make wonderful efforts to surmount cascades
and other impediments by leaping, frequently clearing an
elevation of eight or ten feet, and gaining the water above,
pursue their course. If they fail in their attempt and fall
back into the stream, it is only to remain a short time qui¬
escent, and thus recruit their strength to enable them to
make new efforts.

These feats of the Salmon are frequently watched with
all the curiosity such proceedings are likely to excite. Mr.
Mudie, in the British Naturalist, describes from personal
observation some of the situations from which these extra-
ordinarv efforts can be witnessed. Of the fall of Kilmorac,
on the Beauly, in Invernesshire, it is said, u The pool below
that fall is very large; and as it is the head of the run in one
of the finest Salmon rivers in the North, and only a few
miles distant from the sea, it is literally thronged with
Salmon, which are continually attemping to pass the fall,
but without success, as the limit of their perpendicular spring
does not appear to exceed twelve or fourteen feet : at least,
if they leap higher than that they are aimless and exhausted,
and the force of the current dashes them down again before
they have recovered their energy. They often kill them¬
selves by the violence of their exertions to ascend ; and
sometimes they fall upon the rocks and are captured. It
is indeed said that one of the wonders which the Frasers of

c

/

VOL. II.

K)

SAL MON IDE,

Lovat, who are lords of the manor, used to show their guests,
was a voluntarily cooked Salmon at the falls of Kilmorac.
For this purpose a kettle was placed upon the flat rock on
the south side of the fall, close by the edge of the water,
and kept full and boiling. There is a considerable extent of
the rock where tents were erected, and the whole was under
a canopy of overshadowing trees. There the company are
said to have waited until a Salmon fell into the kettle and
was boiled in their presence. We have seen as many as
eighty taken in a pool lower down the river at one haul of
the seine, and one of the number weighed more than sixty
pounds.”

The fish having at length gained the upper and shallow
pools of the river, preparatory to the important operation of
depositing the spawn in the gravelly beds, its colour will
be found to have undergone considerable alteration during
the residence in fresh water. The male becomes marked on
the cheeks with orange-coloured stripes, which give it the
appearance of the cheek of a Lcibrus ; the lower jaw elon¬
gates, and a cartilaginous projection turns upwards from the
point, which, when the jaws are closed, occupies a deep
cavity between the intermaxillary bones of the upper jaw ;
the body partakes of the golden orange tinge, and the
Salmon in this state is called a red-fish. The females
are dark in colour, and are as commonly called black-fish ;
and by these terms both are designated in those local and
precautionary regulations intended for the protection and
preservation of the breeding fish.

The process of spawning has been described by various
observers. “ A pair of fish are seen to make a furrow, by
working up the gravel with their noses, rather against the
stream, as a Salmon cannot work with his head down stream,
for the water then going into his gills the wrong way, drowns

SALMON.

11

him. When the furrow is made, the male and female
retire to a little distance, one to the one side and the other
to the other side of the furrow : they then throw themselves
on their sides, again come together, and rubbing against each
other, both shed their spawn into the furrow at the same
time. This process is not completed at once ; it requires
from eight to twelve days for them to lay all their spawn,
and when they have done they betake themselves to the
pools to recruit themselves. Three pairs have been seen
on the spawning-bed at one time, and were closely watched
while making the furrow and laying the spawn.'”*

The following extracts are made from a valuable paper
by Dr. Knox, published in the Transactions of the Royal
Society of Edinburgh.

“ November 2. — Salmon are observed to be spawning
in the various tributary streams of the Tweed which join
that river from the north, and a pair are watched. The ova
observed to be deposited near the sources of the stream on
the 2nd of November, and covered up with gravel in the
usual way.”

“ February 25, or a hundred and sixteen days after
being deposited, the ova, on being dug up, are found to be
unchanged. If removed at this time, and preserved in
bottles filled with water, the developement of the egg may
be hastened almost immediately by being put into warm
rooms : it is not necessary to change the water. The fry so
hatched, i. e. artificially, cannot be preserved alive in bottles
longer than ten days ; they eat nothing during their con¬
finement.”

“ March 23. — The ova now changing ; the outer shell
cast ; the fry are lying imbedded in the gravel, as fishes

* Ellis on the Natural History of the Salmon.

12

SALMON! D E.

somewhat less than an inch in length, being now twenty
weeks from the period of their deposition.”

u April 1 . — On reopening the spawning-bed, most of
the fry had quitted it by ascending through the gravel.
During a former series of observations I have found the
ova imbedded in the gravel unchanged on the 10th of
April, and as fry or fishes, but still imbedded in the gravel,
on the 17th : they were taken that year, with fly, as Smolts,
on the 22nd of April, about the size of the little finger.’1

Some specimens of Salmon fry now before me, with a
portion of the ovum still attached to the abdomen of each
fish, measure one inch in length : the head and eyes are
large ; the colour of the body pale brown, with nine or
ten dusky grey marks across the sides. These dusky
patches, longer vertically than wide, are common, I have
reason to believe, to the young of all the species of the
genus Salmo. I have seen them in the young of the
Salmon, Bull-Trout, Salmon-Trout, Parr, Common Trout,
and Welsh Charr. I have never had an opportunity of
examining the young of the Northern Charr, or the Great
Lake-Trout; yet I have no doubt but that, when only two
or three inches long, they also are marked in the same
manner. In a specimen of the young of the Salmon six
inches long, these transverse marks are still observable when
the fish is viewed in a particular position in reference to the
light ; and if the scales are removed, the marks are much
more obvious. In a Parr of the same length these marks
are still more conspicuous ; they are also very distinct in
the Common Trout and in the Welsh Charr for a consider¬
able time ; and as far as my own examination has gone,
these lateral markings observable in the fry of the species of
Salmo are lost, or become indistinct, sooner or later, depend¬
ing on the ultimate natural size attained by the particular

SALMON.

13

species : thus, they are soonest lost in the Salmon and in
the Bull-Trout, and are borne the longest in the Common
Trout and Parr ; indeed, I have never seen the Parr, at any
age or size, without some trace of the remains of these
markings. It is this similarity in markings and appearance
of the fry which has caused the difficulty in distinguishing
between the various species when so young; and experi¬
menters, believing they had marked young Parr only, have
been surprised to find some of their marked fish return as
Grilse, young Bull-Trout or Whitling, Salmon-Trout, River-
Trout, and true Parr.

There are striking examples in other animals of this
similarity in the markings, or family likeness, in the young
of the various species of the same genus, however different
may be the colours of the parent animals. The young of
the lion and the puma are as much marked for a time as the
young of the tiger and leopard, or, indeed, of any of the
other cats, whether striped or spotted ; and the young of all
deer are said, and many are known to be, spotted, though it
is also known that the greater number of the adult animals
are perfectly plain.

To return to the Salmon. The adult fish having spawn¬
ed, being out of condition and unfit for food, are considered
as unclean fish. They are usually called Kelts ; the male
fish is also called a Kjpper, the female a Baggit. With the
floods of the end of winter and the commencement of spring
they descend the river from pool to pool, and ultimately gain
the sea, where they quickly recover their condition, to ascend
again in autumn for the same purpose as before ; but always
remaining for a time in the brackish water of the tide-way
before making either decided change ; obtaining, it has been
said, a release from certain parasitic animals, either external
or internal, by each seasonal change ; those of the salt

14

SALMONIDiE.

water being destroyed by contact with the fresh, and vice
versa.

The fry are observed to collect in small pools and mill-dam
heads preparatory to quitting the river. The specimen from
which the figure on the page was taken was obtained in the
Thames, in which river they are occasionally caught in the
season, with other fry of Salmonidce , by fishermen who work
at night with a casting-net on the gravelly shallows for Gud¬
geons to supply the London fishmongers.

My own specimens of the young of the Salmon having
been preserved in spirits, and the colours thereby affected,
the following description is from Dr. Heysham’s Catalogue
before referred to, premising that some differences in colour
may be expected in specimens from different rivers.

u Length seven inches and a half ; circumference three
inches and one-eighth : head dark green ; gill-covers fine
silvery white, marked with a dark-coloured spot ; belly and
sides up to the lateral line of the same silvery colour ;
back and sides down to the lateral line dusky, inclin¬
ing to green ; sides above the lateral line marked with
numerous blackish spots ; along the lateral line, and both a
little above and beneath it, several dull obscure red spots :
dorsal fin has twelve rays, marked with several blackish
spots ; pectoral fin has twelve rays, of a dusky olive colour ;
ventral fin eight rays of a silvery white ; anal fin ten rays of

SALMON.

15

the same colour. When the scales were carefully taken off
with a knife, the obscure red spots became of a fine vermi¬
lion, and were nineteen in number ; and ten obscure oval
bars of a dusky bluish colour appeared, which crossed the
lateral line. In a young fry which has not acquired scales,
these bars are very distinct.1'’

Whether the river be considered an early or a late river,
the descent of the fry is said to take place much about the
same time in all. It begins in March, and continues through
April and part of May. It rarely happens that any Salmon
fry are observed in the rivers late in June. The Smolt, or
young Salmon, is by the fishermen of some rivers called a
Laspring ; and various couplets refer to the fish, as well as to
the time and circumstances under which the descent is
made.

The last spring floods that happen in May,

Carry the Salmon fry down to the sea.

And again,

The floods of May
Take the Smolts away.

But the uncertainty of popular or provincial names is a
source of great perplexity to the naturalist. The Laspring
of some rivers is the young of the true Salmon ; but in
others, as I know from having had specimens sent me, the
Laspring is really only a Parr ; and it must also be recol¬
lected that the fry of two other species at least descend
to the sea about the same time as those of the Salmon.

The Salmon fry at first keep in the slack water by the
sides of the river ; after a time, as they become stronger,
they go more towards the mid-stream ; and when the water is
increased by rain, they move gradually down the river. On
meeting the tide, they remain for two or three days in that
part where the water becomes a little brackish from the mix-

16

SALMON IDE.

ture of salt water, till they are inured to the change, when
they go off to the sea all at once. There, their growth
appears to be very rapid, and many return to the brackish
water, increased in size in proportion to the time they have been
absent. Fry marked in April or early in May have return¬
ed by the end of June weighing from two to three pounds
and upwards. The London markets during the latter part
of June, and the months of July and August, exhibit fish of
the year varying in weight from two to six pounds. I have
one, here figured, that weighed only fifteen ounces, which,
judging from its appearance when I bought it, that it had
been to sea, is the smallest specimen I have ever seen that
had been once to salt water.

These small-sized fish, when under two pounds" weight, are
called by some of the London fishmongers Salmon-Peal ;
when larger, Grilse. These fish of the year breed during the
first winter ; they return from the sea with the roe enlarged ;
the ova in a Grilse being of nearly the same comparative
size as those observed in a Salmon, but they mature only a
much smaller number. The Grilse visit the estuary, remain¬
ing for a considerable time in the brackish water, afterwards
in the tide-way above, ultimately pushing up to the sources
of the tributary streams, and, as before observed, rather ear¬
lier in the season, in the same river, than the more adult fish.

SALMON.

17

It lias been a constantly received opinion, that all the
young fish after their first visit to the sea return to the
rivers in which they had been bred ; and numbers of marked
fish are stated to have been retaken in their native rivers :
but it is equally certain that some have been taken in other
rivers not far off. The difficulty of supposing that they
could find and return to the same spot after roving for miles
along the coast remains to be solved. That they do thus
rove for miles is proved by the thousands that are taken in
nets placed in the bays along the coast. Very many Tweed
Salmon have been caught opposite Iiopetoun House on the
F ortli ; and a very successful fishing there is generally fol¬
lowed by a scarce one in the Tweed. It is therefore very
probable, from the remarks of Dr. Heysham and Sir William
Jardine, that if the fish happen to have roved far from the
estuary of their native river, they run at the proper season
up any stream, even the first they encounter, the temperature
and condition of which are congenial to them.

The growth of the Salmon from the state of fry to that of
Grilse has been shown to be very rapid ; and the increase in
weight attained during the second and each subsequent year
is believed to be equal, if not to exceed, the weight gained
within the first. The increase in size is principally gained
during that part of the year in which the fish may be said to
be almost a constant resident in the sea. That the food
sought for and obtained to produce and sustain so rapid an
increase of size must be very considerable in quantity, as
well as most nutritious in quality, cannot be doubted. That
the Salmon is a voracious feeder, may be safely inferred from
the degree of perfection in the arrangement of the teeth, and
from its own habits, of which proof will be adduced, as well
as from the well-known habits of the species most closely
allied to it ; yet of the many observers who have examined

18

SALMONID/E.

the stomach of the Salmon to ascertain the exact nature of
that food which must constitute their principal support, few
have been able to satisfy themselves. Dr. Knox states,
44 that the food of the Salmon, and that on which all its
estimable qualities, and, in his opinion, its very existence,
depend, and which the fish can obtain only in the ocean, he
has found to be the ova or eggs of various kinds of echino-
dermata, and some of the Crustacea. From the richness of
the food on which the true Salmon solely subsists, arises, at
least to a certain extent, the excellent qualities of the fish as
an article of food. Something, however, must be ascribed to
a specific distinction in the fish itself : for though he has
ascertained that the Salmon-Trout lives very much in some
localities on the same kind of food as the true Salmon, yet
under no circumstances does this fish acquire the same exqui¬
site flavour as the true Salmon.'”

That they occasionally, however, take other food, is also
well known. Faber, in his Natural History of the Fishes of
Iceland, remarks, 44 The common Salmon feeds on small fishes,
and various small marine animals.-” Dr. Fleming says,
44 Their favourite food in the sea is the Sand Eel and I have
myself taken the remains of Sandlaunce from the stomach.
Sir William Jardine says, 44 In the north of Sutherland a
mode of fishing for Salmon is sometimes successfully prac¬
tised in the firths, where Sand Eels are used as bait : a line is
attached to a buoy or bladder, and allowed to float with the
tide up the narrow estuaries. The Salmon are also said to
be occasionally taken at the lines set for Haddocks, baited
with Sand Eels. At the mouths of rivers they rise freely at
the artificial fly within fifty yards of the sea ; and the com¬
mon earth-worm is a deadly bait for the clean Salmon. All
the other marine Salmon are known to be very voracious ;
and there is nothing in the structure of the mouth or strong

SALMON.

19

teeth of the common Salmon, to warrant us to suppose that
there is any material difference in their food.11 The follow¬
ing is an extract from a letter sent me by Sir William Jar-
dine, dated St. Boswell's, 15 April 1835 : — “ The fisherman
who rents this part of the Tweed, fishing with worm one day
last week, had his hooks and tackle taken away by a fish.
He put on a new set, and again with worm in ten minutes
hooked and killed a Salmon with his former hooks and bait
in his mouth. This will either prove extreme voracity, or
little sensibility in the parts of the mouth. I have often
heard fishermen mention a similar fact, but never before
knew an instance on which I could depend.11

Several observers have borne testimony to the partiality of
the Salmon to the Sandlaunce as food ; and I have a record
by an angler of Salmon caught in the Wye with a Min¬
now.

The present London season, 1835, has been more than of
usually remarkable for large Salmon. I have seen ten dif¬
ferent fish varying from thirty-eight to forty pounds each.
A notice appeared in the public papers of one that weighed
fifty-five pounds ; and, from the inquiries made, there is rea¬
son to believe most of these large-sized Salmon were sent
from the Tay. Salmon, however, of much larger size have
been occasionally taken. Mr. Mudie has recorded one of
sixty pounds. In a note to the history of the Salmon in
several editions of Walton, one is mentioned that weighed
seventy pounds ; Pennant has noticed one of seventy-four
pounds : the largest known, as far as I am aware, came into
the possession of Mr. Groves, the fishmonger of Bond-street,
about the season of 1821. This Salmon, a female, weighed
eighty-three pounds ; was a short fish for the weight, but of
very unusual thickness and depth. When cut up, the flesh
was fine in colour, and proved of excellent quality.

SAL MON ID/E.

20

The Salmon of the largest size killed by angling of which
I have been able to collect particulars, are, in the Thames,
October 3, 1812, at Shepperton Deeps, Mr. G. Marshall, of
Brewer-street, London, caught and killed a Salmon with a
single gut, without a landing-net, that weighed twenty-one
pounds four ounces.

Sir Id. Davy used occasionally to visit the Tweed for the
sake of ansding for Salmon. This river is famed for afford-
ing amusement to the Salmon fisher, more especially from
the middle of March to the beginning of May. u We have
heard,” says Mr. Stoddart, in his Art of Angling as prac¬
tised in Scotland, 44 that on one occasion Sir H. Davy hap¬
pened by good fortune to hit upon an immense fish, weigh¬
ing about forty-two pounds, immediately above Y air-bridge,
and captured him after a severe struggle. This feat he
makes no mention of in his Salmonia, although certainly wor¬
thy of some notice.’'’

Mr. Lascelles, in his Letters on Sporting, Part I. Angling,
says at page 21, 44 The largest Salmon 1 ever knew taken
with a fly was in Scotland : it weighed fifty-four pounds and
a half.”

It may be stated generally, that Salmon pass the summer
in the sea, or near the mouth of the estuary : in autumn they
push up rivers, diverging to the tributary streams ; in winter
they inhabit the pure fresh water, and in spring descend
again to the sea. The question has frequently arisen, Could
Salmon be preserved permanently in fresh water ? and from
some facts to be adduced, it appears that they might, but not
without some diminution in size or quality, or both.

Mr. Lloyd, in his Field Sports of the North of Europe,
vol. i. p. 301, says, 44 Near Katrineberg there is a valuable
fishery for Salmon, ten or twelve thousand of these fish being
taken annually. These Salmon are bred in a lake, and,

SALMON.

21

in consequence of cataracts, cannot have access to the sea.
They are small in size, and inferior in flavour. The year
1820 furnished 21,817.”

A large landed proprietor in Scotland, whose name I do
not know that I am at liberty to mention, wrote as follows: —
44 In answer to your inquiry about the Salmon fry I have
put into my newly-formed pond, I must tell you, the water
was first let in about the latter end of 1830, and some
months afterwards, in April 1831, I put in a dozen or two
of small Salmon fry, three or four inches long, taken out of
a river here, thinking it would be curious to see whether
they would grow without the possibility of their getting
to the sea or salt water. As the pond, between three
and four acres in extent, had been newly stocked with Trout,
I did not allow any fishing till the summer of 1833, when
we caught with the fly several of these Salmon, from two to
three pounds1 weight, perfectly well shaped, and filled up,
of the best Salmon colour outside, the flesh well-flavoured
and well-coloured, though a little paler than that of new-
run fish.”

It remains to describe the different modes by which the
Salmon are taken ; and these are as various, and the fisheries
are as numerous and as extensive, as the value and quantity
of the fish would lead us to expect. The rights of the
proprietors, which have arisen in various ways, some by
royal grants, others by possession or occupation of the soil,
are generally farmed or hired at a rent depending on the
extent or value of the local stations. The first attack made
upon the fish is in the summer months, when the Salmon
rove along the coast in quest of the mouths of the different
rivers, in which they annually cast their spawn. 44 On these
expeditions, the fish generally swim pretty close to the shore,
that they may not miss their port ; and the fishermen, who

22

SALMON 1 ILE.

are well aware of tlos coasting1 voyage of the Salmon, take
care to project their nets at such places as may be most con¬
venient for intercepting them in their course.1’

“ It so happens that Carrick-a-rede (the rock in the road),
between Ballycastle and Portrush, eastward of Ballintoy,
is the only place on this abrupt coast (the northern coast of
the county of Antrim) which is suited for the purpose. The
net is projected directly outward from the shore with a slight
bend, forming a bosom in that direction in which the Salmon
come. From the remote extremity of the net a rope is
brought obliquely to another part of the shore, by which
the net may be swept round at pleasure and drawn to the
land : a heap of small stones is then prepared for each per¬
son. All things being ready, as soon as the watchman
perceives the fish advancing to the net, he gives the watch¬
word. Immediately some of the fishermen seize the oblique
rope, by which the net is bent round to enclose the Salmon,
while the rest keep up an incessant cannonade with their
ammunition of stones, to prevent the retreat of the fish till
the net has been completely pulled round them ; after which
they all join forces, and drag the net and fish quietly to the
rocks.” *

Pursuing a course along the shore and arrived at an
estuary, on each side of the mouth, and for miles up on both
sides, stake-nets are used, of which the vignette represents
the form. The distance between high and low water mark
on the shore is the site occupied. The shallow extremity
of the net on the left hand in the figure, which is fixed and
supported by stakes, is placed on the shore at high-water
mark ; the deepest part of the net, at low-water mark ; the
concavity of the sweep of the net between its two ends,

* Letters concerning the Natural History of the Basalts on the Northern
Coast of the County of Antrim, by the Rev. William Hamilton, A.B.

called the court, being opposed or open to the flood-tide
running up the river , the Salmon which in their passage up
along-shore strike against any part of the net are conducted
by its form to the chambers, from whence they can find no
retreat.

Many fish, in the wide part of the estuaries, ascending
with each flood-tide and returning with the ebb, it is not
unusual to have stake-nets placed in the reverse position,
with the courts open to the ebb-tide, on purpose to meet this
disposition in the Salmon ; and they do actually sometimes
catch as many fish in their downward as in their upward
course.

The central portions of the streams, many of which arc
very wide, are worked incessantly by fishermen in boats
called cobles, with long sweeping seine-like nets. Another
mode of fishing is with a net dropped into the water from
the stern of a boat, as the boat is rowed away from the shore.
Men are stationed at particular places near the river, where
the water is shallow, to watch the fish coming up ; and so
habituated are they to this, that they can discover by a
ripple on the surface of the water even a solitary fish making

24

SALMONII) E.

liis progress upward. When a fish is thus discovered, an
alarm or signal is instantly given to the men at the sliiel or
house where the fishermen lodge ; and immediately a boat is
rowed off by one man with great celerity, having a net
attached to it, and ready prepared for dropping gradually
into the water, one end of which is tied to the boat, and the
other is dragged with a rope by men on shore ; and by taking
a considerable sweep, an endeavour is made to surround the
fish. When thus discovered coming up, they seldom escape.

Higher up the river, and in parts that are narrow, weirs
or dams are built across the stream. At certain intervals
along these weirs, cruives are placed. Cruives are enclosed
spaces formed in the dam wall ; the fish enter these spaces,
through which the water rushes, as they push up the stream,
and are prevented by a grating of a peculiar contrivance from
returning or getting out. All the wide and open pools of
the river between these artificial, or any other natural con¬
tractions of the stream, are fished with the coble and sweep
net.

In the work by the Rev. William Hamilton already
quoted, and in the second series of Mr. Jesse's Gleanings in
Natural History, an interesting account is related of the
assistance afforded by a water-dog to some Salmon fishermen
when working nets in shallow pools. The dog takes his
post in a ford or on a scour where the water is not very
deep, and at a distance below the net : if a Salmon escapes
the net, the fish makes a shoot down the river in the direc¬
tion towards the sea : the dog watches and marks his ap¬
proach by the ripple on the water, and endeavours to turn
the fish back towards the net, or catch him ; if he fails in
both attempts, and the fish passes him, the dog then quits
the water, in which the pace of1 the fish is too fast for him,
and runs with all his speed down the bank of the river to

SALMON.

intercept the fish at the next shallow ford, where another
opportunity and a second diverting attempt occurs. — 1 learn
also from Mr. Bicheno, that dogs are occasionally used when
trying for Salmon in that part of Glamorganshire where he
now resides. These dogs appear to take great pleasure
in the pursuit, exhibiting by turns the most patient watch¬
fulness, persevering exertion, or extraordinary sagacity, as
either quality may best effect the wishes of the master.
In some parts of Wales, where the rivers are narrow, and
the Salmon are caught in a net drawn by men on each bank,
dogs are trained to swim over from side to side with the
head and ground lines of the net, as required.

Sir Walter Scott, in his novels of Redgauntlet and Guy
Mannering, has described with his well-known skill and
effect the animated scenes which occur when parties arc
engaged in spearing Salmon either by daylight or torchlight,
as practised in the North. These works are familiar to
all, and repetition would be useless. For the following de¬
scription of two other modes of taking Salmon I am indebt¬
ed to the kindness of Dr. Richardson.

A particular kind of fishing is peculiar to the Solway
Firth, or at least can be practised with success only where
the tide flows, as it does there, over extensive flats. The
instrument used is termed a “halve,” and consists of a fun¬
nel-shaped net ending in a pocket or bag. The mouth of
this net is stretched on an oblong frame about three yards
wide, to which there is attached a handle or pole. When
the tide begins to flow, a number of fishermen proceed over
the sands, and range themselves in a close line across the
current of the flood, each with the halve resting on the
bottom, and its pole against his shoulder : as the tide rises,
it becomes too deep for the man farthest from the shore,
who then raises his net and places himself at the other ex-

VOL. II.

i)

26

SALMONID.E.

tremity of the line, where he is shortly succeeded by another
and another, the whole thus changing places continually.
When a fish strikes the halve, its mouth is instantly elevated
above the surface by the fisherman, so as to prevent its re¬
treat until it can be carried into shallow water and secured.
During the ebb a similar plan is pursued in a reversed or¬
der ; the mouths of the nets are still turned to the current,
but the fishermen now move in turn to the end of the line
which stands deepest in the water. Flat-fish are the princi¬
pal returns of this fishing; but prime Salmon are occasionally
taken both on the flood and ebb.

This kind of fishing being as yet open to all, and unfet¬
tered by parliamentary enactments, there is scarcely a cot¬
tage on the shores of the Solway Firth where the halve-net
may not be seen suspended. The fishermen have all some
other employment by which they maintain their families,
being mostly artisans ; and they generally consume the
produce of the halve-net at home, unless they chance to take
a fish whose value is sufficient to compensate them for the
time spent in going to market, sometimes ten or twelve
miles distant.

Somewhat akin to this is the Salmon fishery in the
Frith of Forth. Narrow stages or platforms, supported on
wooden pillars, are carried from the shore for a considerable
distance into the river. Upon each of these half-a-dozen
or more fishermen station themselves with bag-nets, which
are dropped down from the side of the stage with the current
of the tide. The owner concealed, and also sheltered by a
straw hurdle, such as is used in decoys for water-fowl, watches
his net, and on a fish being taken, instantly secures it.
When the tide ebbs, the net is shifted to the opposite side of
the stage.

“ A singular method of taking Salmon is practised at

SALMON.

07

Invermoriston, in the county of Inverness, where the river
flows in a narrow chasm between two projecting rocks.
The fisherman seats himself on a cleft of this rock, right
over the cascade, with a spear in his hand, which has a line
fixed to the upper end of the shaft, similar to the practice
of fishing for Whales with harpoons. Whenever the Salmon
makes a spring to gain the ascent over the cataract, the
spearman strikes the fish and lets the shaft go, holding only
by the line until the fish has exhausted his strength ; then
the spear and fish are thrown ashore by the stream, and taken
out at the lower side of the pool.’’'1

The mode of fishing for Salmon in the Severn, and other
rivers of Wales, with coracles and nets, requires a short and
concluding notice. The coracle is a small boat constructed
with willow twigs in the manner of basket-work, or with
split slips of elastic wood, both the form and the material
varying in different counties. In the neighbourhood of
Shrewsbury, the framework is covered with canvass and
painted ; in Cardiganshire it is covered with flannel, and
afterwards with a coating of tar. The boat is something
less than six feet long, and about four feet wide, with a seat
across the middle. The form of the paddle with which this
little boat is impelled and guided along is also varied :
in the Severn, the blade is square, as represented in the
specimen lying on the ground in the vignette ; the more
elongated blade of the paddle in the hand of the fisherman
is the form in use on the Dee. The boat, which in appear¬
ance is not unlike one half of a walnut-shell, is so light
and portable that the fisherman carries it to and from the
water on his back. These coracles,* so called, it is said,
from corium , the hide of the beast with which they were

* This word is sometimes written coriacle, and may be derived from coriago,
hide-bound.

28

SALMONID/E.

formerly covered, are of great antiquity : they were known in
Csesar’s time, and are described by Lucan to be very nearly
the same as in our own days.

“ With twisted osiers the first boats were made,

O’er which the skins of slaughter’d beasts were laid ;

With these the Britains on the oceans row,

And the Venetians on the swelling Po.”

The custom of alternately carrying or being carried, as
practised by the fisherman and his boat, is whimsically
alluded to in the following lines, extracted from an old
MS. history of Shropshire.

“ Some sportsmen in pursuit of prey,

Their horses on their shoulders lay ;

But seizing of the booty, then
They sit their steeds like other men.

Returning home when all is o’er,

Their steeds they carry as before.”

The coracle is in frequent request with fly-fishers,*
the banks of the rivers being in some places very rugged
and steep, in others overgrown with wood to the water’s
edge.

The fishing for Salmon in coracles is performed by two
men, each in his little boat, drawing between them down
the stream a single-walled trammel, called there a horn-net,
from its sliding by means of rings of horn, instead of corks,
along the top. Through these rings runs a line, the end of
which is held by one of the fishermen. By pulling upon
this running line, which is distinct from the drag-line, the
net is quickly closed when a fish strikes it. Various mo¬
difications of this sort of net occur in different rivers. Cap¬
tain Medwin, in his Angler in Wales, says, “ We stood
on the bridge at Machynlleth for some time, to watch the
operations of two fishermen in coracles. They were about
to drag for Salmon ; and it must have been difficult to

* Hansard’s Trout and Salmon Fishing in Wales, pages 145 and 184.

SALMON.

29

preserve the balance in such frail and fragile machines.
The net was attached to the two boats, and connected
them. When all was clear, the fishermen made with their
paddles a considerable circle, and then reunited, drawing
in cautiously the sweep. They seemed very dexterous in
the management of their canoes, and perfectly unconscious
of danger. The first essay was a failure ; a Salmon of
ten or twelve pounds1 weight leaped over the corks.11 — Long
doubly-walled trammel-nets are now in use near Shrewsbury.

The length of the head of the Salmon, as compared to the
whole length of the fish, is as one to five : the eye rather small,
placed nearer to the point of the nose than to the posterior edge
of the gill-cover : the peculiarities of the teeth and the parts
of the operculum have been already described : the origin of
the last ray of the dorsal fin about half-way between the
point of the nose and the end of the tail ; the first two rays
simple and shorter than the third, which is the longest and
branched ; all the other rays of this fin branched ; the last
ray double, but arising from a single origin, is only counted
as one : the posterior edge of the base of the adipose fin is
half-way between the origin of the last dorsal fin-ray and the
end of the tail, and over the origin of the last ray of the anal
fin. The pectoral fin two-thirds of the length of the head ;
ventral fin in a vertical line under the middle of the dorsal
fin, with an axillary scale two-fifths of the length of the
ventral fin itself ; the anal fin commences about half-way
between the origin of the ventral fin and the commencement of
the lower caudal fin-rays, the third ray the longest, the first
two rays simple, the others branched : the form of the tail
has been already noticed. The body is elongated ; the
dorsal and abdominal line about equally convex ; the lateral
line near the middle of the body, dividing it equally ; the
fleshy portion of the tail slender, and ending in the form

30

SALMONIDJE.

of one half of a hexagon ; the scales moderate in size, oval
and thin, easily removed when young, adherent when old.
The fin-rays in number are —

D. 13 : P. 12 : V. 9 : A. 9 : C. 19. Vertebras 60.

Salmon, and indeed all the Salmonida , like other fish that
swim near the surface of the water, cannot be eaten too fresh :
its fine flavour, as well as its value, diminish rapidly after
capture. In London a Thames Salmon commands the
highest price : the next in point of value is that sent
up either from W oodmill or Christchurch in Hampshire ;
then those fish received from the Severn, which are usually
brought by the mail from Gloucester.

A Thames Salmon is a prize to a fisherman, which, like
other prizes, occurs but seldom. The last Thames Salmon I
have a note of was taken in June 1833. The appearance of
the Common Tern, or Sea-Swallow, which on its arrival in
May wings its flight for miles up the Thames, is the signal
to the fishermen to keep a good look-out for a Salmon : the
occasionally coincident reappearance of a Tern and a Salmon
has induced some of the Thames fishermen to apply to the
former the name of the Salmon-bird.

BULL-TROUT.

31

ABDOMINAL

MALACOPTERYG II. SALM0N1DJE.

THE BULL-TROUT.

THE GREY TROUT. WHITL1NG. ROUNDTA1L.

Salmo eriox, Linnaeus.

,, cinereus uut griseus, Willughby, p. 193.

,, griseus seu cinereus, Ray, p. 63, A. 3.

,, eriox, Grey, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. 394.

,, Cambriscus, Sewin, Don. Brit. Fish. pi. 91.

,, eriox, Grey, Flem. Brit. An. p. 180, sp. 46.

The Bull-Trout is distinguished from the Salmon
and Salmon-Trout by several specific peculiarities. The
gill-cover differs decidedly in form, as examination of the
central figure of the illustration at page 5 will show.
The operculum is larger ; the free vertical margin much
more straight ; the inferior posterior angle more elongated
backwards ; the line of union with the suboperculum not so
oblique, but nearly parallel with the axis of the body of
the fish : the inferior edge of the suboperculum parallel to
the line of union with the operculum: the interoperculum

32

SALMON IDiE.

much deeper vertically ; the vertical edge of the preoper¬
culum more sinuous. The teeth in the Bull-Trout are
longer and stronger than those of the Salmon ; hut, like
the Salmon, the two or three teeth that may he seen on
the vomer occupy the most anterior part only. The tail
is square hy the time this fish is twelve months old, as is
shown in the figure above, from a female fish in its first
winter, at which period and during its second season it is
called a Whitling in the Tweed ; it is afterwards called
a Bull-Trout : and the central rays of the tail continuing
to increase in length with age, the posterior edge becomes
convex ; a variation in form which has caused this fish
to he designated in the Annan by the name of Roundtail
when old, and Sea-Trout when young. It is to this spe¬
cies also that the names of Norway Trout and Norway
Salmon are believed to refer, as used occasionally on Tweed,
and some of the northern parts of Scotland. The Wark-
wortli Trout and Coquet Trout of Northumberland and
Durham are the voun<? of the Bull-Trout.

The Bull-Trout, in all its stages of growth, is probably
better known in the Tweed than elsewhere : it is there
as abundant as the Salmon. I have had proof of the ex¬
istence of this species in some of the rivers of Dorsetshire

BULL-TltOUT.

33

and Cornwall : it occurs in tire estuary of the Severn, and
I have seen it from the rivers of South Wales. Dr. Hey-
sham includes this fish among those of the rivers of Cum¬
berland that run into the Solway. Mr. Low says it is
found in the loch of Stenness, Orkney.

The Bull-Trout appears to be the Salmo maculis cinc-
reis cauda extremo cequali of Artedi, page 23, sp. 2 ;
and probably also, as quoted, the Grata Salmo cinereus
seu griseus of Willughby and Ray, whose specific names
have precedence of eriox. This fish sometimes attains
the weight of twenty pounds ; but it more commonly oc¬
curs under fifteen pounds1 weight. It ascends rivers for
the purpose of spawning, in the same manner as the Sal¬
mon, but earlier in the season ; and the fry are believed
to go down to the sea sooner than the fry of the Salmon.
This species affords good sport to anglers : it feeds vora¬
ciously, taking any fly or bait freely ; and, from its great
muscularity, it is a powerful fish when hooked, frequently
leaping out of the water. It is not, however, held in
the same degree of estimation as food as the Salmon or
Salmon-Trout : the flesh, even when the fish is in season,
is of a pale orange colour, at other times yellowish white.
But few are sent to the London markets, and these produce
comparatively but an inferior price.

The description is taken from an adult male of thirty-two
inches in length, from which the cut at the head of this
article was drawn and engraved.

The length of the head compared to that of the body
only is as one to four ; the teeth and the form of the
parts of the gill-covers have been already described ; the
elongation of the under jaw is peculiar to the males only,
but is not in the Bull-Trout so conspicuous as in the
Salmon ; the dorsal fin commences half-way between the

84

SALM0N1D.E.

point of the nose and the origin of the short upper caudal
rays ; the base of the dorsal fin longer than the longest
of its rays ; the adipose fin large, and nearer to the end
of the tail than to the origin of the last dorsal fin-ray ;
the form of the tail at different ages has been noticed ;
the length of the pectoral fin very little more than half
the length of the head. The scales of the Salmon are
thin in substance, oval, with numerous concentric lines
only : the number of scales forming an oblique line from
the lateral line up to the base of the anterior part of
the dorsal fin, following the oblique arrangement of the
scales, about twenty ; and the number in a row from
the axillary scale of the ventral fin up to the lateral
line about eighteen. The scales of the Bull-Trout are
rather smaller than those of the Salmon in fish of equal
size, the number forming a continuous oblique row from
the lateral line up to the base of the dorsal fin being
about twenty-six ; the number of those forming a row
from the ventral axillary scale up to the lateral line,
whether taking the line that ascends obliquely forward
or backward, is about twenty-five ; the axillary scale
of the ventral fin nearly half as long as the fin itself :
the anal fin nearer the tail than in the Salmon ; all the fins
muscular.

The fin-rays of the Bull-Trout in number are —

D. 11 : P. 14 : V. 9 : A. 11 : C. 19 : Vertebra 59.

In six specimens out of seven, the number of vertebrae
was fifty-nine ; in the other, sixty. Fifty-nine will proba¬
bly prove to be the normal number in the Bull-Trout.

The form of the body of this fish is similar to that
of the Salmon, but the nape and shoulders are thicker,

BULL-TROUT.

35

the fleshy portion of the tail and the base of each of
the fins more muscular : the males are the strongest in
the water, but the females are the most eager for bait,
and their teeth are rather smaller. The colours of the
males in the spawning season are — the head olive brown,
the body reddish brown or orange brown, that of the females
a blackish grey ; the dorsal fin reddish brown, spotted with
darker brown ; the tail dark brown ; the other fins dusky
brown. The general colour at other times like that of the
Salmon-Trout.

The Salmo hucho of English authors is probably the
same as the Bull-Trout.

36

SALMONIDjE.

ABDOMINAL

MA LAC OB TER YG l J . SALMON1DAE.

THE SALMON-TROUT.

Salmo trutta, Linnaeus.

,, ,, WlLLUGHBY, p. 198.

,, ,, Sea-Trout, Pf.nn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. 397 1

,, ,, ,, Flem. Brit. An. p. 180, sp. 45.

The Salmon-Trout is, of tlie migrating species in this
country, the next in value to the Salmon. It is most
abundant in the rivers of Scotland, and its flesh is excellent.
It is distinguished by the gill-cover being intermediate
in its form between that of the Salmon and Bull-Trout.
The representation on the right-hand of the vignette at
page 5 is that of the Salmon-Trout. The posterior
free margin, it will be observed, is less rounded than that
of the Salmon on the left hand, but more so than that
of the Bull-Trout, which is represented by the middle
figure. The line of union of the operculum with the sub-
operculum, and the inferior margin of the suboperculum,
are oblique, forming a considerable angle with the axis of
the body of the fish. The posterior edge of the preoper¬
culum rounded, — not sinuous, as in the Bull-Trout. The

SALMON- TROUT.

37

teeth are more slender as well as more numerous than
in the Salmon or Bull-Trout; those on the vomer extend¬
ing along a great part of its length, and indenting the
tongue deeply between the two rows of teeth that are
there placed, one row along each side. The tail is less
forked at the same age than that of the Salmon, but be¬
comes, like it, square at the end after the third year. The
size and surface of the tail also is much smaller than that
of the Salmon, from the comparative shortness of the caudal
rays. The figure at the head of this article represents
the Salmon-Trout in its second year ; the second figure
represents this species in its first year.

This fish is the White Trout of Devonshire, Wales,
and Ireland ; it is found in the Severn, in the rivers of
Cornwall, and is plentiful in the Esk and the Eden,
which communicate with the Solway, where it is called Sea-
Trout.

The habits of this species are also very like those of
the Salmon, and the females are said to run up the rivers
before the males. Sir William Jardine says, u In approach¬
ing the entrance of rivers, or in seeking out, as it were,
some one they preferred, shoals of this fish may be seen
coasting the bays and headlands, leaping and sporting in
great numbers, from about one pound to three or four

38

SALMON! D.E.

pounds in weight ; and in some of the smaller bays the
shoal could be traced several times circling it, and appa¬
rently feeding. In these bays they are occasionally taken
with a common hang-net stretched across ; and when angled
for in the estuaries, with the ordinary flies which are used
in the rivers of the South for Grilse, rose and took so
eagerly, that thirty-four were the produce of one rod, en¬
gaged for about an hour and a half. They enter every
river and rivulet in immense numbers, and when fishing
for the Salmon are annoying from their quantity. The
food of those taken with the rod in the estuaries appeared
very indiscriminate ; occasionally the remains of some small
fish, which were too much digested to be distinguished ;
sometimes flies, beetles, or other insects, which the wind
or tide had carried out ; but the most general food seemed
to be the Talitris lomsta , or common sand-hopper, with
which some of their stomachs were completely crammed.
It is scarcely possible to arrive with any certainty at the
numbers of this fish. Two hundred are frequently taken
at a single draught of a sweep-net, and three hundred
have occasionally been counted.1’ They are much more
numerous in the Don, the Spey, and the Tay, than in the
Tweed.

Great quantities of this Salmon-Trout are sent to the
London market ; those from Perth, Dundee, Montrose,
and Aberdeen appear, from their comparative depth of
body, to be better fed, are higher in colour, and considered
to be finer in flavour than from some other localities.
The Fordwicli Trout of Isaac Walton is the Salmon- Trout ;
and its character for affording “ rare good meat,” besides
the circumstance of its being really an excellent fish, second
only to the Salmon, was greatly enhanced, no doubt, by
the opportunity of eating it very fresh. Fordwich is about

SALMON-TROUT.

39

two miles east-nortli-east of Canterbury. The stream
called the Stour wras formerly very considerable ; it commu¬
nicates with the sea opposite the back of the Isle of Slieppy,
and from Fordwich one branch going eastward, again enters
the sea at Sandwich. The ancient right to the fishery
at Fordwich was enjoyed jointly by two religious establish¬
ments : it is now vested in six or seven individuals, who
receive a consideration for their several interests. It was
formerly the custom to visit the nets at Fordwich every
morning to purchase the fish caught during the night.
I have seen specimens of the Salmon-Trout from the Sand¬
wich river exposed for sale in the fishmongers1 shops at
Ramsgate, during the season for visiting that watering-place ;
and the Salmon-Trout is also occasionally taken in the
Medway by fishermen who work long nets for Smelts during
the autumn and winter. I have obtained a young fish
of the year in the Thames from the men who fish for
Shads above Putney-bridge in the months of June and
J uly.

The largest adult fish of this species I have ever seen
was in the possession of Mr. Groves, the fishmonger of
Bond-street : this specimen, which occurred in .Tune 1831,
was a female in very fine condition, and weighed seventeen
pounds.

Dr. Mac Culloch states, that the Salmon-Trout, or Sea-
Trout, as it is called in Scotland, is now a permanent
resident in a fresh-water lake in the island of Lismore,
one of the Hebrides, and without the power of leaving
it or reaching the sea. There it has been known for a long
course of years, perfectly reconciled to its prison, and pro¬
pagating without any apparent difficulty.”*

The length of the head is, when compared with the length

* Journal of the Royal Institution, No. xxxiv. p. 211.

40

SALMONID.E.

of the body alone, as one to four ; the depth of the body
compared to the whole length of the fish is also as one
to four : the teeth small and numerous, occupying five
rows on the upper surface of the mouth ; those of the cen¬
tral row on the vomer extending some distance along it,
the points turning outwards alternately to each side ; one
row upon each side of the under jaw, and three or four
teeth on each side of the tongue, strong, sharp, and curving
backwards, well calculated to assist in holding a living
prey, or to convey food towards the pharynx : the middle
of the eye situated half-way between the point of the nose
and the posterior edge of the preoperculum : the form of
the parts of the gill-cover have been already described and
figured. The first ray of the dorsal fin is short ; the second
ray long, equal to the length of the base of the fin ; the
articulation at the base of the last dorsal fin-ray exactly
half-way between the point of the nose and the end of the
tail ; the fleshy fin on the back being also half-way between
the base of the last ray of the dorsal fin and the end of the

tail. The body of the fish rather deep for its length ;

the lateral line very nearly straight, and passing along the
middle of the body : the scales adhering closely ; in form
rather a longer oval than those of the Salmon, and having
about twenty-three in the usual line up to the dorsal fin, and
twenty-two below it. The fin-rays in number are —

D. 12 : P. 13 : V. 9 : A. 10 : C. 19. Vertebra; 58.

The upper part of the head and back dark bluish black,

becoming lighter on the sides, which are marked with nu¬
merous spots, somewhat resembling in form the letter X :
these spots are mostly above the lateral line. The lower part
of the sides and belly silvery white ; cheeks and gill-covers
silvery white ; the dorsal fin, fleshy fin, and tail, nearly as

SALMON-TROUT.

41

dark as tlie colour of the back ; the pectoral fin rather small
and bluish white ; the ventral fins white, arising in a vertical
line under the middle of the dorsal fin ; the anal fin white,
the base of the fin one- third shorter than the longest of its
fin-rays. When the Salmon-Trout is placed by the side of
a Salmon, it is, in comparison, darker in colour in the body,
but lighter in the colour of the fins.

The Phinock or Hirling of the North, the Salmo albus
of Dr. Fleming, is perhaps distinct from the Salmon-Trout
just described ; but the specimens of it which I have received
so exactly resemble the young of the Salmon-Trout in its
first year, that I am unable to point out any sufficiently
distinguishing specific character ; it is therefore omitted as
a species, in the hope that it will be hereafter described and
figured by some naturalist who has better opportunities, and
more materials for proving its specific distinction.

VOL. II.

E

42

SALMON I D,E.

ABDOMINAL

MALACOPTERYG1I. SALMONIDJE.

THE PARR, OR SAMLET.

Salmo salmulus, Willughby, p. 192.

,, ,, Ray, Syn. p. 63, sp. 2.

,, ,, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. 404.

This little fish, one of the smallest of the British Scil-
monidcE , has given rise to more discussion than any other
species of the genus. Abounding in our Salmon rivers,
and conspicuous for those lateral marks which are now known
to be borne also for a time by the young of the Trout as
well as the fry of the other Salmonida , and this fish always
appearing of small comparative size, it has frequently been
insisted upon as the young of the Salmon, and local regu¬
lations have as generally been invoked for its preserva¬
tion.

The fry, however, of the different species of migratory
Salmonidce are even now probably accurately known only
to a few persons : their great similarity when very small
has so frequently deceived even those who have lived the
greater part of their lives on the Salmon river banks, that

PA 11K.

43

the fry marked by them, in their experiments, believing
them all to be what they considered the young of the Parr,
have been retaken as Grilse, Pull-Trout, Salmon-Trout,
and River-Trout. That the Parr is not the young of the
Salmon, or indeed of any other of the larger species of
Salmonida , as still considered by some, is sufficiently ob¬
vious from the circumstance that Parrs by hundreds may
be taken in the rivers all the summer, long after the fry
of the year of the larger migratory species have gone down
to the sea ; and the greater part of those Parrs taken even
in autumn do not exceed five inches in length, when no
example of the young of the Salmon can be found under
sixteen or eighteen inches, and the young of the Pull-
Trout and Salmon-Trout are large in proportion. As has
been before stated, the transverse dusky bars from which
this fish has obtained the name of Prandling and Fingerling
are family marks, borne by all the species of the genus for a
time, are obliterated by degrees, and at periods depending
on the ultimate size attained by the individual species when
adult ; the soonest probably in the Salmon, and certainly the
latest in the Parr.

44 Some of the rivers of Scotland being unprotected, are
poached to such an extent that very few Salmon or Salmon-
Trout escape the nets or spears of their relentless pursuers ;
yet the Parr swarms in shoals.” — Statistics of Scotland.

44 In the Western Isles there are streams in which Parrs
are common, although Salmon never visit them ; and al¬
though the Salmon and the Sea-Trout, Salmo trutta , fre¬
quent some of the lakes, yet the Parr has never been seen in
these lakes.”*

Dr. Heysham, of Carlisle, devoted particular attention
to the history of this fish, which is there called Pranlin and

* By the Editor of the Edinburgh Quarterly Journal of Agriculture.

44

SALMONID^E.

Samlet ; and some of his observations are here repeated,
adopting only the name of Samlet, for reasons that will be
hereafter explained.

“ The old Samlets begin to deposit their spawn in De-
cember, and continue spawning the whole of that month,
and perhaps some part of January. As this season of the
year is not favourable for angling, few or no observations
are made during these months. As soon as they have
spawned, they retire, like the Salmon, to the sea, where
they remain till the autumn, when they again return to the
rivers.""

“ The spawn deposited by the old Samlets in the sand
begins to exclude the young or fry, according to the tempe¬
rature of the season, either in April or May. The young
Samlets remain in the rivers where they were spawned dur¬
ing the whole of the spring, summer, and autumn, and do
not acquire their full size till the autumn, about which time
the old ones return from the sea. Hence it is evident that,
although there are Samlets of various sizes in the spring
and fore part of the summer, there will be no very large
ones till the autumn, when the young ones have nearly
acquired their full size, and the old ones have returned to
associate with their offspring/"

“If the weather be mild and open in January and Fe¬
bruary, Samlets are taken when retiring to the sea with
empty bellies, and in a weak emaciated condition. In
short, we see Samlets of various sizes — we see them with
milt and roe in various stages, and we see them perfectly
empty ; all which circumstances clearly prove that they are
a distinct species.""

Sir William Jardine, during an excursion in Sutherland-
sliire, observed that the Parr decreased in numbers as he
proceeded northward ; and detailing the result of his obser-

PARR.

4 A

vations made on the Parr of the Tweed, further adds,
“ that the difference of opinion among ichthyologists, or
rather the difficulty which they appear to have in forming
one, whether this fish is distinct, or only the young of
some others, has rendered the solution of it interesting.
The greatest uncertainty, however, has latterly resolved
itself into, whether the Parr was distinct, or a variety or
young of the common Trout, S.fario ; with the migratory
Salmon it has no connexion whatever.'1'

“ Among the British Salmonidte, there is no fish whose
habits are so regular, or the colours and marking so constant.
It frequents the clearest streams, delighting in the shallower
fords or heads of the streams, having a fine gravelly bottom,
and hanging there in shoals, in constant activity, apparently
day and night. It takes any bait at any time with the
greatest freedom ; and hundreds may be taken when no
Trout, either large or small, will rise, though abundant among
them. That part of its history only which is yet unknown
is the breeding. Males are found so far advanced as to have
the milt flow on being handled ; but at that time, and
indeed all those females which I have examined, had the roe
in a backward state ; and they have not been discovered
spawning in any of the shallow streams or lesser rivulets, like
the Trout.'"

4(5

SA I.MONTDE.

u Tn the markings they are so distinct as to be at once
separated from the Trout by any observer. The row of blue
marks which is also found in the young Trout, and in the
young of several Salmonidce , in the Parr are narrower and
more lengthened. The general spotting seldom extends
below the lateral line, and two dark spots on the gill-cover
are a very constant mark. On a still closer comparison
between the young Trout and Parr of similar size, the
following distinctions present themselves : — The Parr is alto¬
gether more delicately formed ; the nose is blunter, the tail
more forked ; but the chief external distinction is in the
immense comparative power of the pectoral fin : it is larger,
much more muscular, and nearly one-third broader ; and we
at once see the necessity for this greater power, when we
consider that they serve to assist in almost constantly sus¬
pending this little fish in the most rapid streams. Scales
of the Parr taken from the lateral line below the dorsal fin
were altogether larger, the length greater by nearly one-
third, the furrowing more delicate, and the form of the canal
not so apparent or so strongly marked towards the basal end
of the scale. The greater delicacy of the bones in the Parr
is still kept up very distinctly. The operculum forming
the posterior edge of the gill- cover is much more rounded
than in the Trout, approaching in this respect to the Sal¬
mon ; in the Trout the lower part is decidedly angular.
The interoperculum in the Parr is longer and narrower.
The maxillary bone is broader at the posterior corner, but
much shorter in the Parr ; the vomer is much weaker ; the
bones or rays of the gill-covers are longer and much nar¬
rower than those of the Trout. The teeth of the Parr are
smaller ; the bone of the tongue longer, weaker, and not so
broad ; the under jaw much weaker, and the distance be¬
tween the two sides of the under jaw in the Parr about one-

PARR.

47

third less. These are the most conspicuous distinctions,
but every bone varies ; and not in one only, but in the many
specimens which I have lately examined, the distinctions
were the same, and at once to be perceived. In this state,
therefore, I have no hesitation in considering the Parr
not only distinct, but one of the best and most constantly
marked species we have, and that it ought to remain in our
systems as the Salmo salmulus of Ray.’’’’ *

By the kindness of various friends, I have received Parrs
from several rivers on the east, south, and west shores ; and
from close comparative examination of specimens from dis¬
tant localities, and these with the young of others of the
Salmonidae , I believe the Parr to be a distinct fish. The
largest I possess measures full eight inches, and was sent
to me by Dr. George Johnston, with several others not more
than five inches long, from the Tweed, and taken in the
month of July. The representations which illustrate this
subject were taken from these specimens. The smallest
Parr I have preserved measures but three inches and one
quarter, and was sent me with others nearly double the size
by Sir William Jardine, Bart. : these were taken in summer
from the Annan. I have also received Parrs, the Skirling
of Pennant, not exceeding four inches in length, from
Glamorganshire and from the Ribble, in June, as well as
from other localities between the Tweed and the Annan.

An opinion prevails that the Parrs are hybrids, and all of
them males. Dr. Heysliam, at different times and seasons,
opened and examined three hundred and ninety-five Parrs,
or Samlets, as they are called at Carlisle, and found one
hundred and ninety-nine males, and one hundred and ninety-
six females. I am indebted to J. C. Heysliam, Esq. for

* Sir William Jardine, Bart. Edinburgh New Philosophical Journal for
January 1835.

48

SALMONTD.E.

a specimen measuring seven inches in length, having both
lobes of roe in a forward state : no such accumulation, I
venture to say, will be found in the young of the Salmon,
Bull-Trout, or Salmon-Trout, when only seven inches long.
The specimen just referred to was taken in the middle of
February. Mr. Heysham, among other communications on
the subject of fishes, sent me word he had seen a female
taken in March, in which the ova were very large : and the
Rev. W. F. Cornish, of Totness in Devonshire, on the
Dart, where this fish is called the Heppar, preserved a spe¬
cimen of a female, also taken in March, in which the ova
were very large ; much larger, he said, than he could have
thought it possible so small a fish could have matured.
The three specimens last mentioned might be examples
of late breeders, and Dr. Hey sham’s view of the breeding
period is probably the correct one : the Parr being, as that
gentleman considered, a migratory species, deposits its spawn
in the depth of winter, like the other migratory species of
the same genus.

The Skegger of the Thames is the Parr or Samlet.
Laleham, between Staines and Chertsey, where the water
is shallow, formerly afforded the greatest quantity ; forty
and even fifty dozen have been taken in one day by a skilful
fly-fisher ; but the numerous gas and other manufactories
on the banks of the river are considered so greatly to have
affected the quality of the water, that a Salmon or a Skegger
in the Thames is now but rarely seen. It was customary
to permit fishing for Skeggers only, before the usual period
for angling in the Thames,* from the belief that these fish
were migratory and their return uncertain.

* Angling in the Thames, within the conservancy of the Lord Mayor of
London, which extends to Staines Bridge, is prohibited during the months of
March, April, and May, under a penalty, and with loss of rod and line.

PARR.

49

The length of the head is, as compared to the whole
length of the head, body, and tail, including the caudal rays,
as one to five ; the body of greater girth than that of the
young of the Salmon when of the same length ; the pectoral
fin of great breadth and length, nearly as long as the head ;
the base of the last ray of the dorsal fin exactly half-way
between the point of the nose and the end of the upper half
of the tail ; the base of the dorsal fin considerably shorter
than the third ray of that fin, which is the longest ; the
second dorsal or fleshy fin half-way between the origin of
the first ray of the dorsal fin and the end of the upper half
of the tail, and in a line over the origin of the last ray of
the anal fin ; the tail deeply forked, much more so than that
of the Trout ; the lower jaw shorter than the upper ; the
teeth small, placed in five lines on the upper inner surface
of the mouth ; two or three small hooked teeth on the supe¬
rior lateral portion of the tongue on each side towards the
tip, and a row of small teeth on each side of the under jaw :
the eye large, its diameter one-fourth of the length of the
head, and placed at the distance of its diameter from the
point of the nose. The fin-rays in number are —

D. 13 : P. 14 : V. 9 : A. 9 : C. 19 : Vertebra 60.

The following description of the colours of the Parr is
derived from Dr. Hey sham's paper already quoted, my
specimens being affected by immersion in spirits.

66 Head green and ash colour. Gill-covers tinged with a
variable green and purple, and marked with a round dark-
coloured spot : in some specimens there are two of these
spots on each gill-cover. Back and sides, down to the lateral
line, dusky and marked with numerous dark-coloured spots.
Belly white. Along the lateral line there are from sixteen
to thirty bright vermilion spots. The sides are marked

50

SALMONJD.E.

with nine or ten oval bars of a dusky bluish colour. Dorsal
fin with a few dusky spots ; colour of the lower fins inclining
to yellow.1'’ The number of scales in a row above the lateral
line twenty-two, below it nineteen.

In its feeding, the Parr is voracious : the stomachs of
several examined were distended with the larvae of water-
beetles of various sizes, — Dytiscida.

It would be very desirable to discontinue the use of all
the names bestowed upon this fish except those of Parr and
Samlet ; the terms Brandling, Fingerling, Skirling, Gra¬
velling, Laspring, Sparling, &c. not being sufficiently de¬
fined, but referring either to some quality or habit observed
in other species.

The Gravelling of the river Taw, as figured in the Maga¬
zine of Natural History for January 1835, is the young of
the Salmon, but with a greater number of spots than I have
usually seen them.

COMMON TROUT.

51

ABDOMINAL

MA LACO PTER YGII. SALMON ID JE.

THE COMMON TROUT.

Salmo fario, Linnaeus.

,, ,, River-Trout, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. 399, pi. 70.

,, ,, Trout , Don. Brit. Fish. pi. 85.

,, ,, Common Trout, Flem. Brit. An. p. 181, sp. 47.

The Common Trout is too widely diffused and too
generally known to make any enumeration of particular
localities necessary : it is an inhabitant of most of the
rivers and lakes of Great Britain, and so closely identified
with the pursuits and gratifications of sportsmen, that those
landed proprietors who possess streams of water favourable
to the production and growth of Trout preserve them with
great care and at considerable expense. The Trout, though
a voracious feeder, and thus affording excellent diversion
to the experienced angler, is so vigilant, cautious, and
active, that great skill as well as patience are required to
ensure success. During the day, the larger sized fish move
but little from their accustomed haunts ; but towards evening
and during the night they rove in search of small fish.

52

SALMON I D.E.

insects, and their various larva?, upon which they feed with
eagerness. The young Trout fry may be seen throughout
the day sporting on the shallow gravelly scours of the
stream, where the want of sufficient depth of water, or the
greater caution of larger and older fish, prevent their appear¬
ance.

Though vigilant and cautious in the extreme, the Trout
is also bold and active. A Pike and a Trout put into a
confined place together had several battles for a particular
spot, but the Trout was eventually the master.

The season of spawning with the Trout is generally in
the month of October, at which period the adult fish
make their way up the stream ; and the under jaw of the
old male exhibits in a smaller degree the elongation and
curvature observed to obtain in the male Salmon, of which
an instance will be shown.

The Trout varies considerably in appearance in different
localities ; so much so, as to have induced the belief that
several species exist. It is, indeed, probable that more
than one species of river Trout may exist in this country ;
but when we consider geologically the various strata tra¬
versed by rivers in their course, the effect these variations
of soil must produce upon the water, and the influence
which the constant operation of the water is likely to pro¬
duce upon the fish that inhabit it ; — when we reflect also
on the great variety and quality of the food afforded by
different rivers, depending also on soil and situation, and the
additional effect which these combined causes in their various
degrees are likely to produce; — wTe shall not be much sur¬
prised at the variations both in size and colour which
are found to occur. That two Trout of very different
appearance and quality should be found within a limited
locality in the same lake or river, is not so easily explained ;

COMMON TROUT.

53

and close examination of the various parts which afford
the most permanent characters should be resorted to, with
a view to determine whether the subject ought to be con¬
sidered only as a variety, or entitled to rank as a species.
In these examinations the character of the internal organs
also, and the number of the bones forming the vertebral co¬
lumn, should be ascertained. The normal number of vertebrae
in Salmo fario , our Common Trout, I believe to be
fifty-six.

Sir William Jardine, Bart, in a paper on the Salmonida ,
published in the Edinburgh New Philosophical Journal
for January 1835, has described at considerable length the
variations observed in the Trout of some of the lochs of
Sutherlandshire. Other lochs abound with Trout which are
reddish, dark, or silvery, according to the clearness of the
water. Mr. Neill, in his Tour, has noticed the black-
moss Trout of Loch Knitching, and Loch Katrine is said
to abound also with small black Trout ; an effect considered
to be produced in some waters by receiving the drainings
of boggy moors. In streams that flow rapidly over gravelly
or rocky bottoms, the Trout are generally remarkable for
the brilliancy and beauty of their spots and colours. Trout
are finest in appearance and flavour from the end of May
till towards the end of September ; an effect produced by
the greater quantity and variety of nutritious food obtained
during that period. Two specimens of the Common Trout
taken early in January were unusually fine in colour for
that season of the year ; their stomachs on examination
were distended with ova of large size, which, from circum¬
stances attending the capture of the Trout, were known
to be the roe of the Bull-Trout. The albuminous nature
of this sort of food, which the Trout availed themselves
of, was believed to be the cause of their colour ; since other

54

SALMONID.E.

Trout, procured at tlie same time from localities where no
such food could be obtained, were of the usual dark colour
of that season of the year.

Mr. Stoddart, in his 44 Art of Angling as practised in Scot¬
land,’’1 mentions an interesting experiment made with Trout,
some years ago in the south of England, in order to ascertain
the value of different food. u Fish were placed in three
separate tanks, one of which was supplied daily with worms,
another with live minnows, and the third with those small
dark-coloured water-flies which are to be found moving
about on the surface under banks and sheltered places.
The Trout fed with worms grew slowly, and had a lean
appearance ; those nourished on minnows, -which, it was
observed, they darted at with great voracity, became much
larger ; while such as were fattened upon flies only, attained
in a short time prodigious dimensions, weighing twice as
much as both the others together, although the quantity of
food swallowed by them was in nowise so great.11

Of four Trout fed in a stew together, three of them
weighed fifteen pounds each, the fourth attained the weight
of seventeen pounds ; but neither the food nor the time
consumed was recorded.

Stephen Oliver the younger, in his agreeable Scenes and
Recollections of Fly-fishing, mentions a Trout 44 taken in
the neighbourhood of Great Driffield, in September 1832,
which measured thirty-one inches in length, twenty-one in
girth, and weighed seventeen pounds.11 A few years since,
a notice was sent to the Linnean Society of a Trout that was
caught on the 11th of January 1822, in a little stream, ten
feet wide, branching from the Avon, at the back of Castle-
street, Salisbury. On being taken out of the water, its
weight was found to be twenty-five pounds. Mrs. Powell,

COMMON TROUT.

at the bottom of whose garden the fish was first discovered,
placed it in a pond, where it was fed and lived four months,
but had decreased in weight at the time of its death to
twenty-one pounds and a quarter.

The age to which Trout may arrive has not been ascer¬
tained. Mr. Oliver mentions, that in August 1 809, “ a
Trout died which had been for twenty-eight years an inha¬
bitant of the well at Dumbarton Castle. It had never
increased in size from the time of its being put in, when it
weighed about a pound ; and had become so tame, that it
would receive its food from the hands of the soldiers.11 In
August 1826, the Westmoreland Advertiser contained a
paragraph stating that a Trout had lived fifty-three years
in a well in the orchard of Mr. William Mossop, of Board
Hall, near Broughton-in-Furness.

The Thames at various places produces Trout of very
large size. Among the best localities may be named Kings¬
ton, opposite the public-house called the Angler, Hampton-
Court bridge and wear, and the wears at Shepperton and
Chertsey. These large Trout are objects of great attraction
to some of the best London anglers, who unite a degree
of skill and patience rarely to be exceeded. The most usual
mode practised to deceive these experienced fish is by
trolling or spinning with a small Bleak, Gudgeon, or Min¬
now ; and Trout of fifteen pounds’’ weight are occasionally
taken.

On the 21st of March in the present year, 1835, a
male Trout of fifteen pounds1 weight was caught in a net.
The length of this fish was thirty inches. On the 14th of
April following, a male Trout of eleven pounds1 weight,
and measuring twenty-eight inches in length, was also
caught in a net. From this second fish the representation

56

SALMON I J)/E.

here shown was taken, by permission of Mr. Groves, who
allowed a drawing to be made, which was engraved for this
work.

Some deep pools in the Thames above Oxford afford
excellent Trout, and some of them of very large size.
I have before me a record of six, taken by minnow spinning,
which weighed together fifty-four pounds, the largest of
them thirteen pounds. Few persons are aware of the dif¬
ficulty of taking a Trout when it has attained twelve or
fourteen pounds1 weight, and it is very seldom that one of
this size is hooked and landed except by a first-rate fisher¬
man : such a fish, when in good condition, is considered a
present worthy a place at a royal table.

Among performances in Trout catching, the following
may be mentioned, as found in the MS. of the late Colonel
Montagu.

“ Mr. Popham, of Littlecot, in the county of Wilts,
was famous for a Trout fishery. They were confined to
a certain portion of a river by grating, so that fish of a
moderate size could not escape. To the preserving and
fattening these fish much trouble and expense were devoted,
and fish of seven and eight pounds1 weight were not uncom¬
mon. A gentleman at Lackham, in the same county, had a

COMMON TROUT.

Ol

favourite water-spaniel that was condemned to suffer death
for killing all the Carp in his master’s ponds, but was
reprieved at the desire of Mr. Popham, who took charge
of him, in the belief that so shv and so swift a fish as a
Trout was not to be caught by a dog. However, in this
he was mistaken, for the dog soon convinced him that his
largest Trout wmre not a match for him.” Mr. Stoddart also,
in his Scottish Angling, page 119, has recorded the propen¬
sities of a fish-catching dog.

I am indebted to William Thompson, Esq. of Belfast,
for a very fine specimen of the Gillaroo Trout of Lough
Neagh, measuring twenty-two inches in length, from which
fish the representation on this page was taken. The
internal surface of the stomach presented an indurated cu¬
ticle, but the parietes were not thicker than those of other
Trout; the cavity was filled with some dozens of the Palu-
dina impura of Lamarck. The fin-rays and vertebrae were —

D. 12 : P. 14 : V. 9 : A. 11. : C. 19. Vertebrae 56.

So little difference appeared to exist between this and
English specimens of S. fario , as to induce the belief that
the Gillaroo is only a variety of the Common Trout, as
stated by Pennant.

VOL. TI.

F

58

SALMON IDE.

Several louglis in Ireland produce this fish, which some¬
times attains the weight of ten or twelve pounds. The teeth
are remarkably small, but in number and situation like those
of S.fario.

The figure of the Trout at the head of this article, and
the following description, were taken from a Hampshire fish
of twelve inches in length.

The length of the head compared to the length of the
head and body, not including the caudal rays, was as one
to four ; the depth of the body rather more than the length
of the head : the dorsal fin commenced half-way between
the point of the nose and the commencement of the upper
caudal rays ; the third ray of the dorsal fin, which is the
longest, longer than the base of the fin : the origin of the
adipose fin half-way between the commencement of the
dorsal fin and the end of the upper half of the tail ;
the pectoral fin two-tliirds of the length of the head ;
the ventral fins under the middle of the dorsal fin, and
half-way between the origin of the pectoral fin and the
end of the base of the anal fin ; the anal fin begins
half-way between the origin of the ventral fin and the com¬
mencement of the inferior caudal rays. The tail but slightly
forked, and growing slowly up to square in old fish, or even
very slightly convex, as seen in the figure of the large
Thames Trout. The fin-rays in number are —

D. 14 : P. 14 : V. 9 : A. 11 : C. 19. Vertebra 56.

The form of the head blunt ; the eye large, placed one
diameter and a half from the end of the nose ; the irides
silvery, with a tinge of pink : the lower jaw in the Salmo-
nida appears to be the longest when the mouth is opened,
but it shuts within the upper jaw when the mouth is closed ;
tlie teeth numerous, strong, and curving inwards, extending

COMMON TROUT.

59

along the whole length of the vomer ; the disposition of the
teeth and the form of the ojll-cover shown in outline at
page 3 ; the convexity of the dorsal and ventral outline
nearly similar : the colour of the back and upper part of
the sides made up of numerous dark reddish brown spots on
a yellow brown ground ; eleven or twelve bright red spots
along the lateral line, with a few other red spots above and
below the line ; the lower part of the sides golden yellow ;
belly and under surface silvery white ; the spots on the sides
liable to great variation in number, size, and colour ; dorsal
fin and tail light brown, with numerous darker brown spots ;
the adipose fin brown, frequently with one or two darker
brown spots, and edged with red ; the pectoral, ventral, and
anal fins uniform pale orange brown. The number of scales
in a row above and underneath the lateral line about twenty-
five.

Deformed Trout are not uncommon ; mention of them
as occurring in some of the lakes of Wales is made by Pen¬
nant, Oliver, and Hansard. “ In 1829,'"’ says the writer of
the article on Angling in the seventh edition of the Ency¬
clopaedia Britannica, “we received some very singular Trouts
from a small loch called Lochdow, near Pitmain, in Inver¬
ness-shire. Their heads were short and round, and their upper
jaws were truncated, like that of a bull-dog. They do not
occur in any of the neighbouring lochs, and have not been
observed beyond the weight of half a pound.’" Such a Trout
from Lochdow was presented
to the Museum of the Zoolo¬
gical Society by the Honour¬
able Twiselton Fiennes : the
vignette is a representation
of the head of that specimen.

o

60

SALMONID.E.

ABDOMINAL

MALACOPTERVGI I. SALMON I DM.

THE GREAT GREY TROUT.

THE GREAT LAKE TROUT.

Salmoferox, Jardine and Selby.

,, lacustris, Lake Trout, Berkenhout’s Syn. edit. 1795, vol. i. p. 79, sp. 3.

The Great Lake Trout of Locli Awe, to which
attention has lately been drawn by the various notices that
have appeared in print of the fish, as well as of the beauties
of the locality, was shortly noticed by Pennant, in the
editions of the British Zoology, as a native of Ullswater
Lake in Cumberland, and of Lough Neagh in Ireland, and
was considered to be identical with the Great Trout of the
Lake of Geneva. Berkenhout includes this fish in his
Synopsis of the Natural History of Great Britain and Ire¬
land, as quoted above. Dr. Hey sham records it in his
Catalogue of Cumberland Animals as the Ullswater Trout
and Grey Trout, some specimens of which were said to
weigh between fifty and sixty pounds ; and the Rev. Mr.

CHEAT GREY TROUT.

61

Low, in his Fauna Orcadensis , mentions a Trout of thirty-
six pounds"1 weight or more, which, besides the Common
Trout, occurs both there and in Shetland. Mr. William
Thompson of Belfast, when at the meeting of the British
Association at Edinburgh in 1834, saw a specimen of the
Great Trout of Loch Awe, and recognised it as identical
with the Great Trout, or Buddagh, of Lough Neagh. Two
examples of large size, about thirty-five inches each in
length, were lately exhibited at the Zoological Society by
Mr. Thompson.* These were obtained from Lough Neagh,
where the younger and smaller sized fish of this species are
called Dolaclians.

According to Sir William Jardine, this fish, as far as can
be traced, seems to have been first noticed about forty-five
years since by the late Mr. Morrison of Glasgow, who
used to exhibit them to his friends as the trophies of his
expeditions. The first specimens taken in Loch Awe by
Mr. Selby and Sir William Jardine were considered as a
species undescribed and new to Britain ; and the name of
Salmo ferox was given to it, from its extreme voracity
and rapacious habits. M. Agassiz, who saw specimens of
this fish when he was in Edinburgh, pronounced it to be
different from any of the large Continental species.

“ In Scotland this fish appears to be generally distributed
in all the larger and deeper lochs. Loch Awe, Loch Lag-
gan, the upper end of Loch Shin, Lochs Loyal and Assynt,
they certainly inhabit, roving indiscriminately, and feeding
almost entirely upon the smaller fish. By persons residing
on the banks they are taken by night-lines, few rising at the
artificial fly ; but they may always be taken by strong troll¬
ing tackle, baited with a small Trout. They are extremely
voracious, and having seized the bait, they will allow tliem-

* See the Report of the Proceedings of the Society for June 9th, 1835.

62

SALMONID/E.

selves to be dragged by the teeth for forty or fifty yards ;
and when accidentally freed, will immediately again seize
it:’

This Great Trout is almost entirely confined to the lochs,
seldom venturing far either up or down any of the streams
communicating with them, and never descending to the sea.
It is known to spawn in September.

The most usual mode of fishing for this Great Lake
Trout is from a boat, which is rowed gently through the
water ; the bait, as before mentioned, a small Trout, guarded
by six or eight large hooks ; the rod and line of great strength ;
for this fish is considered to be even stronger than a Salmon
of the same size, but not so active. Young fish from one to
two pounds1 weight rise freely to the usual Trout flies.

For the opportunity of obtaining a drawing of this fish
I am indebted to the kindness of Mr. Selby and Dr.
Richardson.

The length of the head is to the^vhole length of head,
body, and tail, as one to four and a half ; the depth of the
body not equal to the length of the head : the teeth large,
strong, and numerous, occupying five lines above and four
below, thus extending along the length of the vomer : the
free edge of the gill-cover rounded in the female, more angu¬
lar below in the males ; the inferior edge of the suboperculum
and the line of its junction with the operculum oblique. The
commencement of the dorsal fin is half-way between the
point of the nose and the origin of the first upper caudal
ray ; the third dorsal fin-ray, which is the longest, equal to
the length of the base of the dorsal fin ; the soft fleshy fin
half-way between the last dorsal fin-ray and the end of the
caudal rays, and in a line over the origin of the last ray of
the anal fin : the ventral fins each with an elongated axillary
scale ; the fins rather small in size, but very muscular.

GREAT GREY TROUT.

63

The fin-rays in number in this specimen from Loch Awe
were —

D. 13 : P. 14 : V. 9 : A. 11 : C. 19.

The specimens examined from Lough Neagh had one
ray less in the dorsal, pectoral, and anal fins, and one ray
more in the caudal fin. For an excellent account of this
fish, see the article Angling in the seventh edition of the
Encyclopaedia Britannica, from which I derive the following
description of the colours of this species, which was probably
taken from a recent specimen.

“ When in perfect season and full-grown, it is a very
handsome fish, though the head is always too large and long
to be in accordance with our ideas of perfect symmetry in a
Trout. The colours are deep purplish brown on the upper
parts, changing into reddish grey, and thence into fine orango
yellow on the breast and belly. The whole body, when the
fish is newly caught, appears as if glazed over with a thin
tint of rich lake colour, which fades away as the fish dies,
and so rapidly, that the progressive changes of colour are
easily perceived by an attentive eye. The gill-covers are
marked with large dark spots ; and the whole body is covered
with markings of different sizes, and varying in number in
different individuals. In some these markings are few, scat¬
tered, and of a large size ; in others they are thickly set, and
of smaller dimensions. Each spot is surrounded by a paler
ring, which sometimes assumes a reddish hue ; and the spots
become more distant from each other as they descend be¬
neath the lateral line. The lower parts of these fish are spot¬
less. The dorsal fin is of the same colour with the upper
part of the fish ; it is marked with large dark spots ; the pec¬
toral, ventral, and anal fins are of a rich yellowish green
colour, darker towards their extremities. The tail is remark-

64

SALM 0N1D/E.

able for its breadth and consequent power. In adults it is
perfectly square, or might even be described as slightly
rounded at its extremity : in the young it is slightly forked,
and appears to fill up gradually as the fish advances in age.1’

u The flavour of this great lacustrine species is coarse and
indifferent. The colour of the flesh is orange yellow, not
the rich salmon-colour of a fine Common Trout in srood
season.” Pennant states from experience that it is but an
indifferent fish. The stomach is very capacious, and is al¬
most always found gorged with fish. I have not had an
opportunity of ascertaining the number of vertebrae.

The form of the scale is decidedly different from that of
the Trout, and more circular than those of any of the migrat¬
ing species : they are thin, flexible, and covered with a
delicate membrane.

The vignette below represents three states of the angler’s
May-fly.

NORTHERN CHAKll.

65

ABDOMINAL

MALACOPTER YG 1 /. SALM ON1DJE.

THE NORTHERN CHARR.

Salmo umbla, LinNjEus. Bloch, pt. iii. pi. 101.

,, ,, Cuvier, Regne An. t. ii. p. 305.

,, alpinus, Churr, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. 411, pi. 71.

,, ,, Alpine Salmon, Don. Brit. Zool. pi. 61.

,, ,, Case Cliarr , Flem. Brit. An. p. 180, sp. 43.

M. Agassiz, when in the North of England in the
autumn of 1834, had several opportunities of examining
the Cliarr of the Northern lakes, which he declared to be
identical with the Ombre Chevalier of the Lake of Geneva;
and in his “ Remarks on the different species of the genus
Salmo which frequent the various rivers and lakes of Eu¬
rope, ^ read at the meeting of the British Association at
Edinburgh, that gentleman considered the S. umbla , alpinus ,
salvelinus , and salmarinus of Linnaeus as different states
only of the same fish.*

Examples of the Cliarr of the Northern lakes of England

* See the Reports of the Fourth Meeting of the British Association, p. 617
to 623.

SAL MON IDE.

