6 The Irish Naturalist. 



the under surface of projecting ledges, and most of the other 

 common forms of sea-anemones flourished luxuriously, 

 sharing the decoration of the pools with numerous brightl}^- 

 coloured sponges. Trawling around the shore our boatmen 

 discovered for themselves a rich locality for Sole, Plaice, and 

 Brill. The Laminaria brought up was coated with miniature 

 forests of Obelia gcniadata, Linn, and other zoophytes. 

 Numbers of shells of Peden 7naxiimis, I,inn. were obtained 

 encrusted with various Polyzoa. In returning across the bay 

 we were alarmed by the proximity of four or five large 

 cetaceans following the shoals of herring along with flocks of 

 gulls. From the rounded head, large, high dorsal fin, and 

 white under-surface. there is no doubt that they were speci- 

 mens of the Killer Whale {^Orca gladiatof, I,acpa). In a small 

 interesting book on Ballyshannon' containing a chapter on its 

 Zoology and Botany, it is recorded that in the last century 

 whales were so numerous in Donegal Bay that a whale-fisher}^ 

 was established, but owing to the general roughness of the 

 sea it was unsuccessful, although aided b}^ a grant of £500 

 from the Irish Parliament in 1736, and a grant of £1,500 

 in 1763. 



We left Bundoran and its rock-pools feeling that our time 

 had been most profitabh^ vSpent, and bearing away representa- 

 tives of many of its marine treasures preserved in our jars for 

 future stud3\ A more detailed list and description of these 

 will shortly be published. 



Mr. Welch, of Belfast, has kindh^ allowed a reproduction of 

 one of his splendid series of photographs of the shores at 

 Bundoran. The portion represented on the accompanying 

 plate (Plate i) is one of the rock-pools from which the water 

 has been removed. At the bottom are seen many examples 

 of the Purple Sea-urchin (^Stro7igylocent7'otits lividus, I,amk.) 

 bristling with spines, but all more or less sunk in their self- 

 made hollows, and in some cases with dead shells upon them. 

 The pink-coloured " Nullipore," Lithothamnionpolyvw7'phu77i, 

 coats the remainder of the bottom, and especially in the narrow 

 ridges between the hollows rises into irregular botryoidal 

 masses, often tending to enclose the sea-urchins. To the left 

 of the plate are seen luxuriant bunches of another calcareous 



^AlHngliam : Ballyshaunoii, its History and Antiquities, Londonderry, 

 J879. 



