144 Mr. Yarrell on Whitebait and Shad. 



most distinguishable, consisted of very minute shrimps. 



To shew that my expectations of obtaining other adult specimens of 

 Whitebait with roe as the winter approaches, have some foimdation, 

 I quote from Mr. Pennant's editor the following sentence, " the accurate 

 " DuHAMEL asserts that the Franc Blanquet (of the identity of which 

 " with the Whitebait we entertain little doubt) is full of eggs and milt 

 " in November and December." 



The slow developement of the ova of fishes which spawn in winter 

 may principally be referred to temperature. From the spawn of Salmon, 

 deposited in December and January, the young fry do not come forth till 

 March and April, while the ova of some other species, deposited in the 

 midst of summer, become living fishes on the ninth day. 



Believing that the more closely this subject is examined, the more evi- 

 dent the true distinction between the Whitebait and Shad will appear, I 

 venture to propose the term alba for the former species, the characters of 

 which have been already noticed in detail, and of which a correct figure 

 by Mr. James Sowerby is annexed. The name given by Mr. Donovan to 

 his Whitebait fClupea alosa junior J may still be retained without incon- 

 venience, since the fishes represented by that gentleman in his 98th plate, 

 are in reality young Shads, and not Whitebait; and I have entered thus 

 fully into the investigation with the hope of clearing up the confusion and 

 errors at present existing on this subject, in most of, if not all, our Zoolo- 

 gical works. 



Ryder Street, St. James's. 

 August, 1828. 



Description of the Plate. 

 Tab. v. 



Fig. 1. Represents a young Shad. 



2. Whitebait. 



3. Edge of the mouth of the Shad as seen when magnified. 



4. Abdominal serrated edge of the Shad. 



5. Edge of the mouth of the Whitebait as seen when magnified, 



6. Abdominal serrated edge of the Whitebait, 



