THE SMELT 321 



the gill-opening, they may live for some time out of water in 

 a moist place. The reproduction of the eel was long a mystery. 

 All sorts of creatures have in past times been supposed to pro- 

 duce them, ranging from the gods to water beetles. They 

 have even been thought to be generated from slime. We now 

 know, however, that there are both male and female indi- 

 viduals ; that the males live chiefly, but not exclusively, in the 



Fig. .30.3. — Siphostoma fuscuiii, the pipe-fi.5h. Nat. size. Photo. 



sea ; that reproduction occurs chiefly in the sea ; and that the 

 young females come from the sea and pass up the rivers during 

 the spring. 



The pipe-fishes and their alhes' include a number of aber- 

 rant forms. Some of these are greatlj^ elongated, like the pipe- 

 fish proper (Fig. 303) ; others are shorter and stouter, like the 

 " sea-horse." All have a prolonged snout, and usually a 

 long, slender tail. The body is encased in bony plates, and 

 the male is often provided with a brood-pouch, in which the 

 developing young are carried. 



' Lophobranchii. 



