726 



SCANDINAVIAN FISIIKS. 



tlie top a small annular protuberance; the luiddle tooth, 

 the largest one, is transversely (from behind and in 

 front) compressed and striated in the same direction, 

 with four bent fui'rows on its worn masticatory surface; 

 the hindmost tooth, as a ndc tlic smallest one, has the 

 same transversely compressed form and similar mark- 

 ings, but is furnished with only three furrows. The 

 otiier two teeth are set beside each other at right an- 

 gles to the inner row, in an outward direction from the 

 middle tooth thereof, and have a more rounded masti- 

 catorv surface, which at least on the inner (larger) one 

 is marked with stria'. The pharyngeal cartilage is de- 

 ciduous and in form resembles a more or less equilateral 

 triangle, with" the anterior (u|i]ier) side almost straight 

 or slightly convex. 



The dorsal fin begins in old Carp at a distance 

 from the tip of the snout that measures about 42 % of 

 the length of the liody; l)ut in young Carp its begin- 

 inng lies farther liack. Its [)Osterior part is of fairly 

 uniform height, but in front it is elevated in a some- 

 what pointed form, the upper margin being thus more 

 or less concave. The length of its base measures in old 

 Carp about 38 — ?)5 % of that of the body, and its gi-eat- 

 est height (the length of the first branched ray) about 

 13 — 12 % of the length of the body, the length of the 

 base of the fin being thus about three times its height; 

 but in young specimens — up to a length of about 2 

 dm. — the fin is comparative!)' much shorter, its height 

 sometimes measuring as much as half its length". 



The anal tin begins in old Carp at about the end 

 of the second third of the length of the body, and its 

 base measures about Via o^' V13 of the same length. 

 Its height (the length of the first branched ray), on the 

 other hand, measures about ' ,, — ' '- of the length of 

 the body and may tluis even exceed the greatest height 

 of the dorsal fin. The form of the anal fin is an 

 oblique trapezoid, with the outer (lo^\■er) margin straight 

 or slightly convex. 



The caudal fin is deeply forked, the length of the 

 middle rays (about '/i^, of the length of the body) be- 

 ing scarcely half that of the lobes; but the lobes vary 

 in form, being sometimes somewhat pointed, sometimes 

 rounded. Here, as in the generality of the Gyprinoids, 

 the caudal fin consists of 17 branched rays, one long, 



simple ray at each margin (above and below), and at '♦■ 

 the base of this ray a varying number of short sup- ^^ 

 porting I'ays. 



The |icctoi-al tins, which \vitli their fleshy base are _ 

 set low and oblicpiely, just behind the lower third of I 

 the gill-openings, are oval and obliquely rounded, the 

 third branched ray being the longest. The entire length 

 of the fins is about 16 or 17 % of the length of the 

 bodv''. and tlic distance l)etween the foremost points in 

 the insertions of these fins and in those of tlie ventral 

 tins (the length of the ])reabdoininal region) measures 

 in old Carp about 21 or 22 % of the length of the body. 



The ventral fins are of a more trapezoidal form, 

 with rounded hind margin. They are also of different 

 structure, the simple ray at the anterior margin being 

 furinshed at its liase with a short, simple, sn|)porting 

 rav, which, though it is often difficult to distinguish, 

 appears as a rule in the ventral fins of all the Cypri- 

 noids. The length of these fins is generally greater in 

 the males than in the females and varies in old Carp 

 between about 16 and 14 % of that of tiie body. Tlie 

 distance between the foremost ]ioints in the insertions 

 of these fins and in that of the anal fin measures aViout 

 27 % of the length of the body. 



The covering of scales is subject in the Cai-]i to 

 the most singular variations. The whole body (except 

 the head and fins) may be clothed with scales from the 

 very occiput, where the boundary of the scales lies at 

 a distance from the tip of the snout which is compa- 

 ratively greater in young Carp than in old, measures 

 about 83 — 7!) % of the length of the head, and generally, 

 even in old s|)eciinens, is about ecpial to the depth of 

 the body at the occiput. Throughout their extent over 

 the \ioA\ the scales are rather large (see above, Iau. 

 laf. and JJii. fr.). of a rounded (piadrangular shape, 

 and so closel)' imbricated that each scale co\ers nearly 

 two-thirds of the adjoining scale behind it. The an- 

 terior (covered) part of the scale is marked with extre- 

 me] v fine, numerous, concentric stria' ; Init the radiating 

 grooves are onh- slightly traced and irregular, and the 

 anterior margin of the scale is only slightly and lui- 

 evenly indented. < )n tlie hind (exposed) part of the 

 scale, however, botli the concentric striie and the ra- 

 diating grooves are coarser, and the surface is here 



° Accurding to Caxestrin'i's ineasurcmciits the leiigUi of tlie ilorsnl fin in 11 Carp 74 mm. long 

 (including the whole of the caudal fin), and its height i:V5 % of the same lenglh. 



^ According to Canesthini's measurements the length of the pectoral fins — whiuli in gencial slid 

 in Carp 74—354 mm. long (including the whole of the caudal fin) is 14 or 15 % of lliat of the htrdy. 



^as only 27 \ of tliat of the lindy 

 \'s even relative increase with age — 



