SORTATION. 



33 



Having neither barbules nor finlets to help us any more, we 

 betake ourselves to the position of the ventral fins, which affords 

 almost as easy a means of identification. These fins are found 

 in three positions they maybe "jugular," that is, in the throat, 

 or "thoracic," that is, in the chest (Fig. 15), or " abdominal," that 

 is in the middle of the abdomen or thereabouts (Fig. 16). 



In only three genera of the double dorsal group are the ventrals 

 jugular, and in one of them they are placed wide apart. This is Calli- 

 onymus, the genus of the skulpin, in which the first spine is so unusu- 

 ally long in the males as to be distinctive, like the length of the last 

 ray in the females. The two in which the ventrals are at the normal 

 distance apart are Trachinus (the weevers), in which the first dorsal 

 has only five or six rays, and Merluccius, the hake, in which it has 

 ten. The hake can be recognised by his black mouth and formid- 

 able teeth, which are charac- 

 teristic enough to deserve a 

 sketch (Fig. 17) ; the greater 

 weever, T. draco, has two 

 spines above the eye, the 

 viper weever, T. vipera, has 

 no spines above the eye. 



As there are three genera 

 of this group with jugular 

 ventrals, so there are three 

 with abdominal ventrals. In 

 this case, however, there is 

 but one genus (Capros) in 

 which the dorsals are close 

 up, it has but one species in our waters, C. aper, the boar-fish, flat and 

 deep in body, red in colour, and rejoicing in a protractile snout from 

 which it gets its name. The two genera in which there is a con- 

 spicuous interval between the dorsal fins are Atherina, in which the 

 first dorsal has 7, 8, or 9 spines, and Mugil (the grey mullets), in which 

 it has but only 4. Of Atherina there are two species, one of which 

 appeared once, and has never been seen again ; of Mugil there are 

 two species, the grey mullet, M. capito, in which the anal begins 

 nearly halfway between the dorsals, and the lesser grey mullet, M. 

 chelo, in which it begins almost in a line with the second dorsal. 

 As far as we have gone with the double dorsals, we stand : 



Ventrals jugular 



Ventrals wide apart Callionymus. 

 Ventrals close together 



F'irst dorsal with 5 or 6 rays Trachinus. 



First dorsal with 10 rays Merluccius. 



Ventrals abdominal 

 Dorsals wide apart 



First dorsal with 4 spines Mugil. 

 First dorsal with 7 or more spines A therina. 

 Dorsals close together 



Body red ; deep and compressed ; month protractile 

 Capros. 



Fig. 16. ABDOMINAL VENTRALS. 



