24 LYCODIN^. 



has but recently appeared, it is evident that Prof. Sraitt has not changed his standpoint in this regard. 

 — If one but reflects that L. frigidtis is exceedingly common in nature — both the North-Atlantic 

 and Ingolf Expedition have taken it more frequently and in much greater numbers than any other 

 Lycodes — and that it lias quite a different area of distribution from L. vahlii or L. reticnlatits, which 

 are both (as shown in the present work) restricted to relatively small depths, whilst L. frigidns is 

 confined to the deeper and deepest part of the «cold area , this supposition of Prof. Smitt that L. 

 frigidns is a number of sterile and hybrid (?) individuals of the two named .species, strikes one at 

 once as unnatural. I can also assert that the specimens in m}' hands give no indications whatsoever 

 of being sterile; both the male and female sexual organs are well-developed, though not fully ripe, 

 since the specimens have ob\'ioush' not been taken during the spawning-period. In the largest male 

 from the Ingolf Expedition the testes are 65 mm. long and 10 mm. broad, without free folds and of 

 equal length (Collett mentions that in a 510 mm. long male the left testis was rudimentary); the eggs 

 in the largest female are 1,3 mm. in diameter in the sack-shaped, ca. 55mm. long, ovary'). 



Again, Dr. E. Lonnberg (1. c.) is inclined to regard L. frigidtis and L. pallidus as colour- 

 varieties of one and the same species 2). If this author had had specimens of L. pallidus for comparison, 

 he would certainly not have adopted this view. L. frigidns is distinguished in a moment, so to speak, 

 from L. pallidus — and indeed from all other scaled (Eiiropean and Greenland) Lycodes species — 

 b}- its extremely small scales. So small are the scales in L. frigidns that there are ca. 48 scales in a 

 vertical line from the anus to the base of the dorsal fin in a specimen of 226 mm., whilst in a specimen 

 of L. pallidus {xzx. squamiventer)^ 230 mm. long, there are only 27 scales on the same line. 



In his latest treati.se on the genus Lycodes^ F. A. Smitt (I.e. 1901) has so far changed his view 

 that he now brings under L. reticnlatns a singular iionna frigida ; during my visit to the Stock- 

 holm Riks-Museum I discovered that under this denomination were placed: i specimen of L. perspi- 

 cillnm Kroyer {^ L.retic2t.latnsV^&.\\\\.}\\N.'^) (No. i), 8 specimens of L. pallidus Coll. (No. 2— 9) and 3 

 specimens of the veritable L. frigidns Coll. (No. 10-12). 



Distribution. 

 The Ingolf Expedition has taken L. frigidns at the following stations which all lie north, 

 north-east and east of Iceland and south of Jan Ma yen 3): 

 St. 124 495 fathoms 



■) After this was written, I have observed a female L. frigidns with fully ripe eggs. The specimen was ca. 500mm. 

 long, with an enormous ovary, 84 mm. long, 47 mm. broad, which contained 500 eggs, almost ready to be spawned, of a 

 diameter of 7 mm. It was taken on the 29th of August 1902, north from the Faeroes (63° 13' N.L., 6° 32' W.L., depth 975 fathoms, 

 temperature of the bottom — 0,51° C.) b}- the fisheries steamer <.Michael Sars-. 



2) Lutken has also suggested that L. pallidus was a (subspecies or form of L. frigidns. Vidensk. Medd. Naturhist. 

 Foren. Kbhvn., 1S80, p. 317. 



3) 2 other specimens were brought home in addition to these 63, but the number of the station was lost later. 



