Identifier: historyoffisheso04couch (find matches)
Title: A history of the fishes of the British Islands
Year: 1862 (1860s)
Authors: Couch, Jonathan, 1789-1870 Lydon, A. F
Subjects: Fishes
Publisher: London, Groombridge and Sons
Contributing Library: Smithsonian Libraries
Digitizing Sponsor: Smithsonian Libraries

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iby informs ns that it is occasionallyfound in the Tiber; and that it bore the name of Tinea, wliich.is the origin of tlie English designation, ajjpears from Ausonius,who is the only writer of his country that is known to mentionit, at least with any particular reference to its nature or habits.And the reason of this omission appears to be that it was notin esteem with them for the table; which was the principalcriterion by which the people of that day were accustomed tomeasure the value of any object that could be eaten. Butwe are referred to the writings of Cicero, from which we learnthat in consequence of some appearance or property in thisfish he chose to apply its name to an orator who was knownfor some amusing peculiarity that could find some analogyin the Tinea or Tench. In addition to this it may also besuspected that the species termed the Black Cyprinus by ^lian,an inhabitant of the Danube,- and which has been referredto when we spake of the Carp, may rather be the Tench, as
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TENCH. 23 the descriptive epithet may more fitly apply to the latter thanto the former. There is reason to believe that the Tench has always been aninhabitant of onr lakes and slovrly-mo-ving rivers, in the deeperportions of which, where weeds and mud abound, it findscongenial haunts; and where its food of vegetables, worms, andsmall fishes is easily and abundantly obtained. A slimy bottomis especially selected, and from this circumstance, as also fromthe slimy covering of its body, in which last particular itexceeds most fishes which possess scales, in some countries it hasreceived its name. It has been observed that these fishes,which are fond of associating together, are much in the customof licking from each other this mucous secretion, as they alsoare of nibbling any soft and fat substance, even of a woundwhich may have been received in assaults from one another. Thisnibbling of the raw surface has been interpreted into an intendedhealing process, and the Tench has accordingly be

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