FISH JNDUSTRV. 



To many persons, the writer amono- the number, the Wliitings will 

 •commend themselves as being, perhaps with the sole cxceptitjii of the 

 JSemirhamphtcLv, or Halfbeaks, at once the most delicate and the most 

 deliciously flavored of all Australian fishes. Two s])ecies minister to 

 the wants of our tables, the larger of which attains to a length of twenty 

 inches, is a clean, handsome fish, and is taken in numbers both on tlio 

 outer and inner sandy beaches, either by net or by hook. Tliis species is 

 the Sand Whiting, Sillago ciliata, but though its congener, the Trum- 

 peter Whiting, S. macuhita, does not reach to such dimensions, it is 

 held by many to be the more delicately flavored fish of the two. It is 

 as a rule more partial to the flats and reaches of our estuaries than the 

 more exposed beaches whicli its congener prefers. Both species deposit 

 their spawn in holes formed in the sand, and both old and young bury 

 themselves in the sand or mud when threatened by any danger. 



A very interesting family {GadopskLie), which only contains a single 

 species, Gadopsis marmoratus, is an inhabitant of our southern rivers. 

 This family has been generally included among the Anacanthiues, but 

 its affinities apparently approach more closely to the blennioid type ; 

 it is a common fish in many of the rivers of our south-eastern watershed, 

 and is said to be excellent eating ; it takes a bait freely. 



Heterosomata. — The Flounders {PlenronectidR') furnish us with two 

 or, at most, three species worthy of mention as an addition to our food 

 supply. These are the Large-toothed and Small-toothed Flounders, 

 Paralichthys ai'siiis and multimaculatus, both of which are fairly 

 common, and the Long-nosed Flounder, J.?>imo^?-e^/.s-ro.s-^mf?<.?, which is 

 scarcer, but is a thicker and even better flavored fish than cither of 

 the others. 



Only two species of Soles {Solekhv) can be classed among our 

 marketable fishes, namely — the Narrow-banded Sole, At^-erragodr.^ mar- 

 leayanns, and the Black Sole, Sijnaj^tura nigra, the latter being the 

 most abundant of our flat-fishes. 



Plectognathi. — The Trigger-fishes, Ballstidx, are well represented 

 in our seas by numerous species of Leather-jackets, several of which 

 grow to an edible size, and must be classed among the most delicate of 

 our fishes, care being taken to skin them before cooking. 



I cannot conclude these observations without once again pointing 

 out that a remunerative trade might, with little initiatory ex})euse, be 

 developed with China in shark fins, and that the oil extracted froiii 

 the livers of the Plagiostomes contains valuable medicinal pro]u-rti-:i:. 



