264 PROCEEDINGS OF THE 



Antipodes).— I can instance the almost marvellous change upon 

 trout taken from a peaty burn and put in water coming from granite 

 and limestone, and the silvery beauty of the trout of Loch Crass- 

 pul, near Durness, where the water is blue, and the bottom pure 

 white sand. The results of fish being kept in large and small 

 pieces of water should be noted ; effects of running streams through 

 fish-ponds upon the rapidity of growth ; the fecundity or sterility 

 of fish in ponds ; observations on transport of living fish. On this 

 I may remark how invaluable is a piece of water-weed taken from 

 the place minnows are caught, and placed in the minnow can, 

 and how unnecessary and often deleterious it is to change the 

 water if the weed is used. I have kept minnows alive for weeks 

 and months in aquaria, never changing the water. I have carried 

 minnows north, and kept them alive for 10 days in an ordinary 

 minnow-case. Ten thousand young fish came alive to the Edin- 

 burgh Fishery Exhibition from Russia. 



h. The Migrations of Fish, more especially of marine forms, whether 

 diurnal, seasonal, or for breeding purposes ; whether due to atmo- 

 spheric changes, or consequent upon presence of food, &c. 



i. The Food of Fish. — All fish should be opened to find what 

 they have been feeding upon, some being carnivorous, others 

 herbivorous.- — But feeding often changes, and is due to circum- 

 stances. Some fish feed at the bottom, some at mid water, some 

 at the top. Here is a large field of observation for the angler- 

 naturalist. 



Besides the above there are innumerable headings, a few of which 

 only can be mentioned here. Some of these are: — How do fish 

 live below ice 1 ? The effects of sound and of electricity upon fish; 

 tenacity of life in certain forms ; insensibility to pain ; recovery 

 from injuries ; attraction by light ; production of sounds ; affection 

 by extremes of cold and heat, and the nature of their suspended 

 animation. 



The vastness of the material for the study of the British Fishes 

 alone is, it will thus be seen, a rich field in itself, to the exclusion 

 of all the other vertebrates. I had hoped to have found space to 

 speak of the Reptilia and Mammalia, but must leave these groups out 

 for the present. Ornithology I have not touched upon, because it 

 is my own speciality, and you may perhaps hear more about it at 

 some other time. 



In conclusion, I may again impress upon you my belief that 