66

agree exactly with the description and figure of the Ombre
Chevalier in M. J urine’s paper on the fishes of Lake Leman,
Geneva. The Charr of the lakes of Wales is, however, dis¬
tinct from that of the Northern lakes, as will be seen by a
comparison of the description of it that will follow the pre¬
sent subject.

The Northern Charr inhabits many of the lakes of Cum¬
berland, Westmoreland, and Lancashire, which are annually
visited by the admirers of fine scenery. Keswick, Crum-
mock Water, Buttermere, Winandermere, and Coniston are
among the localities best known to produce this delicate fish.
It occurs in several of the lochs of Scotland, and also in
Lough Esk, Egisli, Neagh, Dan, Luggelaw, and probably
many other loughs in various counties of Ireland.

The Charr generally inhabit the deepest parts of those
lakes in which they are found, and afford but little amuse¬
ment to the angler. The most successful mode of fishing
for them is to trail a very long line after a boat, using a
minnow for a bait, with a large bullet of lead two or three
feet above the bait, to sink it deep in the water. By this
mode a few may be caught in the beginning of summer, at
which time they are in the height of perfection, both as to
colour and flavour. The flyfisher when whipping for Trout,
which frequently abound in the same lakes, occasionally
takes a Charr ; but this does not happen often : they are
believed to feed principally during the night. The stomachs
of those I have examined were empty ; but Sir William
Jardine has found abundance of minute Entomostraca in the
stomachs of some of those examined by him. The forms of
two species of these very minute animals will be represented
when describing the Vendace.

The Charr are very seldom known to wander into any of
the streams by which these lakes are either supplied or

NORTHERN CHARR.

67

drained, except at tlie season of spawning, and tlieir decided
partiality for clear water and a liard bottom is then very
conspicuous. Winandermere lias two principal feeders, the
rivers Rotliay and Brathay : the Rotliay has a sandy bottom,
but the channel of the Brathay is rocky. These streams
unite at the western corner of the head of the lake, below
Cliippers-gate, at a place called the Three-foot-brander, and
aftef a short course boldly enter the lake together. The
spawning season is in November and December ; about
which time the Cliarr in shoals make their way up both
these rivers, but invariably, before depositing their spawn,
those fish which have ascended over the sandy bed of the
Rothay return and pass up the rocky channel of the Bra¬
thay.* A few Charr also spawn in the lake ; and it is
observed that they frequent the stony parts only which re¬
semble the bottom of the Brathay.

Charr, even at the same season of the year, exhibit con¬
siderable difference in colour, which has been attributed to
different causes. M. Jurine, when describing the Salmo
umbla of the Lake of Geneva, which fish there is little or no
doubt is identical with our Northern Charr, says the females
are the finest in colour. Mr. Mascall, in a communication to
the Magazine of Natural History for April 1835, states that
he found the males of the Charr of Ennerdale Lake in Cumber¬
land superior to the females in colour. It is not improbable that
the degree of colour may depend, not so much upon the sex, as
upon the constitutional vigour of the individual fish ; a cir¬
cumstance observed in the periodical assumption of peculiar
tints in other animals. In reference to these variations in
the intensity of the colours, several distinctions have been
supposed to exist in the Charr of the Northern lakes, and
the names of Case Charr, Gilt Charr, Red Charr, and Silver

* The Trout, in their spawning season, prefer the Rothay.

68

SALM0NI1UE.

Charr have been applied to them : Pennant, however, states
that, after the closest examination, he was unable to discover
any specific difference.

The most common size of our Northern Charr is from
nine to twelve inches in length ; they are said occasionally
to attain the length of two feet ; the largest specimen in my
possession measures eighteen inches. The finest coloured
specimen I ever saw was brought me by my friends T. B.
Giles and W. C. Hewitson, from Coniston Water, in the
month of May. They are considered to be in the greatest
perfection as food from July to October.

The length of the head compared to the length of the
head and body is as one to five ; the depth of the body
greater than the length of the head : the commencement of
the dorsal fin is half-way between the point of the nose and
the adipose fin ; the posterior edge of the base of the adipose
fin half-way between the origin of the last dorsal fin-ray and
the end of the longest caudal ray ; the longest dorsal fin-ray
but one-fourth longer than the base of that fin : the pectoral
fin small ; the ventral fins originate half-way between the
point of the nose and the commencement of the under caudal
rays ; the ventral axillary scale nearly half as long as the fin ;
the anal fin small, the longest ray but little longer than the
base of the fin ; the tail deeply forked, the longest rays more
than as long again as those in the centre ; all the fins of
small comparative size. The fin-rays in number are —

D. 13 : P. 12 : V. 9 : A. 11 : C. 19. Vertebra; 59.

The diameter of the eye is less than one-fourth of the
length of the whole head ; it is placed at the distance of one
diameter from the point of the nose : the teeth small ; a few
on the anterior part only of the vomer ; the other four rows
above and four rows below, as usual in the fishes of this

NORTHERN CHARR.

6<)

genus. The peculiarities in the form and size of the parts
of the gill-cover are shown in the representation of the heads
of the two Charr introduced in the description of the next
fish : the branchiostegous rays vary from ten to twelve, and
frequently differ in number on the two sides of the head of
the same fish.

The top of the head and all the upper parts of the back
umber brown ; the sides lighter ; the whole of the belly,
pectoral, ventral, and anal fins, deep reddish orange ; the
first ray of the ventral and anal fins white ; the sides above
and below the lateral line marked with numerous red spots ;
the irides orange ; gill-eovers yellowish olive ; dorsal and
caudal fins dark brown, tinged with purple brown ; the lateral
line straight, but rising gradually from the parallel of the
point of the pectoral fin to the top of the operculum ; the
scales very small, more than thirty in an oblique line from
the base of the dorsal fin to the lateral line, and as many
from the ventral axillary scale upwards to the lateral line.
In this state as to colour, this fish is considered to be the
S. salvelinus of Continental authors.

When not in fine condition as to colour, the top of the
head and along the back are pale purplish brown, becoming
lighter lower down ; the sides silvery ; the belly tinged with
pale orange ; above the lateral line are numerous small round
white spots ; irides and gill-covers silvery, with a tinge of
yellow ; pectoral, ventral, and anal fins, brownish red ; dorsal
fin brown ; caudal fin purple brown.

In this state, as to colour, this fish is considered to be the
S. alpinus of Continental authors, Bloch excepted, whose
a S'. alpinus , part iii. plate 10f, appears to be a Trout.

70

SA EM ON TIKE.

ABDOMINAL

MALACO PTERYGI 1 . SALMON ID JE.

THE WELSH CHARR

Salmo salvelinus, Sahelian Charr, Don. Brit. Fish. pi. 112.

,, ,, Torgoch, Flem. Brit. An. p. 183, sp. 43.

The Charr of Wales was described and figured by Mr.
Donovan, in bis Natural History of British Fishes, under
the name of Salvelian Charr, Salmo salvelinus ; and he ap¬
pears to have considered it distinct from the Charr of the
Northern lakes of England, which is also described and
figured under the name of S. alpinus. Pennant included
his notice of the Welsh Charr under that of the Northern
Charr ; but examination of a specimen of each fish side by
side will convince the observer that they are perfectly dis¬
tinct. The Northern Charr is an elegantly-shaped slender¬
bodied fish, with fins of small comparative size. The W elsli
Charr is a short fish, considerably deeper for its length, with
very large fins ; it has also in its form much of the character
of an adult Parr of the Tweed, and carries for a long time
the same sort of dusky lateral markings, but is immediately

WELSH CHARR.

71

distinguished from that species by having only a few teeth
on the most anterior part of the vomer :* but the teeth, the
gape, and the eye are much larger in the Welsh Charr than
in that from the North. The outlines of the heads introduced
as a vignette show these distinctions : the great difference in
the size of the eye of the two species is an obvious character,
and the form and relative size of the operculum and subopcr-
culum of the one compared with the same parts in the other
are additional distinguishing features. Dr. Richardson, in
the third part of the Fauna B or eali- Americana, devoted to
fishes, has figured the forms of the gill-covers and teeth of
several species of Salmo. Plate 92, fig. 5, A, B, represent
the head and teeth of a Welsh Charr from Llyn Cawellyn,
which is evidently of the same species as the fish here de¬
scribed, derived from another locality.

The Welsh Charr is the Torgoch or Red-belly of Wales,
and was formerly to be taken either in Llanberris Lake, or in
Llyn Cawellyn, two deep lakes situated on the east and west
sides of Snowden. The waters from a neighbouring copper-
mine are said to have destroyed or driven out the Charr from
Llanberris, where they were formerly very numerous ; and
it was remarked that some of these fish were caught in the
sea, at the mouths of rivers on this coast, after they disap¬
peared from the lake.

“ Llyn Cawellyn, ” says Mr. Donovan, “ is a vast lake of
unknown depth, sheltered on one side by an abrupt moun¬
tain, which rises immediately out of the water, and in the
deep recesses at the base of which the Torgoch is supposed
to pass the milder seasons of the year in perfect security.
These fish approach the shallower parts of the lake in winter,
about the middle of December, appearing in small troops at

* The teeth in the Parr extend along the whole length of the vomer.

72

SALMONID E.

a sliort distance from the shores, and are at this season taken
in some plenty by a poor cottager who resides in the vicinity
of the lake, and derives a small annual profit from the
fishery ; this delicious fish being in much request for the
tables of the neighbouring gentry.”

I am indebted to the kindness of the Rev. F. W. Hope
for specimens of the Welsh Charr from a locality near Bar¬
mouth in Merionethshire, unnoticed by Mr. Donovan, but
recorded by Willughby. The piece of water is called Coss-
y-gedawl — the lake of the fruitful marsh.* This fish is cer¬
tainly identical with that of Llyn Cawellyn, and distinct
from the Charr of the Northern lakes of England. I have
not seen specimens of the Charr of the various lakes of
Scotland or Ireland, but have here endeavoured to furnish
the means of identifying them. The name bestowed by Mr.
Donovan is retained, till the Continental name, if it has one,
can be ascertained : I have, however, some reason to believe
that this species is unknown on the Continent.

The length of the head compared to the length of the
head and body is as one to four ; the depth of the body
equal to the length of the head : the commencement of the
dorsal fin is half-way between the point of the nose and the
origin of the upper caudal rays ; the posterior edge of the
adipose fin is half-way between the commencement of the
dorsal fin and the end of the longest upper caudal ray ; the
longest dorsal fin-ray as long again as the base of that fin :
the pectoral fin large ; the ventral fin originates half-way
between the posterior edge of the orbit of the eye and the
end of the fleshy portion of the tail ; ventral axillary scale
small, not one-third the length of the fin ; the longest anal

* The meaning of this term is said to be questionable : the primitive from
which it is derived means gift, relief, or profit. By Willughby it is spelt Casa-
geddor ; by others, Cors-y-gedol.

WELSH CHARR.

fin-ray one-third longer than the base of the anal fin ; the
tail not very deeply forked ; the longest rays but one-
third longer than those in the middle of the tail : all the
fins of large comparative size. The fin-rays in number
are —

D. 12 : P. 11 : V. 8 ; A. 11 : C. 19. Vertebr® 62.

The eye large, placed less than the breadth of its di¬
ameter from the point of the nose ; the breadth of the
orbit more than one-fourth of the whole leno-th of the head :

O

the teeth large ; those on the vomer occupying the most
anterior part only ; the other eight rows as usual : the form
of the different parts of the gill-cover are shown in the figures
of the head.

The top of the head, and the whole of the upper part
of the back, dark brown or blackish green ; the sides
lighter, approaching to olive, and passing by a golden tinge
below the lateral line, to a deep reddish orange, which
pervades the whole of the belly : the lateral line straight,
but ascending rather abruptly to the upper edge of the
operculum when within half an inch of that part ; above
the lateral line a few small round yellowish white spots ;
upon and below the line are numerous red spots ; the sides
exhibit traces across the lateral line of the dusky patches
common to young fishes of the genus Salmo : the irides
hazel : cheeks and gill-covers light olive ; pectoral, dorsal,
and caudal fins brown ; the ventral and anal fins dark
reddish orange, like the belly : the first ray of each of
these fins yellowish white. This is the only state in
which I have seen the Charr from Wales, but it most
likely does not retain these brilliant colours throughout the
year. The largest specimen did not exceed seven inches in
length.

VOL. II.

G

74

SAL MON IDE.

This species lias been called a Red-bellied T rout ; but
the latter name is far from applicable, as the Trout have a
formidable row of teeth along the whole line of the vomer,
and the tail at all ages much less forked.

The vignette represents the heads of two Charr ; that on
the left is from Keswick, the other from Wales. The
Northern fish has the mouth, teeth, and eyes smaller com¬
paratively than those of the W elsh Charr : there is also a
difference in the form and proportions of the gill-cover.

THE SMELT.

75

ABDOMINAL

M ALACOPTERYG 1 1 . SALMON ID JE.

THE SMELT.

spirting and sparling. Scotland.

Osmerus eperlanus, Smelt, Fleri. Brit. An. p. 181, sp. 48.

,, ,, Cuvier, Regne An. t. ii. p. 305.

Eperlanus Rondeletii, Willughby, p. 202.

,, Schonfeldii, ,, Willughby, tab. N. 6, fig. 4.

Salmo eperlanus, Linn^us. Bloch, pt. i. pi. 28. 2.

,, ,, ,, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. 416, pi. 72.

,, ,, ,, Uon. Brit. Fish. pi. 48.

Generic Characters. — Body elongated, covered with small scales : two dorsal
fins, the first with rays, the second fleshy, without rays ; ventral fins in a vertical
line under the commencement of the first dorsal fin : teeth on the jaws and
tongue very long, two distinct rows on each palatine bone, none on the vomer
except at the most anterior part ; branchiostegous rays 8.

The Smelt, as a British fish, appears to be almost ex¬
clusively confined to the eastern and western coasts of Great
Britain. I am not aware of any good authority for the
appearance of the true Smelt between Dover and the Land’s

End.* The fish called Smelt and Sandsmelt alomr the

©

* Mr. Salter, in his Angler’s Guide, page 169, says he has caught very fine
Smelts by angling in Portsmouth harbour ; but there is very little doubt that the
Sandsmelt, or Atherine, which is there abundant, is the fish alluded to.

G 2

SALMON IDE.

76

extended line of our southern coast is in reality the Athe-
rine, as stated in the account of that fish, volume i. page
214 : but the Atherine, though furnished with two dorsal
fins, and otherwise something like the Smelt, is immediately
distinguished from it by the numerous rays supporting the
second dorsal fin ; which fin in the true Smelt is without any
rays whatever, like the adipose fin of the species of the genus
Scilmo last described.

On the eastern side of our island, the Smelt occurs in the
Tay, in the Frith of Forth, in the FT re on the Yorkshire
coast ; it is taken in abundance in the Humber, and on
the Lincolnshire coast ; in the Thames, and the Medway.
On the western side, the Smelt is taken in the Solway
Firth, and may be traced as far south as the parallel line
formed by the Mersey, the Dee, the Conway, and Dublin
Bay.

The Smelt inhabits fresh water from August to May.
After spawning in March or the beginning of April, they
return to the sea. The ova are small and yellowish in
colour. The fry are found about three inches long, swim¬
ming near the surface in shoals in the rivers in the month of
August, ascending and descending with the tide, when the
adult fish are again visiting the fresh water. Their food is
small fish, with crustaceous and testaceous animals : Dr.
Fleming says, the principal food of the Smelt in the Tay is
the shrimp.

Two modes of fishing for Smelts are in practice ; one
on the sandy shallow shores of the sea, on the eastern coast,
particularly Lincolnshire, where large quantities are taken
in spring ; the other is the river-fishing within the tide- way.
The excellence of the Smelts of the Medway is well known.
The Thames and Medway fishing with small-meshed nets
for Smelts is permitted, under the jurisdiction of the Lord

SMELT.

77

Mayor of London, from the 28th of August (St. Augustine)
till Good-Friday. Formerly, the Thames from Wands¬
worth to Putney-bridge, and from thence upwards to the
situation of the present suspension-bridge at Hammersmith,
produced abundance of Smelts, and from thirty to forty
boats might then be seen working together ; but very few
are now to be taken, the state of the water, it is believed,
preventing the fish advancing so high up. The particu¬
lar cucumber-like smell of this fish is well known ; and
it is very considerably more powerful when they are first
taken out of the water.

The Smelt is generally in great request from its delicate
and peculiar flavour. This quality, coupled with the cir¬
cumstance of the fish passing six or seven months of the
year in fresh water, has induced two or three experiments
to retain it in ponds, one of which was attended with com¬
plete success, and the attempts might be multiplied with
advantage. Colonel Meynell, of Yarm in Yorkshire, kept
Smelts for four years in a fresh-water pond having no com¬
munication with the sea : they continued to thrive, and
propagated abundantly. They were not affected by freez¬
ing, as the whole pond, which covered about three acres,
was so frozen over as to admit of skating. When the pond
was drawn, the fishermen of the Tees considered that they
had never seen a finer lot of Smelts, There was no loss of
flavour or quality.

From the point of the lower jaw to the end of the gill-
cover, the length is, as compared to the body alone, as one
to three ; the depth of the body not equal to the length of
the head : the dorsal fin commences half-way between the
point of the nose and the end of the fleshy portion of the
tail ; the first ray of this fin less than half the length of
the second, which is as long as the third ; the second and

78

SALMONID/E.

third are the longest rays in the fin, nearly as high as the

body of the fish is deep, and as long again as the base of

the fin ; the two first rays simple, all the others branched :
the anterior edge of the adipose fin is half-way between the

base of the last ray of the dorsal fin and the end of the

fleshy portion of the tail, and in a vertical line over the
middle of the anal fin ; pectoral fins long and narrow ;
the ventral fins commence on the same plane as the dorsal
fin *. the base of the anal fin long, commencing half-way
between the origin of the ventral fins and the end of the
fleshy portion of the tail ; the third ray the longest, but not
so long as the base of the fin ; the other rays diminish in
length gradually : the tail slender and deeply forked. The
fin-rays are —

D. 11 : P. 11 : V. 8 : A. 15 : C. 19.

The lower jaw much longer than the upper ; the gape
deeper than wide : the teeth long, and curving inwards ; those
on the anterior parts of the tongue and palatine bones are the
longest : the breadth of the eye about one-fifth of the whole
length of the head, the irides silvery white ; the gill-cover
triangular ; the upper part of the head flat ; the nape and
back rising ; the form of the body elongated and slender ;
the dorsal and abdominal lines slightly convex : the colour
of the upper part of the body pale ash green ; all the lower
parts, cheeks, and gill-covers, brilliant silvery white : the
scales oval, small, and deciduous : all the fins pale yellowish
white ; the ends of the caudal rays tipped with black.

The specimen described measured seven inches in length.
Occasionally Smelts may be seen in the London markets ten
and eleven inches long, but this is an unusually large size.
Pennant mentions having seen one that was thirteen inches
long, and weighed eight ounces.

GRAYLING.

79

ABDOMINAL

MALAC0PTERYGI1, SALMON ID JE.

THE GRAYLING.

Tkymallus vulgaris, Cuvier, Regne An. t. ii. p. 306.

,, ,, WlLLUGHBY, p. 187, N. 8.

Salmo thymallus, Linn/eus. Bloch, pt. i. pi. 24.

,, ,, Grayling, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. 414, pi. 72.

,, ,, ,, Don. Brit. Fish. pi. 88.

Coregonus ,, ,, Flem. Brit. An. p. 181, sp. 49.

Generic Characters. — Head and body elongated ; the sides marked with lon¬
gitudinal bands; two dorsal fins, the first much longer than high, with numerous
rays; the second small, adipose, without rays: the mouth small, the orifice
square ; the teeth very small ; branchiostegous rays 7 or 8.

The Grayling, though abundant in some streams,
is yet a very local fish. Similar in many respects to the
Trout in its habits and wants, there are numbers of rivers
abounding with Trout that do not produce Grayling. In
the southern counties of Hampshire and Wiltshire, the
Grayling is found in the Test and both the Avons. In
Herefordshire, in the Dove, the Lug, the Wye, and the
Irvon. In Shropshire, in the Teme and the Clun. In
Staffordshire, in the Hodder, the Trent, the Dove, and the

80

SALMON ID JE.

Wye. In Derbyshire, in the Dove. In Merionethshire,
in the Dee, between Curwen and Bala. In Lancashire, in
the Ribble. In Yorkshire, in the Derwent, the Ure,
the Wharfe, and the Wiske, near Northallerton. Dr.
Hey sham says it is occasionally taken in the Eden and
the Esk in Cumberland. It is not found, that I am aware,
either in Ireland or Scotland ; Mr. Low, however, includes
this fish in his Fauna Orcadensis , and it is known to be
plentiful in Sweden, Norway, and Lapland. The pecu¬
liarity of the local distribution in this country gave rise
to the supposition that the Grayling had been originally
introduced by the monks, as a fish worth cultivating ; many
of the rivers containing the Grayling being near the remains
of great monasteries. But two circumstances affect this solu¬
tion : it would be very difficult to bring this fish alive from
the Continent to this country ; and it is not found in the
rivers of Kent, Dorsetshire, Devonshire, or Cornwall, where
monastic establishments were formerly numerous.

The Grayling thrives best in rivers with rocky or gravelly
bottoms, and seems to require an alternation of stream and
pool. According to Sir Humphrey Davy, who has given a
good history of the Grayling in his 44 Salmonia,” this fish was
introduced into the Test, in Hampshire, from the Avon ;
and the former river, in particular parts, appears to suit it
the better of the two. Large Grayling are, however, occa¬
sionally taken in both these waters, which are particularly
resorted to by the southern anglers. Three Graylings,
weighing together twelve pounds, were caught by Thomas
Lister Parker, Esq. in the Avon, near Ringwood. A Gray¬
ling of four and a half pounds’ weight has been killed in the
Test, and one of five pounds is recorded to have been caught
near Shrewsbury.

81

GRAYLING.

However fastidious in tlie quality of tlie water or tlie
choice of situation in the stream the Grayling is known to
be, experiment has proved that this fish will live in ponds
that have been newly made in hard soil, or in such as have
been very recently and carefully cleaned out ; but in these
situations the Grayling does not breed, and they will not
continue to live in old muddy ponds. The ova of this
fish are numerous, large, and of a deep orange colour : the
spawning season is in April, or the beginning of May ; in this
respect differing from the other Salmonida , most, if not all,
of which spawn towards the end of the year, and generally
in cold weather. The Grayling, however, is in the finest
condition in October and November, when Trout are out of
season, not having then recovered the effects of their recent
spawning, while the young Grayling of that year are about
seven inches in length.

The food of the Grayling, as ascertained by examination,
besides the various flies — imitations of which are successfully
used by anglers, — consists also of the larvae of Phryganea
Ephemera and Lihellula ; the remains of the cases of the
former, and the tough skins of all of them, being frequently
found in their stomachs. I have found also several small
shells, examples of the genus Physa , and Neritina Jiuvia -
tilts. Dead shells and small pebbles are also found ; but
whether these last are taken up by the fish to serve any
useful purpose, as in the stomachs of gallinaceous birds,
or have only formed part of the cases of the Phryganea ,
may be questioned.

Some English authors have considered the Grayling a
migratory fish, passing the winter in the sea, and the sum¬
mer in fresh water. “ Early in spring,11 says Mr. Donovan,
u they ascend the rivers, where they remain till autumn,

82

SALMON! ILL.

and then return to their former element.’1 This may apply
to Grayling on some parts of the European continent,* but
is not the case certainly with our fish in this country, in the
rivers of which it is found in the most perfect condition,
and in consequence most eagerly sought after, in October
and November. The finest specimens I ever saw were
taken in November ; and Sir H. Davy states in his “ Salmo-
nia,11 he had proved that the Grayling of England would
not bear even a brackish water without dying.

The term Thymallus is said to have been bestowed upon
this fish on account of the peculiar odour it emits when fresh
from the water, which is said to resemble that of thyme ;
and from its agreeable colour as well as smell, St. Ambrose
is recorded to have called the Grayling the flower of fishes.
To be eaten in perfection, it cannot be dressed too soon.
The name Grayling is supposed to be a modification of the
words gray-lines, in reference to the dusky longitudinal bars
along the body.

It has been considered that the large dorsal fin of the
Grayling enabled it to rise and sink rapidly in deep pools ;
but this power would rather seem to be afforded by the
large size of the swimming-bladder. The very large dorsal
fin, compared to the small size of all the other fins, renders
the Grayling unable to stem rapid currents : they are much
more prone to go down stream than up, and are never seen
leaping at a fall, like Trout.

In a Grayling of ten inches long, the length of the head
is to the body alone as one to four ; the depth of the body
rather more than equal to the length of the head : from the
point of the nose to the commencement of the dorsal fin is
equal to one-third of the length of the whole fish to the end
of the fleshy portion of the tail ; the posterior edge of the

* Bloch says the Grayling descends to the Baltic in autumn.

GJIAYLING.

83

dorsal fin half-way between the point of the nose and the
end of the longest caudal rays ; the adipose fin rather nearer
the dorsal fin than the end of the tail : the height of the
dorsal fin equal to half the height of the body, the first
ray short, the next five increasing gradually in length ;
the sixth ray nearly as long as the seventh, and, as well
as the five anterior rays, articulated and simple ; the seventh
ray and all the rays behind it articulated, branched, and
nearly of the same height ; the length of the base of the fin
not equal to twice the length of its longest ray : the pectoral
fin small, narrow, and pointed : the ventral fins commencing
in a vertical line under the middle of the dorsal fin ; the
ventral axillary scale one-fourth of the length of the fin :
the anal fin commences half-way between the origin of the
ventral fin and the end of the fleshy portion of the tail, and
ends on the same plane as the adipose fin above it ; the
longest ray but little longer than the base of the fin : the
tail forked ; the middle rays rather more than half as long as
the longest. The fin-rays in number are —

D. 20 : P. 15 : V. 10 : A. 13 : C. 20. Vertebra 58.

The head is small and pointed, flattened at the top : the
breadth of the eye equal to one-fourth of the length of the
whole head ; irides golden yellow, pupil blue, pear-shaped,
the apex directed forward : the opening of the mouth, when
viewed in front, square ; the teeth small, incurved, numer¬
ous ; none on the tongue, and only a few on the most
anterior part of the vomer : behind the head, the nape and
back rise suddenly ; the body deepest at the commencement
of the dorsal fin, then tapering off to the tail ; abdominal line
but slightly convex ; the scales rather large ; the lateral line
in the middle of the body not very conspicuous, with seven
rows of scales on an oblique line above it, and seven rows

84

SALMON I D/E.

below it ; the sides marked with about fifteen dusky longi¬
tudinal bands. The general colour of the body light yellow
brown, beautifully varied with golden, copper, green, and
blue reflections when viewed in different lights, with a few
decided dark spots : the head brown ; on the cheeks and
gill-covers a tinge of blue : all the fins somewhat darker than
the colour of the body ; the dorsal fin varied with square
dusky spots on the membrane between the rays, the upper
part of the fin spotted and streaked with reddish brown
The Grayling appears to become darker by age, and the
pectoral fins are reddish about spawning time, with small
black spots.

The vignette represents two states of the Stone-fly of
anglers.

\

GWYNI A l).

85

ABDOMINAL

MALACOPTERYGII. SALMONIDAE.

THE GWYNIAD.

schelly. Cumberland. — powan. Perthshire.

Coregonusfera? Cuvier, Regne An. t. ii. p. 307.

,, ,, ? Nilsson, Prod. p. 16, sp. 4.

,, ,, ? Jurine, pi. 7.

Salmo lavaretus, Gwyniad , Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. 419, pi. 73.
Coregonus ,, ,, Flem. Brit. An. p. 182, sp. 50.

Generic Characters. — Body in appearance herring-like ; with two dorsal fins,
the first higher than long, the second adipose ; the scales large ; the mouth
small, sometimes with minute teeth on the jaws or tongue, or both.

The species of the genus Coregonus are numerous in
Europe, and several of them are so similar to each other, that,
without the power of comparing those of this country with
foreign specimens, an appropriation of synonymes is at least
doubtful. Some authors have even considered the Vendisse
of Lochmaben as the same with the Powan of Perthshire,
the Schelly of Cumberland, the Gwyniad of Wales, and the
Pollan of Ireland : but it will be found that this is not the
case ; and, from recent observation, there is now reason to

86

S ALMONI i)_E.

believe that the Pollan of Ireland is distinct from the two
species of Coregonus found in Great Britain.

The Gwyniad of Wales was formerly very numerous in
Llyn Tegid, (Fair Lake,) at Bala, until the year 1803, when
Pike were put into the lake, which have very much reduced
their numbers. Pennant considered the Gwyniad as the
same with the C. f 'era of the Lake of Geneva, following in
this the opinion of Willughby ; and in the manuscript notes of
a fishing tour in Wales, by two excellent fishermen, who had
also pursued their amusement abroad, an opinion is given to
the same effect. Our Gwyniad bears a close resemblance
to the figure of C.fera in the illustrations to M. J urine’s
Memoir on the Fishes of Lake Leman : his description I have
not seen. The British fish accords also with the short de¬
scription of the C.fera in Professor Nilsson’s Prodromus of
the Fishes of Scandinavia. It also resembles the S. Wart-
manni of Bloch, pt. iii. pi. 105 ; but is decidedly distinct
from his S. lavaretus , pt. i. pi. 25, which is the C. oxyrhin-
ehus of Cuvier and Nilsson.

The Gwyniad is very numerous in Uls water and other
large lakes of Cumberland, where, on account of its large
scales, it is called the Schelly. Dr. Heysham, the natural his¬
torian of Cumberland, and Pennant also, in his British Zoo¬
logy, have recorded that many hundreds are sometimes taken
at a single draught of the net. They are gregarious, and
approach the shore in vast shoals in spring and summer.
Pennant says, they die very soon after they are taken out of
the water, are insipid in taste, and must be eaten soon, for
they will not keep long. The poorer classes, who consider,
and even call them the Fresh-water Herring, preserve them
with salt. The fish is not unlike a Herring in appearance,
and the Welsh term Gwyniad has reference to their silvery
white colour. They spawn towards the end of the year,

GWYNIAD.

87

and the most usual length of the adult fish is from ten to
twelve inches.

The length of the head is about one-fifth of the whole
length of the fish ; the depth of the body rather exceeding
the length of the head : the dorsal fin commences about half¬
way between the point of the nose and the end of the fleshy
portion of the tail ; its longest ray one- third longer than the
base of the fin, and equal to three-fourths of the depth of the
body : the adipose fin rather nearer the end of the tail than
the posterior edge of the dorsal fin ; the pectoral fins narrow,
pointed, and a little shorter than the head, inserted low down
on the body : the ventral fins arising in a line under the
middle of the dorsal fin ; the ventral axillary scale one-third
the length of the fin : the anal fin commences half-way be¬
tween the origin of the ventral fin and the end of the short
middle rays of the tail, and ends on the same plane with the
adipose fin ; the longest anterior ray about equal to the length
of the base of the fin ; the other rays diminishing gradually :
the tail forked. The fin-rays in number are —

D. 13 : P. 17 : V. 11 : A. 16 : C. 19.

The head is triangular ; the snout rather truncated ; the jaws
nearly equal, the lower just shutting within the upper; a very
few minute teeth on the tongue only ; the eyes large, the
breadth more than one-fourth of the length of the head ; the
form of the body very like that of a Herring ; the dorsal and
abdominal lines but moderately convex ; the scales large ; the
lateral line very near the middle of the side. The irides
silvery, the pupils dark blue ; the upper part of the head and
back dusky blue, becoming lighter down the sides, with a
tinge of yellow ; cheeks, gill-covers, lower part of the sides
and belly silvery white ; all the fins more or less tinged with
dusky blue, particularly towards the edges.

88

SALMONIJLF..

According to Mr. Thompson of Belfast,* the Pollan, or
Lough Neagh Coregonus , differs from the Gwyniad of Bala
in the following particulars : in the snout not being produced ;
in the dorsal fin being nearer the head ; in having fewer rays
in the anal fin, and in its position being rather more distant
from the tail ; in the dorsal, anal, and caudal fins being of
less dimensions ; in the third ray of the pectoral fin being the
longest, the first being of the greatest length in the Gwyniad;
and in the ventral axillary scale being longer. The numbers
of the fin-rays in the Pollan are —

D. 14 : P. 16 : V. 12 : A. 13 : C. 19. Vertebra 59.

In the stomach of a Pollan I found one example of a
species of Gammarus.

The vignette is a view of Whitewell, in the Forest of
Bowland, Yorkshire.

* Reports of Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London for 1835, p. 77.

YEN DACE

89

ABDOMINAL

MALA COP TE RY GIL SAL M ON 1DJE.

THE VENDACE, OR VENDIS.

Coregonus Willughbii, Vendace, Jardine.

Vangis and Juvangis, Pf.nn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. 420.

Vendace, Knox, Trans. R. S. E. vol. xii.p. 603.

But little is known of this delicate fish beyond what has
been published by Sir William Jardine, Bart, in the third
volume of the Edinburgh Journal of Natural and Geographi¬
cal Science, and by Dr. Knox, in the Transactions of the
Royal Society of Edinburgh. Sir William Jardine, in his
original communication, considered this species very closely
allied to the Salmo albula of Linnaeus ; but the difficulty of
fixing synonymes satisfactorily from the short descriptions of
the older authors has since led to a request from him that
the name of our distinguished British naturalist should be
attached to it, and I with pleasure adopt the suggestion.

The localities inhabited by this species of Coregonus are
as limited as the range of the species last described was
shown to be extensive. The Vendace is only known in the
lochs in the neighbourhood of Lochmaben, in Dumfries-shire;
and in this district some traditions and curious opinions exist
regarding it.

von. ir.

H

90

SALMON! D/E.

44 The Vendace is well known,” says Sir William Jardine,
44 to almost every person in the neighbourhood ; and if,
among the lower classes, fish should at any time form the
subject of conversation, the Vendace is immediately men¬
tioned, and the loch regarded with pride as possessing some¬
thing of great curiosity to visiters, and which is thought not
elsewhere to exist. The story that it was introduced into
these lochs by the unfortunate Mary Queen of Scots, as
mentioned in Pennant in his description of the Cfwyniad, —
and it is likely that his information was derived from this
vicinity, — is still in circulation. That the fish was intro¬
duced from some Continental lake, I have little doubt ; but
would rather attribute the circumstance to some of the reli¬
gious establishments which at one time prevailed in the
neighbourhood, and which were well known to pay considera¬
ble attention both to the table and the cellar. Mary would
scarcely prefer a lake so far from even her temporary residence
for the preservation of a luxury of troublesome introduction,
and leave her other fish-ponds destitute of such a delicacy.”

44 An idea prevails that this fish, if once taken from the
water, will die, and that an immediate return will be of no
avail ; and it is also believed that it will not exist in any
other water except that of the castle loch. These are of
course opinions which have gradually, from different circum¬
stances, gained weight, and have at last been received as
facts. The fish is of extreme delicacy ; a circumstance which
may have given rise to the first notion ; and the introduction
of it must have taken place by means of the spawn : the fish
themselves, I am confident, could not be transported alive
even a few miles. As to the second opinion, they are not
confined to the castle loch, but are found in several others,
some of which have no communication with that where they
are thought to be peculiar.”

VENDACE.

91

“ In general habits the Vendace nearly resemble the
Gwyniad, and indeed most of the allied species of the genus.
They swim in large shoals ; and during warm and clear wea¬
ther retire to the depth of the lakes, apparently sensible of
the increased temperature. They are only taken with nets,
a proper bait not being yet discovered ; and the fact that
little excrement is found in their intestines has given rise to
another tradition, that they are able to subsist without food.
They are most successfully taken during a dull day and
sharp breeze, approaching near to the edges of the loch, and
swimming in a direction contrary to the wind. They spawn
about the commencement of November, and at this time
congregate in large shoals, frequently rising to the surface of
the water, in the manner of the common Herring, and
making a similar noise by their rise and fall to and from the
surface. The sound may be distinctly heard, and the direc¬
tion of the shoal perceived, during a calm and clear evening.
They are very productive. The lochs abound with Pike,
of which they are a favourite food ; but their quantity seems
in no degree to be diminished, notwithstanding that immense
numbers must be destroyed. They are considered a great
delicacy, resembling the Smelt a good deal in flavour ; and
though certainly very palatable, the relish may be somewhat
heightened by the difficulty of always procuring a supply.
During the summer, fishing-parties are frequent, introducing
some stranger friend to this Lochmaben whitebait ; and a
club, consisting of between twenty and thirty of the neigh¬
bouring gentry, possessing a private net, &c. meet annually
in July, to enjoy the sport of fishing, and feasting upon this
luxury .”

The circumstance that this fish is never caught by anglers
made a knowledge of its food a matter of interest in several
points of view. Dr. Knox ascertained that this consists

92

SA LMONIDJE.

principally of very minute entomostracous animals, not ex¬
ceeding seven-twelftlis of a line in size. I have been fa¬
voured with specimens of the Vendace by Sir William
Jardine and T. S. Bushnan, Esq. which have afforded me
several opportunities of examining the contents of the
stomach and intestines. The contained mass, which is fre¬
quently in considerable quantity, has a brownish yellow co¬
lour, appearing slightly granulated to the unassisted eye.
A very small portion being placed on a slip of glass, and
agitated gently in conjunction with a drop of water, which
separates the particles, on placing the slip of glass under a
good microscope, two species in various states of perfection
are almost constantly found. The vignette at the end of the
description of this fish represents these two forms. The
first and second figure on the left hand are a back and side
view of a species of the genus Lynceus of Muller and others;
the third and fourth figures are a back and side view of a
species of Cyclops of Muller. On one occasion, I found a
very small coleopterous insect, the tough skin of a red worm
not much thicker than fine thread, and what appeared to be
a portion of the wing of a dipterous insect.

Dr. Knox found that the females of the Vendace were
more numerous as well as larger than the males, frequently
exceeding eight inches in length ; the males not measuring
more than seven inches, which was the length of the speci¬
men here described.

The length of the head compared to that of the body only
was as two to seven ; the depth of the body at the com¬
mencement of the dorsal fin not quite equal to one-fourth of
the length of the body without the caudal rays : the body ele¬
gantly shaped; the convexity of the dorsal and abdominal lines
about equal ; the lateral line passes straight along the middle
of the side, with six rows of scales in an oblique line between

VEND ACE.

98

the dorsal fin and the lateral line, and the same number be¬
tween the line and the ventral axillary scale : the dorsal fin
commences half-way between the nose and the origin of the
upper caudal rays ; the longest ray double the length of the
base of the fin : the adipose fin very near the tail ; pectoral
fin not quite equal to the length of the head ; the ventral fin
commences in a line under the first ray of the dorsal fin ; the
ventral axillary scale one-third the length of the fin ; the
anal fin commences half-way between the origin of the ven¬
tral fin and the end of the fleshy portion of the tail ; the
longest ray about equal to the base of the fin : the tail
deeply forked ; all the fins large. The fin-rays in number
are —

D. 11 : P. 16 : V. 11 : A. 15 : C. 19. Vertebra 52.

In form the under jaw is the longest ; the mouth small,
the opening square ; a few very minute teeth on the tongue
only : the breadth of the eye one-third of the whole head,
the posterior part of the iris the broadest ; the colour silvery
tinged with yellow, the pupil blue : the upper parts of the
body of a delicate greenish brown, shading gradually towards
the belly into a clear silver ; the dorsal fin greenish brown ;
the lower fins are all bluish white.

SALMONID.fi.

94

abdominal

MALAC0PTERYG1I. SALMONIDJE.

THE ARGENTINE.

Scopelus Humboldtii,
,, borealis,
Serpes Humboldtii,
Scopelus , ,

Argentina sphyrana,

>> y>

Cuvier, Regne An. t. ii. p. 315.

Nilsson, Prod. p. 20.

Risso, Ich. p. 358, tab. X. f. 38.

,, Hist. t. iii. p. 467.

Argentine, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. 432, pi. 76.
,, Flem. Brit. An. p. 182.

Generic Characters. — Body long, slender ; the principal dorsal fin over the
interval between the ventral and anal fins ; a second dorsal fin, so small as to be
scarcely perceptible : the head short ; the mouth and gill-aperture large ; small
teeth on both jaws ; palate and tongue smooth.

Pennant, and the Rev. Mr. Low of Orkney, appear to
be the only British observers who have met with, on our
coast, examples of this brilliant little fish, which Cuvier
considers to belong to the genus Scopelus , as here stated;
and other references are added, to assist in determining the
species should it again occur. The Scopelus Humboldtii , if
identical with Pennant's Argentine, is taken to the north of
our island, and also in the Mediterranean, as the remarks of
Professor Nilsson and M. Risso imply ; and the latter natu¬
ralist enumerates three species of the genus, of which he
says S. Humboldtii is the best known, but that little is
ascertained of their habits.

ARGENTINE.

95

Pennant's specimen was taken in the sea near Downing
in Flintshire : Mr. Low’s fish was brought to him by a boy,
who said he found it at the edge of the water among sea¬
weed. The receipt of an additional portion of MS. recently
confided to me by William Walcott, Esq. furnishes a notice,
written by his late father, of a third instance of the occur¬
rence of the Argentine, which was found stranded on the shore
near Exmouth : length two inches and a half. Pennant’s
description is, u Length two inches and a quarter ; the eyes
large, the irides silvery ; the lower jaw sloped much ; the
teeth small ; the body compressed, and of an equal depth
almost to the anal fin ; the tail forked : the back was of a
dusky green ; the sides and covers of the gills as if plated
with silver ; the lateral line was in the middle, and quite
straight : on each side of the belly was a row of circular
punctures ; above them another, which ceased near the vent.”
The formula of the fin-rays appears to be —

D. 9 : P. 17. : V. 8 : A. 15 : C. 19.

The figure of this fish referred to in M. Risso’s work
represents the anal fin as containing many more rays than are
apparent in the figure by Pennant, from which the represen¬
tation at the head of this article is copied.

ABDOMINAL
MALACOP TE RYGIJ.

CLUPEIDA- *

THE PILCHARD.
gipsey herring. Scotland.

Clupea pilchardus, Bloch, pt. xii. pi. 406.

,, ,, Willughby, p. 223, tab. P. 1. fig. 1.

,, ,, Cuvier, Regne An. t. ii. p. 319.

,, ,, Pilchard, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. 453, pi. 79.

,, ,, ,, Don. Brit. Fish. pi. 69.

,, pilcardm, ,, Flem. Brit. An. p. 183, sp, 52.

Generic Characters. — Body compressed ; scales large, thin, and deciduous ;
head compressed ; teeth minute, or wanting ; a single dorsal fin ; abdominal
line forming a sharp keel-like edge, which in some species is serrated ;
branchiostegous rays 8.

The following account of the Pilchard is derived from the
MS. of Mr. Couch, from whose various scientific acquire¬
ments, habits of observation and locality, it may be fairly
inferred that no better authority could be quoted.

The older naturalists considered the Pilchard, like the
Herring, as a visiter from a distant region ; and they as¬
signed to it also the same place of resort as that fish, with

* The family of the Herrings.

PILCHARD.

97

which indeed the Pilchard lias been sometimes confounded.
To this it will be a sufficient reply, that the Pilchard is
never seen in the Northern Ocean, and the few that some¬
times wander through the Straits of Dover, or the British
Channel, have evidently suffered from passing so far out of
their accustomed limits. They frequent the French coasts,
and are seen on those of Spain ; but on neither in consi¬
derable numbers, or with much regularity ; so that few
fishes confine themselves within such narrow bounds. On
the coast of Cornwall they are found through all the seasons
of the year, and even there their habits vary in the different
months. In January, they keep near the bottom, and are
chiefly seen in the stomachs of ravenous fishes ; in March,
they sometimes assemble in sclmlls, and thousands of hogs¬
heads have in some years been taken in scans : but this union
is only partial, and not permanent ; and it is not until July
that they regularly and permanently congregate so as to be
sought after by the fishermen.

The sean-fishery commences in August, and continues
until the shortened days and stormy weather of the equinox
render its further prosecution impracticable ; but the fish
continue to appear, sometimes in great numbers, until the
conclusion of the year. The season and situation for spawn¬
ing, and the choice of food, are the chief causes which
influence the motions of the great bodies of these fish ; and
it is probable that a thorough knowledge of these would
explain all the variations which have been noticed in the
actions of the Pilchard, in the numerous unsuccessful seasons
of the fishery. In some years, at least, a considerable body
of Pilchards shed spawn in the month of May — perhaps in
the middle of the Channel, where I have known them taken,
heavy with roe, in drift-nets shot for Mackerel ; yet it seems
certain that they do not breed twice in the year, and that

98

CLUPEIDJE.

tlie larger body do not perform this function until October,
and then at no great distance from the shore. I have known
an equally great variation to occur in other fishes, which have
in consequence visited us, and been in season, at a time not
expected by the fishermen.

«

They feed with voracity on small crustaceous animals ;
and I have found their stomachs crammed each with thou¬
sands of a minute species of shrimp, not larger than a flea.
It is probably when they are in search of something like
this, that fishermen report they have seen them lying in
myriads quietly at the bottom, examining with their mouths
the sand or small stones in shallow water. The abundance
of this food must be enormous, if, as there can be no doubt
was the case, all the scliulls on the coast were as well fed as
the individuals I examined. The Pilchard has been known
to swallow a hook baited with a worm ; and it is probable
that they devour the roe of fish ; for a gentleman who re-
sided on the shores of the Bay of Biscay informed me that
it is the custom of the French fishermen to throw large
quantities of the salted pea-roe of fish about their nets, to
attract Pilchards, and that he had seen much of this spawn in
the stomachs of Pilchards so taken. Large quantities of
the roe of fish are imported into France for this purpose from
northern nations.

When near the coast, the assemblage of Pilchards as¬
sumes the arrangement of a mighty army, with its wings
stretching parallel to the land ; and the whole is composed
of numberless smaller bodies, which are perpetually joining
together, shifting their position, and separating again. There
are three stations assumed by this great body, that have
their separate influence on the success of the fishery. One
is to the eastward of the Lizard, the most eastern extremity
reaching to the Bay of Bigbury in Devonshire, beyond

PILCHARD.

99

which no fishery is carried on, except that rarely it extends to
Dartmouth ; a second station is included between the Lizard
and Land’s End ; and the third is on the north coast of the
county, the chief station being about St. Ives. It is com¬
mon for one of these districts to be full of fish, while in
neither of the others is a scliull to be seen ; but towards the
end of the season they often move from one station to
another, or perhaps traverse in succession all the shores of
the county. The subordinate motions of the schulls are
much regulated by the tide, against the current of which
they are rarely known to go ; and the whole will sometimes
remain parallel to the coast for several weeks, at the distance
of a few leagues, and then, as if by general consent, will
advance close to the shore, sometimes without being dis¬
covered till they have reached it. This usually happens
when the tides are strongest, and is the period when the
principal opportunity is afforded for the prosecution of the
sean-fishery.

The fishery for Pilchards is carried on by drift or driving
nets, and with seans. The outfit of the former, which
somewhat resembles that already described for Mackerel,
consists of a number of nets, great in proportion to the wealth
of the proprietor and the size of the boat, but commonly
about twenty, each from eighteen to twenty fathoms long,
and seven fathoms deep ; so that a string of driving nets will
sometimes reach three-quarters of a mile. These nets are
fastened to each other in length, and to a head-line, appro¬
priated to each, along which runs a row of corks ; another
line runs loosely along the middle of the nets to afford
additional strength, but no lead is used at the bottom. The
nets are carried in common fishing-boats, some of which, as
at Mount’s Bay, are luggers, and most of the others with
spritsails : the crews consist each of four men and a boy.

1 00

CLUPEID.E.

The fishery begins a little before sunset, and the nets are
drawn in about two hours, to be again shot as morning
approaches ; for Pilchards enter the nets better at these sea¬
sons. A rope from one end of the string is fastened over
the quarter of the boat, and the nets are left to float with
the tide, no sails being set, except rarely in very calm weather,
to prevent the nets being folded together. Within a few
years an improvement has been made, derived, it would
appear, from the practice of the herring-fishers, by which
more fish have been taken, and much of the hazard obviated
to which the nets were exposed by ships passing over them.
It consists in diminishing the number and size of the corks
along the head-line, and in fixing cords at proper distances,
each of which has attached to it a stout buov. These cords

J

are from two to two and a half fathoms long, and conse¬
quently allow the upper edge of the nets to sink to that
depth below the surface ; but even now it is found that the
fish are principally caught in the lower part of the net.

The number of fish taken by a drift-boat in a night’s
fishing varies exceedingly : from five to ten thousand is con¬
sidered moderate ; it often amounts to twenty thousand.
For the season’s fishing, about one hundred and fifty thou¬
sand fish would be deemed favourable.

For the sean-fisliing, three boats are provided, of which
two are about forty feet long, and ten wide at the beam,
with flat timbers and a sharp bow. The first is termed the
sean-boat, and is furnished with a sean two hundred and
twenty fathoms in length, and twelve fathoms deep, which is
buoyed along the head-rope with corks, and weighed down
with leads. The second boat is called the volyer, a term
supposed to be a corruption of the word, follower. This
boat has a sean from one hundred to one hundred and
twenty fathoms in length, and eighteen fathoms deep at its

PILCHAK I).

1 01

deepest part, and is termed the tuck-sean : it differs from
the former, called the stop-sean, as well in shape as in
dimensions, the middle being formed into a hollow or bunt.
A third boat, called a lurker, is less than the others, and
has no sean. The crew attending a sean consists of eighteen
men and one or two boys. Seven of these are assigned to
each of the larger boats, and the remaining four, including
the master seaner, to the lurker. This fishery commences
in August, three weeks or a month after the drivers, whose
success, or the want of it, has much influence. The three
boats proceed in the afternoon to some sandy bay, and cast
anchor, keeping a good look-out for the appearance of fish,
which are discovered either by the rippling of the water, bv
the stoiting or leaping of the fish, or by the colour they
impart to the sea. In these respects, as marks of the dif¬
ference between the habits of the Herring and the Pilchard,
fishermen observe that the former rarely springs from the
water, or stoits, as it is called, except when alarmed or
driven; but the Pilchard does this often, and apparently from
wantonness. When alarmed, both these fish will rush alono-
the distance of five or six feet, as marked by the briming ;*
but the Pilchard does this with more celerity than the
Herring.

When the presence of fish is discovered, the lurker pro¬
ceeds to the place to ascertain the magnitude of the schull,
and the direction in which it is moving. The depth of
water, clearness of ground from rocks and other obstructions,
and the force and direction of the tide, enter also into the
calculation of the master before he makes the signal for
preparation. All the proceedings are directed by signs, for
the fish are alarmed at noise, and when everything is favour-

* The flash of light seen in the sea when disturbed in the night, and sup¬
posed to proceed from minute molluscous or crustaceous animals.

102

CLUPElDiE.

able, a warp from the end of the scan is banded to the volyer,
whose place it is to keep all taut ; the lurker continuing on
the fish to watch their motions, and to point to the sean-
boat what is to be enclosed. The sean-boat is rowed by
four men, the other three being employed in throwing the
net ; and such is the vigour exerted on this occasion, that
this great body of net, rope, corks, and lead is thrown into
the sea in less than five minutes. The scan at first forms a
curved line across the course of the fish ; and while the two
larger boats are employed in warping the ends together,
the lurker1 s station is in the opening, where, by dashing the
water, the fish arc kept away from the only place of escape.
When the sean is closed and the ends are laced together,
if the body of the fish be great and the sea or tide strong,
the net is secured by heavy grapnels, which are attached to
the head-ropes by hawsers. It will appear from this account
that it is not more difficult to take a thousand hogsheads of
fish than a single hogshead ; the only difference being, that
with the greater quantity the sean is regularly moored,
which with the smaller is unnecessary : it may even be said
that the capture of the larger body is most easily effected ;
for as its motion is slow, its course is not so speedily altered.

When the evening has closed in, and the tide is low,
they proceed to take up the fish. For this purpose, leaving
the stop-sean as before, the volyer passes within it, and lays
the tuck-sean round it on the inner side : it is then drawn
together so as gradually to contract the limits of the fish, and
raise them from the bottom. When disturbed, they become
exceedingly agitated ; and so great is the force derived from
their numbers and fear, that the utmost caution is used lest
the net should either sink or be burst. When the tuck-sean
is thus gradually contracting and the boats surround it,
stones suspended from ropes, called minifies, are repeatedly

PILCHARD.

1 03

plunged into the water at that part where escape alone is
practicable, until the fish then to be taken up are supported
in the hollow or bunt of the sean.

When brought to the surface, the voices of the men are
lost in the noise made by the fish as they beat the water.
The seaners fix themselves in pairs on the gunwales of the
boats, with flaskets to lade the fish on board. When the
quantity enclosed in the stop-sean is large, the tuck-sean is
made to enclose no more than the boats can carry, of which
a master seaner commonly forms a correct judgment by the
extent of the briming in his sean, as the fish move in it ;
and many advantages result from taking up only a portion
at one time, for the whole can thus be salted in proper con¬
dition, without fatigue or extraordinary expense : thus a week
may possibly elapse before the whole of the capture is se¬
cured, part being taken up every night.

The description here given of the manner in which the
Pilchard fishery is conducted applies to the greater part of
the coast, but some variation occurs in particular districts.
In Mount's Bay the men and boats employed to take the
fish are not the same that convey it to land ; a mode of pro¬
ceeding rendered necessary by the distance from shore at
which it is taken. The fishery at St. Ives is regulated by
a particular act of parliament, and there alone huers* con¬
tinue to be employed, which were formerly common every¬
where. The sean-fishery, as practised formerly, resembled
that carried on at St. Ives ; and in one of Norden's maps
is a representation of the taking of Pilchards by means of a
sweep-net, of which one end continues near the shore, as
then employed in St. Austle's Bay. The capture was drawn
on shore in the mode now used with ground-seans for other

* Huers are men posted on elevated situations near the sea, who by various
concerted signals, made with a bunch of furze in each hand, direct the fishermen
how best to surround a schull of fish.

104

CLUPEID/E.

fish, and consequently none could be taken unless they ap¬
proached near to an open beach ; and one end of a sean is
now termed the pole end, from the pole shod with lead
then used to elevate and spread the part to which the warp
was attached.

Old and experienced fishermen have stated as the result
of long observation, that, besides the well-known fact of
the fish being most abundantly taken within a few days
after the spring-tides, the direction of the tide has great
effect on the motions of the schull. Its progress is always
towards the same point, and in drift-nets all the heads of
the fish point in one way, unless the tide has turned while
the nets were afloat. In a bay where the tide comes round
a headland and circles the bay, the fish take the same route,
and a man aware of this may know in what direction to
watch, and whither the schull is proceeding ; and as, espe¬
cially when the tide is rapid, he must be careful that the
sean is not carried on the back of the schull, the net must be
so shot as to have the benefit of the tide, and yet be laid
across the front of the fish. A schull will not turn back di¬
rectly contrary to its former course, although, when alarmed,
its direction may be considerably changed. In the open
sea, drift-nets are commonly cast in the direction of the tide,
because the nets are most easily kept in that course ; but
when near land, or the entrance of a bay, a favourite position
is parallel to it, by which the fish are intercepted in their
advance or retreat. I have seen drift-boats shoot their nets
in the midst of a multitude of fish, one in the direction in
which they were going, and another across their course, and
in less than two hours the second had taken nine thousand,
the other not a fish ; and yet the boats frequently prefer the
* first plan. The most successful time for the drift-net fishery
is during hazy nights, with some motion of the wave, for the

PILCHARD.

105

fish then enter the nets freely, whereas in clear moonlight
they are shy ; and in very dark nights such is the brightness
of the briming, that the nets look like a wall of fire, and
deter the fish.

As an object of adventure, the Pilchard fishery is popular
in Cornwall, and beyond a doubt the community is greatly
benefited by it ; yet it frequently happens that the success
is partial, and the price low ; and it may be questioned whe¬
ther in any year the greater part of the seans obtain more
than their expenses : but when there is a profit it is com¬
monly considerable, and in this lottery every one is led by
the hope of being among the fortunate.

The following is a statement, perhaps nearly approaching
to the truth where absolute certainty is unattainable, of the
amount of property engaged in the Pilchard fishery in the
year 1827, when the bounty began to be withdrawn : — Number
of seans employed, 186 ; not employed, 130; total number
of seans, 316 : number of drift-boats, 368 : men employed on
board drift-boats, 1600 ; number of men employed on seans
at sea, 2672 ; number of persons on shore to whom the
fishery affords direct employment, 6350 ; total number of
persons employed in the fishery, 10,521 : cost of scans,
boats, &c. used in the fishery, 209,840/. ; cost of drift-boats
and nets, 61,400/.; cost of cellars for curing, and other es¬
tablishments on shore for carrying on the fishery, 169,175/.;
total capital invested directly in the Pilchard fishery,
441,215/. The outfit of a scan amounts to about 800/.;
a string of drift-nets will cost about 6/. ; the net and the
boat from 100/. to 150/. ; but this is used throughout the
year for the other purposes of fishing. The nets are sup¬
posed to last about six years, and ought, of course, to pro¬
duce their own value within that time, together with an
adequate profit ; but it is the complaint of the fishermen

VOL. II.

L

106

CLUPEIDjE.

tliat this is not the case. The profit of the men depends on
the share of the fish, which is divided into eight parts, of
which the boat has one-eighth part, the nets three, and the
men four : a boy that accompanies them is rewarded with the
fish that may fall into the sea as the nets are drawn, to
secure which he is furnished with a bag-net at the end of a
rod, termed a keep-net.

The quantity of Pilchards taken is sometimes incredibly
large. A fisherman now alive was present once at the
taking of two thousand two hundred hogsheads of Pilchards
in one sean ; but the greatest number heard of as taken at
one time is stated by Borlase at three thousand hogsheads ;
in reference to which Pennant has made an astounding error,
in reckoning by mistake thirty-five thousand fish to a hogs¬
head, instead of three thousand five hundred. The number
since allowed has been three thousand, and is now two
thousand five hundred fine fish ; but it is scarcely necessary
to say that they are not counted. An instance has been
known where ten thousand hogsheads have been taken on
shore in one port in a single day, thus providing the enor¬
mous multitude of twenty-five millions of living creatures
drawn at once from the ocean for human sustenance.

The different modes of curing the fresh fish are detailed
elsewhere. The various ports on the northern shore of the
Mediterranean are the principal places to which the preserved
fish are exported.

Our term Pilchard is said to be derived from Pdtzer ,
a name by which this fish was known to some early North¬
ern Continental authors. A few Pilchards make their ap¬
pearance occasionally in the Forth about October, generally
preceding the Herrings ; but the great shoals appear to
belong almost exclusively to our south-western shores. Thev
are seldom seen east of Bigbury Bay.; but in August 183-f

PILCHARD.

107

a slioal of Pilchards were observed in Poole Harbour, and
so many fish were taken that they were sold in the market at
a penny a dozen.

Smith’s History of the County of Cork contains a full
and interesting account of the Pilchard fishery in Bantry
Bay. They have been noticed also on the coast of the
county of Cork, and taken at Dublin and Belfast. On
our eastern coast, a few are taken every year at Yarmouth
with the Herrings. They were more than usually abundant
there in the years 1780, 1790, and 1799.

Specimens of the Pilchard sometimes measure eleven
inches in length ; the fish described measured nine inches.
It much resembles the Herring, but is smaller and thicker.
The length of the head is to the whole length as one to
five ; the depth of the body equal to the length of the head ;
the transverse thickness of the body equal to half its depth :
the form of the head triangular, the upper surface flat ;
the dorsal and abdominal lines slightly and equally con¬
vex ; no perceptible lateral line ; the body across the back
obtusely rounded ; the line of the abdomen smooth ; the
edges of the scales of the two sides leaving a longitudinal
groove from the branch iostegous rays to the vent, along

which groove extends a row of
scales of a peculiar shape, of which
the woodcut here placed is a re¬
presentation ; the two long narrow
lateral arms extending up each side
under the scales, the shortest pro¬
jection pointing backward : the
scales of the body are very large,
deciduous, and ciliated at the free
edge.

The distance from the point of

i 2

108

CLUPE1D.E.

tlie nose to tlie base of the last ray of the dorsal fin, and
from thence half-way along the caudal rays, nearly equal :
the commencement of the dorsal fin is therefore anterior
to the middle of the fish by the whole length of the base
of the fin ; the first and second rays shorter than the third,
which is equal to the length of the base of the fin ; these
first three rays articulated, but simple ; all the other rays
branched : pectoral and ventral fins small, the latter com¬
mencing in a line under the middle of the dorsal fin ; the
axillary scales very long : the anal fin commencing half¬
way between the origin of the ventral fins and the end of
the fleshy portion of the tail ; the first ray short, the
second and the last two rays the longest : the tail deeply
forked ; the scales at the end of the fleshy portion of the
body extending far over the bases of the caudal rays, par¬
ticularly two elongated scales above and below the middle
line. The fin-rays in number are —

D. 18 : P. 16 : V. 8 : A. 18 : C. 19. Vertebra 55.

The mouth is small, without teeth, the under jaw the
longest : the breadth of the eye one-fourth of the length
of the head, anti placed at rather more than its own breadth
from the point of the nose ; the irides yellowish white :
the cheeks and all the parts of the gill-covers tinged with
golden yellow, and marked with various radiating striae :
the posterior edge of the operculum nearly vertical and
straight : the upper part of the body bluish green ; the sides
and belly silvery white ; the dorsal fin and tail dusky. Mr.
Couch says the Pilchard is sometimes found with a row
of spots on the side, like the Shad ; which seems the result
of disease, these fish being small, soft, and unfit for curing.

PI I. CHARD.

109

As an appropriate conclusion to this account of the Pil¬
chard fishery of Cornwall, derived principally from the MS.
of Mr. Couch, the vignette at the bottom of the page is a
representation of the harbour of Polperro, near which Mr.
Couch has long resided : and I take this opportunity of re¬
cording my obligations to that gentleman, not only for his
great liberality in allowing me the unlimited use of his volu¬
minous MS. of the Natural History of the Fishes which have
been found on the coasts and in the rivers of Cornwall, with
an extensive series of characteristic drawings, but also for the
warm interest and substantial support afforded to this work
during its progress.

While this sheet was going through the press, the London
newspapers noticed the appearance of numerous large shoals
of Pilchards on the south coast of Ireland, which the poor
fishermen were unable to take advantage of from the want of
proper nets and salt.

no

CLU PE I l) /E.

ABDOMINAL

MALACOPTERYG IL CLUPEID/E.

THE HERRING.

Clupea harengus, Linnaeus. Bloch, pt. i. pi. 29.

,, ,, WlLLUGHBY, p. 219, pi. P. 1, fig. 2.

,, ,, Herring, Ray, Syn. p. 103.

,, ,, Cuvier, Regne An. t. ii. p. 317.

,, 5, Herring, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. ili. p. 444, pi. 79.

,, ,, ,, Flem. Brit. An. p. 182, sp. 51.

Anderson and Pennant were certainly mistaken in sup¬
posing that the great winter rendezvous of the Herring is
within the Arctic Circle : 44 there they continue,11 says Pen¬
nant, 44 for many months, in order to recruit themselves after
the fatigue of spawning ; the sea within that space swarming
with insect food, in a degree far greater than in our warmer
latitudes.1'1

44 This mighty army begins to put itself in motion in the
spring. We distinguish this vast body by that name; for the
word Herring is derived from the German Heer — an army, to
express their numbers. They begin to appear off the Shet¬
land Islands in April and May A This is the first check this

* In another part of his account, Pennant says the Herrings continue on the
Welsh coast till February. (P. 447.)

HER RING.

Ill

army meets with in its march southward. Here it is divided
into two parts : one wing of those destined to visit our
coasts takes to the east, the other to the western shores of
Great Britain, and fill every bay and creek with their
numbers ; others proceed towards Yarmouth, the great and
ancient mart of Herrings ; they then pass through, the
British Channel, and after that in a manner disappear.
Those which take to the west, after offering themselves to
the Hebrides, where the great stationary fishery is, proceed
towards the north of Ireland, where they meet with a second
interruption, and are obliged to make a second division :
the one takes to the western side, and is scarcely perceived,
being soon lost in the immensity of the Atlantic; but the
other, which passes into the Irish Sea, rejoices and feeds the
inhabitants of most of the coasts that border on it. These
brigades, as we may call them, which are thus separated
from the greater columns, are often capricious in their mo¬
tions, and do not show an invariable attachment to their
haunts.”

This is Pennant’s account as it regards our own islands.
To show that this supposed migration to and from high
northern latitudes does not exist, it is only necessary to state,
that the Herring has never been noticed, that I am aware, as
abounding in the Arctic Ocean : it has not been observed
in any number in the proper icy seas ; nor have our whale-
fishers or arctic voyagers taken any particular notice of them.
There is no fishery for them of any consequence either in
Greenland or Iceland. On the southern coast of Greenland
the Herring is a rare fish ; and only a small variety of it,
according to Crantz, is found on the northern shore. This
small variety or species was found by Sir John Franklyn, on
the shore of the Polar basin, on his second journey.

“ That the Herring is, to a certain degree, a migratory

m

C LUPEII) K.

fisli,"’”’ says Dr. McCulloch,* 44 may be true ; but even a
much more limited migration is far from demonstrable. It
is at any rate perfectly certain that there is no such progress
along the cast and west coasts from a central point.” There
can be no doubt that the Herring inhabits the deep water all
round our coast, and only approaches the shores for the pur¬
pose of depositing its spawn within the immediate influence
of the two principal agents in vivification — increased tempera¬
ture and oxygen ; and as soon as that essential operation is
effected, the shoals that haunt our coast disappear : but
individuals are to be found and many are caught throughout
the year. So far are they from being migratory to us from
the North only, that Herrings visit the west coast of the county
of Cork in August, which is earlier than those which come
down the Irish Channel arrive, and long before they make
their appearance at other places much further north. 44 In
former times, the fishery of the east coast did not commence
till that on the west had terminated. It is remarkable also
that the eastern fishery has become so abundant as quite
to have obscured the western/'’ And Dr. M4Culloch, from
other examples, confirms a statement previously made, that
the fishery has commenced soonest on the southern part of
the shore ; and, what is also remarkable, that for some years
past it has become later every year.

The Herring is in truth a most capricious fish, seldom
remaining long in one place ; and there is scarcely a fishing
station round the British Islands that has not experienced
in the visits of this fish the greatest variations both as to
time and quantity, without any accountable reason.

44 Ordinary philosophy is never satisfied,” adds Dr.
M4Culloch, 44 unless it can find a solution for everything ;

* See an excellent paper on the Herring in the 32nd number of the Journal
of the Royal Institution, for January 1824.

HERRING.

113

and is satisfied, for tliis reason, with imaginary ones. Thus,
in Long Island, one of the Hebrides, it was asserted that
the fish had been driven away by the manufactory of kelp ;
some imaginary coincidence having been found between their
disappearance and the establishment of that business. But
the kelp fires did not drive them away from other shores,
which they frequent and abandon indifferently without regard
to this work. It has been a still more favourite and popular
fancy, that they were driven away by the firing of guns ; and
hence this is not allowed during the fishing season. A gun
has scarcely been fired in the Western Islands, or on the west
coast, since the days of Cromwell ; yet they have changed
their places many times in that interval. In a similar man¬
ner, and with equal truth, it was said that they had been
driven from the Baltic by the battle of Copenhagen. It is
amusing to see how old theories are revived. This is a very
ancient Highland hypothesis, with the necessary modification.
Before the days of guns and gunpowder, the Highlanders
held that they quitted coasts where blood had been shed :
and thus ancient philosophy is renovated. Steam-boats are
now supposed to be the culprits, since a reason must be
found : to prove their effect, Loch Fyne, visited by a
steam-boat daily, is now their favourite haunt, and they have
deserted other lochs where steam-boats have never yet
smoked.” A Member of the House of Commons, during
the sessions of 1835, in a debate on a tithe bill, stated, that
a clergyman having obtained a living on the coast of Ire¬
land, signified his intention of taking the tithe of fish ;
which was, however, considered to be so utterly repugnant
to their privileges and feelings, that not a single Herring had
ever since visited that part of the shore !

Our common Herring spawns towards the end of October
or the beginning of November ; and it is for two or three

114

CLU PEI DE.

months previous to this, when they assemble in immense
numbers, that the fishing- is carried on, which is of such great
and national importance. 44 And here,'’, Mr. Couch observes,
44 we cannot but admire the economy of Divine Providence,
by which this and several other species of fish are brought to
the shores, within reach of man, at the time when they are
in their highest perfection, and best fitted to be his food.’’1

The mode of fishing for Herrings is by drift-nets, very
similar to those employed for taking Mackerel and Pilchard,
with a slight difference in the size of the mesh. The net is
suspended by its upper edge from the drift-rope by various
shorter and smaller ropes, called buoy-ropes ; and consider¬
able practical skill is required in the arrangement, that the
net may hang with the meshes square, smooth, and even, in
the water, and at the proper depth ; for, according to the
wind, tide, situation of their food, and other causes, the
Herrings swim at various distances below the surface.

The size of the boat used depends on the distance from
shore at which the fishery is carried on ; but, whether in
deep or in shallow water, the nets are only in actual use
during the night. It is found that the fish strike the nets in
much greater numbers when it is dark than while it is light :
the darkest nights, therefore, and those in which the surface
of the water is ruffled by a breeze, are considered the most
favourable. It is supposed that nets stretched in the day¬
time alarm the fish, and cause them to quit the places where
that practice is followed ; it is therefore strictly forbidden.

The Herring having spawned, retires to deep water, and
the fishing ends for that season. While inhabiting the
depths of the ocean, its food is said by Dr. Knox to consist
principally of minute entomostracous animals ; but it is cer¬
tainly less choice in its selection when near the shore. Dr.
Neill found five young Herrings in the stomach of a large

HElt RING.

115

female Herring ; lie has also known them to be taken by the
fishermen on their lines, the hooks of which were baited with
limpets ; and they have been repeatedly caught by anglers
with an artificial fly. The young abound in the shallow
water all round our shores during the summer months. I
have seen them taken off Brighton in the small-meshed nets
which are there used to draw for Atherine ; and they are
caught by boys while angling from piers and rocks at various
places along the southern coast. They are very abundant on
the Yorkshire coast, where they are called Herring-sile ;
and they swarm among the Orkney and Shetland Islands
during the whole of the summer. They remain at the
mouth of the Thames during their first autumn and winter :
many are caught on the coasts of Essex and Kent in the
nets used for taking sprats. From repeated examinations, I
am induced to believe these young fish do not mature any
roe during their first year.

The length of the head compared to the length of the
body alone, without the head or caudal rays, is as one to four;
the depth of the body compared to the whole length of the
fish, as one to five : the commencement of the dorsal fin
half-way between the point of the upper jaw and the end of
the fleshy portion of the tail ; the longest ray nearly as long
as the base of the fin : the pectoral fin rather large compared
to the size of the other fins. The ventral fin arises consider¬
ably behind the line of the commencement of the dorsal fin :
this fin is small, with elongated axillary scales ; its origin
half-way between the point of the lower jaw and the end of
the short central caudal rays. The anal fin begins half-way
between the origin of the ventral and the end of the fleshy
portion of the tail, and extends over half the distance be¬
tween its origin and the end of the fleshy portion, thus
occupying the third quarter division of the distance between

116

CLUPEID/E.

tlie origin of the ventral fin and the end of the fleshy portion
of the tail; the rays very short. The tail considerably forked;
the outer rays as long again as those of the middle. The
fin-rays in number are —

D. 17 : P. 15 : V. 9 : A. 14 : C. 20 : Vertebra 56 ;

varying in some specimens to

D. 19 : P. 17 ; V. 9 : A. 16 : C. 18.

The lower jaw is by much the longer, with five or six
small teeth extending in a line backwards on each side from
the anterior point ; four rows of small teeth on the central
upper surface of the tongue ; a few small teeth on the central
portion of the upper jaw, and the inferior edges below the
gape finely serrated : the eye large ; its diameter compared to
the length of the head as two to seven, and placed at the
distance of its own breadth from the end of the nose : the
dorsal and abdominal lines of the body slightly convex ; the
belly carinated, but not serrated ; the scales moderate in size,
oval, and thin. The upper part of the fish a fine blue, with
green and other reflections when viewed in different lights ;
the lower part of the side and belly silvery white ; cheeks
and gill-covers silvery, exhibiting the appearance of extrava¬
sation when the fish has been dead twenty-four hours. Dor¬
sal and caudal fins dusky ; the fins on the lower parts of the
body almost white.

117

leach’s IIE 11 11 INC.

ABDOMINAL

MA LA COP TER Y Gil. CLUPE1DJE.

LEACH’S HERRING.

Clupea Leachii , Yarrei.l, Zoological Journal, vol. v. p. 277, pi. 12.

The examination of considerable quantities of the various
sorts of fish caught at the mouth . of the Thames during
winter by fishermen engaged in taking Sprats, has enabled
me to select what I believe to be a second species of British
Herring.

The common Herring, when it visits our coast in autumn,
is taken heavy with roe, which it deposits towards the end of
October. It is certain that the fishing for them is aban¬
doned about that time, as no purchasers could be found for
the “ shotten Herring and it is also well known that the
Herrings, having cast their roe, retire from the shore to deep
water. Numbers of the young of the common Herring are
taken with the Sprats. These are called Yawlings by some
fishermen, — a term probably derived from yearling. But these
young Herrings differ materially from the Herring which I
believe to be new. The yearling fish have the elongated
form of the adult common Herring : if seven inches long,

118

CLU PE1D/E.

wliicli is about their average length, they are only one inch
and three-eighths in depth, and are without roe. Having
examined them repeatedly during the winter months, I am
induced to believe they do not mature any roe during their
first year ; and the fact of their remaining in large shoals at
the mouth of the Thames after the Herrings that have
recently spawned have left the shore, may be taken in cor¬
roboration ; for had they matured and deposited any roe,
they would, like the more adult fish of their own species,
have experienced the same necessity for retiring to deep
water.

The Herring, however, which I now refer to, is found
heavy with roe at the end of January, which it does not
deposit till the middle of February. Its length is not
more than seven inches and a half, and its depth near two
inches. It is known that Dr. Leach had often stated that
our coast produced a second species of Herring ; but I am
not aware that any notice of it has ever appeared in print.
In order, however, to identify the name of that distinguished
naturalist with a fish of which he was probably the first
observer, I proposed for it the name of Clupea Leachii.

Dr. Leach’s observations on the Herring were made during
his visit to the extended line of our southern coast in the
year 1808 ; and Mr. Jesse, in his u Gleanings in Natural
History,’’’ has noticed the superiority and consequent partia¬
lity that is said to exist in favour of the Herrings of Car¬
digan Bay over those that are taken at Swansea.

Of the existence of a second species of Herring on our
shores, further proof may be adduced in the following ex¬
tracts.

“ In former times,” says Dr. M‘Cullocli, “ the fishery
of the east coast of Scotland did not commence till that
on the west had terminated. It was then supposed, and

119

leach’s herring.

not very unreasonably, that the fish had changed their
ground, and that these were the western Herrings. Yet
it ought to have been plain that this was not the case,
as the eastern fish were entirely different in quality from
the western, and very inferior. At the same time, they
were in that condition as to spawning which proved that
they could not have been the same fish. The fact of their
being entirely different fish is now at least fully proved,
because on both shores the period of the fishery has been
the same.” — Journal of the Royal Institution , No. 82, for
January 1824, p. 217.

44 A smaller but superior species of Herring is found oc¬
casionally in Loch Eriboll ; but it is chiefly used for home
consumption.” — Scotch Statistics, Durness.

There are three species of Herrings said to visit the
Baltic, and three seasons of roe and spawning. The Strom-
ling, or small Spring Herring, spawns when the ice begins
to melt ; then a larger Summer Herring ; and lastly, towards
the middle of September, the Autumn Herring makes its
appearance, and deposits its spawn.

The length of the head compared to that of the body
alone, without the head or caudal rays, is as one to three ;
the depth of the body greater than the length of the head,
and compared to the length of the head and body together
is as one to three and a half ; it is therefore much deeper
in proportion to its length than our common Herring, and
has both the dorsal and abdominal lines much more con¬
vex : the under jaw longer than the upper, and provided
with three or four prominent teeth just within the angle
formed by the symphysis ; the superior maxillary bones
have tlieir edges slightly crenated : the eye is large, in
breadth full one-fourth of the length of the whole head ;
irides pale yellow : the dorsal fin is placed behind the centre

120

CLUPEIDiE.

of gravity, but not so much so as in the common Herring ;
the scales are smaller ; the sides without any distinct lateral
line : the edge of the belly carinated, but not serrated ;
the fins small. The fin-rays in number are —

D. 18 : P. 17 : V. 9 : A. 16 : C. 20. Vertebra; 54.

The back and upper part of the sides are deep blue,
with green reflections, passing into silvery white beneath.
The flesh of this species differs from that of the common
Herring in flavour, and is much more mild.

SPRAT.

121

ABDOMINAL

MA LACOPTERYG 1 1. GLUTEI DAL

THE SPRAT.

GARVIE HERRING AND GAR VIE. Scotland.

Clupea sprattus, Linnjeus. Bloch, pt. i. pi. 29, fig. 2.

,, ,, Cuvier, Regne An. t. ii. p. 318.

,, ,, Sprat, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. 457.

Willughry and Ray, deceived apparently by the mis¬
application of the name by the fishermen of Cornwall, with
which the latter became acquainted during his journey in
that county, considered that the word Sprat was only a
name for the young of the Herring and of the Pilchard, and
others have been misled by their authority : but so well is
this fish distinguished from both by the strongly serrated
edge of the abdomen, that there is not a fisherman round
those parts of our coast where the Sprat is taken that cannot
immediately distinguish it from either, even in the midst of
the darkest night. Its characters being now sufficiently
appreciated, it is by some, and ought to be by all, admitted
as a good and distinct species.

