290 SALT-WATER FISHES 



The Deal-fish {jTrachypterus arcticus), a northern form 

 more commonly met with in the cold seas round Iceland, has 

 been captured on several occasions on our coasts, the longest 

 British example, measuring over 7 ft. in length, having been 

 washed ashore in Donegal Bay in 1875. It and the following 

 species have, in spite of their equally elongated and even band- 

 like form, no connection with the foregoing. The dorsal fin 

 runs almost the length of the back, and there is no anal ; but 

 the most remarkable fin is that on the tail, which is twisted 

 out of the line of the body, and consists of several small rays 

 arranged in the form of a fan. Immediately in front of the 

 tail fin, and on the lower surface, there is a single forward- 

 pointing spine. 



This fish is said to inhabit the deeper water, but, like so 

 many other deep-water forms, it is a poor swimmer, and 

 occasionally wanders into the shallows, only to be thrown 

 ashore. 



Its colour is silvery, with some pink on the fins. The 

 teeth are much smaller than in the last species. The body is 

 scalcless, and generally in a noticeably flabby condition. The 

 dorsal rays are less developed in the adult than in the young. 



Banks' Oar-fish (Regalecus banksii) may be distinguished 

 from the foregoing by the great length of the first few rays 

 of the dorsal fin, as well as of the threadlike ventrals. There 

 is no tail-fin. 



The skin of this slender, fragile fish is silvery and easily 

 bruised, Hke that of "Trichiurus. The longest British specimen 

 on record, captured in the Fame Islands, measured 18 ft. ; and 

 there have been less than a score of recorded occurrences, 

 10 ft. or 12 ft. being the average length, though one measured 

 only about as many inches. 



Banks' oar-fish must be an inhabitant of deep water, 

 though naturalists seem unable to agree on its haunts, its 

 range being apparently cosmopolitan. Several of our examples 

 appear to have been taken on the coasts of Yorkshire and 



