MALACOPTERYGII ABDOMINALES. 
313 
Cyprinus. — These form a genus, at once very natural and very numerous ; easily distinguished by 
the small mouth, the jaws without a single tooth, and three flat gill-rays. Their tongue is smooth ; 
their palate furnished with a thick, soft, and remarkably sentient substance, vulgarly called carp’s 
tongue. Their pharynx is a powerful instrument of mastication, having strong teeth on the inferior 
pharyngeal bones, and they bruise their aliments between these and a stony disc, which is set in a large 
cavity under a process of the sphenoid. They have but one dorsal ; their body is covered with 
scales, usually large : they inhabit the fresh waters ; and are the least carnivorous of fishes, — feeding 
chiefly on seeds, the roots of plants, and [as is said] on mud and sludge. The stomach is continuous, 
with a short intestine without coeca ; and the air-bladder is divided in two by a close contraction. 
The genus is divided into the following subgenera : — 
Cyprmus, the true Carps, have a long dorsal, of which, as well as the anal, the second ray has a spine more or 
less stout. Some of them have fleshy tubercles at the angles of the upper jaw, such as C. carpio, the Common 
Carp, a well-known fish : olive green above, and yellowish below ; with strong toothed spines in the dorsal and 
anal, and short tubercles. The teeth of the pharynx are flat and striated in their crowns, [something like those of 
the Ruminant Mammalia]. Originally [as is understood] from the middle latitudes of Europe, it is now generally 
distributed, and thrives well in fish-ponds and other still waters, where it sometimes grows to the length of four 
feet: its flesh is esteemed as food. [Though an iiuported fish, Carp thrives well in England, though better in 
ponds than even in the most slow running parts of rivers ; but in Scotland the waters are less adapted for them, 
and they breed and grow slowly, even in ponds. Austria and Prussia are the great Carp countries. To their 
vegetable food they add insects and worms, if such can be obtained : and when out of the water, they are very 
tenacious of life, in consequence of which they are easily extended from pond to pond.] 
Of the true Carps there is one race, C. rex carporum, the King of the Carps, which have the scales large, but 
often wanting in patches, and sometimes entirely. They are artificially varied, — that is, they occur only in ponds. 
Some foreign species are reddish brown, and others golden green, but these are imperfectly known. 
Some species want the barbules. Among these are,— C. carassius, having the body high, the lateral line straight, 
and the caudal fin squared oflf. This is a northern species. C. gibelio, the Crucian or Prussian Carp, has the body 
less elevated, the lateral line curved downwards, and tail fin forked. [It occurs as a British fish, but, perhaps, 
not so plentifully as the former]. C, auratus, the Golden Carp, [called Gold Fishes or Silver Fishes, according to 
their colour]. These are black when young, but by degrees acquire the golden red for which they are esteemed ; 
though some of them are silvery, with various clouds of all the three colours. Some have no dorsal ; others a very 
small one ; others, again, a large caudal of three or four lobes ; and others, still, very large eyes ; all of which 
varieties are merely accidental, and the results of that artificial treatment which they receive when kept in glass 
vessels for ornamental purposes. 
Allied to these is the smallest of the European Carps, C. amarus, only about an inch in length ; greenish above, 
pale yellow beneath, with a steel-blue line on each side of the tail, in April, which is the spawning season. 
Barbus, the Barbel, or Bearded Fish— from the cirri at its mouth— has the dorsal and anal short ; a strong spine 
for the second or third dorsal ray ; two cirri at 
the point of the muzzle, and two at the angles of 
the upper jaw. [B. communis^ the Common 
Barbel, known by its long head, is very com- 
mon in streams and fish-ponds, and sometimes 
grows to the length of ten feet. [In the sluggish 
parts of the Thames, and some of its affluents. 
Barbel are very plentiful. They are said to 
plough up the mud with their noses, which, 
setting very small animals adrift in the water, 
attracts those small fishes on which the Barbel 
feeds.] 
Gobio, the Gudgeons, have the dorsal and anal 
short, and are without spines or beards. In slow-running rivers, where there is a gravelly interruption, they are 
found in vast shoals, readily caught, and, though small in size, esteemed for their flavour. 
Tinea, the Tenches, resembling the Gudgeons, but have the scales and cirri very small. The Common Tench 
is short and thick, of a yellowish brown, and sometimes beautifully golden. It prefers stagnant waters, and is not 
in much estimation as food. 
Cirrhinus, have the dorsal larger than the Gudgeons, and the cirri in the central part of the upper lip. 
Abramis, Bream, have neither spines nor cirri ; a short dorsal behind the ventrals, or long anal ; and the tail 
forked. There are two species, the Carp Bream, and the White Bream ; the first is the largest and most highly 
esteemed ; and the other is of little value, except to feed other fishes in ponds. 
Labeo. All foreigners ; have neither spines nor cirri along the dorsal, and remarkably thick lips, often furred. 
Catostomus, have the lips of the former, but a short dorsal above the ventrals. They are from North America. 
Leuciscus : dorsal and anal short ; no spines, cirri, or peculiarities of the lips : species numerous, but little 
esteemed. [One species, the Ide, L. idus, has been seen as a British fish ; and besides this there are several 
others, as L. dobulus, the Double Roach ; L. utilis, the Roach ; L. vulgaris ; L. Lancasteriensis, the Graining ; 
Fig. 142.— Tile barbel. 
