PLEURONECTIDiE. 37 



Genus VII Solea (Klein) Cuvier. 



Monochir, Cuvier. MonocJiirus, Yarrell. 



Cleft of mouth narrow, hoisted round to the left side. Eyes on the right side, the 

 upper being partially or entirely in advance of the lower. Nostrils variously formed. 

 Dentition most developed on the blind side, ivhere the teeth in the jaws are in 

 villiform rows, none on the vomer or palate. The dorsal fin commences on the snout, 

 and is not confluent with the caudal : pectorals present or absent. Scales small, 

 ctenoid. Lateral-line straight. 



This genus has been subdivided : 



A. Pectorals developed, Microbaglossus. 



a. Nostrils on blind side not dilated, Solea. 



b. One of the nostrils on the blind side dilated and broadly fringed, Pegusa. 



B. Pectorals on both sides rudimentary or small, Buglossus. 



C. Pectorals absent, Aseraggodes. 



Geographical distribution. All temperate as well as tropical seas, except the 

 southern portion of the south temperate zone, and though normally a marine and 

 littoral form, still some enter fresh waters in which they have been acclimatized, 

 and thriven. On retaining some in fresh and others of a like weight in saline 

 water, the first at the end of a year were found to have increased at twice the 

 rapidity of those which were kept in salt water. 



Among the flat-fishes annually captured around the British coast, none 

 exceed the sole in value as food, while they are esteemed both by rich and poor. 

 Their value is often enhanced by the locality they come from, thus Torbay, 

 Folkestone and other places are more or less famed for the quality of the fish 

 which are taken from their waters. 



A most important subject, and one which deserves a more searching 

 investigation than it has yet received, is whether the fish are decreasing in 

 quantity around our coasts, and, if so, the reason ? To illustrate one side of this 

 question I give an extract from a letter from an east coast fisherman which speaks 

 for itself: "It is well known among fishermen that there is a falling off in the 

 supply of plaice and soles to an alaimiing extent, whatever may have been said to 

 the contrary by smack-owners and fish salesmen. To explain this, I shall have to 

 carry you back to the time when we first went to fish off the Sylt, about ten years 

 ago ; at which time very nearly all the ground from Horn Reef to Heligoland was 

 covered, as it were, with shoals of small plaice, and intermixed with these plaice 

 were a good many soles, both large and small. We have got as many as eighty 

 baskets of small plaice and ten baskets of soles for one night when we first went 

 there, and very nearly all the plaice would be thrown overboard, and you may be 

 aware that they always die after they have been hove on board a trawler. These 

 fish are so small that I have counted two hundred and fifty in one basket, such 

 as we use at Grimsby. The small plaice that are brought to London market 

 are the largest picked out, and then the others are thrown away. Now, we have 

 fished there every summer, heaving big bags of small plaice on board and throwing 

 them away for the sake of the soles, till by destroying the young brood, full-grown 

 plaice have grown very scarce. At the present time very small plaice will sell 

 well, so that now the soles have grown scarce off the Sylt, the small plaice, being 

 saleable, make up, so you see they are bound to be caught unless stringent 

 measures are taken for their preservation. You must remember that the 

 quantity has decreased during these last few years, twenty baskets being the most 