Though a much less valuable fish than the Herring, it
is still a very useful one. Coming into the market in im-

VOL. II.

K

122

CL IT PE I D E.

mense quantities and at a very moderate price immediately
after the Herring season is over, it supplies during all the
winter months of the year a cheap and agreeable food.
Immense quantities arc eaten ; and from their rich quality
and flavour, the consumption is not solely confined to the
lower classes. They are generally eaten fresh, but are also
preserved in various ways.

The Sprat is included by Linnaeus in his Fauna Suecica ,
and by Professors Nilsson and Reinhardt in their publica¬
tions on the Fishes of Scandinavia. Dr. Neill says the
Sprat is sold in Edinburgh market by the dozen ; and I
have received specimens that were taken near the Forth,
where they are called Garvie Herrings and Garvies. Far¬
ther south, they are most plentiful on the Norfolk, Suffolk,
Essex, and Kentish coasts. I have taken them on the
Dorsetshire coast in June, and they were then in roe. They
inhabit the deep water round our southern coast during the
summer months, and may be found in the stomachs of
many of our voracious fishes every month in the year.
I have taken three Sprats from the stomach of a Whiting,
and have caught young Sprats off Ramsgate, Hastings, and
Weymouth, in the months of August and September. Like
the other species of the genus Clupea , they are wanderers :
the shoals are capricious in their movements, and exceed¬
ingly variable in their numbers. “ Upwards of a ton weight
of Sprats was sold in our market last Saturday.11 ( Taunton
Courier , January 1832.) “ It is nearly fifty years since this

useful fish visited the neighbouring coast, and they now
appear in exhaustless shoals close in shore on the south
coast of Devon.11

The Sprat is occasionally taken in Cornwall ; and in Ire¬
land, on the coasts of Cork, Dublin, and Belfast.

In Cornwall the true Sprat is, however, very rare ; and

SPRAT.

123

the name is appropriated, as it was by the old fishermen
whom Ray consulted one hundred and fifty-six years ago,
to the fry of the Herring and of the Pilchard. An analo¬
gous misapplication of a name exists on the eastern coast,
where the true Pilchard rarely occurs, and where the name
of Pilchard is given to the fry of the Shad and the half-
grown Herring.

The fishing season begins early in November, continuing
through the winter months ; and the largest quantities are
taken when the nights are dark and foggy. A few, and
those of the best description, are taken in the same manner
as the Mackerel, the Pilchard, and the Herring, by drift-
nets of fine twine and suitable small mesh ; a mode of fishing
peculiarly adapted for the capture of those species which
rove in shoals through the water. But the most destructive
plan pursued against Sprats is by a mode called stow-boat
fishing. The stow-boat net goes with two horizontal beams :
the lower one, twenty-two feet long, is suspended a fathom
above the ground ; the upper one, a foot shorter in length,
is suspended about six fathoms above the lower one. To
these two beams, or balks, as they are called, a large bag-net
is fixed, towards the end of which, called the hose, the mesh
is fine enough to stop very small fry. The mouth of the
net, twenty-two feet wide and thirty-six feet high, is kept
square by hanging it to a cable and heavy anchor at the four
ends of the beams. The net is set under the boat's bottom ;
and a rope from each end of the upper beam brought up
over each bow of the boat, raises and sustains the beam,
and keeps the mouth of the net always open, and so moored
that the tide carries everything into it. A strong rope,
which runs through an iron ring at the middle of the upper
beam, and is made fast to the middle of the lower beam,
brings both beams together parallel, thus closing the mouth

k 2

m

CLUrETDiE.

of the net when it is required to be raised. In this way an
enormous quantity of Sprats, with the fry of many other
species, are taken, which are principally sold by measure to
manure land near the coast.

From four to five hundred boats are thus employed during
the winter. Many thousand tons in some seasons are taken
and sold at sixpence and eight-pence the bushel, depending
on the supply and demand, to farmers, who distribute about
forty bushels of Sprats over an acre of land, and sometimes
manure twenty acres at the cost of twenty shillings an acre.
In the winter of 1829-30, Sprats were particularly abundant:
barge-loads, containing from one thousand to fifteen hun¬
dred bushels, bought at sixpence a bushel, were sent up the
Medway as far as Maidstone to manure the hop-grounds.
The coasts of Kent, Essex, and Suffolk are the most produc¬
tive. So great is the supply thence obtained, that notwith¬
standing the immense quantity consumed by the million
and a half inhabitants of London and its neighbourhood,
there is yet occasionally a surplus to be disposed of at so
low a price as to induce the farmers even so near the metro¬
polis as Dartford to use them for manure.

A full-sized Sprat measures six inches in length, and
rather more than one inch and one-eighth in depth. The
length of the head compared to that of the body alone
is as one to four ; compared to the whole length of the fish,
as one to six : the depth of the body is to the whole length
as one to five. The dorsal fin commences exactly half-way
between the point of the lower jaw and the end of the caudal
rays : the ventral fins arise in a vertical line under the first
dorsal fin-ray, and have no axillary scales ; the ventral fins
in the Pilchard and Herrings begin under the middle of the
dorsal fin, and both have axillary scales, — these are two other
external distinctions : the under jaw is the longest ; the dia-

SPRAT

125

meter of the eye less than one-fourth of the whole head : con¬
siderable convexity of the dorsal and abdominal lines ; the
latter serrated before the ventral fins, and still more strongly
so behind them : the tail deeply forked ; the scales large,
round, and deciduous ; the upper part of the head and back
dark blue, with green reflections passing into silvery white on
the gill-covers, sides, and belly ; the dorsal and caudal fins
dusky ; pectoral, ventral, and anal fins white. The fin-rays
in number are —

D. 17 : P. 15 : V. 7 : A. 18. : C. 19. Vertebra 48.

The vignette below represents the mode of fishing for
Whitebait in the Thames : the account of the fish com¬
mences on the next page.

126

CLUPEID.E.

ABDOMINAL

MALACOPTERYGII. CLUPEIDJE.

THE WHITEBAIT.

Clupea alba, Yarrell, Zool. Journ. vol. iv. p. 137 and 465, pi. 10.

,, ,, Whitebait, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. 465, pi. 80.

Clupea alosa, Young Shad, Don. Brit. Fish. pi. 98.

In the papers on the subject of the Whitebait published
in the fourth volume of the Zoological Journal, I endea¬
voured to prove, historically and anatomically, that this
little fish was not, as had been supposed, the young of the
Shad, but a distinct species. In its habits it differs mate¬
rially from all the other British species of Clupea that visit
our shores or our rivers. From the beginning of April to
the end of September this fish may be caught in the Thames
as high up as Woolwich or Blackwall, every flood-tide, in
considerable quantity, by a particular mode of fishing to be
hereafter described. During the first three months of this
period, neither species of the genus Clupea , of any age or
size, except occasionally a young Sprat, can be found and
taken in the same situation by the same means. The young
Shad of the year arc not two inches and a half long till

WHITEBAIT.

127

November, when the Whitebait season is over ; and these
young Shad are never without a portion of that spotted ap¬
pearance behind the edge of the upper part of the operculum,
which in one species particularly is so marked a peculiarity
in the adult fish. The Whitebait, on the contrary, never
exhibits a spot on the side at any age ; but from two inches
long up to six inches, which is the length of the largest I
have seen, the colour of the sides is uniformly white.

About the end of March or early in April, Whitebait
begin to make their appearance in the Thames, and are then
small, apparently but just changed frojn the albuminous
state of very young fry.* During the fine weather of .Tune,
July, and August, immense quantities are consumed by
visiters to the different taverns at Greenwich and Blackwall.
Pennant says, “ They are esteemed very delicious when fried
with fine flour, and occasion during the season a vast resort
of the lower order of epicures to the taverns contiguous
to the places where they are taken A What might have
been the particular grade of persons who were in the habit
of visiting Greenwich to eat Whitebait in the days when
Pennant wrote, I am unable to state ; but at present, the
fashion of enjoying the excellent course of fish as served up
either at Greenwich or Blackwall is sanctioned by the high¬
est authorities, from the court at St. James's Palace in the
West, to the Lord Mayor and his court in the East, including
the Cabinet Ministers*!' and the philosophers of the Royal
Society. As might be expected, examples so numerous and

* The Shad do not deposit their spawn till the end of June or the beginning
of July.

t In the Morning Post of the day on which this account of the Whitebait
was written, September 10th, 1835, the following paragraph appeared:—

“ Yesterday the Cabinet Ministers went down the river in the Ordnance
barges to Lovegrove’s West India Dock Tavern, Blackwall, to partake of
their annual fish dinner. Covers were laid for thirty-five gentlemen/’

128

CLIJPEIDE.

influential have corresponding weight ; and accordingly there
are few entertainments more popular or more agreeable than a
Whitebait dinner.

The fishery is continued frequently as late as September ;
and specimens of young fish of the year, four and five inches
long, are then not uncommon, but mixed, even at this late
period of the season, with others of very small size, as though
the roe had continued to be deposited throughout the sum¬
mer ; yet the parent fish are not caught, and are believed by
the fishermen not to come higher up than the estuary, where,
at this season of the year, nets sufficiently small in the mesh
to stop them are not in use.

The particular mode of fishing for Whitebait, by which
a constant supply during the season is obtained, was formerly
considered destructive to the fry of fishes generally, and great
pains were taken to prevent it by those to whom the conser¬
vancy of the fishery of the Thames was entrusted ; but since
the history and habits of this species have been better un¬
derstood, and it has been ascertained that no other fry of any
value swim with them, — which I can aver, — the men have been
allowed to continue this part of their occupation with little
or no disturbance, though still using an unlawful net.

When investigating the subject of the AVhitebait, I was
occasionally engaged in witnessing the mode by which such
numbers were taken. The mouth of the net is bv no means

J

large, measuring only about three feet square in extent ; but
the mesh of the hose, or bag-end of the net, is very small.
The boat is moored in the tide-way, where the water is from
twenty to thirty feet deep ; and the net with its wooden
frame-work is fixed to the side of the boat, as shown in
the vignette at page 125. The tail of the hose, swimming
loose, is from time to time handed into the boat, the end
untied, and its contents shaken out. The wooden frame

WHITEBAIT.

129

forming the mouth of the net does not dip more than four
feet below the surface of the water ; and, except an occa¬
sional straggling fish, the only small fry taken with the
Whitebait are the various species of Sticklebacks, and the
very common Spotted or Freckled Goby, described in vol. i.
page 258 ; neither of which are of sufficient value or import¬
ance to require protection.* The farther the fishermen go
down towards the mouth of the river, the sooner they begin
to catch Whitebait after the flood-tide has commenced.
When fishing as high as Woolwich, the tide must have
flowed from three to four hours, and the water become sen¬
sibly brackish to the taste, before the Whitebait will be
found to make their appearance. They return down the
river with the first of the ebb-tide ; and various attempt* to
preserve them in well-boats in pure fresh water have uni¬
formly failed.

The Hamble, which runs into the Southampton Water,
is the only other river from which I have received White-
bait. But this I believe to be owing rather to the want of
a particular mode of fishing by which so small a fish can
be taken so near the surface, than to the absence of the fish
itself ; which, abounding as it does in the Thames, I have
very little doubt might be caught in some of the neighbour¬
ing rivers on our south and east coasts.

The Thames fishermen who live at and below Gravesend
know the Whitebait perfectly, and catch them occasionally
of considerable size in the small-meshed nets used in the
Upper and Lower Hope for taking shrimps, called trinker-
nets, which are like Whitebait nets, only larger ; but these

* The fifteenth printed rule and order of the Lord Mayor and his Court is,
that “ no person shall take at any time of the year any sort of fish usually
called Whitebait, upon pain to forfeit and pay five pounds for every such
offence ; it appearing to this court that under pretence of taking Whitebait the
small fry of various species offish are destroyed.’’— Page 11.

180

CLUPEI DJE.

nets, working near the bottom, principally arrest the fry of
the ground-swimming fishes.

The Sprat-fishers take Whitebait frequently on the Kent¬
ish and Essex coasts throughout the winter.

The length of the head compared with that of the body
alone is as two to five ; the depth of the body compared to
the whole length of the fish, as one to five : the dorsal fin
commences half-way between the point of the closed jaws
and the ends of the short middle caudal rays ; the longest
rav of the dorsal fin as long as the base of the fin : the ven-
tral fin arises behind the line of the commencement of the
dorsal, and half-way between the point of the closed jaws and
the end of the longest caudal rays ; the tail long and deeply
forked. The fin-rays in number are —

D. 17 : P. 15 : V. 9 : A. 15 : C. 20. Vertebrae 56.

The head is elongated ; the dorsal line less convex than
that of the abdomen ; the scales deciduous ; the abdominal
line strongly serrated from the pectoral fin to the anal
aperture.

The lower jaw the longest, and smooth ; the upper slightly
crenated : the tongue with an elevated central ridge without

O O

teeth : the eye large ; the irides silvery : the upper part of
the back pale greenish ash ; all the lower part, the cheeks,
gill-covers, sides, and belly, silvery white : dorsal and caudal
fins coloured like the back ; the latter tipped with dusky :
pectoral, ventral, and anal fins, white. The only food I
could find in the stomach were the remains of minute crus-
tacea.

F or a representation of the mode of fishing for Whitebait,
see the vignette at page 1^5, to which the block was trans¬
ferred for want of sufficient space here.

T WAITE SHAD.

131

ABDOMINAL

MALACOPTERYGJI. CLUPETDJE.

THE T WAITE SHAD.

Alosa Jinta, Cuvier, Regne An. t. ii. p. 320.

,, ,, Willughby, pi. P. 3, fig. 1.

,, ,, La Feinte, Duhamel, sect. iii. pi. 1, fig. 5.

Clupea alosa , Linn^us. Bloch, pt. i. pi. 30.

,, ,, Shad, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. 460, pi. 80.

,, ,, ,, Bon. Brit. Fish. pi. 57.

,, ,, ,, Flem. Brit. An. p. 183, sp. 53.

Generic Characters. — Upper jaw with a deep notch in the centre; in other
respects like Clupea.

Baron Cuvier, in the last edition of the Regne Animal ,
has advanced the Shads, of which we have two species, to the
rank of a genus, on account of the deep central notch in the
upper lip ; and I have followed this example for the addi¬
tional reason that it will the more easily and effectually
afford the means of obtaining a desirable alteration in our
nomenclature.

According to Cuvier, most modern authors have misap¬
plied the systematic trivial names of these two species, call¬
ing the Shad with teeth, and several spots along each side,
C. alosa ; and the larger Shad without teeth, and with a

132

CLUPE1D/E.

single spot only behind each gill-cover, or none at all, C.
Jinta.

The Alosct of Rondeletius is not described or figured as
possessing either teeth or spots ; and Cuvier, by his usual
research, had probably satisfied himself that the fish to which
the term alosa had been originally applied was a toothless
Shad, and that the toothed and spotted Shad was the true
Jinta. Pennant, in noticing the second British species of
Shad taken in the Thames and the Severn, which is without
teeth or the row of lateral spots, called it an Allis ; a name
which it would be desirable still to retain, in reference to the
generic term Alosa. The old name for the Shads was Lachia ;
and hence are derived Hallachia , A lachia, Alosa , Alose ,
and Allis or Allice.

The differences noticed by Pennant and others in the
smaller species of Shad, taken also in the Severn, near
Gloucester, called the T waite, induces the belief that it is
our common Thames Shad ; and the note by the editor
of the last edition of the British Zoology, at the foot of
page 463, (vol. iii.) is particularly deserving of notice. “ I
suspect,'” says the note, “ that the Shad and T waite are
distinct species, and correspond with the Alose and Feinte of
DuliamelA This appears to be precisely the case, as a com¬
parison of our two Shads with the representations in Du-
hamefs work will prove: and Professor Nilsson, in his Pro-
dromus of the Fishes of Scandinavia, which has been fre¬
quently referred to, has correctly designated and described
our more common Shad of the Thames as the Jinta* of
Cuvier.

I venture to propose the names of T waite Shad and

* Page 22. — C. Jinta Cuv. C. maxilla superiore antice profunde incisa ;
inferiore vix longiore ; maculis 5 — 6 lateralibus in serie positis ; dentibus
ulriusque maxilla distinctis. Longit. circa 15 poll.

TWAITK SHAD.

133

Allice Shad for our two species, the better in future to dis¬
tinguish them ; thus combining the generic name Shad with
a trivial name by which these two fishes have been hitherto,
to some extent at least, locally known.

The Twaite Shad then, if I may so call it, is a sea-fish
which enters our rivers about May, and in consequence of
the time of its annual visit to some of the rivers of the
European Continent is called the May-fish. The object
of its visit to the fresh water is to deposit its spawn ; and,
that accomplished, it returns to sea by the end of July.
Twaite Shads appear during these three months in abund¬
ance in the Thames, from the first point of land below Green¬
wich, opposite the Isle of Dogs, to the distance of a mile
below ; and great numbers are taken every season. These
fish produce, however, but a small price to the fishermen,
being in little repute as food, their muscles being exceed¬
ingly full of bones and dry. Formerly great quantities of
the Twaite Shad were caught with nets in that part of the
Thames opposite the present Penitentiary at Millbank,
Westminster. Above Putney Bridge was another favourite
spot for them ; but the state of the water, it is believed,
prevents the fish ascending the river in the same manner as
in former years, and but few comparatively are taken. The
ordinary size of the adult fish of this species is from twelve
to sixteen inches.

Shad are not allowed to be caught in the Thames after the
30th of June, that the remaining fish may cast their spawn
without interruption from nets.*

The principal spawning-time of the Twaite Shad in the
Thames is about the second week in July, when numbers
may be seen and heard frisking at or near the surface. In
the language of fishermen, the Shad are said to thrash the
* Whitebait are plentiful throughout May and June.

CLUPEI D.E.

1 34

water with their tails : tliey appear to disencumber them¬
selves of the matured roe by violent muscular action ; and
on a calm still evening or night the noise they make may be
heard at some distance. 1 have obtained the young only
two inches and a half long in October ; and suspect they
grow slowly, finding them only four inches long, and the
young of the larger Allice Shad only six inches long, in the
following spring.

The habits and habitat of the two species of Shads have
probably been very frequently confounded. Though both
are common in the Severn during a particular season, Mon¬
tagu has not noticed the appearance of either on the coast of
Devon. One species has been noticed on the Cornisli coast
by Mr. Couch, and has also been taken near Dublin. On
the eastern coast it is common in the Thames ; is occasionally
taken off Yarmouth, on the Norfolk coast, with the Her¬
rings, and also in the Tyne. It appears to have a consider¬
able range to the northward, both Professors Nilsson and
Reinhardt including it among the fishes of Scandinavia.
The food of the Shads is small fish and the softer-skinned
Crustacea.

The length of the head compared to the whole length
of the fish is as one to five ; the depth of the body rather
greater than the length of the head ; the distance from the
point of the nose to the commencement of the dorsal fin, mea¬
sured again from thence backwards, falls far short of the end
of the fleshy portion of the tail ; the base of the last dorsal fin-
ray is half-way between the point of the nose and the end of
the caudal rays ; the longest ray of the dorsal fin is as long as
the base of the fin ; the ventral fins, without axillary scales,
are placed a little behind the line of the commencement of
the dorsal fin ; the base of the anal fin, occupying about
two-fifths of the space between the ventral fin and the end

TWAITE SHAD.

135

of the fleshy portion of the tail, is shorter than the anal fin
in the All ice Shad, and has five rays less, beginning also
more forward : the tail deeply forked ; the caudal rays with
two thin membranous appendages on each side, parallel to
the seventh and thirteenth caudal rays, about an inch in
length by three- eighths deep ; all four membranes opening
from the centre, being attached by the outer edge only.
The scales of the body rather large in proportion than those
of the Allice; the lateral line, as in most of the Clupeida,
scarcely perceptible. The abdomen strongly serrated. The
lower jaw the longest, with a few teeth anteriorly ; the
upper jaw with a deep central notch, and a row of small
teeth on the edge down each side. The breadth of the eye
equal to one-fourth of the length of the head ; the mucous
vessels on the surface of the gill-covers beautifully arbores¬
cent ; the top of the head and back dusky blue, with brown
and green reflections in particular points of view ; from the
upper edge of the operculum a row of five or six dark spots
extend in a line backwards, the last generally the most in¬
distinct, the number sometimes more than six ; the irides,
sides of the head and body, silvery white, with a tinge of
copper colour ; dorsal and caudal fins dusky ; pectoral, ven¬
tral, and anal fins white. This species is immediately dis¬
tinguished from the Allice Shad by possessing teeth, the
lateral spots, and the smaller anal fin. The fin-rays in
number are —

D. 18 : P. 15 : V. 9 : A. 21 : C. 19. Vertebrae 55.

186

CLUPEI D.E,

ABDOMINAL

MALAC0PTERYG1I . CLUPEID/E.

THE ALLICE SHAD.

Alosa communis, Cuvier, Regne An. t. ii. p. 319.

,, ,, Willughby, pi. P. 3, fig. 2.

,, ,, Allice , Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. 463.

,, ,, Alose, Duhamel, sect. iii. pi. 1, fig. 1.

The Allice Shad, by far the larger of the two in size,
appears to be much more limited in its localities as a British
species. It is represented by Pennant and others as abund¬
ant in the Severn, but is much less known elsewhere.

Dr. Hastings, in his Illustrations of the Natural History
of Worcestershire, at page 77 says, “ This is another fish
which the Severn affords in great perfection. These fish
generally appear in May, though sometimes in April. This,
however, depends a good deal upon the quality of the water :
if it is clear, they ascend early in the spring ; but if there
happens to be a flood, they wait till the waters are restored
to their former purity ; and if they meet with a flood in
their progress upward, they immediately return, and keep
below Gloucester. The weight of this Shad (the Allice

ALLICE SHAl).

137

of Pennant) is seldom less tlian four pounds ; they continue
in the river about two months, and are succeeded by a variety
called the T waite, which is less than the Shad, never weigh¬
ing more than two pounds, and is but little esteemed. Dr.
Fleming says, that the celebrated Whitebait of the Thames,
which appears near Blackwall and Greenwich during the
month of July, is the fry of this fish ; but as, although the
Shad are plentiful in the Severn, we hear nothing of the
Whitebait,* further investigation seems to be required on
this point.1’

In the Thames, the Allice Shad is of rare occurrence.
A specimen was brought to me in 1831, that had been
caught above Putney Bridge ; and another was taken in
1833, which is noticed by Mr. Jesse in the third series of
his Gleanings in Natural History, page 147. 44 This fish

was taken .Tune 25th, opposite Hampton Court Palace ; and
its appearance so high up the river is very unusual. On
taking it out of the well of the boat, it was full of spawn,
and died immediately.11 I have had opportunities of ex¬
amining very fine specimens from the Severn, sent to me by
T. B. L. Baker, Esq. of Hardwick Court.

The flesh of this species is said to be of good flavour,
and the quality is considered to improve the higher the fish
ascends the river. iElian says the Shads appear to take
pleasure in the sounds of musical instruments ; but if it
happens to thunder when they are ascending rivers, they
return rapidly to the sea.

Both species of Shads have great resemblance, except in
size, to Herrings, and have been frequently called the mother
of Herrings. The large Herrings of two feet in length, so
called by Anderson and others, and said to occur in the

* This, it may be remembered, was adduced as one of the proofs that the
Whitebait were not the young of the Shad.

VOL. II.

1.

138

( LIT PE I D/E.

Northern Seas, and among onr Northern Islands, are no
doubt to be considered as referring to our Shads.

The specimen described measured two feet in length ;
the body deep and compressed ; the thickness rather less
than one- third of the depth. The length of the head com¬
pared to that of the whole fish is as one to six ; the depth
compared to the whole length, as one to four and a half.
The length of the base of the dorsal fin three inches ; the
fourth ray, which is the longest, is one-third shorter than the
whole length of the base of the fin ; the first and second rays
shorter than the third ; these three rays simple, all the others
branched : the first ray half-way between the point of the
nose and the last ray of the anal fin ; the last ray exactly
half-way between the point of the nose and the end of the
tail. Pectoral fin small ; the upper ray the longest, strong,
and simple ; the others branched : ventral fin also small ; the
first ray arising in a vertical line under the first ray of the
dorsal fin ; axillary scales long, narrow, and pointed : anal
fin commencing half-way between the ventral fin and the
origin of the lower caudal rays, nearly one-fourth longer in
the base than the dorsal fin ; the first three rays shorter than
the fourth, which is the longest, and only one-third the
length of the base of the fin : the tail long and slender,
deeply forked ; the rays of the middle only one-fourth of the
length of the longest external rays ; the seventh and thir¬
teenth caudal rays furnished with membranous appendages on
each side similar to those observed in the T waite Shad. The
fin-rays in number arc —

D. 19 : P. 15 : V. 9 : A. 26 : C. 20.

The lower jaw the longest and smooth ; the upper jaw
with a central notch ; the lateral edges crcnated : the breadth
of the eye rather less than one-fifth of the length of the

ALL ICE SHAD.

139

head, and placed one diameter and a half from the end of the
nose ; mucous vessels of the gill-covers beautifully distri¬
buted ; the nape and shoulders rise suddenly ; the greatest
depth of the body just before the ventral fin ; scales of the
body rather large, nearly circular, and thin ; no distinct la¬
teral line ; abdominal edge strongly serrated, particularly
behind the ventral fins. The colours very similar to those
of the Twaite Shad, with a single dusky patch behind the
operculum, sometimes scarcely visible.

Figure 1 of plate III. in Dr. Fleming's Philosophy of
Zoology is a representation of the Allice Shad.

Intending to make the fishing-boats of several countries
the subjects of some of the vignettes, that at page 120 repre¬
sents a Dutch boat : the vignette below is a representation of
a French fishing-boat.

l 2

140

CLUPE1D.E.

ABDOMINAL

MALACOPTERYGII. C LU P El D/E.

THE ANCHOVY.

Engra ulis encrasi coins,
,, vulgaris,

9 9 9 9

Clupea encrasicolus,

9 9 9 9

9 9 9 9

Anchovy, Flem. Brit. An. p. 183, sp. 54.

Cuvier, Itegne An. t. ii. p. 322.

Willughby, p. 225, P. 2, fig. 2, App. 27.
Linnaeus. Bloch, pt. i. pi. 30, fig. 2.

Anchovy, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. 459, pi. 73.
,, Don. Brit. Fish. pi. 50.

Generic Characters. — Distinguished from the Herrings in having the head
pointed ; the upper jaw the longest ; the mouth deeply divided ; the opening
extending backwards behind the line of the eyes ; the gape and branchial aper¬
tures very large ; the ventral fins in advance of the line of the commencement
of the dorsal ; the abdomen smooth ; brancliiostegous rays 12.

I have followed Dr. Fleming in preserving to the An¬
chovy the old name by which it was formerly known. It
was called Lycostomus from the form of its mouth ; and
Encrasieholus Engraulis , because from its bitterness it
was supposed to carry its gall in its head. For this reason
the head as well as the entrails are removed when the fish is
pickled.

The Anchovy is a common fish in the Mediterranean
from Greece to Gibraltar ; and was well known to the Greeks
and Romans, by whom the liquor prepared from it, called

ANCHOVY.

J 41

Garurn , was in great estimation. Its eastern range is ex¬
tended into the Black Sea.

The fishing for them is carried on during the night, and
lights are used with the nets.

The Anchovy is common on the coasts of Portugal, Spain,
and France ; it occurs, I have no doubt, at the Channel
Islands, and has been taken on the Hampshire coast, and in
the Bristol Channel. In the Appendix to Willughby’s
work, it is mentioned as having been taken on the coast of
Wales ; Pennant obtained it near his own residence at
Downing in Flintshire ; and Mr. Bicheno has very recently
obtained several on the coast of Glamorganshire. It is said
to be sold frequently in Liverpool market, and is reported
to be at this time an inhabitant of the piece of water below
Blackwall called Dagenham Breach.

Its range to the north is extensive, as it is occasionally
taken in the Baltic and on the coast of Norway ; but is
not included by Linnseus in his Fauna Suecica.

The Anchovy appears to attain a much larger size than
has usually been accorded to it : from four to five inches in
length is the more ordinary size ; but Mr. Couch says, u I
have seen it in the Cornish seas of the length of seven inches
and a half ; and T have met with specimens from autumn,
through the winter, to the middle of March : it is therefore
probable that a fishery might be established with good pro¬
spect of success ; for though the nets employed for other fish
can take but few of them, the numbers found in the sto¬
machs of the Whiting and other ravenous fishes show that
they are in considerable abundance.”

The Anchovy is immediately recognised among the spe¬
cies of the family to which it belongs, by its sharp-pointed
head, with the upper jaw considerably the longest. The
length of the head compared with the length of the body

142

CLUPEID/E.

alone is as one to three ; the depth of the body but two-
thirds of the length of the head, and compared to the length
of the whole fish is as one to seven : the first ray of the dor¬
sal fin arises half-way between the point of the nose and the
end of the fleshy portion of the tail ; the third ray of the
dorsal fin, which is the longest, is of the same length as the
base of the fin : the pectoral fin small ; the ventral fins arise,
in a vertical line, in advance of the commencement of the
dorsal fin, which is over the space between the ventral and
anal fins : the base of the anal fin is as long as the distance
from its commencement to the origin of the ventral fins ; the
rays short : the tail deeply forked. The fin-rays in number
are —

D. 14 : P. 15 : V. 7 : A. 18 : C. 19.

The breadth of the eye is one-fifth of the length of the
whole head ; the peculiarity in the comparative length of the
jaws has been previously noticed ; the gill-covers are elon¬
gated ; the scales of the body large and deciduous : the
colour of the top of the head and back blue, with a tinge of
green; irides, gill-covers, sides, and belly, silvery white ; the
fins delicate in structure, and greenish white; the membranes
connecting the rays almost transparent.

In a series of notes on the occurrence of rare fish at Yar¬
mouth and its vicinity, with which I have been favoured by
Dawson Turner, Esq. there is mention of a specimen of the
Anchovy, taken on the beach, which measured six inches and
a half in length : an additional proof of the large size acquired
by this fish on our shores.

J

( OMMON COD.

143

SUBBllACHIAL

MALACOPTERYG11. G ADI DM*

THE COMMON COD.

THE KEELING.

Morrhua vulgaris,

y y

y y

y y

Cuvier, Regne An. t. ii. p. 331.

Cody Flem. Brit. An. p. 191, sp. 76.

Codfish, Keeling, Willughby, p. 165, L. 1, fig. 4.
Linnaeus. Blocii, pt. ii. pi. 64.

Common Codfish, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. 231.
Codfish, Don. Brit. Fish. pi. 106.

Generic Characters — Body elongated, smooth, compressed towards the tail ;
back furnished with three dorsal fins ; ventral fins pointed ; abdominal line
with two fins behind the anal aperture ; the lower jaw with one barbule at. the
chin ; branchiostegous rays 7.

Baron Cuvier^s first division of liis second order of
fislies, those with flexible fin-rays, and with the ventral fins
attached to the abdomen, being concluded, the soft-finned
fishes of the second division, or those forming his third
order, succeed. These are recognised by having the ventral
fins placed very near the pectorals ; the bones supporting the

* The family of the Codfish.

144

GADI1XE.

former being attached to tlie bones of tlie shoulder support¬
ing the latter : and this disposition of the ventral fins has
been conveniently referred to by the single term subbra-
chial.

This division includes some of the species most valuable
to man as articles of food and commerce ; among which may
be particularly noticed some of those belonging to the first
family, which includes the Common Cod, Haddock, Whit¬
ing, and many others to be hereafter particularly noticed, all
more or less remarkable for the excellence of their flesh,
which is white, firm, separates readily into flakes, is agreeable
to the taste, wholesome, and cheap.

The old genus Gadus of Linneeus included fishes with one,
two, or three dorsal fins, one or two anal fins, with or without
barbules or cirri about the mouth, and of very different forms
of body. These have been separated by Cuvier, whose first
genus includes only those with three dorsal fins, two anal
fins, and one barbule at the chin, as the generic characters
determine.

The Common Cod is not only one of those species most
universally known, but is also one of the greatest intrinsic
value, whether we consider the quality of the fish itself, the
enormous numbers in which it is taken, or the extensive
range over which it exists. In the seas with which Eu¬
ropeans are best acquainted, this fish is found universally
from Iceland very nearly as far south as Gibraltar ; but it
does not exist in the Mediterranean : and on the eastern side
of the American continent, and among its numerous islands,
from the 40th degree of latitude up to 66°, it is even still
more abundant.

In this country it appears to be taken all round the coast :
among the islands to the north and west of Scotland it is
abundant ; most extensive fisheries are carried on : and it

COMMON COO.

145

may be traced as occurring also on the shore of almost every
county in Ireland. In the United Kingdom alone, this
fish, in the catching, the curing, the partial consumption and
sale, supplies employment, food, and profit to thousands of
the human race.

The Codfish is very voracious ; a favourable circumstance
for the fishermen, who experience little difficulty in taking
them with almost any bait whenever a favourable locality is
ascertained. As these fish generally inhabit deep water,
from twenty-five to forty and even fifty fathoms, and feed
near the ground on various small fish, worms, Crustacea* and
testacea, their capture is only attempted with lines and hooks.
Two sorts of lines, adapted for two very different modes of fish¬
ing, are in common use. One mode is by deep sea-lines, call¬
ed buffers, on the Cornish coast : these are long lines, with
hooks fastened at regular distances along their whole length by
shorter and smaller cords called snoods; the snoods are six feet
long each, and placed on the long line twelve feet from each
other, to prevent the hooks becoming entangled. Near the
hooks these shorter lines, or snoods, are formed of separate
threads loosely fastened together, to guard against the teeth of
the fish. Some variations occur at different parts of the coast,
as to the number of hooks attached to the line, as well as in
the length of the snood ; but the distance on the long line
between two snoods is always double the length of the snood
itself. Buoys, buoy-ropes, and anchors or grapples, are
fixed one to each end of the long line ; the hooks are baited
with sandlaunce, limpet, whelk, &c. : the lines are always
laid, or, as it is termed, shot, across the tide ; for if the tide
runs upon the end of the line, it will force the hooks together,
by which the whole tide's fishing is irrecoverably lost : they

* Mr. Couch has taken thirty-five crabs, none less than the size of a half-
crown piece, from the stomach of one Cod.

146

GAD1D.E.

arc deposited generally about the time of slack water, be¬
tween each ebb and flow, and are taken up or hauled for
examination after being left about six hours, or one flood
or ebb.

An improvement upon this more common plan was some
years ago suggested by Mr. Cobb, who was sent to the
Shetlands by the Commissioners appointed for the improve¬
ment of the fisheries. He fixed a small piece of cork within
a certain distance of the hook, about twelve inches, which
suspended and floated the bait so as to prevent its falling on
the ground; by which method the bait was more freely shown
to the fish, by the constant and variable motion produced
upon it by the tide. In the old way, the bait was frequently
hid from the fish by being covered with seaweed, or was
consumed by some of the numerous Star-fish and Crabs that
infest the ground.

The fishermen, when not engaged in shooting, hauling, or
rebaiting the long lines, fish with hand-lines, armed with two
hooks kept apart by a strong piece of wire : each fisherman
manages two lines, holding one line in each hand ; a heavy
weight is attached to the lower end of the line not far from
the hooks, to keep the bait down near the ground, where the
fish principally feed. These two modes of line-fishing are
practised to a great extent nearly all round the coast ; and
enormous quantities of Cod, Haddock, Whiting, Coalfish,
Pollack, Hake, Ling, Torsk, and all the various flat-fish,
usually called by the general name of whitefish, are taken.
Of Codfish alone, the number taken in one day is very con¬
siderable ; from four hundred to five hundred and fifty fish
have been caught on the banks of Newfoundland in ten or
eleven hours by one man ; and a master of fishing-vessels
trading for the London market told me that eight men,
fishing under his orders off the Dogger Bank, in twenty-five

COMMON COD.

147

fathoms water, have taken eighty score of Cod in one day.
These are brought to Gravesend in stout cutter-rigged ves¬
sels of eighty or one hundred tons burthen, called storeboats,
built for this traffic, with a large well in which the fish are
preserved alive ; and of these a portion is sent up to Bil¬
lingsgate market by each night-tide.

Well-boats, for preserving alive the fish taken at sea, came
into use in this country early in the last century. They are
said to have been first built at Harwich about 1712. The
storeboats remain as low down as Gravesend, because the
water there is sufficiently mixed to keep the fish alive : if
they were to come higher up, it would kill them.

A change has lately taken place from the Cod having
shifted their ground. Formerly the Gravesend and Barking
fishermen obtained no Cod nearer than the Orkneys or the
Dogger Bank ; but for the last two or three years the supply
for the London market has been obtained by going no far¬
ther than the Lincolnshire and Norfolk coasts, and even
between that and London, where previously very few fish
could be obtained.

Cod have been kept in salt-water ponds in different parts
of Scotland, and found to maintain their condition unim¬
paired. Of these ponds there are three ; one in Galloway,
another in Fife, and a third in Orkney. That in Galloway
is at Logan, the seat of Colonel M‘Dowall : it is a basin of
thirty feet in depth, and one hundred and sixty in circumfe¬
rence, hewn out from the solid rock, and communicating
with the sea by one of those fissures that are common to
bold and precipitous coasts. A fisherman is attached to
this preserve, whose duty it is constantly to supply the fish
with the necessary quantity of food, which several species
soon learn to take eagerly from the hand. In the course of
the fishing for this daily supply, such fish as are not too

148

GADIDiE.

nnicli injured are placed in the reservoir ; the others are cut
in pieces for food for the prisoners. The whelks, limpets,
and other testacea, are boiled to free them from the shells ;
and no sooner does the keeper or his son appear with the
well-known basket of prepared food, than a hundred mouths
are simultaneously opened to greet the arrival. The Cod¬
fish are the most numerous in this preserve ; one of which
has lived twelve years in confinement, and attained a large
size.

In a natural state the Cod spawns about February; and
nine millions of ova have been found in the roe of one fe¬
male. The Cod is in the greatest perfection as food from
the end of October to Christmas. It may, in fact, be said
of the whole of the family of Gaclidce , that they are in the
best condition for the table during the cold months of the
year. The young of the Cod, about six inches long, abound
at the mouth of the Thames and Medway throughout the
summer : as autumn advances, they gain size and strength,
and are caught from twelve to sixteen inches in length by
lines near the various sandbanks in the Channel. When of
Whiting size, they are called Codlings and Skinners ; and
when larger, Tamlin Cod.

On the coast of Durham and Northumberland, and at the
Isle of Man, the Cod acquire a dark red or reddish brown
colour ; and are called Red Cod, Ware Cod, and Red Ware
Cod, when of this particular colour. I saw a considerable
quantity in this state in Berwick market, and have had
others sent to me by Dr. Johnston. Both the varieties of
our Common Cod — for there appears to be two well-marked
varieties — were equally red. This colour is considered to
be the consequence of particular food obtained in certain
localities. At a short distance only from the situations
named, the Codfish are of the usual ash-green colour.

COMMON COD.

149

The largest Codfish I have a record of weighed sixty
pounds, was caught in the Bristol Channel, and produced
five shillings : it was considered cheap there at one penny
the pound. Pennant, however, states that a Codfish of
seventy-eight pounds*1 weight was caught at Scarborough, and
sold for one shilling.

There appears to be two well-marked varieties of the
Common Cod ; one with a sharp nose, elongated before the
eye, and the body of a very dark brown colour, which is
usually called the Dogger Bank Cod. This variety prevails
also along our southern coast. The other variety has a
round blunt nose, short and wide before the eyes, and the
body of light yellowish ash-green colour, and is frequently
called the Scotch Cod. Both sorts have the lateral line white.
I believe the distinction of more southern and northern Cod
to be tenable, and that the blunt-headed lighter-coloured
fish does not range so far south as the sharper-nosed dark
fish. In this view I may quote the authority of Dr. Mit¬
chell, who, in his paper on the Fishes of New York, says of
the broad-nosed fish, “ We get him, however, only in the
cool season, for the summer temperature of our waters kills
him : he is, therefore, only found here between November
and April/" Our fishermen now finding plenty of Codfish
much nearer home, the London shops for the last year or
two have only now and then exhibited specimens of the
short-nosed northern Cod : both varieties are equally good
in quality, and both are frequently taken on the same
ground.

The length of the specimen described was three feet, and
the weight about twelve pounds. The length of the head
compared to the length of the body alone, without the cau¬
dal rays, is as one to two and a half ; the depth of the body
equal to the length of the head : the first dorsal fin com-

150

GADID/E.

mences in a vertical line just behind the origin of the pecto¬
rals; the second dorsal commences in a line over the anal
aperture, and ends on the same plane as the first anal fin ;
the third dorsal fin and the second anal fin begin and finish
on the same plane : the tail nearly square ; all the rays of
the fins covered with an extension of the shin of the body.

The fin-rays in number arc —

D. 10. 20. 18 : P. 20 : V. 6 : A. 20. 16 : C. 26. Vertebrae 50.

The head is large ; the belly tumid and soft ; the body
tapering gradually throughout the latter half ; the cavity of
the abdomen extended internally behind the anal aperture,
the intestine being recurved : the upper part of the head,
cheeks, back, and sides, mottled and spotted with greenish
ash ; the belly white ; the lateral line white, broadest along
the posterior half ; all the fins dusky, the first and second
dorsal being rather lighter in colour than the rest : a broad
band of short teeth on the upper jaw, which is the longest,
and on the anterior part of the vomer ; a narrower band on
the lower jaw, with one elongated barbule at the chin : the
irides silvery, the pupil blue ; the breadth of the orbit one-
sixth of the length of the head.

The vignette represents a Scheveling fish-cart.

DORSE.

151

SUBBR ACTUAL

MALACOPTER YG 1 1. GADIDJE.

THE DORSE,

OR VA R I A RLE COD.

Cuvier, Regne An. t. ii. p. 332.

Flem. Brit. An. p. 191.

Willuciiby, p. 172, L. 1 , fig. 1.

Linnaeus. Bloch, pt. ii. pi. 63.

Berkenhout, Syn. edit. 1795, p. 67, sp. 2.

Variable Cod, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. 239.

The authority upon which this species was originally
introduced into the catalogue of British fishes seems now to
be questionable. Neither Berkenhout nor the naturalists
who have followed him, in including the name of it, appear to
have seen any British example ; and Dr. Fleming, who from
his northern locality was the most likely to have seen speci¬
mens, mentions it only on the authority of others, and does
not number it in his series of species.

It appears to be a fish well known in the Baltic, and fre¬
quently called the Baltic Cod. It is included by Professor
Nilsson in his Fishes of Scandinavia, and seems to be fully
entitled to one of its names, that of Variable Cod, four

Morrhua

calla

9 9

9 9

99

9 9

Gadus

9 9

9 9

19

J9

9 9

152

G A I) I D.E.

northern varieties appearing to be well known, which are
each distinguished there by a particular term referring to
peculiarities in the colouring. It spawns in March and
April.

The last published description of this species that I am
acquainted with, and most likely to have been taken from
the fish itself, is that by M. Nilsson, before referred to ; and
it is here given rather than multiply in print any well-known
description of older date. I have never seen a specimen of
the fish.

“ Body elongated, subventricose ; head, back, and sides,
more or less spotted ; lateral line white, bent ; tail square ;
upper jaw much the longer ; snout prominent, sharp ; under
jaw only half as long as the head, and ending on a line half¬
way between the nose and the eye.11

The fin-rays in number are —

D. 15. 18. 20. : P. 20 : V. 6 : A. 19. 18. : C. 24.

Length from twelve to twenty-four inches.

HADDOCK.

153

SUBBRACHIAL

MALACOPTERYGIL GA D I DTE.

THE HADDOCK.

Morrhua (Bglejinus, Cuvier, Regne An. t. ii. p. 331.

,, ,, Haddock, Flem. Brit. An. p. 191, sp. 77.

,, ,, Hadock, Willughby, p. 170, L. 2.

Gadus ,, Linnjeus. Bloch, pt. ii. pi. 62.

,, ,, Hadock, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. 241.

,, ,, Haddock, Don. Brit. Fish. pi. 59.

The Haddock is almost as well known as tlie Common
Cod ; and from the quantity taken at numerous localities
round the coast, and the facility with which the flesh can
be preserved, it is a fish of considerable value. Besides
frequenting the coast of Great Britain, from the extreme
north to the Land's End, the Haddock may be traced nearly
all round the shores of Ireland ; and the largest examples
have been taken in Dublin Bay and off the Nymph Bank.
Though ranging over a considerable space both north and
south of the geographical situation of this country, the Had¬
dock does not exist either in the Baltic or in the Mediter¬
ranean.

Haddocks swim in immense shoals, but are uncertain as to

VOL. II.

M

154

G AD IDF,.

their appearance in places that had been formerly visited,
and they arc prone to change their ground after having
arrived. The enormous consumption of food even in a short
space of time, when the number of mouths is considered,
may be one powerful reason for seeking new localities.
They are probably more abundant along our eastern .coast,
from Yarmouth to the Tyne, than elsewhere. There they
are caught with long-lines and hand-lines, and the most
attractive baits are pieces cut from the Herring or Sand-
launce. Along our southern shore, where the trawl-net is
constantly in use, the Haddock, feeding near the bottom, is
frequently taken in the trawl. The most common weight
of a Haddock is from two to four pounds. I have seen
Haddocks of ten pounds' weight in the London market ;
the Brixham trawling -ground has produced Haddock of
fourteen pounds ; but the largest seen for some years past
weighed sixteen pounds, and was taken in Dublin Bay.

Haddocks spawn in February and March, and the young
are six inches long by the beginning of September. When
kept in confinement in the salt water preserve referred to in
the account of the Common Cod, the Haddocks were found
to be the tamest fishes in the pond, and took limpets one
after another from the hand. Their food is small fish, and
almost any of the inferior animals of the deep, even the
spiny Aphrodita. They are in the best condition for the
table during the last three months of the year.

The French fishermen call the Haddock, Hadot , whence
probably our name was derived.

Pennant says, 44 Our countryman Turner suggested that
the Haddock was the Ottos or Asinus of the ancients. Dif¬
ferent reasons have been assigned for giving this name to the
species, some imagining it to be from the colour of the fish,
others because it used to be carried on the backs of asses to

HADDOCK.

155

market."11 A different reason appears to me more likely to
have suggested the name : the dark mark on the shoulder
of the Haddock very frequently extends over the back and
unites with the patch of the shoulder on the other side, for¬
cibly reminding the observer of the dark stripe over the
withers of the ass ; and the superstition that assigns the mark
in the Haddock to the impression St. Peter left with his
finger and thumb when he took the tribute-money out of
a fish of this species, which has been continued to the whole
race of Haddocks ever since the miracle, may possibly have
had reference, or even its origin, in the obvious similarity of
this mark on the same part of the body of the Haddock and
of the humble animal which had borne the Christian Saviour.
That the reference to St. Peter is gratuitous, is shown by the
fact that the Haddock does not exist in the sea of the coun¬
try where the miracle was performed.

The length of the specimen described was twenty inches.
The length of the head compared to the length of the body,
without including the caudal rays, is as one to two and a
half ; the depth of the body less than the length of the head :
the first dorsal fin commences in a line over the origin of the
pectorals ; the second dorsal fin begins in a line over the
anal aperture, and ends nearly on the same plane with the
first anal fin ; the third dorsal fin, and the second anal fin,
commence nearly on the same plane, but the base of the
first is longer than that of the second : the caudal rays rather
long, and the tail slightly forked. The fin-rays in number
are —

D. 15. 21. 19. : P. 18 : V. 6 : A. 24. 8. : C. 25. Vertebrae 54.

The head slopes suddenly from the crown to the point of
the nose ; the upper jaw much longer than the lower; the
nose projecting beyond the opening of the mouth, which is

m 2

156

GADJD/E.

small ; a broad band of short teeth on the superior maxillary
bones, and a patch of teeth also, of the same character, on
the most anterior part of the vomer ; lower jaw furnished
with a narrow band of teeth : the barbule at the chin small :
the eye large ; the diameter of the orbit more than one-fourth
of the whole length of the head ; the irides silvery ; the
pupil large, somewhat angular in form, and blue : the head,
cheeks, back, and upper part of the sides, dull greyish white ;
lower part of the sides and belly almost white, slightly mot¬
tled with grey ; the body covered with small scales ; the la¬
teral line strongly marked and black ; under the middle of
the first dorsal fin, but below the lateral line, a black patch,
which in many specimens extends over the back and unites
with the mark on the other side ; the dorsal fins and tail
dusky bluish grey ; pectoral, ventral, and anal fins lighter.

Bin, POUT, AND WHITING POUT.

157

SUBBRACHIAL

MALACOPTERYG IT. GADIDtf.

THE BIB, POUT, AND WHITING POUT.

smeltie, Zetland. — kleg, Scarborough. — blens and
blinds, Devonshire and Cornwall.

Morrhua lusca, Bib, Flem. Brit. An. p. 191, sp. 78.

,, barbata, Pout, Flem. ,, ,, ,, sp. 79.

Asellus luscus, Bib &; Blinds, Willughby, p. 169.

,, barbatus, Whiting Pout, Willughby, App. 22, L. 4.

Gadus luscus, Linnaeus.

,, barbatus, Linnjeus. Bloch, pt. v. pi. 166.

,, luscus Bib, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. 247, pi. 34.

,, barbatus, Pout, Penn. ,, ,, ,, p. 246.

,, luscus, Bib, Don. Brit. Fish. pi. 19.

The systematic terms which refer to the Bib and Pout
are here brought together in the belief that they are but
different names for the same fish.

Willughby, in his Ichthyology, page 169, first described
his Asellus luscus , under its Cornish names of Bib and Blinds.
Ray, in his Appendix to Willughby'’ s work, which he edited,
admitted from Martin Lister, as a species, the Whiting
Pout of the London market, not aware that it was the same

158

GADIIXE.

fish as the Bib of Cornwall, which had been already included
and described by Willughby himself. Ray continued them
as distinct in his own Synopsis, and was followed by Artedi,
Linnseus, and others. Bloch, however, and Lacepede have
not admitted either in their works ; and Pennant, though
he gave each fish a place in his British Zoology, was
inclined to consider them identical. The excellent figure
of the fish given by Ray in Willugliby’s work, plate L. 4,
the possession of specimens obtained from various localities
between Berwick Bay on the north-east, and Devonshire in
the south-west, and these compared with drawings by Mr.
Couch of the Bib of Cornwall, leave no doubt that the
/use us and barbatus of authors are the same fish.

The Bib or Pout, though not abundant, is yet a well-
known species, which is found on many parts of our coast,
particularly those that are rocky. Northward it appears to
range as far as Greenland ; and is caught on the coasts of
Norway and Sweden. It is taken at Zetland and in the Forth.

1 have received specimens from Dr. Johnston, taken at Ber¬
wick ; and it occurs on the coast of Norfolk. It is common
about the mouth of the Thames ; and on the Dutch as well
as the French coast. Along our southern shore as far west
as Devonshire, it is very commonly taken in the trawl-nets ;
but on the rocky coast of Cornwall it is caught by a baited
hook. It has been taken on the coast of Carnarvonshire, at
Dublin, at Belfast, and Loch Foyle ; and I have no doubt
may be found all round the coast.

From a dark spot at the origin of the pectoral fin, in which
it resembles the Whiting, one of its most common names is
Whiting Pout ; and from a singular power of inflating a
membrane which covers the eyes and other parts about the
head, which, when thus distended, have the appearance of

BIB, POUT, AND WHITING POUT.

159

bladders, it is called Pout, Bib,* Blens,* and Blinds.*
The flesh is excellent ; and, like most of the other fishes of
this family, it is in the best condition for the table in No¬
vember and December. Its food is small fish and the vari¬
ous animals allied to the shrimps. It is most frequently
caught in spring, because it then approaches the shore for
the purpose of spawning. The largest specimen I have seen
measured in length sixteen inches.

The length of the head is to the whole length of the fish
as one to four ; the depth of the body is greater than the
length of the head, and compared to the whole length of the
fish as one to three and a half : the first dorsal fin commences
in a vertical line a little behind the origin of the pectoral
fin ; the longest ray longer than the base of the fin : the rays
of the second dorsal fin are short ; the base of it as long again
as the base of the first dorsal fin, and ending nearly on the
same plane as the first anal fin : the base of the third dorsal
fin is nearly as short as that of the first dorsal, commencing
and ending on the same plane with the second anal fin, and
both are similarly truncated. The ventral fins are consider¬
ably in advance of the line of the origin of the pectorals ;
the first two rays elongated, and divided at the ends : the
anal aperture is in a line under the origin of the pectoral
fins, but the cavity containing the intestines extends much
farther back ; the first anal fin commences nearly in a line
with the beginning of the first dorsal, and ends on a line
with the ending of the second dorsal ; the rays forming the
middle portion of the fin the longest, the others declining in
length towards each extremity : the second anal fin, as before
mentioned, in extent of base and form like the third dorsal :

* Probably derived from Bleb and Blain, two old words meaning a blister
or a bubble in the water.

160

GADIDvE.

the tail long, the end of the rays nearly square. The num¬
ber of fin-rays: —

D. 11. 20. 16. : P. 18 : V. 6 : A. 33. 19. : C. 21. Vertebrae 48.

In the tails of the fishes of this family there are many
short rays which are not counted, being outside the longest
ray above and below.

In form the Whiting Pout is the deepest for its length of
the British Gadidue : the upper jaw is the longest ; the band
of teeth of several rows, those forming the outer row the
largest ; under jaw with a single row ; the barbule at the chin
rather long ; various mucous pores about both jaws : the eyes
large ; the orbits covered with a loose membrane which the
fish has the power of distending ; the diameter of the eye
equal to one-third of the length of the head ; the irides
orange colour : the dorsal and abdominal lines exhibit con¬
siderable convexity ; the body tapers rapidly from the line of
the ending of the second dorsal and first anal fins : the colour
of the head, back, and upper part of the sides, a yellow
reddish brown, becoming lighter on the belly, and tinged in
places with bluish grey ; at the base of the pectoral fins a
black spot : scales small and deciduous : posterior half of the
lateral line straight, then rising in a curve over the pectoral
fin ; all the fins, except the ventrals, dusky brown ; the ven-
trals nearly white ; the first anal fin in large-sized specimens
edged with fine blue.

161

1*0011, OR POWER COO.

SUBBRACHIAL

MALACOPTERYGIJ. G ADIDAS.

THE POOR, OR POWER COD.

Morrhua minuta, Poor, Flem. Brit. An. p. 191, sp. 80.

Gadus minutus, Linnaeus. Bloch, pt. ii. pi. 67, fig. 1.

,, ,, Power, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p.'249, pi. 34.

,, ,, Willughby, p. 171.

,, ,, Ray, Syn. p. 163, fig. 6.

The Poor, or Power Cod, though somewhat similar
in general appearance to the Pout last described, is yet
readily to be distinguished from it by several well-marked
characters. It is not so deep when of the same length ; the
first anal fin does not begin so far forward as in the Pout by
nearly the whole length of the base of the first dorsal fin ; the
longest rays of the third dorsal fin and the second anal fin are
shorter than the bases of the respective fins, and do not,
therefore, produce the same vertically truncated appearance
as in the same relative fins of the Pout ; and the barbule at
the chin is much shorter.

The Power, or Poor Cod, the smallest of its genus, so
called, it is said, on account of its diminutive size, seldom

1 62

GADID.E.

exceeding six or seven inches in length, and therefore com¬
paratively of little value, was first described as an English
fish by Dr. Jago, of Cornwall, and was introduced by Ray
at the end of his Synopsis, with a figure which particularly
exhibits the specific distinctions afforded by the form and
situation of the fins, which has been already adverted to, and
by which it may be immediately recognised.

Bloch says that the appearance of this fish in the Baltic is
a source of pleasure to the fishermen. It is called the fish-
conductor ; and excites great hopes of a rich harvest among
the larger species of the genus, the Cod, and others, which
follow in the rear, preying relentlessly on their more diminu¬
tive generic companions : the fishermen in their turn prey
upon them.

Mr. Couch says it frequents the edges of rocks, is caught
by the hook, and, though always good for the table, is, on
account of its small size, chiefly used for bait. Montagu
says it is taken frequently on the Devonshire coast with the
hook, and also in the crab-pots. In the nets worked on that
coast it is caught along with the Bib, the fishermen selling
both as Whiting Pout.

The length of the head compared to the whole length of
the fish is as one to five ; the depth of the body rather more
than the length of the head : the first dorsal fin begins be¬
hind the line of the origin of the pectorals : the longest ray
as long as the base of the fin : the second dorsal fin begins
and ends on the same planes with the first anal fin ; the base
of the second dorsal fin as long again as the base of the first
dorsal fin ; the base of the third dorsal fin rather more than
half as long as that of the second dorsal ; the third dorsal and
the second anal fins begin and end on the same planes, and
the peculiarity of their forms has been referred to. The
vent, or anal aperture, is in a line under the most posterior

POOR, OR POWER COD.

163

portion of the first dorsal fin ; the first anal fin begins im¬
mediately behind the vent, and under the commencement of
the second dorsal fin ; the second anal fin has been noticed ;
the tail is long, with the rays slightly forked. The number
of fin-rays : —

D. 12. 19. 17. : P. 14 : V. 6 : A. 25. 17. : C. 18.

The head is short and the nose blunt : the barbule at the
chin neither so long nor so slender as in the Pout ; several
mucous pores about the mouth : the eye large ; the breadth
equal to one-third of the length of the head ; the irides
orange : the scales of the body minute and deciduous ; the
lateral line but slightly curved, and that only where it rises
over the pectoral fin : the upper part of the head and back
brownish yellow, becoming lighter on the cheeks and sides ;
the belly dirty white ; pectoral, dorsal fins, and tail, yellow
brown, darker at the edges ; ventral and anal fins dirty yel¬
lowish white.

164

GADID/E.

SUB BRACHIAL

MALAC0PTERYG11. GADID/E.

THE SPECKLED COD.

Morrhua punctata, Speckled Cod, Flem. Brit. An. p. 192, sp. 81.

Gadus punctatus, ,, ,, Tuuton, Brit. Faun. p. 90, sp. 18.

According to Dr. Turton, the Speckled Cod is frequent¬
ly taken in the weirs at Swansea. The specific characters
are, 44 pale brown with golden spots, beneath white, thickly
covered with minute dusky specks : upper jaw longest.”
The description is, 44 Body eighteen inches long, slightly
arched on the back, a little prominent on the belly, covered
above with numerous gold-yellow roundish spots, beneath
with dusky specks, which are stellate under a glass : head
large, gradually sloping : teeth small ; in several rows in the
upper jaw, in the lower a single row : nostrils double ; iris
reddish, pupil black : chin with a single beard; nape with
a deep longitudinal groove : lateral line nearer the back,
curved as far as the middle of the second dorsal fin, growing-
broader and whiter towards the end : upper fins and tail
brown, with obscure yellowish spots, and darker towards the
end ; lower ones tinged with green : vent near the middle of
the body : scales small ; all of them under a glass minutely
speckled with brown : gill-covers of two pieces. The fin-
rays : —

D. 14. 20. 18. : P. 18 : V. 6 : A. 19. 16 : C. 36.

Of the ventral fin the first ray is shorter than the second, and
divided a little way down : the tail even.1’

44 Differs from G. morrhua in not having the first anal fin-
ray spinous, and in the lower jaw being considerably longer ;
from G. luscus in the first ray of the ventral fin being shorter
than the second ; from G. harhalus in wanting the seven dis-

SPECKLED COD.

165

tinct punctures ou tlie lower jaw, in its small scales, and in
the first dorsal fin not ending in a long fibre ; and from G.
callarius in not being spotted with brown, and in having
the lateral line white.11

No other record of this fish has appeared that I am aware.

Some years since, I obtained from a fisherman at the
mouth of the Thames a fresh-caught example of a species of
morrhua , with the middle dorsal and the first anal fins short ;
the body as deep for its length as the luscus ; the length of
the head compared to the whole length of the fish as one to
three. Among the fishermen it was by some considered to
be an accidental deformity, with injury of the spine, and
their name for it was Lord-fish ; others said it was a fish
which they met with occasionally, and believed it distinct
from any other. A coloured drawing was made at the time,
but the fish was not preserved. The fin-rays were as stated ;
and it will be observed, on comparing the numbers, that they
do not differ very widely from those of the Common Cod.

D. 14. 19. 18. : P. 14 : V. 6 : A. 17. 11. : C. 24.

The figure below is taken from the drawing referred to,
but carefully reduced : upper part of the head, back, and
fins, mottled with two shades of brown ; the sides of the
body lighter ; the belly white ; the lateral line white, arching
high over the pectoral fins : the irides reddish orange

166

GADID.E.

SUBBRACHIAL

MALACOPTERYGII. GAD1DAE.

THE WHITING.

Merlangus vulgaris, Cuvier, Regne An. t. ii. p. 332.

,, ,, Whiting, Flem. Brit. An. p. 195, sp. 91.

,, ,, ,, Willughbv, p. 170. L. 5.

Gadus merlangus, Linnaeus. Bloch, pt. ii. pi. G5.

,, ,, Whiting, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. 255.

,, ,, ,, Don. Brit. Fish. pi. 36.

Generic Characters. — The same as those of Morrhua, except that they have
no barbule at the chin.

The Whiting is well known for the excellence of its
flesh, surpassing in delicacy that of any of the other species
of the valuable family of fishes to which it belongs : the
pearly whiteness of its flaky muscles, added to its extreme
lightness as an article of food, recommend it particularly to
invalids who are unable to digest more solid nutriment.

It is caught in great abundance almost all round our
coast, and may be traced from the Orkneys to Cape Clear.
Whitings of several pounds'' weight have been caught as far
north as the Dogger Bank ; they have been taken also of

WHITING.

167

nearly equal size on tlie coast of Cornwall ; and on the
Nymph Bank, along the extended line of the south coast
of Ireland. In that country they have also been found
on the eastern coast from Waterford to Antrim, and from
thence north and west as far as Lough Foyle.

The fishing for Whiting with lines is pursued nearly all
the year through ; but the fish is most plentiful in the
months of January and February, when it comes in large
shoals towards the shore for the purpose of depositing its
spawn, and is taken in abundance within half a mile, and
seldom exceeding three miles, from land. A much larger
quantity than is consumed while fresh being frequently
taken, a portion is easily preserved either by salting or
drying.

The Whiting is a voracious feeder, and seizes indiscrimi¬
nately any of the mollusca, worms, small Crustacea, and
young fishes. I remember to have taken several Sprats
from the stomach of a Whiting ; and Mr. Couch has known
four full-grown Pilchards taken from the inside of a Whiting
that weighed four pounds. It appears to prefer sandy banks,
but shifts its ground frequently in pursuit of the various fry
of other fishes, upon which it principally subsists.

Though occasionally occurring in the London market of
three or four pounds’ weight, the most usual size is from
twelve to sixteen inches in length, and weighing about one
pound and a half.

The length of the head compared to that of the body
alone is as one to three ; the depth of the body not equal to
the length of the head, or compared to the whole length as
one to six. The first dorsal begins behind the line of the
origin of the pectorals and before the line of the vent ; the
second dorsal and first anal fins end on the same line ; the
third dorsal and second anal fins begin and end on the same

168

G ADI D,E.

plane ; the ventral fins are placed very forward ; tlie second
ray elongated : tlie anal aperture is in a line under tlie mid¬
dle of tlie first dorsal fin ; tlie first anal fin commencing just
behind the vent : the tail elongated ; the end nearly square.
The fin-rays are —

D. 13. 19. 18. : P. 19 : V. 6 : A. 31. 20. : C. 30. Vertebrae 55.

The body of the Whiting, like the bodies of those be¬
longing to this division, is longer for its depth than that of
the Codfish ; the scales small, oval, and deciduous ; the
lateral line dark and straight posteriorly, but rising gradually
throughout the anterior half ; the head elongated ; the mouth
and gape large ; the tongue white and smooth ; the upper
jaw decidedly the longest, with one row of large and sharp-
pointed teeth on the outer edge, and several rows of smaller
ones within ; the vomer with a few teeth arranged in a semi¬
circular line on the anterior part ; the lowrer jaw with various
mucous orifices along the under surface, and a single row of
sharp teeth along the upper outer edge, which, when the
mouth is closed, range within the outer row of teeth on the
upper jaw : the eye in breadth less than one-fourth of the
head, and placed more than its breadth from the end of the
nose ; the irides silvery ; the pupils blue. The upper part
of the head and the back above the lateral line pale reddish
ash brown ; sides and belly silvery white ; pectoral, caudal,
and dorsal fins, pale brown ; ventral and anal fins almost
white ; the pectoral fins each with a decided dark patch at
the base.

SUBBRACHIAL

MALACOPTERYGII.

GA 1)1 DAE.

THE COALFISH.

Merlangus carbonarius, Cuvier, Regne An. t. ii. p. 332.

,, ,, Coalfish, Fiem. Brit. An. p. 195, sp. 93.

,, ,, Colefish, YVillugiiby, p. 168, L. 3.

Gadus ,, ,, Linnaeus. Bloch, pt. ii. pi. 66.

>> ,, Coalfish, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. 250.

,, ,, ,, Don. Brit. Fish. pi. 13.

The Coalfish is most decidedly a northern fish, but,
being a hardy species, is not without considerable range
to the southward. It was the only fish found by Lord
Mulgrave on the shores of Spitzbergcn ; and the fry, only
four or five inches in length, were caught with the trawl-
net on the west coast of Davis’s Straits, during the first
voyage of Captain Sir Edward Parry. It abounds in all
the northern seas and in the Baltic, and may be said to
swarm in the Orkneys, where the fry all the months of
summer and autumn are the great support of the poor.
Dr. Neill, in his tour of the islands of Orkney and Shetland,
saw an old man, and perhaps one or two boys, seated
upon almost every projecting rock, holding in each hand a
wand or fishing-rod, and catching young Coalfish as fast as
they could bait their hooks.

170

G ADID^E.

As an article of food, it is more prized when small
than when of large size. The flesh of specimens weighing
from fifteen to thirty pounds is usually preserved, either
salted or dried.

This fish has more provincial names than any other spe¬
cies, some of which only refer to it when of a particular
size. Among1 the Scotch islands the Coalfish is called
Sillock, Piltock, Cootli or Kuth, Harbin, Cudden, Sethe,
Sey, and Grey-Lord. In Edinburgh and about the Forth
the young are called Podleys ; at Newcastle the fry are
called Coalsey ; and, when twelve inches long, Poodlers.
Many are caught along shore ; and frequently, also, from a
boat rowed gently, the angler using a rod in each hand, and
trailing a fly from each line.

Mr. Couch says, u It is in the highest condition from
October to December, at which season it prowls after prey
in large companies ; so that when met with they prove a
valuable capture to the fishermen : for though but coarse
food, yet being wholesome, substantial, and cheap, they
are eagerly purchased by the poor either fresh or salted.
They swim at no great depth, and with great rapidity ;
but when attracted by bait, will keep near a boat until all
are taken ; and I have known four men with two boats,
two men in each boat, take twenty-four hundred weight
with lines in a very few hours. The season for spawning
is early in spring ; immediately after which this fish becomes
so lank as to be worthless, in which state it continues through
the summer.”

In the Orkneys, according to Mr. Low, the young appear
about May ; in the Tyne, about June ; and on the Cornish
coast in July. The adult fish are called Rauning Pollacks
by the Cornish fishermen : rauning being the ancient and
even the popular modern pronunciation of ravening, used in
reference to voracity.

COALFISH.

171

The Coalfish may be traced on the Irish coast from Wa¬
terford along the eastern shore to Belfast, under the various
names of Black Pollack, Blockin, and Grey-Lord.

When detained and well fed in a salt-water pond, Coal¬
fish acquire large size. “ They were bold and familiar;
floating about slowly and majestically, till some food was
thrown to them ; this they seized voraciously, whether it
consisted of shell-fish or ship-biscuit. They would also
occasionally approach the margin and take food from the
hand — Jesse s Gleanings.

From the point of the lower jaw to the end of the oper¬
culum the length is to that of the body and tail as one to
three and a half ; the depth of the body about equal to the
length of the head : the first dorsal fin begins behind the line
of the origin of the pectoral fin and before the line of the
vent ; the second dorsal and the first anal fins end together
nearly on the same plane ; the third dorsal and second anal
fins nearly parallel : the fleshy portion of the tail elongated ;
the rays forked : the ventral fins small ; and the rays of the
pectoral fin only extending as far as the line of the vent.
The fin-rays are —

D. 11. 20. 20. : P. 19 : V. 6 : A. 24. 19. : C. 32.

The head and body elegantly shaped ; the scales small
and oblong; the lateral line silvery white and nearly straight;
the upper part of the head and the back above the lateral
line almost black ; much lighter in colour below the line,
becoming greyish white with golden reflections on the sides
and belly ; pectoral, caudal, and dorsal fins, bluish black ;
ventral and anal fins greyish white : the upper jaw rather
the shortest ; the lips tinged with purple red ; the mouth
black ; the teeth very small ; the irides silvery white ; the
pupil blue.

n %

172

GAD11LE.

SUBBRACH1AL

MALACOPTERYGII. GAD1DAE.

THE POLLACK.

WHITING POLLACK. LYTHE, Scotland.

Merlangus poltachius, Cuvier, Regne An. t. ii. p. 333.

,, ,, Pollack, Flem. Brit. An. p. 195, sp. 92.

,, ,, Whiting Pollack, Willughby, p. 167.

Gadus ,, Linnaeus. Bloch, pt. ii. pi. 68.

,, ,, Pollack, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. 254.

„ ,, Whiting Pollack, Don. Brit. Fish. pi. 7.

The Pollack is much less abundant on some parts of
the coast than the Coalfish ; but, like that species, is an in¬
habitant of the seas all round our shores. Mr. Low, in his
44 Natural History of the Orkneys,11 says, 44 They are fre¬
quently caught close in with the shore, almost among the
sea-ware, and in deep holes among the rocks. They seem
to be a very frolicsome fish ; and I have been several times
fishing for them when they would keep a constant plashing
in the water. They bite keenly, scarce allowing the hook
to be in the water before one or other jumps at it. They
are better eating than the Coalfish ; but I do not know
whether they are ever dried or preserved otherwise, as the
quantity caught is scarce worth curing.11 Hand-line fishing
for Pollacks is called whiffing.

POLLACK.

173

This fish is called Lythe in Scotland, as already quoted ;
but whether this term is intended to refer to its supple,
pliant activity, or is derived from lithos , a stone, from its
living among rocks, I have not seen stated. Fine speci¬
mens of the Pollack are taken about the rocky coast of
Scarborough, where they are called Leets.

The Pollack is caught at Hastings and Weymouth.
Colonel Montagu says it is frequently taken in Devonshire,
where it is bought by the inexperienced as Whiting. When
only twelve or fourteen inches long, the flesh possesses a
considerable portion of the pearly appearance and delicacy
of that fish.

Mr. Couch says, “ The Pollack is at all seasons one of
our most common fishes, but it is not gregarious except
in pursuit of prey ; and it rarely wanders far from its usual
haunts, which are along the edges of rocks, where, with the
head directed towards the coming tide, it is ready for any
prey that approaches. The smaller ones, which occupy such
a station covered with oreweed, have their colours very
bright, and the belly of a saffron yellow ; while on clean
ground they are less brilliant. In summer evenings, they
are often seen eager in pursuit of the Sandlaunce, frequently
spring from their element, and are often taken by anglers
from the rocks and piers. The Pollack spawns in winter
near the land ; and the young abound near the edge of the
tide in rocky ground at the beginning of summer.”

In Ireland, the Pollack may be traced as occurring on
the coast of the counties of Cork, Waterford, Dublin, An¬
trim, Londonderry, and Donegal, under the names of Pol¬
lack, Laith, and Lythe.

The length of the head compared to that of the body is as
one to three and a half ; the depth of the body is to the
whole length of the fish as one to four and a half : the first

174

G ABIDE.

dorsal fin begins, as in the Coalfish, behind the line of the
origin of the pectoral fin, and before the line of the situation
of the vent ; the second dorsal fin and the first anal fin end
on the same line ; the third dorsal fin and the second anal
fin begin and end very nearly on the same plane ; the first
ray of each of the dorsal fins the longest ; the ventral fin
very small ; the anal aperture in a line under the middle of
the first dorsal fin ; the fleshy portion of the tail long and
slender ; the end of the rays concave. The fin-rays in num¬
ber are —

D. 12. 19. 15. : P. 19 : V. 6 : A. 24. 16 : C. 31.

The lower jaw is much the longest ; the mouth and lips
red, with various mucous orifices about them ; the irides sil¬
very ; the sclerotic coat cartilaginous ; the upper angle of
the operculum produced ; the body elongated ; the upper
part of the head and the back above the lateral line olive
brown ; the sides dull silvery white mottled with yellow, and
in young fish spotted with dull red ; the lateral line dusky,
curved over the length of the pectoral fin, then descending
and passing in a straight line to the tail ; the dorsal fins and
tail brown ; the pectoral and anal fins brown edged and
tinged with reddish orange.

GREEN COD.

175

SUBBRACH 1AL

MALACOPTERYG1I. GAD1DJE.

THE GREEN COD.

Merlangus virens, Cuvier, Regne An. t. ii. p. 33.

,, ,, Feem. Brit. An. p. 195, sp. 94.

Cadus ,, Linn/eus.

,, ,, Green Cod, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. 253.

The Green Cod was first added to the catalogue of
British Fishes by Pennant, on the authority of Sir Robert
Cullum, Bart. ; and if a distinct species, which some have
doubted, it is not only abundant, but has an extensive
range.

It is mentioned as an inhabitant of the northern seas bv

J

Linnaeus and others, and is included in the recently pub¬
lished works of Professors Nilsson and Reinhardt, who have
devoted particular attention to the fishes of Scandinavia.
Dr. Neill says it is taken in the Frith of Forth during
summer ; and Mr. Couch obtains it on the Cornish coast of
eight or ten inches in length.

This fish is by some considered as the young of the Coal-
fish, and by others as the young of the Pollack. It appears,
however, to be decidedly distinct from the Pollack, in hav-

176

GADID.E.

ing its jaws nearly equal in length : in the Pollack the
under jaw is by much the longest ; the lateral line in the
Green Cod is straight, in the Pollack the lateral line is
curved over the whole length of the pectoral fin. Mr.
Couch, in his MS. considers the Green Cod as the young of
the Coalfish, with which it certainly agrees in both the par¬
ticulars in which it differs from the Pollack, but differs also
decidedly in colour from the Coalfish. It seems to combine
in itself the colouring of the Pollack with some of the pecu¬
liarities of the Coalfish, but appears also to be deeper for its
length than either; though if the young of a large species,
judging by analogy, that would not be the case.

Following the example of the Northern naturalists, who
have opportunities of making constant comparison between
this fish and the Coalfish from the abundance of both, and
who have hitherto considered them distinct, the Green Cod
is here allowed a separate place. The figure is from a draw¬
ing by Mr. Couch, whose opinion is entitled to attention ;
and the subject invites the investigation of those who are so
located as to be able to obtain specimens of both.

Not possessing a specimen, the description here given is
derived from the Prodromus of M. Nilsson. The under
jaw scarcely longer than the upper : the tail deeply forked ;
the lateral line straight, white ; the colour of the back dark
green, passing by degrees into silvery grey on the sides.

From six to twelve inches is the usual size allowed to the
Green Cod ; M. Nilsson gives it a length from two to three
feet, and adds that it spawns in winter.

The number of fin-rays as given by Linnaeus : —

D. 13. 20. 19. : P. 17 : V. 6 : A. 24. 20. : C. 40.

Dr. Fleming adds, “ Teetli in the upper jaw, numerous,
strong.’11

HAKE.

177

SUBBRACU IAL

MALACOPTERYCIL GADIDJE.

THE HAKE.

Cuvier, Regne An. t. ii. p.333.

Common Hake, Flem. Brit. An. p. 195, sp. 95.

The Hake, Willughby, p. 174.

Linn/eus. Bloch, pt. v. pi. 164.

Hake, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. 257.

,, Don. Brit. Fish. pi. 28.

Generic Characters. — The head flattened ; the body elongated ; the back fur¬
nished with two dorsal fins ; the first short, the second long ; but one anal
fin, also very long ; no barbule at the chin.

Merlucius vulgaris,

yy yy

Gadus merlucius,

y » yy

yy yy

The Hake is another of the species belonging to this
large and valuable family of fishes, which has an extensive
range, being found in the seas of the North of Europe, and
also in the Mediterranean.

Though inhabiting the seas of the western coast of Nor¬
way, and included by Linnaeus in his Fauna Suecica , Dr.
Fleming says it is rare in Scotland ; and it appears to be
most abundant along the southern coast of England. Ports¬
mouth market receives an abundant supply, which is brought
by fishing-boats from the Devonshire coast ; and Montagu
says there is also an abundance in the market of Plymouth.

According to Mr. Couch, “ The Hake is a roving fish

178

G A DID/E.

on tlie Cornish coast, without much regularity in its move¬
ments. From January to April, which is its season for
spawning, it keeps near the bottom, and loses the great
voracity by which it is characterised at other times, so that
multitudes of them are caught in trawls, and but few with
a line ; but, when Pilchards approach the shores, it follows
them, continuing in incalculable numbers through the win¬
ter. It rarely happens that Pilchards are taken in a sean
without many Hakes being enclosed with them ; and thus,
when the net remains in the water for several days, they
have an opportunity of glutting themselves to their heart’s
desire, which is to such an extent as to render them helpless,
and I have seen seventeen Pilchards taken from the stomach
of a Hake of ordinary size. Their digestion, however, is
quick, so that they speedily get rid of their load ; and fisher¬
men observe that, when hooked, the Hake presently evacu¬
ates the contents of the stomach to facilitate its escape ; so
that when hundreds are taken with a line, in the midst of
prey, not one will have anything in its stomach : when near
the surface, however, this rejection does not take place
until after they are dragged on board.”

