GOBIES AND BLENNIES. 163 



others inhabit rivers, some are found only in the 

 fresh -water marshes of tropical countries, and one 

 genus is peculiar to the lake of Baikal, that great 

 Alpine sea of fresh water that lies embosomed 

 among the mountains in the very heart of Asia. 



There are three well-marked sub-families of 

 the Gobiadcs, which are thus discriminated. 



1. Blennina. The ventrals in this group are 

 very small and thick, consisting of not more than 

 two or three cylindrical rays each, enveloped in 

 the common skin: the head is thick, fat, and ob- 

 tuse ; the lips are thick and fleshy. The body is 

 compressed and lengthened, clothed with minute 

 scales, and enveloped in an unctuous slime. There 

 is one long dorsal, composed almost entirely of 

 unjointed, but flexible rays. About one hundred 

 and seventy species are contained in this sub-family, 

 of which eight are natives of our own seas: the rest 

 are spread over the fresh and salt waters of the 

 countries that border the Atlantic, almost exclu- 

 sively. Mr. Swainson indeed says, " it appears that 

 this Family is distributed over every part of the 

 world but Asia ; or at least it is a singular fact, 

 that in the two best works we yet possess upon 

 the fishes of India, not one species has been re- 

 corded."* But he has overlooked Salarias, Cir- 

 rhibarba, and Ojnstognathus, which are all Indian 

 genera. The Blennies are almost all fishes of 

 very small size and insignificant appearance, 

 rarely exceeding a few inches in leiigth. To 

 this statement, however, there is one exception, 

 the "Wolf-fish, or Sea-cat {Anarrhichas lupus, 

 Linn.), of the northern seas, which is of no in- 

 frequent occurrence on the Scottish coasts. This 



* Monocardians, ii. 72. 



