138 BRITISH FRESH-WATER FISHES 
The Dace (Leuciscus vulgaris) 
Fins. | TEETH. 
Dorsal : 9 or to rays. Pharyngeal only, in two 
Anal ; to or 1X rays. rows on each side of 
Ventral; 9 or Xo rays. the throat, containing 
Pectoral ; 15 to 17 rays. respectively 3 and 5 
Caudal: 1g rays. teeth. 
The adult dace is a much more elegant fish than the chub, 
although in the juvenile stages the two fish so closely resemble 
each other as to puzzle some people about their identity. 
The surest distinction between these kindred species is their 
colour. The sides of the dace reflect none but silvery or 
steely tints ; the tail fin is not darker than the back, as in the 
chub, neither are the ventral and anal fins red as in that fish, 
but greenish, the ventral fins having only a faint roseate tinge. 
The back of the dace is dark olive, but changes to silver on 
the sides much sooner than in the chub. 
The name “dace” is explained by philologists to be the 
mutilated remains of “ darce,” which is the form given to it 
in Babees’ Book (fifteenth century). The original sound is more 
nearly preserved in the English synonyms “ dare”’ and “ dart.” 
It represents the old French dars or darz, from the Low Latin 
dardus, a dart or javelin. The assumption is that the fish 
earned the title from its swift, darting movements ; although 
it must be owned that it is quite as applicable, on that 
ground, to many other fish. 
The small, rounded head, less than one-fifth of the whole 
length, the elongated yet graceful body, the brilliant eye, with ° 
its yellow iris shot with red and green, the glittering silver 
mail and finely-shaped fins, combine to make the dace the most 
comely and distinguished-looking of English carps. The tail 
fin is a powerful, symmetrical propeller, deeply cleft into two 
pointed lobes. 
The dace prefers streams with a gentle current, and with 
plenty of gravelly shallows, but it is also found in lakes on the 
