48 
NATURAL HISTORY. [UPPER FLOOR. 
have the general form of the Percoid, the body being covered 
with large scales,, and having only a single dorsal fin, which 
is spinous in front. Their colours are generally exceed¬ 
ingly brilliant, and from usually living on rocky shores 
they are commonly called Rock Fish. The Parrot Fish 
(Scams) is peculiar in this family, for the bones of the 
jaws being very large, and convex externally. The jaws 
are covered on the front part with teeth placed one over 
the other like scales ; and as fast as those at the edge 
are worn away, they are succeeded by a new set. 
The last family of the Acanthopterygians are the tubu¬ 
lar-mouthed fishes, so called from the mouth being elon¬ 
gated into a tube. It consists of only two genera, distin¬ 
guished by the shape of the body, which in the Tobacco- 
pipe Fish ( Fistularia ) is cylindrical, and in the Sea Snipes 
( Centriscus) compressed. 
The Malacopterygians, or soft-finned fish, which 
form the second division of this Class, are characterized 
by all the rays of the fins (except the first of the dorsal 
and pectoral fins) being soft, jointed, and usually divided 
at the end into several branches. This division has been 
separated into orders, according to the position of the 
ventral fin. 
Those of the first group, containing most of the fresh 
water fish, have the ventral fins situated behind the pec¬ 
torals. 
The first family ( Cyprinidce ) have a small mouth, feeble 
and generally toothless jaws, whose margin is formed by 
the intermaxillary bones ; a strongly-toothed pharynx, and 
a soft, false fin on the back, but no adipose dorsal fin. 
These fish mostly feed on water-plants. Amongst them 
are the Carp ( Cyprinus carpio ), Tench (Cyprinus tinea ), 
Bream ( Cyprinus brama ), Barbel ( Cyprinus barbies'), Loach 
(Cobitis ), and the Anablens, which is peculiar for the eye 
being divided across, so that it appears to have four eyes, 
similar to the Gyrini among the water-insects. The fe¬ 
male is viviparous. 
The family of Pikes ( Esocidce ), also are without any 
adipose dorsal fin, and the upper jaws are edged by the 
intermaxillaries. In most of the genera, the dorsal fin is 
placed opposite the anal. They are generally voracious, 
and prey on smaller fish. 
