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Encyclopedia Britannica - Main :: MOS-NAN |
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MULLET , the name of two different kinds of fishes, distinguished as red mullets and grey mullets. Red mullets (genus Mullus, the name given by the ancient Romans) are marine fishes, with two short dorsal fins remote from each other: the first is composed of feeble spines, the second of branched rays; the anal fin is similar to the second dorsal. The body
touch are generally laid backwards and hidden in a groove between the branches of the lower jaw, but can be erected and called into action independently. About forty
bright yellow bands along the sides from head to tail; these are absent in the other form. It has been proved that this is not a sexual difference, the two forms are varieties or species. The striped form is usually found on the coasts of England, where the plain form is rare or absent. In the Mediterranean both kinds occur, but it is probable that the striped form, which is larger, is more common in the Atlantic and the plain form in Mediterranean and southern waters.Red mullets do not attain any considerable size, the largest of the tropical species weighing only two or three pounds. They are ground-feeders, evidently using their barbels in discovering their food, which consists of crustacea, worms, and, in the larger species, of small fishes; that they feed on putrid flesh is not borne out by the evidence drawn
body
late
spring and during summer they approach the coasts and enter even brackish water, but the state of their sexual organs shows that they do not come towards the shore to breed. At Naples they spawn from May to August, and their ova are buoyant and transparent. In June, July and August the young
The grey mullets form a widely different and distinct family, Mugilidae. They are not exclusively marine, but enter brackish water, live always close to the shore, and some of the tropical forms inhabit the pure fresh water of streams and rivulets, without, however, penetrating far inland. Their body is elegantly formed, wedge-shaped, and covered with scales ofmoderate size, firmly adherent to the skin. The two short dorsal fins are remote from each other, and the anterior is composed of four stiff spines. The anal fin is similar to the second dorsal; the caudal fin strong and bilobed. The form of the snout is peculiar; the mouth narrow, transverse in the true Mrlgil, and without, or with but feeble, teeth. About seventy different species are known, from almost every coast of the temperate and tropical zones; they swim in small schools and are abundant wherever they occur. Two species are found on the British coastsMugil capito and Mugil chelo, the first being the more common. Some of the fresh-water grey mullets of the tropics, especially those of the West Indian and Indo-Pacific islands, have the mouth more lateral or have distinct though minute teeth; they therefore have been formed into separate genera, Agonostoma and Myxus. Grey mullets, at least some of the species, grow to a weight of ro or r2 lb; but the fish which usually come into the market rarely exceed half that weight. Those in which distinct teeth are developed feed principally on small aquatic animals, whilst the diet of those without teeth consists of animalcules or minute organic substances mixed with the mud or sand which they swallow in large quantities; also confervoid growths to which small shells adhere are freely taken. To prevent the gills from being clogged by sand or mud, a peculiar apparatus separates these organs from the pharynx. Each branchial arch is provided on each side, in its whole length, with a series of closely-set gill-rakers, each series fitting into the series of the adjoining arch; they constitute together a sieve permitting the passage of the water, while retaining other substances in the cavity destined for mastication. The structure of the intestinal tract is also adapted to the diet of these fishes. One portion of the stomach is globular and surrounded by a thick mass of muscles, the cavity being small and coated with a tough epithelium. This structure reminds us of the stomach of birds, in which it also serves for the trituration of hard sub-stances. The intestine itself is six or seven times as long as the fish. Grey mullets are plainly coloured, generally greenish on the upper parts and more or less silvery on the side. They are wholesome food, well flavoured when taken out of clean water. In the fish-farms of western Italy grey mullets are among the principal fish cultivated. (J. T. C.)End of Article: MULLET If you wish, you can link directly to this article.
<a href="http://jcsm.org/StudyCenter/Encyclopedia/MOS_NAN/MULLET.html"> MULLET </a> |
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