2756 



THE BONY FISHES AND GANOIDS 



pectorals are long, horizontal, and composed of simple rays, some of which may 

 be spinous; and the pelvis comprises one or two rays, the outer one being elon- 

 gated. Both teeth 

 and an air bladder 

 are wanting. The 

 figured species (P. 

 natans} is an Aus- 

 tralian one, and is 

 less known than 

 the Indian P. draco 

 and the Chinese P. 

 volens; dried speci- 

 mens of the latter 

 being familiar ob- 

 jects on Chinese in- 

 sect boxes. Noth- 

 ing seems to have 

 been ascertained as 

 to the habits of 



AUSTRALIAN DRAGON FISH. theSC fish > although 



(Natural size. ) it has been sug- 



gested that they 



probably frequent sandy shores. With this family we take leave of the great 

 Cotta-Scombriform section, as it is called, and pass on to another containing only 

 two or three families. 



THE LUMPSUCKERS Family CrcLOPTERiDsE 



With the lumpsuckers we come to a small section characterized by the spinous 

 dorsal fin being short, and either composed of flexible spines, or much less devel- 

 oped than the soft dorsal, or soft portion of the same; the soft dorsal being equal in 

 extent to the anal. If present, the pelvic fins are either thoracic or jugular in posi- 

 tion, with one spine, and generally five (rarely four) soft rays. There is a promi- 

 nent papilla in the neighborhood of the vent. In no case is there a bony stay to the 

 preopercular from the infraorbital ring. As a family, the lumpsuckers are character- 

 ized by the thick or oblong body, which may be either naked or tuberculated; the 

 small teeth; and the presence of a circular adhesive disc on the lower surface of the 

 chest, surrounded by a fringe of skin, and supported by the rudimental pelvic fins, 

 the gill opening being narrow. All the members of the family, which are arranged 

 under two genera, are carnivorous and coast-dwelling fishes, restricted to the colder 

 seas of the Northern Hemisphere, and ranging into the Arctic Ocean. They derive 

 their name from their habit of attaching themselves to rocks by means of the 

 adhesive disc. 



