52 



UMBKTNA. 



The fish, in careless ease supinely laid. 



The diver's grasping fingers swift invade; 



Up from the deep he springs, and shews his prey, 



Torn from his cave to gasp his life away." 



Oppian. B. 4. 



According to Columella it was one of the fishes that was 

 kept in their salt-water ponds by the Romans. 



It is with the intention of furnishing observers with means 

 by which they may be able to decide on the presence of this 

 fish, if it shall be found again to visit our coasts, that we 

 borrow our description, with a figure, from Willoughby, whose 

 observations were obtained from the examination of recent 

 examples in the Mediterranean. The specimens he met with 

 did not exceed the usual size of a Carp, to the general 

 form of which he supposes it to bear a likeness; but Belon 

 described it as attaining the weight of sixty pounds, and a 

 length of five or six feet. We see above that the English 

 example was heavier even than this. The shape is somewhat 

 compressed, narrow at the back, and rising higher behind the 

 head, but growing more slender behind. The lateral line runs 

 along the middle of the side, but is bent near its origin 

 and termination. The scales of the body are of good size, 

 with incised edge:., but on the head they are small, and 

 extend over the gill-covers and to the mouth. The middle 

 border of the gill-cover is serrated; (Lacepede says there is a 

 spine on the hindmost gill-cover.) The under jaw short; gape 

 moderate; teeth very fine and slender. The barb on the under 

 jaw is so short as by Rondeletius to be termed a wart. The 

 dorsal fins two, very close together; tail straight or slightly 

 curved. The general colour yellow; the sides beautifully 

 adorned with circles or curved lines, in their course turning 

 towards the head, their colour leaden and pale yellow inter- 

 changeably: (in some instances a fine blue, becoming white 

 lower down; a black spot on the border of the gill-cover; 

 pectorals, ventrals, and tail dark; anal reddish; dorsals brown, 

 with two longitudinal white bands on the first dorsal.) 



There is some confusion in the writings of Willoughby and 

 Ray in their accounts of this and kindred fishes; but there 

 does not appear any reason to doubt that the species described 

 by Willoughby at page oOO, under the name of Umbrino, is 

 the same with his Umbra as referred to above, but which he 



