THE BREAM. 219 



body is almost quadrangular, and the dorsal profile much 

 more elevated than the abdominal. 



It has much the same habits as the common carp, per- 

 haps somewhat more sluggish, keeping much at the bottom 

 of the water, although it likes the sun's heat. It is ex- 

 tremely tenacious of life. Yarrell says : " I have known 

 them recover and survive after having been kept out of 

 water thirty hours." 



The colour of the crucian carp is rather brilliant. The 



THE CRUCIAN CARP. 



back has a fine metallic lustre, the eye is golden-yellow, 

 the belly white, and the fins are orange-red. This fish 

 does not grow to anything like the size of the common 

 carp ; a pound fish is a large one. Yarrell records one 

 brought to him from the Thames weighing 2 Ibs. 1 1 oz. 



The PRUSSIAN CARP (Carassius gibeleo), which by some 

 has been considered another species, is only a variety of 

 C. vulgaris, differing in the body being not so deep and 

 more carp-like, the back not so elevated, and the tail being 

 more forked. The common Gold-Fish is Carassius auratus. 



THE BREAM. 



The BREAM or CARP-BREAM (Abramis brama). This fish 

 has not, like the carp or barbel, either strong bony rays 

 or barbules ; the body is deep and compressed ; dorsal and 



