GEN. ATHERINA. THE SAND-SMELT. 243 



Scottish shores, but seems more common on the 

 Irish. We shall not dwell upon the specific charac- 

 ters of the well-known Sand-smelt, which will be 

 detailed in the Synopsis. It attains the length of 

 five and six inches, and its prevailing colours are 

 silvery white and pale flesh-colour ; the fins are 

 yellowish white. " The Atherine," according to 

 Colonel Montague, " is as plentiful in some parts of 

 the southern coast of England as is the Smelt in 

 the eastern ; and each appears to have its limit, so 

 as not to intrude upon the other. We have traced 

 the Smelt along the coast of Lincolnshire, and south- 

 ward into Kent, where the Atherine appears un- 

 known ; but in Hampshire this latter is extremely 

 plentiful, especially about Southampton, where it is 

 sold under the name of the True Smelt. On the 

 south coast of Devonshire, also, they are caught in 

 great abundance in the creeks and estuaries, but 

 never in rivers above the flow of the tide ; and they 

 appear to continue near shore through the months 

 from autumn to spring, being caught for the table 

 more or less during the whole of that time; but 

 they are greatly superior in spring, when the male 

 are full of milt, as the females are of roe. It is well- 

 flavoured; but in our opinion not so good as the 

 Smelt : it is more dry ; but when in season, and 

 fried without being embowelled, the liver and roe 

 make it delicious." It would appear, from M. Va- 

 lenciennes' account, that the French Atherines are 

 not so particular in their preference to creeks as the 

 English. They ascend, observes this Ichthyologist* 



