GADID^. 277 



Lord-fish, Tarrell, Brit. Fish (Ed. 1) i, p. 164, o. figure ; Cobbold, Proo. Roy. 

 Phy. Soc. Edin. 1854-1858, i, p. 51. 



Morrhua macvoaephala. Day, Journ. Linn. Soc. Zool. xiv, p. 689, pi. xiv. 



B. vii, D. 13-15/16-19/17-19(21), P. 16-19, V. 6, A. 17-19/16-18, C. 28, 

 Vert. 19/32. i i y J^ / , , 



Length of head 3|- to 4|, of caudal fin 6^, height of body 4 to 5, or even more 

 in theyoung, in the total length. Eye — diameter 4| in the young to 7 in the 

 adult in the length of the head : 14 diameters in the young to 2 in the adult 

 from the end of the snout, and Ij in the young to 2 in the adult apart. Body 

 much thickest anteriorly. Nostrils nearer the eye than to the end of the snout. 

 Snout conical. Mouth wide, with a deep cleft. Upper jaw the longer: the 

 posterior extremity of the maxilla reaches to beneath the first third or middle of 

 the eye. A barbel generally as long as the eye, but sometimes shorter, is situated 

 below the chin. Teeth — cardiform with an outer and much enlarged row in the 

 Tipper jaw, in a V-shaped patch on the vomer, absent from the palatines and 

 tongue. Fins — the first dorsal somewhat triangular, it commences over or slightly 

 posterior to the base of the pectoral, its fourth ray being the longest and about 

 equal to the extent of the base of the fin, from it they diminish in height to 

 the last, which is very short. There exists a very short interspace between the 

 bases of the two first dorsal fins, the fourth ray being somewhat the longest but 

 not quite equal to half the length of the base of the fin. They decrease in height 

 to the three last which are short. A very short interspace exists between the 

 second and third dorsal fins, and a longer or shorter interspace occurs between its 

 termination and the base of the outermost caudal rays. The anterior anal fin 

 commences on a vertical line below the fourth or fifth ray of the second dorsal, 

 and a short interspace exists between it and the origin of the second anal, which 

 is similar to the third dorsal. Caudal slightly emarginate or square at its 

 extremity, Ventrals small, inserted rather before the base of the pectorals, which 

 are as long as the postorbital portion of the head. Vent situated on a vertical 

 line beneath the first rays of the second dorsal fin. Scales — small and cycloid. 

 Lateral-line — passes backwards from opposite the upper edge of the orbit, attaining 

 below the centre of the second dorsal fin nearly the middle of the depth of the 

 body, from whence it is continued straight to the centre of the base of the caudal. 

 Ocecal appendages— nuTuerons and short. Colours — greenish or grayish, or olive, 

 and occasionally covered with yellow or brown spots along the back and upper 

 two-thirds of the body, its lower portion pure white. Lateral-line white, especially 

 in its lower half. Fins gray, becoming darkest towards their outer edges. 



Considerable discussions have arisen respecting what is Oadus callarias, Linn., 

 or the dorse. The Linnean Society of London possess among LinnEeus's collection 

 of fish an example of Oadus morhua, labelled G. oallarias, and also Sma Torsh. It 

 has D. 14/18/20, A. 19/19, while the length of the head is 3| in that of the body. 

 Nilsson otjserves that in G. morhua, the length of the lower jaw is half that of the 

 head, or the distance from the snout to the posterior edge of the eye : whereas, in 

 O. callarias it is less than half the length of the head, and equals the distance 

 from the snout to the middle of the eye. Thompson considered that he obtained 

 two examples of this fish at Toughal in the autumn of 1834, and that Mr. Marshall 

 took another, 8 inches long, in the county of Antrim. Mr. Cornish considers the 

 dorse by no means uncommon in Cornwall, its back being of a rich brown colour 

 (Zool. 1874, p. 4080). All the eatable cod fish 1 saw along the south coast were 

 G. morhua, the fishermen in some localities insisting that this local form difiered 

 from the common cod, whereas others believed it to be the same. Respecting 

 Gadus punctatus, Turton, that author evidently gave a wrong description of his 

 fish, for he defines it as having " upper- jaw longer " and says it differs from 

 G. morhua " in the lower jaw being considerably longer," 



Varieties of form. — Fishermen distinguish two races — (1) the Southern or 

 Dogger-bank-cod, having a pointed and somewhat elongated snout, the body being 

 of a dark colour ; and (2) the North or Scotch-cod, having a blunter snout, and 

 being of a light ash-gray. The two forms are said to mix off Northumberland. 



