390 
SCANDINAVIAN FISHES. 
undergoes even relative increase. The length of the right 
branch of the lower jaw shows a remarkable similarity 
to that of the ventral fin on the same side of the body, 
and the length of the left branch of the lower jaw to 
the least depth of the body. 
The length of the abdominal cavity occupies from 
V 7 to 7 g °f that of the body; the secondary abdominal 
cavities extend, as usual, back to the posterior part of 
the base of the anal fin: we have found the termination 
of the ovary to lie, on the right side, in a line with the 
1 8th — 20th rays of the anal fin, counting from behind, 
and on the left side, in a line with the 26th ray. The short 
oesophagus and the stomach extend along the upper wall 
of the abdominal cavity, round the hind margin of the 
liver, to the middle of the hind wall of the abdominal 
cavity, where the pylorus is externally divided by a fold 
from the intestine, at the beginning of which lie three 
pyloric appendages. A little further along the intestine 
we find another, smaller appendage. The first coil of 
the intestine passes upwards, to the right, and enters the 
right secondary abdominal cavity for a short distance, 
scarcely half the length of the abdominal cavity proper. 
The second coil lies on the inner side of the first, but 
does not enter the secondary abdominal cavity. 
The Dab occurs along the whole west coast of Scan- 
dinavia and at least from the Murman coast (Russia) to 
Iceland. It goes southwards to the Bay of Biscay, and 
penetrates the Baltic at least as far as Gothland. On 
the American side of the Atlantic it is represented by 
three very closely allied species 0 , which to a certain 
extent combine the characters of the Dab with those of 
the preceding species, as well as of the following ones. 
A fourth species, which has been referred to the genus 
Limanda b , inhabits the Pacific Ocean, and is distinguished 
from the Dab essentially by its larger head and longer 
pectoral fins alone. A fifth species, Pleuronectes Vegce , 
which belongs to the same group — with the lower pha- 
ryngeals like branchial arches, and their teeth pointed 
and set in two rows — belongs to Japan, and is distin- 
guished by the less marked curve of the lateral line and 
the extraordinary depth of the base of the caudal fin c . 
The Dab (Sw. sandflundra =Sand Flounder), as shown 
by its Swedish name, generally keeps to a sandy bottom 
and at a depth of 10 fathoms or more d , but not un- 
frequently ascends into shallower water. Its food is 
composed of small crustaceans and other marine animals, 
such as worms, shellfish, starfish and sea-urchins. Sun- 
devall found the stomach and the first coil of the in- 
testine in one case crammed with small Idotlieidce ( Ste - 
nosoma ), together with pieces of Annelids and sprigs of 
small algte ( Ceramium , Fucus ). In two females from the 
vicinity of Cimbrishamn the intestine is distended with 
a considerable quantity of mussels ( Mytilus edtdis), 
mostly whole and with the soft parts still undigested. 
The Dab thus swallows a great portion of its food 
without crushing it. 
The spawning-season of the Dab occurs in spring 
and early summer, probably from the latter part of 
April to the month of June. The fry grow slowly. Day 
mentions some young specimens, 44 mm. in length, that 
were taken at the mouth of the Thames, in November, 
1880. As the young specimens mentioned above, between 
34 and 133 mm. long, were all taken by Fihes in Bo- 
huslan, on the 19th of May, 1838, Sundevall concludes 
that they cannot possibly belong to the fry of that year. 
“To all appearances,” he says e , “the smallest specimens 
were born in the previous summer, of the roe deposited 
at its beginning. The young specimen 94 mm. in length, 
which has a far more robust appearance and is of the 
same colour as the adult specimens, is evidently a year 
older, and I would regard it as being of exactly the 
same age as the larger specimen 133 mm. in length. 
Both these specimens seem to be in their third year. 
Hence it seems highly probable that this species re- 
quires four or five years to attain its ordinary size of 
from 20 to 25 cm.” 
In Bohuslan this species is called sandskcidda, in 
Norway sandflynder , and in the Faroe Islands sandflundra. 
a Pleuronectes ( Limanda ) ferrugineus and PI. ( Limanda ) Beanii , both with very short pectoral fins, the former also with numerous 
rays in the dorsal fin (D. 83 — 85) and the latter with uncommonly short head, its length, according to Brown-Goode, being only about 15 
% of that of the body. The third species of this group — with the lower pharyngeals narrow, like branchial arches ■ — on the east coast of 
N. America, Pleuronectes ( Pseudopleuronectes ) americanus has the elliptical shape of the Lemon Dab and the lateral line only slightly curved 
in frout, and shows traces of the more or less tubercular ridge behind the eyes which is characteristic of the group of the Plaice. 
b Pleuronectes ( Limanda ) asper, with few spines on the scales and with the length of the pectoral fin of the eye side about 16 % 
of that of the body. 
D. 69 — 72 ; A. 54 — 55. Least depth of the tail about 9 1 , •> — 1 1 1 /., % of the length of the body or 28 — 30 % of the greatest depth of the body. 
d Lindsteom obtained specimens of this species that had been taken at a depth of 70' fthms., off Gothland. Brown-Goode’s Pleuro- 
nectes Beanii was taken at a depth of 120 — 126 fthms., off Rhode Island. 
e The same opinion recurs in KrOYER, 1. c., pp. 314 — 315. 
