GREY MULLETS 233 



spines and from eight to ten soft rays ; the pelvics 

 are inserted well behind the base of the pectorals, 

 which are placed high. The colour is silvery grey, 

 with the back bluish and the belly white ; on the 

 sides there are more or less pronounced dark 

 longitudinal stripes along the series of scales. 



THE THICK-LIPPED GREY MULLET (Mugil chelo) 

 (PL XXXIV, Fig. a) has the upper lip thick and 

 more or less distinctly papillose, especially in the 

 adult fish ; when the mouth is closed, the distal 

 ends of the maxillaries are exposed, whilst the rami 

 of the lower jaw are separated by a narrow inter- 

 space, or by none ; the pectoral fin measures at least 

 three-fourths the length of the head. This is the 

 commonest British species ; it ranges from Scandin- 

 avia to the Mediterranean ; it has been known to 

 attain a length of 3 feet and a weight of nearly 

 15 Ibs. 



THE GOLDEN GREY MULLET (Mugil auratus) 

 (PL XXXIV) differs in that the upper lip is not 

 so thick ; when the mouth is closed the maxillaries 

 are almost or quite concealed, and the rami of the 

 lower jaw are separated by an elliptical area. This 

 fish takes its name from a pair of golden spots on 

 each side of the head, one on the operculum and a 

 smaller one in front of it, behind the eye. This is 

 the rarest of our British species, but sometimes 

 occurs in numbers on the coasts of Devon and 

 Cornwall ; it ranges from Scandinavia to the 

 Mediterranean and thence southwards to the Congo. 

 It is not known to grow to more than half the 

 length attained by the Thick-lipped Mullet. 



