LAMPERN. 
397 
By the 10th. of May nearly the whole of those examined had 
deposited their spawn. In addition to this Sir William Jardine 
remarks, “The manner in which the Common (Sea) Lamprey 
and the Lamperns form their spawning beds is very curious. 
They are not furnished with any elongation of jaw, hut the 
want is supplied by their sucker-like mouth, by which they 
individually remove each stone. Their power is immense. 
Stones of a very large size are transported, and a large 
furrow is soon formed. The Sea Lampreys remain in pairs, 
two on each spawning place, and while there employed retain 
themselves affixed by their mouths to a large stone.” The 
Lampern, and another small species which he has not 
determined, but of which I shall give an account, are gre- 
garious, acting in concert, and forming in the same manner 
a general spawning bed. 
Some further particulars are given by an anonymous writer 
in “Loudon’s Magazine of Natural History,” vol. v. “On 
the 8th. of May I saw a number ol Lampreys in the act 
of spawning. After observing them for some time, I observed 
one twist its tail round another in such a manner, and they 
both stirred up the sand and small gravel from the bottom 
in such a way, as convinced me it was a conjunction of the 
sexes. However there were so many of them together, and 
they kept so continually moving about, that I could not 
single out the two individuals, and thus ascertain whether 
they were male and female^ but I felt so desirous of being 
able to set this question at rest that I went again next 
morning, and was fortunate enough to find only two, a male 
and female. I then witnessed several sexual conjunctions, 
during which the sand and gravel were stirred up with them, 
and each of which was followed by the ejection of a jet of 
eggs from the female. 1 then caught them both, and dissected 
them. The sexual organ in the male was projected above a 
quarter of an inch, and the body filled with milt; the female, 
although she seemed to have already shed a considerable 
(juantlty of her spawn had still a tolerable stock remaining. 
1 frequently afterwards witnessed the same thing, and always 
found the same difference of sexes.” 
'J’he example described was procured from the Severn, and 
was the largest of two or three. It measured about a foot 
