ARISTOTLE AS A BIOLOGIST 13 



a neighbouring islet, of the weasels by the wayside near 

 another island town. He speaks of the big purple Murex 

 shells at Cape Lectum, and of the different sorts of 

 sponges found on the landward and the seaward side of 

 Cape Malia. But it is to the lagoon at Pyrrha that 

 Aristotle oftenest alludes. Here were starfish in such 

 abundance as to be a pest to the fishermen ; here the 

 scallops had been exterminated by a period of drought, *s 

 and by the continual working of the fishermen's dredge ; 

 here the sea-urchins come into season in the winter time, 

 an unusual circumstance. Here among the cuttlefishes 

 was found no octopus, either of the common or of the 

 musky kind ; here was no parrot-wrasse, nor any kind 

 of spiny fish, nor sea-crawfish, nor the spotted nor the 

 spiny dog-fish ; and, again, from this lagoon, all the 

 fishes, save only a little gudgeon, migrated seaward to 

 breed. And though with no special application to the" 

 island, but only to the Asiatic coast in general, I may 

 add that the chameleon, which is the subject of one of 

 Aristotle's most perfect and minute investigations, is 

 here comparatively common, but is not known to occur 

 in Greece at all. 



I take it then as probable, or even proven, that an 

 important part of Aristotle's work in natural history 

 was done upon the Asiatic coast, and in and near to 

 Mitylene. 1 He will be a lucky naturalist who shall go 

 some day and spend a quiet summer by that calm lagoon, 

 find there all the natural wealth uvaov AeV/3os . . . e^ro? 

 ee'pyei, and have around his feet the creatures that 

 Aristotle loved and knew. Moreover, it follows for certain, 

 if all this be true, that Aristotle's biological studies 

 preceded his more strictly philosophical work ; and it is 

 of no small importance that we should be (as far as 



1 Perhaps it was here also that Aristotle found his ' Lesbian rule '. 



