42 Mr. Thompson on Gob. minutus and Cycl. minutus 



Instead of the spotting on the body, which forms the most 

 prominent character of the Gob. minutus, the Cycl. minutus is 

 described by Pallas and Turton to be whitish. 



The specimens of Gob. minutus, Cycl. minutus and the 

 smallest C. hanpus of adult form, and possessing all the rows of 

 tubercles, have a straight dark line (which in the recent exam- 

 ples of Gob. minutus was of a blue colour) extending from 

 each eye to the corner of the mouth just beneath ; this does 

 not, however, bespeak identity of species, as in the Liparis 

 Moutayui I Lu.ve observed the same marking. All of these 

 specimens but the last are comparatively more elongate in 

 form than the mature C. lumpus. A similar remark has been 

 made by Montagu respecting the Lepadogaster bimaculatus, 

 the fry of which he states are proportionally longer in the 

 body than the adults. ' Wern. Mem./ i. 92. 



Thirdly, — As favouring the opinion of the identity of Cycl. 

 minutus, Pall., and C. lumpus, it may be remarked with respect 

 to the three tubercles on the snout, attributed to the former 

 species, that they are likewise possessed by specimens of the 

 C. lumpus of the extremes of size examined, one an inch long, 

 (as to the rows of tubercles a well-marked C. lumpus,) and an- 

 other 18 inches in length, equally displaying them. 



In the form of the spines or tubercles, a very interesting 

 change takes place, analogous to that in the Trigla Cuculus 

 and T. Gurnardus (see Annals for February), but to a much 

 less extent, and requiring a much shorter time to be perfected. 



The armature first appears in a spinous form, thus /% — in 

 the specimen an inch long, thus / f , or like a shark's tooth; 



■ 



and in the individual 18 inches long, thus^j^^^ — in the adult 



fish only one slightly projecting central point is generally pre- 

 sent ; of all the large tubercles on the body of the last-men- 

 tioned specimen two only exhibit more than one point : the 

 " spurious dorsal fin" in this fish is a series of compressed tu- 

 bercles. 



The C. lumpus occurs in all the localities in which the 

 Gob. minutus and Cycl. minutus are stated to have been found. 



