﻿134 



When the turbots and brills are c. 3S mm long, the scales and pennanenl 



spines appear. The spines of the turbot are transformed scales, and it is easy to 

 follow their development; first large, oblong, true scales appear in the skin, later 

 on these are transformed into spines. This transformation docs not begin at the 

 same size in all specimens; in turbots of a length of several inches we may 

 sometimes in the skin see many scales without any spine-formation, so that we 

 would scarcely, without any further investigation, really believe that it is a tur- 

 bot we have before us. The scales, however, are situated far from one another, 

 as the spines afterwards, and do not form a real coat of scales as the case al- 

 ways is in the brill. — May not Malm's Rhombus lit/liyi<lns he a turbot whose 

 spine-formation somehow or other has been checked? — Cmp. also the other 

 individuals mentioned in literature as supposed hybrids between turbots and brills. 

 At the bottom stage of turbot and brill the number of rays in the dorsal 

 and anal fins affords good characters in our seas; it seems however that the 

 number of rays may be somewhat different in other seas. (Cmp. for instance: 

 M'Intosh, 10. Annual Report. Fishery Board for Scotland.) 



of Turbots* from «— 240mm 



1 specimen had 70 rays in the dorsal tin. 



1 



— 



-- 68 



4 



— 



- 67 



17 



— 



— 66 



19 



— 



— 65 



29 



— 



- 64 



32 



— 



- 63 



25 



— 



62 



29 



— 



- 61 



18 



— 



— 60 



4 



— 



— 59 



4 



— 



- 58 



1 



— 



— 57 



I 



— 



— 56 



1 



specimen 



had 51 



3 



— 



— 50 



6 



— 



— 49 



18 



— 



- 48 



39 



— 



- 47 



39 



— 



— 46 



39 



— 



- 45 



28 



— 



- 44 



8 



— 



- 43 



4 



— 



- 42 



anal lin. 



Of Brills from 11— 182mm 

 :■! specimens had 80 rays in the dorsal lin. 



6 — 



7 — 

 7 — 

 9 — 



24 

 13 



18 — 



1 



1 — 



9 



79 

 78 

 77 

 76 

 75 

 74 

 73 

 72 

 7L 

 70 



fin. 



4 specimens had 60 rays in the anal 



3 - .59 - 



4 - 58 - - - — - 

 9 — - 57 - 



13 56 



21 — 55 — - — 



22 — - 54 - 

 12 - 53 - 



1 - 52 - 



2 - 51 - - - 



While counting the rays in the above specimens, only one specimen (a brill 

 of c. 22«>m) was found, which could not be determined by (he number of rays 

 only; it had 70 in the dorsal fin and 51 in the anal tin; Otherwise a great (or 

 small) number of rays in one lin is usually not followed by a great (or small) 

 number in the other. 



•) Counted by Mr. Th. Morte 



as also those p. 128. 