The Hake may be traced nearly all round the coast of
Ireland ; and is so abundant in the Bay of Galway, that,
according to a recent writer, this bay is named in some
ancient maps the Bay of Hakes. On that part of the
Nymph Bank off the coast of Waterford, this fish is also
so plentiful, that one thousand have been taken by six men
with lines in one night. It is a voracious fish, as its sys¬
tematic name of merlucius , Seapike, implies. It is a coarse
fish, not admitted at the tables of the wealthy ; but large
quantities are annually preserved both by salting and drying,
part of which are exported to Spain.

The Hake is very common on the northern shore of the

179

HAKE.

Mediterranean, and considerable traffic is carried on with
this fish : they are packed with aromatic plants, and sent
to the towns removed from the coast. The Hake is de¬
scribed and figured by Rondeletius, and was known to the
older naturalists before him.

A Hake of three feet eight inches long in the shop of
a London fishmonger, in May 1835, supplied the means
of obtaining the following particulars. The length of the
head, compared to the length of the body alone, as one
to three ; the depth of the body not so great as the length
of the head : the ventral fins are placed in advance of the
pectorals ; the rays not unequally elongated : the pectoral
fins commence in a line under the posterior angle of the
operculum ; the rays ending with the end of the first dorsal
fin : the first dorsal fin itself short and triangular in shape ;
the second dorsal fin commences in a line over the vent ;
the anal fin begins immediately behind the vent ; both the
second dorsal fin and the anal fin terminate on the same
plane, near the tail ; the rays strong and stiff : the caudal
rays about three inches long, and nearly even. The fin-rays
in number are —

D. 10. 29. : P. 11 : V. 7 : A. 21 : C. 19.

The head is depressed : the inside of the mouth and
gill-covers black ; lower jaw the longest ; teeth slender and
sharp, in a single row in each jaw : the irides yellow with
a dark outer circle. The lateral line of the body straight
throughout the posterior half, then gradually rising to the
upper edge of the operculum ; the appearance of the lateral
line is that of one white line between two dark ones : the
scales large ; colour of the body dusky brown above, lighter
beneath ; dorsal and caudal fins dark ; ventral and anal
fins pale brown.

180

G ABIDE.

SUBBRACHIAL

MALACOPTERYGII. GADTD/E.

THE LING.

Lota molva, Cuvier, Regne An. t. ii. p. 333.

Asellus longus, Willughby, p. 175, L. 2.

Gadus molva, Linnaeus. Bloch, pt. ii. pi. 69.

,, ,, Ling, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p.262.

,, ,, ,, Don. Brit. Fish. pi. 102.

Molva vulgaris, Common Ling, Flem. Brit. An. p. 192, sp. 82.

Generic Characters. — In addition to the elongated body, with two dorsal fins
and one anal fin, possessed by the species of Merlucius last described, may be
added, chin with one or more barbules.

The Ling is a very valuable species, scarcely less so
than tlie Coalfisli or the Cod. Large quantities are taken
among the Western Islands, in the Orkneys, and on the
Yorkshire coast; in Cornwall, and the Seilly Islands;
and may be traced nearly all round the Irish coast.
The fishing for them is by hand-lines and long-lines ;
and besides a portion that is consumed fresh, the fish are
split from head to tail, cleaned, salted in brine, washed,
and dried : but the demand generally falls short of the
quantity cured, and the hardy fishermen are but poorly
requited. The ports of Spain are the markets supplied;
and so valuable an article of commerce was Ling considered
formerly, that an act for regulating the price of Ling, Cod,
&c. was passed as early as the reign of Edward the Third.

LING.

181

The air-bladders, popularly called Sounds, are prepared
separately, and, with those of the Codfish, are sold pickled.
The roes, which are of large size, are also used as food, or,
preserved in brine, are sold to be employed to attract fish.
Another produce of the Ling is the oil extracted from the
liver, which is used by the poor to supply the cottage lamp ;
and as a medicine, Mr. Couch says, which those who have
been able to overcome the repugnance arising from its nau¬
seous smell and taste, have found effectual in severe cases
of rheumatism, when taken in small beer in doses of from
half an ounce to an ounce and a half. Formerly from fifty
to sixty gallons of this oil, and that from the liver of the
Codfish, were dispensed in one large establishment for this
purpose, and it was found to act best when the perspiration
was increased. The exudation from the skin of those to
whom it was administered always became strongly tainted
with it *

In Zetland, the principal fishing for Ling is from May to
August. On the Yorkshire coast, the young are called
Drizzles. In Cornwall they are caught in January and
February, and their favourite haunts are about the margins
of the rocky valleys of the ocean. The Ling is exceedingly
prolific, and of most voracious appetite, feeding on young
fish, not sparing anything that has life, and the prey is
swallowed whole, so that no great art is required to catch it.
It is tenacious of life, and survives great injury. 44 1 once,’'’
says Mr. Couch, 44 saw a Ling that had swallowed the usual
large hook, shaft foremost, of which the point had fixed in
the stomach, and as the line drew it, it turned round, en¬
tered the opposite side of the stomach, and fastened the
organ together in complicated folds ; yet having escaped by

* Memoirs of the Literary and Philosophical Society of Manchester, vol. iii ,
and Dr. Bardsley’s Medical Reports, 8vo. 1807, p. 18.

182

GADID/E.

breaking the line, it survived to swallow another hook and
be taken several days after. ^

The most usual length of the Ling is from three to four
feet ; Pennant mentions having heard of one which mea¬
sured seven feet ; and Mr. Couch has known them weigh
seventy pounds.

Not having an opportunity of describing from a specimen,
I copy, by permission, the description of the Rev. Mr.
Jenyns, as given in his Manual of the British Vertebrata,
page 458, species 133.

44 Body slender, more elongated than that of the Hake ;
roundish : head flat : gape large : lower jaw shorter than the
upper, with a single barbule at its extremity : teeth in the
upper jaw small, and very numerous ; those in the lower
jaw longer and larger, forming but a single row : lateral
line straight : scales small, firmly adhering to the skin : two
dorsal fins of equal height ; the first short, commencing
near the head, not pointed as in the Hake, but with most
of the rays even ; second long, immediately behind the first,
reaching nearly to the caudal ; the posterior portion the
most elevated : vent in a line with the eighth or ninth ray
of the second dorsal fin : anal fin immediately behind it,
long, resembling the second dorsal fin, and terminating on
the same line with it : caudal rounded at the extremity.

44 The fin-rays are —

D. 15. 65. : P. 15 : V. 6 : A. 97 : C. 39.

44 The back and sides grey, inclining to olive ; sometimes
cinereous, without the olivaceous tinge ; belly silvery : ven-
trals white ; dorsal and anal edged with ivhite ; caudal
marked near the end with a transverse black bar; the ex¬
treme tip white.

BURBOT.

183

SUBBRACHIAL

MALACOPTERYGII. GAD1BJE .

THE BURBOT.

EELTOUT. BURBOLT.

Lota vulgaris, Burbot, Jenyns, Man. Brit. Vert. p. 448, sp. 134.

,, ,, Cuvier, Regne An. t. ii. p. 334.

,, ,, Willughby, 125.

Gadus lota, Linnaeus. Bloch, pt. ii. pi. 70.

,, ,, Burbot, Penn. Brit. Zool. p. 265.

,, ,, ,, Don. Brit. Fish. pi. 92.

Molva ,, ,, Flem. Brit. An. p. 192, sp. 83.

The Burbot is the only British species of this numerous
family of fishes that lives permanently in fresh water, and
prefers in this country slow running rivers ; but is neither
so generally known, nor so much esteemed and encouraged, as
from the goodness of its flesh it deserves. It is said to be
found in various parts of the North of Europe, Siberia, Asia,
and India. In this country it is rather local. It occurs in
the Cam, and in some of the rivers of Norfolk and Lin¬
colnshire. The Trent produces it, and Nottingham market
is occasionally supplied with examples for sale. The Tame
is said to contain the Burbot, and so also do several rivers
in the counties of Yorkshire and Durham ; as the Ouse, the

184

GADIDJE.

Esk, the Skern, near Mainsforth, which afterwards runs into
the Tees near Croft Bridge, and the Derwent.

The Burbot is not unlike the Eel in some of its habits,
concealing itself under stones, waiting and watching for its
prey, consisting of aquatic insects and young fish, under
arches and near eddies, into which such small and weak
animals are likely to be brought by the current of the water.
It feeds principally during the night; and, like the Eel, is
most frequently caught by trimmers and night-lines.

The Burbot is sometimes called Coney-fish, from its habit
of lurking and hiding itself in holes like a rabbit.

It spawns in February or March ; is very tenacious of
life, and is said to have lived a considerable time in a
damp and cold situation, fed on small fishes and raw meat.
In this country it has been known to attain the weight of
four pounds and a half ; but a more common size is about
two pounds’ weight. Pennant mentions one taken in the
Trent which weighed eight pounds. In the Lake of
Geneva, into which it is stated the Burbot was introduced
from Neufchatel, it has been taken of seven pounds’ weight.
The flesh is white, firm, and of good flavour, by some con¬
sidered superior to that of the Eel ; and as the Burbot is in
its nature extremely hardy, few difficulties present them¬
selves in the way of their increase in quantity, while the
value of the fish would amply repay the trouble or the cost
of the experiment. It would probably thrive well and
multiply in large lakes.

Length from one to two feet : the head depressed, smooth ;
jaws equal ; chin with one barbule ; the gape large, with
small teeth above and below ; eyes of moderate size ; gill¬
opening large : the length of the head compared to that of
the body as one to four : the form of the body cylindrical,
compressed posteriorly. The first dorsal fin is small and

BURBOT.

185

rounded ; the second elongated, reaching nearly to the tail ;
both dorsal fins nearly uniform in height : ventral fins placed
very forward, narrow and pointed ; the pectoral fins large
and rounded ; the anal fin begins on a line behind the
commencement of the second dorsal fin, but ends very nearly
on the same plane : the tail oval, and slightly pointed. The
fin-rays in number are —

D. 14. 68. : P. 20 : V. 6 : A. 67 : C. 36.

The colour of the body yellowish brown, clouded and
spotted with darker brown, and covered with a mucous secre¬
tion ; the under parts lighter : the lateral line indistinct and
straight ; scales small ; the fins partaking of the colour of the
part of the body from which they emanate, those of the
lower surface being much the lightest.

VOL. II.

o

SUBBRACHIAL

MALACOPTERYGII.

GADIDM.

THE THREE-BEARDED ROCKLTNG.

SEA LOCHE. - WHISTLE-FISH.

Motella vulgaris,

,, tricirrata,

>> >>

ft ft

Mu stela marina,
Gadus tricirratus,
,, mustela,

tt tt

,, tricirratus,

Cuvier, Regne An. t. ii. p. 334.

Nilsson, p. 48.

Three-Bearded Rockling, Jenyns, Man. Brit. Vert. p. 449,

sp. 135.

Willugiiby, p. 121, H. 4, fig. 4.

Rockling, Ray, Syn. p. 164, sp. 9, fig. 9.

Bloch, pt. v. pi. 165.

Three-Bearded Cod, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. 267,

pi. 36.

Rockling, Don. Brit. Fish. pi. 2.

Three-Bearded Gade, Flem. Brit. An. p. 193, sp. 86.

Generic Characters. — Body elongated, cylindrical, compressed posteriorly ;
ihe first dorsal fin very slightly elevated, delicate in structure, scarcely percep¬
tible; second dorsal and anal fins long, continued nearly to the base of the tail.

The Three-Bearded Rockling, included by the
Rev. Mr. Jago in his Catalogue of the rarer Fishes of Corn¬
wall, and published by Ray, with a figure, at the end of
his Synopsis, though not uncommon on the Devonshire and
Cornish coasts, as noticed by Colonel Montagu and Mr.
Couch, is more rare on our shores generally than the Five-

THREE-BEARDED ROCKLING.

187

Bearded Rockling, of which by some it has been considered
only as a variety. It frequents rocky ground that is well
furnished with sea-weed, among which it threads its way
with great ease and rapidity. Besides the localities men¬
tioned, it has been taken also at W eymouth, in Belfast Bay,
and in the vicinity of Carlisle, probably in the Solway Frith.
The individual figured by Willughby, whose early represen¬
tation of this fish is very good, was obtained by him at
Chester.

Of its habits, Mr. Couch says, 66 It keeps in shallow
water, feeds on aquatic insects, and will take a bait ; but it is
not commonly used as food, because it smells unpleasantly
in the course of a few hours. It is not easy to explain
the use of the fringed membrane behind the head and before
the dorsal fin ; it has nothing in common with the fins ;
but when the fish is lying perfectly still, and all the fins are
at rest, this is often in rapid motion. The barbules on the
upper jaw are always extended in front, and probably serve
the same purposes as the antennae in insects.'’'

Bloch says that it spawns in autumn; but other observers
consider that it deposits its spawn in winter, like most of,
if not all, those of the same family.

Pennant, in his account of the Five-Bearded Rockling,
says, u The Cornish fishermen are said to whistle, and make
use of the words bod , bod , vean , when they are desirous of
taking this fish, as if by that they facilitated the capture,
in the same manner as the Sicilian fishermen repeat their
Mamassu di pajanu, kc. when they are in pursuit of the
Swordfish.” But this name of Whistle-fish was, according
to Jago's Catalogue, attached to the Rockling with three
barbules only, and even among them was but occasionally
applied to the larger specimens. Pennant, it will be ob¬
served, speaks of the cause of the application of the name of

188

GADID.E.

Whistle-fish on tlie authority of others ; and on inquiry, I
find that the custom of whistling when fishing is neither
practised nor known to the Cornish fishermen of the present
day, and, in fact, that this fish is of too little value to be
an object of any solicitude. I believe, indeed, that while
preserving the sound of the name, the term has been changed,
and a very different word substituted, and that for Whistle-
fish we ought to read Weasel-fish. Both the Three and
the Five Bearded Rocldings were called mustela from the
days of Pliny to those of Rondeletius, and thence to the
present time.

A specimen fourteen inches long, and beautifully spotted,
was presented to the Zoological Society in 1832. The
finest examples of this species I have seen were two given
me in December 1834, by Dr. Thackeray, the Provost of
King's College, Cambridge, from the largest of which, mea¬
suring seventeen inches in length, the wood-engraving was
executed, and the following description taken.

The length of the head compared to the length of the
body alone, without the caudal rays, is as one to four ; the
depth of the body equal to the length of the head : the first
dorsal fin delicate in structure ; the first ray elongated, the
rest hair-like : the second dorsal fin commencing immediately
behind the end of the first, and reaching along the back to
the tail, but ending a little short of the base of the caudal
rays : ventral fins with the first two rays elongated, the
second the most so, the two disunited ; the other five rays
nearly equal, united, and short : pectoral fins rather large and
rounded : the vent half-way between the point of the chin
and the end of the fleshy portion of the tail ; the anal fin
commences immediately behind it, is one-fourth less in
length than the second dorsal, and ends on the same plane
with it : the tail moderate in size, and rounded at the end.

THREE-BEARDED ROCKLING.

189

The fin-rays in number are —

2nd D. 55. P. 20 : V. 7 : A. 49. : C. 18.

The head is depressed ; the mouth wide : the jaws nearly
equal, but when separated the lower jaw is the longest, with
one barbule at the chin ; a mixture of small and large teeth
in each jaw ; the upper jaw with one barbule on each side
the middle, between the lip and the nostril ; inner part of
the upper lip crenate : the irides golden yellow ; the anterior
portion of the body of the fish cylindrical, or slightly de¬
pressed ; the tail compressed : the general colour of the body
and head is a rich yellow brown, spotted on the top of the
head, along the back, the pectoral, dorsal, and caudal fins,
with rich chesnut brown ; the lower part of the sides, the
ventral and anal fins, pale yellow brown, approaching to
white, and without spots.

Young fish of this species are of a uniform brown colour
until they have acquired six or seven inches in length; in
this condition they are the Mustela alia of Ray.

GADID.E.

190

SUBBRACHIAL

MALACOPTERYGII. GADIDjE.

THE FIVE-BEARDED ROCKLING.

Motella quinquecirrata , Cuvier, Regne An. t. ii. p. 334, note.

,, mustela, Five-Beardecl Reckling, Jenyns, Man. Brit. Veit.

p. 450, sp. 136.

Mustela vulgaris, Willughby, p. 121.

Gadus mustela, Linnaeus.

,, ,, Five-Bearded Cod, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. 268,

pi. 36.

,, ,, ,, Don. Brit. Fish. pi. 14.

,, ,, ,, Gade, Flem. Brit. An. p. 193, sp. 85.

I have found the Five-Bearded Rockling, when of small
size, a very common fish on the Kentish coast in autumn,
left by the retiring tide, in small pools among the rocks, and
generally lying concealed under the tufts of sea-weed that
hang over the edges of the stones into the water. I have
observed this fish as far to the westward as Portland Island.
Colonel Montagu considered it more rare in Devonshire than
the species with three barbules at the mouth, last described :
Mr. Couch observes it on the Cornish shore : it has been
taken at Dublin and Belfast'; and Mr. Low says it is com¬
mon in Orkney, where it is found under stones among sea¬
weed, but seldom exceeding nine or ten inches in length.

FIVE-BEARDED ROCKLING.

191

Pennant says it attains the length of eighteen or nineteen
inches. It spawns in the winter, and feeds principally on
small thin-shelled Crustacea and young fishes. Mr. Low
says, “ They are reckoned pretty good eating, but are never
got in any quantity ; never caught at a hook : the only me¬
thod of getting them is by shifting the stones at low water,
when they are to be found with the Blennies.,’>

In its habits it closely resembles the Three-Bearded Rock-
ling, and several naturalists consider them only as varieties of
the same species. Professor Nilsson regards them as dis¬
tinct, and follows Linnseus in considering a fish Avith four
barbules also as a distinct species.

The length of the head compared to the length of the
body alone, is as one to four ; the depth of the body less
than the length of the head : the shape of the body less cy¬
lindrical than that of the Three-Bearded, and the nose more
pointed ; the position and ele\ration of the fins similar to
those of the fish last described, but the first ray of the first
dorsal fin is longer and more conspicuous, and the vent is
nearer the head than in that species, being less than half the
distance from the nose to the end of the fleshy portion of
the tail. The fin-rays in number are —

2nd D. 52 : P. 14 : V. 6 : A. 40 : C. 20.

The body compressed ; the head depressed ; the mouth
rather small, Avith a band of small teeth in each jaw, and a
patch of similar teeth at the anterior part of the roof of the
mouth ; the under jaAv the shortest, Avith a single barbule at
the chin ; the upper lip plain, without crenation, Avith tAvo
small barbules near the point of the nose, and tAvo others, as
long again, about as much before and Avithin the nostrils as
the nostrils are before and within the eyes. The eyes small,
and placed near the nose. The colour of the upper part of

192

GADIDiE.

tlie head, back, and sides, uniform dark brown ; lower part of
the sides lighter brown ; under surface of the lower jaw, the
ventral fins, and the belly to the vent, white ; the other fins
dusky brown ; the course of the lateral line distinctly marked
by a series of short, slender white streaks, as shown in the
wood-engraving.

I have been favoured by Dr. Richardson with the follow¬
ing description of the appearance of a fine example of this
species : — General colour of the body pale bronze, approach¬
ing to that of jewellers" gold, with streaks of purer gold co¬
lour above the lateral line in the direction of the ribs. The
upper parts of the head and the gill-covers yellowish brown,
blended on the cheeks with the bronze. The fins are also of
a brownish orange or bronze colour, but without the metallic
lustre, and their margins are blood red ; the red tinge is more
general on the pectorals ; the irides silvery, the pupils blu¬
ish black.

Both the species last described have been called mustela
by different authors. Linnaeus attached this term to the
species with five barbules : Cuvier, in the Regne Animal ,
identifies the Three-Bearded Rockling with this same word.
As the number of barbules appear to be constant in each, a
reference to the number in the specific name is, perhaps, the
least objectionable. Linnaeus, and other authors to the
present time, continue, as before stated, to consider the north¬
ern species with four barbules as distinct from both.

MACKEREL MIDGE.

193

SUBBRACHIAL

MALAC0PTERYGI1. GAD l DAE.

THE MACKEREL MIDGE.

Motella glauca, Mackerel Midge, Jenyns, Man. Brit. Vert. p. 451, sp. 137.
Ciliata ,, ,, ,, Couch, Zool. Journ. vol. i. p. 132.

,, ,, ,, ,, ,, Mag. Nat. Hist. vol. v. p. 15 and

16, fig. 2, and p. 741.

Mr. Couch's MS. account of this beautiful little fish is
as follows : — “ It is about one inch and a quarter in length,
moderately elongated ; head obtuse, compressed : upper jaw
the longest, with four straight barbules ; the under jaw with
one barbule ; teeth in both jaws : gill membrane with seven
rays ; eye large and bright ; a fringed membrane in a depres¬
sion behind the head ; pectoral and ventral fins rather large
for the size of the fish ; dorsal and anal fins single, and reach¬
ing near to the tail ; scales deciduous ; colour on the back
bluish green ; belly and fins silvery. This seems to be one
of the species spoken of by the older naturalists under the
name of apua ; and which, from their minute size, and the
multitudes in which they sometimes appeared, they judged
to be produced by spontaneous generation from the froth of
the sea, or the putrefaction of marine substances. The name
I have assigned to it is that in use among our fishermen,
and is descriptive of its colour and very minute size, for it is
the smallest fish with which l am acquainted."

194

GAD1D.E.

“ This fish is gregarious and migratory, never making its
appearance before May, after which it is abundant from the
edge of the shore to every part of the Channel. Its winter
station is probably deep in the water ; but in summer it
keeps near the surface, and seeks the shelter of everything it
finds floating ; — a circumstance that often leads to its destruc¬
tion, for it is frequently hauled on board boats among the
corks of nets, or with the line, or floating weeds ; and in a
storm they are often thrown into boats through the breaking
of the sea, — a circumstance which shows that at such seasons
they must be on the crest of the wave.”

“ This fish dies instantly on being taken out of the
water.”

This small fish, with much of the appearance of being the
young of a larger species, and closely allied in form to the
Five-Bearded Rockling, presents in its economy some of the
attributes of a species. Unlike the fish last described, which
is very tenacious of life, this little fish, it is said, dies in¬
stantly on being taken out of the water : it does not appear
every summer, as might be expected if it was the young of
so common and local a species as the Five-Bearded Rock-
ling ; and although present, as it is frequently said to be,
during the greater part of the summer, when fry grow most
rapidly, no increase is observed in its size.

SILVERY GADE.

195

SUBBRACHIAL

MALACOPTERY G1I. GADIDJE.

THE SILVERY GADE.

Motella argent eola, Yarrell.

Gadus argenteolus, Silvery Gade, Montagu, Mem. Wern. Soc. vol. ii. pt. 2,

p. 449.

The following is Colonel Montagu’s account of this small
fish : — 44 There is a small species of Gadus , which is occa¬
sionally found on the western coast, that is nearly allied to
the Three-Bearded Cod (Rockling) in most particulars ; but
the shape of the head and the colour are essentially different.
It has very much the appearance of the fry of some larger
species, and might have been suspected to be the young of
the Ling, had it not been for a little difference in the first
dorsal fin, and the two cirri which this has before the nostrils.
If a fourth cirrus could have been discovered, suspicions
would have arisen whether it might not have been the cim-
brius of Gmelin. Its essential characters may stand thus : —

44 With two dorsal fins, the anterior very obscure, except
the first ray, which is much the longest : cirri three, two be¬
fore the nostrils, and one on the chin : upper jaw longest :
back bluish green ; sides and belly silvery.

44 The head is obtuse ; eyes lateral, irides silvery : all the
fins are of a pale colour, and the whole fish is of a silvery
resplendence, except the back, which is blue, changeable
to dark green : the pectoral fin is rounded with sixteen or
eighteen rays ; ventral, six or seven, the middle ray consider¬
ably the longest, and placed much before the pectoral : first

196

G ADID^E.

dorsal fin commences above the gills, and the rays are very
minute and obscure, the first excepted, but more than thirty
have been counted ; the second dorsal commences close to
the other, in a line with the end of the pectoral, and termi¬
nates close to the caudal ; the rays are innumerable : the anal
fin begins immediately behind the vent, and terminates even
with the dorsal ; the caudal fin is nearly even at the end.
Length about two inches.

cc I first noticed many of these fishes thrown upon the
shore in the south of Devonshire, in the summer of 1808,
and have taken two or three since. The fishermen called it
Whitebait, but I afterwards found they had mistaken it for
the fry of Herring and Pilchard, which indiscriminately go
by that name, and are sold together in some places under
the name of Herring-Sprat.

“ The Three-Bearded Cod (Rockling) is a very common
species on the western coast, and which I have taken of all
sizes, from the most minute to its ful] growth of sixteen or
seventeen inches, and never observed it to vary in colour,
except as it grows large it becomes more rufous and throws
out spots, which is never observed till it exceeds six or seven
inches, but is invariably rufous brown in its infant state.”

It is worthy of remark, that this little fish, representing in
miniature the Three-Bearded Rockling, offers an instance
perfectly analogous to the representation in an equally dimi¬
nutive size of the five-bearded species, by Mr. Couch’s recent
discovery of the Mackerel Midge.

TORSK, OH TUSK.

197

SJJBBRACHIAL

MALACOPTERYGII.

GAD 1 DAE.

THE TORSK, OR TUSK.

Brosmius vulgaris, Cuvier, Regne An. t. ii. p. 334.

Brosmus ,, Common Tusk, Flem. Brit. An. p. 194, sp. 90.

Gadus brosme, Torsk, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p.269, pi. 37.

,, ,, Scotch Torsk, Don. Brit. Fish. pi. 70.

,, ,, Nilsson, Prod. p. 47, sp. 14.

Generic Characters. — Body elongated ; a single dorsal fin, extending the
whole length of the back ; one barbule at the chin ; ventral fins fleshy.

The Torsk, or Tusk, is a northern species, which is
only occasionally caught in the Forth, and is then brought
to the Edinburgh market. It is found more frequently in
the Orkney Islands, and swarms among those of Shetland,
where it makes a very considerable article in their fish trade.
It is caught with lines and hooks when fishing for Ling and
Cod, and is salted and dried in the same manner. When
eaten fresh, it is very firm and rather tough ; which makes
most people prefer it dry. It is one of the best fishes when
cured, swells much in boiling, and parts into very thick
flakes. I observed three examples of this fish, each about
sixteen inches in length, in the London market, during the

198

GADID.E.

month of January 1831. These were brought from the
North in the lobster-boats. The length assigned to this
species by M. Nilsson is from eighteen inches to two feet,
rarely three feet. Mr. Low says the largest he had heard of
was three feet and a half. Mr. Donovan's specimen, which
was brought alive to London in the well of a fishing-boat,
measured twenty-five inches.

But little being known in the South of the habits of
this fish, an abridgment of Faber's account of it may be
interesting.

44 A northern fish, scarcely occurring below 60° or above
73°; not migrating regularly, and therefore rarely seen by
the ichthyologists of the South. Plentiful on the coasts of
Norway as far as F inmark, of the Faroe Islands, and the
west and south coasts of Iceland ; rare on the north and east
coasts of Iceland. It must be uncommon in Greenland, as
Fabricius only knew it from the report of the natives.
Just touches the most northern point of Denmark, at Skagen
in Jutland, where it is sometimes taken ; not at all in the
south. Approaches the land early in the year in shoals, that
of Iceland in January ; remains there in company with the
Five-Bearded, and goes away again late in summer. Lives in
deep water, and is therefore seldom taken, even when it is
most abundant. Prefers a rocky bottom, on which sea¬
weeds grow. Never found anything in its stomach; and this
has probably given rise to the saying, that it lives on the
juice of sea- weeds. Spawns in April and May among the
fuci along the coast. Is rarely taken with the Cod hooks,
more frequently at the smaller lines. Sometimes taken by
the Norwegian fishermen among the Holibuts. It must
have less power of resisting the violence of the sea than its
congeners, as it is thrown up dead in incredible numbers on
the coasts of the Faroe Islands and the south coast of Ice-

TORSK, OR TUSK.

199

land after a storm. Its flesh is hard, but well flavoured.
In Iceland seldom dried, but eaten fresh. Jan Olsen says
that the fresh flesh is badly tasted, but when dried it is the
best food. In Norway it is treated like the Stockfish, but
forms no branch of merchandise. The hard roe, according
to Pontoppidan, has a good flavour. Its enemies are the
larger species of Cod. It is much infested by a worm which
forms a nidus in its skin, and produces rounded swellings.1"

The description of this fish by Mr. Low is here adopted,
with slight modification. The measurements of the specimen
from which this description was taken were the following : —
4 4 The whole length twenty inches and a half : the greatest
breadth four and a half, which was taken at the end of the
pectoral fin ; at the vent four inches ; something more than
half-way from the vent to the tail, two inches ; at the tail,
one inch and a quarter : the length of the head four inches ;
from the point of the nose to the commencement of the dorsal
fin, six inches ; length of the dorsal fin thirteen inches ;
from the point of the lower jaw to the vent, eleven inches;
length of the anal fin, eight inches ; tail something more
than two inches.11

“ The head small in proportion to the fish, with a single
barbule under the chin : the upper jaw very little longer than
the lower ; in the jaws there are great numbers of very small
teeth, and in the roof of the mouth a rough or toothed bone,
much in the shape of a horse-shoe ; a pretty broad furrow
runs from the nape to the commencement of the dorsal fin,
which runs the whole length of the back to within about an
inch of the tail ; the tail is rounded ; the anal fin begins at
the vent and ends at the tail, but is not joined with it ; the
rays of the dorsal and anal fins are numerous, but the soft¬
ness of these and the thickness of the investing skin hinder
them from being counted with exactness : the edges of the

200

GADIDJE

dorsal, anal fin, and tail, are white ; the rest dusky : the pec¬
toral fins are rounded, broad, and of a brown colour ; the
ventral s small, thick, and fleshy, ending in points ; the body
to the vent is roundish ; the belly from the throat growing
suddenly very prominent, continuing so to the vent, where it
becomes smaller to the tail ; behind the vent the body is
pretty much compressed : the colour of the head is dusky ;
the back and sides yellow, which becoming lighter by degrees,
is lost in the white of the belly ; the lateral line is scarcely
discernible, but runs nearer the back than the belly, till to¬
wards the middle of the fish, in its passage backwards, it
curves a little downwards, and runs straight to the tail.”

The fin-rays, according to Mr. Donovan, are —

D. 49 : P. 21 : V. 5 : A. 37 : C. 35.

The vignette represents a fishing-boat of Cadiz Bay.

GREAT FORKED BEARD.

201

SUBBRACHIAL

MALACOPTERYGII. G ADIDAS.

THE GREAT FORKED BEARD.
forked hake, hake’s dame, Cornwall.

Phycisfurcatus, Common Fork Beard, Flem. Brit. An. p. 193, sp. 84.

», ,, Cuvier, Regne An. t. ii. p. 335.

Barbus major, Great Forked Beard, Ray, Syn. 163, fig. 7.

Blennius physis, Forked Hake, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. 259, pi. 35.

Generic Characters. — Body elongated ; two dorsal fins, the first short, the
second long ; ventral fins with a single ray only at the base, afterwards di¬
vided ; chin with one barbule.

The Great Forked Beard was first discovered on
the Cornish coast by Mr. Jago, and inserted by Ray, with a
figure, in his Synopsis, as referred to. Pennant's fish was
taken on the coast of Flintshire. A specimen appeared in
Carlisle market in December 1833, which was caught near
Bowness ; communicated to me by T. C. Heysham, Esq. :
and this fish has also occurred at St. Andrews in Scotland,
as noticed in the sixth volume of the Memoirs of the Wer¬
nerian Natural History Society, page 569. It is obtained
occasionally in Cornwall.

VOL. II.

p

GADID/E.

°202

The figure here given is taken from a drawing by Mr.
Couch, whose MS. contains the following notice of this
species : — 44 The head flat on the top, compressed at the
sides, small in proportion to the body : eyes large ; nostrils
in a depression before them : mouth wide: under jaw short¬
est ; teeth in both fine ; some larger teeth on the palate : a
barb at the lower jaw : body compressed, slender towards the
tail, which is small in proportion ; belly tumid ; lateral line
elevated at first, afterwards low ; body and head with scales :
two dorsal fins, the first elevated and pointed ; second dorsal
and anal fins long, expanded, bound down towards the
tail ; the ventral fins simple rays, very long, divided or
forked, one of the divisions longer than the other ; a few
spines before the anal fin ; tail rounded, all the rays soft.
Colour of the sides and back dusky brown ; on the gill-
covers sometimes greenish ; fins dusky purple, except the
ventrals ; belly whitish.

This fish grows to the length of two feet : in a specimen
of this size the longest portion of the ventral ray was eight
inches, the shortest five inches and a half.

44 Hake’s Dame is the name by which alone this fish is
known to our fishermen. It is not uncommon in Cornwall ;
but I have never seen it except in winter, when it seems to
come into shallow water to spawn. It takes a bait, and is
used as food, but is not much esteemed.”

The number of fin-rays, according to Dr. Fleming, are —

1st D. 10 : 2nd D. 62 : P. 12 : V. 1 ; A. 56.

It is desirable to notice the specific characters of this
fish, in order to distinguish between it and a Mediterranean
species of the same genus, which, according to Cuvier, is
the true Blennins phycis of Linnaeus, and not the British
fish, as supposed by Pennant and others. The British fish

GREAT FORKED BEARD.

203

has the first dorsal fin triangular, much higher than the
second, the anterior rays produced ; the ventral rays twice as
long as the head. The Mediterranean fish, of which I
possess a specimen, has the first dorsal fin low and rounded,
very similar in character to that of the Burbot, as figured at
page 183 of this volume, with the ventral rays much shorter.
A description and figure of this fish is given by Willughby,
page 205, pi. N. 12, fig. 3.

I have not seen a specimen of the British Great Forked
Beard.

p 2

SUB BRACHIAL
MALACOPTERYGU.

CADI DAL

THE LESSER FORKED BEARD.

TRIFURCATED HAKE. TADPOLE FISH.

Raniceps trifurcatus. Trifurcated Hake, Flem. Brit. An. p. 194, sp. 88.

, t A o , , , , , , , , , , , ) j S 9 .

,, ,, Cuvieu, Regne An. t. ii. p. 336.

Barbus minor, Lesser Forked Beard, Ray, Syn. p. 164, sp. 8, fig. 8.

,, ,, Forked Hake, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. 261.

Batrachoides trifurcatus, Trifurcated Tadpole Fish, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii.

p. 272, pi. 38.

Generic Characters. — Head depressed, body compressed ; two dorsal fins,
the first very small ; the second dorsal and the anal fins elongated ; ventral fins
small, the first two rays lengthened and separated.

Dr. George Johnston, of Berwick, in his address to
the members of the Berwickshire Naturalist’s Club, read at
the first anniversary meeting in September 1832,* when
referring to the various species of fishes which had occurred
to him during the previous twelvemonths, remarks at page 7 :
u Of the Tadpole Fish, which is one of the rarest British

* See also Mr. Loudon’s Mag. Nat. Hist. vol. vi. page 11.

LESSER FORKED REARD.

205

species, and previously known only as an inhabitant of the
shores of Cornwall, I had the pleasure of exhibiting to you
a living specimen, which had been captured in Berwick Bay.
When alive, and when recently dead, the body appeared
everywhere smooth and even ; but after having lain three
days on a plate and become a little shrivelled, there ap¬
peared an obscure row of tubercles, running backwards from
the pectoral fins, — and these pea-like tubercles could be more
readily distinguished by drawing the finger over the skin.
I would call attention to this fact, because the only good
distinction between the Raniceps trifur catus and R. Jago
of Dr. Fleming is derived from the presence of these tuber¬
cles ; in the former, the lateral line is said to be tubercu-
lated above the pectoral fins, in the latter it is said to be
smooth : but here we have a specimen which when alive
exhibits the character of Jago , — when dead, that of the tri¬
fur catus ; and hence I am induced to think that both are

\J

the same animal, having the tubercles more or less promi¬
nent and obvious according to the leanness or other condi¬
tions of the body.”

The difficulty of deciding the point without possessing
a specimen, which the rarity of the fish rendered almost
hopeless, probably induced Dr. Fleming to follow Pennant
in giving both names a place in his History of British
Animals. The description of Mr. Couch is quoted by
Dr. Fleming as belonging to the Cornish fish and the Lesser
Forked Beard of Jago ; and Cuvier, in a note at the foot
of page 336 of the second volume of the Regne Animal ,
quotes the Gaclus trifur catus of Pennant as belonging to
his genus Raniceps.

The advantages of equal communication and assistance on
this point from Mr. Couch and Dr. Johnston enable me
to carry the comparison of the two fishes still further.

206

GAD1DJ5.

Mr. Couch has favoured me with a drawing and a descrip¬
tion of a specimen taken in Cornwall. The description is
already given by Dr. Fleming, and the drawing has sup¬
plied the means of giving the representation at the head
of this article. Dr. Johnston has also furnished me with
a coloured drawing, a penciled sketch, and a description.
A copy of the sketch, carefully reduced in size, forms the
vignette at the end. These two compared together, these
again compared with the double representations in the last
two octavo editions of Pennant's British Zoology, and each
with the figure of Jago’s fish in Ray’s Synopsis, will, I
think, leave little doubt that all are intended to represent
the same fish.

Dr. Johnston’s description is as follows : —

“ The comparison implied in the name Tadpole Fish is
very expressive of its general form and colour; for when
alive it was entirely black, and the anterior parts are large
and tumid, while the hinder are much compressed. The
extreme length of our Berwickshire specimen was eleven
inches; and its greatest circumference, which is immediately
before the pectoral fins, was seven inches, whence it tapered
rapidly to the tail. The head is very large, obtuse, and
flattened on the crown, where there is a slight depression
between the eyes, which are an inch distant from each other,
lateral, prominent, round, and black. The mouth is wide ;
and under the chin there is a small conical barb or feeler :
the lips are rounded and white ; the inferior jaw armed with
two close rows of sharp teeth, and the upper, which is move-
able, with similar teeth, but more numerous, and not dis¬
tinctly rowed. On the palate, behind the jaw, there is a
semilunar cartilaginous prominence or tubercle roughened
with small teeth ; and the wide entrance into the oesophagus
is guarded with four similar tubercles, but of a roundish

LESSER FORKED BEARD.

207

figure, two above, and two smaller below. The branchial
rays are few in number, and on the inner side of each of
them there are two rows of minutely spinous tufts. The
first dorsal fin is very minute, but is terminated by a rather
long ray : the second dorsal fin commences just behind it,
or one-third of the whole length from the head, and extends
nearly to the tail ; it is half an inch broad, equal throughout,
the rays ending in free single points. The anal fin is like
the dorsal : the pectorals are oblong wedge-shaped, one inch
and a half long : the ventral fins are small, and their two
anterior rays are very long, white, and detached ; the fore¬
most one-half the length of the second, which measures
little less than two inches. Tail wedge-shaped. The scales
are small, and lie close to the body : they have an oblong
square form, marked with parallel lines or strise, which on
the exposed part of each scale run in a transverse, and on
the covered parts in a longitudinal direction.1’’

The numbers of the different fin-rays, according to Pen¬
nant, are —

1st D. 3 : 2nd D. 62 : P. 23 : V. 6 : A. 59 : C. 36.

Mr. Couch says this fish is too rare for us to be much
acquainted with its history. The only specimen he ever
saw was taken with a line in rocky ground, in the month of
April ; at which time its roe was small. The remains of
an echinus were in its intestines.

The following note appears at the end of Mr. Couch’s
account of this fish : —

“ Mr. Jago, whose name occurs at the head of a list of
fishes at the end of Ray’s Synopsis Piscium , was a native
of Cornwall, and a minister of the Church of England.
When Bishop Trelawney, so well known as one of the
six bishops committed to the Tower by James the Second,

208

GADID.E.

endowed the Chapel of Ease at East Looe, and thereby ob¬
tained the consent of the Rector of St. Martin to name the
curate, he appointed his friend Mr. Jago to the curacy ; and
the latter embraced the favourable opportunity thus placed
within his reach to make collections for an intended History
of Cornish Fishes, which, however, he never perfected.
Never having been married, his MS. and drawings at his
decease came into the possession of his friend Mr. Dyer,
by whom they were delivered to Dr. Borlase, the author of
the History of Cornwall

PLAICE.

209

SUBBRACH1AL

MALACOPTERYG1L PLEURONECTID/E*

THE PLAICE.

Plutessa vulgaris, Plaise, Flem. Brit. An. p. 198, sp. 103.

,, ,, Cuvjer, Regne An. t. ii. p. 338.

,, ,, Plaise, Willughby, p. 96, F. 4.

Pleu roneetes plutessa, Linnaeus. Bloch, pt. ii. pi. 42.

,, ,, Plaise, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. 304.

,, ,, ,, Don. Brit. Fish. pi. 6.

Generic Characters. — Body rhomboidal, depressed ; both eyes on the right
side of the head, one above the other ; a row of teeth in each jaw, with others
on the pharyngeal bones ; dorsal fin commencing over the upper eye, that fin
and the anal fin extending nearly the whole length of the body, but neither of
them joined to the tail ; branchiostegous rays 6.

The character and appearance of the various species
of Pfeuronectidtf , or Flatfish, as they are popularly called,
are so peculiar and so unique among vertebrated animals
as to claim particular notice.

The want of symmetry in the form of the head ; both
eyes placed on the same side, one higher than the other,

* The family of the Flounders, popularly called Flatfish.

210

P L E UHONEC T I D.E .

frequently not in the same vertical line, and often unequal
in size ; the position of the mouth ; the inequality of the
two sides of the head, and the frequent want of uniformity
in those fins that are in pairs, the pectoral and ventral
fins of the under or white side being in some species smaller
than those of the upper ; and the whole of the colour of the
fish confined to one side, while the other side remains per¬
fectly white, — produce a grotesque appearance: yet a little
consideration will prove that these various and seemingly
obvious anomalies are perfectly in harmony with that station
in nature which an animal bearing these attributes is ap¬
pointed to fill.

As birds are seen to occupy very different situations, some
obtaining their food on the ground, others on trees, and not
a few at various degrees of elevation in the air, so are fishes
destined to reside in different situations in the water : the
Flatfishes and the various species of Skate are, by their de¬
pressed form of body, admirably adapted to inhabit the
lowest position, and where they occupy the least space,
among their kindred fishes.

Preferring sandy or muddy shores, and unprovided with
swimming-bladders, their place is close to the ground, where,
hiding their bodies horizontally in the loose soil at the bot¬
tom, with the head only slightly elevated, an eye on the
under side of the head would be useless ; but both eyes
placed on the upper surface affords them an extensive range
of view in those various directions in which they may either
endeavour to find suitable food, or avoid dangerous enemies.
Light, one great cause of colour, strikes on the upper surface
only ; the under surface, like that of most other fishes, re¬
mains perfectly colourless. Having little or no means of
defence, had their colour been placed only above the lateral
line on each side, in whatever position they moved, their

PLAICE.

211

piebald appearance would have rendered them conspicuous
objects to all their enemies. When near the ground, they
swim slowly, maintaining their horizontal position ; and the
smaller pectoral and ventral fins on the under side are advan¬
tageous where there is so much less room for their action,
than with the larger fins that are above. When suddenly
disturbed, they sometimes make a rapid shoot, changing their
position from horizontal to vertical : if the observer happens
to be opposite the white side, they may be seen to pass with
the rapidity and flash of a meteor ; but they soon sink down,
resuming their previous motionless, horizontal position, and
are then distinguished with difficulty, owing to their great
similarity in colour to the surface on which they rest.

Though the appearance and situation of the eyes and
mouth seem to indicate a degree of deformity, yet the head
contains modifications of all the bones that are found in a
symmetrically-formed head. The vent is situated very far
forward between the ventral fins and the commencement of
the anal fin ; but the abdominal cavity, though circum¬
scribed, extends backwards to a considerable distance, the
intestine returning by a convolution.

Most of the Flatfishes are deservedly in great request as
articles of food. The number of species diminishes as the
degrees of northern latitude increase. In this country we
have sixteen species ; at the parallel of Jutland, Denmark,
and the islands at the mouth of the Baltic, there are thir¬
teen ; on the coast of Norway they are reduced to ten spe¬
cies ; at Iceland the number is but five, and at Greenland
only three.

The Plaice is described and figured by Rondeletius, and
was known to the older naturalists long before his time.
It inhabits sandy banks and muddy grounds in the sea; and
among the Orkney islands is caught by lines and hooks ;

212

PL EU RONECTI D/E.

but as it is not of large size there, it is not much sought
after : it is common, however, in the Edinburgh market, where
the small ones are called Fleuks. On the English coast the
Plaice is taken in abundance generally wherever either lines
or trawl-nets can be used ; and in Ireland, this fish is re¬
corded to be taken from the shores of the county of Cork on
the south, round by the eastern coast to the county of Done¬
gal on the north-west.

The Plaice spawns in February or March, and is consi¬
dered to be in the finest condition for the table at the end of
May. Diamond Plaice is a name attached to those which are
caught at a particular fishing-station off the Sussex coast,
which is called the Diamond ground. The fish are remark¬
able for the purity of the brown colour and the brilliancy of
the spots.

Plaice feed on the soft-bodied animals generally, with

young fish and small Crustacea, and have been known to

attain the weight of fifteen pounds ; but one of seven or

eight pounds'* weight is considered a Plaice of large size. It

is taken sometimes in almost incredible numbers. So o-reat

©

a glut of Plaice occurred once in Billingsgate market, that,
although crowded with dealers, hundreds of bushels remained
unsold. Great quantities of Plaice, averaging three pounds'*
weight each, were sold at one penny per dozen. One sales¬
man, having in vain endeavoured to sell an hundred bushels
at the rate of fifty Plaice for four-pence, left them with Mr.
Goldham, the clerk of the market, requesting him to .sell
them for anything he could get. Unable to dispose of them
otherwise, Mr. Goldham, by direction of the Lord Mayor,
divided them among the poor.

In some parts of the North of Europe, where from the
rocky nature of the soil the sea is remarkably transparent,
Plaice and some other Flatfish of large size are taken by

PLAICE.

213

dropping down upon them, from a boat, a doubly-barbed short
spear, heavily leaded to carry it with velocity to the bottom,
with a line attached to it, by which the fish when transfixed
is hauled up.

In East Friesland the Plaice has been transferred to fresh¬
water ponds, where it is established and thrives well.

Like other ground-fish, all the P/euronectid<e are very
tenacious of life.

The length of the head compared to the whole length of
the head, body, and tail, is as two to nine ; the depth of
the solid part of the body, without including the dorsal or
anal fins, rather more than one- third of the whole length ;
the form subrhomboidal ; the mouth and teeth rather small ;
the upper eye the largest, and placed rather more backward
than the lower eye, with a strong and prominent bony ridge
between the orbits, and several tubercles forming a curved
line from the posterior part of the ridge to the commence¬
ment of the lateral line : the preoperculum is in a vertical
line over the origin of the ventral fin ; the operculum ter¬
minates in an angle upon the base of the pectoral fin ; the
lateral line prominent, commencing at the upper margin of
the operculum, arched over the pectoral fin, then straight
along the middle of the fleshy portion of the tail, and ex¬
tending over the membrane connecting the central caudal
rays. The dorsal fin commences over the upper eye ; the
longest rays rather behind the middle of its whole length :
the anal fin, preceded by a spine, begins in a line under the
origin of the pectoral fin ; the longest rays rather before the
middle : both dorsal and anal fins end on the same plane,
and short of the end of the fleshy portion of the tail, which,
as well as the caudal rays, is narrow and elongated ; the
tail rounded.

214

PLEURONECTID.E.

The fin-rays in number are —

D. 73 : P. 11 : V. 6 : A. 55 : C. 16.

The body is smooth on both sides, the scales small ; the
colour of the upper or right side a rich brown, with a row of
bright orange red spots along the dorsal and anal fins, and
other spots of the same colour dispersed over the body ; the
under side entirely white. Young Plaice have frequently
a dark spot in the centre of the red one.

The fishes of this first division of the Pleuronectidce with
the eyes and the colour on the right side of the body are fur¬
ther distinguished by the term dextral fishes.

F LOUNDEli .

21 5

SUBBRACHIAL

M A L AC 0 PTE R YG 11. PL EURONECTIDJE.

THE FLOUNDER.

floor, Merret. — mayock fleuke, Edinb . — butt.

Platessu flesus, Flounder, Flem. Brit. An. p. 198, sp. 104.

,, ,, Le Flet , Cuvier, Regne An. t. ii. p. 339.

Pleuronectes fluviatilis, Fluke, Willughby, p. 97, F. 4.

,, flesus, ,, Linnaeus. Bloch, pt. ii. pi. 44 & 50.

,, ,, Flounder, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. 305.

,, ,, ,, Don. Brit. Fish. pi. 94.

The Flounder is one of the most common of the Flat¬
fish, and is found in the sea and near the mouths of large
rivers all round our coast, being more particularly abundant
where the bottom is soft, whether of sand, clay, or mud.
All the bays, creeks, and inlets of Orkney produce it, accord¬
ing to Mr. Low ; and it is taken in abundance in different
parts of Scotland, where it is called Fluke and Mayock
Fleuke, — a term having reference to the flattened form of
the fish. It is common at Berwick and Yarmouth, at which

PLEURONECTIDJE.

216

latter place it is called a Butt — a northern term ; and those
Flounders that are caught in the extensive backwaters behind
Yarmouth, where there is a considerable deposit of mud,
are in consequence so dark in colour as to be distinguished,
from the lighter coloured ones caught on the sands of the sea,
by the name of Black Butts. This similarity in colour be¬
tween certain fishes and the bottom upon which they are
found has been already referred to as affording security to
the defenceless from the attacks of their enemies, and exhibits
a beautiful instance of the design employed for the preserva¬
tion of species. In Sweden, according to Linnaeus, this fish
is called Flundra, from which our word Flounder is proba¬
bly derived, and is said to refer to its manner of swimming
when close to the ground.

The Flounder lives and thrives whether stationary in the
sea, the brackish water, or the fresh water. In the Thames
it is taken as high up as Teddington and Sunbury : Mr.
Jesse mentions having seen the Flounder pursue Minnows
with great eagerness into the shallows where the Mole runs
into the Thames at Hampton Court. This species is caught
in considerable quantities from Deptford to Richmond by
Thames fishermen, who, with the assistance of an apprentice,
use a net of a particular sort, called a tuck-net, or tuck-sean.
One end of this net is fixed for a short time by an anchor or
grapple, and its situation marked by a floating buoy ; the
boat is then rowed, or rather sculled, by the apprentice in
a circle, the fisherman near the stern handing out and clear¬
ing the net : when the circle is completed and a space in¬
closed, the net is hauled in near the starting point in a
direction across the fixed end.

Flounders ascend rivers generally. Colonel Montagu says
they are found up the Avon within three miles of Bath.
They have been successfully transferred to fresh-water ponds:

FLOUNDER.

217

being long-lived out of water, the carriage from one place to
another is a matter of very little difficulty. Along our
southern shore the Flounder is very common ; and it occurs
on the Irish coast from Cork up the eastern side to Antrim,
and thence northward and westward to Donegal.

The Flounder feeds upon aquatic insects, worms, and
small fishes, and has been known to acquire the weight of
four pounds, but is not usually seen near so large. It
spawns in February or March, and the young Flounders may
be seen alive by the end of April. Varieties of the Floun¬
der occur much more commonly than those of any other
species of Flatfish. I have before me, while now writing,
specimens without any colour on either side ; specimens
coloured on both sides ; and specimens with both eyes and
the whole of the colour on the left side instead of the right.
Those without any dark colour on either side are albino
varieties, through the transparent skins of which the colour
of the bloodvessels and muscles has suggested the trivial
names of rosea and carnaria to the authors who considered
them species. The PI. passer , figured by Bloch, pt. ii.
pi. 50, is certainly only a reversed Flounder, having the
eyes and the colour on the left side ; — a variety so common,
that it is scarcely possible to examine a peck-measure of
Flounders without finding one or more reversed specimens.
One of the most remarkable specific distinctions of the
Flounder, the series of denticulated tubercles placed be¬
tween the rays of the fins along the dorsal and abdominal
lines, is distinctly figured in both Bloch’s plates as quoted,
pt. ii. plates 44 and 50.

The length of the head is to the whole length of the fish
as one to four ; the greatest width of the body, without the
fins, is to the whole length of the fish as one to three : the
mouth small ; the teeth in one row in each jaw, small and

VOL. II.

a

218

PLEU RONECT I D/E.

numerous ; the upper eye nearly over the lower ; the lateral
line but very slightly curved over the pectoral fin, and
marked with numerous rough stellated tubercles at its com¬
mencement, some more of which are arranged in two lines,
one above, the other below the lateral line throughout its
course : the body smooth ; the scales small ; the dorsal and
abdominal lines armed with a series of denticulated tubercles,
one in each space, between the rays, and alternating with
them ; the dorsal fin extends from the eye almost to the
tail ; the ventral fin is placed a little farther back than in the
Plaice, under the margin of the operculum ; the anal fin,
preceded by a spine directed forwards, also commences far¬
ther back ; both dorsal and anal fins terminate on the same
plane ; the fleshy portion of the tail narrow, its rays elon¬
gated, and almost square at the end. The fin-rays in num¬
ber are —

D. 55 : P. 11 : V. 6 : A. 42 : C. 14.

The colour of this species is variable, the shades of brown
depending on the nature of the ground from which the fish
was taken, but generally mottled with darker brown ; the
fins light brown, occasionally varied with patches of darker
brown, but generally lighter than the body. Examples
sometimes occur with a few indistinct reddish spots on the
upper surface ; but the roughness of the lateral line in the
Flounder, and its smoothness in the Plaice, is a distinguish¬
ing character in these two species, however similar they may
happen to be in colour or size.

COMMON DAB

219

SUBBRACHIAL

MALAC0PTERYG1I. PLEURONECTIDAE.

COMMON DAB.

SALT1E, AND SALT-WATER FLEUK, Edinburgh.

Platessa limanda, Dab, Flem. Brit. An. p. 198, sp. 105.

,, ,, La Limande, Cuvier, Regne An. t. ii. pp. 339 & 340.

Passer asper, Dab, Willughby, p. 97, F. 4.

Pleuronectes limanda, Linn^us. Bloch, pt. ii. pi. 46.

,, ,, Dab, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. 308.

,, ,, ,, Don. Brit. Fish. pi. 44.

The Dab is common to all the sandy parts of the coast,
and is usually caught along with Plaice and Flounder ; but
is immediately distinguished from either by its more uni¬
form and lighter brown colour, its more curved lateral line,
and the roughness of the scaly surface, from which latter
circumstance it has been called in Latin, limanda , from lima ,
a file. Dr. Neill reports it as common in the market of
Edinburgh, where it is called Saltie, or Salt-water Fleuk.
I have received it from Berwick, and it is taken at Yar¬
mouth. It is very common in the London market, and
Colonel Montagu says it is caught along the Devonshire
coast with the seine-net ; many are also taken by trawling.

0. 2

220

PLEURONECTIDE.

It occurs in Cornwall, and is recorded as found on several
parts of the east coast of Ireland between W aterford and
Belfast.

The Dab feeds on small fish, Crustacea, and marine in¬
sects ; and is in best condition for the table in F ebruary,
March, and April. Its flesh is considered superior to that
of the Plaice or Flounder : Cuvier says it is in higher esti¬
mation in Paris than the Flounder, because it bears carriage
better. It spawns in May or June; inhabits deeper water ge¬
nerally than the Flounder ; and on some parts of the coast is
caught both by sea-lines and hand-lines, the hooks of which
are baited with the usual marine sand-worm, or a portion of
the body of some of the testaceous mollusca. The size of
the Dab is commonly about eight or nine inches in length,
and seldom exceeds twelve inches.

The form of the body is like that of the Flounder : the
length of the head is to that of the body as one to five ; the
greatest breadth compared to the whole length is as two to
five : the mouth and teeth small, the latter separated ; the
eyes rather large, the orbits divided, but the bony ridge is
not very prominent ; the length of the pectoral fin nearly
two-thirds the length of the head ; ventral fins small, in a
line under the origin of the pectoral fin : the dorsal and anal
fins extending along the body nearly to the tail, both end¬
ing on the same plane ; the longest rays of both are placed
behind the centre : tail slender, elongated, and slightly
rounded. The fin-rays in number are —

D. 76 : P. 11 : V. 6 : A. 59 : C. 14.

The form of the body is subrhomboidal ; the scales rough,
their margins ciliated ; the lateral line arched high over the
pectoral fin, the remainder to the tail straight ; the rays of
the dorsal and anal fins scaled ; the colour of the fish a uni¬
form pale brown, with the under surface white.

LEMON DAB.

221

SUBBRACHIAL

MALACOPTERYG 1 I. PL E UR ON EC 7 1 DAE.

LEMON DAB. SMOOTH DAB.

smear dab. — sandfleuk, Edinburgh.
town-dab, Hastings. — mary-sole, Devonshire.

Platessa microcephalus, Smear Dab, Flem. Brit. An. p. 198, sp. 106.

,, microcepliala, Lemon Dab, Jenyns, Man. Brit. Vert. p. 457, sp. 144.
Pleuronectes Iccvis, Smear Dub, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. 309, pi. 47.

,, microcephalies, Small-headed Dab, Don. Brit. Fish. pi. 42.

The Lemon Dab, or Smooth Dab, is not of sucli
frequent occurrence as the common Rough Dab ; and is, on
account of a mixture of various shades of reddish brown and
yellow colours, a prettier fish to look at. It approaches
to a rhomboid in form, even more so than any of the
species of this genus as now restricted to a certain portion
only of those Flatfishes that have the eyes on the right side.

In tracing the occurrence of the Smooth Dab round the
coast, Dr. Neill of Edinburgh says it is taken off Seton

222

PLEURONECTID.E.

Sands and Aberlady Bay. Dr. Richard Parnell, who has
devoted great attention to the fishes of the Forth, and to
whose kindness I am indebted for the largest example of this
species I have yet seen, obtained it, and other specimens, on
the Fifeshire coast during the months of February, March,
and April. I have received specimens also from Dr. John¬
ston of Berwick. It is not uncommon in the London mar¬
ket ; and is taken on the Sussex coast, where it is known by
the name of Town-Dab. Colonel Montagu observed it fre¬
quently in Devonshire, where it is called Mary-Sole.

Mr. Couch says it is rather a rare fish in Cornwall, and
does not readily take a bait ; but he has known it to be
caught in the trawl-nets. Mr. Couch adds, he has no
doubt this fish is the Kitt of Jago, figured in Ray's Synop¬
sis, No. 1 ; the fish being reversed on the paper, and ap¬
pearing with its eyes and colour on the left side, as in the
sinistral fishes.

The flesh of the Smooth Dab is considered equal to that
of the Common Dab, and the substance of the body is much
thicker. This species spawns in May.

Duhamel was well acquainted with the Smooth Dab ; but
considered it a rare fish on the coast of France, and on some
parts of it entirely unknown.

The form of the body rhomboidal ; small-sized specimens
are more elongated : the length of the head is to that of the
head and body, without the caudal rays, as one to five and a
half ; the depth of the body, including the dorsal or anal fin,
only just equal to half the whole length of the fish : the
mouth small ; lips tumid ; the jaws equal in length ; teeth in
an even, close, regular row in each jaw, but extending further
back on the white under side of the fish than on the upper ;
nostrils double : the eyes exactly over each other ; the orbits
separated by a strong, prominent, bony ridge, but without

LEMON DAB.

223

tubercles : the head small ; the pectoral fin but little more
than half the length of the head ; ventral fin small ; the
dorsal and anal fins reaching near to the tail, but distinct; the
tail rounded. The fin- rays in number are —

D. 86 : P. 10 : V. 5 : A. 70 : C. 16. Vertebne 46.

The general colour of the upper surface of the body is a
mixture of pale reddish brown and yellow, with small dark
brown specks ; the lips are orange, as is also the posterior
edge of the operculum, and the anterior edge of the body
immediately behind it : the body smooth, and covered with
a mucous secretion ; the lateral line but little arched over the
pectoral fin ; the under parts white.

The vignette below represents a Pcter-boat as used by the
Thames fishermen between and above the different bridges.

224

PLEURONECTJD.E.

SUBBRACHIAL

MALACOPTERYGJI. PLEURONECTIDJE.

LONG ROUGH DAB.

SANDNECKER. - SAND FLEUK, AND LONG

fleuk, Edinb.

Plaiessa limandoides, Sandnecker, Jenyns, Man. Brit. Vert. p. 459, sp. 146.
Pleuronectes ,, „ Parnell, Edinb. Phil. Journ. July 1835,

p. 210.

,, ,, Long Rough Dab, Bloch, pt. vi. pi. 186.

The Long Rough Dab is a very recent addition to
the catalogue of British Fishes. The first notice I had
of the occurrence of this species on our coast was in the
autumn of 1883, from Dr. John Harwood, of St. Leonard's,
near Hastings, who had seen a specimen that was taken
on the Sussex coast. In the summer of 1831 I received
two specimens from Dr. George Johnston of Berwick, which
had been taken in that vicinity. In May 1835 I was
favoured by Dr. Parnell with the largest specimen I have
yet seen, measuring fifteen inches ; who, at the same time,
sent me word they were to be had frequently in the Frith

LONG ROUGH DAli.

225

of Forth in May, June, and July. Soon afterwards I
learned by a letter from George T. Fox, Esq. of Durham,
that a specimen of PI. limandoides of Bloch had been taken
some years before on the coast of Sunderland, and was still
preserved in the possession of Thomas Wilkinson, Esq. of
Bishop Wearmouth. The first recorded notice of this fish
as British, that I am aware of, is that by Dr. Parnell,
in the Edinburgh New Philosophical Journal, already quot¬
ed, where, by an error of the press, the fish is called PL
limandanus.

Bloch received his specimen from Hamburgh, and states
that this fish is caught by the hook in the vicinity of Heli¬
goland. He says it feeds on young crabs and young lob¬
sters, and that its flesh is white and good.

The length of the head compared to the whole length
of the fish is as one to five ; the breadth of the body,
not including the dorsal or anal fins, is equal to one-third
of the whole length ; with the dorsal and anal fins it is
equal to half the distance from the point of the nose to
the end of the fleshy portion of the tail : the form of the
body is an elongated oval, almost equally pointed at both
ends ; the parts of the mouth capable of some protrusion ;
teeth in a single row in each jaw, separate, conical, and
curving slightly inwards : eyes rather large ; the upper one
a little before the line of the other ; the orbits separated
by a bony ridge : pectoral and ventral fins small ; the former
only half the length of the head : dorsal and anal fins ex¬
tending nearly to the tail ; both fins ending on the same
plane : the tail slightly rounded.

The cheeks, operculum, and body, covered with harsh,
ciliated scales, the surface exceedingly rough to the touch ;
a row of ciliated scales along each ray of the dorsal and anal
fins ; the lateral line straight, or very slightly inclining up-

226

PLEURONECTIDE.

wards as it .approaches the operculum; the head and body
one uniform pale brown ; the fins lighter ; the under surface
of the body rough and white.

The fin-rays in number are —

D. 76 : r. 10 : V. 5 : A. 64 : C. 16.

The vignette represents a Folkstone fisherman selling his
fish by auction on the beach after landing. This is done,
according to the Dutch fashion, by lowering the price de¬
manded for the lot till a bid is made, when the bargain is
struck by dropping the shingle, which is held, as represented,
between the fore-finger and thumb.

SUBB RACHIAL
MALACOPTERYGIL

PLEUROKECTIDjE.

THE POLE, OR CRAIG FLUKE.

Platessn Pola, T.a Pole, Cuvier, Regne An. t. iii. p. 339.

,, ,, The Pole, Jenyns, Man. Brit. Vert. p. 458, sp. 145.

,, ,, Craig Fluke, Parnell, Edinb. Phil. Journ. July 1835, p. 210.

,, ,, La Vruie Li'nandelle, Duhamel, sect. ix. pi. 6, figs. 3 & 4.

Pleuronectes Pola, La Pole, Lacepede, vol. iv. p. 368. New 8vo. Edition,

vol. x p. 74.

This second addition to the British Fishes in the genus
Plcitessa is still more rare on our coast than the PI. liman -
doides last describe*!. In the month of May 1883 I ob¬
served a specimen twelve inches long in the shop of Mr.
Groves of Bond-street ; and on pointing out the differences
between this and other Flatfishes by comparison with several
species among which it was placed for sale, and mentioning
its rarity, Mr. Groves immediately sent it to the Zoological
Society for preservation, observing that he had not noticed
the difference, and did not recollect that he had ever seen
that species before. From this specimen the woodcut was
executed. In May 1835, Dr. Parnell very kindly sent

228

I’LEUIIONECTID.E.

to me from Edinburgh, for examination, a skin of this
species nineteen inches in length, with several other pre¬
served skins of fishes taken in the Frith of Forth, where
the Craig Fluke, as this fish is there called by the fisher¬
men, is occasionally taken in the months of April, May,
and June.

These are the only examples of this fish taken in our
seas that I am acquainted with. Of its habits but little,
I believe, is known. Baron Cuvier states, in his Regne
Animal , that in France the flesh of this species is in as
great estimation as that of the Sole ; and Lacepede states
that it attains a length of twenty-four to thirty inches.

The head is* small; its length compared to that of the
whole fish is as one to six : the greatest breadth of body,
dorsal and anal fins excluded, is to the whole length rather
more than a third ; including the dorsal and anal fins, rather
less than a half : the form of the body an elongated oval,
pointed at each end : the mouth small ; the lips thin ; a
single row of teeth in each jaw, close set, smooth, incisor¬
like, with thin and even-cutting edges: the eyes rather large;
the upper one ranging vertically behind the line of the
lower, with the usual intervening bony ridge ; irides orange :
pectoral and ventral fins small : dorsal and anal fins extend¬
ing very nearly the whole length of the body ; both ending
on the same plane ; the rays about the middle of each the
longest ; those at the extreme ends, before and behind, very
short : tail rather long and rounded.

The fin-rays in number in one specimen were —

D. 109 : P. 11 : V. 7 : A. 93 : C. 19.

The body is quite smooth ; the scales rather large, deci¬
duous, but neither ciliated nor roughened in any way be¬
yond a few radiating striae ; the head smooth, without tu-

POLE.

229

bercles ; lateral line straight, and extending, as in all the
other species of Platessa , to the end of the membrane con¬
necting the caudal rays. The colour of the body uniform
yellowish brown ; the edges of all the fins darker : when
dried for preservation, the colour of the skin of the body
becomes clove brown ; that of the fins, brocoli brown.

The vignette below represents the Thames Peter-boat
rigged with a fore-sail and main-sail, as used by the fisher¬
men about Greenwich, and from thence along the course of
the river downwards.

«

230

1’ L E UltONECTID JE .

SUBBRACHIAL

MALACOPTERYG1I. PLEURONECTIDJE.

THE HOLIBUT.

Hippoglossus vulgaris, Halibut, Flem. Brit. An. p. 199, sp. 108.
,, ,, Fletan, Cuvier, Regne An. t. ii. p. 340.

,, ,, ,, Willughby, p. 99, F. 6.

Pleuronectes hippoglossus, ,, Linnaeus. Bloch, pt. ii. pi. 47.
,, ,, Halibut, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. 302.

,, ,, ,, Don. Brit. Fish. pi. 75.

Generic Characters. — With both eyes and the colour on the right side in the
British specimen of this genus, and with fins similar to those of the species
of the genus Platessa — the jaws and the pharynx are armed with teeth that
are sharper and stronger, and the form of the body is more elongated.

The Holibut is one of tlie largest species of the Pleu-
ronectidce , but its capture is principally confined to the
Northern fisheries: it is noticed by Pennant in his Arctic
Zoology, and is well known on the coasts of Norway, Ice¬
land, and Greenland. It is usually caught with lines and
hooks. The Greenlanders eat the flesh of this fish both
fresh and dried, for which latter purpose it is cut into long
slips and exposed to the air. They are fished for success-

HOLIBUT.

231

fully by the natives of the Orkneys, who ply their lines
in the slack water and various eddies produced by tlie dif¬
ferent islands, out of the race of the tides ; these quiet places
being more particularly the haunts of the Holibut and
Flatfish generally. A large quantity of oil is obtained from
them.

In the Northern seas, Holibuts weighing near five hundred
pounds are said to have been obtained ; and examples of large
size have occasionally occurred nearer home. In April 1828,
a Holibut seven feet six inches in length, three feet six
inches in breadth, and weighing three hundred and twenty
pounds, was taken off the Isle of Man and sent to Edin¬
burgh market. It was said to have been the largest spe¬
cimen ever exhibited there.

The Holibut has occurred, as might be expected, on the
northern coast of Ireland, from Belfast Bay to the shores
of the county of Donegal ; but in consequence, probably,
of the word maximus having been applied by some authors
as a specific term to the Holibut, and by others to the
Turbot, some confusion has arisen by a misappropriation of
the English names. I am in doubt, therefore, whether some
localities on the south coast of Ireland claimed for the Ho¬
libut do not in reality refer to the Turbot, as neither
Colonel Montagu nor Mr. Couch mentions the occurrence of
the Holibut either in Devonshire or Cornwall, but the Tur¬
bot is well known to be common to both. In London this
fish is occasionally seen in the months of March and April :
here, from its large size, it is sold in slices at a low price
by the pound weight. The flesh, though white and firm,
is dry, the muscular fibre coarse, with but little flavour : the
head and fins are said to be the best parts. Specimens only
two feet long are occasionally seen, but in general the exam¬
ples are much larger.

PLEURONECTID/E.

The Holibut feeds close to the ground, on the smaller
species of Flatfish and various Crustacea. It spawns in
spring : the roe is of a pale red colour, and the ova in the
female very numerous. A specimen five feet two inches
long, in the shop of a London fishmonger, supplied the
means of obtaining the following description : —

The length of the head compared to the whole length of
the fish without the caudal rays, is as one to four ; the
greatest breadth one third of the whole length, dorsal, anal,
and caudal fin-rays all excluded : the head small, but the
mouth large ; teeth in two rows in each jaw, small for the
size of the fish, conical, pointed, and separated ; the irides
yellow, the pupils black : the pectoral fin on the coloured
or dextral side one-fourth larger than that on the white or
under side ; the dorsal fin commences in a line over the eye,
the rays longest over the widest part of the body ; the anal
fin of similar character : both dorsal and anal fins terminate
on the same plane, and distinct from the caudal fin, the
posterior margin of which is concave ; the ventral fins are
small, the white ventral fin of the under side the smaller of
the twro : immediately in advance of the commencement of
the anal fin are two apertures; the anterior opening large, and
evidently connected with the intestines ; the posterior opening
smaller, and apparently the outlet from the urinary bladder
and sexual organs. The fin-rays in number were —

D. 104 : P. 16 : V. 6 : A. 81 : C. 16.

The form of the body elongated ; the surface smooth,
covered with small oval-shaped soft scales ; the lateral line
arched over the pectoral fin ; the colour composed of different
shades varying from light brown to dusky brown ; the surface
of the under side perfectly smooth and white.

TURBOT.

233

SUBBRACHIAL

MALACOPTERYGII. PLEURONECTIDJE.

THE TURBOT.

llAWN FI.EUK, AND BANNOCK FLEUK, Scotland.

Rhombus maximus, Le Tin-hot, Cuvieu, Regne An. t. ii. p. 340.

,, ,, Turbot, Wileughby, p. 94, F. 2.

Pleuronectes ,, Linnaeus. Bloch, pt. ii. pi. 49.

,, ,, Turbot, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. 315, pi. 49.

,, ,, ,, Don. Brit. Fish. pi. 46.

,, ,, ,, Flem. Brit. An. p. 196, sp. 96.

Generic Characters. — Colour and eyes on the left side; teeth in the jaws
and pharynx ; dorsal fin commencing anterior to the upper eye ; dorsal and
anal fins extending very nearly to the tail.

The Turbot, so well known, so highly and so justly
esteemed, is considered the best, as it is also one of the
largest, of our Flatfishes ; and, like the Salmon, notwith¬
standing its great excellence, and the immense numbers
that are caught in various ways, it is still in great abundance,
but not equally so on all parts of the coast.

VOL. 11.

R

234

PLEUllONECTID.E.

According to Mr. Low, it is rare in Orkney ; but the
numbers taken increase on coining southward ; and in the
market of Edinburgh, according to Dr. Neill, it is com¬
monly denominated Rawn Fleuk, from its being thought
best for the table when in rawn,* or roe ; it is sometimes also
called Bannock*!* Fleuk, on account of its shape.

On the coasts of Durham and Yorkshire, a considerable
fishery for Turbot is carried on by the fishermen of Hartle¬
pool and Scarborough with long lines, the mode of using
which was described when speaking of the common Codfish.
A large proportion of the Turbot produced in the English
market is taken on or near the various sandbanks between the
long line of our eastern shore and the coast of Holland.
The writer of the article “ Fisheries,” in the edition of the
Encyclopcedia Britannica now in course of publication, says,
u The only fishery, perhaps, which neither the Scotch nor
the English follow up with the same success as the Dutch, is
that of the T urbot ; the finest of which are supposed to be
taken upon the Flemish banks. The Turbot fishery begins
about the end of March, when the Dutch fishermen assemble
a few leagues to the south of Scheveling. As the warm
weather approaches, the fish gradually advance to the north¬
ward, and during the months of April and May they are
found in great shoals on the banks called the Broad Forties.
Early in June they have proceeded to the banks which sur¬
round the small island of Heligoland, off the mouth of the
Elbe, where the fishery continues to the middle of August,
when it terminates for the year. The mode of taking Tur¬
bot is as follows : — At the beginning of the season the trawl-
net is used ; which being drawn along the banks, brings up

* In the West of England a different meaning is attached to this word: see
the bottom of page 170.

t Bannock, a round flat cake.

TURBOT.

235

various kinds of Flatfish, as Soles, Plaice, Tliornbacks, and
Turbots ; but when the warm weather has driven the fish
into deeper water, and upon banks of a rougher surface,
where trawling is no longer practicable, the fishermen have
then recourse to their many-hooked lines. The hooks are
baited with the common Smelt, and a small fish resembling
an Eel, called the Gorebill.* Though very considerable
quantities of this fish are now taken on various parts of our
own coasts, from the Orkneys to the Land’s End, yet a
preference is given in the London market to those caught by
the Dutch, who are supposed to have drawn not less than
80,000/. a year for the supply of this market alone ; and the
Danes from 12,000/. to 15,000/. a year for sauce to this
luxury of the table, extracted from one million of lobsters,
taken on the rocky shores of Norway, — though our own
shores are in many parts plentifully supplied with this ma¬
rine insect, equal in goodness to those of Norway.”

About one-fourth of the whole supply of Turbot to the
London market is furnished by Dutch fishermen, who pay
a duty of 61. per boat, each boat bringing from one hundred
to one hundred and fifty Turbot. A very considerable
quantity is also purchased of the Dutch fishermen at sea on
the fishing stations near their own shore by English fisher¬
men, and is brought by them to our market in their own
boats, paying no duty.

Along our southern coast many Turbot are caught by the
trawling vessels, and long-line fishing at particular seasons on
the Varne and on the Ridge, — twro extensive banks of sand,
the first about seven miles, and the second about twelve
miles, from Dover, towards the French coast. On these
banks French fishermen also lay their long-lines ; and when
they do not succeed in selling their Turbot at sea, which

* Vol. i. page 391.

n 2

236

FLEURONECTIDiE.

suits them best, they freight one or more of their own boats
with them, and send them into Dover harbour for sale, pay¬
ing the usual duty. They are not, however, allowed to sell
any fish but Turbot, except under particular circumstances.
If in want of provision, or their boat has suffered damage
from bad weather, they are then permitted, by certificate
from a magistrate, to sell as much fish as will procure them
food, or pay the cost of repairs.

Along the Devonshire coast, where trawling on an exten¬
sive scale is practised, a portion of the Turbot and Dory is
forwarded during the season to Bath and Exeter ; the re¬
mainder is sent to the London market by land-carriage. It
is observed that the Turbot of the northern part of our own
coast, and those bought of or brought by the Dutch fisher¬
men, are darker in colour than those from the south-western
shores of England.

Mr. Couch says, “ The Turbot keeps in sandy ground,
and is a great wanderer, usually in companies ; and though
its proper habitation is close to the bottom, it sometimes
mounts aloft, and I have known it upon the surface over a
depth of thirty fathoms : I have been informed also of its
pursuing to the surface a companion that was drawn up by
the line, when both were taken together/"

The Turbot, though a voracious fish, is particular as to
the quality of his food : the bait used for him should be very
fresh ; if it happens to be in the least degree tainted, the
Turbot will not touch it. The most enticing baits to use
are those small fishes which are either very bright in colour
or very tenacious of life ; the Atherine, and the two common
species of the genus Cottus, the Sea-Scorpion and Father-
Lasher, are most frequently used : the first attracts by its
shining silvery appearance, and the others by living a long
time on the hook, and showing themselves in their struggles

TURBOT.

237

to get free. The River Lampern was formerly used in large
quantities by the Dutch, and was a great favourite with them
as baits for Turbot, on account of the facility with which they
could be kept alive while the boats were at sea, and com¬
bining bright silvery colour with great power of resisting the
usual effect of mutilation. The principal food of the Tur¬
bot is small fish, Crustacea, and mollusca. It spawns about
August, but rapidly recovers its condition and firmness.

Turbot are recorded as having been taken on the south
coast of Ireland ; I have seen one that was caught on the
coast of Londonderry in the north ; and there is little doubt
but this valuable species occurs at many intermediate lo¬
calities.

