536 FISHES. 



In our own country the sturgeon annually ascends rivers, but in 

 no great quantity, and is occasionally taken in the salmon-nets; the 

 largest recorded by Mr. Pennant, as taken in England, was of the 

 weight of four hundred and sixty pounds. In its manner of breed- 

 ing the sturgeon forms an exception among the cartilaginous fishes, 

 since, as before observed, it is oviparous; it is a very prolific fi>h, 

 and the globules of the roe or spawn are about the size of hemp* 

 seeds. 



The sturgeon was a fish in high repute among the Greeks and 

 Romans; and, according to Pliny, was brought to table with much 

 pomp, and ornamented with flowers, the slaves who carried it being 

 also adorned with garlands, and accompanied by music. The fla- 

 vour of the sturgeon is said to vary according to the food on which 

 it has principally fed ; for which reason it is distinguished in Sweden, 

 and other northern regions, into mackrel-sturgeon, herring-stuigeon, 

 &c. Dr. Bloch observes that the Linnaean specific character of this 

 fish is^rffct quite correct, since the number of dorsal tubercles varies 

 from eleven to thirteen; neither is the number of the lateral or 

 ventral rows more constant, varying in a similar manner. Some 

 have supposed the tubercles of the sturgeon to be annually cast, in 

 the same manner as those on rays. It may added that the sturgeon 

 is able to survive some days when taken out of water; the gill- 

 covers being edged by a soft membranaceous border, which by 

 closing accurately, prevents the access of atmospheric air to the 

 branchiae. 



2. Isinglass Sturgeon. 



Ac ; penser huso. Linn. 



A still larger fish than the common sturgeon, having been often 

 found of the length of twenty-five feet : general shape the same ; 

 colour dusky or blackish blue above, silvery on the sides and abdo- 

 men, with a tinge of rose-colour on the latter : general appearance 

 smoother than in the common sturgeon, the dorsal tubercles being 

 less protuberant, and those along the sides much smaller, and in 

 some specimens of a very advanced growth altogether wanting: 

 mouth much larger than in the A. sturio, with thick, crescent- 

 shaped lips: skin smooth and viscid. Native of the Northern, 

 Caspian, and Mediterranean seas, migrating from them into the ad- 

 joining rivers: found more particularly in the Volga and Danube. 



