194 PHYSOSTOMT. 



Lake Bream, Couch, Fish. Brit. Isles, iv, p. 36, pi. clxxxvii; Houghton, British 

 Freshwater Fishes, p. 53, c. fig. 



{Immature.) 



Cyprinus farenus, Linn. Syst. Nat. p. 532 ; Nilss. Prod. Ich. Scan. p. 30 ; 

 Ekstr. Fiske "Morko, p. 40, t. 'iii ; Siebold, Wiegm.' Arch. 1836, p. 327; Kroyer, 

 Wiegm. Arch. 1837, p. 393. 



(Hybrid with Leuciscus erythrophthalmus.') 



Cyprinus Buggenliagii, Bloch, Ich. p. 144, t. xcv. 



Abramis Leuclcartii, Heckel, Ann. Wien. Mus. i, p. 229, t. xx, fig. 5 ; Cuv. and 

 Val. xvii, p. 59 ; Heckel and Kner, Suss. w. f. p. 117, f. 61. 



Abramis Buggenliagii, Thompson, Proc. Zool. Soc. 1837, p. 56 and Nat. Hist. 

 Ireland, iv, p. 137; Tarrell, Brit. Fishes (ed. 2) i, p. 391, c. fig. (ed. 3) i, p. 407; White, 

 Catal. p. 63 ; Blanchard, Poissons, p. 357, fig. 75 ; Moreau, Poiss. France, iii, p. 400. 



Abramis Heclcelii, Selys-Longch. Fauna Belg. p. 217, p. 8. 



Leuciscus Buggenliagii, Cuv. and Val. xvii, p. 53. 



Abramidopsis Leuckartii, Siebold, Suss. w. f. p. 117, f. 61. 



Pomeranian bream, Couch, Fish. Brit. Isles, iv, p. 42, pi. clxxxix ; Houghton, 

 British Freshwater Fishes, p. 58, c. fig. 



B. iii, D. 11-12 ( V), P- 15-17, V. 10, A. 27-31 (^ ), C. 19, L. 1. 50-63, 



Ti tr n ' U Vert SJl-^JL 



Length of head 5 to 6, of caudal fin 4| to 4|, height of body 3 to 3f in the 

 total length. Eyes diameter 4 to 5-| in the length of the head, H diameters 

 from the end of the snout, and 2 diameters apart. Body oval, elevated and 

 strongly compressed. Head small, snout short and obtuse, mouth protractile 

 and small, upper jaw slightly the longer and reaching posteriorly to below the 

 anterior nostril: lips moderately developed. Teeth pharyngeal 5/5 compressed 

 and notched at their extremity. Fins the dorsal commences slightly behind 

 the base of the ventral and about midway between the front edge of the eye 

 and the base of the caudal fin, and just below the end of the highest point 

 of the dorsal profile, while its last ray is on a line with the first of the anal: 

 it is highest anteriorly. Pectoral inserted low down and as long as the head 

 excluding the snout, it reaches to above the commencement of the ventral and 

 the latter to the origin of the anal. The anal fin is falciform, and highest anteriorly. 

 Caudal deeply forked. Scales of medium size, higher than wide, Q\ or 7-i 

 between the lateral-line and base of ventral fin. On the edge of the abdomen 

 between the ventral and anal fins, the scales do not pass across forming a sharp 

 keeled edge. Lateral-line curves downwards, passing along the lower third of 

 the body to the base of the caudal fin. Colours back of a dull olive or sea-green, 

 lighter on the sides and beneath, the abdomen being silvery tinged with pink. In 

 old fish the body becomes more of a yellowish colour. Fins brownish, the 

 pectoral rays being often tinged with scarlet, which colour may be seen in the first 

 few rays of all the other fins. 



Varieties. This fish is subject to considerable local variations of race, so much 

 so that without a series of specimens it might almost be thought that new species 

 were being obtained. 



Names. Common bream, yellow bream when old due to its colour : carp bream., 

 when its colour resembles that of a carp. Brem, Welsh. Be Brasem, Dutch. La 

 Breme, French. 



Habits. This gregarious fish, which is of a hardy nature, is found in many 

 sluggish rivers, canals, ponds, broads, and lakes in this country, but swift running 

 waters and pebbly bottoms are unsuited to it. Donovan observes that the fisher- 

 men assert that when the bream ascends rivers they are collected into small shoals, 

 each of which is preceded by a leader who directs the course of the shoal and 

 differs in appearance from the rest. This is called by the fishermen the " Queen 

 bream." This, however, is thought by some to refer to the hybrids which will be 

 presently described. It feeds on the larvae and adult of water insects, on worms, 

 as also on aquatic vegetable siibstances, and is very tenacious of life. 



