PLATESSA.] PISCES (OSSEI) MALACOPT. 455 



head a little less than one-fourth of the entire length : dorsal curve not 

 carried on continuously to the mouth, but very much depressed behind 

 the eyes: snout a little sharp; mouth small, ascending; the lower jaw 

 longest : teeth small, closely set, cutting, even, and rather obtuse : eyes on 

 the right side ; full and prominent ; both equally advanced towards the 

 end of the snout ; the intervening space narrow, with an osseous ridge in 

 the middle, which, behind the eyes, becomes interrupted, giving rise to a 

 flexuous row of tubercles five or six in number : lateral line commencing 

 at the upper part of the opercle where the tubercles terminate, slightly 

 arched above the pectoral, but afterwards continued straight along the 

 middle of the body : both sides of the body smooth : scales minute, and 

 deeply impressed in the cuticle, causing the skin, except on the lateral 

 line, to appear pitted : dorsal commencing behind the eye, and extending 

 the whole length of the back, leaving, however, a small space between it 

 and the caudal; greatest elevation about the middle, equalling rather 

 more than one-fourth of the breadth of the body ; all the rays simple, 

 and projecting a little beyond the webs : pectorals immediately behind 

 the posterior angle of the opercle, rounded, small ; that on the right side 

 of the body not half the length of the head ; fifth and sixth rays longest ; 

 the first two and the last simple, the rest branched ; pectoral on the left 

 side a little shorter and smaller than the other : anal commencing a little 

 beyond a vertical line from the pectorals, similar to the dorsal, and ter- 

 minating in the same line with that fin; before it a short stiff spine 

 directed forwards : caudal oblong, even or slightly rounded at the ex- 

 tremity ; its length equalling nearly half the breadth of the body ; the 

 three outermost rays above and below simple, the rest branched : ventrals 

 a little shorter than the pectorals, and rather in advance of those fins ; 

 third and fourth rays longest ; all the rays simple : 



B. 6; D.72; A. 53; C. 20; P. 11 ; V. 6. 



(Colours.) Upper part of the body and fins olivaceous brown, marked 

 with large bright orange spots; also, occasionally, a few oblong dusky 

 blotches, or stains of a darker brown than the ground colour : beneath 

 white. 



Very abundant on most parts of the British coast. The largest said to 

 be found off Rye, on the coast of Sussex. According to Pennant, has 

 been known to weigh fifteen pounds. Feeds on small fish and testaceous 

 mollusca. Spawns in February and March. Obs. Cuvier notices a second 

 species of Plaice* (Platessa lata, Cuv.), which is sometimes taken, though 

 rarely, upon the French coast, closely resembling the common sort, and 

 possessing the same row of tubercles on the head, but differing in the 

 greater breadth of its body, which is not contained more than once and a 

 half in the entire length. Possibly this species may occur in our own 

 seas ; though I am not aware that it has ever been observed hitherto. 



142. P. Flesus, Flem. (Flounder.) Rhomboidal: a 

 row of tubercular asperities along the base of the dorsal 

 and anal fins ; lateral line slightly curved, and rough with 

 denticulated scales ; rest of the body smooth : teeth blunt. 



P. Flesus, Flem. Brit. An. p. 198. Pleuronectes Flesus, Linn. Syst. 

 Nat. torn. i. p. 457. Block, Ichth. pi. 44. Don. Brit. Fish. vol. iv. 

 pi. 94. Turt. Brit. Faun. p. 96. Passer fluviatilis, Will. Hist. 



* Reg. An. torn. n. p. 339. 



