AND THE FISH THEREOF. 79 



poisonous fluid is lodged, and by which it is inoculated into the punctured 

 wound." The white gall of the cuttle-fish is used for wounds inflicted by 

 these fishes and the sting-ray, and, according to Costa, the fishermen of 

 Gaeta apply the juice of the Euphorbia titimalus as a remedy for the sting 

 of the Adder-pike. The spine of the operculum is generally cut off before 

 exposure for sale. 



There are two species of Fisiiing-frogs, or Anglers, the British species 

 Lop hiu s piscatorhis, and a second species L. btidegassa, which is the smaller 

 but the preferable of the two, and is sometimes very common at Fiume ; 

 these are amongst the most common of fishes, and are to be found in our 

 markets all the year round, furnishing cheap food for the lower classes. T ne y 

 owe their name to a filament placed in the middle of the head, which termi- 

 nates in a lappet, and is movable in every direction, and is used by the fish to 

 play just in front of its wide mouth as a bait to allure fishes, which are thus 

 caught ; they inhabit the beds, and hide in the sand or amongst sea-weed. 



The Gurnards {Triglidce) are little valued as food, and belong to the 

 third class. The Sapphirine Gurnard (Lucerna venetoruni) is the best of the 

 genus, and owes its name (Lucerna) to the great phosphorescence it produces. 

 This species, besides the streaked Gurnard, and the Piper, are the commonest 

 of the tribe ; they are not caught in sufficient quantities to be of any import- 

 ance. Dr. Gtinther informs us that the grunting noise made by gurnards 

 when taken out of the water is caused by the escape of gas from the air- 

 bladder through the open pneumatic duct. There are altogether seven 

 species of this tribe. 



The Cataphracti furnish two species, both rare in the Adriatic, viz., the 

 mailed Gurnard, or "Fork-fish" (Forcato), a name derived from its prolonged 

 praeorbitals, which project beyond the snout in the shape of a fork, and which 

 are often broken off against the rocks : it inhabits deep water, and has 

 been caught in the Dalmatian archipelago. The second species is the Flying 

 Gurnard (Dactylopterus volitans), a species which belongs to the class gene- 

 rally known as Flying-fishes, which comprises the Flying-herrings (Exoccetus), 

 these being the only two fishes which are enabled by their long pectoral fins 

 to take flying leaps out of the water (Gtinther). They are much heavier and 



