Art. VI] 



Her RICK, Taste in Fishes. 



57 



current branch into the trunk, the ramus laterah's accessorius, 

 which passes out of the cranium as a practically pure communis 

 nerve, anastomoses with the spinal nerves at their ganglia and 

 its fibers are ultimately distributed along with the geneial cutan- 

 eous fibers from these spinal ganglia. Fig, 3 illustrates the 

 courses of the chief cutaneous branches of the communis system 

 in Ameiiinis mclas. the nerves of all other systems bei.ig omit- 

 ted from the sketch. 



Fig. J. A projection of the cutaneous branches of the communis root of 

 the facial nerve in Ameiurus melas, as seen from the right side. The outline 

 of the brain is indicated by the stippled area and the positions of the eye and 

 anterior and posterior nostrils are indicated. The projection is reconstructed 

 from serial sections, but is not drawn accurately to scale. More detailed recon- 

 siruLtioiis of the cranial nerves and lateral line sense organsof this fish are given 

 in the Journal of Comparative Neurology, Vol. XI, No. 3, Plates XVI, XIV and 

 XV (Herrick, '01). 



Proximally of the geniculate ganglion the communis root 

 of the facialis pursues an uncomplicated course to the primary 

 gustatory center within the medulla oblongata. In most 

 fishes this root passes back close to the floor of the 

 fourth ventricle a"^ the fasciculus communis ( = fasc. soli- 

 tarius of mammals) to terminate in the vagal lobe of the 

 same side and receives in its course the communis root of 

 the glossopharyngeus nerve. But in siluroids and cyprinoids, 

 where the very abundant terminal buds of the outer skin are all 

 innervated from the communis root of the facial nerve, the con-, 

 sequent increase 'n the size of this root has resulted in a great 



