614 



SCANDINAVIAN riSIIKS. 



witli cei-taiiit\ : mikI a laure tnistwortliy cNpressioii of 

 the fhiiractei' ina\- always he tuiiiul in the iirn|)(>rti(jii 

 between the length of the head and that of the tail. 

 In its adult state this speeies is also hetter e(|uipi)ed 

 with scales, though the variations seem to he (piite as 

 great as in the preceding species. On the grounds 

 given above, and as constant characters of form are an 

 indispensable condition of systematic clearness, we eoiu- 

 bine under one speciiic name the two forms, Lycodcs 

 I'dhlii and /.. Es)iiarl,li. which have recently been 

 distinguisiied on account of the difference in the den- 

 tition as stated by LCtken. 



In form the body resembles that of the Eelpout, 

 with the characteristics common to all the Lycodcs. 

 The head, which with its flat under surface presents in 

 the adult fishes the form of a cone longitudinally bi- 

 sected and somewhat obtuse at the tip, generally mea- 

 sures in young specimens and in the females rather less, 

 in the males rather more, than 22 % of the length of 

 the body, var3'ing in this manner l)etweeii IS'/, and 

 23'; J % thereof. The oidy noteworthy irreguliirity in its 

 conical shape is formed by the more or less tumid 

 cheeks (the masticatory muscles). In young specimens 

 the large muciferous cavities along the upjier and lower 

 jaws are especially distinct, generall}" in the form of 

 hollow depressions; but in the older specimens these 

 depressions disajjpear. < )n each side of the snout, at 

 about the middle of its depth and nearer to the ti[) of 

 the snout than to the eye, lies a single tubular nostril. 

 The eye is oblong and not very sharply marked off from 

 the surrounding skin, Avhich coalesces with the trans- 

 parent cornea. The length of the eye varies between 

 about 7 % (in tlie fV)') and 2 % of that of the body 

 (the latter proportion in the most developed indi%iduals). 

 Its position is such that in the fry the postorbital length 

 of tlie head measures about 44 % of its entire length, 

 in adult si)ecimens about 5.") % thereof, with all the 

 variations Iving between these two ])erceiitagcs. The 

 sides of the occiput end each in an obtuseh' pointed 

 and triangular, opercular fla]), \vhich in old s])eciiuens 

 lies a little above and liehind the uj^per end of the root 

 of the pectcjral tin and sometimes measures at the ujiper, ! 

 free margin nearly half the length of the remainder of | 

 the postorbital part. The lower angle of the gill-opening i 

 lies on ii level with the lower angle of the pectoral fin I 

 and in a line with the preo])erculum, the l>rcadth of , 



" According to GooDic and Bean (1. c.) Ujc- Ic-nstli of llic lowi 

 ill a male C>a2 mm. Ion? 10' o % tliereof. 



the isthmus l)et\veen the two gill-openings being about 

 e(|Uid to the length of the nose between the nostril and 

 the eve. The length of the loAver jaw varies, according 

 to our measurements, between about 10 and 11'. '-i. of 

 that of the bod\", and is generally somewhat less than 

 in the preceding species. The cleft of the mouth is 

 horizontal; it extends in voung specimens hardly aiiv 

 distance, if at all,' behind the perpendicular from the 

 anterior mai'gin of the eye, but in old specimens di- 

 stinctly beyond this line. In old specimens the hind 

 extremity of the maxillary Ijones lies in a line with tlie 

 posterior part of the e\e, the distance between the tip 

 of the snout and this exti'emity measuring in the fry 

 about 7 'i of the length of the body, in old specimens 

 u\} to at least II '/g % thereof. This elongation of the 

 labial ])arts involves a more adviuiced de\elopment of the 

 teeth. The teeth in the jaws and on tlie ])alate are strong, 

 almost cylindrical, more less curved, and rather scattered. 

 Thev are largest in the anterior ])art of the interratixil- 

 lary bones and of the lower jaw, and are here set in 

 old specimens in three or even four rows, in young in 

 only two, the number of the rows decreasing behind 

 until at last there is onh" one row or sometimes, in 

 the lower jaw, t\vo. The foremost teeth in the jaws 

 are directed straight ftu'ward. The i-ows of intermaxil- 

 lary teeth do not extend further back, even in old spe- 

 cimens, than to about a line with the middle of the 

 snout, while in the lower jaw the rows extend beyond 

 the corners of the mouth, (hi the other hand, the fore- 

 most intermaxillary teeth are set under the projecting 

 part of the snout, in front of the tip of the lower jaw. 

 On the head of tlie \oiner we find from 5 to 8 teeth 

 of more conical form, arranged transversely in a trian- 

 gular group. On the palatine bones, according to Col- 

 Lic'iT, Lycodcs Esmarkii always has '• — 11 teeth in a 

 single or irregularly double i-ow: Avhile in L. ]'(ililii. 

 according to Lltken, these Ijones are set with 11 — 14 

 teeth in the fenudes and with somewiiat fewer than 20 

 in the males, alwavs in a double ro^\•. Such is the 

 tenour of the proposed s]iecific distinction, or in other 

 words: "The row of |)alatine teetii is never longer thtin 

 the intermaxillary row, littt in most cases (especially in 

 adult specimens) considerably shorter, sometimes sctircely 

 half as long" (Coll., of Lycodcs Esmarkii), and: "The 

 row of ptilatine teetli is generallv longer than the in- 

 termaxillarv row, at least onh' sliiihtly, if at all, shorter 



jaw in a female 540 mm. long was 9'. 



of that of the bodv and 



