MISCELLANY. 217 



captured on Thursday evening last, near Close House, the residence of Mrs. 

 Bewick, near Newcastle, and has been presented by that lady, in a state of the 

 finest preservation, to the Natural History Society, Newcastle, to be deposited 

 in the museum. The Moth, about eight o'clock in the evening, probably attracted 

 by the light of the fire, flew into the house of Mr. Clarke, the gardener. When 

 on the wing it resembled, in size, a Bat, its body being of considerable circum- 

 ference, and upwards of two inches long ; whilst its wings, when extended, are 

 upwards of five inches across. — Mrs. Clarke and her family were much alarmed, 

 but Mr. Clarke shut the door, and set to work to capture the intruder. When 

 pursued, its scream resembled that of a Mouse, but it was eventually taken 

 without having received the slightest injury. It proved to be a fine specimen of 

 the Death's-head Moth, so called from its having, immediately behind its head, a 

 large and perfect figure of the head of a human skeleton. The representation of 

 the "Death's-head" is bone-coloured, surrouri*ded by a black ground, which brings 

 the colour out prominently. The place of the " lack-lustre eye-holes " of the 

 skull are represented by black spots, and the sunken cheeks of this natural 

 memento mori are rendered prominent by a darker shading. The body and 

 wings of the insect are beautifully marked, and such perfect specimens of the 

 Death's-head Moth as the one under notice are, we believe, in this country very- 

 rare. — Tyne Mercury, Oct. 1837- 



Crenilabrus rupesiris found in the Frith of Forth. — The storm of the 24th 

 and 25th of February, although productive of disastrous consequences in several 

 places, has afforded many rare marine productions to the active naturalists. In 

 the vicinity of Leith especially, and for many miles down the Frith of Forth, the 

 whole beach above tide-mark was completely covered with the wrecks of the 

 bottom of the ocean. The number of shells — principally the common Solen 

 slliqua — was really wonderful. Among the Crustacea, which might have been 

 gathered by barrow-fuls, I observed several specimens of Galathea strigosa and 

 G. rugosa. But perhaps the rarest object which I picked up was a specimen of 

 what appears to be Jago's Goldsinny (Labrus — Crenilabrus — rupesiris; Serranus 

 rupestris of Bloch), a fish which I believe was first satisfactorily proved to be a 

 British species by Mr. Selby, from an examination of three specimens procured 

 in February, 183G, one on the coast of Bamborough, the other two in Berwick 

 Bay, and described by that gentleman in the Magazine of Zoology and Botany. 

 Since then Mr. Thompson, of Dublin, has recorded, in the same periodical, the 

 capture of two others, taken in September, 1835, at Bangor, in the sister Isle, 

 In Mr. Yarrell's admirable British Fishes, a figure is given of a very small 

 specimen which appears to belong to this species. These are the only instances 

 of its occurrence which I can find recorded. My specimen measures 6J inches in 

 length, corresponding in size with that figured by Selby, with which it otherwise 

 vol. III. — NO. xix. 2 G 