44 The Turbot was known to the Athenians, and has been
ever since a worthy object of gastronomical worship.11 The
most common size varies from five to ten pounds’ weight ;
occasionally this fish attains to twenty pounds, and some¬
times thirty pounds. Mr. Couch notices, in his MS. a re¬
cord of one taken in the year 1730, at Cawsand, near Ply¬
mouth, which weighed seventy pounds. On the 18th of
February 1832, an unusually large Turbot' was caught at
Staiths, near Whitby, which weighed thirteen stone eight
pounds (one hundred and ninety pounds), and measured six
feet across. Rondeletius, however, states that he had seen a
Turbot five cubits in length, four in breadth, and a foot in
thickness. The Turbot is considered to have been the
Rhombus of the ancient Romans, of which a specimen of
enormous size is said to have been taken in the reign of
Domitian, who ordained a Senatus Consultum to devise the
best mode of bringing it to table.*

“No vessel they find fit to hold such a fish.

And the senate ’s convoked to decree a new dish.”

* Juven. Sat. iv.

238

rLEURONECTID.E.

#

Quin, of epicurean notoriety, is said to have given it as
his opinion that the flesh on the dark-coloured side of the
Turbot was the best meat ; and as examples occasionally
occur that are dark-coloured on both sides, some London
fishmongers, from experience in their good qualities, recom¬
mend such fish as deserving particular attention. Reversed
Turbots, as they are called, — that is, Turbots having the eyes
and dark colour on the right side instead of the left, — are also
occasionally brought to market : I have seen two or three
such ; but they have exhibited a slight degree of malforma¬
tion in the form of a notch or depression on the top of the
head. The Pleuronectes cy clops of Mr. Donovan, plate 90,
I believe to be an example of the young fry of the Turbot,
the head of which is not perfectly formed.

The number of Turbot brought to Billingsgate market
within twelve months, up to a recent period, was 87,958 ; and
the number of lobsters within the same period 1,904,000.

The form of the Turbot, exclusive of the caudal rays, is
nearly round : the length of the head compared to the length
of the head and body alone is as one to three ; the depth of
the body, including both dorsal and anal fins, is equal to the
length from the nose to the end of the fleshy portion of the
tail : the mouth is large, the direction of the opening ob¬
liquely upwards; the teeth small and numerous in both jaws;
the eyes in a vertical line one directly over the other ; the
whole surface of the cheeks, and all the parts of the gill-cover
on the upper or coloured side, studded with numerous tuber¬
cles ; the operculum ending in an angle directed backwards
and over the base of the pectoral fin ; the gill-openings large;
the pectoral fin small ; the dorsal fin, commencing by short
rays immediately over the nostril and anterior to the upper
eye, extends very nearly to the end of the fleshy portion of
the tail, where the rays are again short, the longest rays

TURBOT.

239

being over the middle of the body; the ventral fins broad,
placed very far forward, appearing like the commencement of
the anal fin, and only separated from it by a narrow space ;
the anal fin ending by short rays near the tail, and on the
same vertical plane as the dorsal : the caudal rays moderately
long, and slightly rounded. The fin-rays in number are —

D. 64 : P. 12 : V. 6 : A. 48 : C. 15 : Vertebra 30.

The whole of the upper or coloured side of the body
studded with hard roundish tubercles, the surface otherwise
smooth ; the scales small, the prevailing colour varying
shades of brown, the fins a little lighter ; the lateral line
arched high over the pectoral fin, then straight to the tail ;
the under surface of the body is smooth, and generally per¬
fectly white.

The vignette represents a Dutch boat.

PLEU RONECTID.E.

240

SUBBRACHIAL

MALACOPTERYG1I. PLEURONECTIDJE.

THE BRILL.

PEARL, KITE, BRETT, BONNET-FLEUK.

Rhombus vulgaris, La Barbue, Cuvier, Regne An. t. ii. p. 341.

,, non aculeatus, Willughby, p. 95, pi. F. 1.

Pleuronectes rhombus, Linnaeus. Bloch, pt. ii. pi. 43.

,, ,, Pearl, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. 321, pi. 50.

,, ,, Brill, Don. Brit. Fish. pi. 97.

,, ,, ,, Flem. Brit. An. p. 196, sp. 97.

The Brill is a well-known fish, brought in abundance
to the London market, and procured from the same localities
and by the same modes as the Turbot ; but is not held in
equal estimation, being considered by some as inferior to
the Sole, but very superior to the Plaice.

Dr. Neill says it is found in Aberlady Bay, where it is
called Bonnet-Fleuk ; it is taken also at Yarmouth, and
other places along our eastern coast. It is abundant on our
southern coast, inhabiting sandy bays as well as deep water,

BRILL.

241

from whence the principal part of the supply for the London
market is derived. It has been taken also at Belfast. In
its food, as well as in its season of spawning, it is similar to
the Turbot, but does not usually appear so large, seldom
exceeding eight pounds in weight. It should be borne in
mind, that the Kite of the Devonshire and Cornish coasts is
the same as the Brill ; but that the Kit of Jago is the smooth
or small-headed Dab, figured and described in this volume at
page 221.

The writer of the supplementary part to the Class Fishes,
in Mr. Griffith's edition of Cuvier's Animal Kingdom, says
that the enormous fish presented to the Roman Emperor
Domitian wras a Brill, Rhombus vulgaris of Cuvier, and not
the Turbot ; but the authority or the reasons for this opinion
are not given. Bloch, in his account of the Brill, makes a
similar statement.

The length of the head from the point of the lower jaw to
the edge of the operculum is, when compared to the length
of the body alone without the head or caudal rays, as one to
two ; the breadth of the body, dorsal and anal fins excluded,
equal to half the whole length of the entire fish ; the whole
breadth, dorsal and anal fins included, is to the whole length
as two to three : the form of the body rhomboidal ; the sur¬
face perfectly smooth ; the position and extent of the fins
very similar to those of the Turbot last described ; a few of
the most anterior rays of the dorsal fin extend beyond the
connecting membrane ; the tail rounded.

The fin-rays in number are —

D. 76 : P. 10 : V. 6 : A. 59 : C. 16. Vertebrae 35.

The mouth is large, deeply cleft ; under jaw the longest ;
teeth numerous, small, pointed, and sharp : the upper eye
behind the lower one in a vertical line ; irides yellow : cheek

242 PLEURONECTID.E.

and operculum smooth, without tubercles ; basal and as¬
cending marginal lines of the preoperculum forming nearly
a right angle ; lateral line arched over the pectoral fin, then
straight to the end of the tail : the scales are nearly round,
small, and smooth ; the colours of the body a reddish sandy
brown, varied with darker brown, and sprinkled over with
white pearl-like specks, whence, probably, one of the names
bestowed on this fish has originated : the under surface is
smooth and white.

The young are of a pale reddish brown, marked with very
dark brown or black spots.

The vignette represents the outline of the anterior part of
a Brill with a malformed head. For the fish from which this
sketch was taken, I am indebted to the kindness of Mrs.
Nelson of Devonport. It was taken in that vicinity in June
1835, and was brought on shore alive.

243

muller's topknot.

SUBBRACHIAL

MALACOPTERYGII. PLEURONECTIDJE.

MULLER'S TOPKNOT.

Rhombus hirtus, Muller's Topknot, Yaiuiell.

Pleuronectes hirtus , Mui.ler, Zool. Dan. vol. iii. p. 36, pi. 103.

,, punctatus, Topknot, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. 322, pi; 51 , and

edit. 1776, pi. 41, but named by mistake
Smear Dab.

Le Gros Pile ou Targeur, Duhamel, sect. ix. pi. 5, fig. 4.

Pleuronectes hirtus, Muller's Topknot, Jenyns, Man. Brit. Vert. p. 463,

sp. 151.

Several modern authors have confounded the present
fish with the species next to be described ; and Cuvier, * as
well as Professor Nilsson, -f- have brought together the Pleu¬
ronectes hirtus of Muller, and the PL punctatus of Bloch,
apparently considering them as the same fish. Muller
doubted whether the punctatus of Bloch was the same as
his fish, and notices the points in which they differ. The
opportunity of examining some specimens very recently,

t Prod. Ichth. Scand. p. 59, sp. 11.

* Itegne An. t. ii. p. 341.

244

PLEURONECTID/E.

confirms the existence of two distinct species on our shores.
Though somewhat similar in the form of the body, the
colouring, and the spots, there are still the following well-
marked distinguishing specific characters.

The hirtus of Muller, and those included in the syno-
nymes here given, have the eye or coloured side only of the
body rough ; the under side smooth ; the eyes and mouth
small : the first ray of the dorsal fin not longer than the
succeeding rays ; the ventral and anal fins united ; the dorsal
and anal fins also connected to the tail by a membrane ; the
tail short and rounded ; the scales of the body when de¬
tached higher than wide.

The punctatus of Bloch, and the fishes included under the
synonymes given with the next species, have both sides of
the body rough ; the eyes large and prominent ; the mouth
larger than in hirtus , and not placed so obliquely ; the first
ray of the dorsal fin elongated ; the ventral and anal fins
separated ; the tail rather long ; the scales of the body when
detached wider than high.

The hirtus of Muller appears to be the most common
species of the two ; but neither occur very frequently. I
have received a specimen from Dr. George Johnston, which
was taken near Berwick Bay ; and I am indebted to Profes¬
sor Henslow of Cambridge for a drawing of one taken in the
Medway. Dr. John Harwood, of St. Leonard's, possesses
a specimen taken on the Sussex coast; and both Colonel Mon¬
tagu and Mr. Hanmer obtained specimens in Devonshire.

Mr. Couch considers it not an uncommon fish in the
West of England, and has furnished me with two examples,
from one of which the figure was taken. It appears to keep
among rocks, where it is not readily distinguished, on account
of the similarity in its colour to the seaweed ; and it is chiefly
taken in the nets which are set for Red Mullet. In winter

muller's topknot.

245

tlie boys find small ones, not larger tlian a half-crown piece,
in the pools left by the tide. This species of Flatfish does
not probably attain any great size ; the largest examples
I have seen not exceeding seven or eight inches in length.

Mr. Baker, of Bridgewater, sent me a specimen, beautifully
preserved, that had been taken in the Bristol Channel : and
I have a record of one that was caught on the coast of the
county of Down in Ireland.

The whole length of the specimen described is five inches
and one quarter ; the length of the head compared to that
of the body, without the caudal rays, is as one to two and
a half ; the breadth of the body, not including the dorsal
and anal fins, half of the whole length : the form of the
body, including both these fins, is rhomboid : the dorsal
fin commences immediately over the upper lip, the rays
lengthening by degrees, and being longest over the posterior
third part of the body ; the pectoral fin small ; the ventral
fins placed in a vertical line under the middle of the head,
and attached to the commencement of the anal fin by a
membrane : this latter-named fin commences under the line
of the ascending posterior margin of the preoperculum : both
dorsal and anal fin end on the same plane, and are connected
to the fleshy portion of the tail by a membrane ; the tail
small and rounded. The fin-rays in number are —

D. 90 : P. 11 : V. 6 : A. 70 : C. 14. Vertebra 33.

The mouth is small, the position almost vertical ; the
teeth distinct, small, conical, and sharp : the diameter of the
eye equal to one-fourth of the length of the head ; the upper
eye placed behind the line of the lower to the distance of
nearly one-half its width : the basal and ascending marginal
lines of the preoperculum form an obtuse angle ; the cheeks,
operculum, and body, covered with denticulated scales,

246

rLEURONECTTD.E.

which in shape, when detached, are longest in their vertical
diameter.

The colour of the body is a reddish brown, mottled and
spotted with very dark brown or black ; a large, conspicuous
dark spot behind, but above the ends of the pectoral fin-rays;
the lateral line curved over the pectoral fin, then descending
and intersecting the lower portion of the large dark spot,
afterwards passing straight to the tail ; the fins paler brown
than the body ; all the rays of the dorsal and anal fins with
a line or row of denticulated scales along their upper surface;
the under side of the body smooth and white.

The vignette represents a fisliwoman at Scheveling.

bloch’s topknot.

247

SUBBRACHIAL

MALACOPTERYG1I. PLEURONECTIDjE.

BLOCH’S TOPKNOT.

Rhombus punctatus, Bloch's Topknot, Yarrell.

Pleuronectes ,, Bloch, pt. vi. pi. 189.

,, ,, Flem. Wern. Mem. vol. ii. p. 241.

,, ,, ,, Phil. Zool. pi. 3, fig. 2.

,, ,, ,, Brit. An. p. 196, sp. 99.

Rhombus unimaculatus , Risso, Hist. tom. iii. p. 252, fig. 35.

Pletironectes punctatus, Bloch's Topknot, Jenyns, Man. Brit. Vert. p. 462,

sp. 150.

By an oversight, the use of a looking-glass was omitted
when making the drawing of this fish on the wood from
the specimen, and the figure therefore appears with the eyes
and the colours on the right side, like a Platessa , instead of
on the left, as in a true Rhombus. The fish ought to
have been represented with the head placed in the same di¬
rection as in the species last described.

The Pleuronectes punctatus of Bloch, or, as it is here
called to preserve the appropriation, Bloch’s Topknot, is

PLEURONECTID.E.

248

much ’more rare than the Topknot of Muller; but appears,
like it, to have an extended range. Professor Nilsson in¬
cludes but one species in his Fishes of Scandinavia, but
brings together the trivial names of the hirtus of Muller and
the punctatus of Bloch.

Dr. Fleming procured the true punctatus in Zetland,
where, according to the testimony of the fishermen, it is
not uncommon. Professor Henslow obtained at Weymouth
the specimen from which Mr. Jenyns’ description and the
figure here inserted were taken ; and a comparison of the
figures and descriptions referred to under the present fish
with those of the Rhombus unimaculatus of M. Risso, in
his Histoire Naturelle , will convince the observer that they
are intended for the same fish.

Bloch, if he has correctly figured his species, was, I
think, mistaken in supposing his fish to be the same as
Le Gros Flic ou Targeur of Duhamel ; as the separation
between the ventral and the anal fins, and the want of con¬
nexion between the ends of both dorsal and anal fins with
the tail, will demonstrate on comparing the two figures :
but the character and disposition of the spots are something
like those of Muller’s fish. The figure by Dr. Fleming,
in his Philosophy of Zoology, wants only the greater elon¬
gation of the first ray of the dorsal fin, perhaps a sexual dis¬
tinction, to render it identical with the figure here given, and
that by M. Risso.

I avail myself, by permission, of the very full description
of this fish given by Mr. .Tenyns in his Manual, taken from
the specimen in the collection of the Philosophical Society
of Cambridge.

“ Length five inches and a half. Form roundish oval ;
the dorsal and ventral lines equally convex : greatest breadth,
fins excluded, just half the length : head a little less than

block's topknot. 249

one-third of the same : profile notched immediately before
the eyes : mouth of moderate size, very protractile ; jaws
nearly equal ; the lower one a very little the longest, and
ascending obliquely at an angle of rather more than forty-
five degrees : teeth so fine as to be scarcely visible : eyes
large, remarkably full and prominent ; their diameter about
one-fourth the length of the head ; placed on the left side ;
approximating ; the lower one rather more advanced than
the upper ; between them a projecting ridge : basal and
posterior margins of the preopercle meeting at a very obtuse
angle, the former rising obliquely to meet the latter ; lateral
line commencing at the upper part of the opercle, at first
very much arched, but afterwards straight : both sides of the
body, but more especially the upper, extremely rough :
scales minute ; those on the upper side having their free
margins set with from four to six denticles ; those beneath
having the denticles finer and more numerous : dorsal fin
commencing 4 immediately in advance of the upper eye, and
extending very nearly to the caudal, at the same time pass¬
ing underneath the tail, where the rays become very delicate ;
greatest elevation of the fin near its retral extremity ; first
ray very much produced, nearly three times the length of
those which follow ; most of the rays divided at their tips ;
some of the last in the fin branched from the bottom : anal
fin commencing in a line with the posterior angle of the pre¬
opercle, answering to the dorsal, and terminating in the same
manner beneath the tail ; greatest elevation corresponding :
caudal oblong, the extremity rounded : pectorals inserted
behind the posterior lobe of the opercle, a little below the
middle ; the first ray very short, the next three or four
longest, the succeeding ones nearly as long ; pectoral on the
eye side rather larger than that on the side opposite : ventral
fins immediately before the anal, and appearing like a con-

VOL, II.

s

250

PLEURONECTIDjE

tinuation of that fin, but not connected with it, as in the
other species : vent situated between the two last pairs of
rays : the rays of all the fins covered with rough scales nearly
to their tips. The numbers of the fin -rays are —

D. 87 : P. leftside 12 : right side 11 : V. 6 : A. 68 : C. 16.

The colour above brown, or reddish brown, mottled and
spotted with black ; a large round spot, more conspicuous
than the others, in the middle of the side towards the pos¬
terior part of the body ; fins spotted : under side plain white.

WHIFF

251

SUBBRACHTAL

MALACOPTERYGII. BLEU RON ECU DAE \

THE WHIFF.
the carter, Cornwall.

Rhombus megastoma ,

Whiff,

Y ARRELL.

yy yy

La Ca r

•dine, Cuvier,

Regne An. t. ii.

p. 341.

Passer Cornubiensis,

Whiff,

Ray, Syn.

p. 163, fig. 2.

Pleuronectes pseudopalus ,

}>

Penn. Brit.

Zool. vol. iii. p.

324, pi. 52

,, megastoma,

yy

Don. Brit. Fish. pi. 51.

yy y y

y y

Flem. Brit.

An. p. 196, sp

. 98.

The Whiff appears to have been first described and
figured by Ray from Mr. Jago’s Catalogue of Cornish Fishes,
which is introduced, with short notices and representations, in
Ray’s Synopsis. This fish seems to occur more frequently
in Cornwall than on any other part of our coast. Mr.
Couch says, “ This species is well known to the Cornish
fishermen, who apply the name of Carter to it. It keeps on
sandy ground, at no great distance from land, and takes a
bait, so that it is caught as often as any of the salt-water
Flatfishes ; but it is not highly esteemed for the table, chief¬
ly from being so thin.”

s 2

PLEURONECTIDiE.

Mr. Donovan found it in Wales ; Colonel Montagu ob¬
tained two on the Devonshire coast; and Mr. Jenyns has
described it in his valuable Manual of the British Vertebrate
Animals, from a specimen obtained by Professor Henslow
at Weymouth. Most of the specimens recorded measured
from eighteen to twenty-one inches in length.

But few particulars are known of this fish. It appears but
seldom in the London market : I obtained one in June 1834
which measured seventeen inches in length, from which a
representation and the following description are taken.

The length of the head from the point of the upper jaw to
the posterior edge of the operculum, compared to the length
of the body alone, without the head or caudal rays, is as one
to three ; the breadth of the body, dorsal and anal fins ex¬
cluded, is to the whole length of the fish rather less than one
third : the dorsal fin commences half-way between the point
of the nose and the anterior edge of the upper orbit, and ex¬
tends to within three-quarters of an inch of the end of the
fleshy portion of the tail and the base of the caudal rays ;
the pectoral fin on the under or white side is considerably
smaller in size, and contains two rays less, than that on the
upper side ; the ventral fins are of some extent at the base,
as in the preceding species of the genus Rhombus ; the anal
fin commences in a line under the origin of the pectoral fin,
extends along the whole length of the abdominal line, and
ends near the tail on the same plane as the dorsal fin ; the
fleshy portion of the tail is narrow ; the caudal rays three
inches long, and slightly rounded.

The fin-rays in number are —

D. 89 : P. 11 : V. 6 : A. 71 : c. 13. Vertebra 41.

The mouth is large ; the lower jaw the longest, with a
rounded projection under the symphysis ; the teeth on both

WIIIFF.

253

jaws numerous, pointed and sharp : the eyes large ; the
upper one the most so, and placed farther back than the
lower ; the orbits separated by a prominent bony ridge : the
lateral line conspicuous, elevated, and double over the pec¬
toral fin, one portion being a continuation of the prominent
straight line along the body, the other rather less conspi¬
cuous, taking a high curve over the lower and the pectoral
fin ; both lines ultimately approaching each other again at
the upper angle of the operculum, as shown in the woodcut :
the form of the body is an elongated oval ; the surface rough ;
the scales rather large ; the colour a uniform yellow brown ;
the fins rather lighter ; the under side smooth and white. A
specimen in the British Museum exhibits faint indications of
various spots, as shown in Mr. Donovan’s coloured figure.

254

PLEURONECTID.E.

SUBBRACII 1AL

MALACOPT ERYG 1 1 . PLEURONECTIDJE.

THE SCALDFISH.
megrim, Cornwall, smooth sole.

Rhombus Arnoglossus, Scaldjish, Yarpell.

,, ,, ,, Cuvier, Regne An. t. ii. p. 342.

Arnoglossus lavis, ,, VVillughby, p. 102, F. 8, fig. 7.

Pleuronectes casurus, ,, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol.iii.p. 325, pi. 53.

,, Arnoglossus, ,, Flem. Brit. An. p. 197, sp. 100.

Rhombus nudus, ,, Risso, Hist. t. iii. p. 251, sp. 141.

The Scaldfish, or Megrim, as it is called in Corn¬
wall, appears, like the species last described, to be in this
country, as far as we yet know, exclusively confined to the
southern coast, and is only at present recorded as having-
been taken between Weymouth and the Land's End.

Mr. Couch says, “ he has never known it take a bait, and
its diminutive size prevents its being an object of attention
to fishermen ; but they say it is much preyed upon by Con¬
gers and other large fishes, in the stomachs of which they
often find it : it follows from this that it keeps in deep
water. It seldom exceeds four or five inches in length :
but Mr. Couch has seen one that measured six inches and
a half. M. Risso says the females are very prolific.

SCALDFISH.

255

The length of the head is to that of the body as one to
three, caudal rays excluded ; the depth of the body, without
the dorsal or anal fins, equal to one-third of the whole
length ; the dorsal fin commences over the upper eye, and
reaches very nearly to the end of the fleshy portion of the
tail; the pectoral fin long and narrow, but shorter and smaller
on the under side ; ventral fins under the gill-cover ; the
anal fin commencing in a line under the pectoral, and end¬
ing near the tail on the same plane as the dorsal fin ; caudal
rays of moderate length, and slightly rounded ; but the rays
of all the fins in both the specimens before me, from which
the description is taken, extend considerably beyond the con¬
necting membranes of each, as shown in the woodcut.

The fin-rays in number are —

D. 87 : P. 6 : V. 10 : A. 60 : C. 18.

The mouth is large, with small teeth in both jaws ; lower
jaw the longest when separated : eyes rather large ; pupils
blue ; irides yellow ; orbits separated by a bony ridge ; upper
eye larger than the lower, and placed more backward in a
vertical line : body in shape an elongated oval, narrowed
towards the tail ; the scales large, round, thin, and trans¬
parent, almost all wanting, so easily are they removed on the
slightest touch ; the body of the fish appears naked. I am
indebted to the kindness of Mr. Couch for a Cornish speci¬
men : I also possess one from the Mediterranean, which
enables me to say that our fish is the Rhombus nudus of
M. Risso, as quoted. The lateral line after its commence¬
ment at the posterior edge of the operculum rises slightly
over the pectoral fin ; then descending gradually, deviates but
little from a straight line throughout the remainder of its

O O

course to the tail. The colour of both specimens is alike, a
uniform pale yellow brown.

256

1* LEUllONECTI DA'

SUB BRACHIAL

MALACOPTERYG11. PLEURONECTIDJE.

THE SOLE.

Solea vulgaris,

>t >>

Bug/ossus sen Soleu,
Pleuronectes Solea,

yy yy

yy yy

Solea vulgaris,

La Sole, Cuvier, Regne An. t. ii. p. 342.
A Sole , Merrett, Pinax, p. 187.

Sole, Willughby, p. 100, F. 7.

,, Linnaus. Bloch, pt. ii. pi. 45.

,, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. 311.

Common Sole, Don. Brit. Fish. pi. 62.

Sole, Flem. Brit. An. p. 197, sp. 101.

Generic Characters. — Both eyes and colour on theright’side ; the mouth dis¬
torted on the side opposite the eyes ; small teeth in both jaws, but confined to
the under side only, none on the same side as the eyes ; form of the body ob¬
long ; dorsal and anal fins extend to the tail.

The common Sole is so universally known as to require
only a particular notice of tliose points in its economy that
are tlie least obvious. It inhabits the sandy shore all round
our coast, where it keeps close to the bottom, feeding on the
smaller testaceous animals, and the spawn and fry of other
fishes. It is taken among the Orkneys, and along the north¬
east coast ; but it is of small comparative size : the Soles of
the south and west are much larger, and considered otherwise
superior to those of the north and east.

The Sole is found northward as far as the Baltic and the

SOLE.

257

seas of Scandinavia; and southward, along the shores of Spain,
Portugal, and the Mediterranean. It was first described by
Bellon.

Soles — and of these an enormous quantity — are caught
almost entirely by trawling ; they seldom take any bait. It
is usual to send them to market in baskets, within which the
Soles of small size, called Slips, are arranged nearest the
wicker-work forming the outside of the basket : the larger
Soles, being more valuable, are packed in the middle.
Eighty-six thousand bushels of Soles were received at Bil¬
lingsgate market only within the last twelvemonths.

The Sole is found full of roe at the latter end of Fe¬
bruary. They are then for a few weeks soft and watery ; but
they soon recover, and throughout a great portion of the
year are deservedly in high estimation : the flesh is white,
firm, and of excellent flavour ; those from deep water are the
finest in quality.

The principal traw ling-ground in England is along the
south coast from Sussex to Devonshire : the Sole has also
been taken on the shores of various counties in Ireland, viz.
Cork, Waterford, Antrim, Londonderry, and Donegal. On
the Devonshire coast there are two great fishing stations,
Brixham and Torbay; the boats from which, using large
trawling-nets from thirty to thirty-six feet in beam, produce
a continual supply. Soles of very large size are occasionally
taken. I have a record of one pair taken in Torbay which
measured twenty-three inches in length each, and weighed
together ten pounds ; but for the particulars of the largest I
have heard of, I am indebted to the kindness of the Rev.
W. F. Cornish, of Totness. This specimen, a remarkably
fine-grown fish, and very thick, was twenty-six inches long,
eleven inches and a half wide, and weighed nine pounds. —
Totness market, June 21st, 1826.

258

PLEURONECTID/E.

Soles appear to thrive well in fresh water. Dr. McCul¬
loch, in his papers on 44 Changing the Residence of certain
Fishes from salt water to fresh,1”’* says, he was informed that
a Sole had been kept in a fresh-water pond in a garden for
many years ; and adds, that in Mr. Arnold's pond at Guern¬
sey, which has been before referred to, the Sole becomes
twice as thick as a fish of the same length from the sea. A
letter from a gentleman residing on the banks of the Arun
contains the following statement : — 44 I succeeded yesterday
in seeing the person who caught the Soles about which you
inquire, and who has been in the constant habit of trawling
for them with a ten-feet beam trawl in this river for the last
forty years. The season for taking them is from May till
November. They breed in the river (Arun), frequenting
it from the mouth five miles upwards,*)* which is nearly to
the town of Arundel, and remain in it the whole year, bury¬
ing themselves in the sand during the cold months. The
fisherman has occasionally taken them of large size, two
pounds1 weight each, but frequently of one pound ; and they
are thicker in proportion than the Soles usually caught at
sea. In other respects, precisely the same ; and it is evident
they breed in great numbers in the river from the quantity of
small ones about two inches long that are constantly brought
on shore when drawing the net for Grey Mullet.11

Reversed Soles — that is, having the eyes and the brown
colour on the left side instead of the right — are not uncom¬
mon : and I possess a specimen that is of the usual dark co¬
lour, with rough ciliated scales on both sides.

The length of the head is to the whole length of the entire
fish as one to six ; the breadth of the body, dorsal and anal

* Royal Institution Quarterly Journal, No. xxxiv. July 1824, and No.
xxxviii. July 1825.

t For a view of this part of the Arun, see vol. i. page 209.

SOLE.

259

fins excluded, compared to the whole length, as one to three :
the nose is rounded and produced, projecting beyond the
mouth : the upper jaw the longest ; both jaws furnished with
minute teeth on the under or white side of the fish only : the
eyes small ; the lower eye over the angle of the mouth ; the
upper eye placed more forward in a vertical line ; the irides
yellow ; the pupils blue : the space between the eyes, the
cheek, and operculum, flat, and covered with small rough
ciliated scales : the pectoral and ventral fins small ; the dorsal
fin begins at the point of the nose, the anal fin under the
line of the edge of the gill-cover ; both extend the whole
length of the body, ending on the same plane, near the base
of the caudal rays ; and both these fins have a series of small,
rough, ciliated scales, extending along the line of each ray :
the tail rather long, and slightly rounded.

The fin-rays in number are —

D. 84 : P. 7 : V. 5 : A. 67 : C. 17. Vertebra 47.

The form of the body is a long oval, widest at a short
distance behind the head, becoming narrower and rather
pointed towards the tail ; the colour on the upper side al¬
most a uniform dark brown ; the scales small, each ciliated
at the edge, and rough to the touch ; the lateral line running
straight from the tail forward to the operculum, then rising
and ending on a line with the superior edge of the upper
orbit ; the pectoral fin tipped with black. On the under
side the colour is white : about the nostril and mouth are
numerous soft papillae.

260

PLEURONECTI D.E.

SUBBRACHIAL

MALACOPTERYGIL PLEURONECTI DYE.

THE LEMON SOLE.

THE FRENCH SOLE, Sussex COCISt.

Solea pegusa, Lemon Sole, Yarrell, Zool. Journ. vol. iv. p. 467, pi. 16.

,, ,, ,, ,, Jenyns, Man. Brit. Vert. p. 467, sp. 155.

During a short visit to Brighton in the last week of
February 1829, I obtained a single example of this species
of Sole, which appeared to have been previously unnoticed
as occurring on our shores. Since it was described in the
Zoological Journal, as above quoted, I have obtained, but at
considerable intervals, two or three other specimens of this
fish in the London market, and have now deposited exam¬
ples in the British Museum and the collection of the Zoolo¬
gical Society.

This species is occasionally taken with the common Sole
when trawling over a clear bottom of soft sand, about sixteen
miles from Brighton in a direction towards the coast of
France; from which circumstance this fish is known to some
of our fishermen by the name of French Sole ; others call it

LEMON SOLE.

261

by that of Lemon Sole, in reference to its prevailing yellow¬
ish colour.

In shape the Lemon Sole is wider in proportion to its
whole length than the common Sole, and it is also somewhat
thicker ; the head is smaller, being in proportion to the
whole length of the fish rather less than as one to seven ; the
breadth of the body, dorsal and anal fins included, exactly
half the whole length : the arrangement of the fins is nearly
the same as in the common Sole ; but the fin-rays and the
number of vertebrae differ.

D. 81 : P. 8 : V. 5 : A. 69 : C. 17. Vertebrae 43.

The prevailing colour is a mixture of orange and light
brown, freckled over with numerous small round spots of
dark nutmeg brown, giving a mottled appearance to the
whole upper surface. The scales differ in character ; the
lateral line is straight, but not so prominent or strongly
marked ; the tail is narrower than in the common Sole,
though containing the same number of rays ; the end of the
pectoral fin spotted with black. On the under side the ap¬
pearance is still more characteristic of the distinction of the
species. The under surface of the head is almost smooth,
without any of the papillary eminences so numerous and
remarkable in the common Sole, and the nostril is pierced in
a prominent tubular projection, which is wanting in the
other : the under surface is white, with the appearance of the
scales more strongly marked than upon the upper.

262

PLEURONECTIDJE.

SUBBRACHIAL

MALACOPTERYGJ1. PLEURONECTJDJE.

THE VARIEGATED SOLE.

Monoch i rus li ngu a tu l us,
Solea parva sive lingula,

n yy yy yy

Pole panachAe,
Pleuronectes lingula,

,, variegatus ,

Solea variegata,

Cuvier, Regne An. t. ii. p. 343.

Rondeeetius.

WlELUGHBY, p. 102, F. 8, fig. 1.

Duhamel, sect. ix. pi. 2.

Redbacked Flounder, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii.

p. 313, pi. 49.

Variegated Sole, Don. Brit. Fish. pi. 117.

,, ,, Feem. Brit. An. p. 197, sp. 102.

Generic Characters. — The pectoral fin on the upper or eye side small ; that
on the under side minute, almost imperceptible, or entirely wanting : in other
respects like Solea.

The Variegated Sole appears, like the Lemon Sole
last described, to be a rare species, and but few specimens
are to be found in collections, though it seems to have a
wide range. According to Professor Reinhardt, it is found
on the shores of Scandinavia. In the Magazine of Natural
History, conducted by Mr. Loudon, a notice appears, vol. vi.
page 530, that it has been taken at Rothsay. Mr. Dono¬
van obtained one seven inches long in the London market ;
and Mr. Jenyns has described this fish in his Manual from a

VARIEGATED SOLE.

268

specimen procured at Weymouth. Colonel Montagu men¬
tions that Dr. Leach bought three in Plymouth market in
August 1808, and gave him one of them, measuring nine
inches in length, from which his notes of the species were
recorded in his MS.; and Mr. Couch has observed it in Corn¬
wall, very kindly sending me a specimen, from which the
woodcut was executed. But little is known of the habits of
this species ; but it is stated in Pennant that it appears about
Plymouth in the spring.

It is immediately distinguished from either of the Soles
previously described here, by its variegated colour ; by its
scales, which are larger ; by its pectoral fins, which are much
smaller, that on the under side being very minute ; and by
the dorsal and anal fins, as shown in the cut, ending consi¬
derably short of the tail.

The whole length of the specimen described was five
inches ; the breadth without the fins, one inch and three-
eighths ; the length of the head compared to that of the
body alone, as one to four : the dorsal and anal fins ending on
the same plane, but not reaching the base of the caudal rays,
and both having the numerous rays projecting beyond the
edges of the connecting membranes, as shown in the cut ;
the right pectoral fin small, that on the under side consisting
of only two unequal, slender, and short rays.

The fin-rays in number are —

D. 67 : P. right side 4 : left side 2 : V. 5 : A. 52 : C. 16.

The body is thicker in proportion than either of the Soles
previously described ; the scales larger, the divisions strong¬
ly marked, the edges ciliated, rough to the touch ; the
lateral line straight : the colour of the upper side reddish
brown, clouded both on the body and fins with darker
brown ; the under surface white ; scales also ciliated and
harsh to the touch.

264

CYCLOPTERIDiE.

SUBBRACHIAL

MALACOPTERYGI1. CYCLOPTER1DA.*

CORNISH SUCKER.

Cornish Sucker, Flem. Brit. An. p. 189, sp. 71.
Jura Sucker, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. 181,
pi. 25.

Ocellated Sucker, Don. Brit. Fish. pi. 76.

,, ,, Risso, Hist. tom. iii. p. 272,

sp. 163.

Cornish Sucker, Jenyns, Man. Brit. Vert. p. 469,
sp. 157.

Generic Characters. — Body smooth, without scales ; dorsal and anal fins
opposite, and near the tail ; pectoral fins large, descending to the inferior surface
of the body, and by an extension of the membrane surrounding an oval disk ;
ventral fins united by a membrane which extends circularly under the belly,
forming a second concave disk.

THE

Lepidogaster Cornubiensis,
Cyclopterus Lepidogaster,

,, ocellatus,
Lepidogaster biciliatus,

,, Cornubiensis,

Baron Cuvier lias called the third family of the Sub-
brachial Malacopterygii, Discoboles , on account of the disk
formed by the union of the ventral fins. The term Cyclop-
terid.e, derived from an original Linnsean generic name, is
here adopted in order to preserve uniformity in the names of

* The family of the Sucking-fishes.

CORNISH SUCKEIi.

265

the families. The pectoral fins in these fishes are large,
descending to the inferior surface of the body, where they are
joined by four strong rays, and, united by a membrane to a
similar structure on the opposite side, form the boundary of
an adhesive disk. In the species of the first genus, a second
disk is formed by the union of the ventral fins.

The few species belonging to this small family are very
remarkable for the power they possess of attaching them¬
selves to stones, rocks, or other substances, by means of the
adhesive apparatus on the under surface of their bodies, ap¬
parently deriving some degree of protection and support from
the contact.

The two British species belonging to the first genus are
small, defenceless, their bodies smooth, without scales ; and
the power of attaching themselves to stones, &c. which they
ar-e seen to exercise, may be useful by enabling them to resist
the action of strong currents or dashing waves, and is perhaps
applicable with them to other uses, with which naturalists are
not yet acquainted.

The first prettily-marked species of Sucking-fish was dis¬
covered by Dr. Borlase, who found it on the coast of Corn¬
wall, and described it under the name of the Lesser-Sucking-
fish, in his Natural History of that county. Pennant
afterwards found it at Jura, in the Hebrides, and called it in
consequence the Jura Sucker; but if any name indicative of
a peculiar geographical locality is admissible, it ought to have
been that only in which it was first discovered ; and I have
therefore followed Dr. Fleming and Mr. Jenyns in calling it
the Cornish Sucker, although this name is not entirely free from
objection, two other species of fishes, provided with suckers,
being found in Cornwall. Mr. Couch says, however, that this
fish is there called pre-eminently the Sucking-fish by fisher¬
men, from the readiness with which it adheres to any substance,

VOL. II.

T

CYCLOPTERID.E.

266

and even to the hand that seizes it, — a circumstance which
has also been noticed by Colonel Montagu. 44 It is sluggish
in its habits ; but seems to wander, since it is sometimes
abundant, and at others rare. Its usual haunts are about
low-water mark, where it is often left by the tide, concealed
beneath a stone. I find it,'" says Mr. Couch, 44 large with
spawn in March. Its food is crustaceous animals and marine
insects, which it swallows entire.”

The whole length of the specimen described was two
inches and a half ; the distance from the point of the nose
to the end of the gill-cover was equal to one-third of the
whole length of the fish : the head depressed ; mouth pro¬
duced ; very much flattened ; narrower than the head ; has
been aptly called spatula-like ; gape elongated : numerous
small teeth in both jaws, forming a band in each : under
surface of the head very flat ; the first disk before the line of
the opening of the gill-cover ; the second disk behind it :
upper surface of the head smooth ; before the inner corner of
each eye a small flattened filament, about equal in length to
the diameter of the eye itself ; behind this a second, but
much shorter ; both of a bright carmine colour ; behind the
eyes, which are widely separated, are two distinct, red, eye¬
like spots : the dorsal fin commences about half-way between
the eyes and the end of the tail ; the anal fin begins still nearer
the tail, and both are joined to it by a membrane ; the tail
rounded ; the posterior part of the body compressed. The
pectoral fin large, with an extension underneath of four
stronger rays, which with the connecting membrane form the
sides of the most anterior disk of the two ; an extension of
the membrane only, without rays, being continued along the
front. Immediately behind the broad swimming portion of
the pectoral fin on each side, a membrane arises in the same
vertical position, which joining the united ventral fins forms

CORNISH SUCKER.

267

the free edge of the second disk, the rays of the two ventrals
occupying the posterior portion, and the continuation of the
connecting membrane making the circle entire.

The fin-rays in number are —

D. 18 : P. 19 : A. 10 : C. 18.

The general tint a pale flesh colour with spots and patches
of carmine about the upper and under surface of the jaws,
around the eyes, on the top of the head, sides of the body
and abdomen. The description was taken from the largest
of five specimens, on three of which the spots behind the
eyes were conspicuous, but wanting in the other two.

The appearance of the surface of the disk is shown in the
woodcuts of some of the more closely allied species, to assist
in determining specific distinction.

The vignette below represents a man fishing for prawns on
a rocky coast. The fisherman deposits around him eight or
ten hoop-nets, each baited with a piece of stale fish : a large
bung by way of a buoy is attached to each hoop. The man,
with a long forked stick raises the nets in succession, by
putting the fork of the stick under the bung, and deposits
them a^ain after examination.

268

CYCLOPTERI D.E .

SUBBRACH1AL

MALACOPTERYCII. CYCLOPTERI!) JE.

THE BIMACULATED SUCKER.

Lepidogaster bimaculatus, Birnaculated Sucker, Flem. Brit. An. p. 190, sp. 72.
Cyclopterus ,, ,, ,, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. 182,

pi. 25.

,, ,, ,, ,, Don. Brit. Fish. pi. 78.

,, ,, ,, ,, Montagu, Linn. Trans, vol. vii.

p. 293.

Lepidogaster ,, ,, ,, Jenyns, Man. Brit. Vert. p.

470, sp. 158.

This very distinct species was first described by Pennant
from a specimen sent him by the Duchess of Portland, which
was taken at Weymouth. It has since been taken by Mr.
Donovan on the coast of Kent ; by Professor Henslow at
Weymouth; by Colonel Montagu in Devonshire, and at
two different localities in Cornwall, Polperro and Penzance.
It has also been taken by Mr. William Thompson of Bel¬
fast, when dredging for shells on the coast of the county of
Down in Ireland.

Colonel Montagu obtained it by deep dredging at Tor-
cross, adhering to stones and old shells, and kept some spe¬
cimens alive for a day or two in a olass of sea-water.

O

HI MACULATE I) SUCKER.

269

“ In this situation they always adhered to the sides of the
glass by the apparatus termed the sucker, and frequently
remained fixed till they died ; and even after death the power
of adhesion continues ; the wet finger being applied to the
part, the fish becomes suspended : when alive they instantly
attach themselves to the hand if taken out of the water.'"

Mr. Couch says it keeps in deeper water than the prece¬
ding species ; but is occasionally found under stones at low-
water mark.

In this species, of which I possess several examples, varying
in length from three-quarters of an inch to one inch and three-
quarters in length, the head is depressed ; the posterior por¬
tion of the body compressed ; the head is shorter, compared
to the whole length, than in the preceding species : the
mouth wider ; but the jaws not so much produced ; the teeth
similar ; no filaments before the eyes ; the irides pink and
gold ; the pupils blue : the additional rays at the inferior
part of the pectoral fin, and the connecting membrane on
each side, making up the lateral portions of the anterior disk,
are much longer : the ventral fins form the sides of the second
or posterior disk, and are also elongated ; the dorsal and anal
fins of equal size, opposite, short, placed far back ; commenc¬
ing and ending on the same planes : not connected with the
tail, between which and the two fins just named there is a
considerable space : tail rather elongated.

The fin-rays in number are —

D. 6 : P. 19 : A. 6 : C. 10.

The general colour carmine red ; pale flesh colour under¬
neath, with a light-coloured patch between the eyes, and
otherwise liable to some variation in the markings ; the two
spots on the sides not always very obvious ; young specimens
are without these lateral markings.

270

CYCJLOFTERIDJS.

SUBBRACHIAL

MALACOPTERYGU. CYCLOPTERIDJE.

THE LUMP SUCKER,

sea-owl, and cock paddle.

Cyclopterus lumpus, Linnaeus. Bloch, pt. iii. pi. 90.

,, ,, Cuvier, Regne An. t. ii. p. 346.

Lumpus Anglorum, Willugiiby, p. 208, N. 11.

Cyclopterus lumpus, Lump Sucker, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. 176, pi. 24.

,, ,, ,, ,, Don. Brit. Fish. pi. 10.

,, ,, Lump-fish, Flem. Brit. An. p. 190, sp. 75.

Generic Characters. — Flead and body deep, thick, and short ; back with an
elevated ridge, the investing skin enclosing simple rays ; pectoral fins uniting
under the throat, and with the ventrals forming a single disk.

The Lump Sucker is remarkable for its very grotesque
form, while from the large size of its body, both as to depth
and thickness in reference to its length, and the compara¬
tively small size of its fins, it appears calculated to make but
slow progress through the water.

271

LUMP SUCKER.

It is more plentiful northward than on our southern coast,
and beyond this country has a most extensive range. Pen¬
nant includes it in his Arctic Zoology. It is caught on the
coast of Greenland, where it is eaten. Professors Nilsson and
Reinhardt include it among the fishes of Scandinavia; and Mr.
Low considers it common in the Orkneys. Dr. Neill says
that in the spring months it is caught on the sands of Porto-
bello, and sent for sale to the Edinburgh market, where it is
purchased for table, and the male fish considered superior to
the female. Along our eastern and southern coasts it is also
taken more exclusively during spring, when it approaches the
shore for the purpose of depositing its spawn, which happens
in April or the beginning of May. This species has also
been taken at Belfast ; and the Lump Sucker of the North
American shores is apparently identical with our own.

Some of our fishermen consider that we have on our coast
two species of Lump-fish, which they distinguish by the
names of Red-Lump and Blue-Lump, considering the first
only as eatable ; but the difference in colour, and also in the
quality of the flesh, is only the effect of season ; the fine ex¬
ternal colour, as well as the firmness of the flesh, being lost
to the fish for a time by the exhausting process of spawning ;
it is then by them considered as the worthless Blue-Lump.
The ova forming the hard roe are of large size, and of a fine
orange colour. The young are four inches and a half long,
and three inches in height, by the end of November. Shaw’s
specimen, of six inches in length, to which he attached the
specific name of Pavonina , is only a young fish of our com¬
mon species, which for want of sufficient age had not attained
its perfect colour. As the Lump-fish is retentive of life, its
power of adhesion is sometimes made the subject of experi¬
ment. Pennant says, u That on placing a fish of this spe¬
cies, just caught, into a pail of water, it fixed itself so firmly

272

0 YCLOPTERIDiE.

to tlie bottom, that on taking it by the tail, the whole pail
by that means was lifted, though it held some gallons, and
that without removing the fish from its hold.”

The Lump-Sucker feeds principally on young fish, of
which it devours a large quantity. Mr. Couch says that it
sometimes takes a bait, and he has found in its stomach
various onisci.

In the month of March the colours of the Lump-fish are
in the highest perfection, combining various shades of blue,
purple, and rich orange ; it is then frequently to be seen in
the shops of London fishmongers, suspended by the middle
of the back, attracting attention from the combination of
singular form and brilliant colours.

A specimen sixteen inches long is usually about eight
inches deep, and four inches wide : the length of the head is
about one-fourth of the whole length of the fish ; the descend¬
ing line of the profile of the head is abrupt ; the back highly
arched and somewhat compressed, forming a ridge, with a
row of tubercles along the upper edge ; on cutting through
the integument, the ridge is found to be supported by several
rays, which sometimes from abrasion of the hard skin appear
externally, and have been considered as bearing some resem¬
blance to an anterior dorsal fin. Behind this central ridge,
and over the last third portion of the curve of the dorsal line,
is the true dorsal fin, the length of the base of which is about
equal to the length of the longest of its rays ; the pectoral
fins descend low on the sides, and passing forwards enclose
the adhesive apparatus which extends anteriorly to the edge
of the membrane connecting the branchiostegous rays, and
backwards as far in a vertical line as the posterior angle of
the operculum : the union of the ventral fins complete the
single disk of the only species of this genus that inhabits our

LUMP SUCKER.

278

seas. The anal fin is under or opposed to the dorsal, and of
nearly the same size and shape : the tail moderate.

The fin-rays in number are —

U. 11 : P. 20 : A. 9 : C. 10.

Each of the rays with a row of hard tubercles along a con¬
siderable portion of their length. The whole surface of the
head and body is covered with small bony tubercles, most of
which are more or less stellated in form. Along several parts
of the body are rows of larger and more prominent tubercles,
with surfaces minutely granulated ; one row occupies the cen¬
tral ridge of a portion of the back ; two or three tubercles are
placed on each side just in advance of the dorsal fin ; one
long row extends from the upper angle of the operculum in a
straight line to the upper part of the end of the fleshy por¬
tion of the tail ; a second long row reaches from the space
above the pectoral fin to the lower part of the fleshy portion
of the tail ; another row of large size extends along the ab¬
domen on each side as far as the commencement of the
anal fin.

The mouth is wide ; the lips fleshy; the lower jaw the
longest : a band of short and small teeth in each jaw ; a
small patch of rounded teeth on the root of the tongue, with
others at the pharynx : the irides a fine red ; the colour of
the sides of the head and body, and all the upper parts,
varying shades of dark blue, lighter blue, and purple ; the
lips, under surface of the head and body, fine rich orange ;
all the fins tinged with the same colour. After the season
of spawning is over, much of the brilliant colouring is lost
for a time.

CYCL0RTER11LE.

Tl±

SUBBRACHIAL

MALACOPTER YG1I. CYCL0PTER1DJE.

THE UNCTUOUS SUCKER,

OR, SEA-SNAIL.

Liparis vulgaris, Sea Snail, Flem. Brit. An. p. 190, sp. 73.

,, ,, Cuvier, Regne An. t. ii. p. 346.

,, nostras, Sea Snail, Willughby, App. p. 17, H. 6, fig. 1.

Cpclopterus liparis, Linnaeus. Bloch, pt. iv. pi. 123, fig. 3.

,, ,, Unctuous Sucker, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. 179, pi. 24.

,, ,, ,, ,, Don. Brit. Fish. pi. 47.

Generic Characters. — Body without scales, smooth, elongated, compressed
posteriorly ; a single dorsal fin rather lengthened : ventral fins united to the
pectorals, and surrounding a single disk.

The Unctuous Sucker, or Sea-Snail, so called from
tlie soft and slimy surface of its body, appears to be much
more common in the northern parts of the British Islands
than in the southern. Mr. Scoresby, and other observers,
have even found it as far north as Greenland ; and specimens
of it were taken in the trawl-net on the west coast of Davis’s
Straights during the first Arctic voyage of Captain Sir Ed¬
ward Parry ; yet it does not appear to be mentioned by Pro¬
fessor Nilsson or Reinhardt in their accounts of the fishes of
the Scandinavian shores ; nor is it included by Linnseus in
his Fauna Suecica.

UNCTUOUS SUCKER.

275

Mr. Low says, 4 4 The Sea-Snail is found under the stones
of many places of Orkney ; but no place more frequent than
that at the point of the Ness of Stromness, where they may
be picked up by dozens.”

Mr. Donovan obtained a specimen from among a parcel of
Sprats at Billingsgate fish-market ; and those who recollect
the wholesale mode of fishing for Sprats practised by the
Stow-boatmen, as described at page 123, will not be sur¬
prised that many rare and curious fishes of small size are
caught with the Sprats. It is also obtained on the southern
coast, under stones, and in small pools of water left by the
ebbing tide. Dr. Mac Cullocli says this species ascends rivers
from the sea to deposit its spawn, and it is frequently found
near the mouths of rivers. Pennant says it is full of spawn
in January, and the matured ova are said to be very large.
It feeds on aquatic insects, testaceous animals, and very
small fishes.

The whole length of the specimen described was four
inches, which is the common size of the adult of this species;
but it is said to grow much larger in the Northern Seas : the
head is about one-fourth of the whole length of the fish ; the
eyes widely separated, the space between them depressed ;
the nose blunt ; the lips thick and fleshy ; the mouth wide,
but not deeply divided. Mr. Low says it has no teeth ; but
this is an oversight ; the teeth are very numerous, and small,
with minutely recurved points, forming a broad rasp-like
band in each jaw ; the tongue also broad, covered with pro¬
minent papillse ; the lower jaw rather the longest ; the gill¬
opening placed high up ; the form from the shoulder is
compressed, and tapering all the way to the tail ; the body
invested with a thin semi-transparent membrane, which en¬
closes it like a bag, the fixed points being the lines of the
dorsal and anal fins ; the pectoral fins are large, and the

276

CYCLOPTEIIID.E.

lower portions descending tlie side are attached to additional
rays like ventral fins, which extending far forward are situ¬
ated exterior to the sides of the adhesive disk ; the belly
tumid ; the dorsal fin begins much nearer the head than the
anal fin, and both end close to the tail ; the caudal rays ra¬
ther long and narrow. The fin-rays in number are —

D. 36 : P. & V. 32 : A. 26 : C. 12.

The colour of the body is a pale brown, irregularly striped
with lines of a darker colour, which take different directions,
and give a variegated appearance to the head, back, and
sides ; these lines are confined to the outer thin skin, and
do not appear upon the more solid surface underneath ; in
this state some authors have called this species lineatus ; but
these markings are not constant, and many examples are
without any streaks or lines, the edges of the dorsal and anal
fins only being edged with a darker colour ; the tail, and
sometimes the pectoral fins, slightly barred and spotted.
When kept in diluted spirit of wine, the coloured lines and
characters of the species may be easily preserved ; but this
fish loses both markings and size if allowed to become dry.

Montagu’s sucking-fish.

m

SUBBRACH1AL

MALACOPTERYGII. CYCLOPTERID/E.

MONTAGU’S SUCKING-FISH.

DIMINUTIVE SUCKER.

Liparis Montagui, Montagu’s Sucker, Flem. Brit. An. p. 190, sp. 74.

,, ,, Cuvier, Regne An. t. ii. p. 346, note 2.

Cyclopterus Montagui, Diminutive Sucker, Montagu, Wern. Mem. vol. i.

p. 91, pi. 5.

,, ,, ,, ,, Don. Brit. Fish. pi. 68.

,, ,, Montagu’s Sucker, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. 183.

This species of Sucking-fish, smaller in size than the one
last described, was first discovered by Colonel Montagu. A
drawing of it was sent by that excellent observer to Mr.
Donovan, who was then publishing his Natural History of
British Fishes, and with whom the specific name, referring to
Colonel Montagu, originated. Tire first specimen obtained
was of very diminutive size. Subsequently Colonel Montagu
having acquired various other larger and adult specimens,
published a description and figure of this species himself in
the Memoirs of the Wernerian Natural History Society, as
already quoted.

278

CYCLOPTERID.E.

This fish has since that period been found on various parts
of the coast. Dr. George Johnston has obtained it in Ber-
wick Bay ; Mr. Thompson has taken it in Belfast Bay ;
and it is not uncommon in Cornwall, as well as on the
Devonshire coast.

Colonel Montagu says this species inhabits only the rocky
parts of the coast, and of course is rarely taken with the
dredge. Those obtained by its discoverer were found at
exceedingly low tides among the rocks at Milton, on the
south coast of Devon. When it is adhering to a rock the
posterior part of the body is frequently turned to one side,
nearly parallel with the anterior part, the tail being brought
close to the head. This habit of curving its body has been
observed by all those who have found this species.

Mr. Couch's notice of it in his MS. is as follows: — “ This
is a common species in the West of England, where, how¬
ever, it seems to wander, since at certain times it is much
more rare than at others. It possesses considerable activity ;
and when the tide has ebbed it is often found concealed be¬
neath a stone, where when at rest it usually thrown the tail
forwards towards the head. I have never seen it adhere to
any fixed substance. The young come to life in September.”

Montagu’s Sucker, in the adult state, is from tw'o inches
and a half to three inches long : the body is rounded as far as
the vent ; the posterior end somewhat compressed ; head
broad, a little depressed, and inflated about the gills ; mouth
moderately large ; both jaws armed with several rows of mi¬
nute teeth : eyes small, and placed high ; irides golden ;
pupils dark blue, with a single blue line descending from the
eye to the angle of the mouth : the operculum angular ; the
branchiostegous membrane transparent ; the pectoral and
ventral fins unite ; the first is rounded ; in the last, four or
five rays on each side invest the adhesive disk, which is sin-

Montagu's sucking-fish. 279

gle, small, and circular : an enlarged representation of the
Sucker is here added to assist in affording the means of
determining the species : the belly is very tumid ; the vent
far removed behind the sucker. The dorsal fin commences
farther from the head than in the last species ; the most an¬
terior rays short, but gradually increasing in length form a
broad fin towards the tail, where it is rounded : the anal fin
shorter than the dorsal. The fin-rays in number are —

D. 26 : P. & V. 29 : A. 24 : C. 12.

This description is partly obtained from Montagu’s paper.

The prevailing colour is a dull orange, varied with occa¬
sional bluish tints ; the fins brighter orange red ; the lateral
line perceptible by a lighter-coloured streak ; the under parts
of the body, and about the throat and sucker, white, tinged
with flesh colour.

280

ECHENEID.E.

SUBBRACHIAL

MALACOPTERYGII. ECHENEIDJE.

THE COMMON REMORA.

Echeneis remora, Sucking-fish, Turton, Brit. Faun. p. 94, sp. 38.

,, ,, Le Remora, Bloch, pt. v. pi. 172.

,, ,, ,, Cuvier, Regne An. t. ii. p. 347.

,, ,, Mediterranean Remora, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. App.

p. 524.

,, ,, Common Remora, Jenyns, Man. Brit. Veit. p. 473, sp. 162.

Generic Characters. — Body elongated, covered with very small scales ; a
single dorsal fin placed opposite the anal ; the head very flat, covered with an
oval disk formed by numerous transverse cartilaginous plates, the edges of
which are directed backward ; the mouth wide, with numerous small recurved
teeth on both jaws, the tongue, and the vomer.

Dr. Turton in liis British Fauna includes this species
of Sucking-fish, having taken a specimen himself at Swansea
from the hack of a Codfish in the summer of 1806.

The species of this singular family are not numerous :
Cuvier enumerates but four that are as yet made known, and
another large West Indian one has been more recently de¬
scribed. They are immediately recognized by the flattened,

COMMON REMORA.

281

oval, adhesive disk, on the top of the head, by means of
which they are able to attach themselves firmly to the sur¬
face of other fishes, or the bottoms of vessels ; but whether
for protection or conveyance, or both, is a question which has
not been satisfactorily ascertained.

The Greeks and Romans were well acquainted with the
Mediterranean species, which is the fish under present con¬
sideration.

The length of the head, from the end of the upper jaw,
which is much the shortest, to the end of the operculum,
is nearly one-fifth of the whole length of the fish ; the depth
of the body about one-seventh of the whole length : the
form of the head is flattened, very much depressed ; the
body about the middle nearly round in form, the posterior
half compressed : the mouth is wide ; the opening nearly
horizontal, with two bands of minute teeth in the elongated
lower jaw, a single band on the upper jaw, with others on
the tongue and vomer, all curving inwards : the eye placed
about half-way between the point of the upper jaw and the
rounded end of the operculum ; the gill-aperture very large ;
the adhesive disk in this species contains seventeen or eigh¬
teen transverse laminae, divided by a longitudinal mesial
ridge ; the disk commences just behind and above the upper
lip, and extends nearly as far back as the line of the ends
of the pectoral fin-rays : all the fins are covered with a dense
membrane, which imparts to them the consistence of leather ;
the pectoral fins are rather small and rounded ; the ventrals
narrow, very close together, the inner ray of each attached
to the central line of the belly by a membrane ; the dorsal
and anal fins are both placed behind the mid-length of the
fish, beginning and ending on the same plane ; the end of
the caudal rays crescent-shaped.

VOL. II.

u

282

ECHENEID.E.

The fin-rays in number are —

D. 21 : P. 22 : V; 4 : A. 20 : C. 20.

The colour is dusky brown ; the under part of the body
rather lighter than the back ; the fins darker in colour than
the body.

The disk of the adhesive apparatus in the specimen now
described with seventeen transverse laminae was one-third
of the whole length of the fish, not including the caudal
rays ; the breadth one inch and one quarter. The figure
on the left side of the vignette represents the outer surface
of the anterior half of the disk : the margin is free, flexible,
and of considerable breadth, to secure perfect contact with
the surface to which it is opposed ; the parallel laminae are
represented as only slightly elevated ; the degree of adhesion
is in proportion to the power used to raise the inner surface
of the disk in a direction perpendicular to the plane of con¬
tact. The figure on the right side, of the vignette represents
the inner surface of the posterior half of the disk. The ver¬
tical direction of the moveable laminae is effected by sets
of muscles going off obliquely right and left from twro elon¬
gated bony processes, one on each half of each of these move-
able divisions. The contraction of these muscles, acting
upon these levers, raises the external edges of the parallel
divisions, increasing the area of the vacuum ; and it will be
observed that the points of the moveable transverse divisions
to which the muscles are attached are nearer the middle line
than the outer edge, by which the chance of interfering with
the perfect continuity of the free margin, and thereby de¬
stroying the vacuum, is diminished. All the bony laminae,
the outer edges of which are furnished with rows of minute
tooth-like projections, are moved simultaneously, like the

COMMON REMORA.

283

thin vertical divisions of our common wooden window-blinds
by means of the mechanical contrivance on the frame-work.
The longer muscles placed nearer the outer oval edge are
probably instrumental in preserving the contact of the more
flexible margin, and the serrated external edges of the
parallel laminae help to preserve the degree of elevation ob¬
tained : the adhesive power is in proportion to the area of the
vacuum.

u 2

284

MUlt.ENlDE.

APODAL

MALAC0PTERYG1L MUHJENIDJE.

SHARP-NOSED EEL.

Yarrell, Proceed. Zool. Soc. 1831,
pp. 133 and 159. Zool. Journ. vol.
iv. p. 469.

Wii.lughby, p. 109, G. 5.

Anguilla acutirostris, Sharj)~nosed Eel,

,, omnium autorum,

,, acutirostris, Sharp-nosed Eel,

Murcena anguilla, L' Anguille,

,, ,, Common Eel,

Anguilla vulgaris, ,, ,,

„ ,, Long-bee,

,, ,, Common Eel,

Jenyns, Man. Brit. Vert. p. 474,
sp. 163.

Linnaeus. Bloch, pt. iii. pi. 73.
Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. 191.
Flem. Brit. An. p. 199, sp. 109.
Cuvier, Regne An. t. ii. p. 349.
Bowdich, Brit. Fr. Wat. Fish. No. 7.

Generic Characters. — Body cylindrical, elongated, covered with a thick
and smooth skin ; the scales very small ; lubricated with copious mucous secre¬
tion ; mouth with a row of teeth in each jaw, and a few on the anterior part of
the vomer ; pectoral fins close to a small branchial aperture ; no ventral fins ;
dorsal fin, anal fin, and caudal fin united.

Baron Cuvier, in this family of the Muranida, or Eel-
shaped Fishes, which includes several genera forming his
fourth order, has brought together those fishes with soft
fins which have an elongated form of body : they are also
destitute of ventral fins, and are in consequence called Apo¬
dal. The genus Anguilla , including our common Eels, is
the first of this order.

285

SHAltP-NOSED EEL.

The general appearance of the Eel is so well known, and
so unlike that of most other fishes, as to require but a slight
description ; yet it was not till a period of very modern date
that naturalists became acquainted with the fact that the
fresh waters of several countries produce three or four dis¬
tinct species which had previously been confounded together.
Thus the first edition of the Regne Animal , published in
1817, included but one species of common fresh-water Eel
as well known : the second edition, published in 1829, con¬
tains a short notice of four different species ; three of which,
if not all four, are found in this country.

The form of the Eel, resembling that of the serpent, has long
excited a prejudice against it, which exists in some countries
even to the present time ; and its similarity to snakes has
even been repeated by those, who, from the advantages of
education, and their acquirements in natural history, might
have been supposed capable of drawing more accurate con¬
clusions. There is but little similarity in the snake and the
Eel except in the external form of the body : the important
internal organs of the two animals, and the character of the
skeleton, are most decidedly different.

Eels are in reality a valuable description of fish : their flesh
is excellent as food ; they are very numerous, very prolific, and
are found in almost every part of the world. The various
species are hardy, tenacious of life, and very easily preserved.
In this country they inhabit almost all our rivers, lakes, and
ponds ; they are in great esteem for the table, and the con¬
sumption in our large cities is very considerable. The Lon¬
don market is principally supplied from Holland by Dutch
fishermen. There are two companies in Holland, having
five vessels each : their vessels are built with a capacious well,
in which large quantities of Eels are preserved alive till
wanted. One or more of these vessels may be constantly

286

MUR.ENID.E,

seen lying off Billingsgate ; the others go to Holland for
fresh supplies, each bringing a cargo of 15,000 to 20,000
pounds’ weight of live Eels, for which the Dutch merchant
pays a duty of 1 SI. per cargo for his permission to sell.
Eels and Salmon are the only fish sold by the pound weight
in the London market.

Eels are not only numerous, but they are also in great
request, in many other countries. Ellis, in his Polynesian
Researches, vol. ii. page 286, says : “ In Otaheite, Eels are
great favourites, and are tamed and fed until they attain an
enormous size. These pets are kept in large holes, two or
three feet deep, partially filled with water. On the sides of
these pits they generally remained, excepting when called
by the person who fed them. I have been several times with
the young chief, when he has sat down by the side of the
hole, and, by giving a shrill sort of whistle, has brought out
an enormous Eel, which has moved about the surface of the
water, and eaten with confidence out of its master’s hand.”

ct Most of the writers on the habits of the Eel have de¬
scribed them as making two migrations in each year : one in
the autumn to the sea ; the other in spring, or at the begin¬
ning of summer, from , the sea. The autumn migration is
performed by adult Eels, and is believed to be for the pur¬
pose of depositing their spawn ; it is also said that these
parent fish never return up the rivers. The spring migration
is commonly supposed to be confined to very small Eels,
not more than three inches in length, and in reference to the
fry alone, it is too well known, and too often recorded, to be
matter of doubt. The passage of countless hundreds of
young Eels has been seen and described as occurring in the
Thames,* the Severn, the Parrett, the Dee, and the Ban.

* See an excellent account by Dr. William Roots, of Kingston, published in
the second series of Gleanings in Natural History, by Edward Jesse, Esq.
p. 50.

SHARP-NOSED EEL.

287

I am, however, of opinion, that the passage of adult Eels to
the sea, or rather to the brackish water of the estuary, is
an exercise of choice, and not a matter of necessity ; and
that the parent Eels return up the river as well as the fry.”

66 All authors agree that Eels are extremely averse to
cold. There are no Eels in the arctic regions, — none in
the rivers of Siberia, the Wolga, the Danube, or any of its
tributary streams ; yet the rivers of the southern parts of
Europe produce four species. There is no doubt that fishes
in general, and Eels in particular, are able to appreciate
even minute alterations in the temperature of the water they
inhabit. The mixed water they seek to remain in during
the colder months of the year is of a higher temperature than
the pure fresh water of the river, or that of the sea. It is
a well-known law in chemistry, that when two fluids of dif¬
ferent densities come in contact, the temperature of the mix¬
ture is elevated for a time in proportion to the difference in
density of the two fluids, from the mutual penetration and
condensation. Such a mixture is constantly taking place at
the mouths of rivers that run into the sea, and the mixed
water maintains a temperature two degrees warmer than that
of the river or the sea. This elevation in the temperature of
the water of estuaries and the mouths of rivers is, I have no
doubt, one reason why they in general abound in young fish.''

In a tideway river the descent of the Eels towards the
brackish water takes place during the autumn, and various
devices are employed in different streams to intercept them
in their progress. The vignette at the bottom of the next
page represents the form of an apparatus used in various parts
of the Thames, called an Eelbuck, consisting of a framework
of wood supporting various wicker-baskets of a particular
form. The large open end of each basket is opposed to
the stream, and by the peculiar structure of the inside,
any fish once within the body of the basket, cannot escape.

288

MU RJENID.'E.

During tlic cold months of the year Eels remain imbedded
in mud ; and large quantities are frequently taken by Eel-
spears in the soft soils of harbours and banks of rivers, from
which the tide recedes, and leaves the surface exposed for
several hours every day. The Eels bury themselves twrelve
or sixteen inches deep, near the edge of the navigable chan¬
nel, and generally near some of the many land-drains, the
water of which continues to run in its course over the mud
into the channel during the whole time the tide is out. In
Somersetshire the people know how to find the holes in the
banks of rivers in which Eels are laid up, by the hoar-frost
not lying over them as it does elsewhere, and dig them out
in heaps. The practice of searching for Eels in mud in cold
weather is not confined to this country ; Dr. Mitchill, in
his paper on the Fishes of New York, published in the
Transactions of the Literary and Philosophical Society of
that city, says, “ In the winter Eels lie concealed in the
mud, and are taken in great numbers by spears.’1 Thus

SHARP-NOSED EEL.

289

imbedded in mud, in a state of torpidity, the Eel indicates
a low degree of respiration. Dr. Marshall Hall has shown
that the quantity of respiration is inversely as the degree of
irritability. With a high degree of irritability and a low
respiration, co-exist — 1st. The power of sustaining the pri¬
vation of air and of food ; 2nd. A low animal temperature ;
3rd. Little activity ; 4th. Great tenacity of life. All these
peculiarities Eels are well known to possess. The high de¬
gree of irritability of the muscular fibre explains the restless
motions of Eels during thunder-storms, and helps to account
for the enormous captures made in some rivers by the use of
gratings, boxes, and Eel pots or baskets, which imprison all
that enter. The power of enduring the effects of a low tem¬
perature is shown by the fact, that Eels exposed on the
ground till frozen, then buried in snow, and at the end
of four days put into water, and so thawed slowly, discovered
gradually signs of life, and soon perfectly recovered.

The mode by which young Eels are produced appears to
have long been a subject of inquiry, and the notions of the
ancients as well as of some of the moderns were numerous
and fanciful. Aristotle believed that they sprang from the
mud ; Pliny, from fragments which were separated from their
bodies by rubbing against rocks ; others supposed that they
proceeded from the carcases of animals ; Helmont believed
that they came from May-dew, and might be obtained by the
following process : — c< Cut up two turfs covered with May-
dew, and lay one upon the other, the grassy sides inwards,
and thus expose them to the heat of the sun ; in a few hours
there will spring from them an infinite quantity of Eels.'”
Horse-hair from the tail of a stallion, when deposited in water,
was formerly believed to be a never-failing source of a supply
of young Eels. It was long considered certain that they
were viviparous : this belief had its origin probably in the

290

MU RJENID-E.

numerous worms tliat are frequently to be found in various
parts of tlie bodies of Eels, sometimes in tbe serous cavities,
at others in the intestinal canal. Rudolphi has enumerated
eight different species of entozoa common to fresh- water Eels.
The enormous number of young known to be produced by
Eels is a good negative proof that they are oviparous ; vivi¬
parous fishes producing, on the contrary, but few young at
a time, and these too of considerable size when first excluded.
Having devoted time and attention to the close examination
of numbers of Eels for many months in succession, the fur¬
ther details of which will be found in Mr. Jesse’s second
series of Gleanings in Natural History, I need only here
repeat my belief that Eels are oviparous, producing their
young like other true bony fishes.

“ The sexual organ consists of two long narrow sacs ex¬
tending one on each side of the air-bladder throughout the
whole length of the abdominal cavity, and continued for two
inches posterior to the vent. The membranes forming this
tubular sac, secreting on the inner surface the milt of the
male, and affording attachment for the ova in the female, are
puckered or gathered along the line of junction to the peri¬
toneal covering of the spine, and the free or loose floating
edge is therefore thrown into creases or plaits like a frill. It
is probably from this folded or convoluted appearance the
sexual organs of the Eel have frequently been called fringes.
By the kindness of my friends Mr. Clift and Mr. Owen, of
the Royal College of Surgeons, I have had the pleasure of
seeing some drawings belonging to the collection of John
Hunter, in which these peculiarities of the sexual organs in
the Eel are beautifully exhibited in various magnified repre¬
sentations. ”

Dr. Mitchill of New York, whose paper on Fishes has
been already referred to, says, “ the roes or ovaria of Eels may

SHARP-NOSED EEL.

291

be seen by those who will look for them in the proper season,
like those of other fishes.”

Eels that have lain in brackish water all the winter under
the constant influence of the higher temperature of that
locality, probably deposit their spawn earlier in the spring
than those which have passed the winter in places from which
there existed for them no possible egress. In the Mole, the
Wey, the Longford river, and in some large ponds, the
Eels in the spring of 1833 did not deposit their spawn till
near the end of April ; but in two Eels from Sheerness
received and examined on the 18th of May, the internal
appearances induced me to believe that the roes had been
passed some time. How long the ova remain deposited
before the young Eel is produced, is, I believe, unknown.
The duration of this interval is very variable in different
fishes. The roe of the Herring, deposited at the end of
October or the beginning of November, is said to become
living fry within three weeks : the ova of Eels, the produce
of which is very small, do not probably require a longer
period. Both the parent Eels and the fry occupying the
brackish water appear to have the power of going either to
the salt water or to the fresh without inconvenience, from
the previous preparation which the respiratory organs have
undergone, and many of both are found in pure sea water :
the great bulk of the young, however, certainly ascend the
stream of the river, and their annual appearance in certain
places is looked for with some interest. The passage of
young Eels up the Thames at Kingston in the year 1832
commenced on the 30th of April, and lasted till the 4th of
May ; but I believe I am correct in stating that few young
Eels were observed to pass up the Thames either in the year
1834 or 1835. Some notion may be formed of the quantity
of young Eels, each about three inches long, that pass up

292

MUIMENID.E.

the Thames in the spring, and in other rivers the beginning
of summer, from the circumstance that it was calculated by
two observers of the progress of the young Eels at Kingston
in 1832, that from sixteen to eighteen hundred passed a
given point in the space of one minute of time. This pas¬
sage of young Eels is called E el-fare on the banks of the
Thames, — the Saxon word signifying to go, to pass, to tra¬
vel ;* and I have very little doubt that the term Elver , in
common use on the banks of the Severn for a young Eel,
is a modification or corruption of Eel-fare.

4 4 When the Elvers appear in the Severn, they are taken
in great quantities with sieves of hair-cloth, or even with a
common basket, and, after being scoured and boiled, are
offered for sale. Tliev are either fried in cakes or stewed,
and are accounted very delicious.'”

There is no doubt that Eels occasionally quit the water,
and when grass meadows are wet from dew, or other causes,
travel during the night over the moist surface in search of
frogs and other suitable food, or to change their situation.
Some ponds continually produce Eels, though the owners of
these ponds are most desirous of keeping the water free
from Eels, from a knowledge of their destructive habits to¬
wards the spawn and fry of other fishes. Other ponds into
which Eels have been constantly introduced are obnoxious to
them from some quality in the water ; and they are known to
leave such places during the night, and have been found on
their passage to other retreats. Dr. Hastings, in his Illus¬
trations of the Natural History of Worcestershire, says at
page 134 : 44 I will here mention a curious confirmation of
the opinion in favour of the overland migration of Eels. A

* A pedestrian on the road is called “ a way-faring man and hence, also,
the price for travelling by a conveyance is called “the fare.’, We have also
“ thoroughfare,” &c.

SHARP-NOSED EEL.

293

relative of the late Mr. Perrott was out in his park with his
keeper near a large piece of water, on a very beautiful even¬
ing, when the keeper drew his attention to a fine Eel quietly
ascending the bank of the pool, and with an undulating
motion making its way through the long grass : on further
observation he perceived a considerable number of Eels qui¬
etly proceeding to a range of stews, nearly the distance of a
quarter of a mile from the large piece of water from whence
they started. The stews were supplied by a rapid brook,
and in all probability the instinct of the fish led them in that
direction as a means of finding their way to some large river
from whence their ultimate destination, the sea, might be
obtained. This circumstance took place at Sandford Park,
near Enstone.'1'’

That Eels breed also in the fresh water of inland rivers
and lakes from which they are unable to visit the sea, is, I
believe, certain. A constant supply for the table is obtained
throughout the winter in these localities, as well as at other
seasons, by gamekeepers and fishermen, who have charge of
waters thus situated ; and no doubt exists in their minds that
these Eels are bred in the places from which they are ob¬
tained, and of which the great variation that occurs in the
size is an additional proof.

The Eel is a voracious feeder during certain months of
the year. In winter the stomachs of those which I examined
were empty : by the middle of March I found the stomachs
of others distended with the larvae of various insects, and the
bones of small fishes. They are kriown to consume a large
quantity of spawn, and will attack large Carp, seizing them
by the fins, though without the power of doing them further
injury. Occasionally they eat vegetable substances, and
have been seen swimming about the surface of water, cropping
the leaves of small aquatic plants. By means of a long and

294

MUR.ENID.E.

capacious air-bladder, Eels rise to various elevations in the
water with great ease, and sometimes swim very high even in
deep water. When Whitebait-fishing in the Thames, I
once caught an Eel in the net in twenty-six feet depth of
water, though the Whitebait-net does not dip more than
about three feet below the surface.

Eels appear to be slow of growth, not attaining greater
length than twelve inches during the first year, and do not
mature roe till the second or third year. The sharp-nosed
species, however, acquires a large size. I saw at Cambridge
the preserved skins of two which weighed together fifty
pounds ; the heaviest twenty-seven pounds, the second twen¬
ty-three pounds. They were taken on draining a fen-dyke
at Wisbeach.

Ely is said to have been so named from rents being for¬
merly paid in Eels : the lords of manors in the isle were
annually entitled to more than 100,000 Eels. A sticli or
stick of Eels was twenty-five ; and the practice of stringing
Eels on tough slender willow-twigs, put in at the gill-aper¬
ture and out at the mouth, still prevails in Dorsetshire
among those who carry Eels about for sale from house to
house ; one, two, or three pounds"’ weight being thus strung
on a stick, to suit different customers. Elmore on the
Severn obtained its name from the immense number of Eels
which are taken there.

SHARP-NOSED EEL.

295

In a sharp-nosed Eel of twenty-two inches in length,
three distances taken from the point of the lower jaw are to
the whole length of the Eel as follows : — to the upper part of
the base of the pectoral fin, as two to seventeen ; to the com¬
mencement of the dorsal fin, as two to seven ; and to the com¬
mencement of the anal fin, as nine to twenty-two. In a sharp¬
nosed Eel of twenty inches in length, the pectoral fin will
be almost one inch, and the vent more than an inch, nearer
the head than the same parts in a broad-nosed Eel of the
same length.

