175 



EKSTEOM^S TOPKNOT. 



Rhombus cardina, Feies and Ekstkom; Scandinavian 



Fishes, pi. 50. 

 " norvegicns, Gunthek; Cat. Br. M., vol. iv, p. 412. 



There is much confusion in the t'O'o or three "vn'iters I 

 have been able to consult on the fish to which I have assigned 

 the English name as above; and there cannot be a doubt 

 that the name RJiomhus cardina given to it by the Swedish 

 authors, in their work on Scandinaidan fishes is misapplied, as 

 it bears little likeness to the species which is thus named by 

 Cuvier, who refers to Jago's figure in Ray's Sjoioj^sis, f. 2, 

 where it is represented under the name of A\TiifF. This last 

 named fish, Rhoynhus cardina of Cuvier, is the Carter of our 

 work. But on the other hand, Ekstrom's Topknot so nearly 

 resembles the species of Topknots we have already described, 

 that I have no doubt it has been hitherto confounded with 

 them, although when seen together the difference is easily 

 discerned. 



The example from which our figure and description have 

 been taken, is the first that has been recognised in Britain; 

 and it was caught in the Bristol Channel early in the year 

 1863, from whence it came into the possession of Edmund T. 

 Higgins, Esq., to whom I am indebted for the oj^portunity of 

 making it known to naturalists. 



Its habits appear to be little known even to the Swedish 

 authors. Fries, Ekstrom, and Xilsson, who mention it; but 

 there is reason to believe that its resort is less in rocky 

 ground than the two other kinds of Topknots. Compared 

 with them the proportion is not nearly so wide in comparison 

 with the length, and it is also much thinner; gape wide; 

 angle of the mouth depressed; lower jaw a little protruding, 

 with a small chin. Eyes near each other, separated by a thin 



