146 SCOMBERID.E. 



" There is not on sea or river, always excepting angling 

 for Salmon, any sport comparable to this delightful amuse- 

 ment ; full of life and bustle, everything about it is animated 

 and exhilarating ; a brisk breeze, a fair sky, the boat in quick 

 and constant motion, all is calculated to interest and excite. 

 He who has experienced the glorious sensations of sailing on 

 the western ocean, a bright autumnal sky above, a deep green 

 lucid swell around, a steady breeze, and as much of it as the 

 hooker can stand up to, will estimate the exquisite enjoy- 

 ment our morning's Mackerel fishing afforded. 11 



The number of fin-rays in the Mackerel is, 



D. 10 13 V : P. 13 : V. 6 : A. 11 V. : C. 22. 



The nose is pointed ; the under jaw the longest ; the teeth 

 are alike in both jaws, resembling small pointed cones, curv- 

 ing slightly inward, and placed in a single row ; the anterior 

 edge of the eye one third of the distance from the point of 

 the upper jaw to the edge of the operculum ; the irides partly 

 concealed by a membrane before and behind ; the eye itself 

 said to be more or less opaque during the colder months : 

 preoperculum triangular ; operculum large, rounded, and 

 smooth : the pectoral and ventral fins both in advance of the 

 first ray of the first dorsal fin, the pectoral fin the most so ; 

 the vent in a line under the first ray of the second dorsal fin ; 

 the five finlets above and below the fleshy portion of the tail, 

 behind the second dorsal and the anal fins, placed vertically 

 over each other ; the tail crescent-shaped ; the lateral line 

 ascends gradually from the tail to its termination over the 

 pectoral fin : the colour of the back above the lateral line is a 

 fine green, varied with rich blue, and marked with broad, 

 dark, descending lines. Mr. Donovan says, " The males have 

 these dark transverse bands nearly straight ; while in females 

 these bands are elegantly undulated. 11 The elongated gill- 

 cover and more attenuated form of body of the males of fish 