The head is compressed, the top convex, depressed as it
slopes forward : the eyes small, placed immediately over the
angles of the mouth ; irides reddish yellow : the jaws very
narrow, slightly rounded at the end ; the lower jaw the long¬
est : nostrils with two openings on each side, one tubular,
the other a simple orifice ; both jaws furnished with a narrow
band of small teeth ; gape small ; various mucous pores
about the mouth and other parts of the head ; gill-open¬
ing a small aperture immediately before and rather below
the origin of the pectoral fin ; the scales on the body rather
small : dorsal fin extending over more than two-thirds of the
whole length of the fish ; anal fin occupying more than half
of the whole length ; both united at the end, forming a
tail ; the number of rays in the fins not easily ascertained,
from the thickness of the skin ; the lateral line exhibits a
long series of mucous orifices; vertebrae 113. The vent
includes four distinct openings, the most anterior of which
leads upwards to the intestine, the posterior to the urinary
bladder in a direction backwards, and one elongated lateral
opening on each side communicating with the cavity of the
abdomen, as in other bony fishes.

The cranium on the right hand of the three, figured at
page 303, is that of the sharp-nosed Eel.

296

MU REN IDE.

A*

Tlie prevailing colour of all tlie upper surface is a dark
olivaceous green ; tlie sides lighter ; the belly white. When
the fish are obtained from pure streams, the colours are clear
and bright, and it is called a Silver Eel ; when taken from
water over a muddy bottom, the colours are brown and
dusky.

Dr. Marshall Hall, in 1831, while pursuing some physiolo¬
gical investigations on the circulation of the blood in various
reptiles and fishes, observed a pulsating sac near the tail of
the Eel. The form, action, and connexions of this sac are
best seen under the microscope. A young Eel of six or
seven inches in length, if rolled up in a strip of linen cloth,
leaving out a small portion only of the tail, will remain quiet
when placed on a long slip of glass, or may be tied to it with
thread. The pulsation observed in this sac is entirely inde¬
pendent of the action or influence of the heart, and the num¬
ber of beats more than double in the same period of time ;
they also continue after the heart has been removed. Some
Continental physiologists have ascertained that these pulsating
sacs, which are found in the frog, the toad, the salamander,
and the green lizard,* contain lymph, and direct its motion,
and they have accordingly called them lymphatic hearts.
They arc only observed in connexion with veins. “ Such
is,"1 says Dr. Muller, “ the pulsating organ discovered by
Dr. Marshall Hall at the end of the vena eaudalis of the
Eel, where that organ receives the venous branches of the
extremity of the tail, and conducts its blood into the vena
eaudalis. But organs of pulsation in the lymphatic system
have hitherto been altogether unknown ; it is not probable
that they should exist only in amphibia, and important dis¬
coveries of a like nature in the higher animals, such as birds

* See a paper in the Philosophical Transactions for 1833, by Dr. John
Muller, Professor of Physiology in the University of Bonn.

SHARF-NOSED EEL. 297

and mammalia, may be expected ; my researches, as regards
these, have however been hitherto unsuccessful.1' In an¬
other part of his paper, Dr. Muller observes, “ I have never
discovered a trace of motion in the cysterna chyli and ductus
thoracicus of mammalia.11

In a conversation with Mr. Owen on this subject, he sug¬
gested, that as the valves of the lymphatic vessels are very few
and imperfect in reptiles and fishes, especially in the latter,
these pulsating sacs would seem to be superadded as a com¬
pensating power in the absence of that mechanism which
impresses a definite direction and an unintermitting flow
upon the currents of the lymph in the higher vertebrata,
especially mammalia.

I am indebted to the kindness of Dr. Marshall Hall for
permission to copy the excellent illustration of this structure
in the tail of the Eel, from his very interesting critical and
experimental essay on the circulation of the blood.

In the vignette the arrow-heads indicate the direction of
the currents.

VOL. II.

X

298

MUR-fiNIDJE.

APODAL

MA LACO r TE R YG II. MUR JEN I DM.

THE BROAD-NOSED EEL.

Anguilla latirostris, Broad-nosed Eel, Yarrell, Proceed. Zool. Soe. 1831,

pp. 133 and 159. Zool. Journ.
vol. iv. p. 469.

,, ,, ,, ,, Jenyns, Man. Brit. Vert. p. 476,

sp. 164.

,, ,, A. pimperneaux, Cuvier, Regne An. t. ii. p. 349.

,, ,, Glut Eel, Bowdicii, Brit. Fr. Wat. Fish, No. 22.

The Broad-nosed Eel is almost as common a species
as the Sharp-nosed Eel, but is immediately distinguished
from it by the much greater comparative breadth of the
head ; the representation at the top of the page is therefore
confined to that part of the fish which exhibits the best
distinctions ; and the vignette to the Snig Eel, page 303,
represents in the left-hand figure of the three heads the cra¬
nium of the Broad-nosed Eel, to show this character as it
exists in the bone. This Eel is the Grig or Glut Eel of
Pennant, who says, u They have a larger head, blunter nose,
and thicker skin than the common sort." It is, probably,
also the Frog-mouthed Eel of the Severn, referred to by
Dr. Hastings, in his Natural History of Worcestershire,

BROAD- NOSED EEL.

299

page 135, and so called by tlie fishermen from the extraor¬
dinary width of the mouth.

In its habits the Broad-nosed Eel has not been distin¬
guished by any peculiarity that I am aware of from the other
common Eel ; but it does not appear to attain so large a size,
the largest I have seen not exceeding five pounds in weight.
It exists in many of the waters which produce the Sharp¬
nosed Eel, is much thicker in the body in proportion to its
length, and fishermen can distinguish this species readily
when fishing in the dark by its more soft and unctuous feel
in the hand.

The term Grig is, however, in and about London, ap¬
plied to a particular Eel of small size, of which the figure
here introduced represents the head. This Eel is the An-

guille plat-bee of Cuvier, Regne Animal , tom. ii. p. 349,
who considers it a distinct species. It is the Grig Eel also
of Mrs. Bowdich’s British Fresh Water Fishes, No. 28,
in which work the three Eels already spoken of here are well
figured ; and the species were considered by Cuvier as iden¬
tical with those of the Regne Animal.

The name Grig is also applied by Thames fishermen to
any small-sized Eel of any species when not longer than
eight or nine inches, and of which eight or ten are required
to make up a pound weight.

In a Broad-nosed Eel of twenty-two inches in length,
three distances taken from the point of the lower jaw are to
the whole length as follows : — to the upper part of the base

x 2

300

MU R EN I1)E.

of the pectoral fin, as two to thirteen ; to the commencement
of the dorsal fin, as one to three ; and to the commencement
of the anal fin, as ten to twenty-two.

The Broad-nosed Eel has the head rounded at the back
part, and flattened from the eyes forward ; both jaws broad
and blunt ; the lower jaw the widest, and longer than the
upper : nostrils double, one tubular, the other a plain orifice ;
the gape large ; lips fleshy : teeth more numerous than in
either of the other British fresh-water species, larger, strong¬
er, and forming a much broader band in each jaw : the eyes
large, placed before the line of the gape ; irides golden yel¬
low : the gill-openings, pectoral fins, the commencement of
the dorsal fin, and the vent, placed farther back than in the
Sharp-nosed Eel ; dorsal and anal fins also much deeper and
thicker ; the tail broad and rounded ; the body of the fish
thicker for the same length than in other Eels : the number
of vertebrae 115.

The colour of the upper surface of the body is a dark-
greenish brown, subject to some variation, depending on lo¬
cality, soil, and the quality of the water.

APODAL

MALACOPTERYGII.

MUR JEN ID X.

THE SNIG.

Anguilla mediorostris, Snig Eel, Yarret.l. Jesse, Glean. Nat. Hist. 2nd

Series, pp. 75 and 76.

,, ,, ,, ,, Jenyns, Man. Brit. Vert. p. 477, sp. 165.

I am indebted to the kindness of Mr. Jesse, and his
friend, Francis Mills, Esq. for the only specimens of this
Eel I have yet seen ; and from some differences in its exter¬
nal characters, in its habits, and also in the comparative size of
the head, as well as some peculiarity in the five cervical verte¬
brae that are nearest the head, I believe it to be a different
species from either of those previously described in this work.

The specimens I have had were from the Avon in Hamp¬
shire, where this Eel, rather remarkable for its yellow colour,
is called the Snig, and is considered distinct from the other
well-known and more common Eels.

Dr. Hastings, in the Appendix to his Illustrations of the
Natural History of Worcestershire, page 135, says, that
besides an Eel called the Frog-mouthed Eel by the fisher¬
men, from the extraordinary width of the mouth, — identical,
probably, with the Broad-nosed Eel of this work, — “ there are
two distinct kinds of Eels in the Worcestershire Avon, the
Silver and Yellow Eel,''’ which last may be similar to the Snig
of the Avon of Hampshire.

302

MUIL'ENID-E.

The term Snig, it should however be stated, is in some
counties a general name for any sort of Eel ; and a particular
mode of fishing for Eels, which is described in most of the
works on Angling, is called Sniggling.

The Hampshire Snig differs from our other Eels in its
habit of roving and feeding during the day, which other Eels
do not. It is considered excellent as an article of food, and
of a superior flavour to other Eels : it does not however
attain a large size, seldom exceeding half a pound in weight.

The fishermen make a certain difference in the mode of
placing their eel-pots when they are desirous of catching
Snigs ; finding by long experience that the Snigs get into
those pots the mouths of which are set in the opposite direc¬
tion, in reference to the stream, to others in which the com¬
mon Eels are taken.

In the comparative breadth of the nose, the Snig is inter¬
mediate in reference to the Sharp and Broad-nosed Eels,
but rather more resembles that with the sharp nose ; it has a
slight but elongated depression extending from the anterior
edge of the upper jaw to the upper and back part of the
head ; the tubular openings of the nostrils are longer, and the
mucous pores about the lips larger and more conspicuous ;
both jaws rounded at their extremities, the lower one the
longest ; teeth longer and stronger than in the common sharp¬
nosed species ; gape large ; the angle and the posterior edge
of the eye on the same vertical line ; the pectoral fins, the
commencement of the dorsal fin, and the vent, are each
placed nearer the head than in either of our fresli-water Eels.

The general colour olive green above, passing by a lighter
green to yellowish white below.

Desirous of obtaining internal characters of distinction
among our fresh-water Eels, I prepared skeletons of each
species, selecting three examples that measured exactly the

SNIG.

SOS

same length, in order to afford a more just comparison. The
vignette at the bottom of the page represents correctly the
relative size and power of bone in each species. The cra¬
nium on the left is that of the Broad-nosed Eel ; that in
the middle is from the Snig ; the head on the right hand is
from the Sharp-nosed Eel. It is obvious that each is able
to overcome a larger and more powerful victim as food than
the other. It will also be seen, that independent of some
difference in the length and form of some of the bones, as
well as in the size of the head in the middle, belonging to
the Snig, as compared with that on either side, there is a cha¬
racteristic distinction in the form of the bones of the verte¬
bral column. The first five cervical vertebrae are smooth
and round, entirely destitute of superior or lateral spinous
processes, both of which are possessed by the other two, of a
size corresponding to the character of the vertebral bone it¬
self to which it belongs. With this exception, the skeleton
of the Snig most resembles that of the Sharp-nosed Eel ;
but is somewhat stronger, and particularly so in the processes
of the other vertebrae generally.

i /

304

MU RiENID/E.

APODAL

MALACOPTERYGU. MURMN1DJE.

THE CONGER.

Conger vulgaris, Le Congre, Cuvier, Regne An. t. ii. p. 350.

Conger, Willughby, p. Ill, G. 6.

Murcena Conger, ,, Linnaeus. Bloch, pt. v. pi. 155.

,, ,, Conger Eel, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. 196.

,, ,, ,, Don. Brit. Fish. pi. 119.

,, ,, ,, Flem. Brit. An. p. 200, sp. 110.

Generic Characters. — The dorsal fin commences much nearer the head than
in the fresh-water Eels ; the upper jaw the longest; in other respects resembling
the genus Anguilla.

The Conger Eel is a marine species well-known on
all the rocky parts of the coast of the British Islands, but
nowhere more abundant than on the coast of Cornwall.

Mr. Low says, “ It is found very frequently round the
Orkney Islands : some are caught at the fishermen’s lines ;
but the otter is by far the most successful in killing Congers.
He brings them ashore, and eats but a very small part,
leaving the rest for the next comer ; and where his haunts are
known, the country people are very careful every morning to
search for the remains of the night, and are seldom disap¬
pointed, but find Cod, Ling sometimes, but especially Con¬
gers, which are oftener seen amongst the deep hollows of the
rocks than farther to sea.”

CONGER.

305

Dr. Neill says this species is sometimes, but not very
often, found in the Forth ; and, in proof of great tenacity of
life, mentions having seen one alive and vigorous in the
Edinburgh market, although it had been ten hours out of
water.

The Conger is frequently caught at various rocky parts of
our eastern coast, and I have known specimens of large size
taken in winter about the mouth of the Thames. Congers
are caught by bulters, or long-lines, and hand-lines — modes
of fishing already described, and the most esteemed bait is
the sandlaunce. “ So well assured,” says Colonel Montagu,
66 are the French fishermen of the advantage derived from the
use of this little fish, that the fishing-boats in times of peace
run over from the coast about Dieppe to Slapton Bay, on
the south coast of Devon, on purpose to purchase launce ;
and for that purpose alone do some of our fishermen keep
fine nets for the purpose of supplying bait to these foreigners,
for which they obtain about twenty-pence the bushel. Some
principal Conger banks lie off the French coast, from which
a prodigious quantity are taken to feed the poorer classes on
maigre days.

The principal fishery for Congers in this country is on the
Cornish coast ; where, according to Mr. Couch, it is not
uncommon for a boat with three men to bring on shore from
five hundred weight to two tons, the fishing being performed
during the night ; for this fish will not readily take a bait by
day, and even on moonlight nights it is more shy than when
in the dark, except in deep water. The most usual bait
with the Cornish fishermen is a Pilchard. The Congers
that keep among rocks hide themselves in crevices, where
they are not unfrequently left by the retiring tide ; but in
situations free from rocks, Congers hide themselves by bur¬
rowing in the ground.

306

MUllJENID.E.

The flesh is not in much estimation, but meets a ready
sale at a low price among the lower classes. Formerly a
very considerable quantity was prepared by drying in a par¬
ticular manner, and exported to Spain : Bayonne also re¬
ceived a part. When thus dried, the flesh wras ground or
grated to powder, and in this state was used to thicken soup.

Congers spawn in December or January; and the dis¬
tinction of the sexes is obvious on the examination of the
roe during the cold months. Small ones, about the size of
a man's finger, are found among rocks, close to land, during
the summer. The small Eels which ascend the Severn in
such numbers in the spring, and were considered by Wil-
lughby and Pennant as the young of the Conger, are in
reality the young of fresh-water Eels.

The adult fish is most voracious, not sparing even those
of its own species. From the stomach of a specimen weigh¬
ing twenty-five pounds, I took three common Dabs, and a
young Conger of three feet in length. The power of the
jaws in this fish is very great : in the stomach of small spe¬
cimens examined on the coast, I have found the strong tes¬
taceous coverings of our shell-fish comminuted to fragments.
They are often tempted by the Crustacea entrapped in the
lobster-pots to enter those decoys in order to feed on them,
and are thus frequently captured.

Congers acquire a very large size. Specimens weighing
eighty-six pounds, one hundred and four pounds, and even
one hundred and thirty pounds, have been recorded, some of
them measuring more than ten feet long, and eighteen inches
in circumference. They possess great strength, and often
prove very formidable antagonists if assailed among rocks,
or when drawn into a boat on a line.

Three measurements taken from the point of the nose, as
in the fresh-water species, give the following proportions in

CONGER.

307

reference to tlie whole length : — the distance to the origin of
the pectoral fin is as two to thirteen ; to the commencement
of the dorsal fin, as one to five ; and to the vent, as two to
five.

The head is long and depressed : the upper jaw the long¬
est ; both jaws furnished with strong teeth, forming a broad
band in each : the lips fleshy : the nostrils double ; the most
anterior near the edge of the lip, and tubular ; the other a
simple orifice : numerous mucous pores about the parts of
the mouth and head: the mouth deeply divided, making the
gape long ; the angle forming a tangent with the posterior
edge of the pupil : the eyes large ; body nearly cylindrical ;
dorsal fin commencing but little behind the pectorals, ex¬
tending along four-fifths of the whole length of the body ;
anal fin commencing immediately behind the vent, and ex¬
tending along three-fifths of the whole, and joining the dor¬
sal fin, forms a pointed tail.

The colour of the upper surface of the body is a uniform
pale brown, becoming lighter on the lower part of the sides,
and passing into dull white underneath ; the dorsal and anal
fins whitish, edged with black ; lateral line almost white.

The notion entertained by some, that river Eels on going
to the sea remain there and become Congers, scarcely re¬
quires a serious remark. No one who looks for specific dis¬
tinctions can fail to observe them when comparing either of
our fresli-water Eels with the Conger. These differences,
which extend to colour, form of body, and situation of fins,
receive further confirmation on examining their internal struc¬
ture : independent of comparative difference of relative posi¬
tion in some of the most important of the viscera, the great¬
est number of vertebrae found in our fresh-water Eels is 116,
those of the Conger amount to 156.

308

MUR/ENID/E.

APODAL

MALACOPTERYGTJ. MURJENJD7E.

THE MURHENA.

Murcena Helena , Linnjjus. Blocii, pt. v. pi. 152.

,, ,, La Murene, Cuvier, Regne An. t. ii. p. 352.

,, ,, The Murane, Couch, MS.

Generic Characters. — Body elongated ; no pectoral fins ; branchial opening
a minute orifice on each side ; a single row of teeth in each jaw ; dorsal and
anal fin very low, united.

Mr. Couch is tlie only British naturalist Thave heard of
who has obtained an example of this beautifully marked
species on the English coast. The following is Mr. Couch's
account, copied from his MS. :

A specimen, the first on record as a British fish, was
caught by a fisherman of Polperro, October 8th, 1834.

Its length was four feet four inches ; body very flaccid,
rounded anteriorly, compressed and tapering towards the tail :
the whole body seemed plump. Before the eyes it is slender
and sharp ; jaws equal ; gape moderately large ; teeth long,
incurved, sharp, separate, in one row, a row on the palate ;
tongue adherent, scarcely perceptible ; a nasal barb on each

MUR.ENA.

309

side of the end of the snout, another a short distance above
each eye, and a probe passed down the latter found its way
out at the former ; large mucous orifices encircle both jaws
at equal distances, four on each row. Eye rather small, one
inch and one quarter from the snout ; irides light bluish
grey, having a lively look : cheeks tumid ; an extensive de¬
pression at the side of the thorax, in which is the simple
orifice of the gills ; the external appearance of the branchial
aperture very much resembles that belonging to the Lam¬
prey : from the snout to the branchial opening, six inches ;
from the part above the eye the head is much elevated ; the
skin wrinkled ; thorax remarkably protuberant ; the distance
from the top of the head to the thorax five inches and three-
quarters. The vent is exactly half-way between the two
ends of the body, from whence proceeds a line to the end of
the tail parallel to the anal fin, and half an inch from its
base : this line must be the lateral line, since there is no
appearance of any other. The dorsal fin begins five inches
and a half from the snout, and proceeds round the extremity
of the body to join the anal, which begins at the vent ; but
these fins are thick and fleshy, and not readily distinguished
from the margin of the body.

The ground colour of the anterior part of the body is a
fine lively yellow, the hinder part a fine purple ; but the
whole, including the fins, is divided into segments, forming
irregularly shaped spots, which yet have a tendency to re¬
gular distribution ; towards the tail the yellow spots more
resemble irregular rings, with larger spaces between them ;
the whole is interspersed with innumerable spots of whitish
and deep yellow, golden, brown, and purple, forming a most
beautiful arrangement : under the thorax and to the gill¬
opening are a few lines marked in the skin as if to facilitate
motion, though the skin is exceedingly smooth and soft ;

310

MUR/ENIDE.

it is strong also, and the colours were remarkably slow to
fade, contrary to what is observed in most fishes. This spe¬
cimen was taken with a line, and manifested great strength
after it was taken on board the boat.

Of this singular and beautifully marked fish Mr. Couch
very kindly sent me for my use a coloured drawing made
from the fresh specimen, from which the figure on the preced¬
ing page, carefully reduced in size, was drawn and engraved.

This Mureena is considered very common in almost every
part of the Mediterranean. It was a great favourite with
the ancient Romans, who preserved large quantities of them
in their numerous vivaria, where they were fed with great
care. On the celebration of one of his triumphs, Caesar dis¬
tributed six thousand specimens of this Mureena among his
friends.

The flesh is said to be delicately white, and very agreeable
eating. In the Mediterranean it is fished for with lines.
It is very voracious, and its bite is very severe, which, from
the nature of the teeth, and the large size of the muscles
about the head, might be expected.

This fish is said to live with equal facility in fresh or salt
water, though generally found at sea.

The vignette represents a Venetian pleasure-boat.

ANGLESEY MORRTS.

311

APODAL

MALACOPTERYG1I. MUR2ENID1E.

THE ANGLESEY MORRIS.

Leptocephalus Morrisii, Anglesey Morris, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. 212,

pi. 28.

» ,, ,, ,, Montagu, Wern. Mem. vol. ii. p.

436, pi. 22, f. 1.

,, ,, ,, ,, Flem. Brit. An. p. 200, sp. 111.

,, ,, Le Leptocephale, Cuvier, Regne An. t. ii. p. 358.

Generic Characters. — Head small and short ; teeth numerous ; pectoral fins
and gill-opening very small ; body compressed and very thin, tape-like ; dorsal
and anal fins small, united at the tail, forming a point.

This species was discovered in the sea near Holyhead by
Mr. William Morris, who sent the specimen to Pennant, by
whom it was named after his friend. Pennant subsequently
sent the same specimen to Gronovius, who described it under
the generic name of Leptocephalus , in reference to the small
size of the head.

Any doubts which might formerly have been raised as to the
real existence of such a species, to which Colonel Montagu
has alluded, must have ceased to exist, as this fish has now
been taken and recognised in various localities. Pennant in
his first description, perhaps from the state of his specimen,
was not aware of all the characters this delicate fish possesses ;
but Colonel Montagu has well described and given a figure

312

MUR.ENIDJE.

of it in the Wernerian Memoirs, as quoted. More than
twenty specimens have within a few years been taken at dif¬
ferent parts of the coast of England, Wales, and Ireland.
By the kindness of Mr. Couch, I possess three examples that
were taken in Cornwall ; and from Mr. William Thompson,
of Belfast, we learn that five or six specimens have been ob¬
tained by him and his collecting friends.

There is also an interesting account of this fish, with a good
figure, in the sixth volume of Mr. Loudon's Magazine of
Natural History, page 330, by H. V. Deere, Esq. who
states that his specimen, to all appearance dead, was brought
to him by a Devonshire fisherman, who had carried it in his
pocket, wrapped in brown paper, for three hours. After
this gentleman had held the fish in his hand for about a
minute, examining it, symptoms of life appeared, and then
the little animal was placed in a tumbler of salt and water,
where it survived its incarceration in brown paper for several
hours. Its appearance is described as most pleasing, from
its semitransparent and silvery hue, its prominent eye, and
graceful motions. It is usually found among seaweed.

I carefully dissected off the whole of one side from one of
the three specimens sent me by Mr. Couch, laying bare the
vertebral column and the intestinal canal. The bones form¬
ing the vertebra? have no spinous processes whatever, either
superior or inferior ; the angles of the ascending and de¬
scending oblique indented stria?, visible on the external sur¬
face of the skin, mark the points of union of the different
vertebra? ; the oblique muscles between the striae are attached
to the bodies of the bones forming the column ; the margin
all round each vertebral bone is opaque, but the centre or
body of each is transparent.

The intestine is a single straight canal of small calibre,
reaching from the head to the vent ; after passing from the

ANGLESEY MORRTS.

313

posterior part of the head, it descends to the abdominal line,
which it traverses without convolution to the vent. This
canal may be distinctly seen in the perfect fish when placed
flat on a slip of glass, and looked at against a good light,
particularly the descending portion from the head to the
level of the abdominal line.

The head is small, short, and rather blunt : the eyes large ;
irides silvery, the pupil dark : the lower jaw slender ; teeth
in both jaws, numerous and minute: gill-openings and pec¬
toral fins very small ; the body behind the head becomes
deeper, very much compressed, as thin as tape, and when
rendered opaque by the effect of a mixture of spirit of wine
and water, which is the best mode of preserving them, this
fish very much resembles a piece of a tape- worm.

The dorsal fin commences rather before the middle of the
whole length of the fish ; the anal fin rather behind it ; and
both extend to the tail, where they are united, and end in a
point. These fin-like appendages have the appearance of an
extension of the skin, and are so delicate that it is not al¬
ways easy to decide where they do begin, or may be called
fin ; the dorsal and abdominal margins, as well as the lateral
line, exhibit a series of small black specks : the obliquely
striated appearance of the sides has been already referred to.
The general colour is most like that of opal.

I have had opportunities of examining specimens from
the Mediterranean which were identical with those from
Cornwall, as well as those described and figured in the En¬
glish works already referred to. M. Risso includes but one
species in his fishes of Southern Europe and the Environs of
Nice, which he has named Leptocephalus Spallanzani , tom.
iii. p. 205 ; but the description so exactly accords with
English specimens, that I have no doubt it is the fish I have
seen, and the same as that on our own shores.

VOL. II.

Y

314

M UR.ENID/E.

APODAL

MALACO PTERYG 1 1 . MUR7ENIDJE.

THE BEARDLESS OPHIDIUM.

Ophidium imberbe, Linn/eus.

>> ,, Beardless Ophidium, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. 208, pi. 29.

>> ,, ,, ,, Montagu, Wern. Mem. vol. i. p. 95,

pi. 4, f. 2.

» ,, ,, ,, Flem. Brit. An. p. 201, sp. 112.

Generic Characters. — Head smooth ; body elongated, compressed ; teeth in
both jaws, the palate, and pharynx ; gill-aperture rather large ; dorsal, anal,
and caudal fin united.

The Beardless Ophidium was first added to the ca¬
talogue of British Fishes by Pennant, to whom it was com¬
municated by the Duchess of Portland : the specimen was
found near W eymouth. Pennant gave a figure of his fish
in the Appendix to the fourth volume of the British Zoolo¬
gy, edition of 1777, but no description. Colonel Montagu
afterwards obtained a specimen on the south coast of Devon,
which is figured and described in the first volume of the
Wernerian Memoirs, as quoted. The editor of the edition
of Pennant’s British Zoology, published in 1812, left out
the figure of the Beardless Ophidium, given in the previous
edition, but copied the figure and description of Colonel
Montagu.

BEARDLESS OPHIDIUM.

315

Never having seen a specimen of this fish. Colonel Mon¬
tagu’s figure and description are here given, with some addi¬
tions to be hereafter explained.

ii Length about three inches ; depth about a quarter of an
inch. The head is very obtuse, and rounded in front : eyes
large, placed forward and lateral ; irides dark, with a circle of
silver round the pupil : mouth, when closed, inclines oblique¬
ly upwards ; the lips are marginated : the gill-membranes
inflated beneath. The body is ensiform, considerably com¬
pressed towards the tail, and in shape is not unlike that of
Cepola rubesce?is , vol. i. page 195, of this work; the lateral
line is nearly in the middle, originating at the angle of the
operculum to the gills, but rather obscure : vent nearly in
the middle : the pectoral fin is rounded : the dorsal fin com¬
mences immediately above the base of the pectoral, and is at
first not so broad, and usually not so erect, as the other part:
the anal fin commences at the vent, and, together with the
dorsal, unites with the caudal fin, which is cuneiform, but
obtusely pointed. The colour is purplish brown, disposed
in minute speckles ; and along the base of the anal fin are
about ten small bluish-white spots regularly placed, but
scarcely discernible without a lens, and possibly peculiar to
younger fishes : all the fins are like the body in colour, ex¬
cept the pectoral and caudal ; the first is pale, the last is
yellowish.” The fin-rays in number are —

D. 77 : P. 11 : A. 44 : C. 18 or 20.

316

MUR.ENID.E.

“ This fish,” Colonel Montagu observes, 44 does not ap¬
pear to be very tenacious of life, like some of the Blennies,
as it was placed in a tin box with the Crested and Smooth
Blenny, covered with wet seaweed, and although these were
lively, the Ophidium was dead before it could be got to his
house. It died with its mouth shut, the pectoral fins thrown
forward, and the body curved a little near the vent, throwing
the head upwards.”

4 4 Little can be said of the natural habits of this fish ; but
as it so rarely occurs, it is most probably an inhabitant of the
rocky parts ; in such a situation, at low- water, the specimen
here described was taken.”

But little being known either of Montagu's or Pennant's
Ophidium, the figure at the head of this subject is taken from
Montagu's figure, and the outline at the foot of the preced¬
ing page is taken from Pennant's first figure, which Schneider
appears to have adopted as the representative of the genus
Ophidium in his Ichthyological work.

The Ophidium barbatum , or Bearded Ophidium, has also
been included by Berkenhout in his Catalogue of British
Fishes ; but whether on the personal authority of that au¬
thor, or on what part of the British coast it was observed, no
mention is made. The figure below is a representation of
the Bearded Ophidium ; and the three woodcuts here given
may assist investigators, should any species of Ophidium
come to their hands.

SAND-EEL.

317

APODAL

MALACOPTERYGII. ANGUILLIDJE .

THE SAND-EEL.
hornels, (horneels ?) Edinburgh.

Ammodytes Tobianus, Le Langon, Cuvier, Regne An. t. ii. p. 360.

,, ,, LinnjEus. Bloch, pt. iii. pi. 75, fig. 2.

,, Anglorum verus, True Sand-Eel, Jago. Ray, Syn. p. 165, pi. 2,

fig. 12.

,, Tobianus, Wide-mouthed Launce, Jenyns, Man. Brit. Vert. p. 482,

sp. 170.

,, ,, Sand-Eel, Don. Brit. Fish. pi. 33 1

Generic Characters. — Head and body elongated ; gill-openings large ; dor¬
sal fin extending nearly the whole length of the back ; anal fin of considerable
length ; dorsal and anal fins separated from the caudal fin.

We are indebted, says Baron Cuvier, to M. Lesauvage,
of Caen, for pointing out the true distinctions in the two
species of Ammodytes belonging to the shores of the Chan¬
nel, A. Tobianus and A. Lancea , the first of which is rare,
but the second very common.

Our excellent naturalist and countryman Ray, has given
us, in his Synopsis, from Jago’s Catalogue of Cornish Fishes,
a good figure of the true Tobianus; but it was not, I believe,

318

ANGUJLLID E.

till tlie recent publication of Mr. Jenyns' valuable Manual of
British Vertebrate Animals, that any English zoologist had
admitted two species among British Fishes. Shaw, in his
General Zoology, vol. iv. p. 81, plate 9, has figured both
species, but with only one name, and but one description.*

Ray, in his short notice from Jago's Catalogue, calls his
Ammodytes Anglorum verus the true Sand-Eel ; and his
figure leaves no doubt that his fish is the same as the To-
bianus of Linnaeus, Bloch, and others. In the late Colonel
Montagu's copy of Berkenhout's Synopsis of the Natural
History of Great Britain, there is a note in Montagu's
writing, which states, “ That at Teignmouth a distinction
is made between the Sand-Eel and Sand-launce, by the size
and superior length of the head and gills in the one ; it is
also said to be much more rare." The rarity and greater
length of the head are both on the side of the Tobianus ,
the Sand-Eel, which, as far as my own observation goes, is
much more scarce than the smaller-sized species with the
shorter head ; I am therefore desirous of preserving the dis¬
tinctive appellation of Sand-Eel to the longer fish, A. To¬
bianus , and continuing that of Sand-launce to the smaller
species, bearing among naturalists the specific name of
Lancea.

M. Lesauvage gave the name of lanceolatus to the species
which had been previously called Tobianus , his trivial name
will therefore only be used as a synonym.

Willughby's figure, G. 8, f. 1, appears to have been co¬
pied from Salvianus, and represents an Ammodytes with two
small dorsal fins ; I have not, therefore, referred it to either
of our fishes.

The Sand-Eel is immediately to be distinguished from
the Sandlaunce by its greater size, specimens now before me
* Both specimens are also figured by Klein.

SAND-EEL.

319

measuring twelve inches in length ; Ray's fish was fifteen
inches and a half long : it is further distinguished by the
greater length of the head, and particularly of the lower
jaw ; by the commencement of the dorsal fin being on a line
with the end of the pectoral fin-rays : the dorsal fin of the
Sandlaunce beginning in a line with the middle of the pec¬
toral fin, and the head smaller and shorter, as shown in the
two representations here given.

The habits of the two species are in many respects very
similar, and will be more particularly referred to under Sand¬
launce, which being exceedingly common on all our sandy
shores, has afforded greater opportunities for observation.

Both species of Ammodytes are included by Professor
Nilsson among the fishes of Scandinavia ; both species also
occur in the Forth. Dr. Neill, in his account of the fishes
of that locality, says, the Edinburgh fishermen call the large
ones Hornels — probably an abbreviation of Horneels — in re¬
ference to the greater length of body and the horn-like
elongation of the lower jaw, by means of which they are
enabled to bury themselves in the wet sands of the sea-shore,
from which they are scratched out with iron hooks for bait
or sale.

Stephen Oliver the younger, in his agreeable Rambles in
Northumberland and on the Scottish Border, when describing
the fishing in the Tyne, says, Sand-Eels follow the young
fry of the Coalfish into the harbour, and are frequently
caught with the same bait as the Poodlers (young Coalfish),
which is used in a manner similar to fly-fishing for Trout.
The common length of the Sand-Eel in the Tyne is from
twelve to fourteen inches ; and their jaws, by a peculiar con¬
formation, admit of great expansion. They swim rapidly,
and dash at a shoal of fry with the voracity and swiftness of
a Pike. Mr. Couch says that a large specimen caught on

320

ANGUILLID.E.

a line by a Cornish fisherman had a small fish of its own
species in its stomach.

From the extreme point of the lower jaw to the posterior
end of the gill-cover is to the whole length of the fish as
one to four and a half ; the depth of the body rather less
than one- third of the length of the head ; the lower jaw
very much elongated, with a strong, indurated projection
at the extreme tip ; the upper jaw much shorter than the
lower, with a strong forked tooth of two points descending
from the vomer : the nostrils double ; both open on each
side on a line, one before the other, about half-way be¬
tween the eye and the point of the nose : the eyes rather
small ; the posterior margin exactly half-way between the
point of the under jaw and the posterior angle of the gill-
cover : the shape of the body very nearly round ; covered
with small scales : the pectoral fin arises under the posterior
angle of the gill-cover, its length one-third that of the
length of the head ; the dorsal fin placed in a groove, with
a prominent line extending along each side ; the rays com¬
mence in a vertical line over the end of the pectoral fin-
rays, and end near the tail ; the lateral line indented and
straight ; the abdomen with three indented parallel lines
extending to the anal aperture, which has another orifice
behind it ; along the whole line of the lower part of each
side extends a narrow and slender membrane attached by
one edge ; the anal fin is about one-third of the whole length
of the fish, ending short of the caudal fin, and nearly on the
same plane as the dorsal fin ; the tail forked.

T1 ie fin-rays in number are —

D. 55 : P. 15 : A. 29 : C. 17.

The iridcs, cheeks, gill-covers, lower part of the sides,

SAND-EEL.

321

and the abdomen, bright silvery ; upper part of the head,
back, and sides, light brown, reflecting tints of blue and
green when held in different positions.

The vignette below represents the form of rake used to
obtain Sand-Eels and Sand-Launce on some parts of the
coast.

APODAL

MALACOPTERYGII.

ANGU1LLIDJE.

THE SAND-LAUNCE.

THE HIGGLE, SuSS€X COdst.

Ammodytes Lancea, L’Equille, Cuvier, Regne An. t. ii. p. 360.

,, ,, Small-mouthed Launce, Jenyns, Man. Brit. Vert. p. 483,

sp. 171.

,, Tohianus, Sand-Launce, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. 206, pi. 28.
,, ,, Common Launce, Flem. Brit. An. p. 201, sp. 113.

The Sand-Launce, as previously stated, is very abun¬
dant on many parts of tlie sliore of the British Islands. On
account of its silvery brightness, it is in great estimation and
constant use with fishermen as bait for the hooks of their
sea and hand lines ; and the habit peculiar to the species of
burying themselves in the wet sand as the tide recedes affords
easy means of capture. The generic term Ammodytes , refers
to this power of digging in sand. With the projecting por¬
tion of the under jaw, aided by the muscular power of the
fish, and its slender form, it is enabled to bury itself with
rapidity five or six inches deep in the soft sand as the ebbing
sea retires, and releases itself again on the approach of the
ensuing flood-tide, apparently uninjured, though deprived of

SAND-LAUNCE.

323

water for several hours : another instance of a low decree of

O

respiration and great tenacity of life in a genus of fishes
having very large gill-apertures.

In Orkney, Mr. Low says it is constantly used as a bait
for other fish, and though of good flavour, is very seldom
eaten. On the sands at Portobello, near Edinburgh, as well
as at other localities in that vicinity, people of all ages may
be seen, when the tide is out, diligently searching for the
Sand-Launce, and raking them out with iron hooks. Some
are used as bait ; but many are prepared for table, and con¬
sidered delicate food.

Colonel Montagu mentions the Sand-Launce as being ex¬
tremely plentiful at Slapton Sands, on the south coast of
Devonshire, where the fishermen employ a small seine with
a fine mesh, and are frequently so successful, that six or
seven bushels are taken at one haul : these are usually sold
to Dieppe fishermen for twenty-pence the bushel. Mon¬
tagu adds, that on the part of the Devonshire coast here
referred to, even the poorest people would not eat the Sand-
Launce, while at Teignmouth it was in great request as food,
and was counted out for sale by the score.

“ It is only of late,’1 says Mr. Couch, “ that naturalists
have learned to recognise two species, though it has been
done long since by fishermen, who have been accustomed to
observe that a small species, which keeps in larger bodies,
and seldom goes far from land, is more followed by Mackerel
than the others, and that its presence is a better sign of
good fishing. On a calm evening it is an interesting sight to
see the surface of the water broken by the repeated plunges
of voracious fishes as they burst upon the little schull of
Launces from beneath. Their only certain place of refuge
from these pursuers is the sand.

I have obtained the fry of the Sand-Launce four inches

324

ANGUILLIDJE.

long in the month of April, and considered them to be the
young of the preceding year. May, August, and December,
have each been named as the month in which the adult fish
deposit their spawn ; but the habits and economy of the two
species have been greatly confounded hitherto, under the
supposition that they were but examples of the same fish,
differing only in size.

The Sand-Launce has been noticed on the -coasts of the
counties of Londonderry, Antrim, Dublin, and Cork ; I
learn also from F. C. Lukis, Esq. that both species are
found at Guernsey ; but that Lancea is the most common.
The search for them in the sand prevails there, but it is
usually made on moonlight nights.

The food of the Sand-Launce is marine worms and very
small fishes.

The usual length of this species is from five to seven
inches : the length of the head compared to the length of
the fish is less than as one to five : the lower jaw shorter in
proportion than in the other species ; the protractile portion
of the upper jaw much more free to move, and when the
lower jaw is pressed down, this moveable part comes forward
and downward : the posterior margin of the eye is less than
half-way between the point of the lower jaw and the poste¬
rior projecting angle of the gill-cover, being placed nearer the
nose than in Tobianus ; the dorsal fin commencing in a line
over the middle of the pectoral fin.

The fin-rays in number are —

D. 51 : P. 13 : A. 25 : C. 15.

In other respects, as to the lines along the body and the
colour of the various parts, the two species are very similar.

GREAT PIPE-FISH.

325

L0PH0BRANCHI1.

SYNGNATHID&*

THE GREAT PIPE-FISH.

Syngnathus Acus, Linnaeus. Bloch, pt. iii. pi. 91, fig. 1, young ; fig. 2 adult.

,, ,, Longer Pipe-fish, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. 184, pi. 26.

Two figures ; upper, female ; lower,
male.

,, ,, Pipe-fish , Flem. Brit. An. p. 175, sp. 34.

,, ,, Great Pipe-fish, Jenyns, Man. Brit. Vert, p.484, sp. 172.

Generic Characters. — Body elongated, slender, covered with a series of indu¬
rated plates arranged in parallel lines ; head long; both jaws produced, united,
tubular ; no ventral fins. In the species of the first division, an elongated
pouch under the tail in the males only, closed by two folding membranes.

In the species belonging to this family the jaws are
united, forming a tube more or less cylindrical. The gills,
instead of having the pectinated appearance so well-known
to exist in the fishes previously described, are separated into
small rounded tufts, which are arranged along the branchial
arches, and the fishes of this family are therefore called
Lophobranchii.

* The family of the Pipe-fishes.

326

SYNGNATHID E.

The figure on the left hand of the vignette at the bottom
of the page, represents one side of the pectinated gills of a
Pike ; that in the centre is drawn from the head of a spe¬
cimen of S. acus , to show the gills in small tufts, the oper¬
culum being removed : the right hand figure exhibits the
head of the river Lampern, part of the skin on the side of
the neck being removed to show another form of branchial
apparatus, in which portions of the gills occupy different
cells. The fish will be described hereafter, and this struc¬
ture referred to.

These delicate tufts in the Pipe-fishes are defended ex¬
ternally by a large and hard operculum, having an aperture
in the connecting membrane at its upper and posterior part.
The fishes of this limited family are further remarkable for
the extreme tenuity of their bodies, as well as for the num¬
ber and arrangement of the indurated and sculptured plates
by which their lengthened bodies are defended. They are
frequently called Needle-fish.

The five species of British Syngnathi require to be ar-

GREAT PIPE-FISH.

327

ranged in two divisions ; the first of which includes two
species, having dorsal, pectoral, anal, and caudal fins; the
three species of the second division possess the dorsal fin
only : neither of the five species possess ventral fins. The
mode in which the young are produced is very singular, but
very different in the two divisions, which will be explained
when describing the species.

The natural history of the Syngnathi appears not to have
been so well understood, nor the species so clearly defined
by the older authors as those of many other genera. By
giving, in this work, figures taken from the specimens, and
adding besides, as vignettes, enlarged representations of
those parts which assist in determining specific distinction,
five species, it is hoped, will be made out ; and only
those actually obtained on the British coast, and of which
specimens are preserved, will be included. They are all
marine.

Syngnathus acus , or the Great Pipe-fish, is one of the
most common species, and is found on many parts of the
coast, sometimes at low-water among seaweed, at other times
in deep water. It is believed that the habit of proceeding
to deep water at two different periods of the season has re¬
ference to important and interesting changes connected with
the production of the young.

In a MS. History of British Fishes, written by the late
John Walcott, Esq.* during his 'residence at Teignmouth
in the years 1784 and 85, and which has been most kindly
lent to me by his son, William Walcott, Esq. with liberty
to make any use of it in the present work, I found a state¬
ment in reference to the sexes of >5". acus , which has since
been confirmed by four Continental naturalists, and which

* Author of various published works on Natural History.

328

SYNONATIIIDE.

I have verified by repeated examinations. Mr. W alcott's
observation is as follows : —

“ The male differs from the female in the belly from the
vent to the tail fin being much broader, and in having for
about two -thirds of its length two soft flaps, which fold to¬
gether, and form a false belly (or pouch). They breed in
the summer ; the females casting their roe into the false
belly of the male. This I have asserted from having ex¬
amined many, and having constantly found, early in the
summer, roe in those without a false belly, but never any in
those with ; and on opening them later in the summer, there
has been no roe in those which I have termed the female,
but only in the false belly of the male.”

On dissecting males and females the proof of the correct¬
ness of this new view was obvious. The anal or sub-caudal
pouch is peculiar to the males only, and is closed by two
elongated lateral flaps. On separating these flaps, and ex¬
posing the inside, the ova, large and yellow, were seen lining
the pouch in some specimens, while in others the hemi¬
spheric depressions from which the ova had been but recently
removed were very visible. In each of these the opened
abdomen exhibited true male organs. The females examined
had no anal pouch, and the opened abdomen exposed two
lobes of ova of large size. In a specimen of a male of S.
acus , obtained at Dover on the 20th of July 1835, and for
which I am indebted to W. Christy, Esq. the opened abdo¬
men exhibited the preparatory organs of the male ; and the
displayed sub-caudal pouch showed many eggs contained in
it, the young of which were fully developed, and ready to
escape from the capsules, while from others the young had
actually escaped. They were rather more than one inch in
length, and slightly barred with brown.

In the plate devoted to Syngnatlii , in the last two octavo

GREAT PIPE-FISH.

329

editions of Pennant’s British Zoology, the upper figure re¬
presents the female, and the second figure the male of S',
acus. The enlargement on the under surface of the second
figure, looking like an elongated fin, marks the situation of
the distended pouch of a male. Pennant’s third figure is
the S. ophidian, and the fourth the S. lumbriciformis of
this work. Neither S. typhle nor S. cequoreus are figured in
the British Zoology.

At what time or in what manner the ova are transferred
from the abdomen of the female to the sub-caudal pouch of
the male is, I believe, unknown.

Mr. Walcott also adds, in his MS. that S. acus begins to
breed when only four or five inches long. This I have also
obtained proof of ; and although examples of this species not
uncommonly occur of eighteen inches long, and Bloch attri¬
butes to it a length of two to three feet, I have a specimen,
four inches long only, a young fish apparently of the pre¬
ceding year, in the opened abdomen of which the ova, in two
small lobes, are full grown.

M. Risso notices the great attachment of the adult Pipe¬
fish to their young, and this pouch probably serves as a
place of shelter to which the young ones retreat in case of
danger. I have been assured by fishermen that if the young
were shaken out of the pouch into the water over the side of
the boat, they did not swim away, but when the parent fish
was held in the water in a favourable position, the young
would again enter the pouch.

The figures of S. acus and typhle are correctly represented
by Roncleletius, and the characteristic difference in the form
and size of the tubular mouth in each is well preserved.
Below the figure, in that work, of the species now under
consideration here, several of the young are represented as

VOL. II.

z

SYNG-NATH1 DM.

330

swimming near the abdomen of tlie parent fish. This figure
of Rondeletius is copied in Willughby, plate I. 25, fig. 6.

Mr. Couch says, 4 4 This species may be seen slowly mov¬
ing about in a singular manner, horizontally or perpendi¬
cularly, with the head downwards or upwards, and in every
attitude of contortion, in search of food, which chiefly seems
to be water insects.”11

From the great similarity in the form and size of the
mouth in all the species, it is probable that their food is
also similar. Worms, small mollusca, young and minute
thin-skinned Crustacea, and the ova of other fishes, are
among the substances taken; and these Syngnathi are sup¬
posed to be able, by dilating their throat at pleasure, to draw
their food up their cylindrical beak-like mouth, as water is
drawn up the pipe of a syringe.

From the point of the tubular mouth to the posterior
edge of the indurated portion of the operculum, the length
is, when compared to the whole length of the fish, as one
to eight ; if measured to the edge of the shoulder, it is
as one to seven and a half, and this proportion exists in
specimens of various ages or lengths, from six inches to
eighteen ; from the mouth to a projecting point at the an¬
terior edge of the eye, and thence to the origin of the pec¬
toral fin, the distances are equal : the jaws united, tubular,
slightly compressed ; in depth but one-third that of the
head at its deepest part, which is in a vertical line with
the centre of the operculum : the mouth small, placed at
the extremity of the tube, opening obliquely upwards ; the
lower jaw the longest : eyes rather large, bony orbits pro¬
minent : operculum covered with radiating striae : the head
between the eyes flattened ; behind the eyes, rising into a
keel-like crest, which reaches to the neck : from the pecto¬
ral fin to the anal aperture the body is deepest and licpt-

GREAT PIPE-FISH.

331

angular, with three ridges along each side, and one along
the abdomen, which ends at the vent ; the surface defended
by a series of nineteen plates ; throughout the short extent
of the dorsal fin the body is hexangular, the ridge of the
abdomen being discontinued ; thence to the end of the tail,
tapering, slender, and quadrangular, with a series of forty-
four plates ; the pectoral fins are small ; the dorsal fin com¬
mences at two-fifths of the whole length of the fish, and in
a vertical line rather before the anal aperture ; the longest
rays not equal in height to the depth of the body ; the anal
fin very small ; the tail rounded and fan-shaped.

The fin-rays in number are —

D. 40 : P. 12 : A. 4 : C. 10.

The prevailing colour is pale brown, transversely barred
with darker brown.

The vignette below represents the head and tail of the
Great Pipe-fish from a larger specimen than that which is
figured entire.

332

SYNGNATHID^E.

LOPHOBRANCHII.

SYNGNATH1DTE.

THE DEEP-NOSED PIPE-FISH.

Syngnathus Typhle, Linnaeus.

Acus Aristotelis, Typhle Antiquorum, Willughby, p. 158, I. 25, fig. 1.
Syngnathus Typhle, Shorter Pipe-fish, Don. Brit. Fish. pi. 56.

,, ,, ,, ,, Flem. Brit. An. p. 175, sp. 35.

,, ,, Lesser Pipe-fish, Jenyns, Man. Brit. Vert. p. 485,

sp. 173.

The Deep-nosed Pipe-fish is immediately distinguish¬
ed from the preceding species by the more compressed form
of the jaws, which are also so deep that the upper and lower
edges are nearly parallel with the lines of the upper and
under surface of the head. From the two large-sized Pipe¬
fish of the next division this species is easily known by the
presence of pectoral, anal, and caudal fins. The figures in
the works of Willughby and Mr. Donovan are good repre¬
sentations ; but I believe the figure in Bloch, part iii. plate
91, f. 1, which has usually been considered and referred to as
Syngnathus typhle , to be only a representation of the young
of S. acus.

S. typhle has also been well figured by M. Laroche, in
the Ann. de Mus. t. xiii. under the name of S. Rondeletii.

DEEP-NOSED PIPE-FISH.

333

It is the S. viridis of M. Risso,* a term that seems liable
to objection, even if a name were wanting, inasmuch as seve¬
ral other species are more or less green.

The Deep-nosed Pipe-fish does not differ materially in
its habits, that I am aware of, from the species last described.
The ova are transferred from the abdomen of the female to
the sub-caudal pouch of the male, and there hatched in the
same manner. When fishing in ten or twelve feet water
over a soft surface covered with weeds, using the small net
described and figured in vol. i. page 212, I have taken both
sorts together, finding the deep-nosed species abundant on
the Dorsetshire coast.

The whole length of the largest specimens I have seen
was thirteen inches ; from the point of the closed jaws to the
posterior end of the indurated portion of the gill-cover, the
distance is, compared to the whole length of the fish, as one
to six ; the head larger than in S. acus , and without the
elevated ridge on the top of it ; the distance from the point
of the upper jaw to the projecting tubercle in front of the
eye, and thence to the end of the pectoral fin, equal ; the
united jaws are very much compressed, and nearly as deep as
the head, only slightly inclining to a slope before the eyes ;
the body hexangular ; the middle lateral angle on each side
becoming the upper angles of the quadrangular tail at the
end of the dorsal fin. This fin commences farther back than
in S. acus , the middle of the dorsal fin being very nearly the
middle of the whole length of the fish ; the series of indu¬
rated plates between the shoulder and the vent includes
eighteen, thence to the end of the tail about thirty-seven ;
but both series are liable to a little variation in the number
of these sculptured plates : the abdomen is almost rounded ;

* Figured by M. Guerin, in illustration of the genera of the Begne Animal,
Poissons, plate 65, fig. 1 .

334

SYNGNATHID JE .

the anal fin minute ; the caudal fin pointed ; the two central
rays the longest ; the others graduated.

The fin-rays in number are —

D. 39 : P. 15 : A. 3 : C. 10.

The prevailing colour is olive green, mottled and spotted
with yellow brown and yellowish white.

As mentioned in the account of the Great Pipe-fish, last
described, the Deep-nosed Pipe-fish, S. typhle , is well
figured in the work of Rondeletius. The vignette below
represents the head and tail of this species of larger size than
the block of the whole fish would admit.

.E QUO RE A L l1 1 V E - V I S 11 .

335

LOPHOBRANCHIL

SYNGNATH1D&.

THE aEQUOREAL PIPE-FISH.

Syngnathus cequoreus, Linnaeus.

,, ,, JEquoreal Pipe-fish, Montagu, VVern. Mem. vol. i. p. 85,

pi. 4, fig. 1.

,, ,, ,, ,, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. 188.

,, ,, ,, ,, Flem. Brit. An. p. 176, sp. 38.

,, ,, ,, ,, Jenyns, Man. Brit. Vert. p. 486,

sp. 174.

Characters. — The species belonging to the second division of the genus
Syngnathus have a dorsal fin only ; no pectoral, ventral, anal, or caudal fins ;
no sub-caudal pouch in either sex.

Of this division the British shores produce three species,
the largest of which, the HEqnoreal Pipe-fish, was described
at length by Colonel Montagu from two specimens obtained
on the Devonshire coast. It had been noticed as long ago
as 1684 by Sir Robert Sibbald, in his Scotia Illustrata ,
part ii. book 3, page 24, who attributes to it a length of
two feet.

Of this species I have not succeeded in taking any exam¬
ple ; but I possess two, for one of which I am indebted to
the kindness of Mr. Embleton, of the Berwickshire Natu-

336

SYNC NAT1I ID/E.

ralists1 Club, who obtained it on tlie coast of that or the
adjoining county ; and for the other to Mr. Couch. By
communication from F. C. Lukis, Esq. I learn also, that
this species, which I believe to be rare in England, occurs at
Guernsey.

I can add but little to the description of Montagu, and
shall therefore adopt it, with some slight modifications.

“ Length twenty inches and a half, viz. ten to the vent,
and ten and a half to the end of the tail the length of the
head is to the whole length of the fish as one to twelve :
“ the snout is similar in form to that of S. acus ; its length
to the eye three-quarters of an inch ; from thence to the
end of the gill-cover, including the eye, one inch : the form
of the body is rather compressed and angular, with an acute
dorsal and abdominal ridge, which, together with three slight
angles on each side, give it an octangular appearance : it
is of equal size from the gills to the vent, which part con¬
tains about thirty plates ; from the vent to the extremity
of the tail it is first quadrangular, and towards the end,
round and taper, containing about thirty-six plates : imme¬
diately behind the vent, the body of this specimen suddenly
decreases to one-third less in diameter ; but this may be a
sexual distinction."’1

“ The dorsal fin consists of forty rays, commencing in a
vertical line considerably before the vent, and terminating be¬
hind it, so that three-fourths of the fin is before the ventral
aperture. The end of the tail is extremely small and com¬
pressed, the rays of which are not visible to the naked eye.
The colour is yellowish, with transverse pale lines and dark
margins, one in each joint, and another down the middle
of each plate, giving it the appearance of possessing double
the number of joints it really has ; these markings, however,
cease at the vent.11

CEQUOREAL PIPE-FISH.

337

Mr. Couch, it appears, has not seen more than two or
three specimens ; but the Cornish fishermen say they find
this species from ten to fifteen leagues from land, and in
fine weather swimming at the surface over a depth of fifty
fathoms or more.

My specimens being both females, the sexual peculiarities
of this division of the Syngnathi will be explained when
describing the next species.

The vignette below represents the head and tail of this
species on a larger scale.

338

SYNGNATH1D.E.

LOP HO BRANCH 1 1.

SYNGNATH1DJE.

THE SNAKE PIPE-FISH.

Syngnathus ophidian, Serpent de Mer, Bloch, pt. iii. pi. 91, fig. 3.

,, ,, Snake Pipe-fish, Shaw, Gen. Zool. vol. v. p. 453, pi. 179.

,, ,, Longer Pipefish, Low, Faun. Oread, p. 179, sp. 1.

,, ,, Snake Pipefish, Jenyns, Man. Brit. Vert. p. 487, sp.

175.

No species of Syngnathus can better deserve the name of
ophidian , snake-like, than the present. It is immediately
distinguishable from the fish last described, with which alone
it is likely to be confounded, by its much more slender as
well as rounder body, which scarcely exceeds a goose-quill in
size, and by the whole of the dorsal fin being, in a specimen
of fourteen inches long, more than half an inch before the
middle of the fish. Pennant has figured this fish, No. 61 of
plate 26, but not described it.

In this species, as well as the two others belonging to this
second division, neither male nor female possesses an anal
pouch, but the ova after exclusion from the abdomen of the
female are carried for a time by the male in separate hemi¬
spheric depressions on the external surface of the abdomen,
anterior to the anus. The females have no such depressions.
The sexes have been determined by examination of the inter-

SNAKE PIPE-FISH.

339

nal structure. All the specimens examined having these ex¬
ternal hemispheric cells proved to be males, the testes in
the abdomen obvious ; those without external depressions
proved to be all females, internally provided with two lobes
of enlarged ova. The males of this species when taken by
me as late in the season as August, had one ovum of the
size and colour of a mustard-seed lodged in each cup-shaped
cell. These specimens were caught with a keer-drag net
between Brownsey Island and South Haven, at the mouth of
Poole Harbour. Many specimens of S. acus and typhle
were obtained at the same time and place.

The length of the head in this species is, compared to the
whole length of the fish, as one to eleven ; the form of the
body slightly octangular, but more slender and rounded than
in that last described ; the body uniform in size as far as the
vent, then tapering gradually to the tail, which has a slightly
flattened end ; the divisions in the series of transverse plates,
and the angles, of the body, almost obsolete ; the dorsal fin,
as before mentioned, entirely anterior to the middle of the
fish ; the number of rays thirty-eight : the vent in a line with
the last fourth portion of the dorsal fin.

The colour of the body is a uniform olive green ; the
irides red, the pupils black. The specimens I possess vary in
length from eight inches to fourteen inches.

SYNGNATHID.E.

840

LOPHOBRANCHII. SYNGNATHIDJE.

THE WORM PIPE-FISH.

Syngnathus lumbriciformis, Worm Pipe-fish, Jenyns, Man. Brit. Vert. p. 488,

sp. 176.

Acus lumbriciformis, Wielughby, p. 160.

Syngnathus ophidion, Little Pipefish, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. 187,

pi. 26, No. 62.

,, ,, ,, ,, Flem. Brit. An. p. 176, sp. 39.

The Worm-like Pipe-fish is the smallest of the British
species, and is taken on various parts of the coast. Mr. Low
describes it as found at Orkney under stones ; and Mr. Couch
finds it in similar situations on the coast of Cornwall, where
it is considered common.

Pennant has figured this species with the ova attached to
the under and external surface of the abdomen, as in the
species last described. There is little doubt that the young
are produced in the same mode as in the other species be¬
longing to this division of the genus, and that the same
sexual peculiarities exist. Pennant, not aware of the singu¬
lar interchange which takes place, says, very naturally, “ On
the belly of the female is a long hollow, to which adhere the
eggs disposed in three rows.*”

This species does not exceed five inches or five inches and
a half in length, and the wood-engraving at the head of the

WORM PIPE-FISH.

341

preceding page represents this fish but little less than its
natural size. It possesses no fin except that on the back,
which in the specimen I examined contained thirty rays.
The nose is very short, turned a little upwards ; the eyes pro¬
minent ; from the point of the jaws to the posterior edge of
the orbit, and thence to the end of the operculum, the dis¬
tances are equal ; the length of these two portions together,
compared to the whole length of the fish, is as one to twelve ;
the form of the body nearly cylindrical ; the vent is situated
at the end of the first third of the whole length, with a series
of nineteen plates before it, and in a vertical line, with
three-fourths of the dorsal fin behind it ; from the vent the
body tapers gradually all the way to the tail, which ends in a
point ; the number of plates forming the series between the
vent and the tail-end, about fifty. The surface of the body
is more smooth than in the two species previously described,
and the colour is dark olive green.

SYNGNATH I DyE.

342

LOPHOBRANCHIl.

SYNCNATH1D/E.

THE SHORT-NOSED HIPPOCAMPUS.

Hippocampus brevirostris, Cuvier, Regne An. t. ii. p. 363.

,, Rondeletii, Willughby, p. 157, I. 25, fig. 3.

,, brevirostris, Sea-horse, Jen yns, Man. Brit. Vert. p. 489, sp. 177.

Generic Characters. — The jaws united and tubular, like those of the Syng-
natki ; the mouth placed at the end ; the body compressed, short, and deep ;
the whole length of the body and tail divided by longitudinal and transverse
ridges, with tubercular points at the angles of intersection ; both sexes have
pectoral and dorsal fins ; the females only have an anal fin ; neither sex has
ventral or caudal fins.

Pennant, in the edition of his British Zoology, the
three first volumes of which were published in 1776 and the
fourth in 1777, states that he had been informed the Spng-
nathus Hippocampus of Linnaeus, or what the English im¬
properly call the Sea-horse, had been found on the south¬
ern shores of this kingdom.” John Walcott, Esq. whose
MS. Plistory of British Fishes was written in the years 1784
and 1785, says, in reference to a drawing of a female speci¬
men of what I believe to be the Hippocampus brevirostris of

SHOUT-NOSED HIPPOCAMPUS.

343

Cuvier, “ This was taken on the coast of Hampshire, and
given me by the late Mr. Brander.”

L. W. Dillwyn, Esq. obtained a specimen of Hippocam¬
pus , some years ago, in Swansea Bay ; and Messrs. C. and
J. Paget, in their Sketch of the Natural History of Yar¬
mouth, state that the Hippocampus is also occasionally met
with there.

But the most valuable information I have received on this
subject has been supplied by F. C. Lukis, Esq. of Guernsey,
to whom I am indebted for the loan of the male and female
specimens from which the figures at the head of the preced¬
ing page were taken.

By a comparison with M. Guerin’s figure of the Hippo¬
campus brevirostris of Cuvier’s Regne Animal , I have little
doubt that the two fishes here figured are examples of H.
brevirostris ; and Mr. Lukis, in the autumn of 1835, obtained
two specimens of Hippocampus on the Hampshire coast, one
of which is stated to be identical with those here figured :
there can therefore be no doubt, from these various authori¬
ties, that at least one species is found on our coast, and that
this species is also obtained at Guernsey and the other Chan¬
nel islands.

The circumstance of the same species occurring at Guern¬
sey and on our southern coast, gives additional value to the
following communication. At the time of writing, June 9,
1835, Mr. Lukis had two female specimens of Hippocampus
brevirostris , then healthy and active, which had been living
twelve days in a glass vessel, their actions equally novel and
amusing. “ An appearance of search for a resting-place
induced me,” says Mr. Lukis, “ to consult their wishes by
placing seaweed and straws in the vessel : the desired effect
was obtained, and has afforded me much to reflect upon in
their habits. They now exhibit many of their peculiarities,

344

SYNGNATHID.E.

and few subjects of the deep have displayed, in j)riso7i , more
sport or more intelligence.*”

4 4 When swimming about, they maintain a vertical posi¬
tion ; but the tail is ready to grasp whatever meets it in the
Avater, quickly entwines in any direction round the weeds,
and, when fixed, the animal intently watches the surrounding
objects, and darts at its prey with great dexterity.'”

44 When both approach each other, they often twist their
tails together, and struggle to separate or attach themselves
to the Aveeds ; this is done by the under part of their cheeks
or chin, which is also used for raising the body when a new
spot is Avanted for the tail to entAvine afresh. The eyes move
independently of each other, as in the chamelion ; this, with
the brilliant changeable iridiscence about the head, and its
blue bands, forcibly remind the observer of that animal.'”

The vignette in illustration of the habits here described
Avas copied from a drawing by Mr. Lukis, most obligingly
lent me for this purpose.

By the kindness of William Walcott, Esq. I learn that
a gentleman of the Island of Jersey, an attentive observer of
nature, remembers having more than once seen specimens of
Hippocampus curled up in oyster-shells. About four years
since, a specimen was shown at Southampton, which lived
more than a fortnight in a glass globe. This Avas said to have
been obtained on the French coast near Granville, and wras
brought to Southampton by one of the sailors of a steam-
packet ; I have also heard of one that lived three Aveeks in
confinement at Harwich, the undulating motion of Avliich
wdien swimming Avas performed with great ease, and Avas very
interesting to observe.

The species of Hippocampus in their sexual peculiarities,
as far as they have been investigated, appear to coincide with
those of the Syngnalhi. I had the pleasure of looking over,

SHORT-NOSED II I PROCAM PUS.

345

with Mr. Owen, some specimens in the collection of the
Royal College of Surgeons, which had been examined and
the internal structure partly exposed to view by the dissec¬
tions of John Hunter. The females with the abdomen
enlarged, as shown in the right-hand figure at the head of this
article, have a small anal fin of four rays, but no true pouch ;
the ova in the abdomen. Males have no anal fin, in any of
the specimens I have examined ; the pouch obvious ; the
abdomen smaller than in the females, as shown in the left-
hand figure. The two specimens represented in the vignette
are both females.

Their food is unknown to me, but is probably very similar
to that taken by the Syngnathi.

The whole length from the point of the nose to the end of
the tail is about five inches : the connected jaws, forming a
tubular mouth, are considerably shorter than the rest of the
head : the eyes prominent, the irides straw yellow ; over
each eye a single prominent spinous tubercle : the operculum
covered with striae, radiating from the front ; the pectoral fins,
placed immediately behind the operculum, are small, appa¬
rently containing about eight rays in each ; the form of the
body heptangular, three angles on each side, the seventh
longitudinal angular line being on the abdomen ; the back
flat ; the transverse segments of the body eleven, with tuber¬
cular projections at the points of intersection ; the rays of
the dorsal fin about sixteen : the anal fin is peculiar to the
female only, and probably performs some office at the time
of the transfer of the ova to the pouch of the male ; this
anal fin contains four rays : the abdomen as deep again as the
tail ; from the vent the form of the tail is quadrangular, end¬
ing in a point ; the number of segments about thirty.

The general colour is a pale ash brown, relieved by a

2 A

VOL. TI.

346

SYNGNATIITDiE.

changeable iridiscencc, and variable tints of blue dispersed
over different parts of the head, body, and tail.

I have not included any reference to Linnseus or Bloch in
the synonymes, being doubtful that the species are identical
with the one here described. Klein's figure, No. 10, very
closely resembles the H. brevirostris ; and by the description,
the H. antiquus of Risso is also the H. brevirostris of
Cuvier.

PENNANT S GLOIiE-FISII.

PL ECTOG NATH I.

347

GYMNODONTIDJE.

PENNANT’S GLOBE-FISH.

Tetrodon Pennantii, Pennant's Globe-Jisli,
,, stellatus, Stellated Globefish ,
Tetraodon laevigatas, Globe Diodon,

Tetrodon lagoceplialus , Globe Tetrodon,

Tetraodon stellatus, Stellated Globefish,

Yarrell.

Don. Brit. Fish. pi. 64.

Penn. Brit. Zool. ed. 1776, vol.

iii. p. 132, pi. 20.

Penn. Brit. Zool. ed. 1812, vol.

iii. p. 174, pi. 23.

Flem. Brit. An. p. 174, sp. 31.
Proceedings Zool. Soc. 1833,
p. 115.

Generic Characters. — Both jaws are divided in the middle by a suture, pro¬
ducing the appearance of four teeth in front, two above and two below. The
skin, over part of the body, armed with numerous short spines. The branchial
orifice small.

In this order of fishes, the P/ectog?iathi of Cuvier’s ar¬
rangement, the principal distinctive character consists in the
maxillary bones being firmly attached to the intermaxillaries,
and both united to the palatine arch

Three examples of this singular-looking fish have been
taken in this country, and all three in Cornwall. Pennant
first described it as British from a specimen caught at Pen-
Mr. Donovan has recorded a second, taken on the

2 a 2

zance.

GYMXODONTI D E.

348

Cornisli coast, and mentions another obtained in the Euro¬
pean seas. Still more recently a specimen was taken in
Mount's Bay, a drawing of which was sent to the Zoological
Society by Dr. Boase, and a notice of its occurrence ap¬
peared in the Proceedings for October 1833, as referred to.

Pennant called his fish Icevigatus in the edition of his
work published in 1776, and his editor adopted that of
lagocephalus in the edition of 1812, referring to Linnaeus
and Bloch ; but the figure of the two specimens by Pennant
and Mr. Donovan, and the drawing of the third sent to the
Zoological Society by Dr. Boase, agree more closely with
the figure of the Globe-fish in Grew’s Rarities, tab. 7, and
the Orbis lagocephalus of Willughby, plate I. 2, which ap¬
pear to be intended to represent the same fish, and being
without spots or stripes, is, 1 think, distinct from the lagoce¬
phalus of Linnaeus and Bloch, the spots of which are referred
to in the description of the one, and both spots and stripes
shown in the coloured figure of the other.

Mr. Donovan, when calling this fish stellatus , appears not
to have been aware that this term had been previously appro¬
priated to an Indian species with black spots ; and still con¬
sidering this fish provisionally as a new species, I propose for
it now the name of our highly-esteemed British zoologist, by
whom, as far as I am aware, it was first made known.

“ The species of this genus are remarkable for being pro¬
vided with the means of suddenly assuming a globular form
by swallowing air, which, passing into the crop or first sto¬
mach, blows up the whole animal like a balloon. The ab¬
dominal region being thus rendered the lightest, the body
turns over, the stomach being the uppermost part, and the
fish floats upon its back, without having the power of direct¬
ing itself during this state of forced distension. But it is
while thus bloated and passive, at the mercy of the waves,

pennant's globe-fish.

349

that this animal is really most secure ; for the numerous
spines with which the surface of the body is universally beset
are raised and erected by the stretching out of the skin, thus
presenting an armed front to the enemy on whatever side he
may venture to begin the attack.”*

Pennant's fish measured one foot seven inches in length ;
the belly when distended, one foot ; the whole circumference
when in that state, two feet six inches. The form of the
body is usually oblong ; but when alarmed, it assumes the
shape which has been already referred to. The mouth is
small ; the irides white, tinged with red ; the back from head
to tail almost straight, or at least very slightly elevated ;
there are no ventral fins ; the dorsal fin is placed low on the
back ; the anal fin is opposite ; the tail almost even, divided
by an angular projection in the middle.

The number of fin-rays according to Mr. Donovan —

D. 11 : P. 14 : A. 10 : C. 6.

The back is of a rich blue colour ; the belly and sides
silvery white, studded over with straight spines arising from
the centre of four rays ; the fins and tail brown. The spines
in Pennant's representation of this fish are not so thickly set
as in the figure of Mr. Donovan, or in the drawing by Dr.
Boase ; but the space over which they are spread is alike in
all three, — that is, bounded superiorly by the lower jaw and
the base of the pectoral fin, and posteriorly by the anal aper¬
ture.

* Dr. Iioget. Bridgewater Treatise, vol. i. p. 433.

350

G Y M NO D ON T IDE.

PLECTOGNATHI.

GYMNODONTIDjE.

THE SHORT SUN-FISH.

Orthagoriscus mala, Schneider. Cuvier, Regne An. t. ii. p. 369.

,, Rondeletii, Sun-fish, Willughby, p. 151, I. 26.

Tetrodon mola, Short Tetrodon, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. 172, pi. 22.

,, ,, Sun-fish, Don. Brit. Fish. pi. 25.

Orthagoriscus mola, Molebut, Flem. Brit. An. p. 175, sp. 32.

,, ,, ,, Jenyns, Man. Brit. Vert. p. 490, sp. 179*

Generic Characters. — Jaws undivided, forming a cutting edge ; body com¬
pressed, deep for its length, short, truncated, without spines ; tail short, and
very high vertically ; rays of the dorsal and anal fins long and pointed, both
united to the caudal fin at the base.

The Sun-fish, as this species lias been called from the
twofold circumstance of its almost circular form and shining
surface, though occurring but occasionally, may be said to
have been taken from John o’Groat’s to the Land’s End.

SlIOltT SUN-FISH.

351

Sir Andrew Balfour and Sir Robert Sibbald have noticed
this species in Scotland, and Dr. Neill mentions three ex¬
amples that were taken in the Frith of Forth. I am in¬
debted to Edward Jesse, Esq. for a memorandum of one
caught on the coast of Northumberland in October 183L
Dawson Turner, Esq. and Mr. Paget have known it to be
taken at Yarmouth. I have seen one that was brought to
the London market. Colonel Montagu, in his MS. notes,
mentions one that was caught at Salcombe in July 1799 :
this specimen was of large size, and weighed three hundred
pounds. In the fifth volume of Mr, Loudon's Magazine of
Natural History, page 315, there is a record of one that was
taken at Plymouth; and Dr. Borlase, Willughby, and Mr.
Couch have seen and described examples that were taken on
the Cornish coast. Still farther to the westward and north¬
ward, the Sun-fish has been taken in the Bristol Channel,
and one was caught during last summer at Tenby. On the
Irish coast, it has been taken at Londonderry; and I am
greatly indebted to the kindness of Dr. Arthur Jacob, Pro¬
fessor of Anatomy in the Royal College of Surgeons in Dub¬
lin, for his remarks on a specimen taken in the month of
August 1826, between the south-west coast of England and
Dublin Bay. This paper wras published in the Dublin
Philosophical Journal for November 1826, and is the best
account of this fish that I am acquainted with.

When observed in our seas, they have generally appeared
as though they were dead or dying, and floating along on
one side, presenting the broad surface of the other side to
view. Dr. Neill says, of one that was brought to him,
44 The fishermen informed him, that when they observed it,
it was swimming along sideways, with its back-fin frequently
above water. It seemed to be a stupid, dull fish : it made
little or no attempt to escape, but allowed one of the sailors

352

G V MN0D0NT1 D,E.

to put his hands under it, and lift it fairly into the boat.
The Sun-fish has been generally mentioned as remarkable
for its phosphorescence ; but this specimen did not exhibit
that phenomenon so distinctly as a Haddock or a Herring.”
Pennant repeats Brunnicli’s account, that between Antibes
and Genoa he saw one of this species lie asleep on the sur¬
face of the water : a sailor jumped overboard and caught it.

Mr. Couch says the Short Sun-fish is migratory, keeping
probably at the bottom, and feeding on seaweeds in its ordi¬
nary habits ; but in calm weather it mounts to the surface,
and lies, perhaps asleep, with its head and even its eyes
above the water, floating with the tide. Mr. Couch has
known the Sun-fish make powerful but awkward efforts to
escape when attacked, bending and directing its motions in
various ways.

The figure here given, and the description, are taken from
a preserved specimen in the Museum of the Zoological So¬
ciety. This is the smallest example I have seen. It mea¬
sures but fourteen inches from the point of the nose to the
end of the body ; the breadth of the caudal fin two inches ;
the depth of the body eleven inches and a half : the length
of the dorsal fin eight inches ; of the anal fin, seven inches
and a half : the extension of skin connecting the fin-rays
rather thick. The mouth small ; the branchial aperture just
in advance of the pectoral fin, small and oval ; the vent just
before the anal fin ; the caudal fin occupying the whole space
between the anal and dorsal fins, and attached to the pos¬
terior vertical edge of the body as by a long hinge ; the sur¬
face of the body in this young specimen but slightly rough¬
ened, and somewhat wrinkled. The colour of the upper
part of the body dusky bluish grey ; the lower part olive
brown. The fin-rays in number are —

l). 15 : P. 11 : A. 15 : C. 13.

SHORT SUN-FISH.

353

The figure at the head of this subject is an exact represen¬
tation of the fish from which it was taken, differing only in
size ; and from some differences that appear in the descrip¬
tions of specimens of greater bulk, there is reason to believe
this fish alters in appearance as it increases in age. In a
much larger example the skin was of a uniform dirty pale
brown ; the texture hard, rough, coarse, and thick. Accord¬
ing to Dr. Jacob, the irides in his specimen were dull grey¬
ish brown, with a silvery ring round the pupil.

I am indebted to Mr. Couch for the under jaw-bone of a
Sun-fish of considerable size. The outer margin of this
bone, for three inches round the front, in which there is no
division, is covered to its edge by a narrow band of enamel :
the inside, near the centre, contains various dull pearl-like
teeth ; some thin and flat, presenting an edge ; behind them
others, more cylindrical, short, and rather pointed.

Upon the external surface of the head of the example of
the Sun-fish taken at Tenby, there were attached about
twenty specimens of Tristoma coccineum. Two of these
were given to me by H. E. Strickland, Esq. of Cracombe
House, Gloucestershire, from one of which the representa¬
tions in the vignette below of the upper and under surface
were taken of the natural size. For an account of two spe¬
cies of these very rare parasitic animals, see the Synopsis
Entozoorum of Rudolphi, page 427.

G YMNODONTIDiE.

854

PLECTOG NATH I. G YMNODON T1 DTE .

THE OBLONG SUN-FISH.

Orthagoriscus oblongus, Schneider. Cuvier, Regne An. t. ii. p. 370.
Tetrodon truncatus, Oblong Tetrodon, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. 170,

pi. 22.

,, ,, Truncated Sxm-Jish, Don. Brit. Fish. pi. 41.

Orthagoriscus truncatus, ,, ,, Flem. Brit. An. p. 175, sp. 33.

,, oblongus, Oblong Sun-Jish, Jenyns, Man. Brit. Vert. p. 491,

sp. 180.

It lias been the opinion of some naturalists tliat this ob¬
long Sun-fish is the same species as that last described, and
that its greater length in proportion to its depth is but the
consequence of greater age. The largest Short Sun-fisli of
which I have weight and measurement was that taken at
Salcombe on the coast of Devonshire. It weighed three
hundred pounds, was four feet five inches long, and six feet
from the tip of the dorsal fin to the end of the anal fin.
This was seen by Colonel Montagu, who was too keen an
observer and too good a naturalist not to have detected the
difference between the fish he examined and the described

OBLONG SUN-FISH.

355

characters of the true mold, if any had existed ; and this fish
being probably very old, as well as very large, was the more
likely to have assumed the elongated appearance of this se¬
cond species.

The Oblong Sun-fish seems to be much more rare than
that last figured. Dr. Borlase appears to be the first and
almost the only English writer who has seen and described it.
In his Natural History of Cornwall, he speaks of it under
the title of the Sun-fish from Mount’s Bay, after having
described and figured the Short Sun-fish, and mentions that
a specimen of this second species was taken at Plymouth in
1734, that weighed five hundred pounds.

