]92 



Acanlhop. 



tervi^ii. 

 Gobioidae. 



ICHTHYOLOGY. 



bitello in Tuscany, in the lagunes of Ferrara and Venice, 

 in those of Padua and Chiozza, and sucli as came from the 

 neighbourhood of Commachio and Ravenna. All these 

 places in fact are marshy, and the streams by which they 

 are watered are brackish, and communicate to the fish 

 which they sujiport the odour and the flavour of the mud."' 

 At the conclusion of this family Cuvier places the two 

 following genera, the first of which is allied partly to the 

 mullets and partly to the Scomberidae, while the second 

 partakes of characters intermediate between the Mugilidae 

 in general, and the ensuing family of Gobioidas. 



Genus Tetragonubus, Risso, so called from two sa- 

 lient crests on each side, near the base of the caudal fin. 

 The body is elongated ; the spinous dorsal long, but very 

 low, — the soft dorsal approximate, but higher and short, 

 with an anal of corresponding form ; the ventrals are a 

 little behind the pectorals ; the branches of the lower jaw 

 are vertically raised, and furnished with a range of pointed 

 cutting teeth, forming as it were a saw, and fitting, when 

 the mouth is closed, into those of the upper jaw. The sto- 

 mach is garnished interiorly with hard and pointed papillae. 

 The only known species (71 Cuvieri, Risso) is found 

 along the Mediterranean shores, but only at great depths. 

 It is of a black colour, measuring about a foot in length, 

 and is covered by hard, toothed, striated scales. Its flesh 

 is said to be poisonous. 



Genus Atherina, Linn. Body elongated; dorsals 

 wide apart ; ventrals further back than the pectorals ; 

 mouth very projectile, and furnished with extremely small 

 teeth. The transverse processes of the last abdominal ver- 

 tebrae are bent so as to form a little conical bag for the re- 

 ception of the point of the swimming bladder. 



All the known species are characterised by a broad sil- 

 very band along the sides. They are highly esteemed for 

 their delicacy ; and the fry, which continue for a long time 

 together in crowded troops, are eaten along the Mediter- 

 ranean shores under the name oi Nonnat. A. hepsetus, Linn, 

 was till very recently regarded as indigenous to the seas 

 and estuaries of Britain. There was reason, however, to 

 believe that several species had been confounded under 

 that name ; and Mr Yarrell has ascertained that the Bri- 

 tish species, commonly called the Atherine, coincides in 

 its characters with the Atherina presbyter of Cuvier. It is 

 a common fish at Brighton, where, under the name of 

 sand-smelt, it is eaten in large quantities by the inhabitants 

 and visitors during the winter months. It partakes of the 

 cucumber smell and flavour of the true smelt, and is a small 

 handsome fish, measuring from five to six inches. It is 

 rarely brought to the London market. It spawns in May 

 and June. 



FAAIILY XII GOBIOID,*:. 



This family derives its name from the Linnaean genus 

 Gobius, and is distinguished by having the dorsal spines 



slender and flexible. The viscera of all the fishes pertain- Acantliop- 

 ing to it are nearly of the same conformation ; the intestinal terygii. 

 canal is equal, ample, and without cjeca, and there is no Gobio ida;. 

 swimming bladder. ^■^"Y"*^ 



The species referrible to the genus Blennius, Linn, pre- 

 sent a very distinctive character in having their ventral 

 fins placed before the pectorals, and composed only of 

 two rays. Their bodies are elongated and compressed, 

 and they bear only a single dorsal, composed almost en- 

 tirely of simple and flexible rays. They live in small com- 

 panies in rocky streams, and can survive for a consider- 

 able time out of the water, in consequence of their skin 

 being covered with a kind of mucus, a circumstance which 

 has caused the Greek name Blennius to be applied to 

 them. Many of them are viviparous, and both sexes have 

 a tubercle near the anus, which seems to be subservient to 

 the purposes of copulation. They are now arranged under 

 the following genera : 



Genus Blennius, Cuv. Includes the blennies properly 

 so called, and is characterised by long, equal, and closely- 

 placed teeth, forming only a single and rather regular row 

 on each jaw, terminating behind in some species by a 

 long and hooked tooth. The head is obtuse, the muzzle 

 short, and the forehead vertical ; the intestines broad and 

 short. Several species occur along the coasts of Britain. 

