66 CONGEES NIPPED BY FROST. 



Turner, of Hastings, informed me, "In January, 1855, 

 thousands of congers were found floating upon the 

 water. They could progress readily in any direction, 

 but could not descend, and consequently fell an easy 

 prey to the boatmen. The Folkestone fishermen also 

 took an enormous quantity of congers at this time. One 

 man brought home 800 in his boat. The same cause 

 acted on the Folkestone as upon the Hastings congers, 

 viz., the action of the frost caused the air in their 

 swimming-bladders to expand so much that the ordi- 

 nary muscle could not expel it at will. 



The Folkestone fishermen explained this phenome- 

 non thus : " You see, sir, the conger comes up to the 

 top of a frosty night to look at the moon, gets nipped by 

 the cold, and can't get down again." Barring the moon 

 part of the story, their theory is correct. 



My friend Mr. Koberts, of Dover, sent me the follow- 

 ing note on this subject : " After a sharp snow-storm I 

 saw picked up behind the cob at Lyme Eegis, Dorset, 

 several hundred red rock, or sea perch, called locally 

 * conners,' small ' blins,' i.e., whiting poults, and conger 

 eels. The peo]3le came to pick up the fish blinded by 

 the snow on Christmas-day. They were lying stranded 

 among the sea-weed. There may have been five 

 hundred fish at least of eatable size, and about three 

 hundred smaller oues.'' 



DACE. 



Abdominalcs Malaccpterygii. Cyprinida. 



{Leuciscus vulgaris.) 



Local names : Dace, Dare, Dart. French : Yaudoise, or Dard. 

 German : Der Hasl'nig, or Die llasd. 



Depth of body, about the same as length of head; 

 back fin commencing half-way betyrccn point of nose 



