THE LOACHES. 213 



THE LOACHES. 



The LOACHES (Cobitidince). The head small ; body long ; 

 there are six barbels, all on the upper lip ; the pharyngeal 

 teeth in a single series ; and the air-bladder partly or en- 

 tirely enclosed in a bony capsule. 



Day says : " The Loaches, or the second group of the 

 true Carps, are composed of forms in which the two lateral 

 portions of the air-bladder are partially or entirely enclosed 

 in bone, enabling it to be employed as an acoustic organ. 

 These are mostly small fishes, and the two genera repre- 

 sented in Great Britain may thus be recognised : 



"With an erectile spine near the orbit, Cobitis. 



" Without any, Nemacheilus? 



The SPINED LOACH (Cobitis tcenid), the Groundling, accord- 

 ing to Yarrell, is rather a rare fish ; but more probably 

 its diminutive size causes it to escape observation. It is 

 found in the Kennet and the Trent, as well as in some of 

 the streams in Cambridgeshire. 



The body is more elongated and more compressed, par- 

 ticularly behind the dorsal fin, than in the common loach. 

 Six small barbels hang from the upper lip ; the mouth and 

 eyes are small ; pectoral fin long and narrow. Colour of 

 a lightish-brown ; two rows of dark spots run along the 

 back and sides, and another row, larger and more con- 

 spicuous, below the lateral line ; a dark spot on the base 

 of the caudal fin. 



The fin rays are : dorsal, 8 ; pectoral, 9 ; ventral, 7 ; 

 anal, 6 ; caudal, 15; all having dark bands. 



The COMMON LOACH (Nemacheilus barbatula, Cobitis bar- 

 batula), also called the Loche, Groundling, Stone Loach, 

 Beardie, Groundbait, Lie Still, Tommy Loach, &c., is found 

 in almost all clear streams running over gravel, hiding 

 itself under stones. It is very voracious, eating every- 

 thing in the shape of larvae, ova, insects, and the like. 



The body is elongated, smooth, covered with a mucous 

 secretion, rounded in form before the dorsal fin, and com- 

 pressed posterior to it. The dorsal fin commences half- 



