308 PISCES. 



tlif first of vrliliii reaches backwards nearly to llie tail ; and the second dorsal and the anal have al^^o the rays con- 

 siderably elcntrnted. They ha\"e neither cul-de-sac to the stoinaeh, ca-'Ca, nor air-bludder. 



One species, C. liira, the Dini^^onet, is common in the British Channel, [and not rare on many pnrts of the 

 British coast, even as far north as t lie ( )ikMi.'\s. 'Ihe iircvailing" colour is yellow, with spots of brovvnisli yellow, 

 whence some of the common names of the \\>\\. It iVeiiuents the shallow waters, feeding on Crustacea, Mollusca, 

 andAWtrms; and auswerin;:^ litlle purpose, save as food for more valuable fi&h. Us Ih.'^h is said, however, to be 

 lirm and ^ood. (_'. (/rormn iilns, xW- Sordid Dragonet, is more dingy in colom", am.l h;t> the rays of the first dorsal 

 much less produced. It was once 5oppr)sed to be the female of the other species, but the mistake has been found 

 out and rectified. Tliere are some subf>;enera nearly allied to Callionynius.] 



Trichonote.i^ iliflers not much from the last, except in having the body vei'y Icm^, a sin;;"le dm'sal, and Ihe anal 

 proportionally longer. The tir.st two rays of the dorsal are extended in long threads, representing the first dorsal 

 of the former. It is said that the gill-opeuings o1 this subgenus are tolerably wide. 



Comep/tonts, have the first dorsal very low ; the muzzle oblong, depressed, and limad ; the gilN a\ ith se\ cvt rays, 

 and large openings ; the pectorals very long; and (which distinguishes them tVom tlie rest of tin- fuuiiK) th^-y have 

 no ventrals whatever. Tlie known species is found in the fresl)-\^ater lake of Baikal. It is a foot in length, ven.' 

 soft and greasy in its sultstance, and presided for obtaining an oil. It is not fished for in the lake, but found dead 

 on the shores after storms, ^vhicil are tliere severe and frequeut. 



Chirnsy are fishes with tlie body rather long, small ciliated scales, a small unarmed head, a ^hallow nioutli, \\ ith 

 small and irregular conical teeth. The spines of the dorsal are ahiays slender, and that fin extends along tiie 

 whoie back. Their distinguishing character is several series of pores, extending along the side, and having some 

 resemblance to additional lateral lines. All the known species inhabit the Sea of Kamtschatka. 



THE TTllRTEENTII FAMILY OF TIIE ACANTIIOPTERYGII. 



Pkctoralks Pk DUNCULATI (Fi&li-C's witli Wrists to the Pectoral Fins). 



There are some spinnus fi^lie-i in which tlie car[(al l)ones are so elongated as to form a sort of aruj or 

 ^\^iit, to tlie cxtrcmiry ofwiiicli tlio }irct(iral lin is articulated. The family consists of two genera, 

 closely allied to each other, i lioiigli aiii liurs ha\ c Sdiiielimes placed tliciu far a pa it in their arrangements; 

 and they are also rrlated to the Goiiics, [particularly to Per/o;j/Ao/)/;i;5, already noticed. Tliis is a very 

 lieculiar structure of the fins; gives these tishes a strange appearance, and enables them, in smne in- 

 stances, to leap suddenly up in the \\aler, and seize prey which they observe aliovr tlicm; and in others 

 to leap over the mud, somewhat after the manner of Frogs.] 



Lophita-, Anglers. ^ — The distinguishing character of these, besides their dcmi-cartilaginous skeleton, 

 and their skin without scales, consists in tbe pectoral being Mi]iported as by two arms, each consisting 

 of t\vn lnmes, whii.di ma\ lie compared to the lailins and ulna of an arm, but which in reality belong to 

 tlie carpus, or wrist; and in tiii.> genus they are larger than in any nthei They are also cbaracteri/cd 

 by having the vetdr;ds placeil mnrb in ad\ ance of tlic jicctorals ; and by having the operculum and Ihe 

 gill-rays cnvehn)ed in fiie skin, so lliat the giU-0]ii'ning is merely a bule sitnaled liehiml Ihe pectoral 

 They arc voracious lidies, willi a large sbnnarh ami a short inlestinc; and they can live a hnig time 

 out of the water, in ccniseipHjiicc of the small size of iheir gill-nponiags. They admit of ilivisitju into 

 three buhgeneia. 



Lophlua, head excessively large compared to the body ; very broad, depressed, and spinous in many parts ; the 

 mouth deeply cleft, and armed with pointed teeth ; and the lower jaw fringed round with many fleshy barbules. 

 They have two dorsal fins, and some rays of tlie first are free, and move on the bones of tlie head, where they rest 

 on a horizontal interspinal process. [In the Ampler, or Fisliing Frog of the British seas, the motions of these de- 

 taeliLil rays are very peculiar. Two are ronsideraldy in ad^'ance of the eyes, almost close to the upper lip ; the 

 posterior of these is articiiL'iird b\ a stirrup upon a ridge of the base, but the anterior one is articulated by a ring 

 at its base, into a solid sta|>le nf the bnnr, thus admitting of free motion in every direction, without the possibility 

 ot <lis|ihu-eiiiriit, pxrept in ease of absolute fraetni-e, 'nie third one, which is nn the lop of Vlie eraniuin behind 

 the e^es, IS arlieiilated much in the same ni;iniirr as the pustmur one of the other ts\e 

 these two have considerable motion in tite mesial plane of the fish, they have very little 

 The one near the lip, however, can be moved with nearly the same ease and rapidity in e\ 

 the others terminate in points, it carries a little membrane, or flag, of brilliant nnetallic lustre, winch tbe fish is 

 understood to use as a means of alluring its prey ; and the position of the flag, the eyes, and the mouth, certainly 

 would answer well for such a purpose]. The gill-membrane forms a large sac, opening in the axilla of tbe 

 pectorals, supporteil by six very luni;- rays, and \\ ith a small operculum. The\ have only three gills on each side. 

 It is said that these fishes lurk m the nmd, where, by agitating the rays on their heads, they attract smaller 

 fishes, wdiich mistake the appendages ii|i()n the ra\s for worms, ami which are instantly sei/ed, and ti-aiisfrrr..d 

 to the gill-sac. Their nitestines have twi.'or three short en.>ca near the commencement, but the lishes lia\ e im 

 air-bladders. 



J,. j<hi:iilorius,X\H- Fishing Frog, SeoT'evil, and many other local names, attains sometimes the length nf foin- or 



