540 C Y P R 
yond the under one. The mouth is fquare, and fmall 
in proportion to the fize of tlte filli. The nape, or junc¬ 
tion of the head, is broad and black, the eye large, with 
a black pupil, the iris varying from yellow to lilver- 
eolour. The body is covered with large fcales;. the 
back fomewhat bent, and blackiih. Below the lateral 
line, which forms a bend towards the belly, the (ides 
are white, and the belly is of the fame colour. Thefe 
fill] generally weigh about a pound ; yet fome attain the 
weight of two pounds, and even two pounds and a half, 
in which cafe the fins are generally grey. The rays of 
the fins, excepting the two firfi:, divide near the extre¬ 
mity into eight branches. This fifli is commonly found 
at the bottoms of great lakes; but in the fpring they go 
in fhoals into the rivers. They fpawn in April, laying 
their eggs in deep places, againft (tones expofcd to the 
running dream ; the eggs are whitifli, about the fize of 
millet: 7900 have been counted in the double ovary, 
which weighed only an ounce and a quarter. In fpawn- 
ing-time, little black fpots appear on the fins of the 
males, with prickles in the middle of them ; but this 
chiefly in the younger fifh. In fpring they are taken in 
plenty in the Viftula, the Oder, the Elbe, and the 
Rhine; but do not quit thefe large dreams for fmall 
rivers, like others of the genus. The fleflt is foft, infi- 
pid, and full of bones; confequently little efieemed as 
food, and only eaten by the poorer fort; hence it has, in 
fome parts of Pruflia, the name of fchneiderffck , or tai¬ 
lor’s fifh. It lives on worms and weeds, like the other 
fpecics. In each jaw there are fix flattened teeth on 
each fide, which flint one into the other. It grows to 
fifteen or eighteen inches long; has eighteen ribs, and 
forty-four vertebrae. Albert the Great firfi; gave this 
fifli the name of nafus ; hence ichthyologifts call it nafus 
Alberti , Albert’s nole-fifli. The females are always larger 
than males of the fame age. 
43. Cyprinus afpius, the rapacious carp. The diftin- 
guilhing marks are, (ixteen rays in the anal fin; the un¬ 
derjaw bent inwards; it protrudes when the mouth is 
open, but when (hut the bent point (huts into the hollow 
in the upper jaw. The peftoral fins have twenty rays, 
the ventral nine, the tail twenty large and twelve fmall 
rays, the dorfal eleven. The head is wedge-fiiaped, and 
fmall in proportion to the body. The mouth is large ; 
the eyes middle-fized, with a black pupil and yellow 
iris, bordered above with green. The back of the head 
is broad, and of a deep blue colour. The coverings of 
the gills are a mixture of blue, yellow, and green. The 
back is blackilli ; that part neared the head is flat, the 
red round ; the fides are of a bluifh white ; the lcales 
and the lateral line refemble the chub, only that the 
fcales are fmaller. In the young fifli there appear as 
many lines parallel with the lateral line as there are rows 
of fcales. The dorfal and tail fins are blue ; the pecto¬ 
ral, ventral, and anal, bluifh, with a mixture of red: 
but in the young (idles, the latter are yellowifli, the for¬ 
mer grey. 
This fpecies grows to a confiderable fize ; it is not un¬ 
common to find them weigh ten or twelve pounds. 
They form the medium between the voracious fifh, and 
thofe which are not fo ; for they devour other fifties like 
the former, but feed alfo on herbage and worms, like the 
latter; but, as their gullet is not fo wide as thofe pro¬ 
perly called voracious, they can only eat the fmaller fifli. 
They are fond of clear water, and rivers where the 
ftream is gentle; they cad their fpawn about the latter 
end of March on the ((ones at the bottom Gf the water. 
The flefli is white and well-taded, but falls to pieces in 
deeding,; befides it is full of little bones; and, being 
foft and fat, weak domachs will not diged it: it grows 
quickly. Whileyoung, it is itfelf the prey of rapacious 
fifties; but makes.reprifals afterwards. They are taken 
plentifully in fpawningxtime and in autumn; being found 
in the marches in Pomerania, Pruflia, Saxony, Auftria, 
Sweden, and Norway, but particularly in the Curifch- 
I N U S. 
have and Frifch-have in Pruflia ; alfo in Ruflia, in the 
Volga and the rivers which run into it, and in the lakes 
of frefh-water. 
