5. cypRiNus. 25 



Second Group. CYPRININA. 



Anal fin very short, with not more than five or six, exception- 

 ally seven, branched rays. Dorsal fin opposite ventrals. Abdomen 

 not compressed. Lateral line running along the median line of 

 the tail. Mouth frequently with barbels, never more than four 

 in number. Pharyngeal teeth generally in a triple series in the 

 Old World genera, in a double or single series in the North 

 American forms, which are small and feebly developed. Air- 

 bladder present, without osseous covering. 



5. CYPRINUS*. 



C}'prinus, sp., Artedi, Cnv. Regne Anim. 

 Cv'priuus, Nilsson. 



Scales large. Dorsal fin long, with a more or less strong, ser- 

 rated osseous ray ; anal short. Snout rounded, obtuse ; mouth an- 

 terior, rather uaiTow. Pharyngeal teeth 3.1. 1 — 1 .1.3, molar- 

 like. Barbels four. 



Temperate parts of Europe and Asia. The common species is 

 domesticated, and has degenerated iuto many varieties. 



1. Cypiinus carpio. 

 The Carp. Karpfen. La carpe. 



KuTrpTfor, Aristot. Hist. An. iv. c. 8 ; ii. c. 1.3 ; vi. c. 14 ; \{\\. c. 20. 

 Cypriuus, Rondel. De Pise. Lacustr. p. loO; Salrian. Fish. 02: Bellon. 



IJe Aquat. p. 273 ; Gesner, De Aqtiat. p. 309 ; Aldrovand. De Pise. 



p. 637 ; 3Iarsi/. Danxh. Pan.-Mys. p. 57, tab. 19 : Gronov. Zoophyl. 



no. 330; Klein, Miss. v. p. 59. no. 1. 

 Carp, WiUiigh. IIi.^t. Pise. p. 245, tab. Q 1. f. 2 ; Petm. Brit. Zool. 



iii. p. 309, pi. 70, and edit. 1812, iii. p. 467, pi. 81 ; Couch, Fish. 



Brit. Isl. iv. p. 4. 



* Dr. Bleeker, Atl. Ichthyol. iii. p. 73, says, " I'espece tyjnque du genre 

 Cyprinus. Art., etant im Leuciscus, on ne peut appliquer le nom de Cypriniis a 

 un e;enre tout different." A.s if Artedi had ever had the intention of exjiressing 

 the idea of a generic type by placing it first in the series of species! The least 

 acquaintance with his works shows the contrary : thus he places C. ritfilits as 

 first species in the ' Genera,' C. ich(s in the ' Species ' and, finally, C. carpio in the 

 ' Synonymy.' Further, he was too well acquainted \rith the preceding literature 

 not to know that the name Ci/p>-ini<s belonged originally to the Carp alone; and 

 thence he transferred it to other species which he associated with tlie t'arp. To 

 him, all his species of Cyprinus were equivalents; and tho.se fanciful and some- 

 times convenient modern ideas of typical species are entirely absent from his 

 sy.stem. How can it be sup))osed, for instance, that he regarded the Sawfish 

 as the type of his genus Squalus ? 



Doubtful species : — 

 1. Cyprinus nancar, Bur/i. Ham. Fish. Ganges, p. 200. — Found in tlie small 

 rivers of the Goraklipur district. 