Mr. Donovan, in his Natural History of British Fishes,
says, u We have seen the dried skin of this species, the
animal of which, when living, weighed between two and
three hundred pounds. Our figure is taken from a small
specimen, obtained in a recent state, in one of our fishing-
excursions on the Bristol Channel. This fish subsists on
worms of the testaceous and other tribes, small crabs, &c.
fragments of these being found on dissection in the stomach.”

Mr. Couch, in his MS. says, “ I have never met with this
fish ; but a fisherman informs me he once took a Sun-fish
differing in figure from that with which he was familiar, and
which from his description I judge to be this fish. His at¬
tention was particularly attracted by the curious and beau¬
tiful waved stripes which it acquired after death, but which
he did not observe while it was alive.”

Never having seen a specimen of this fish, the figure here
given is from Mr. Donovan’s work, and the description from
that of Pennant.

a This fish grows to a great bulk ; that which was ex¬
amined by Salvianus was above a hundred pounds in weight.
In form it resembles a Bream, or some deep fish cut off in

356

G YMNODONTID.E.

tlie middle. The mouth is very small, and contains two
broad teeth, with sharp edges.”

44 The eyes are little ; before each is a small semilunar
aperture : the pectoral fins very small, and placed behind
them. The dorsal fin and the anal fin are high, and situated
at the extremity of the body ; the tail fin is narrow, and
fills all the abrupt space between those two fins.”

44 The colour of the back is dusky, and dappled ; the
belly silvery ; between the eyes and the pectoral fins are
certain streaks pointing downwards. The skin is free from
scales.”

44 When boiled it has been observed to turn into a glu¬
tinous jelly, resembling boiled starch when cold, and served
the purposes of glue, on being tried on paper or leather.
The flesh of this fish is uncommonly rank ; it feeds on shell¬
fish.”

44 There seems to be no satisfactory reason for the old
English name. Care must be taken not to confound it with
the Sun-fish of the Irish,* which differs in all respects from
this.”

Dr. Turton describes the body of the Oblong Sun-fish to
be nearly thrice as long as it is deep : the aperture of the
gills semilunar. The fin-rays in number, according to Mr.
Donovan, are —

D. 12 : P. 14 : A. 15 : C. 17.

* The Sun-fish of the Irish coast, particularly on the west coast of Ireland,
is the Basking Shark, to be hereafter described, which sometimes attains a
length of thirty feet, and is so called from its habit of basking and sunning itself
at the surface of the water.

THE EUROPEAN FILE-FISH.

Batistes capriscus, Cuvier, Regne An. t. iii. p. 372.

C apriscus Rondeletii, Pesce Balestra, Willughby, p. 152, 1. 19.

Batistes maculatus, Fite-fish, Bloch, pt. v. pi. 151 ?

Generic Characters. — Body compressed, covered with hard rhomboidal im¬
bedded plates, which are not imbricated like scales ; two dorsal fins, the first
containing spines only, the second long ; mouth with incisor-like cutting teeth
in each jaw.

The only example of this genus which has occurred in the
English seas, that I am aware of, was taken off the Sussex
coast in the month of August 1827 ; and the circumstance
was made known by J. G. Children, Esq. who obtained the
specimen, and who recorded this interesting capture in his
address delivered at the anniversary meeting of the Zoolo¬
gical Club of the Linnean Society on the 29th of November
of the same year. The specimen was exhibited.

This fish has since been deposited in the national collec¬
tion at the British Museum ; and by the kindness of the
officers of the natural history department of that establish-

* The family of the File- fishes.

BALISTIDvE.

358

mcnt, I have been permitted to take a drawing and descrip¬
tion from the specimen caught in our seas.

The Batistes capriscus is a species well known to the
older authors as an inhabitant of the Mediterranean ; is figur¬
ed by Salvianus ; by Grew, in his Rarities, tab. 7 ; and by
Klein, tab. 3. It is, however, rather rare, though stated also
to be an inhabitant of other seas. M. Risso says the flesh is
tolerably good.

Baron Cuvier, in the Regne Animal , in part of the first
note at the foot of page 372, says in reference to Batistes
capriscus, u Je suis meme tente d’y rapporter le B. buniva
dc Lacepede."” Possessing a dried specimen of B. buniva
from the Mediterranean, which agrees exactly with the pub¬
lished descriptions of that species by Lacepede and M.
Risso, I have compared it with the specimen of B. capriscus
at the British Museum, and feel confident that the B. bu¬
niva of Lacepede is, as Cuvier suspected, identical with the
B. capriscus of authors.

The first and strongest spine of the back in this fish is
studded up the front with numerous small projections, which
under the microscope have the appearance of so many points
of enamel or pearl arising from the surface of the bone, giv¬
ing a rough denticulated appearance ; and hence the name of
File-fisli. The second smaller spine has at the anterior part
of the base a projection which, when the spines are elevated,
locks into a corresponding depression in the posterior part of
the base of the first spine, and fixes it like part of the work
in a gun-lock ; and from this similarity this fish on the Ita¬
lian shores of the Mediterranean is called Pesce balestra.
The longest spine cannot be forced down till the shorter
spine has been first depressed.

The length from the nose to the branchial orifice is to the
whole length of the fish as one to four ; the depth of the

EUROPEAN FILE-FISH.

3 59

body is rather less than half the whole length of the fish, the
tail included in both measurements : the body compressed ;
the surface hard ; the scales arranged in oblique lines over
the whole breadth ; no lateral line observable, except along
the middle of the fleshy portion of the tail : the mouth small
and narrow ; the visible teeth four on each side the centre
above and below, incisor-like or cutting ; the forehead wide
between the eyes, which are small, enclosed in well-defined
orbits ; the branchial orifice an elongated aperture commen¬
cing in the front at the base of the pectoral fin, and ascending
obliquely backward ; pectoral fin of small size : first spine of
the first dorsal fin in a vertical line over the branchial orifice,
the second close behind and attached by a strong ligament ;
the third spine removed to a distance, but connected by a
membrane : the second dorsal fin is high anteriorly and long,
commencing in a vertical line before the commencement of
the anal fin, but both ending on the same plane, and far
short of the base of the caudal rays ; in advance of the anal
fin is a strong rough keel, which has some resemblance to
ventral fins : the fleshy portion of the tail free, and rather
long ; the rays nearly square at the end, large and strong.

The fin-rays in number are —

D. 3. 28 : P. 15 : A. 26 : C. 14.

The colour in the dried specimen is nearly a uniform pale
brown ; rather darker on the back ; becoming lighter on the
belly, and particularly on the under surface of the head :
the naked gums smooth and dark brown. Living specimens
are said to be tinged and even spotted with blue ; and it is
probable that an individual in this state has furnished the
material on which B. maculatus of Bloch is founded : the
irides arc described as green.

The whole length of the Museum specimen is nine inches
and a half ; the depth four inches and three-eighths without
the dorsal or anal fins.

360

STUKIONTILE.

CHONDROPTERYG1I.

STURION1DJE.*

THE COMMON STURGEON.

Acipenser Sturio, Common Sturgeon, Linn/eus. Bloch, pt. iii. pi. 88.

Sturio, The Sturgeon, Willughby, p. 239, P. 7, fig. 3.

Acipenser Sturio, Common Sturgeon, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. 164, pi. 22.

,, ,, ISEsturgeon, Cuvier, Regne An. t. ii. p.379.

,, ,, Common Sturgeon, Don. Brit. Fish. pi. 65.

,, ,, Sturgeon, Flem. Brit. An. p. 173, sp. 30.

,, ,, Common Sturgeon, Jenyns, Man. Brit. Vert. p. 493, sp. 182.

Generic Characters. — Body elongated and angular, defended by indurated
plates and spines, arranged in longitudinal rows ; snout pointed, conical ;
mouth placed on the under surface of the head, tubular, and without teeth.

All the remaining portion of the British Fishes to be yet
described belong to Cuvier’s division 4called Chondroptery-
giens , or Cartilaginous Fishes, the skeletons of which are
made up of cartilage, and not, as in the divisions of Acan-
thopterygiens and Malacopterygiens , made up of true bone.
The earthy matter in the hard parts of these fishes is smaller
in quantity, is deposited in grains, and does not assume the
form, as in other fishes, of distinct osseous fibres.

In the fishes of the families contained in this order, there
are several interesting peculiarities. Some have their gills
free, like those of ordinary fishes ; there are others in which
the gills are fixed by having their outer edges attached to the

* The family of the Sturgeons.

COMMON STUItGEON.

36]

skin. Several of them bring forth their young alive in a
manner very different from any of the true bony fishes ;
while some, and these the last in the series, want that degree
of organization in the bones of the upper jaw observable in
those generally which have been hitherto described, but of
which two or three examples of deficiency by malformation
have been figured.

This order may be said to be further distinguished by
including within its limits fishes exhibiting in certain points
of their structure the highest as well as the lowest degrees of
organization observable throughout the whole class. These
different peculiarities will be pointed out on arriving at the
different genera in succession.

The Sturgeon, the first of the cartilaginous fishes, allied
to the Sharks in the elongated form of its body, resembles
other fishes in having the gills free, and in being oviparous.
It is caught occasionally on various parts of our coast, most
frequently in the estuaries, or but a short distance up rivers ;
very seldom taken in the open sea, where it is believed
to inhabit deep water, beyond the reach of nets, and is not,
that I am aware, ever caught upon the fishermen's lines.
Dr. Neill says that one or two are generally taken every
summer about the mouth of the Almond or of the Esk,
where they get entangled in the Salmon nets, and when of
large size frequently doing the fishermen considerable damage
by tearing their nets. They are otherwise harmless. One
caught in a stake net near Findhorn in Scotland in July
1833, measured eight feet six inches in length, and weighed
two hundred and three pounds.

The Sturgeon is occasionally taken on the East coast, and
frequently brought to the London market from various loca¬
lities. When caught in the Thames, within the jurisdic¬
tion of the Lord Mayor, it is considered a Royal Fish ;

VOL. II.

362 STURIOXID.E.

the term being intended to imply that it ought to be sent
to the King, and it is said that the Sturgeon was exclusively
reserved for the table of Henry the First of England.

On our Southern coast, Colonel Montagu mentions one
taken in the estuary at Kingsbridge ; and Mr. Couch enu¬
merates three instances at different periods of different years;
one in the Tamar in June, one at Plymouth in August,
and one near the Eddystone in January. In September
1802, a specimen, eight feet long, and weighing one hundred
and ninety-two pounds, was caught in a weir below the castle
at Shrewsbury. The largest specimen taken in this country
is probably the fish recorded by Pennant, which was caught
in the Esk, and weighed four hundred and sixty pounds.

In Ireland the Sturgeon has been taken on the south, the
east, and the north coasts.

In the northern parts of Europe this fish is much more
numerous than with us, and extensive fisheries are establish¬
ed for its destruction. Caviar is made of the roe of the
female ; isinglass is obtained from the dense membrane form¬
ing the air-bladder ; and the flesh, besides being preserved by
salting and pickling, is in request for the table while fresh,
being generally stewed with rich gravy, and the flavour
considered to be like that of veal. The flesh, like that of
most of the cartilaginous fishes, is more firm and compact
than is usual among those of the osseous families.

The Sturgeon, as has been before observed, is oviparous,
spawning in winter. It has been frequently remarked that
Sturgeons of very small size are seldom seen : by the kindness
of Mr. George Daniell, however, I possess a small specimen,
only twelve inches long, that is quite perfect, and exhibits
all the characters of the mature fish. 66 It is presumed that
the young, as soon as they escape from the eggs, which the
female deposits in fresh water, descend immediately to the
sea, and do not visit the places of their birth again till they

COMMON STURGEON.

868

come in their turn to deposit their spawn.” The Sturgeon
is said to subsist on small fishes ; from the structure of the
mouth it probably feeds also on any soft substance that it
finds at the bottom.

The body is elongated ; from the shoulders backward
somewhat pentagonal in shape, with five longitudinal rows
of flattened plates, with pointed central spines directed back¬
wards, — one row, larger than the others, along the ridge of
the back, one row on each side, and another along the edge
of the abdomen in a line from the pectoral fin to the ven¬
tral on each side ; the flattened plates are marked with ra¬
diating striae. The nose is long and pointed ; the forehead
with a longitudinal depression ; the crown of the head ele¬
vated, the occiput rising into a sharp keel : the mouth placed
on the under surface of the head, rather wider than long,
with a projecting rim ; no teeth within : about half-way
between the mouth and the end of the nose, are four cirri
ranged in a line across ; the eyes small ; the operculum
hard and strong, covered with striae radiating from a centre ;
dorsal fin placed very far back, but little in advance of the
line of the anal fin : tail forked ; upper lobe much the long¬
est, and pointed. The fin-rays in number —

D. 35 : P. 28 : V. 24 : A. 23 : C. 125.

The colours of the body are various shades of brown ; the
plates nearly white, the belly silvery.

The vignette represents the under surface of the head.

364

CHI ME 11 IDE.

CHON DR0PTERYG1I.

CHIMjERID/E.

NORTHERN CHIMERA.

KING OF THE HERRINGS.

rabbit-fish, Zetland.

Chimera monstrosa, Linn*us. Bloch, pt. iv. pi. 124.

,, ,, Northern Chimera, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. 159.

,, ,, Sea Monster, Don. Brit. Fish.pl. 111.

,, ,, Rabbit-fish, Flem. Brit. An. p. 172, sp. 29.

Generic Characters. — Body elongated, the tail ending in a lengthened fila¬
ment ; the first dorsal fin short at its base, but high ; the second dorsal fin low,
commencing immediately behind the first, and extending to the tail.

This fish lias considerable resemblance to the Sharks in
the form of the body, and the position as well as the shape
of the fins.

44 The Chimserae,’1 says Dr. Richardson,* 44 though placed
by Cuvier at the end of the Sturionidre , seem to belong
more properly to his second order of C hondropterygii, in
which the gills are fixed : for though there is only one appa¬
rent gill-opening on each side, the gills in reality adhere by
a large part of their borders, and there are consequently five

* Fauna Boreali-Americana, part iii. Fishes, page 285.

NORTHERN CHIMERA.

365

ho] es communicating with the external gill-opening. They
have a rudimentary operculum concealed by the skin ; and
their jaws, still more reduced than those of the Sharks, -are
furnished with hard plates, four above and two below, in
place of teeth. The males are distinguished by trifid bony
appendages to the ventral fins, and produce very large lea¬
thery eggs, having flat velvety edges.’’'’

The Northern Chimsera is represented as a fish of singular
appearance and beauty, a native of the northern seas only,
where it seldom exceeds three feet in length, and is generally
taken when in pursuit of shoals of Herrings, or other small
roving fishes, upon which it principally subsists : Bloch says
it feeds also on medusae and Crustacea. The flesh is de¬
scribed as hard and coarse. According to some authors, the
Norwegians extract an oil from the liver which they consider
of singular efficacy in disorders of the eyes.

Pennant received from a gentleman a drawing and particu¬
lars of one that had been taken among the Shetland Islands :
this species was also known to Dr. Walker as an occasional
visitor in that locality. Never having seen this fish, I avail
myself of Dr. Fleming's description, taken from a specimen
sent by L. Edmonston, Esq. from Unst, where it is termed
the Rabbit-fish. A specimen taken from the same locality
has lately been received by Mr. W. C. Hewitson of New¬
castle, the author of a valuable work on the eggs of British
Birds.

“ Length nearly three feet. Body compressed. Head
blunt ; the snout sub-ascending, blunt. A narrow crenulated
grinder on each side in the lower jaw, and a broad tubercular
one corresponding above. Nostrils immediately above the
upper lip contiguous, each with a cartilaginous complicated
valve. Branchial openings in front of the pectorals. Eyes
large, lateral. On the crown, in front of the eyes, a thin

866

CHIM.ERTDE.

osseous plate, bent forwards, with a spinous disc at the ex¬
tremity on the lower side. Lateral line connected with nu¬
merous waved anastomosing grooves on the cheeks and face.
The first dorsal fin above the pectorals narrow, with a strong-
spine along the anterior edge. The second dorsal rises im¬
mediately behind the first, is narrow, and is continued to the
caudal one, where it terminates suddenly. The pectorals are
large, and subtriangular. Ventrals rounded ; in front of each
a broad recurved osseous plate, with recurved spines on the
ventral edge. Claspers pedunculated, divided into three
linear segments ; the anteal one simple, the retral ones hav¬
ing the opposite edges covered with numerous small reflected
spines. A small anal fin opposite the extremity of the se¬
cond dorsal. Caudal fin above and below, broadest near the
origin, gradually decreasing to a linear produced thread."

The representation here given was taken from the figure in
Mr. Donovan's work ; and being that of a female fish, does
not show the claspers described by Dr. Fleming as existing
in his specimen, which was a male. These sexual and other
peculiarities will be pointed out when describing other spe¬
cies of Sharks ; which being of much more frequent occur¬
rence, have afforded opportunities for more detailed observa¬
tions.

The appendage on the front of the head in this fish is pe¬
culiar to the males only, and has given rise to the name of
King-fish, applied to it by the Norwegians; who also call it
Gold and Silver Fish, in reference to its beautiful colours:
these are various shades of rich brown on a shining white
ground. The eyes are large and brilliant ; the pupils green,
the irides white.

This fish was first made known by Gesner.

SMALT-SPOTTED DOG-FTSTI.

8

6 7

CHONDROPTERYG1I.

SQUALID M *

THE SMALL-SPOTTED DOG-FISH.

morgay, Scotland. — robin huss, Sussex coast.

Scyllium canicula, La Grande Roussette, Cuvier, Regne An. t. ii. p.386.

,, catulus, Morgay , Flem. Brit. An. p. 165, sp. 8.

,, canicula, Spotted Dog-fish, Jenyns, Man. Brit. Vert. p. 495,

sp. 184.

Sqnalus canicula, Linn^us. Bloch, pt. iv. pi. 114.

,, ,, Spotted Shark, ) Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. pi. 19.

,, catulus, Lesser Spotted Sha rk, S Upper fig. male ; lower fig. female.

,, ,, ,, ,, ,, Don. Brit. Fish. pi. 55.

,, ,, Le Squale Roussette, Blainvilie, Faun. Franf. p. 69.

Generic Characters . — Head short and blunt; nostrils pierced near the mouth,
and continued by a fissure to the edge of the upper lip, forming valves ; teeth
triangular, pointed, with a small lateral tubercle at the base on each side ;
branchial apertures partly over the pectoral fins: two dorsal fins; the first, about
the middle of the whole length, placed, in a vertical line, behind the ventral
fins ; the second, behind the anal fin.

The true Sharks, as previously stated, have their gills
fixed, their margins being attached ; the water escaping by
five elongated branchial apertures, the form and position of
which, in conjunction with modifications observed in the
fins and other parts, furnish characters by which the different
divisions forming this family are distinguished. Among the

* The family of the Sharks.

SQUAT, ID E.

Sharks, the males differ from the females externally in having
an elongated cylindrical appendage at the inner edge of each
ventral fin, the uses of which are not understood. The third
species of Scy Ilium here figured represents a male fish, and
shows the peculiarity of the ventral fins in that sex. The
females are not furnished with these appendages : the figures
of the first two species represent females, and the vignettes
to each show on an enlarged scale the specific and sexual
peculiarities of the ventral fins, and also the difference in
the form of the mouth in these two species.

Of the true Sharks, some produce their young alive, and
are called viviparous ; others, like those under present consi-
sideration, bring forth their young enclosed in horny cases,
an example of which is here introduced, a portion of one side
of the case being removed to show the young fish within.

On examining adult females, the ova are observed in differ¬
ent stages of growth descending from the ovaries, usually in
pairs, frequently one in each oviduct, becoming enclosed in
the protecting covering when about to be excluded. These
cases, which are frequently found on the sea-shore, and are
called Mermaid’s purses, sailor’s purses, sea purses, &c. are
oblong, of a pale yellowish horny colour, semitransparent,
with an elongated tendril at each of the four corners : these
are deposited by the parent Shark near the shore in the win-

SMALL-SPOTTED DOG-FISH.

369

ter montlis. The convoluted tendrils hanging to sea-weed
or other fixed bodies prevent the cases being washed away
into deep water. Two elongated fissures, one at each end,
allowr the admission of sea-water ; and the young fish ulti¬
mately escapes by an opening at the end, near which the
head is situated. For a short time the young Shark conti¬
nues to be nourished by the vitelline fluid contained in the
capsule attached to its body by the connecting pedicle, till,
having acquired the power of taking food by the mouth, the
remains of the ovum are taken up within the abdomen, as in
birds and some other animals.

A curious peculiarity has been observed in the young of
both Sharks and Skate during a very early stage of their ex¬
istence. From each of the branchial apertures, branchial fila¬
ments project externally : each filament contains a single
minute reflected vessel, in which the blood is thus submitted
to the action of the surrounding medium. These appen¬
dages are only temporary, and the blood of the fish is after¬
wards aerated by the true gills. This very interesting disco¬
very, which I believe is of recent date, forcibly reminding us
of the temporary external branchiae in the young of Batra-
chian reptiles in the tadpole state, has been observed by Mr.
Richard Owen in the Blue Shark, Carcharius glaucus , by
Dr. John Davy in the Torpedo, and by Dr. Allen Thomp¬
son of Edinburgh in the Thornback. Cuvier had previously
noticed it, and in the Regne Animal has referred to a figure
published by Schneider of a very young Shark in this condi¬
tion, for which, regarding it as the normal state of this fish,
that industrious pupil of Bloch had proposed the name of
Squalus ciliaris.

Among the Sharks, as among the truly predacious birds,
the females are larger than the males ; and almost all the spe¬
cies have received some name resembling Beagle, Hound,

370

SQUALID.E.

Rough Hound, Smooth Hound, Dog-fish, Spotted Dog,
Penny Dog, &c. probably from their habit of following their
prey or hunting in company or packs. All the Sharks are
exceedingly tenacious of life. Their skins, of very variable
degrees of roughness, according to the species, are used for
different purposes ; in some instances by cabinet-makers, for
bringing up and smoothing the surfaces of hard wood.

The two British species of Spotted Sharks appear to have
been frequently confounded with each other. The terms
Greater and Lesser seem sometimes to have been considered
as referring to the size of the spots, and at others to the size
of the fish. A slight alteration in the names, which is here
suggested, will assist in defining the two species, and other
decided specific distinctions will be pointed out. Both spe¬
cies are called Iioussette bv the French, on account of their

%>

prevailing reddish brown colour.

The Small-spotted Dog-fish, the subject of the present
notice, is one of the most common species on our shores,
particularly along the Southern coast. Its station in the
water is near the bottom ; its food, small fish and Crustacea.
It takes a bait freely, and is often caught on the fishermen’s
lines, but is a useless capture to them. It is troublesome
and annoying from its numbers, and injurious to the fisheries
from its voracity.

The teeth of the Sharks are very formidable weapons, ge¬
nerally constructed decidedly either for cutting or holding.
The representation here introduced shows on the left hand

S M ALL-SPOT T EL) DO G-F I S TT .

871

two teeth formed for cutting; these are flattened, thin, sharp,
and serrated on both edges ; the teeth represented belong to
the left of the centre when viewed in front. The two teeth
on the right hand are formed for holding, being generally
curved inwards, and provided with a small lateral tubercle at
the base on each side. The teeth of the Sharks belonging
to the genus Scy Ilium , now under consideration, are of this
last form, but smaller, depending on the size of the fish.
The outside tooth in the front row of each jaw in the Sharks
is supported on the inside by various other teeth, which sup¬
ply deficiencies as necessity may require.

The specimen from which the description was taken mea¬
sured eighteen inches in length ; the body, from the base of
the pectoral fins, where it is thickest, tapering all the way to
the end of the tail. The head is flattened on the top ; the
eyes large ; the orbits elongated, with a distinct aperture
behind each ; the form of the under surface of the nose, the
nostrils, and upper lip, as shown in the left-hand figure of
the vignette at the end ; the mouth in the form of a horse¬
shoe, the extreme angles only being directed outwards ; the
teeth numerous, small, pointed, and sharp, like those on the
right hand in the representations of Shark’s teeth, but very
minute ; the pectoral fins large : the branchial apertures on
the sides of the neck elongated vertically, five in number, the
first rather the largest, the last the smallest ; the fourth aper¬
ture over the anterior edge of the pectoral fin : the ventral
fins united almost to the posterior extremity in the males,
less completely united in females ; the elongated anal aper¬
ture in the middle between them : the outer posterior mar¬
gins, in both sexes, are as oblique as those of the front : the
right-hand figure of the vignette at the end shows the lozenge-
shape of the fins when seen from below. The first dorsal fin
is over the space between the ventral and anal fins, and occu-

372

SQUAT. IDE.

pies nearly the middle of the whole length of the fish ; the
anal fin is under the space between the first and second dorsal
fins ; the posterior edge of the second dorsal fin half-way
between the commencement of the first dorsal fin and the
end of the tail ; the vertebral portion of the tail nearly in a
line with the body, with a narrow elongated membranous ex¬
pansion above it, and one long and one short triangular ex¬
pansion below it. All the upper part of the body marked
with numerous small, dark, reddish brown spots, on a pale
reddish ground ; the spots on the fins rather larger and less
numerous than those on the body ; the lower part of the
sides and the under surface yellowish white. The skin, to
the finger passed from the head towards the tail, is smooth ;
in the opposite direction it is rough. The appearance of the
skin under a lens is that of being covered with minute spi-
culee, all the points of which are directed backwards.

LARGE-SPOTTED DOG-FISH.

873

CHONDROPTER YGII.

SQUALID/E

THE LARGE-SPOTTED DOG-FISH.

ROCK DOG-FISH.

bounce, Scotland.

Scyllium catulus, La Petite Roussette, Cuvier, llegne An. t. ii. p.386.

stellar is, Le Rockier , ,, ,, ,, ,,

stellare, Bounce, Flem. Brit. An. p. 165, sp. 7.

stellaris. Rock Dog-Jish, Jenyns, Man. Brit. Vert. p. 496, sp. 185.

canicula, Le Squale Panthere, Blainville, Faun. Franf. p. 71.
stellaris, ,, ,, Rockier, ,, ,, ,,

y y

This Shark is at once distinguished from the species last
described by its larger but less numerous spots, by the
greater bulk of its body for the same length, and by the
ventral fins, which are truncated or nearly square at the end.
Like the Small-spotted Dog-fish, its haunts are near the
bottom, and its food similar ; but it also frequents rocky
ground, and has accordingly been distinguished on the Conti¬
nent by the term Rockier, as shown in the list of syno-

nymes.

Mr. Jenyns, in his valuable Manual of British Vertebrate
Animals, has so clearly pointed out the specific distinctions
of this fish, from examples obtained at Weymouth, that,
having no specimen, this Shark being by much the more rare

374

SQUALIDJE.

of tlie two, I avail myself, by permission, of the comparative
description therein given,

u Length from two to three feet. According to M.
Blainville, this species attains to a larger size than the last.
Differs essentially from S. canicula in the structure of the
lobes of the nostrils, and in the form of the ventrals:* the
former are not united as in that species, and of a smaller
size, leaving the whole of the mouth and the upper lip visi¬
ble : the ventrals, instead of being cut obliquely, are cut
nearly square, their posterior margins meeting at a very ob¬
tuse angle ; they are united or separate according to the sex,
in a similar manner : the snout is rather more elongated ;
and, according to some authors, the tail rather shorter, giving
the dorsal a more backward position ; but this last character I
have not noticed myself. Upper parts brownish grey, with
very little of the red tinge observable in the last species :
back, flanks, and tail, sparingly marked with large spots of a
deep brown or black colour : under parts whitish.-”

* See the vignettes of the nostrils and the ventral fins of both species.

13 LACK-MOUTHED DOG-FISH.

375

CHON DROPTERY Gil.

SQUALID/E.

THE BLACK-MOUTHED DOG-FISH.

eyed dog-fish, Cornwall.

Scyllium melanostomum, Fauna Italica of Prince Musignano.

,, ,, Eyed Dog-jish, Couch’s MS.

Squalus melastomus, LeSquale Melastome, Blainville, Faun Fran^. p. 75.

The following account of this species, new to the British
catalogue, is from the MS. of Mr. Couch, who is probably
the only English naturalist into whose hands it has fallen.

“ The specimen from which my description has been
taken was caught on a line by a fisherman of Polperro on the
8tli February 1834. Its length was twenty-five inches
and three-quarters, and seven inches round where stoutest.
The head flat on the top, rather wide posteriorly ; snout
thin, protruded one inch and three-quarters from the ante¬
rior angle of the eye ; nostrils one inch and a quarter from
the snout, double, one beneath linear, the other on the mar¬
gin, the hinder edge prominent, a depression in the head im¬
mediately above it ; eye rather large, oval, close behind it a
moderately sized temporal orifice; mouth one inch and three-
quarters wide ; teeth numerous, small, sharp, at each side of
the base of each tooth a small sharp process ; spiracles five,

37 6

SQUALID.®.

open ; tlie back somewhat elevated close behind the head ;
the skin rough against the grain ; pectoral fins wide, much
like those of the Picked Dog : the first dorsal begins at
twelve inches from the snout, and behind the ventral fins ;
the second at sixteen inches and a half, both rather small :
ventrals ten inches from the snout ; anal fin four inches long,
rather narrow, terminating just opposite the end of the second
dorsal : extreme length of the tail seven inches ; the upper
lobe in a line with the body, bent down towards the termina¬
tion, rounded, incised, or jagged ; under lobe rather narrow
in its course, expanded beneath ; the upper ridge of the su¬
perior lobe has a double row of prickles pointing outward and
downward on each side ; lateral line suddenly bent opposite
the origin of the caudal fin. Colour, a light brown on the
head and along the back : on each side two rows of ocellated
spots ; one row beginning at the side of the neck, and con¬
tinued along the side of the back ; the second row commen¬
cing behind the eye and passing along the upper side of the
belly, becoming obsolete near the ventral fins ; these rows are
separated by numerous irregular spots, which, however, as¬
sume somewhat of a straight direction ; the fins and hinder
part of the back are finely barred and clouded with various
tints of brown and yellow ; the mouth dark-coloured within.

This species is well known in the Mediterranean. Mr.
Couch’s specimen was that of a male, and the figure is taken
from a drawing lent for that purpose.

WHITE SHARK.

377

CH0NDR0PTERYG1I. SQUALID JE.

THE WHITE SHARK.

Carcharias vulgaris , Le Requin, Cuvier, Regne An. t. ii. p. 387.

,, ,, White Shark, Flem. Brit. An. p. 167, sp. 12.

Canis Carcharias, Willugiiby, p. 47, B. 7.

Squalus ,, White Shark, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. 139.

,, ,, ,, ,, Jenyns, Man. Brit. Vert. p. 497, sp. 186.

,, ,, Le Squale Requin, Blainville, Faun. Franf. p. 89.

Generic Characters. — Jaws and head depressed ; nostrils pierced in front ;
teeth pointed and cutting, often serrated at the edges ; first dorsal fin large and
placed behind the pectorals and before the ventrals ; pectoral fins large.

This species lias been noticed by several English authors,
but apparently not from specimens which had been examined
by them personally. Low says that, according to information
given him, it is sometimes met with among the Orkney Is¬
lands. Grew, in his Rarities of Gresham College, page 90,
states that they are sometimes found upon our own coast
near Cornwall. As it appears to be well known in the Me¬
diterranean, and to be a great wanderer, the Cornish coast is
a very probable locality, and it, or the fish figured in the
vignette, may prove to be the Rashleigh Shark of Mr. Couch.

This fish acquires a large size, and with another species,
not very dissimilar in shape and equally powerful, are the
terror of mariners in most of the warm countries of the globe.

2 c

VOL. IT.

SQUALJDJE.

378

It swims with great ease and swiftness from the large size of
its pectoral fins ; and when caught with a baited hook at sea,
and drawn upon deck, the sailors1 first act is to chop off its
tail to prevent the mischief otherwise to be apprehended from
its great strength.

Cuvier, in the Regne Animal , says the only good figure of
this fish is that in Belon, page 60 ; and having no access to a
specimen, that figure has been carefully copied, and the fol¬
lowing description is from M. Risso.

The body is elongated, covered with a hard skin, ash
brown above and whitish below. The head is large ; the
muzzle depressed, short, and pierced with numerous pores :
the mouth is large and wide ; the tongue short and rough :
the upper jaw furnished with six rows of triangular teeth,
thin, nearly straight at the edges, and serrated ; in the under
jaw four rows, sharper than those above, but less com¬
pressed : the irides are pearl white ; pectoral fins very large ;
the first dorsal fin elevated ; the ventral fins small ; the anal
fin is opposed to the second dorsal ; the tail is divided, form¬
ing two lobes, of which the upper lobe is the longest.

It is most frequently seen in the Mediterranean during
spring and autumn.

The vignette represents another species, which has also
been called White Shark, and may assist observers on the
coast.

FOX SHARK.

379

67/ ON D R OPTERYG II.

SQUALIDM.

THE FOX SHARK.

SEA-FOX. THRESHER. SEA-APE.

Carcharias vulpes, La Faux, ou Renard , Cuvier, Regne An. t. ii. p. 388.

,, ,, Thresher, Flem. Brit. An. p. 167, sp. 14.

Vulpes marina, Willughby, p. 54, B. 6, fig. 2.

Squalus vulpes, Long-tailed Shark, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. 145,

pi. 17.

,, ,, Le Squale Renard, Bt.ainv. Faun. Fran£. p. 94.

This species is occasionally met witli on the British coast:
Pennant examined one that measured thirteen feet in length;
and specimens have been seen of fifteen feet long. It is
called the Sea-Fox from the length and size of its tail ; and,
according to Dr. Borlase, has received the name of Thresher
from its habit of attaching other animals, or defending itself,
by blows of the tail.* It is an inhabitant of the Mediterra¬
nean, as well as other seas ; and a specimen has been taken
near Belfast.

The extreme length of a specimen examined by Mr.
Couch, “ was in a straight line ten feet ten inches, and along
the curve eleven feet eight inches ; three feet four inches
round where thickest ; solid at the chest ; conical from the

* See vol. i. page 144.

2 c 2

380

SQ.UALID.E.

snout to tlie pectoral fins, and tliick even to the tail, which
organ from the root was five feet and a half long, and conse¬
quently more than half the length of the body ; eye promi¬
nent, round, hard, four inches from the snout ; iris blue,
pupil green : the nostrils small, and not lobed ; mouth five
inches wide, shaped like an horse-shoe ; teeth flat, triangular,
in two or three rows, not numerous ; spiracles five ; pectoral
fins wide at the base, pointed, eighteen inches and a half
long. Measured along the curve, from the snout to the first
dorsal fin, was two feet five inches, the fin triangular ; from
the first dorsal to the second, fourteen inches and a half ; this
and the anal fin small ; ventral fins also rather small, triangu¬
lar ; above and below at the base of the tail a deep depres¬
sion ; skin smooth ; lateral line central and straight ; breadth
of the tail, including both lobes, thirteen inches ; the upper
lobe narrow throughout its great length, and on the lower
margin, at four inches from the extremity, is a triangular
process. Colour of the body and fins dark blue, mottled
with white over the belly.11

Mr. Couch says it is not uncommon for a Thresher to
approach an herd of Dolphins ( Delphini ) that may be sport¬
ing in unsuspicious security, and by one splash of its tail on
the water put them all to flight like so many hares before a
hound.

“ The specimen here described was taken at the entrance
of the harbour of Loon in Cornwall, in October 1826, hav¬
ing become entangled in a net set for Salmon. The mouth
seemed more feeble than in most of its genus, which
is rendered more probable by the circumstances of its cap¬
ture ; for the Blue Shark (next to be described) would in an
instant have cut its way through an obstruction that proved
fatal to the Thresher. The stomach was filled with young
Herrings.11

BLUE SHARK.

881

CHONDROPTERYG II.

SQUALID /E.

THE BLUE SHARK.

Carcharias glaucus, Le Bleu, Cuvier, Regne An. t. ii. p. 388.

Galeus glaucus, Blew Shark, Willughby, p. 49, B. 8.

Squalus ,, Le Cagnot bleu, Bloch, pt. iii. pi. 86.

,, ,, Blue Shark, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. 143.

Carcharias ,, ,, ,, Flem. Brit. An. p, 167, sp. 13.

The affection of the Blue Shark for its young was the
theme of several of the older writers, ichthyologists as well as
poets; and mariners of the present day believe that, when dan¬
ger appears, the young brood enter the mouth of the parent
fish, and take shelter in its belly. Living young have doubt¬
less been found in the stomachs of large Sharks : their extra¬
ordinary tenacity of life is proverbial, and will account for
this ; but the safety to be expected from incarceration in
such a prison is somewhat problematical.

The Blue Shark is an inhabitant of the Mediterranean,
and appears to occur much more frequently on the Devon¬
shire and Cornish coasts than on any other part of the British
Islands; it has also been taken off the south coast of Ireland,
and has been known to wander even as far north as Zetland.

Mr. Couch, who has had frequent opportunities of seeing
this species, makes the following observations : — u The Blue

382

SQUALID JE.

Shark is migratory, and I have never known it arrive on the
coast of Cornwall before the middle of June ; but afterwards
it becomes abundant, so that I have known eleven taken in
one boat, and nine in another, in one day. The injury they
inflict on the fishermen is great, as they hover about the
boats, watch the lines, (which they sometimes cut asunder
without any obvious motive,) and pursue the fish that are
drawn up. This, indeed, often leads to their own destruc¬
tion : but when their teeth do not deliver them from their
difficulty, they have a singular method of proceeding, which
is by rolling the body round so as to twine the line about
them throughout its whole length ; and sometimes this is done
in such a complicated manner, that I have known a fisherman
give up any attempt to unroll it as a hopeless task. To the
Pilchard drift-net this Shark is a still more dangerous enemy,
and it is common for it to pass in succession along the whole
length of the net, cutting out, as with shears, the fish and the
net that holds them, and swallowing both together.”

The specimen described measured fourteen inches ; the
head depressed, broadest between the eyes, which are lateral ;
half-way between the eyes and the point of the nose are the nos¬
trils, linear, directed obliquely downwards and backwards, the
most inferior portion covered with a valvular fold of skin ; the
eyes round and rather large ; the mouth forming half a circle,
the teeth in this specimen very minute, — the cutting teeth on
the left hand in the representation at page 370 belong to
this species, and were from a specimen about six feet in
length, in each jaw of which there are three rows, those im¬
mediately in the centre, to the number of four, being calcu¬
lated more for holding than cutting ; the number of rows of
teeth in the Sharks are said, and I believe correctlv, to in¬
crease with age, and vary in this species from one to six.
The branchial apertures are five, the fourth placed over the

BLUE SHARK.

383

line of the anterior edge of the pectoral fin ; the pectoral fins
large and falciform ; the body of the fish deepest in the line
of their origin, but becoming more compressed and tapering
from thence to the tail ; the first dorsal fin situated over the
space between the pectoral and anal fins, rather small, low
and rounded above, with a horizontal projecting elongation
at the base behind : the ventral fins small, obliquely truncat¬
ed, and placed under the space between the first and second
dorsal fins ; the anal fin placed half-way between the ventral
fins and the lower lobe of the tail, opposed to or under the
second dorsal fin, and each ending in a prolongation directed
backwards ; the tail divided, the upper lobe two-thirds longer
than the lower, the vertebral column continued along it ; the
inferior lobe somewhat triangular in shape ; the upper lobe
falciform, and with an extension of the membrane towards the
extreme end.

The whole of the upper surface of the head, back, both
dorsal fins, and most of the tail, are of a fine slate blue ; the
irides, upper surface of the pectoral and ventral fins, are also
blue ; the lower part of the sides, under surface of the head,
neck, pectoral fins, belly, ventral fins, and the anal fin to the
base of the tail, white. The skin of this Shark has a granu¬
lated appearance on the surface, and is only slightly rough to
the touch on passing the finger in the direction from the tail
towards the head.

For a reference to habits see volume i. page 150.

384

SQ.UALID/E.

chondropteryc.il

SQUALID YE.

THE PORBEAGLE.

Lamna Cornubica, Le Squale Nez, Cuvier, Regne An. t. ii. p. 389.

,, ,, Porbeagle, Flem. Brit. An. p. 168, sp. 15.

Squalus Cornubicus, ,, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. 152.

,, ,, ,, Shark, Don. Brit. Fish. pi. 108.

„ ,, ,, Goodenough, Linn. Trans, vol. iii. p. 80,

tab. 15.

,, ,, ,, Jenyns, Man. Brit. Vert. p. 500, sp. 189.

Generic Characters. — Point of the nose conical, nostrils pierced on its un¬
der surface ; all the five branchial apertures in advance of the origin of the
pectorals ; the first dorsal fin placed much nearer the line of the pectoral than
the anal fins ; lobes of the tail nearly equal.

The Porbeagle occurs more frequently on the northern
than on the southern coasts of this country, and is mentioned
as having been taken at Belfast. The specimen described
and figured by Dr. Goodenough in the Transactions of the
Linnean Society, as quoted, was taken at Hastings ; Mr.
Couch has seen it occasionally in Cornwall, and it was figured
by Dr. Borlase in his history of that coast. Mr. Couch
states of this species, “ That it associates in small companies
in pursuit of prey, from which circumstance, and a distant

PORBEAGLE.

385

resemblance to the Porpus, they derive their name. I have
found the remains of cartilaginous fishes and Cuttles in their
stomachs, and in one instance three full-grown Hakes.
This species attains a large size at an early age, so that I
have found it cutting its second row of teeth when nearly full-
grown

On the northern and north-east coast it occurs most fre¬
quently during autumn, and, not to multiply descriptions
already in print, I shall here insert one furnished by Dr.
George Johnston of Berwick, who examined two specimens
in the autumn of 183J, both of which were taken in Ber¬
wick Bay, and who also very kindly sent me, with his de¬
scription, a portion of a jaw, from which the teeth on the
right hand at page 370 were drawn. Of these teeth there
were three rows, the third or inner row being much smaller
than the teeth of the two preceding rows, and perhaps only
recently exposed.

Body fusiform, very narrow at the tail, and strongly keel¬
ed there on each side ; skin smooth when stroked backwards,
of a uniform greyish black colour, the belly white : snout
obtusely pointed, with a band of punctures on each side of
the forehead terminating above the eyes, a few similar punc¬
tures behind the eyes, and a triangular patch of them before
the nostrils ; they are the apertures of canals filled with a
transparent jelly : eyes round, dark blue ; branchial slits five,
cut across the neck, the posterior oblique and close to the
pectoral fin ; back rounded ; dorsal fin triangular, with a free
pointed pale-coloured process behind ; posterior dorsal fin
also pointed posteriorly ; pectorals somewhat triangular,
obliquely sinuate on the posterior edge, black ; ventral fins
rliomboidal, meeting at the mesial line, on which are the
anal and generative apertures ; anal fin small, pointed be¬
hind : tail lunate, with unequal lobes, the superior and larg-

386

SQUALID. E.

est with a projecting outline near the tip ; above the tail
there is a flat space bounded by a short transverse ridge, and
a similar one opposite on the ventral side : lateral line
straight ; the keel on the body runs forward on the tail, and
there is a small keel beneath this confined to the tail itself.
The length along the lateral line, five feet eight inches and a
half ; circumference in front of the dorsal fin, two feet eight
inches and a half ; from the snout to the eye, four inches and
three-quarters ; diameter of the eye, one inch and one-tenth :
breadth between the eyes, five inches and one-quarter ; from
the snout to the margin of the upper lip, four inches and a
half, thence to the angle of the mouth also four inches and a
half ; breadth of the mouth from angle to angle, eight inches
and one-quarter ; from the snout to the first gill-aperture,
one foot three inches ; snout to pectoral fin, one foot six
inches and a half ; length of pectoral fin, one foot one inch ;
breadth of pectoral fin, six inches and a half ; snout to dorsal
fin, two feet one inch and three-quarters ; height of dorsal fin,
nine inches and three-quarters ; length of dorsal fin, ten
inches and one-quarter ; length of the free portion of it, three
inches ; space between the first and second dorsal fins, one
foot eight inches ; length from the snout to the anal aperture,
three feet eight inches ; extreme breadth of the tail, one foot
eight inches ; length of the tail in the mesial line, six inches
and one quarter.

BEAUMARIS SHARK,

387

CHO N D ROPTER YGII.

SQUALID JE.

THE BEAUMARIS SHARK.

Lumna Monensis, Cuvier, Regne An. t. ii. p. 389, note 2.

Squalus ,, Beaumaris Shark, Shaw, Gen. Zool. vol. v. pt. 2, p. 350.

,, ,, ,, ,, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. 254, pi. 20.

,, ,, ,, ,, Jenyns, Man. Brit. Vert. p. 501, sp. 190.

Baron Cuvier, in his Regne Animal , as above quoted,
considers the Monensis of Shaw and Pennant distinct from
the Cornubicus last described, on account of its shorter muz¬
zle and sharper teeth ; to this may be added that the eye is
much larger, the pectoral and dorsal fins are placed farther
back on the body, and the bulk of the fish is greater in pro¬
portion to its length. The editor of the last edition of Pen¬
nant’s British Zoology, published in 1812, possessing at
that time the original drawing of the Rev. Hugh Davies of
Beaumaris, has borne testimony to the correctness of Pen¬
nant’s figure of this fish, which had been questioned ; and the
Beaumaris Shark is therefore considered, provisionally, as a
distinct species.

Two specimens, the only examples known, having both
occurred on the Anglesey side of the Menai, confirm the

888

SQ-UAUDiE.

propriety of the terms Beaumaris Shark and Monensis , by
which this fish is known. Some particulars of both exam¬
ples are here added from Pennant.

u The first specimen obtained was seven feet long ; the
snout and body of a cylindrical form ; the greatest circumfer¬
ence four feet eight inches ; the nose blunt ; the nostrils
small ; the mouth armed with three rows of slender teeth,
flatted on each side, very sharp, and furnished at the base
with two sharp processes ; the teeth are fixed to the jawTs by
certain muscles, and are liable to be raised or depressed at
pleasure. The first dorsal fin was two feet eight inches dis¬
tant from the snout, of a triangular form ; the second very
small, and placed near the tail ; the pectoral fins strong and
large ; the ventral and anal small ; the space between the
second dorsal fin and the tail much depressed, the sides
forming an acute angle ; above and below was a transverse
fossule or dent. The tail was in the form of a crescent, but
the horns of unequal length ; the upper, one foot ten inches;
the lower, one foot one inch. The whole fish was of a lead
colour. The skin comparatively smooth, being far less rough
than that of the lesser species of this genus.11

66 The second example was nine feet six inches in length,
that is, two feet and a half longer than the first, but each
part of this bore an exact proportion to the corresponding
parts of the other ; except that the nose of this, although
above one-third a larger animal than the former, was smaller
in every respect, being more abruptly tapering, but blunt
and shorter, as it measured but four inches and eight-tenths
from the eye to the end, whereas the snout of the smaller fish
was six inches in length from the end to the eye. This was a
vast animal ; its general circumference seemed greater in pro¬
portion to its length, than that of the former, but it was par¬
ticularly so at the region of the abdomen. This is readily

B EAUM ARTS SHARK.

389

accounted for, when we say that it was a female, and had in
its belly four young ones, each about eiglit-and-twcnty or
thirty inches long. Seventeen quarts of oil were obtained
from the liver. As it is supposed, with reason, that in this
tribe of ferocious animals, the female is invariably the largest,
I am induced to conclude, that the specimen which I observ¬
ed near forty years ago, might have been a full-grown male,
and that the difference between the two sexes is inferiority of
size with regard to the male, but with a front in every re¬
spect larger than that of a female.'’''

“ In the third volume of the late edition of Mr. Pen¬
nant's Tour in Wales, the Rev. Hugh Davies lias furnished
some further observations on the Beaumaris Shark, and a
comparative outline is given of that species and of the Por¬
beagle Shark.”

The latter species appears to be by much the more com¬
mon fish of the two.

The vignette represents the sort of hand-line used at sea
on the Hampshire coast for Mackerel and Whiting fishing,
and is usually called the Portsmouth pattern.

390

S(iU A 1,1 D.E.

CHOND ROPTERYGII.

SQUALID JE.

THE COMMON TOPE.
penny dog, Hastings. — miller's dog, Cornwall.

Galeus vulgaris, Le Milandre, Cuvier, Regne An. t. ii. p.389.

Canis galeus Rondeletii , Willughby, p. 51, B. 6, fig. 1.

Squalus ,, Linnaeus. Blocii, pt. iv. pi. 118.

,, ,, Tope Shark, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. 146, pi. 18.

Galeus vulgaris, Common Tope, Flem. Brit. An. p. 165, sp. 6.

Squalus galeus , ,, ,, Jenyns, Man. Brit. Vert. p. 501, sp. 191.

Generic Characters. — Not very dissimilar to those of the genus Carcharias :
disposition of the fins the same, but have temporal orifices ; the teeth serrated
on the outer edge only.

The Tope is a common species along tlie southern coast,
where it is known by the names of Penny Dog and
Miller's Dog ; it has also been noticed by Pennant in Flint¬
shire ; and by others on the south coast of Ireland, about the
shore of the county of Kerry. It is not, however, considered
so plentiful in the north, but has been taken about Berwick
Bay, and its occurrence recorded by Dr. Johnston in his
address to the Members of the Berwickshire Natural History
Club for the year 1832.

COMMON TOPE.

391

On the Cornish coast this is a common and rapacious
species ; but it is not so destructive as the Blue Shark.
The larger specimens, which are about six feet long, abound
chiefly in summer ; and the young, to the number of
thirty or more, according to Mr. Couch, are excluded all at
once from the female in May and June. They do not reach
the full size until the second year, and continue with us
through the first winter, while those of larger size retire into
deep water. No use is made of this fish beyond melting
the liver for oil. When caught on a fisherman’s line, this
fish sometimes has recourse to the same attempt at deli¬
verance as the Blue Shark, by twisting the line throughout
the whole length round its body.

Body fusiform ; the skin almost smooth ; lateral line
straight ; the first and second dorsal fins rather small, tri¬
angular, very slightly convex on their posterior edges, both
ending in points directed backwards ; the first dorsal fin
placed over the interval between the pectoral and ventral
fins ; the second immediately over the anal fin, and a little
larger in size : the head is rather large ; the muzzle elon¬
gated and depressed ; nostrils pierced very near the mouth,
in part closed by a membrane ; the eyes moderate, and over
the mouth ; temporal orifices small ; the jaws semicircular ;
teeth small, in several rows, and very nearly alike both
above and below, triangular and denticulated on the outer
side ; the branchial apertures are small, placed near together,
the four first nearly equal in size, the fifth the smallest, and
placed over the anterior edge of the pectoral fins ; the pec¬
toral fins are of moderate size, and triangular in shape ; the
ventral fins small, near the middle of the whole length, and
under the space between the first and second dorsal ; the
tail rather less than half the length of the body, with a
bi-lobed fin ; the upper lobe terminal, oblique, and truncated;

392

SQUALID.E

the inferior lobe with one deep triangular elongation, and a
smaller one near the end.

All the upper part of the body and sides are of a uniform
slate grey, the under surface lighter in colour, inclining to
greyish white.

The vignette represents a boat of the Lake of Geneva.

SMOOTH HOUND.

31)3

CHONDKOPTERYC.il.

SQUALID /E.

THE SMOOTH HOUND.

SKATE-TOOTHED SHARK. RAY-MOUTHED DOG, Cornwall.

Mustelus l(Evis, L'Emissole, Cuvier, Regne An. t. ii. p. 389.

Squalus imistelus, Linnjeus. Willughby, p. 60, B. 5, f. 2.

,, ,, Smooth Shark, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. 151.

Mustelus Icevis, Smooth Hound, Flem. Brit. An. p. 166, sp. 4.

Squalus mustelus, ,, ,, Jenyns, Man. Brit. Vert. p. 502, sp. 192.

Generic Characters. — The same as in the last genus, Galeus, except the
pointed teeth, which in this are flat, like those of the Skate.

This Shark is rather a common species round our coast.
It is occasionally taken in the Frith of Forth ; and Dr. Flem¬
ing says the flesh of it is used as food in the Hebrides, and is
esteemed a delicate dish. I have received this Shark from
Dr. Johnston of Berwick, and have seen it at various places
on the coasts of Kent and Sussex. It is called Smooth
Hound, from the comparative softness of its skin in reference
to British Sharks in general ; and it is also called Ray-
mouthed Dog in Cornwall, from the form of its teeth, which
are flat and without prominent points, like those of the fe¬
male or young male of the Thornback. The vignette repre¬
sents an inside and an outside view of one half of the mouth
and teeth of this Shark, which are so different from those of

2 D

VOL. II.

894

SQUALID.E.

any other British Shark as to serve the purpose of a distin¬
guishing character. The peculiarity in the form and arrange¬
ment of these teeth, so closely resembling those of the Skate,
is seen by comparing the vignette before referred to with that
representing the teeth of the Thornback, which is given
hereafter, when describing the first species of true Skate.

The young of the Smooth Hound frequently have nume¬
rous small white spots above the lateral line ; but the teeth
and other characters agree so closely with the spotless grey
examples of larger size, that I am induced to consider these
spots only as marks of youth, which may also be observed in
other species, particularly in the Picked Dog-fish, Spinax
Acanthias , Cuvier : and in this view I am further confirmed
by the opinions of Mr. Couch and Dr. Johnston.

Mr. Couch says of this species, in reference to its habits,
that it is common, but not abundant, and keeps close to the
bottom on clean ground, where it feeds on crustaceous ani¬
mals, which it crushes previous to swallowing, and for which
its flat pavement-like teeth are well adapted : it also takes a
bait, but is less rapacious than most of the tribe. The young
are produced alive in November, the whole coming to perfec¬
tion at once ; but they are few in number, not perhaps ex¬
ceeding a dozen, and soon after birth they all go into deep
water, from which they do not emerge until the following
May.

This species has been taken on the coasts of the counties
of Antrim and Londonderry.

The specimen described measured eighteen inches in
length ; the top of the head flat and rather broad ; the begin¬
ning of the back elevated and rather rounded ; the eye large,
lateral, elongated horizontally ; temporal orifices rather small,
and placed immediately behind the posterior angle : first dorsal
fin considerably larger than the second ; both of the same

SMOOTH HOUND.

395

shape, with an elongated free point at the base projecting
backward, the centre of the first dorsal at the distance of six
inches, and that of the second at twelve inches, from the
point of the nose. Under surface of the head flat ; nostrils
semilunar in shape, with a central free cutaneous valve ; the
mouth half the width of the whole under surface, rather an¬
gular in shape than semicircular ; upper lip on each outside
ending in a free elongation of the membrane ; the teeth small ,
flat, like those of a young Skate ; pectoral fins large, com¬
mencing at three inches and a half from the point of the
nose : ventral fins under the space between the two dorsals ;
the anal fin begins in a line under the middle of the second
dorsal fin, but being only half its size, ends but a little behind
it : the upper part of the caudal fin is a long narrow horizon¬
tal slip; the free part of the under portion is made up of two
triangular portions, the first of which is long, the second and
last short. The surface of the body smoother than that of
Sharks in general : the colour of the upper part of the head,
body, and fins, pearl grey ; under parts greyish yellow white :
lateral line prominent ; above it the body along its whole
length is marked with numerous small circular white spots,
which, as before stated, are most conspicuous while this fish
is young.

306

SQUALID E.

CHON DROPTE11YG 11.

SQUALID JB.

THE BASKING SHARK.

THE SUN-FISH, €171(1 SAIL-FISH.

Selaclms maximus, Le Pelevin, Cuvier, Regne An. t. ii. p. 390.

Squalus ,, Linnaeus'?

,, ,, Baskhig Shark, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. 134, pi. 16.

,, ,, Common Sail-fish, Flem. Brit. An. p. 164, sp. 5.

,, ,, Basking Shark, Jenyns, Man. Brit. Vert. p. 503, sp. 193.

Generic Characters. — Branchial apertures elongated, nearly surrounding the
neck, all placed in advance of the pectoral fins ; temporal orifices present ;
teeth very numerous, small, conical, without serrated edges ; anal fin present.

The Basking Shark, so called from its habit of remain¬
ing occasionally at the surface of the water almost motionless,
as if enjoying the influence of the sun's rays, whence it is
also on some parts of the Irish and Welsh coasts called Sun-
fish, is one of the largest of the true fishes, and has been
known to measure thirty-six feet in length. It has been seen
generally from the month of June to the commencement of
winter. When northerly winds prevail, it is most frequent
on the west coast of Scotland. It has also been seen on the

BASKING SHARK.

397

north and on the west coasts of Ireland. If westerly winds
prevail, it is not unusual to see them along the whole line of
the southern coast. It has been taken on the coasts of
Waterford, Wales, Cornwall, Devonshire, Dorsetshire, and
several times at different places on the coast of Sussex.
The specimen described and figured by Sir E. Home, in the
Philosophical Transactions for 1809, was taken off Hastings ;
and the largest specimen I have seen, which measured thirty-
six feet in length, was caught some years since off Brighton.
From our southern coast it frequently wanders as far to the
eastward and south as the coast of France ; and the fish de¬
scribed and figured by M. de Blainville in the eighteenth
volume of the Annales du Museum , I have very little doubt
was of the same species as that described by Sir E. Home,
which has been already referred to.

The difficulty of obtaining a perfect view of this unwieldy
fish, either when floating in water, or when from its great
weight it lies partly imbedded in the soft soil of the sea¬
shore, has led to the differences which appear in the repre¬
sentations of it which have been published by different na¬
turalists.

The Basking Shark is said to exhibit but little of the
ferocious character of the Sharks in general, and is so indif¬
ferent to the approach of a boat as to suffer it even to touch
its body when listlessly sunning itself at the surface. From
its habit of swimming slowly along with its dorsal fin, and
sometimes part of its back, out of water, it has obtained in
the North the name of Sail-fish. In Orkney it is called
H oe-mother, and by contraction Homer, — that is, the mo¬
ther of the Picked Dog-fish, which is there called the Hoe.
If deeply struck with a harpoon, the Basking Shark plunges
suddenly down, and swims away with such rapidity and vio¬
lence as to become a difficult as well as a dangerous capture.

398

SQUALIDE.

This species has the smallest teeth in proportion to its size
of any of the Sharks. No remains of fish have been found
in its stomach. One examined by Mr. Low contained a red
pulpy mass, like bruised crabs, or the roe of Echini. Mr.
Low adds, that this Shark's appearance, manners, and wea¬
pons do not indicate it to be a ravenous fish. Linnseus says
that its food is Medusa , and Pennant considered that it sub¬
sisted on marine plants.

The body is thickest about the middle, and diminishes
towards both extremities ; when afloat the form is nearly cy¬
lindrical ; the skin thick and rough, of a brownish black co¬
lour, with tints of blue. The head conical, the muzzle short,
rather blunt, smooth, and pierced with numerous circular
pores ; eyes near the snout, small, oval, the elongation hori¬
zontal, the irides brown ; half-way between the eye and the
first branchial opening is the temporal orifice, oblique and
small ; branchial openings five on each side, of great vertical
length, each set including the whole side of the neck, and
leaving only a small space above and below ; nostrils oval,
small, placed rather laterally, and opening on the edge of
the upper lip ; pectoral fins of moderate size for so large a
fish, — perhaps, as before stated, the largest of the true fishes,
— the form somewhat triangular, placed close to the last bran¬
chial orifice, convex anteriorly and thick, slightly concave
and much thinner behind ; the ventral fins also of moderate
size, rather elongated at the base, placed behind the middle
of the whole length of the fish, convex in front, concave be¬
hind, the inner and posterior half free, exhibiting in the
figure chosen the cylindrical appendages peculiar to the male.
The first dorsal fin, placed before the middle of the whole
length of the fish, is much the larger of the two, forming an
elevated triangle ; anterior edge but slightly convex, posterior
edge concave, with an elongated point at the base directed

HASHING SHARK.

399

backwards : the second dorsal fin much smaller than the first,
rounded above, attached throughout half its base only, and
placed at two-thirds of the distance from the first dorsal to
the caudal fin ; the anal fin is still smaller than the second
dorsal, but of the same shape. From the line of the anal
fin to the base of the tail there is a strong and prominent
keel-like edge on each side ; and just in advance of the base
of the caudal fin, both above and below, is a groove, — that
underneath rather smaller than that above. The caudal fin
divided into two lobes, the upper one larger than the lower ;
the posterior edge of the caudal fin appears to become notch¬
ed and abraded by age and use, and is frequently found un¬
equal at its margin, and variable in shape.

The vignette below represents the Argulus foliaceus of
J urine ; another species of parasitic animal occasionally found
attached to fresh-water fishes. I have specimens that were
taken from the Pike and the Trout. The figure on the left-
hand represents the upper surface of a male : by the powers
of the microscope some of the vessels of the body are ren¬
dered visible through the external tunic. The figure on the
right-hand represents the under surface of a female : the ova
are very conspicuous. The small figure between the two is
of the natural size.

I

400

SQUAD IDE.

CHONDROPTERYG 11.

SQUALID AA

THE PICKED DOG-FISH.
bone-dog, Sussex. — hoe, Orkney.

Spinax acanthias, L’ aiguillat , Cuvier, Regne An. t. ii. p. 391.

Galeus ,, sive spinax, Willughby, p. 56, B. 5, f. 1.

Squalus ,, Linnaeus. Bloch, pt. iii. pi. 85 ; the young, pt. iii. pi. 75,

fig- 1.

,, spinax, Picked Shark, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. 133.

,, acanthias, ,, ,, Don. Brit. Fish. pi. 82.

Spinax ,, Common Dog-Jish, Flem. Brit. An. p. 166, sp. 10.

Squalus ,, Picked Dog-Jish, Jenyns, Man. Brit. Vert. p. 505, sp. 194.

Generic Characters. — Two dorsal fins, with a strong spine at the anterior
edge of each ; no anal fin ; temporal orifices present ; teeth in several rows,
small and cutting.

The Picked Dog-Fish is a very common species, at
once distinguished from the other British Sharks by the sin¬
gle spine placed in advance of each of its two dorsal fins, —
a weapon from which it derives its specific appellation, pick
being synonymous with pike or spike. Among the Scotch
islands, where it is called the Hoe, it appears most numer¬
ous at the full and change of the moon, on account of the
then greater quantity of water, and consequent increased
strength or race of the tide in some of the narrow straits.

PICKED DOG-FISH.

401

Being gregarious, they frequently make their appearance in
such shoals that the fishermen load their boats to the water's
edge with them ; and, according to Mr. Low, they prove a
valuable capture. The flesh is dried and eaten : the livers
yield a large quantity of oil, while their intestines and other
refuse parts are strewed over the land as manure. Dr. Neill
says this species is very common in the Forth during the
Herring season, where numbers are caught ; but their flesh is
not eaten in that neighbourhood.

The Picked Dog-fish is found in numbers at most of the
fishing stations along the east coast, round to Kent and Sus¬
sex on the south coast, where it is almost universally called
the Bone Dog. According to Montagu's MS. it is very
numerous in Devonshire and in Cornwall : Mr. Couch says,
44 It is the most abundant of the Sharks, and is sometimes
found in incalculable numbers, to the no small annoyance of
the fishermen, whose hooks they cut from the lines in rapid
succession. I have heard of twenty thousand taken in a sean
at one time ; and such is the strength of instinct, that little
creatures not exceeding six inches in length may be found, in
company with the larger and stronger, following schulls of
fish, on which at that time it is impossible they should be
able to prey. The Picked Dog bends itself into the form
of a bow for the purpose of using its spines, and by a sudden
motion causes them to spring asunder in opposite directions;
and so accurately is this intention effected, that if a finger be
placed on its head, it will strike it without piercing its own
skin. This fish is subject, like many others, to occasional
monstrosity. A friend of mine was in possession of a Pick¬
ed Dog-fish with two heads, the separation continuing so far
back as behind the pectoral fins. The fisherman who found
it informed me that there was only one egg attached to it,
and that it must have been dropped from the mother after

402

SQUALID,®.

she was taken. The young are produced at various periods
from June to November.1'1

The whole length of the specimen described was eighteen
inches ; the top of the head flat ; the temporal orifices large,
and seen from above : first dorsal fin commencing at one-
third of the whole length ; rather small in size ; front edge
convex, concave behind; the point of the spine preceding the
fin half as high as the fin : the second dorsal fin half-way be¬
tween the first and the end of the tail ; small in size, with a
spine as high as the fin : the nose rather pointed ; the eyes
lateral, elongated horizontally ; temporal orifices behind, large,
but above the line of the eye ; nostrils small, with a minute
valve ; mouth semicircular, when quite open nearly round ;
the teeth from the centre of both jaws with points projecting
outward on each side, the edges sharp ; pectoral fins large,
commencing half-way between the snout and the first dorsal ;
anal fins small, placed intermediate, in a vertical line, be¬
tween the first and second dorsal ; no anal fin ; tail powerful,
upper membrane broad, the lower anterior part triangular,
ending in a slip prolonged backward. The upper part of
the head, body, and fins, slate grey ; under parts yellowish
white ; young specimens generally exhibit a few white spots.
Skin moderately rough on passing the finger upwards towards
the head ; in the contrary direction quite smooth.

GREENLAND SHARK.

403

CHON DROFTERYGI1.

SQUALID JE.

THE GREENLAND SHARK.

Scymnus borealis, Greenland Shark, Flem. Brit. An. p. 166, sp. 11.

Squalus ,, ,, ,, Scoresby, Arctic Regions, vol. i. p. 538,

pi. 15, figs. 3, 4.

,, glacialis, Faber, Nilsson, Prod. Icht. Scand. p. 116,

sp. 7.

,, borealis, Greenland Shark, Jenyns, Man. Brit. Vert. p. 506, sp. 195.

Generic Characters. — Two rows of cutting teeth in the lower jaw ; several
rows of slender, pointed teeth in the upper : temporal orifices present ; two dor¬
sal fins, the first near the middle of the body, the second but little behind the
line of the ventrals ; no anal fin ; tail shoit.

This species of Shark, which is a native of the Northern
Seas, has been twice noticed in Scotland, and is therefore
entitled to a place in this work. According to Dr. Fleming,
one was caught in the Pentland Firth in 1803 ; and another,
measuring thirteen feet and a half long, found dead at Burra
Firth, Unst, was seen by Mr. Edmonston.

This Shark appears to be well known to several Northern
zoologists ; and the following account, as well as the figure,
of this fish, is derived from the valuable work on the Arctic
Regions by Captain W. Scoresby.

404

SQUALID.E.

44 The Squalus borealis is twelve or fourteen feet in
length, sometimes more, and six or eight feet in circumfer¬
ence. The opening of the mouth, which extends nearly
across the lower part of the head, is from twenty-one to twen¬
ty-four inches in width. The teeth are serrated in one jaw,
and lancet-shaped and denticulated in the other. It is with¬
out the anal fin, but has the temporal opening; the spiracles
on the neck are five in number on each side. The colour is
cinereous grey. The hides are blue, the pupil emerald
green."1

44 This Shark is one of the foes of the Whale. It bites
it and annoys it while living, and feeds on it when dead.
It scoops hemispherical pieces out of its body, nearly as big
as a person’s head ; and continues scooping and gorging lump
after lump, until the whole cavity of its belly is filled. It
is so insensible of pain, that though it has been run through
the body with a knife and escaped, yet, after a while, I have
seen it return to banquet again on the Whale, at the very
spot where it received its wounds. The heart is very small :
it performs six or eight pulsations in a minute, and conti¬
nues its beating for some hours after taken out of the body.
The body, also, though separated into any number of parts,
gives evidence of life for a similar length of time. It is
therefore extremely difficult to kill. It is actually unsafe to
trust the hand in its mouth, though the head be separated
from the body. Though the Whale-fisliers frequently slip
into the water where Sharks abound, there has been no in¬
stance, that I have heard of, of their ever having been at¬
tacked by the Shark.”

44 Besides dead Whales, the Sharks feed on small fishes
and crabs. A fish, in size and form resembling a Whiting,
was found in the stomach of one that I killed ; but the pro¬
cess of digestion had gone so far, that its species could not

GREENLAND SHARK.

405

be satisfactorily discovered. In swimming, the tail only is
used : the rest of its fins being spread out to balance it, are
never observed in motion but when some change of direction
is required.”

“ To the posterior edge of the pupil of the eye is attached
a white vermiform substance, one or two inches in length.
Each extremity of it consists of two filaments, but the cen¬
tral part is single. The sailors imagine this Shark is blind,
because it pays not the least attention to the presence of a
man ; and is, indeed, so apparently stupid, that it never
draws back when a blow is aimed at it with a knife or lance.”

The eyes of this Greenland Shark, with the appendages,
were brought home by Captain W. Scoresby, preserved in
spirits, and submitted to Sir David Brewster, who gave one
specimen to Dr. Grant. The appendage proved to be a new
species of parasitic animal, which Dr. Grant named Lernaa
elongata , and described it, adding a figure of it, in the se¬
venth volume of the Edinburgh Journal of Science. The
imperfection of the vision of the fish was probably produced
by the various perforations made in the cornea by the tenta-
cula of this new species of Ltnuza ; as it is by those organs
that these parasitic animals retain their hold and live upon
the fluids extracted from the animal to which they adhere.
This species of Lernaa is perhaps the largest known : it mea¬
sured three inches in length.

The genus of Sharks next in order, according to Cuvier’s
arrangement in the Regne Animal , is that of Zi/gteiia, or
Hammer-headed Sharks, of which a single specimen is re¬
corded by Messrs. C. and J. Paget, in their Sketch of the
Natural History of Yarmouth, page 17, to have been taken
there in October 1829, the head of which is now preserved
in the Norwich Museum.

The specific name of the example taken, and here referred

406

SQUAT, IDE.

to, lias not, I believe, been determined. A reference to a
paper by M. Valenciennes in the nintli volume of the Me-
vioires du Museum , which supplies detailed descriptions of
four species of this genus, would probably settle this point.

A representation of the most common species, Zygeena
malleus , Val. is here given as a vignette to draw the atten¬
tion of observers to the subject.

ANGEL-FISH.

407

CHONDROPTERYGII. SQUALID JE.

THE ANGEL-FISH.

MONK-FISH, SHARK-RAY, and KINGSTON.

Squatina angelus, Dumeril. Cuvier, Regne An. t. ii. p. 394.

,, Mo7ik, or Angel-fish, Willughby, p. 79, D. 3.

Squalus squatina, Linn^us. Bloch, pt. iv.pl. 116.

,, ,, Angel Shark, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. 130, pi. 15,

male.

,, ,, ,, ,, Don. Brit. Fish. pi. 17.

Squatina vulgaris, Monk-fish, Flem. Brit. An.p. 169, sp. 16.

,, Angelus, Angel-fish, Jenyns, Man. Brit. Vert. p. 507, sp. 197.

Generic Characters. — Body very much depressed ; head flat, rounded ante¬
riorly ; both eyes on the upper surface ; temporal orifices present ; mouth at the
end of the snout ; pectoral fins large ; two dorsal fins, both behind the ventrals ;
no anal fin.

This fish, certainly more remarkable for the singularity of
its form than for its beauty, is called Angel-fish in England,
France, and Italy, and is said to have acquired that name
from the extended pectoral fins having the appearance of
wings : it is also called Monk-fish, because its rounded head
looks as if enveloped in a monk’s hood. Mr. Donovan says
the form of its body has obtained for it in some places the

408

SQ.U ALID/E.

name of Fiddle-fish ; and it is also called Shark-Ray, from its
partaking of the characters of botli Shark and Ray, though
in some respects distinct from either. It is, however, by no
means so truly osculant between those families as the exotic
genus Rliinobatus.

It is most numerous on the southern coast of our island ;
but is occasionally taken in the Forth, and some other parts
of the east coast, particularly about Cromer and Yarmouth.
It is common on the coasts of Kent and Sussex, where it is
called a Kingston, — a name for it that occurs in MerretFs
Pinax. It is also taken in Cornwall ; and is recorded as oc¬
curring in Ireland on the coasts of Kerry, Waterford, Dub¬
lin, and Belfast.

This fish is very voracious, and feeds on the smaller flat¬
fishes, which, like itself, swim close to the bottom ; occasion¬
ally, like them also, hiding itself in the loose, soft soil that
floats over it. The Angel-fish sometimes attains a large
size. Cuvier, Pennant, and others, mention having seen
specimens that would have weighed one hundred pounds.
The flesh is now considered indifferent and seldom eaten, but
is said to have been formerly held in high estimation. The
skin is rather rough, and is used for polishing, and other
works in the arts : Mr. Donovan also says that the Turks at
the present time make shagreen of it.

A second species of this genus has been supposed to occur
on our coast ; but the Angel-fish is probably liable to some
variation in colour, depending on the nature of the ground
in the locality in which it is found : the sexes also exhibit
some differences. The females produce their young alive in
June.

This species is said to attain the length of seven or eight
feet ; the specimen described measured but fourteen inches ;
the breadth of the head in the line of the temporal orifices

ANGEL-FISH.

409

three inches, whole breadth across the pectoral fins from
angle to angle seven inches and a half, breadth across the
ventral fins four inches and one quarter ; head depressed,
rounded at the anterior margin ; eyes on the upper surface,
distance between them one inch and one quarter ; temporal
orifices very large, one inch and a half apart, elongated
transversely, about as far behind the eyes as these are from
the anterior margin of the head ; pectoral fins large, lateral,
pointed in front, triangular on the outer edge, and rounded
posteriorly; sides of the body of the fish parallel behind their
free edges ; ventral fins elongated, slightly rounded, con¬
tracted in breadth behind ; commencement of first dorsal fin
even with the posterior edge of the ventrals ; the second dor¬
sal fin begins at the half of the distance between the com¬
mencement of the first dorsal and the caudal fin ; tail with an
equal-sized triangular lobe above and below. The mouth is
very wide, opening on the anterior margin of the head ; the
angles of the mouth under the external angles of each tem¬
poral orifice ; teeth long and pointed ; branchial apertures
elongated ; the parallelism of the sides of the fish most con¬
spicuous from below ; anal orifice rather before the middle of
the whole length ; the colour of all the under parts dirty
white ; the surface smooth ; all the upper surface granulated,
rough, of a dark mottled chocolate brown ; a row of short
spines, directed backwards, are ranged along the central line
of the back between the ventral fins.

2 E

VOL. II.

410

RAIID.E.

CH0NDR0PTERYG1I.

RAH DM*

THE ELECTRIC RAY.

COMMON CRAMP-FISH. NUMB-FISH, WeymOUth.
CRAMP RAY, Cornwall.

Torpedo - Cuvier, Regne An. t. ii. p. 369.

,, - Cramp-Jish, Willughby, p. 81, D. 4.

R aia Torpedo, Linnaeus. Bloch, pt. iv. pi. 122.

,, ,, Electric Ray, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. 118, pi. 12.

,, ,, ,, ,, Don. Brit. Fish. pi. 53.

Torpedo vulgaris, Common Cramp-Jish, Flem. Brit. An. p. 169, sp. 17.

Generic Characters. — The disk of the body nearly circular ; pectoral fins
large ; two dorsal fins placed so far back as to be on the tail ; surface of the body
smooth ; tail short, and rather thick ; teeth small and sharp.

The earliest notices of this fish on our coasts by English
writers were made by Smith in his History of Waterford,
and afterwards by Pennant and Walsh ; but as, according to

* The family of the Rays or Skate.

ELECTRIC RAY.

411

Baron Cuvier, several species have been included under the
name of the Raia Torpedo of Linnaeus, the true name of the
British species is still doubtful, and it remains therefore for
some naturalist who is fortunate enough to obtain a British
specimen to determine the particular species of our coast.

Colonel Montagu, in his MS. notes, mentions having met
with two examples of the Torpedo ; but no description of
either of them is given. The first was of small size, and
was taken at Torcross, where it was so rare as to be unknown
to the oldest of the fishermen of that place. Of the second,
the notice is as follows : — “ I observed a very large speci¬
men that was taken on a Turbot-liook off the coast of Ten¬
by, in Wales. It was dead when disengaged from the hook,
or the fisherman would certainly have had a shock that would
have made him remember the species again. It appeared,
however, so rare an occurrence here, that no one knew the
fish, which was exhibited as an extraordinary creature. Its
weight was about one hundred pounds.”

The figure at the head of this subject was taken from a
small specimen which appears to be of the same species as
that figured by Pennant in the British Zoology ; but Pen¬
nant’s plate, which exhibits in the two outside figures the
under and upper surface of a female, the third and middle
figure being that of a male of smaller size, appears to have
been copied from a larger print representing specimens taken
on the sea-shore in the neighbourhood of La Rochelle. Mr.
Donovan’s figure differs from that of Pennant in exhibiting
a marbled appearance on its upper surface, with five distinct
dark spots : it differs also in its form and proportions.

The electrical powers of the Torpedo are so well under¬
stood by the different names that have been applied to it, as
well as by the various and voluminous accounts that have
been published, that it is unnecessary to repeat here what

2 e 2

412

R AIID.-E.

has already appeared so often in print elsewhere. The situa¬
tion of the apparatus or structure from which these species
derive their extraordinary power is indicated by the two ele¬
vations, one of which is placed on each outside of the eyes
and temporal orifices, and extending to the lateral external
rounded edges. The apparatus occupies the whole of the
space between the upper and under surface of the body, and
is composed, as shown by the figures of Walsh and Pennant,
of a great number of tubes arranged perpendicular to the
plane of the upper and under surfaces, which when exposed
by a transverse section have very much the appearance of a
portion of honeycomb. The tubes contain a mucous secre¬
tion, and the structure is largely provided with nerves deriv¬
ed from the eighth pair. It is said that when the shock is
given, the convex part of the upper surface is gradually de¬
pressed, the sensation is then felt, and the convexity sud¬
denly returns.

