MINNOW. 67 



fTepth, mid moderately compressed. The snout rounded, vmdcr 

 jaw a little the shortest, nostrils large and ojien; eyes large; 

 summit of the head broad, body rounded over the back; scales 

 scarcely perceptible. The first ray of the dorsal fin at the 

 middle, as measured from the snout to the fork of the tail, 

 with nine rays, but also with a first ray very short, making 

 ten; the last two from one root. Anal fin beginning about 

 opposite the last ray of the dorsal, with seven rays; tail wide, 

 forked, with nineteen rays; pectoral pointed; ventral nine rays. 

 Colour of the top of the head and back dark green, with darker 

 bars, plainly visible in some, less so in others; a yellow line 

 from the upper part of the gill-covers to the tail; cheeks yellow: 

 faint yellow or whitish on the belly; fins generally pale yellow; 

 a dark spot at the root of the tail. In some specimens a dark 

 brown line from the eye to the mystache; and in the breeding 

 season the under parts a lively pink. The breadth across the 

 head with a narrowing towards the mouth is the best proof 

 that this fish is the true PJwxinus of Aristotle; whose name of 

 it, as signifying "formed like a top," is applicable to such a 

 shape. 



