Tioar. 



180 UNCTUOUS SUCKER. Class IV. 



rivers. We have seen it in January full of 

 spawn. 

 Descrip- The length is five inches ; the color, when 

 fresh taken, a pale brown, sometimes finely 

 streaked with a darker ; the shape of the body 

 round, but near the tail compressed sideways ; 

 the belly is white and very protuberant; the 

 head is large, thick, and round ; there are no 

 teeth in the mouth, but the jaws are very 

 rough; the tongue very large; the eyes very 

 small ; the orifice to the gills is very small ; 

 it has six branchiostegous rays ; the pectoral 

 fins are very broad, thin, and transparent, and 

 almost unite under the throat; the first ray 

 next the throat is very long, extends far beyond 

 the rest, and is as fine as a hair ; over the base 

 of each is a sort of operculum, or lid, ending in 

 a point ; this is capable of being raised or de- 

 pressed at pleasure ; behind the head begins 

 the dorsal fin, which extends quite to the end 

 of the tail ; the ventral fin begins at the anus, 

 and unites with the other at the tail ; beneath 

 the throat is a round depression of a whitish 

 color, like the impression of a seal, surrounded 

 with twelve small pale yellow tubera, by which 

 it probably adheres to the stones like the other 

 species. 