 Of these we may mention the butterfly blenny {B. ocella- 

 ris), distinguished by having the dorsal bi-lobed, the an- 

 terior lobe being very elevated, and marked with a round 

 black spot, cinctured with a white and black circle. See 

 Plate CCCIV. fig. 1. 



Genus Myxodes, Cuv. Separated from the blennies 

 properly so called, in consequence of the head being elon- 

 gated, the snout pointed, and projecting beyond the 

 mouth ; the range of teeth like those of the blennies, but 

 without the canine teeth. 



Genus Salarias, Cuv. Teeth laterally compressed, 

 hooked at the extremity, exceedingly slender, and in pro- 

 digious numbers. The head of these fishes is very much 

 compressed superiorly, and of great breadth across the 

 base : their lips are fleshy and thick, their forehead quite 

 vertical, and their intestines, spirally convoluted, are 

 longer and more slender than in the common blennies. 

 All the known species are from the Indian Ocean. 



Genus Clin us, Cuv. Teeth short and pointed, dis- 

 posed in several rows, the first of which is largest. Their 

 muzzle is less obtuse than in the two preceding groups, 

 the stomach broader, and the intestines not so long. 



Genus Cihrhibarbus, Cuv. The general form is 

 that of the preceding genus ; the teeth are crowded, and 

 there is a small tentaculum over the eye, and another on 

 the nostril, besides three large ones at the extremity of 

 the muzzle, and eight under the point of the lower jaw. 

 Only one species is known, a native of the Indus. It is of 

 a uniform reddish-yellow colour. 



Genus Gunellus. {3Iur(enoides, hacep.) Distinguish- 

 ed from all the other blennies by having the ventrals so 



■ ' Griffith's edition of the minimal Kingdom, vol. x. p. 300. According to Baron Cuvier, Linnaeus and several of his successors liave 

 confounded all tlie European niugils or gray mullets under the single specific name of M. ccphalus. The Frencli naturalist restricts 

 that denomination to the species characterised above, and which has not yet been detected along our island shores. Our ffratj mullet 

 is the mugil capita of Cuvier, an inhabitant not only of the Mediterranean, but also of all the western shores of the temperate parts of 

 Europe. " The partiality," says Mr Yan-ell, " exhibited by the gray nuillet for fresh water has led to actual expeiiment of the 

 effe.-t of confining them to it entirely. Jlr Arnould put a number of the fiy of the gray mullet about the size of a finger into his 

 pond at Guernsey, wliich is of about three acres area, and has been before referred to under the article Jjussc. After a few years, mul- 

 let of four pounds weight were caught, which proved to be fatter, deeper, and heavier for tlieir length, than others obtained from the 

 sea. Of all the various salt-water fishes introduced, the gray mullet appeared to be the most improved. A slight change in the ex- 

 ternal colour is said to be visible." [llritish Fishes, p. 205.) The same author informs us that the gray mullet is frequently an object 

 of sport to the angler. They rise freely at the Hies used for trout, and even at the larger and more gaudy flies used for salmon. 

 They are strong in the water, and rc(iuire a careful hand in consequence of their impetuous plunging. Our other British species are 

 the thick-lipped gray mullet, mugil clirlo, Cuv., and a small species described by Mr Yarrell under the name of short gray mullet, mu- 

 gil cuitns. We may here remark, Ihat it is unfortunate that the English term miillft should be applied both to the subjects of our 

 jiresent note, and to the red and striped mullets, which belong to a very diflPerent genus of the family Percidae, before described. If 

 the latter were termed lurmulkts, or the former mugils, the ambiguity of a double application of the same name would be avoided. 



