1898. No. 1. LYCODES SARSII. 13 
Finally the body becomes almost of one colour throughout, dark 
grey or yellowish-brown with but indistinct shadings down the sides. 
Thus, at present, we have a whole series of various stages of 
development, each possessing its own peculiarities of colouring; and with 
these follows the scale-covering which commences to develope itself in the 
young individuals first in the spotted stage, and is completed shortly 
prior to the final colouration. 
Stages of Development. 
1st Stage. Fry (unknown). 
2nd Stage. (Fig. 1). Very young ones (of a total length of 44—47 mm.). 
Body above the median line of a uniform greyish-brown colour; 
the body below the median line, as well as the fins, of a uni- 
form yellowish-white colour. No scale-covering. 
srd Stage. (Figs. 2 & 3). Young specimens (of a total length of 57— 
58 mm.). The greyish-brown ground colour above the median 
line is furnished with large or small brownish-black cross patches, 
irregularly placed, some with sharp edges, some less distinctly 
defined; as a rule they are angular, occasionally almost linear, 
and never symmetrical on both sides. The body below the 
median line, as well as the fins, of a uniform yellowish-white 
colour. 
The upper part of the head greyish-brown; between the 
eye and the snout, a dark band. 
In the smallest specimen observed, whose total length is 
57 mm., the scale-covering appears along the back, whilst the 
other parts of the body are naked. 
In somewhat larger individuals the scale-covering extends 
down to the median line. The outer half of the tail, the body 
below the median line, and the neck remain still naked. 
4th Stage. (Fig. 4). Larger young ones. The greyish-brown ground 
colour which covers the body above the median line, has 
become darker; while, at the same time, the patches have 
become fainter and fewer. In one specimen in this stage, 
whose total length is 116 mm., but a few of the smaller 
patches remain. In another specimen (of a total length of 
120 mm.) the ground colouring is somewhat lighter, about the 
same as that of the smaller young ones, and the patches in it 
are somewhat more distinct. At the same time the brown 
