LrMI' SIYKKIi. 



297 



well MS diiriiiii' Ainitli, tin- liciiiiit (iC tlic second dorsiil 

 till is ciiumI to tli<' length nf its husc 'i'lic cinidnl liii 

 is also sli^'htly rounded or sonu'tiiiR's iiliiiost truncate: 

 the middle rays are sli<i'litly longer tliaii tlie niitcriiKist 

 hraiiched rays, their length, which relatively decreases 

 witii age, varying hetMceii 2''> % (in young specimens) 

 and 1(! % (in old), or, liy oui' measurements, exactly 

 '22"8 % and 16"2 % of the length of the body, or 71 % 

 and (i5 % (7ri and ^Wh %) of tiic lengtii of the iiead. 

 The Baltic specimens are distinguished, iiowever, liy 

 longer rays in tliis tin also, the length of tiie caudal 

 tin at the middle in specimens 150 — 170 nun. long 

 being about 18 % (18'1 — 18"4) of that of the body or 

 6G % ((;5-(i— 65-8) of that of the head. In the caudal 

 fin we \\vA.\ sometimes find 8 supporting rays above 

 and lielow; l)ut as a rule, only one of these rays can 

 be distinguished at the top of the fin, and two at the 

 bottom. Most of the nine true rays are simple during 

 youth, and in old specimens the outermost ray on each 

 side or on the one side is simple or at least indistinctly 

 branched. All the rays in the second dorsal, anal and 

 caudal fins are rough with small spines, but the mem- 

 brane between the rays is smooth and, especially in 

 the caudal fin, very ductile. 



Among the internal organs the intestinal canal is 

 remarkable for its great length and the number of the 

 pyloric appendages. The o-sophagus is ^\■ide and straight, 

 but the stomach curves forward and extends to the 

 diaphragm, where the pylorus with its numerous appen- 

 dages occupies the I'ight side of the abdominal cavity, 

 the li^•cr Iving chiefly to the left. The intestine itself 

 lies in a number of coils, its length being considerably 

 greater than that of the body. The urinary bladder, 

 which lies at the termination of the abdominal cavity, be- 

 hind the vent, is also remarkably large. During the spawn- 

 ing-season the generative organs are considerably tumid. 



The coloration in the old specimens is liluish gray, 

 darker (blackish gray) nii the l)ack, with large dark 

 spots on the sides, and almost everywhere strewn with 

 small black dots on the skin, most of the spines and 

 l)lates being tij)ped with brown. During the spawning- 

 season these colours arc intensified, and the males are 

 marked by their red belly, as shown in v. Whight's 

 two figures of old specimens (Plate XVI, figs. <^ and 



9). "The iris is brassy yellow, with a dash of a darker 

 tint," says Kkstuom, "but when the fish has been out 

 (if tlie water for some length of time, the iris turns 

 siK'er-white." The living young specimens, in which, 

 accoi-ding to Muiuus and Heiscke", we find the live- 

 liest play of colour, are thus described by Fries''. "The 

 whole fish is of a greenish yellow colour, thickly punc- 

 tated with a number of fine, dark dots, visible only 

 under the magnifying-glass. A narrow, bluish stripe, 

 witli a silvery lustre, follows a somewhat winding course 

 on each side from the point of the nostrils to the eye 

 and thence across the sides of the head to the point 

 of the gill-cover. In some specimens this stripe begins 

 on tlie upper jaw. The eyes have an orange ring next 

 the pupil, and the rest of the iris is very thickly punc- 

 tat(;d with dark brown, on a varying golden and sih'eiy 

 ground. All the fins are transparent, with the e.xcep- 

 tion of the anterior dorsal, wdiich is of the ground- 

 colour of the body, and in some specimens has a little 

 silvery spot or similar transverse band near its point, 

 and of the collar running from the jiectoral fins, which 

 is of a handsome flame-yellow colour, and in .some spe- 

 cimens crossed by a silvery transverse band. Sometimes, 

 too, we find small silvery spots, inconstant in number 

 and shape, at the base of the pectoral fins, beside the 

 adhesive disk, and on the dorsal edge behind the pos- 

 terior dorsal fin', but their occurrence is only partial 

 in some cases." 



The difference in the coloration has given rise to 

 different names for the sexes. In Scania, as in Den- 

 mark, tlie male is called Sfenbit (Stone-biter), the fe- 

 male Qvahbso (Angler-sow), these names being also 

 used, according to Malm, on Gaso in Bohushln. In 

 the north of BohuslSn, on the other hand, the female 

 is said to be called Bdnka, a reminiscence of the Nor- 

 wegian name for the species, Rogn-kal (Roe-fellow) for 

 the male and liogn-kexe (Roe-hag) for the female. In 

 the Baltic the species is more commonly known as Sju- 

 rygn'', as we are told even by Artedi and Lixx^us, 

 and also, in Gothland, Stainbajtare (= Stenbit) and on 

 Faro S)io>\fojbnl (Snivel-fellow) and Staiubuck (Stone- 

 buck), according to Lisdstrom. We have thus every 

 reason to suppose that the Lumj) Sucker has attracted 

 considerable attention on the part of fishermen and 



" Fische der Ostsee. p. 57. 



' Vet.-Akad. Handl. 18.S8, p. 231. C'f. Plate XVI. figg. jin:, wliich are copied from v. Wright's drawings executed for Fries. 



' Sec above, fig. 74, </. 



'' .\lso Lumpjish, according to EkstrOm. 



Scandiuavian Fhhts. 38 