The whole use of the electrical apparatus and power to
the fish can only be conjectured. That it serves as a means
of defence, is very probable ; that it also enables a slow, inact¬
ive fish to arrest and obtain as food some of the more active
inhabitants of the deep, is also probable. Mr. Couch thinks
other powers may be derived from it, and his opinion is thus
expressed : — 44 One well-known effect of the electric shock is
to deprive animals killed by it of their organic irritability,*
and consequently to render them more readily disposed to
pass into a state of decomposition, in which condition the di¬
gestive powers more speedily and effectually act upon them.
If any creature more than others might seem to require such
a preparation of its food, it is the Cramp- Ray, the whole
canal of whose intestine is not more than half as long as the
stomach .”

* The bodies of animals killed by lightning do not become stiff.

ELECTRIC RAY.

413

tc So long ago as the time of Dioscorides, the physician of
Anthony and Cleopatra, the shock of this fish was recom¬
mended for medical purposes, and especially for pains of the
head ; and this may be considered as the earliest record of the
application of electricity to medicine. In later times, it was
applied to the cure of gout ; the patient being directed to
keep his foot on the fish until the numbness extended to the
knees. Baron Humboldt remarks, that the will of the fish
directs the effect to whatever part it feels most strongly irri¬
tated, but only under the influence of the brain and heart.
When a fish was cut through the middle, the fore part of the
body alone gave shocks.'”

But little of its habits are known : it is said to prefer soft
and muddy ground, where its actions are slow and inert. It
is rare on the British coast ; but two or three species inhabit
the Mediterranean, and others have been found in various
parts of the world. Not being certain, of the British species,
no description is ventured upon. The observer on our coast
who obtains a specimen will find specific characters in the
Begne Animal , and in the Faune Fran^aise.

The vignette below represents a view of Eritli Church.

414

Jl A I 1 1) E.

CH0NDR0PTERYG1 1 .

R All DAL

LONG-NOSED SKATE.

SHAGREEN RAY.

Raia chagrinea, Shagreen Ray, Montagu, Wern. Mem. vol. ii. p. 420,

pi. 21.

,, ,, ,, ,, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. 1 17.

,, aspera, ,, ,, Flem. Brit. An. p. 1 72, sp. 25.

,, chagrinea, ,, ,, Jenyns, Man. Brit. Yert. p. 513, sp. 202.

,, mucronata, Long-nosed Skate, Couch’s, MS.

Generic Characters. — Form of the body rhomboidal, very much depressed ;
tail long and slender, generally armed on the upper surface with one or more
rows of sharp spines ; two small fins near the end of the tail, and sometimes a
small terminal or caudal fin ; the eyes and temporal orifices on the upper sur¬
face of the head ; nostrils, mouth, and branchial apertures, beneath ; teeth
flattened, lozenge-shaped, the inner angle elongated in old males.

The Rays, or Skate, as they are popularly called, are
remarkable for the rhomboidal form and consequent breadth

LONG-NOSED SKATE.

415

of their bodies, contrasted with their long narrow tails, fre¬
quently furnished with two and sometimes three small fins,
and mostly armed with one or more rows of sharp spines
along the whole length. The whole body is very much de¬
pressed; the great breadth of it is produced by the expansion
of what are considered as the pectoral fins, the base of each
of which is equal to the whole length of the side of the fish.
The Skate may almost be considered as having no true head
or neck, the sides of both being included and thus protected
by the expanded anterior margin of each pectoral fin. The
nostrils, mouth, branchial and anal apertures, are on the
under surface ; the eyes and temporal orifices on the upper
surface. The texture of the skin of the body varies consi¬
derably, and will be referred to when describing the different
species. From the peculiar form of the body, admirably
adapted to exist at the bottom of the water, the Skate may
with more propriety be called a Flatfish than any species of
the Pleuronectidtf. Their mode of progression is not very
easily described : it is, when they are not alarmed, per¬
formed with a slight motion of the pectoral fins, something
between a slide and a swim. I once heard a North- country
fisherman call it sluddering. When a Skate makes the best
of its way either to gain a prize in the matter of food, or to
escape an enemy, great muscular exertion is evident. The
mode of defending itself, as described by Mr. Couch, is very
effectual : the point of the nose and the base of the tail are
bent upwards toward each other ; the upper surface of the
body being then concave, the tail is lashed about in all di¬
rections over it, and the rows of sharp spines frequently
inflict severe wounds.

Some sexual peculiarities require particular notice. The
woodcut introduced overleaf represents in the left-hand portion
an inside view of one-half of the mouth of an adult male;

416

RAIID.E.

that on tlie right, an inside view of one-half of the mouth of
an equally adult female of the Thornback Hay. While botli
are young, the teeth in both sexes are alike broad and flat ;
but as the male acquires age and sexual power, the teeth that
are nearest the centre begin to alter in form and become
pointed, as will be seen on close examination, by an elonga¬
tion of the internal angle ; all the points being directed back¬
wards or towards the throat. Some exceptions to this appa¬
rent rule will be pointed out.

Another sexual peculiarity in which the Skate resemble
the Sharks is the cylindrical appendage to each ventral fin in
the males. The figure at the head of this subject is taken
from the under surface of a female, in which no appendages
exist : the second figure of the true Skate, the next in suc¬
cession, is from the under surface of a young male, and small
appendages lying on each side close to the tail may be seen ;
and even in very young specimens, not more than three
inches in breadth, the sexes may be determined by the
constant existence of these appendages in the males. The
figure of the third species is taken from the upper surface of
an adult male, and exhibits these appendages of much
greater length : their use may be inferred from the name
they bear — they are usually called claspers. This third figure
of the Sharp-nosed Ray exhibits also other peculiarities com¬
mon to males : these are the clusters of spines outside the

LONG-NOSED SKATE.

417

eye and temporal orifice on each side, and the regular rows
of spines towards the upper outer surface of the pectoral fins.
The elongation of the central teeth, the development of the
cylindrical appendages, and the appearance and growth of the
clusters and rows of spines on the upper surface at the parts
pointed out, may be considered analogous to those sexual
distinctions which exist in many species of birds and mam¬
mals, and which have been called by John Hunter and
others, secondary sexual characters. These spines on the
upper surface of the males occur in the different species of
Skate with smooth skins, as well as in the others, and are
entirely independent of those spinous productions of the
cuticle which distinguish two British species, and will be
more particularly noticed hereafter. It may here be stated
generally, that the Skate are very voracious : their food con¬
sists of any sort of fish that they can catch, with mollusca,
testaceous or naked, and Crustacea. So powerful are their
muscles and jaws, that they are able to crush the strong shell
of a crab with ease. As in the Sharks, the females are
larger than the males.

The under surface of the Skate at the head of this subject
presents two central circular cavities. The upper one just
below the transverse mouth is bounded laterally by the five
branchial apertures on each outside ; within this cavity the
gills are placed. The circular cavity below is the abdomen,
and contains the stomach, intestines, and other viscera. The
heart is placed immediately in the centre between the two
cavities, and is protected by a broad and strong transverse
cartilaginous arch, the situation of which is indicated.

The young are produced towards the latter part of spring,
or during summer. They are deposited by the parent
fish in thin horny cases, like those of some of the Sharks
already described ; but they are more square in form, as

418

J{ A I I l).T\

the representation here inserted will evince. These horny
cases of the Rays, like those of the Sharks, are also
called purses ; and on the coast of Cumberland bear the
name of Skate-barrows, from the resemblance in shape to
a four-handed machine by which two men carry goods. As
the young Skate increases in size, the angular parts of the
body curve over for a time, till the fish ultimately escapes
to provide for itself in a much wider but more dangerous
region.

The eight species of true Rays which are found on the
coasts of this country will be arranged here in two divisions ;
the first of which contains four species, having the snout
more or less elongated and sharp : the second division contains
also four species with blunt noses, the two last of which are
furnished with numerous sharp spines on various parts of the
surface of the body, and thus lead to the more powerfully
armed short-nosed species which will follow.

The Skate, as food, are held in very different degrees of

LONG-NOSED SKATE.

41!)

estimation in different places. In London, particularly,
large quantities are consumed, and the flesh is considered
delicate and well-flavoured ; but on some parts of the coast,
though caught in considerable numbers, both by lines and
nets, the flesh is seldom devoted to any purpose beyond that
of baiting pots for catching crabs and lobsters.

Skate are in the best condition for the table during au¬
tumn and winter. In spring, and in the early part of sum¬
mer, they are usually maturing eggs or young, and their
flesh is then soft and woolly.

The Long-nosed Skate is immediately distinguished from
any other Skate found on the British coast, not only by the
great length of the nose, but also by the distance between its
most extreme point and the transverse line of the mouth ; cha¬
racters particularly observable in comparison with the species
next in order, with which it most assimilates in colour.
The snout is very much produced, narrow and sharp, slen¬
der as far as the eyes, from whence the body dilates gradually
to its greatest breadth, which is behind the centre ; the
whole length of the body and tail one-third longer than the
width. On the upper surface the body is slightly roughened,
and of a light lead colour ; the tail rather more rough, with
a row of large crooked spines on each side of the central line,
and this species is observed never to have more or less than
these two lateral rows ; the small fins on the tail not far remov¬
ed from each. other, the second about its own length from the
end. The under surface is a dirty greyish white, marked
with dusky specks like the true Skate next to be described ;
but the body is thinner in substance than either that or the
Sharp-nosed Skate : the nostrils are lobed ; the mouth nar¬
row ; the teeth in old males sharp, with frequently nine or
ten spines above the eyes ; on the snout two rows of minute
tubercular spines ; behind the head seven or eight spines

420

RAIID.E.

ranged in a line along tlie dorsal ridge ; towards the outer
upper edge of the pectoral fins on each side are the usual
rows of sharp hooked spines, and close to the tail the long
pendent claspers. Montagu having figured in the Werne¬
rian Memoirs, as referred to, the upper surface of a male,
the figure here given represents the under surface of a fe¬
male.

By some of the West-country fishermen this species is
called the Dun Cow : it attains considerable size, and is said
to feed on Sand-eels and Sand-launce. According to Mr.
Couch, it frequents deep water, and is not caught through
the winter : fishermen state that it is exceedingly violent
when hooked. I may here state generally, that the greater
part of the Skate brought to market are taken in the trawl-
nets.

SKATE.

m

CHONDROPTER YG1I.

RAIIDjE.

THE SKATE.

BLUE SKATE, (Did GREY SKATE, Scotland.

tinker, Lyme Regis.

Raia batis, Linnaeus. Bloch, pt. iii. pi. 79, female.

,, ,, La Raie cendrte, Cuvier, Regne An. t. ii. p. 398.

,, Icevis seu cinerea, Willughby, p. 69, C. 5, male.

,, batis, The Skate, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. Ill,

,, ,, ,, Flem. Brit. An. p. 171, sp. 24.

,, „ ,, Jenyns, Man. Brit. Vert. p. 510, sp. 199.

,, ,, ,, Couch’s MS.

This species, which is frequently called the True Skate,
to distinguish it from the Thornback and Homelyn, which
are also popularly called Skate, is not so commonly taken
as either, but is still better than either as an article of food.

422

KAIIIVE.

It appears to be found among the Orkneys, and on the
coast of Scotland, where it is called Blue Skate and Grey
Skate. From thence southward as far as Kent, and again
westward to Cornwall, it is found along the whole line of
coast. In Ireland, the Skate is taken from Cork up the east
coast to Antrim, and from thence northward and westward
to Londonderry and Donegal. At Lyme Regis, on account
of its dusky grey colour, it is called the Tinker.

In this species both sexes when adult have sharp teeth, the
points beginning to elongate by the time the body of the

fish has attained the breadth of twelve or fourteen inches.

The females are generally called Maids ; and fishermen dis¬
tinguish the females of the three species of most frequent
occurrence by the names of Skate Maid, Thornback Maid,
and Homelyn Maid, — frequently calling the old male of the
Skate with his two long appendages the Three-tailed Skate.
In each of these species the females are observed to be much
more numerous as well as larger than the males. Pennant
mentions having seen a Skate that weighed two hundred
pounds : it is very voracious, and Mr. Couch has known five
different species of fish, besides Crustacea, taken from the
stomach of a single individual. There is reason to believe

that the true Skate produces its young later in the season

than either the Thornback or the Homelyn.

The breadth of the body is to its length nearly as four to
three ; the form of the nose conical : the lines from the ex¬
treme lateral angle of each pectoral fin being nearly straight,
similar lines taken in a direction backward to a point on the
tail two inches below the end of the ventral fins, would form
a true rhomb : the eyes are slightly elevated above the line
of the upper surface of the body, with a short, hard tubercle
in the front of each, and a second on the inner side of each ;
the irides yellow ; the temporal orifices valvular, and placed

SKATE.

423

close behind : the dorsal ridge of the body without spines till
near the origin of the ventral fins ; then commence a single
row on the centre, reaching along the tail as far as the first of
the two small fins, all the points of the spines directed back¬
wards ; one spine between the two small dorsal fins. On the
sides of the tail of a female of small size there were no lateral
spines ; but in a young male of the same size, there were
several lateral spines on each side, the points of which were
directed forwards, and are in that respect characteristic of
this species. The colour of the upper surface of the body
and tail greyish brown : the margins anterior to the angles of
the pectoral fins tinged with reddish brown ; those behind
the angles brownish black, darker than the body : the colour
on the under surface is sooty white, with dark lines in vari¬
ous directions, and numerous blue specks with small sharp
points disposed among them over the surface. The nostrils
are valvular, half the width of the mouth in advance of each
of its angles ; the mouth rather wide ; the teeth in this spe¬
cies are sharp in both sexes when adult, the inner angles of
the central teeth beginning to elongate in specimens when
they are about twelve inches in breadth across the body.

I may here add that the true Skate, the subject of the pre¬
sent article, the Long-nosed Skate which precedes it, and the
Sharp-nosed Skate which is next to be described, are, in
some localities, included under the general term of Skate,
from their similarity in colour.

424

KA I I D/E.

CH0NDR0PTERYG11.

RAH DM.

THE SHARP-NOSED RAY.
white skate, Scotland. — burton skate, Cornwall.

Raia oxyrhynchus , Sharp-nosed Ray, Montagu, Wern. Mem. vol. ii. p. 423

,, ,, ,, ,, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. 113.

,, ,, ,, ,, Flem. Brit. An. p. 171, sp. 21.

,, ,, ,, ,, Jenyns, Man. Brit. Vert. p. 511, sp. 200.

,, ,, Burton Skate, Couch’s MS.

This species, says Mr. Coucli, from whose drawing the
figure is taken, “ may be easily recognised by its sharp
snout, by the waved line of the margin of the body from
the snout to the extremity of the expansion, and by its pure
white colour on the lower surface. It is the largest of the
British Rays ; for though in length and breadth it may not
exceed the common Skate, its superior thickness renders it
heavier.”

SHARP-NOSED RAY.

425

Colonel Montagu, in the Wernerian Memoirs already
quoted, says, by way of further distinction, the snout in this
species is slender, the lateral margins in a moderately-sized
fish running nearly parallel to each other for three or four
inches at the extremity. The skin is smooth, with the ex¬
ception of the spines on the upper surface, peculiar to the
males, as shown in the figure ; the colour a plain brown with¬
out spots or lines, and never so dark as the Skate last de¬
scribed, with which it is sometimes confounded. The teeth
of the males, according to a specimen of the mouth very
kindly sent to me by Mr. Couch, are longer, more pointed,
and sharper than those of any other species I have had an
opportunity of examining. The tail is armed with three
rows of spines.

Mr. Couch states that the smaller-sized specimens are
taken throughout the year ; but those which are larger keep
in deep water, and are only taken in summer and autumn.

The French are great consumers of Skate, and this species
is their favourite fish : their boats come to Plymouth during
Lent to purchase Skate, which they preserve fresh and moist
during the run back to their own coast by keeping them
covered with wet sand.

This species is the White Skate of the Orkneys, and of
Scotland generally ; and is said to have been taken on the
south-east coast of Ireland.

It is doubtful whether this species be the oxyrhynchus of
the older authors : it is certainly not the oxyrhynchus of
Bloch, part iii. plate 80, which is the R. chardon of other
authors ; a species with a short nose, and further remarkable
for the intense black colour of its upper surface, and which
there is reason to believe has been taken once in Cornwall ;
but the specimen had been too much mutilated before Mr
Couch saw it to enable him to determine correctly.

2 F

VOL. II.

CHONDROPTERYG 11.

ItAIWJ:.

THE BORDERED RAY.

Raia marginata, Bordered Ray, Flem. Brit. An. p. 172, sp. 27.

,, ,, ,, ,, Jenyns, Man. Brit. Vert. p. 512, sp. 201.

The Bordered Ray, as it is called from the broad
dark marginal edge of its pectoral fins, has been taken at
Liverpool, Brighton, and Weymouth; it has also been
taken at Dieppe, and noticed by M. Noel and Lacepede.
It is a well-known species in the Mediterranean, described
by M. de Blainville, by the Prince of Musignano, and M.
Risso. But little is known of its habits, and it does not
attain a large size. M. Risso states that the flesh is con¬
sidered pretty good.

I avail myself, by permission, of Mr. Jenyns' description

BORDERED RAY.

427

of* this species, taken from a specimen obtained at Wey¬
mouth by Professor Henslow.

“ Total length fifteen inches six lines : length of the
head from the end of the snout to the spiracles behind the
eyes, three inches six lines ; of the tail from the vent to its
extremity, seven inches nine lines : greatest breadth across
the pectorals, eleven inches three lines. The total length
of M. de Blainville's specimen was two feet. The form
rhomboidal ; the transverse diameter rather more than one-
third greater than the length from the end of the snout to
the vent : snout elongated, projecting considerably from
between the pectorals, terminating in a sharp point, with
the lateral margins nearly parallel for the last quarter of
their length : mouth moderately wide ; jaws transverse ;
teeth numerous, closely set, in several rows, roundish or
somewhat quadrilateral at the base, each terminating in a
sharp point : nostrils in a line with the corners of the mouth,
and rather more than half-way between them and the upper
margins of the pectorals ; a channel from the nostrils to the
mouth, covered by a membranous flap : eyes and spiracles
both large : skin perfectly smooth above ; and beneath also,
excepting along the anterior margins of the pectorals and
the surface of the snout, which are set with very minute
spines and denticles : one large spine above each eye, in¬
clining backwards, and another smaller one behind each eve :
no spines on any part of the back, but three rows on the
tail, one occupying the middle ridge, the two others the
sides ; the spines on these rows strong and sharp, and mostly
inclining backwards : tail scarcely longer than the body,
depressed, rather stout, with two moderately-sized finlets
of equal form, nearly contiguous ; scarcely the rudiment
of a caudal : pectorals broad, with the anterior margins L ol¬
io wed out, and not prolonged beyond the basal half of* the

428

R A II D/E.

snout ; ventrals moderate, deeply notched or bilobated. Ge¬
neral colour of the upper part reddish brown, somewhat
paler on the pectorals, with a faint indication of round whit¬
ish spots ; beneath white, with a broad border all round,
especially beneath the angles of the pectorals, of dark red¬
dish brown, approaching to dusky : tail entirely black.'”

Since the preceding portion of this article was printed, I
have received a specimen of the Bordered Ray from Lyme
Regis, for which I am indebted to the kindness of Lord
Cole.

The vignette below represents a view taken near Hunger-
ford market.

HOMELYN KAY.

429

CHONDROPTERYG1 1.

RA1IDM.

THE HOMELYN RAY.

THE HOME, SAND RAY, AND SPOTTED RAY.

Raia maculata,
,, miraletus,
,, rubus,

,, oculata,

,, maculata,

Sand Ray, Montagu, Wern. Mem. vol. ii. p. 426.
Mirror Ray, Don. Brit. Fish. pi. 103.

Rough Ray, ,, ,, ,, pi. 20.

Mirror Ray, Flem. Brit. An. p. 172, sp. 26.

Spotted Ray, Jenyns, Man. Brit. \rert. p. 514, sp. 203.

This smooth-skinned spotted Ray, called Raia l avis
and Homelyn so long ago as the time of Merrett,* and one
of our most common species along the line of our southern
coast, has not been so well distinguished or so clearly defined
by some authors as its obvious characters admit and require.
The males, though they have, like the females, a perfectly
* Pinax Rerum Naturalium Britannicarum. London, 1667, p. 185.

430

RAJIDJE.

smooth skin, have also spines about the eyes, rows of small
hooks on the upper surface of the pectoral fins, one row of
spines along the dorsal ridge, with one on each side a little
below the commencement of the dorsal series, and when full-
grown, with three rows of strong spines on the tail. Thus
extensively armed, the male has been called rubus: but those
authors who quote as a synonyme the R. rubus of Bloch,
part iii. pi. 84, have been misled by the German ichthyolo¬
gist, whose figure proves his fish to have been a male of the
Thornback, of which his plate 83 is the female.

The Homelyn of our coast has been best made out and
described bv Mr. Donovan, Colonel Montagu, and more
recently by the Rev. Mr. .Tenyns, under the different names
here quoted.

This species is liable to some occasional variation in the
manner in which the upper surface of the body is spotted ;
the spots are sometimes numerous, at others sparingly distri¬
buted : I have seen it quite free from spots, and have also
seen it with only one eye-like spot on each side, not far re¬
moved from the line of the back. J have mentioned that
the skin, independent of the accessory organs, is quite
smooth. These variations have given rise to the different
trivial names miraletus , oculata , I avis, and metadata , which
have been applied to it by different authors, from the appear¬
ance of the particular specimens examined.

Colonel Montagu, referring to the miraletus and rubus of
Mr. Donovan, had no doubt that they were both identical
with his own maculata , since, being a common species on the
Devonshire coast, he had ample opportunities of seeing it
under its different appearances.

Mr. Donovan has given correct figures both of the Mirror
Ray and of the Homelyn, as quoted, the latter under the
trivial term rubus; but he believed with Montagu, that they

HOMELYN KAY.

431

if

were not distinct species. Mr. Donovan liad noticed two
similar eye-like spots on several small examples of the true
Skate ( batis ) ; and I possess young specimens of the Thorn-
back ( clavata ) with the same sort of ocellated lateral spots,
and have seen many others of the three most common spe¬
cies. Mr. Donovan’s remark accords so closely with my own
view, that I insert it here in his own words : —

44 Although we present this as the llaia miraletus of
Linnseus with perfect confidence, it is not without some
hesitation at least that we can offer it as a distinct species.
In every respect, except the ocellar spot on the wings, it per¬
fectly agrees with the Homerling Ray, and may possibly
prove, on further examination of other specimens, to be only
a lusus , or remarkable variety of that fish.”

The figure given at the head of this subject exhibits the
eye-like lateral spots, from the possession of which it has
been called miraletus and oculata : the smoothness of the
surface of the skin, and its numerous smaller spots, suffi¬
ciently warrant the terms lavis and maculata. 4 'he words
oculata and l avis were combined by some of the older au¬
thors, and probably referred to this species.

The Homelyn and the Thornback, which are not very dis¬
similar in shape, though otherwise perfectly distinct, are the
two species most common in the London market : a large
proportion of both are taken in the trawl-nets.

The form is rhomboidal ; the diameter of the body about
one-fourth greater than the length : the nose short and blunt,
its projection beyond the outline of the pectorals but small : in
a young male specimen of twelve inches in breadth the se¬
condary sexual characters begin to appear ; there are numer¬
ous small spines about the nose, and some extending along
part of the anterior edge of the pectoral fins ; two or three
prominent spines before and behind each eye, with rough

UAIID.E.

m

granulations on tlie surface of the skin before and between

O

them : the more conspicuous characters that distinguish the
males have been already noticed. The eyes and temporal
orifices are large : the central row of dorsal spines commence
above the middle of the body, with one strong spine on each
side of it about the middle of the body and in the line of its
greatest diameter : the series of spines on the dorsal ridge
extend along the centre of the tail, with a row along each
side of it in adult specimens ; in young examples the series
on each side is not complete. On the tail are two small fins,
with two spines between ; the points of all the spines on the
central line and on the tail directed backwards.

The colour of the upper surface is a pale yellowish or
reddish brown, with spots of darker brown, subject to the
variations that have been already pointed out ; the colour of
the under surface plain white ; the skin smooth ; nostrils and
mouth near the end of the nose ; the mouth transverse, rather
small. Montagu says, both sexes of the maculata have sharp
teeth ; but this refers to examples that are perfectly adult :
young males of small size, and females when larger, have the
teeth blunt ; in old males, and very probably also in old fe¬
males, from the operation of those laws which influence the
secondary sexual characters, the teeth become pointed.

The term Sand Ray is in some localities exclusively ap¬
plied to the males of this species, from their greater rough¬

ness.

CH0NDR0PTERYG11.

R All DM.

THE SMALL-EYED RAY,

OR PAINTED RAY.

Rain microcellata , Small-eyed Ray, Montagu, Wern. Mem. vol.ii. p. 430.

,, ,, ,, ,, Flem. Brit. An. p. 171, sp. 23.

,, ,, ,, ,, Jenyns, Man. Brit. Vert. p. 515, sp. 204.

,, ,, Painted Ray, Couch’s MS.

Colonel Montagu and Mr. Couch appear to be the
only British naturalists who have obtained this species ; and
it must be considered a rare one, since the first of these
gentlemen saw but two examples, and the latter has only
seen one. The very small size of the eye is stated by both
to be a remarkable and striking distinction.

The length of the specimen obtained by Mr. Couch was
thirty-three inches and a half, of which the tail measured

434

RAF IDE.

thirteen inches ; breadth across the fins twenty-four inches ;
the eyes three inches apart, and five inches and a half from
the snout. The outline of the body much resembles that
of the Thornback, R. clavata ; snout a little prominent,
the margin waved to the extremity of the expansion, behind
rounded ; the eyes very small ; temporal orifices large : the
body covered with rough granulations, but altogether with¬
out spines, either on its surface or about the eyes, except
a row that runs along two-thirds of the back, and down the
middle of the tail to the fins ; an irregular row of similar
hooked spines extends along each side of the tail ; along the
tail is a border on each side, like a membranous fin ; two
rounded fins towards the end of the tail, somewhat separated,
the hindmost one inch from the end, with which it is con¬
tinuous by means of an elevated ridge. In the distribution
of its colours this is the most beautiful of the British Rays.
The upper surface is a light grey, with a lighter line running
along the back and middle of the tail, enclosing the central
row of spines. The disk is beautifully and regularly quar¬
tered, first by three white lines enclosing each other, and
passing from near the eye circularly to near the extremity
of the expansion, the convexity of the arch inwards, and
consequently the shorter line nearer the margin ; on the
hinder edge of the disk, formed by the pectorals, are two
other lines passing from behind the expansion circularly to
the neighbourhood of the abdominal fins, the convexity of
the arch inwards ; on the more central part of the disk are
a few whitish spots, those of both sides answering to each
other ; the extreme edge of the disk posterior to its greatest
expansion, and also the abdominals, as well as the fin-like
margin of the tail, are edged with white. The nostrils have
a prominent expanded membrane ; width of the mouth three
inches ; teeth flat, like those of the Thornback ; mucous

SM ALL-EYED RAY.

435

orifices on the under surface numerous, and as if punctured
with a pin ; the colour of the shin a pure white.

Such is the description Mr. Couch gives of his specimen,
which was a female, and which was taken by a line on the 28th
of January 1835. In it numerous eggs were found, some of
which had attained their full growth ; — a circumstance which
fixes the period for the production of the young in this
species.

Montagu says both his examples were females, resembling
his R. maculata in form ; Mr. Couch refers to the Thornback
for shape : the figure here given is taken from Mr. Couch’s
drawing, and it will be observed that all three have consi¬
derable similarity of outline. A few extracts from Monta¬
gu’s description will exhibit further resemblance. The pro¬
portions by measurement are very nearly alike ; the upper
surface pale brown, with a few scattered spots and lines of a
lighter colour on the margins of the wings ; the skin covered
with minute spines, which make it feel rough : the eyes
remarkably small, at once pointing out a material distinction ;
those of the specimen described did not exceed half an inch
in diameter from the opposite angles of the eyelids ; whereas
the R. maculata , and most others of similar size, have eyes
nearly double that diameter : one row of small hooked spines
on the tail, continuing along the dorsal ridge to the head.
Colonel Montagu’s specimens being younger than that ob¬
tained and described by Mr. Couch, had not acquired the
lateral marginal rows of spines on the tail ; the under part
smooth and white ; the teeth obtusely cuneiform, with a
broad edge that felt rough to the finger as it was withdrawn
from the mouth.

CHONDRO PTERYG1I.

raiida:.

THE THORNBACK.

Raia clavata, Thornback, Willughby, p. 74.

,, ,, Ljnnjeus. Cuvier, llegne An. t. ii. p.398.

, , ,, Thornback, Bloch, pt. iii. pi. 83, female.

,, rubus, Rough Ray, ,, ,, pi. 84, male.

,, clavata , Thornback, Montagu, Wern. Mem. vol. ii.p. 416.

,, ,, ,, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. 122, pi. 14, female.

,, ,, ,, Don. Brit. Fish. pi. 26, female.

,, ,, ,, Flem. Brit. An. p. 170, sp. 19.

,, ,, ,, Jenyns, Man. Brit. Vert. p. 516, sp. 205.

,, ,, ,, Couch’s MS.

The Thornback exhibits very marked distinguishing
characters, and being also a very common fish, is one of the
best known of the species of Rays, — a term which Mr.
Couch considers to be derived from the Anglo-Saxon 6 Reoh,’’
which means 4 rough," and is particularly appropriate to the

T HORNBACK.

437

Thornback, which, on the Cornish coast, is preeminently
distinguished as the Ray. The Thornback is also taken com¬
monly both on the coast of Scotland and Ireland. From the
good quality of the flesh of this fish, and the immense quan¬
tity taken every year, the Thornback, and its female, the
Maid, is one of the most valuable of the species. Mr. Couch
says that the flesh takes salt well, and in this preserved state
affords the poor fishermen and their families many wholesome
meals when stormy weather prevents them obtaining fresh
supplies. The Thornback is taken in the greatest abund¬
ance during spring and summer, because the fish then fre¬
quent sandy bottoms in shallower water and nearer the shore
than usual, for the purpose of depositing their eggs ; but the
flesh of the Thornback at this season is not, as before no¬
ticed, so firm as in autumn and winter. It is in the best
condition for table about November. Their food is various
other fish, particularly Flatfish, testaceous mollusca, and Crus¬
tacea.

Bloch's figure, plate 83, represents the female of this spe¬
cies, under the name of R. clavata ; and the fish next in
succession in that work, plate 84, is the male of the same
species, but is called R. mbits, although most of the syno-
nymes quoted are those of clavata.

The figure here given was taken from a young male mea¬
suring fourteen inches in breadth. The point of the nose is
but little produced : the anterior margins of the pectorals are
undulated ; the outline behind each lateral angle of the pec¬
torals nearly straight, or slightly rounded : the eyes and tem¬
poral orifices rather large, with two or three strong hooked
spines both before and behind them. The whole upper surface
of the body rough with small points, which when examined
with a lens have stellated bases. Besides these, there are dis¬
tributed over this upper surface numerous nail-like tubercular

438

RAIID.E.

spines, each of which has an oval osseous base ; the margin of
the base entire, with a central projecting crooked shank or
spine directed backward. Two of these broadly-based spines
occupy the central ridge of the nose ; others, to the number
of thirteen or fourteen, are distributed over each side with
some regularity, and similarly disposed on the two sides.
The dorsal ridge of unequally-sized spines begins a short dis¬
tance between and behind the temporal orifices, one or two
small spines occurring between each of the larger ones : this
single line of spines extends to the origin of the tail, where
three rows of spines begin and are continued along it, forming
a series of powerful weapons. The tail is furnished with two
membranous fins on the upper central ridge, and ends with a
small dilatation. The prevailing colour of the upper part is
brown, with numerous lighter-coloured spots, and sometimes,
as has been noticed already, with one larger rounded spot on
each pectoral. Young males and females have fewer spines
on the body than old males, and both sexes attain some size
before they put forth any ; they have frequently also but one
row of spines along the tail. The colour of the under side
is pure white, with a few spines only on each side. The teeth
of the adult male in this species are decidedly different from
those of the female, as shown in the woodcut at the top of
page 416 ; those represented on the left hand being from a
male fish, and those on the right from a female fish of the
same size, and representing one-half of the inside of the
mouth of each as seen from behind.

STARllY RAY.

439

CHON DROR'IERY Gil.

RAH DM.

THE STARRY RAY.

Raia radiata, Starry Ray, Don. Brit. Fish. pi. 114, female.

,, ,, ,, ,, Flem. Brit. An. p. 170, sp. 20.

,, ,, ,, ,, Jenyns, Man. Brit. Vert. p. 517, sp. 206.

This very beautiful and well-marked species was made
known by Mr. Donovan in his History of British Fishes,
and a very good coloured representation of it is added in
that work, which will prevent its being confounded with any
other.

Whether this species was really known to other authors
their descriptions do not afford unequivocal proof, and 1
have therefore only quoted those synonym es which 1 know
to refer to this fish. Mr. Donovan's specimen, which was
not more than four inches across and seven inches in length,

440

11AI1D.E.

was cauglit on tlie liortli coast of Britain, and was commu¬
nicated to him by Mr. Stuchbury.

Dr. Fleming, in his History of British Animals, quotes
as a synonyme to radiata the R. Fullonica of the Fauna of
Greenland, by Fabricius ; and it is probably a Northern
species, the only three examples of it I have seen having
been received, one from Berwick Bay, and two from the
Frith of Forth. The first was a female, for which I am
indebted to the kindness of Dr. George Johnston, and from
this example the figure here given was derived. In 1 835,
Dr. Parnell sent me from Edinburgh two examples, a male
and a female, which had been obtained in the Forth, and
obligingly permitted me to retain the male for my own col¬
lection, which came marked accordingly. On comparing
these three examples with Mr. Donovan’s figure, no doubt
remained that they were of the same species.

The habits of this fish are but little known, and the figure
here given being that of a female, I shall closely describe
the male, which was nineteen inches long from the point of
the nose to the end of the tail, and fourteen inches in
breadth ; the snout but little produced, almost falling in
with the line of the anterior margin ; the lateral expansion
of the pectorals and their posterior margins rounded ; the
pelvic fins rather large : the central ridge of the nose, and a
great portion of the pectoral fins or wings, are covered with
asperities of different sizes, but the form of which are all
alike, being a single spine bent backwards, arising from a
stellated base of many radii ; these appear to be nearly sym¬
metrical, and about equal in number on the two sides : the
eyes are blue and rather large, placed about half-way be¬
tween the central transverse cartilaginous arch of the bodv
and the end of the snout ; before each eye one large spine,
and two large spines behind, with several smaller ones along

STARRY RAY.

441

the inner edge of each eye ; temporal orifices rather large ;
one large spine above the line of the transverse cartilaginous
arch, one upon the centre of it in the line of the dorsal ridge,
and two spines at each lateral extremity of the transverse
arch : below this cross-bar commences a series of equally
large spines on the dorsal ridge, which extends to the first fin
on the tail; between these large spines are a few smaller ones,
and on each side the central row of large spines is another
row of spines about half the size of the large ones, but more
numerous, forming three distinct rows down the back and
tail ; but all of them, though differing in size, have the same
character in respect to the beautifully radiated form of the
base from which the ascending spine arises : the upper surface
of the body independently of this arming is perfectly smooth;
the colour pale brown, with a tinge of orange brown.

On the under surface the colour is uniformly white ; the
skin soft and smooth ; the nostrils large, defended by a cuta¬
neous valve ; the mouth rather small ; the teeth in the male
with the internal angle elongated and sharp, and in a second
specimen, a female of ten inches only in length, the teeth are
becoming pointed.

The sexual appendages in the male here described are half
as long as the tail ; and as these, as well as the other sexual
distinctions, are well marked in this fish, which only measures
fourteen inches in breadth, I am induced to believe, from
the early acquisition of these characters, that this species
does not attain a very large size. This species is probably
the Raid asteria aspera Roncleletii of Willughby, p. 73,
pi. D. 5, f. 4, and the Raid dsperd of M. de Blainville, in
the Fdun. Frdiic.; but I have not included these names
among the synonymes at the head of the subject, for the
want of that additional certainty which good figures would
have supplied.

2 a

VOL. II.

442

KAIID.E.

CHON DROP TE RYG1J.

RAH 1)3:.

THE STING RAY.

COMMON TRYGON. FIRE FL AIRE.

Trygon pastinaca, La Pastinaque, Cuvier, Regne An. t. ii. p. 399.

,, ,, Common Trygon , Flem. Brit. An. p. 170, sp. 18.

Pustinaca marina, RoncLeletii, Willughby, p. 67, C. 3.

Raia pastinaca, Linn/eus. Bloch, pt. iii. pi. 82.

,, ,, Sting Ray, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. 125.

,, „ ,, ,, Don. Brit. Fish. pi. 99.

,, ,, ,, ,, Jenyns, Man. Brit. Vert. p. 518, sp. 207.

Generic Characters. — Head enclosed laterally by the pectorals ; posterior
portion of the disk of the body somewhat rounded ; tail armed near its origin
with a long and sharp flattened spine, serrated on both edges ; the rest of the
tail slender, without fins, and ending in a point ; teeth small.

From tlie Rays whose bodies are more or less covered and
protected with sharp spines supported on broad bases, and
which spines, continued along the upper surface of the tail,

STING RAY.

443

are defensively or offensively used, the transition to those
species of Rays which are still more powerfully armed is
easy and natural.

The Sting Ray was well known to the ancients, who en¬
tertained many curious notions of the power and venom of
its spine ; and this fish is also noticed as an inhabitant of
the shores of this country so long ago as the days of Merrett
and Sibbald. At present it is more frequently taken on the
southern coast than elsewhere, from Sussex even as far west
as the county of Cork in Ireland. It appears, however,
otherwise to occupy an extensive range, being found in the
Mediterranean, and from thence to a high degree of north
latitude on the coast of Norway.

Colonel Montagu, in his notes, mentions obtaining a spe¬
cimen, taken at Hastings, which was presented to him by the
Rev. Mr. Whitear. “ At the base of the bony process
in the tail of this fish, was a smaller one ready to replace the
original if by accident it should be lost ; or possibly this
weapon may be deciduous and occasionally discharged.”

Mr. Couch in his MS. says, s< This species keeps on
sandy ground at no great distance from land, and in summer
wanders into shallow water, where it is often entangled in
the fishermen’s nets, — the only way in which it is usually
caught, for it rarely swallows a bait. The manner in which
this fish defends itself, shows its consciousness of the formid¬
able weapon it carries on its tail. When seized or terrified,
its habit is to twist its long, slender, and flexible tail round
the object of attack, and with the serrated spine tear the
surface, lacerating it in a manner calculated to produce vio¬
lent inflammation.” Other authors state that it is capable
of striking its weapon with the swiftness of an arrow into its
prey or its enemy, when with its winding tail it secures its
capture. These spines, as may be supposed, possess no really

2 g 2

444

RAIIDiE.

venomous quality : when lacerated wounds happen to men of
a bad habit of body, the symptoms are frequently very severe.
In some countries, serrated fish spines, admitting of easy
application by tying, are used to point arrows and spears,
which when thus mounted become very formidable weapons.

A specimen examined and described by Pennant was twro
feet nine inches long from the tip of the nose to the end of
the tail ; to the origin of the tail, one foot three inches : the
breadth, one foot eight inches. The body is quite smooth,
except, according to M. de Blainville, a few small tubercles
along the central line of the back and tail, as well as on the
upper and posterior part of the pectoral fins — probably a male
fish ; the shape almost round, and of a much greater thick¬
ness and more elevated form in the middle than any other of
the Rays, but grows very thin towards the edges ; the nose is
very sharp-pointed, but short ; the irides are of a gold co¬
lour ; behind each eye the temporal orifice is very large : the
colour of the upper surface of the body is a dirty yellow ; the
middle part, of an obscure blue : Mr. Donovan says the young
are spotted with brown. The tail and spine are dusky ; the
former very thick at the beginning : the spine, placed at
about one-third of the length of the tail from the body, is
about five inches long, flat on the top and bottom, very hard,
sharp-pointed, the two side edges thin, and closely and
sharply serrated the whole wray ; the tail extends four inches
beyond the end of this spine, and becomes very slender at the
extremity. The under surface is white ; the nasal lobes very
large ; mouth and teeth small. The flesh is said to be rank
and disagreeable, and when laid bare by skinning or cutting
into, is very red, — a circumstance which may account for the
old name of Fire Flaire.

EAGLE RAY.

445

CHON DROPTERYGII.

RAIIDjE.

THE EAGLE RAY.

THE WHIP RAY. MILLER.

Myliobatis aquila, Aigle de mer, Cuvier, Regne An. t. ii. p. 401.

Aquila Bellonii, Willughby, p. 64, C. 2.

Raia aquila , Linnaeus. Bloch, pt. iii. pi. 81.

,, ,, Whip Ray, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. 128.

,, ,, ,, ,, Jenyns, Man. Brit. Vert. p. 519.

Generic Characters. — Head partly disengaged from the pectoral fins ; teeth
flat ; the central plates much larger than those which are lateral ; pectoral fins
wing-like ; the tail armed with a serrated spine, as in the last genus Trygon.

Pennant, in his British Zoology, states that Mr. Tra¬
vis, surgeon at Scarborough, had the tail of a Ray brought
to him by a fisherman of that town : lie had taken it in

446

llAIID.E.

the sea off that coast, but threw away the body. It was above
three feet long, entirely covered with hard obtuse tubercles,
extremely slender and taper, and destitute of a fin at the
end. The tail of a fish received from Sicily, and believed
to have been taken from a specimen of the Eagle Ray, which
is not uncommon in some parts of the Mediterranean, cor¬
responded with the description given by Mr. Travis.

This fish is called Eagle Ray from the wing-like form
of the pectoral fins ; and Whip Ray, from the long, slen¬
der, and flexible character of its tail. The outline near
the figure of the fish represents the teeth of the upper and
under jaw ; each jaw forms part of a circle ; and from a par¬
ticular rolling motion, added to the crushing power of these
teeth, the fish has acquired the additional name of the
Miller.

As doubts may reasonably be entertained, the examina¬
tion having been restricted to a fragment, whether the Eagle
Ray has really been taken on our coast, the figure of this
fish, as well as that which forms the subject of the vignette,
are here inserted to invite the attention of observers on the
coast.

To William Thompson, Esq. of Belfast, one of the Vice
Presidents of the Natural History Society of that town,
I am indebted for many valuable and interesting notices of
the fishes of the Irish lakes and coast which are distributed
in various parts of this work. In 1885, Mr. Thompson
made the following communication to the Zoological Society
of London, which is published in the Proceedings for that
year, at page 78.

“ Cephaloptera , Dumeril. — A fish of this singular genus,
taken about five years ago on the southern coast of Ireland,
and thence sent to the Royal Society of Dublin, is at pre-

EAGLE RAY.

447

sent preserved in their museum. In breadth it is about
forty-live inches. The specimen being imperfect, and the
characters of some of the species being ill defined, I hesitate
applying to it a specific name. It somewhat resembles the
Cephaloptera giorna as figured by M. Risso.

A representation of this fish is given below.

448

1‘ETROMYZllXE.

CHON DR0PTERYG1I.

PETR0MYZ1D/E*

THE LAMPREY.

Petromyzon marinus , Linnaeus. Bloch, pt. iii. pi. 77.

,, ,, La Grande Lamproye, Cuvier, Regne An. t. ii. p. 404.

Lampetra Rondeletii, Willughby, p. 105, G. 2, f. 2.

Petromyzon marinus, Sea Lamprey, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. 102, pi. 10.

,, ,, Spotted Lamprey, Don. Blit. Fish. pi. 81.

,, ,, Lamprey , Flem. Brit. An. p. 163, sp. 1.

,, ,, Sea Lamprey, Jenyns, Man. Brit. Vert. p. 520, sp. 209.

Generic Characters. — Body smooth, elongated, cylindrical, like that of an
Eel ; the head rounded ; the mouth circular, armed with hard tooth-like pro¬
cesses ; the lip forming a continuous circle round the mouth ; seven apertures
on each side of the neck, leading to seven branchial cells ; no pectoral or ven¬
tral fins ; the skin towards the tail extending in a fold from the body both above
and below, forms dorsal, anal, and caudal fins.

The last family of tlie cartilaginous or cliondropterygian
fishes contains the Lampreys, and some cylindrical fishes
very closely allied to them. These fishes are, in reference to
their skeleton, and in some other respects, the lowest in
the scale of organization among vertebrated animals. The
form and peculiarities of the mouth will be best understood

* The family of the Lampreys.

LAMPREY.

449

by a reference to the vignette ; the figure on the left hand of
which shows the flexible lip concealing the mouth ; the figure
on the right hand represents the rounded mouth, the small
and numerous tubercular teeth, and the central aperture lead¬
ing by the throat to the stomach.

The situation of the branchial cells, and the gills or
branchiae within these cells as they exist in the common River
Lamprey, or Lampern, as it is also called, are shown in the
right-hand figure at the bottom of page 326 : and the water
obtains access and egress by seven small apertures on each
side of the neck, by the mouth of the fish, or by an aperture
through the upper part of the head which communicates with
the pharynx, and which communication is distinctly seen in
a divided head.

The Lampreys, like the Sharks and Rays, have no swim¬
ming-bladder ; and being also without pectoral fins, are usually
seen near the bottom. To save themselves from the constant
muscular exertion which is necessary to prevent them being
carried along by the current of the water, they attach them¬
selves by the mouth to stones or rocks, and were in conse¬
quence called Petromyzon , or Stone-sucker ; while the circu¬
lar form of the mouth induced the name of Cyclostomes , or
Round-mouthed Fishes, which was bestowed upon them by
M. Dumeril.

In reference to the respiratory apparatus in the species of
this genus, Mr. Owen has remarked,* that “ when the
Lamprey is firmly attached, as is commonly the case, to
foreign bodies by means of its suctorial mouth, it is obvious
that no water can pass by that aperture from the pharynx to
the gills ; it is therefore alternately received and expelled by

* Descriptive and Illustrated Catalogue of the Physiological Series of Com¬
parative Anatomy contained in the Museum of the Royal College of Surgeons
in London, vol. ii. page 80.

450

PETROMYZIDE.

the externa] apertures. If a Lamprey, while so attached to
the side of a vessel, be held with one series of apertures out
of the water, the respiratory currents are seen to enter by the
submerged orifices, and, after traversing the corresponding
sacs and the pharynx, to pass through the opposite branchiae,
and to be forcibly ejected therefrom by the exposed orifices.
The same mode of respiration must take place in the Mix-
ine,” (a species of this family to be described hereafter,)
“ while its head is buried in the flesh of its prey. The
cyclostomous fishes thus present an obvious affinity to the
Cephalopoda , inasmuch as the branchial currents are inde¬
pendent of the actions of the parts concerned in deglutition.”

The intestinal canal is small, and extends in a straight line
along the abdomen to the anal aperture without any convolu¬
tion. The Lampreys are oviparous, spawning late in the
spring ; the roe escaping, in both sexes, by a small membra¬
nous sheath, which has internally at its base five apertures,
one leading upward to the intestine, one to each kidney, and
one to each lateral cavity of the abdomen.

The Marine Lamprey, which from its mottled appearance
was called P. maculosus by Artedi, has a very extensive geo¬
graphical range. It is found in the Mediterranean, and from
thence northwards in most of the rivers of Europe as far as
Scandinavia, during the spring. Professor Reinhardt in¬
cludes it among the fishes of Iceland, and our countryman
Pennant gives it a place in his Arctic Zoology. From a
description and figure in the Natural History of the Fishes
of Massachusets, by Dr. Smith of Boston, this fish appears
to be common in the rivers of North America, attaining a
large size in those of the more southern states, but not ex¬
ceeding seventeen or twenty inches in length in a high
northern latitude. Dr. Mitchell also includes this species
among his fishes of New York. It is rather common during

LAMPREY.

451

spring and summer in some of tlie rivers on the southern
coast of England, particularly the Severn, and is found in
smaller numbers in several of the rivers of Scotland and Ire¬
land about the same period of the year.

I have received specimens of large size from the Severn
in April and May, during which months it ascends that river
to a great distance from the sea for the purpose of depositing
its spawn. At this time it is considered in perfection as
food, and considerable quantities are prepared in various ways
for the table : the potted Lampreys and Lamperns of W or-
cester are in high estimation. A few are caught in the
Thames almost every year, up which river it travels notwith¬
standing all the numerous and various obstacles which the
port of London presents. I am indebted to my friend Mr.
Broderip for a note of one taken in June 1884, and another
in the same month of 1835, as high up the Thames as
Sunbury Weir. A fisherman saw the Lamprey, and struck
at it with his punt pole, and supposed he hit it, as the fish
rose to the surface and was taken as it was swimming along.
The haunt of this Marine Lamprey at Sunbury is a little
above the church, and nearly opposite the vicarage, in a place
called the Church Deep.

In Scotland, the appearance of the Lamprey in the fresh
water is rather later in the year than in the rivers of the
south. Sir William Jardine says, 4 4 They ascend our rivers
to breed about the end of June, and remain until the begin¬
ning of August. They are not furnished with any elonga¬
tion of the jaw, afforded to most of our fresh-water fish, to
form the receiving furrows at this important season ; but the
want is supplied by their sucker-like mouth, by which they
individually remove each stone. Their power is immense.
Stones of a very large size are transported, and a large furrow
is soon formed. The P. mar mils remain in pairs, two

452

PETROMYZID/E.

on each spawning place ; and while there employed, retain
themselves affixed by the mouth to a large stone.'”

After the spawning season is over, the flesh of the Lam¬
prey, like that of other fish, loses for a time its firmness
and other good qualities, and the weakened fish makes its
way back to the sea, to recruit its wasted condition.

ddie food of the Lamprey consists generally of any soft
animal matter ; and in the sea it is known to attack other
fishes even of large size, by fastening upon them, and with
its numerous small rasp-like teeth eating away the soft parts
down to the bone. It is not very often caught while it
remains at sea.

This species usually measures from twenty to twenty-eight
inches in length ; the head is rounded ; the form of the body
long and cylindrical, slightly compressed towards the tail ;
on the top of the head, rather before and between the eyes,
is an external aperture, which if examined with a blunt probe
is found to pass downward and backward, opening into a tube
on a line with the internal orifice of the first branchial sac :
along each outside of the neck are seven rounded apertures,
leading to as many branchial cells lined with a membrane
constructed like that of the gills in fishes ; each of these cells
has an internal opening into a tube which is closed by a car¬
tilaginous pericardium at the bottom, but communicates up¬
wards with the mouth : the lips surrounding the mouth, and
the numerous small teeth within, have been already referred
to : on the lower third portion of the body are two distinct
membranous dorsal fins, the second of which is the most
elevated, the edges of both convex ; a continuation of this
membrane round the extreme fleshy portion of the tail forms
a caudal fin, and a narrow slip passing upwards on the under
side forms an anal fin.

The skin is perfectly smooth ; the colour of the body olive

LAMPREY.

453

brown, mottled and spotted on tlie back and sides with
darker green and dark brown ; the margins of the fins in¬
clining to reddish brown ; the irides golden yellow.

In slowly-running water, the Lamprey swims with a lateral
undulating motion of the body, assisted by its fins : where
the current is rapid, it makes successive plunges forward,
attaching itself quickly to any fixed substance that offers to
secure the advantage gained.

The figure of the fish at the head of this subject was taken
from an excellent drawing made by Mrs. Ley.

Pennant states that it has been an old custom for the city
of Gloucester annually to present his Majesty with a Lam¬
prey pie, covered with a large raised crust.

454

PETROMYZID.E.

CHONDROPTERYG1 1.

PETROMYZ1DJE.

THE LAMPERN, OR RIVER LAMPREY.

Petromyzon Jiuviatilis, Linnaeus. Bloch, pt. iii. pi. 78, fig. 1,

„ ,, Cuvier, Regne An. t. ii. p. 404.

,, ,, Lesser Lamprey, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. 106, pi. 10.

,, ,, Lampern, Don. Brit. Fish. pi. 80.

,, ,, River Lamprey, Flem. Brit. An. p. 163, sp. 2.

,, ,, ,, ,, Jenyns, Man. Brit. Vert. p. 521,

sp. 210.

The River Lamprey, or Lampern, as it is called by
fishermen for distinction, is a well-known species which
abounds in many rivers of England, particularly the Thames,
the Severn, and the Dee : it is also abundant in several
rivers of Scotland and Ireland.

Some authors state that this species, like that last described,
visits our rivers in spring, and returns to the sea after spawn¬
ing ; but the recorded opinions of others, and my own obser¬
vations, induce me to believe that it generally remains all
the year in the fresh water. In the Thames I am certain it
is to be obtained every month in the year ; but is considered
in the best condition for the table from October to March,
during which time it is permitted to be caught, according
to the rules adopted for the conservation of the fishery.

LAM PE KX.

455

Formerly the Lampern was considered a fish of consider¬
able importance. It was taken in great quantities in the
Thames from Battersea Reach to Taplow Mills, and was
sold to the Dutch as bait for the Turbot, Cod, and other
fisheries. F our hundred thousand have been sold in one season
for this purpose, at the rate of forty shillings per thousand.
From five pounds to eight pounds the thousand have been
given ; but a comparative scarcity of late years, and consequent
increase in price, has obliged the line fishermen to adopt other
substances for bait. Formerly the Thames alone supplied
from one million to twelve hundred thousand Lamperns an¬
nually. They are very tenacious of life, and the Dutch fish¬
ermen managed to keep them alive at sea for many weeks.

If this species, which is very easily obtained, be examined
in the months of March or April, the distinction of the sexes
will be immediately evident on opening them. The female may
generally be known externally by the larger size of the abdo¬
men, and the male by his lips being more tumid and the mouth
larger than that of the female. — The season of spawning is
May, and the process has been described by several observers.
This sometimes takes place in pairs only, and at others by
many of both sexes occupying one general spawning bed.

The food of this species, according to Bloch, is insects,
worms, small fish, and the flesh of dead fish.

The adult fish is usually from twelve to fifteen inches in
length ; the body rather slender, cylindrical for two-thirds
of its length, then compressed to the end of the tail ; the
head rounded, with a single aperture on the crown, leading to
the tube between the cells, as in the other species : the eye
rather large ; the seven lateral openings ranged in a line
behind, but a little obliquely and below it, on each side : the
up surrounding the mouth has a continuous row of small points
on its margin ; the mouth and teeth as represented near the
figure of the fish : the back furnished with two rather elongated

456

PETBOMYZIDiE.

dorsal fins, with a separation between them ; the tail furnished
with an extension of the membrane above and below.

The skin is quite smooth, of a blue colour on the back and
sides, passing into silvery white underneath.

In “ The Treaty se of Fysshynge wyth an Angle,” attri¬
buted to Dame Juliana Berners, and first printed by Wyn-
kyn de Wordc, in his edition of the Book of St. Albans, in
1496, the learned lady, after recommending a minnow and a
worm as proper baits for the Trout in the month of March,
adds, 44 In A prill take the same baytes : and also Juneba,
other wyse named VII. eyes A

Seven eyes and nine eyes, in reference to the apertures
about the head, are common names for the Lamprey in this
and some other countries ; but a derivation for the term
Juneba is a desideratum.

The vignette represents a fisherman of South Wales bear¬
ing his coracle ; see vol. ii. page 27.

FRINGED-L I PFED LAMPERN.

457

CHONDROPTERYGII.

PETR0MYZ1DJE.

THE FRINGED-LIPPED LAMPERN.

planer’s lamprey.

Petromyzon Planeri, Planer’s Lamprey, Bloch, pt. iii. pi. 78, fig. 3.

,, ,, La Petite Lamproye, Cuvier, Regne An. t. ii. p. 404.

,, ,, Planer’s Lamprey, Jenyns, Man. Brit. Vert. p. 522,

sp. 211 .

This species, when adult, is easily distinguished from the
Lampern last described, by its being much shorter in length,
and yet equally thick in substance : it may also be recog¬
nised at all ages, on comparison with it, by its having the
whole broad edge of the circular lip furnished with numerous
papillae forming a thickly-set fringe, and by the depth and
close connexion of the two dorsal fins.

I am indebted to the kindness of Sir William Jardine for
two specimens of the young of this species, which were sent
from the Tweed. I subsequently obtained some from a brook
in Surrey, which were rather larger than those sent from the
North; and have also received some specimens from Lan¬
cashire, the males of which measure near eight inches in
length, and the females nine inches.

0) TI

A. 11

VOL. II.

458

PETROMYZID.E.

This species was named by Bloch after his friend Planer,
a professor at Erfort, who sent him specimens ; but if Bloch's
species be the same as our British fish, his figure is excep¬
tionable. This Lampern appears to be well known to M.
Nilsson, who includes it in his Prodromus of the Fishes of
Scandinavia, and says it is an inhabitant of almost all the
brooks and rivers of Sweden, and that it spawns in April or
May. M. Nilsson gives to this fish the length of six inches
only : it appears therefore that this species, like P. marinus
and P. Jluviatilisy does not acquire in high northern regions
the size of our specimens in this country.

When compared with P. Jluviatilis, Planer's Lampern has
the orifice on the forehead, the eye, and the first of the bran¬
chial apertures, much nearer the anterior edge of the lip than
in the other species ; the lip broad and fringed, and the dis¬
position of the teeth as shown in the additional figure of the
mouth only : the first dorsal fin begins about the middle of
the whole length of the fish, and is in close contact with the
second dorsal fin, which in its base is as long again as the
first : the tail is furnished with an extension of membrane
above and below, forming a caudal fin ; and a narrow slip
passing forwards towards the anal sheath, forms a rudimen¬
tary anal fin.

In its colours this species agrees with the common Lam¬
pern, being dusky blue on the back and sides, passing into
silvery white on the belly, the fins having a brown tint.

In its habits, Planer’s Lampern so closely resembles the
common Lampern, as frequently, no doubt, to have been
mistaken for it. Both may go to the salt or brackish water
from that part of a river within the influence of the tide.

PRIDE.

459

CH0NDR0PTERYG11. PETROMYZIDJE.

THE PRIDE, AND SANDPRIDE.

SANDPREY, AND MUD LAMPREY.
Ammoccetes branchialis, Lamprillon, Cuvier, Regne An. t. ii. p. 406.

))

9 9

Pride,

Flem. Brit. An. p. 164, sp. 3.

9 9

9 9

9 9

Jenyns, Man. Brit. Vert. p. 522, sp. 212.

Petromyzon

9 9

Linnjeus.

Bloch, pt. iii. pi. 78, fig. 2.

>>

9 9

Pride,

Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. 107, pi. 10.

99

ccecus,

Mud Lamprey, Couch, Loudon’s Mag. Nat. Hist.

vol. v. p. 23, figs. 9 & 10.

Generic Characters. — Form of the body, the branchial apertures and fins,
like those of the Lampreys ; upper lip semicircular, with a straight, transverse
under lip ; mouth without teeth, but furnished with numerous short membra¬
nous cirri.

This small flsli is very similar in its general appearance to
the young of the Lampreys found in fresh water ; but its
prominent lip is in the form of a horse-shoe, and the circle
not being complete, it has not the power of adhering to
stones and other substances like the true Lampreys, but
generally hides itself in the mud or loose sandy bottoms of
rivers and brooks in this country, in most of which it will be
found, but requires close search to detect it. It is of little
value, seldom exceeding six or seven inches in length, and is
about as thick as a large quill.

2 h 2

460

PETROMYZID.E.

It was formerly considered to be a Lamprey, and was
called Pctromyzon cacus by Ray, on account of its very
small eyes : it afterwards had the trivial name of branchialis
bestowed upon it by Linnaeus, from a notion that it attached
itself to the gills of fishes. It is said to be common about
Oxford, and was called by Dr. Plot, in his History of Ox¬
fordshire, the Pride of the Isis ; Prid being an ancient dimi¬
nutive for Lamprey. It is very common in the Thames about
Hampton, where it is called Sandpride. Mr. Jesse says the
Eel is one of its greatest enemies, and feeds greedily upon
it. I have received it from Hertfordshire, and some other
inland counties. It spawns at the end of April or the begin¬
ning of May, and feeds upon worms, insects, and dead or
even putrid animal matter.

Mr. Couch says, “ I find this species frequents our smaller
streams in Cornwall, living in the muddy bottom, from which
it rarely, if ever, willingly emerges. I have kept it for
months in stagnant water, with mud at the bottom, without
injury to its health or activity. The only apparent use of
its fins is to enable it to regain its station, when forced from
it by violent torrents. When kept in clear water it seems to
sleep much. 1 have never found this species to attach itself
to any object by the mouth ; but the lips are capable of
extensive and complicated motions. Our fishermen collect
them to use as bait for their hooks when whiffing for Pol¬
lack s.”

The upper lip and the mouth in this species, as shown in
the enlarged representation of the lower surface of the head
under the figure of the whole fish, is in the form of a horse¬
shoe; the inner part furnished with numerous short and
slender membranous cirri ; “ the lingual and palatine plates
somewhat harder than the other portion, but no true teeth
on the top of the forehead is a small orifice and canal, which

PRIDE.

461

leads to the internal tube between and connected witli each
lateral set of branchial cells, as in the Lampreys ; the eye is
very small, so much so as to have been occasionally over¬
looked, and it is situated at the bottom of a small and deep
depression : the branchial apertures are seven on each side,
arranged along a kind of lateral groove : the body of the fish
at this part is rather tumid ; behind this the form of the body
is nearly round, the portion beyond the anal opening com¬
pressed : there are two dorsal fins, the first short and low,
the second longer and higher, with a distinct diminution
between it and the first dorsal fin, and also with the dilated
membrane forming the caudal fin, which is somewhat round¬
ed, the fleshy portion of the tail being pointed ; a narrow
slip of membrane forms an anal fin.

Some variations occur in specimens of this fish from differ¬
ent localities, and there is even reason to suppose that two
species may exist. The most frequent colour is yellowish
brown, approaching to blackish brown on the top of the head
and upper part of the back, much lighter underneath and on
the fins.

The vignette was copied from a sketch of a fishing party
made by T. Stothard, R.A. about the year 1780.

462

PETROMYZID E.

THE MYXINE.

GLUTINOUS HAG, AND BORER.

Gastrobranchus ceecus, Blindjish, Bloch, pt. xii. pi. 413.

,, ,, Cuvier, Regne An. t. ii. p. 406.

,, ,, Glutinous Hag, Penn. Brit. Zool. vol. iii. p. 109.

Mixine glutinosa, Linn/eus.

,, ,, Glutinous Hag, Flem. Brit. An. p. 164, sp. 4.

,, ,, ,, ,, Jenyns, Man. Brit. Vert. p. 523,

sp. 213.

Generic Characters. — Body elongated, cylindrical, smooth ; dorsal fin very
low, continued round the tail to the vent ; a single spiracle on the head commu¬
nicating with the interior ; lips surrounded with eight barbules or cirri ; mouth
with one hook-like tooth ; tongue with two rows of teeth on each side ; branchial
apertures two, placed under the commencement of the belly.

The worm-like form of the fish figured above induced
several systematic authors, including Linnaeus, to class it
with the W orms ; and it was not till after dissections and
published descriptions that its true relations with the Lam¬
preys were acknowledged. Of these memoirs, that furnished
to the French Institute in 1797 by Bloch, the ichthvoloofist

M YXINE.

463

of Berlin, will be read with interest ; and the substance of it
will be found in the twelfth part of his valuable work on
Fishes, in which the internal structure is rendered obvious by
various coloured illustrations.

In the family of fishes now under consideration, the last
of vertebrate animals, the spinal column is in a rudimentary
condition. In the Lampreys it is but indistinctly divided
into rounded portions. In the Myxine, in place of a series
of bones composing the vertebral column, there is merely a
soft and flexible cartilaginous tube ;* while in the diminutive
fish next to be described, which is the last of the British
species, this support is reduced to a small and slender semi¬
transparent column, extending throughout and connecting
the whole length of the body like the flexible horny pen in
some species of Cephalopods, and to which class other rela¬
tions of structure both in the Myxine and in this small fish
will be pointed out.

As a British fish, the Myxine occurs most frequently on
the eastern coast. It enters, says PShnant, u the mouths of
other fish when on the hooks attached to the lines which
remain a tide under water, and totally devours the whole
except the skin and bones. The Scarborough fishermen
often take it in the robbed jisli on drawing up their lines. ^
On this part of our coast it is called Hag, and also Borer,
because, as others say, it first pierces a small aperture in the
skin, and afterwards buries its head in the abdomen or
body. It is most usually found in the body of the Cod, or
some other equally rapacious fish.

For the only specimens of the Myxine I ever possessed, I
am indebted to the unremitting kindness of Dr. George
Johnston of Berwick, who has assisted me most materially

*

If a section be made, a probe passes readily in either direction.

464

PET liOMYZI 1).E.

by sending me examples of many interesting speeies which
have been referred to throughout this work. The Myxine
is not uncommon at Berwick ; but it is only to be obtained
at a particular season of the year in one or two particular
localities, when during fine weather, at the end of spring or
the beginning of summer, the fishermen lay their long lines
on a bank with a soft mud bottom near that coast when
fishing for Cod and Haddock. It is considered by some
that the Myxine, which is without eyes, obtains access to
the interior of the body of the fish by passing in at the
anal aperture ; others endeavour to account for its being
found in the belly of a voracious fish by supposing it had
been swallowed ; while many experienced fishermen still
repeat their belief that the Myxine enters the mouth of the
Codfish while it is hanging on the line. It is conjectured
that the Myxine does not fasten upon any fish unless it be
either dead or entangled on a hook : but how a fish that is
blind is able to find its way to a particular aperture, is a
matter not easily explained. The eight barbules or cirri
about the mouth of the Myxine are, there is no doubt,
delicate organs of touch, by which it obtains cognizance of
the nature and quality of the substances with which they are
in contact ; and its single hooked tooth upon the palate en¬
ables it to retain its hold till the double rows of lingual teeth
are brought into action to aid the desire to obtain food.

The high northern geographical range of this singular fish
is shown by M. Nilsson including it among the fishes of
the shores of Scandinavia, where, he adds, four and even
six examples have been found within the body of one Had¬
dock, the flesh of which was entirely consumed. The Myx¬
ine is oviparous, and the ova are of the same colour, size,
and form as those of the Lampcrn, — that is, small, round,
and yellow.

MYXINE.

465

Along tlie whole length of the under surface of the body,
from head to tail, there are two rows of mucous pores, from
which a large quantity of a gelatinous secretion is expressed
occasionally at the will of the animal, and by which, either
in reference to its quality or quantity, or both, this fish is
said to escape its enemies. So copious and so thick in its
consistence is this jelly-like secretion, that some of the older
naturalists believed this fish had the power of converting-
water into glue, and it obtained in consequence the name of
the Glutinous Hao\

The body is elongated, eel-like in form, cylindrical
throughout the greater part of its length, tapering and com¬
pressed towards the tail ; the whole length from twelve to
fifteen inches ; the skin perfectly smooth and unctuous ;
the head obtusely pointed, with a single spiracle connected
with the interior of the mouth and branchise ; eyes wanting ;
eight tentacula, cirri, or feelers, as they are called, are placed
about the lips, four near the front, and two on each side ;
lips soft, extensible, inclining to a circle in their figure ;
one single hooked tooth on the palate ; the tongue fur¬
nished with four rows of small pointed teeth, two rows on
each side : at the division between the thoracic and abdo¬
minal cavities are two external apertures, each of which is
connected by a membranous tube with the six branchiae on
its own side ; hence Bloch's name of Gastrobranchus . The
anal aperture is an elongated fissure situated about two
inches before the end of the tail ; along the whole under
surface of the body are ranged two rows of pores, which
afford egress to the secretion of the numerous glands within ;
the dorsal fin is low and rudimentary, except towards the
tail, where the membrane is dilated, and being continued
round the end of the tail, and thence upwards to the anal
aperture, forms in addition a caudal and an anal tin, which

466

PET ROM YZID.E.

no doubt materially assist this fish in swimming. In colour
the Myxine is dark brown along the back, lighter chestnut
brown on the sides, and yellowish white underneath.

The vignette here added is from a drawing by Mr. Clift,
engraved for the Philosophical Transactions for the year
1815, where it illustrates a paper by Sir E. Home on the
organs of respiration in the Lamprey and Myxine.

The upper angle of the figure exhibits the single spiracle,
about it the eight tentacula, on the centre of the palate the
single hooked tooth ; to the right and left are the double
rows of lingual teeth : an inch below, on each side, are the
six branchial cells, with their internal communications with
the central canal ; on the outside each cell communicates with
a tube that is common to the six cells on that side, which,
passing downward, ends at the external aperture below.
Beneath this is the stomach and intestinal canal, which, as
in the Lamprey, is straight ; the rounded marks along the
margin on both sides from end to end show the numerous
mucous glands that have already been referred to. It is
impossible to dissect a Myxine, and attend to the structure
and substance of its investing skin, without being forcibly
reminded of its great resemblance to the investing mantle of
the Ceplialopods.

The relations of structure in the Myxine to the Lampreys
on the one hand, and the first class of mollusca, the Ceplia-
lopods, on the other, appear to prove that the situation
claimed for this fish by Bloch, and systematic authors since
his time, is the natural one. The relation to the Lampreys
is shown in the elongated, cylindrical form of the body ; the
single spiracle on the head ; the general similarity in the
parts of the mouth ; the character of the branchial cells, and
the viscera.

The relation to the Ceplialopods is apparent in the eight

MYXINE.

467

tentacula or feelers about the head, the horny but flexible
nature of the columnar support of the body, the character of
its external covering, and by the power of ejecting a copious
secretion whenever it considers itself in danger.

PETR0MYZ1D/E.

468

CHON DROPTEllYG 1 1 .

PETROMYZI DJE.

THE LANCELET.

Ampliioxus lanceolatus, Yarrell.

Limax ,, Pallas, Spic. Zool.X. p. 19, t. i. fig. 11.

Generic Characters. — Body compressed, the surface without scales, both ends
pointed ; a single dorsal fin extending the whole length of the back ; no pec¬
toral, ventral, anal, or caudal fins ; mouth on the under part of the head nar¬
row, elongated, each lateral margin furnished with a row of slender filaments.

The singular little animal here figured of the natural size,
although one of the smallest, as well as the last, among
British fishes, is by no means deficient in interest. The
specimen, the only one I ever saw, and which is probably
also the only one that has been taken for many years, was
sent to me by Mr. Couch, who found it himself on the
shore near Polperro. A portion of the tail of this little
fish was sticking out from underneath a stone in a small

LANCELET.

469

pool left by the tide. Mr. Couch perceiving it, took it up with
some water in the hollow of his hands. It was alive, very
active, and so transparent that the viscera were perceivable
through the external covering. It was taken home by Mr.
Couch, who made a drawing of its appearance under a mi¬
croscope.

The only notice of this little animal on record that I have
become acquainted with is that by Pallas, in his Spicilegia
Zoological already quoted ; and I insert at the foot of the
page, as a note, the Latin description of Pallas,* believing
that the reader will then have before him all that has been
published of this very rare little animal, of which, at least
as far as I am aware, possibly no other specimen has been
found or noticed since that to which Pallas refers, and
which, it is not a little singular, was also obtained from
Cornwall.

Of the specimen in his possession Pallas says, 66 Quod
nunquam vivum vidi, sed liquore servatum e mari Cornubiam
adluente accepi olim, quodque prima facie refert piscem
Leptocephalum Gronovii.11

At first sight this little fish has somewhat the appearance
of a Leptocephalus , a British fish first sent to Gronovius
by our countryman and zoologist Pennant ; it more par¬
ticularly resembles it in the arrangement of the striae on
the flattened sides : but Leptocephalus , as will appear by
a reference to the figure of it in this volume at page 311,
has a perfect head, though a small one, with jaws, teeth,

* “ Limax lanceolatus. Corpus anceps, planum, lineari lanceolatum, utrin-
que acutissimum. Margo undique limbo membranaceo auctus ; subtus vero ad
duas tertias longitudinis margo bilabiatus est, sulcatusque, ut sit quasi pes
limacinus angustissimus. Tentacula plane nulla. Latera striis obsoletis,
antrorsum obliquatis prope dorsum angulo recurvatis, ut quasi latus pisciculi
desquamatum referant.”

470

PETR OMYZIDE.

eyes, and gill-covers ; while the fish under consideration has
neither eyes nor gill-covers, nor any fins except one along
the back.

Supported by the opinions of three or four zoological
friends, I have placed this little animal in this family, near
the cyclostomous fishes, believing it to be, as far as at present
known, the lowest in organization among this class ; and
although I am unwilling to mutilate entirely by my rough
dissection the only specimen probably I shall ever possess,
and which is perhaps unique, I shall yet be able to show, by
the figures given and some further description, that this
animal is entitled to a place at the end of the present
family.

The form of the fish is compressed ; the head pointed,
without any trace of eyes ; the nose rather produced : the
mouth on the under edge, in shape an elongated fissure,
the sides of which are flexible ; from the inner margin ex¬
tend various slender filaments, regularly disposed, which
cross and intermingle with those of the opposite side. Along
the sides of the body the muscles are arranged in regular
order, diverging from a central line, one series passing ob¬
liquely upward and backward, the other series as obliquely
downward and backward : the anal aperture is situated one-
fourth of the whole length of the fish, in advance of the
end of the tail ; the tail itself pointed : from the nose to
the end of the tail a delicate membranous dorsal fin extends
the whole length of the back, supported by very numerous
and minute soft rays ; the surface of the body smooth.

The body is strengthened and supported internally
throughout its length by a flexible cartilaginous column,
from which the numerous muscles diverge ; the cavity of the
abdomen is comparatively large ; the intestine a canal of

LANCE LET.

47 1

considerable calibre, without convolution ; above it a double
row of flattened globular bodies, which have all the appear¬
ance of ova. The figure at the top of the illustration re¬
presents this fish of the natural size. The right-hand figure
in the middle line is an enlarged representation of the
mouth as seen from below, with the filaments from each side
stretching across the opening ; the outline on the left of the
middle is a magnified view of the two portions of the hyoid
or lingual bone, to which the filaments are attached, one
branch of which bone is divided, and the cut portions
turned up and down to expose the other perfect side ; the
figure at the base is a magnified view of the appearance of
the whole fish.

Several relations in structure to the Lampreys and Myx-
ine are observable in the fringed mouth, the armed lingual
bone, the absence of eyes, and the want of pectoral and
ventral fins. Of its habits, that only which has been stated
is known : it is extremely active when in water, and its
food is probably some of the most minute among the thin-
skinned Crustacea, or decomposing animal matter.

It may perhaps be expected that I should state on what
grounds I have ventured to differ from such a naturalist
as Pallas in considering this animal a fish, and not a Limax .
It is distinguished from the Limaces by the absence of the
ventral muscular disk for locomotion ; and from every other
molluscous genus, in the position of the anal aperture, which
is unconnected with the respiratory cavity. On the other
hand, the dorsal fin, and regular oblique strata of muscular
fibres clothing the sides of the body and having their points
of origin attached to a firm dorsal internal axis, — with the
existence of a lengthened internal vertebral column, although
in a soft cartilaginous state, as in the Myxine, — are sufficient

PET ROM YZ I D/E.

472

to determine tlic primary division of animals to whicli the
Amphioxus belongs.

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This edition “is ornamented with Eighteen Designs, from the
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peculiar characteristics of the mouths, and 6 tail-pieces. Price 4s. 6d. cl.

“A beautiful little book, which we can warmly recommend lo every lover of
nature.”— Loudon’s Gardeners’ Magazine.

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JOHN VAN VOORST, I, PATERNOSTER- ROW.

CABINET EDITION OF THE HOLY BIBLE;

The Authorized Version, with 24 highly finished steel engravings,
beautifully printed and elegantly bound, price 10s. 6d.

“ Very handsomely got up in every respect, — form, typography, binding, and
illustrations; and, consequently, well merits the public encouragement.”

Literary Gazette.

THE BOOK OF COMMON PLAYER.

The Authorized Version, with 10 Engravings, executed in the best
manner on steel, elegantly bound, price 4s. Uniform in size with the

Bible above.

LITTLE FABLES FOR LITTLE FOLKS.

Selected for their moral tendency; and re-written in Familiar Words,
not one of which exceeds Two Syllables.

Designed as Reading Lessons, to amuse and instruct. Illustrated with

Wood-cuts, price 2s.

“ A remarkably pretty collection of Fables, illustrated with wood-cuts, which
would not discredit a work of more pretensions. — Athen^um.

THE ECONOMY OF HUMAN LIFE;

IN TWELVE BOOKS. BY DODSLEY.

Cabinet Edition, with Twelve Plates, beautifully engraved on Steel,
from original Designs by Frank Howard, Harvey, Williams, &c.
Neatly done up, with gilt edges, price 5s.

“ A new and delightful edition of a delightful little work ; a prettier present
for youth we know not.” — Court Journal.

ELEMENTS OF PRACTICAL KNOWLEDGE;

OR, THE YOUNG ENQUIRER ANSWERED :

Explaining in Question and Answer, and in familiar language, what
most things daily used, seen, or talked of, are ; what they are made of,
where found, and to what uses applied. Including articles of Food and
Aliment ; miscellanies in common use ; Metals, Gems, Jewellery ; and
some account of the principal Inventions, and most interesting Manu¬
factures. In 18mo. witWUlustrations, price 3s. cloth.

“ Our attention has of late been frequently directed to improved books of
education adapted for juvenile minds, and we can venture, with confidence, to
recommend this as an excellent work of this kind.” — Asiatic Journal.

THE MULTIPLICATION TABLE,

Newly arranged ; the Figures being placed in the same order as for
Sums. Divided into Twenty-two easy Lessons for the use of Young
Children. Price Is. in a Box.

Dedicated to Master James Rowles. By Caroline Whitfield.

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JOHN VAN VOORST, I, PATERNOSTER-ROW.

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