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fishes have their stomachs close to the mouth, and are not furnished with a
gullet.
Some fishes then, as has been stated, are carnivorous, and carnivorous only,
as the dolphin, the synodon, the gilt-head, the selachians, and the molluscs.
Other fishes feed habitually on mud or sea-weed or sea-moss or the so-called
stalk-weed or growing plants; as for instance, the phycis, the goby, and the
rock-fish; and, by the way, the only meat that the phycis will touch is that of
prawns. Very often, however, as has been stated, they devour one another, and
especially do the larger ones devour the smaller. The proof of their being
carnivorous is the fact that they can be caught with flesh for a bait. The
mackerel, the tunny, and the bass are for the most part carnivorous, but they
do occasionally feed on sea-weed. The sargue feeds on the leavings of the
trigle or red mullet. The red mullet burrows in the mud, when it sets the mud
in motion and quits its haunt, the sargue settles down into the place and feeds
on what is left behind, and prevents any smaller fish from settling in the
immediate vicinity.
Of all fishes the so-called scarus, or parrot, wrasse, is the only one known
to chew the cud like a quadruped.
As a general rule the larger fishes catch the smaller ones in their mouths
whilst swimming straight after them in the ordinary position; but the
selachians, the dolphin, and all the cetacea must first turn over on their backs,
as their mouths are placed down below; this allows a fair chance of escape to
the smaller fishes, and, indeed, if it were not so, there would be very few of
the little fishes left, for the speed and voracity of the dolphin is something
marvellous.
Of eels a few here and there feed on mud and on chance morsels of food
thrown to them; the greater part of them subsist on fresh water. Eel-breeders
are particularly careful to have the water kept perfectly clear, by its
perpetually flowing on to flat slabs of stone and then flowing off again;
sometimes they coat the eel-tanks with plaster. The fact is that the eel will
soon choke if the water is not clear as his gills are peculiarly small. On this
account, when fishing for eels, they disturb the water. In the river Strymon
eel-fishing takes place at the rising of the Pleiads, because at this period the
water is troubled and the mud raised up by contrary winds; unless the water
be in this condition, it is as well to leave the eels alone. When dead the eel,
unlike the majority of fishes, neither floats on nor rises to the surface; and this
is owing to the smallness of the stomach. A few eels are supplied with fat, but
the greater part have no fat whatsoever. When removed from the water they
can live for five or six days; for a longer period if north winds prevail, for a
shorter if south winds. If they are removed in summer from the pools to the
1156
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book The Complete Aristotle"
The Complete Aristotle
- Title
- The Complete Aristotle
- Author
- Aristotle
- Date
- ~322 B.C.
- Language
- English
- License
- PD
- Size
- 21.0 x 29.7 cm
- Pages
- 2328
- Keywords
- Philosophy, Antique, Philosophie, Antike, Dialogues, Metaphysik, Metaphysics, Ideologie, Ideology, Englisch
- Categories
- Geisteswissenschaften
- International
Table of contents
- Part 1; Logic (Organon) 3
- Categories 4
- On Interpretation 34
- Prior Analytics, Book I 56
- Prior Analytics, Book II 113
- Posterior Analytics, Book I 149
- Posterior Analytics, Book II 193
- Topics, Book I 218
- Topics, Book II 221
- Topics, Book III 237
- Topics, Book IV 248
- Topics, Book V 266
- Topics, Book VI 291
- Topics, Book VII 317
- Topics, Book VIII 326
- On Sophistical Refutations 348
- Part 2; Universal Physics 396
- Physics, Book I 397
- Physics, Book II 415
- Physics, Book III 432
- Physics, Book IV 449
- Physics, Book V 481
- Physics, Book VI 496
- Physics, Book VII 519
- Physics, Book VIII 533
- On the Heavens, Book I 570
- On the Heavens, Book II 599
- On the Heavens, Book III 624
- On the Heavens, Book IV 640
- On Generation and Corruption, Book I 651
- On Generation and Corruption, Book II 685
- Meteorology, Book I 707
- Meteorology, Book II 733
- Meteorology, Book III 760
- Meteorology, Book IV 773
- Part 3; Human Physics 795
- On the Soul, Book I 796
- On the Soul, Book II 815
- On the Soul, Book III 840
- On Sense and the Sensible 861
- On Memory and Reminiscence 889
- On Sleep and Sleeplessness 899
- On Dreams 909
- On Prophesying by Dreams 918
- On Longevity and the Shortness of Life 923
- On Youth, Old Age, Life and Death, and Respiration 929
- Part 4; Animal Physics 952
- The History of Animals, Book I 953
- The History of Animals, Book II translated 977
- The History of Animals, Book III 1000
- The History of Animals, Book IV 1029
- The History of Animals, Book V 1056
- The History of Animals, Book VI 1094
- The History of Animals, Book VII 1135
- The History of Animals, Book VIII 1150
- The History of Animals, Book IX 1186
- On the Parts of Animals, Book I 1234
- On the Parts of Animals, Book II 1249
- On the Parts of Animals, Book III 1281
- On the Parts of Animals, Book IV 1311
- On the Motion of Animals 1351
- On the Gait of Animals 1363
- On the Generation of Animals, Book I 1381
- On the Generation of Animals, Book II 1412
- On the Generation of Animals, Book III 1444
- On the Generation of Animals, Book IV 1469
- On the Generation of Animals, Book V 1496
- Part 5; Metaphysics 1516
- Part 6; Ethics and Politics 1748
- Nicomachean Ethics, Book I 1749
- Nicomachean Ethics, Book II 1766
- Nicomachean Ethics, Book III 1779
- Nicomachean Ethics, Book IV 1799
- Nicomachean Ethics, Book V 1817
- Nicomachean Ethics, Book VI 1836
- Nicomachean Ethics, Book VII 1851
- Nicomachean Ethics, Book VIII 1872
- Nicomachean Ethics, Book IX 1890
- Nicomachean Ethics, Book X 1907
- Politics, Book I 1925
- Politics, Book II 1943
- Politics, Book III 1970
- Politics, Book IV 1997
- Politics, Book V 2023
- Politics, Book VI 2053
- Politics, Book VII 2065
- Politics, Book VIII 2091
- The Athenian Constitution 2102
- Part 7; Aesthetic Writings 2156