papular Stctfanarw of &mmatett Mature. 143 



miles'of ocean, leaving the chill and rugged 

 shores of Newfoundland, is the favourite 

 annual resort of countless multitudes of Cod, 

 which visit the submarine mountains known 

 as the Grand Bant:, to feed upon the erus- 

 taceous and molluscous animals abundant 

 in such situations. Hither, also, fleets of 

 fishermen regularly adventure, sure of win- 

 ning a rich freight in return for their toils 

 and exposure. " In this country," Mr. Yar- 

 rell observes, "it appears to be taken all 

 round the coast : among the islands to the 

 north and west of Scotland it is abundant : 

 most extensive fisheries are carried on ; and 

 it may be traced as occurring also on the 

 shore of almost every county in Ireland. 

 In the United Kingdom alone, this fish, in 

 the catching, the curing, the partial con- 

 sumption and sale, supplies employment, 

 food, and profit to thousands of the human 

 race." 



The Cod is of a moderately long shape, 

 with the abdomen very thick and promi- 

 nent ; the head is large, as also are the eyes ; 

 the jaws of equal length, the lower one 

 bearded at the tip by a single cirrus ; in the 

 jaws and palate are numerous sharp teeth ; 

 the dorsal and anal fins are rather large, 

 the pectoral and ventral rather small ; the 

 tail of moderate size, and even at the end ; 

 the belly tumid and soft, the body tapering 

 gradually throughout the latter half ; the 

 upper part of the head, cheeks, back, and 

 sides, mottled and spotted with dull yellow ; 

 the belly white or silvery ; the lateral line 

 white ; all the fins dusky. The Cod some- 

 times grows to a very large size. Pennant 

 gives an instance of one taken on the British 

 coasts which weighed seventy-eight pounds, 

 and measured five feet eight inches in length, 

 and five feet in girth round the shoulders ; 

 but the general size, at least in the British 

 seas, is far less, and the weight from about 

 fourteen to forty pounds ; and such as are 

 of middling size are most esteemed for the 

 table. 



Speaking of the localities to which the 

 Cod-fish chiefly resort on our own coasts, 

 Mr. Yarrell says, "A change has lately taken 

 place, from the Cod having shifted their 

 ground. Formerly the Gravesend and Bark- 

 ing fishermen obtained few Cod nearer than 

 the Orkneys or the Dogger Bank ; but for 

 the last two or three years the supply for the 

 London market has been obtained by going 

 no farther than the Lincolnshire and Nor- 

 folk coasts, and even between that and Lon- 

 don, where previously very few fish could be 



obtained." " There appear to be two 



well-marked varieties of the Common Cod ; 

 one with a sharp nose, elongated before the 

 eye, and the body of a very dark brown co- 

 lour, which is usually called the Dogger- 

 bank Cod. This varietv prevails also along 

 our southern coast. The other variety has 

 a round blunt nose, short and wide before 

 the eyes, and the body of light yellowish 

 ash-green colour, and is frequently called 

 the Scotch Cod. Both sorts have the lateral 

 line white. I believe the distinction of more 

 southern and northern Cod to be tenable, 

 and that the blunt-headed lighter-colour 

 fish does not range so far south as the 



sharper-nosed dark fish. Our fishermen now 

 finding plenty of Cod-fish near home, the 

 London shops for the last year or two have 

 only now and then exhibited specimens of 

 the short-nosed northern Cod: both varieties 

 are equally good in quality, and both are 

 frequently taken on the same ground." 



COLEOPTERA. [BEETLES.] The name 

 given to designate an order of Insects, cha- 

 racterized by having four wings, the exter- 

 nal pair of which are not suited for flight, 

 but form a covering or case for the interior 

 pair, and are composed of a hard, tough. 

 substance : the inner margins of these wing- 

 cases, or elytra, when closed, touch and form 

 a longitudinal suture ; and the inner or true 

 wings, which are large and membranous, 

 when not in use, are folded transversely 

 under them. Under the term Coleoptera, 

 therefore, are included all the beetle tribe ; 

 of which naturalists have established a great 

 number of genera, from the different con- 

 formations of their antennae, &c.j presenting 

 among them many that are remarkable for 

 their brilliant colours or singular formg. 

 The larvae of coleopterous insects undergo a 

 complete transformation : those which bur- 

 row in the ground generally prepare for the 

 pupa state by removing the earth which 

 surrounds them so as to form an open oval 

 space i others form a kind of cocoon or web 

 around them ; and some assume the perfect 

 state without any preparation. 



" Many of these Insects, particularly in 

 the larvae state, are very injurious to vegeta- 

 tion. The Tiger-beetles (CicindeUdce), the 

 predaceous ground beetles (Carabulce), the 

 diving beetles (Dytiscidce), the Lady-birds 

 (Coccinellitke), and some others, are emi- 

 nently serviceable by preying upon cater- 

 pillars, plant-lice, and other noxious or 

 destructive insects. The water-lovers (Hy- 

 drophilidai), rove-beetles (Staphylinidce), car- 

 rion-beetles (.Silphidce), skin-beetles (Der- 

 mcstidce, Byrrhidce, and Trogidce), bone- 

 beetles (some of the Nitidulidoi and Cleridce), 

 and various kinds of dung-beetles (Sphceri- 

 diadce, Histeridce, Geotrupidce, Coprididce, 

 and Aphodiadce), and the Pimdiadae and 

 Blaptidce act the useful part of scavengers, 



by removing carrion, dung, and other filth, 

 h alone they and their larvae sub- 

 y Coleoptera (some StaphylinidoR 



by removing carrion, dung, 

 upon which alone they and 

 sist. Many Coleoptera (so 

 and Nitidulidce, Diaperidida?, some Serro- 

 paJpidce, Mycetophagida, Erotylidce, and En- 

 domychidce) live altogether on agarics, 

 mushrooms, and toad-stools, plants of very 

 little use to man, many of them poisonous, 

 and in a state of decay of ten offensive ; these 

 fungus-eaters are therefore to be reckoned 

 among our friends. There are others, such 

 as the stag-beetles (.Lticanidce), some spring- 

 beetles (Elate-ndfE), darkling beetles (Tene- 

 brionidoe), and many bark-beetles (Hetopidce, 

 Cistelidce, Serropalpidce, (Edemeridce, Cucu- 

 jidce, and some Trogositidce), which, living 

 under the bark and in the trunks and roots 

 of old trees, though they may occasionally 

 prove injurious, must, on the whole, be con- 

 sidered as serviceable, by contributing to 

 destroy, and reduce to dust, plants that have 

 passed their prime, and are fast going to 