44. Cyprinus bipunftatus, or two-fpotted cyprinus. 
This fpecies has (ixteen rays in the anal fin, and a double 
row of black (pots on the lateral line, which is red. 
The fifli was not deferibed by any modern naturalid be¬ 
fore Bloch, and it is very doubtful whether the ancients 
were acquainted with it: it is now' received into the 
Linnaean (yflem by Gmelin. There are thirteen rays in 
the peCtoral fin, eight in the ventral, the tail has twenty, 
and is forked, the dorfal has fix. The peftoral, anal, 
and ventral, fins, are reddifli, the tail and dorfal fins are 
greenifli, and the latter is farther from the head than the 
ventral fins. This fifli belongs to the divifion of broad 
carps; and its head is large in proportion to the body, 
which generally is not the cafe with the narrow carps. 
The upper jaw is rather advanced. The eye is large, 
the pupil black, the iris yellow with a greenifli (pot 
above; the cheeks vary from blue to (liver-colour ; the 
back is arched, and of a deep grey. The lides, above 
the lateral line, are brown inclining to green ; underneath 
the colour is (ilvery-white. The body is covered with 
fmall fcales fpotted with black. It makes a very pretty 
appearance, owing to the black fpots fcattered on a white 
ground. The red colour of the lateral line is loft when 
the fifli grows old, or w’hen it dies. 
This fpecies is only found in running waters with a 
fap.dy or flinty bottom. They fpawn in May ; at which 
time they feek more rapid dreams, that they may rub 
themfelves againft the (mall flints. At other times they 
remain chiefly at the top of the water. The eggs are 
fo numerous, that fometimes they weigh as much as the 
fifli itfelf; and are fo fmall, that it is impoflible to count 
them. They are found in the Wefer, and may ferve as 
food for trout, fince they feek the fame water. It mul¬ 
tiplies fad; but, being a fmall filh, ealily becomes a 
prey to all the voracious tribes. It lives, like the other 
fpecies, on plants and worms ; the flefli is white and 
well-tafted. It is .called in Wcftphalia alandblike-, in Ba¬ 
varia lauben ; at Stralburg Jpirlin. 
45. Cyprinus amarus, the bitter carp. This is the 
fmalleft of the genus; its di inftive marks are the feven 
rays in the peftoral and ventral fins. There are eleven 
rays in the anal fin, twenty in the tail reckoning the 
fmall ones, and ten in the dorfal. This little fifli is one 
of the ( road fpecies ; for it is never more than two 
inches long, yet above half an inch in breadth. The 
head is (mall and wedge-fliaped ; the jaws equal; eyes 
fmall, with a black pupil; iris red above and yellow 
below. The covering's of the gills are yellowifli ; the 
fcales are large in proportion to the fize of the fifli; and, 
feen through a magnifier, are marked with minute black 
dots. The back is of a green yellow, thin and loofe 
above the lateral line, but rounded below it. 1 he (idesr 
are yellow above the lateral line, below they are white, 
as well as the belly. The lateral line bends as it ap¬ 
proaches the head ; towards the belly it becomes black- 
ifh, and near the tail it is of a fteel-blue. The peftoral, 
ventral, and anal, fins, are reddifli; thofe of the back and 
tail greenifli. 
This fifli delights in clear running dreams, with a fandy 
bottom ; they are only found in rivers, or in lakes eroded 
by rivers, as the lake Migel near Ccepenic. Its flefli is 
bitter, whence the name ; it is confequently feldom tiled 
for food ; and is fo little fought after by filhermen, that 
the time of its fpawning is not precifely known. It 
contains an innumerable quantity of lpawn ; but, not- 
withftanding the quantity of its eggs, and that the bit- 
ternefs of its flefli caufes it to be little purfued by man : 
it does not increafe much. Being fmall, it is continually 
devoured by the voracious.kinds. 
46. Cyprinus Americanus, the American carp ; it has 
eighteen rays in the anal fin : the dorfal and ventral fins 
Ijave nine each ; peftorals fixteen, tail twenty-fevenr 
body 
