186 



ICHTHYOLOGY. 



Scombe- 



Acanthop. bands of deeper blue upon the upper portions. It varies 

 terygii. from four inches to a foot in length, and the larger indi- 

 viduals have much the aspect of a mackerel. The name 

 of pilot has been bestowed on various other fishes, and the 

 genus Naucrates itself contains several species. N. In- 

 dicus, Cuv. was brought from Aniboyna by Messrs Lesson 

 and Garnot. 



Other genera of this tribe are Elacate, Lichia, Cho- 

 RiNEMUs, and Trachinotus, which we. cannot here do 

 more than name. 



Genus Rhinchobdella, B1. and Schn. Free spines 

 on the back, as in tlie preceding genera, and two free 

 spines in front of the anal fin, but the ventrals are absent, 

 as in Xiphias proper. The body is lengthened. 



Of this genus Cuvier has formed two minor groups, — 

 Rhinchobdella {Macrognathus, Lacep.), including such 

 species as have the muzzle concave, and striated beneath, 

 and the three vertical fins separate ; and Mastacomblus, 

 Gronovius, containing such as have the muzzle simply 

 conical, neither striated nor concave, and the vertical fins 

 more or less completely joined. 



The S])ecies of both genera inhabit the fresh waters of 

 Asia, and are widely distributed, from Syria to the isles of 

 Sunda, tlie Moluccas, and China. Their snouts are fur- 

 nished with a delicate organ of touch, and it appears that 

 they employ it while searching in the mud for small worms, 

 or other slender substances on which they feed. They are 

 generally regarded as poissons de bon gout, the flavour of 

 their flesh bearing some resemblance to that of eels. 



The genus Notocanthus (of which N. Nastis is the 

 sole species) is characteristic of the most northern seas. 



We next proceed to a grou]) of the Scomberidse which 

 forms the Third Great Tribe, distinguished by having 

 the sides furnished ivith a cuirassed lateral line. 



In the timnies, sword-fish, and other Scomberidae al- 

 ready discussed, a projecting cartilaginous portion is ob- 

 servable, forming a kind of ridge or keel on each side of 

 the tail, at the extremity of the lateral line. In the ge- 

 nera of the same family of which we have now to treat, 

 this ridge is no longer a simple prominence of the dermis, 

 but is covered by scaly shields, themselves crested, and 

 overlapping each other. These shields, frequently ending 

 in a point or hook, are not always confined to the termi- 

 nation of the lateral line, but sometimes spread over its 

 entire length, and usually occupy a considerable portion. 

 In relation to this character, however, the tribe may be di- 

 vided into two sections : the first of which, comprising only 

 the great genus Caranx, exhibits this kind of armour in its 

 greatest strength and extension ; while the second (of which 

 the genus V^omer is the type) shows its gradual reduction 

 to small scales, not surpassing those of the rest of the body. 



Genus Caranx, Cuv. Lateral line armed to a greater 

 or less extent with scaly shields, raised into a keel, and 

 pointed. 



As an example, we here figure the Caranx hoops, a 

 beautiful fish from Amboyna, of a fine silvery hue, tinted 

 towards the back with brilliant steel blue, with green re- 

 flections. A pure line of orange extends from the gills to 

 the tail, but this ornamental character is said to disappear 

 speedily after death. The pectoral fins are likewise orange. 

 It varies from a few inches to a foot in length. See Plate 

 CCCII. fig. 12. The genus is extremely numerous, con- 

 taining probably not fewer than seventy different kinds ; 

 but the only other species we shall here notice is a fish 

 called the scad, or horse-mackerel (^Caranx truchurus, 

 Lacep. and Cuv.), which occasionally occurs in prodigious 

 shoals along the British shores. Ten thousand have been 



taken by a foot-sean in a single evening in August. It Acanthop- 

 likewise occurs in the Mediterranean, and in the vicinity tervgii. 

 of Madeira. 



Of genera allied to Caranx, and consisting chiefly of , 

 species heretofore and erroneously referred to Zeus, Baron 

 Cuvier has established or retained the following, viz. Olis- 

 Tus, ScYRis, Blepharis, Gali,ichtys, Argyreyosus, 

 Vomer, and Hynnis. Of these our restricted limits pre- 

 vent our exhibiting the detailed characters. We shall 

 merely present the reader with a figaire of that singular 

 little fish Gallichtys ^gyptiacus, brought by Ehrenberg from 

 the neighbourhood of Alexandria. It measures only from 

 one to two inches in length, and is of a truly remarkable 

 form. See Plate CCCIII. fig. 1. 



We have now arrived at the concluding group or Fourth 

 Great Tribe of the Scomberidae, in which thejinlets, the 

 free spines of' the hack, and the armour of the sides of the 

 tail, are all wanting. 



The genera of this tribe, it will be perceived, are com- 

 bined by means of merely negative characters, and it may 

 therefore be expected that they will exhibit mutual rela- 

 tions of a less intimate kind than those of the preceding 

 tribes. They form in fact a group, as it were, by con- 

 tinuity, — one of those series of which there are many in 

 nature, and of which the agreement is not the less evi- 

 dent and harmonious, although it may be difficult to point 

 out a precise character in common. 



As we have little to say of general interest regarding 

 their history or habits, we think it more suitable to the na- 

 ture of this article to reserve a principal portion of our al- 

 lotted space for the elucidation of those species concerning 

 which some important or amusing information has been re- 

 corded, We shall therefore do little more than name the 

 genera of our present tribe. 



The genus Seriola scarcely differs from Caranx, ex- 

 cept in the lateral line being either unprovided with a cui- 

 rass, or at least merely furnished with scales which slightly 

 surpass those of the rest of the body. S. Dumerilii of 

 Risso occurs near Nice, and elsewhere in the Mediterra- 

 nean. It sometimes attains to the great weight of nearly 

 200 pounds, and dwells in deep and inaccessible places of 

 the sea, rarely approaching the shores, unless when com- 

 pelled to do so by hunger. Its flesh is of a reddish colour, 

 firm, and of an exquisite flavour. 



The genus Temnodon greatly resembles the preceding, 

 but its teeth are cutting. There are two small spines in 

 advance of the anal fin, but almost concealed beneath the 

 skin. We here place the Perca saltatrix of Linn, called 

 skip-jack by the Americans. Its geographical distribution 

 is extremely extensive. 



The genus Nomeus, Cuv. was for a long time combined 

 with the Gobies. It is related in several particulars to 

 Seriola, but the very large broad ventrals, attached to the 

 body by their inner edge, produce a peculiar character and 

 aspect. We here figure a small species, of which the 

 ground colour is like brilliant silver. The ventrals are tra- 

 versed by two black bands. It was transmitted to the Mu- 

 seum of the Low Countries from Java, by MM. Kuhl and 

 Van Hasselt. See Plate CCCIII. fig. 4. Three other genera 

 are described by Cuvier in this portion of his great work,' 

 which, however, we shall merely name, — viz. Nauclerus, 

 Porthoneus, and Psenes. The next genus is of more 

 general interest. 



Genus Coryph^na, Linn. Body compressed, elon- 

 gated, covered by small scales ; head compressed, profile 

 circular ; eyes low, approaching the angle of the mouth ; 

 dorsal fin rising from the cranium, and stretching con- 



' I/ist Nut. dcs Foisso'ii-, t. ix. pp. 247-C7. 



