SPOTTED GUNNEL. 279 



spend an hour stone-turning, at least on this south- 

 western coast. 



The length of this specimen is about six inches, 

 and I have seen larger ; the height or vertical dia- 

 meter is about one-third of an inch, and the thick- 

 ness, at its greatest, which is on a line midway 

 between the back and belly, is about one-eighth of 

 an inch. The body comes to a sharp edge above and 

 below, and is fringed on both edges with a long 

 narrow uniform fin. That on the under side, the 

 anal, as it is technically termed, is found only on the 

 hinder portion, commencing behind the middle ; while 

 the dorsal or back fin begins just behind the poll ; 

 both emerge into the caudal or tail-fin, with which 

 the body terminates. The pectorals or breast-fins are 

 very small, much like those of the eel, and the ventrals, 

 or belly-fins, are so minute as to be scarcely notice- 

 able, just a pair of tiny points. The head is small, 

 with a smooth descending profile ; the mouth very 

 short and feeble ; the eyes moderately full, round, 

 bright, with golden irides. 



la colour our little Gunnel is of a warm, yellow 

 brown or olive, mottled with a delicate sort of curdling 

 all over, with some dashes of reddish here and there ; 

 a band of deep brown descends perpendicularly down 

 each cheek from the eye; the long dorsal fin is 

 marked at regular intervals with square spots of 

 black, bordered on each side with lines of pure white, 

 adding greatly to its beauty. These descend a little 

 on the fleshy part of the back. Similar spots adorn 



