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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atever may be the assigned marksand distinction at the fullest stage of growth, when the LakeBream is of a bright yellow colour, and it is of much largersize than the White Bream is ever known to attain; yet at anearlier stage, when the Lake Bream is only half grown, thecolour of both these fishes is so much alike, and the otherdifierences between them require such close examination thatwe need not feel surprised if the real points of distinction arenot always detected. Yet that they were believed to be distinctfishes in very early times appears from the Book of St, Albans,where Bremettis are mentioned separately, as to be fished forwith some difference of baits; and that they are distinct fishesis now generally admitted; but although whatever differencemay exist in their habits is not well known, in this respectalso some distinction must exist since there are places wherethe White Bream is common, and the Lake Bream is not metwith. Mr. Jenyns points to some districts of the River Cam
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WHITE BRE.VM. 41 as an instance of thi8, and it appears not unlikely that thereverse of this is the case in some parts of Ireland. It might have been preferable to have limited to the speciesnow under consideration the name of Shude, which is used inthe north of Ireland for the early stage of both these fishes,and for the latter during the whole of its existence; but wehave decided otherwise in order to avoid confusion. Atthe same time it should be borne in mind that the Lake Breamis equally white until of nearly full growth, and also that inEkstroms History of Scandinavian Fishes, the figure ofAhramis Blicca is decidedly yellow. Instead of giving an extended description of the A\^hitcBream, we will simply point out those characters by which itmay be distinguished from the Lake Bream, with which aloneit is likely to be confounded; and in doing this we preferto select these points to which attention has been particularlydirected by writers whose opportunities of comparison have beenthe

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