ABDOMINAL SOFT-FINNED FISHES. 



331 



shorter. The common Barbel {Cyprmus harhus) abounds in clear 

 running waters. 



The Gudgeons ( Gobis) have no bony spine in the anterior part of 

 the dorsal and anal fins ; the mouth is siu-rounded with cirrlu or 

 beards. Tliough small, they are much esteemed. 



The Tenches Tinea}, in addition to the characters of the Gudgeons, 

 have verv small scales and verv short cirrlii. The common Tench 



Fig. 261.— ten'ch. 



(Ci/prirms tinea) inhabits stagnant waters; it is generally of a 

 yellowish-brown colour, and attains a foot in length ; it is less 

 esteemed than the Carp. 



The Breams {Ahramus) have neither spinous fin-rays nor cirrhi ; 

 tlieir dorsal fins are short, but tlie anal is long. 



The Minnow (Cyprinus Fhoxinmf is a very small fish, met with 

 in every brook. L-wJ: 



The Roaches {Leuciscus) form several species. The common 

 Koach {Leuciscus vulgaris), attains seven or eight inches in length, 

 and is remarkable for its brilliant scales, which are easily detached. 

 The iridescent substance, which gives them this metallic appearance, 

 is employed abroad for tlie manufacture of false pearls. 



The Pikes (Esox) are recognised by their oblong, 

 obtuse, broad, depressed muzzle ; they have but one 

 dorsal fin, which is placed opposite to the anal, and 

 nearly the whole interior of the mouth is full of 

 teeth as well as the jaws. 



The Common Pike {Esox luciiis) is met with in the fresh waters of 

 Europe and North America, and is everywhere caught for its fiesh, 

 which is wholesome and easy of digestion. It is the most voracious 

 and destructive of all fresh-water fishes ; it devours, witli avidity, 

 frogs, young ducks, and all the fishes that come in its way. It often 

 seizes animals larger than itself, and its presence in a pond is some- 

 times enough to depopulate it in a very short time. Pikes four or 

 five feet long are not rare in the great lakes of Northern Europe, 

 and one of still larger size has been seen. In 1497, a Pike was 

 caught at Kaiserlauten, near Mannheim, which was nearly nineteen 



(po^6s, phoxos, pointed.. 



