THE SEA WOLF. 485 



fecundity of this fish is great. Ekstrom dissected a female 

 twelve inches and a half in length, which contained 196 

 young, each one inch and a half long ; of these 75 were 

 loose in the ventral cavity, and the rest enclosed in the 

 foatal sac. In another female, thirteen inches in length, 

 the young numbered 262. The Viviparous Elenny would 

 seem to be capable of propagating its species at an early 

 period, as ova have been found in some six inches in 

 length. The males are less common than the females. 



The Sea Wolf (Jlaf-ltatt, i.e. sea-cat, Sw. ; Anarrhiclias 

 Lupus, Linn.), which would seem to belong to high 

 northern latitudes, is found everywhere on the western 

 coast of Scandinavia, from near the North Cape to the 

 Sound ; occasionally also, according to Kroyer, in the 

 more southern parts of the Baltic. In Iceland, where it 

 is represented as abounding, it is described by Fabricius 

 and others, as of migratory habits ; but this character can 

 hardly apply to it as regards Scandinavia, where it is 

 caught all the year round, though sparingly. According 

 to Swedish and Danish zoologists, it attains four feet and 

 upwards in length, but our English authorities, probably 

 with some exaggeration, say six to eight feet. Its spawn- 

 ing season would appear to be May and June, when more 

 are captured than at other periods. 



Many wonderful stories of the Sea Wolf have been 

 handed down to us from ancient times, when, in conse- 

 quence of its ferocious cat-like-looking head and formidable 

 teeth, it was greatly feared. " Terrible as the shark," 

 says Hollberg, " he is a fearful destroyer of the finny 

 tribe, amongst which he commits equally great ravages 

 as the wolf, whose name he bears, amongst the poor 

 defenceless herds." 



The generic name AnarrJiichas, signifying climber, it 

 should be observed, was first applied by Gesncr, in con- 

 sequence of the prevalent belief that this fish was in the 



