140 THE FRESH-WATER FISHES OF EUROPE. 



The dorsal fin is in about the middle, or rather behind the middle, of the length 

 of the fish. It is nearly as high as the head is long. The anal fin is in the 

 posterior third of the length of the body. It is nearly as high as long, but 

 is not so deep as the dorsal. The ventral fins are placed rather in front of the 

 dorsal, and reach to the vent. The pectoral fins are rather short, and do not 

 extend to the ventrals. The caudal fin is deeply forked and evenly lobed, with 

 its terminal rays longer than the head. 



The lateral line is sub-parallel to the ventral outline, and reaches its lowest 

 point between the ventral and anal fins. 



The scales are rather smaller than in the Chub ; they have strong 

 concentric striae, with the rounded free border slightly festooned, and marked 

 with a few radiating grooves. The attached border is truncate. The largest 

 scales are smaller than the diameter of the eye. At spawning-time white 

 tubercles appear upon the scales, head, operculum, and first ray of the pectoral 

 fin ; the colour varies with age, locality, and season of the year. During 

 spring and spawning-time, in April and May, the colours are conspicuously 

 bright. On the back the tint is blackish-blue, with a metallic lustre ; the 

 sides are whitish, the abdomen is silvery, and the head and operculum are 

 golden. The iris is yellow, with dark spots in its upper part. The dorsal and 

 caudal fins are grey- blue or violet, while the other fins are more or less red ; 

 though, according to Von Siebold, all the fins have a reddish tinge, with a 

 tendency towards violet. In autumn the colours grow darker : the back 

 becomes black or greenish-blue, but the brassy or golden lustre changes into 

 yellowish-white ; only the ventral and anal fins retain a dull red colour. 



In the young the red colour of the fins is brightest, and is especially 

 remarkable in the anal fin ; and the back is then much paler, and has some- 

 times a brassy tone. 



These fishes are usually about one foot long, and commonly weigh four or 

 five pounds. They occasionally reach a length of eighteen or twenty inches, 

 and then weigh upwards of six pounds in the Danube, but larger specimens 

 are found in North Germany. 



Its habits cause it to prefer pure cold water, so that it is not common in 

 shallow streams, and it lives in deep places in winter. It is not confined to 

 fresh water, being found in the Baltic and about its islands. 



It is timid, but crafty, and comes to the quiet surface of the water only 

 in the evening ; it swims rapidly. It lives for eight or nine years. It is not 

 a fish much sought after, but when fished for, whether with net or line, the 

 bait used consists of grasshoppers, dung-fly, or small fishes. Its white flesh 

 when boiled in salt water becomes yellowish or red, like Salmon Trout. 



It is widely distributed in Eastern Europe. According to Dr. Grimm, it is 



