Page:Natural History, Fishes.djvu/106

92 aquila,. et .), but our fishermen call it the Stone Basse, and confound it with another fish of large size, which resembles it, one of the Percadæ.

Mr. Yarrell describes the colour of this rare fish when quite fresh, as a uniform greyish silver, slightly inclining to brown on the back, and lightest on the belly; but the whole body assuming a much darker tint, after it has been kept for a few days. The fins are reddish brown; the first dorsal, the pectorals, and the ventrals, brighter in hue than the others. The second dorsal is twice as long as the first; the caudal is, as it were, cut off with a straight vertical edge.

Many of the Sciænadæ have a similar power to that already mentioned as characterizing the Trigladæ, that of producing vocal sounds. The Maigre’s voice is compared to the purring of a cat, and it utters it not only in the air when removed from the water, but even when swimming considerably beneath the surface. When swimming in shoals, it is said the purring of the Maigre is audible from a depth of twenty fathoms.