SOME FISH NOTES 319 



TOPKNOTS, MEGRIMS, AND WITCHES 



I noticed the following paragraph in the Anglers News 

 of December 29th, 1906 : 



"The columns of the Angler's News for near upon two 

 months this year contained correspondence which resulted 

 from the capture of a ' megrim ' or * witch ' at Folkestone. 

 Before that many sea anglers were in blissful ignorance of 

 either of these denizens of the deep, yet they must be 

 common enough in some parts. Take the North Sea, for 

 instance. During the years 1903-5 nearly 20,000 cwt. were 

 caught in this sea and landed by steam trawlers on the East 

 Coast. During the same period, and from the same grounds, 

 5 1,000 cwt. of * witches ' were landed." 



The correspondence referred to began in the first week in 

 January, 1906, over the capture of an innocent little Miiller's 

 topknot (Zeugopterus punctatus] captured on the previous 

 Boxing Day at a sea-angling contest on Folkestone Pier. 

 In the report of the competition appeared the following 

 remarks : 



" In the meantime there were a few incidents to break the 

 monotony and strain of six hours holding on [exciting 

 sport !]. Mr. Clarke, the proprietor of the local West End 

 Photographic Co., brought down his tripod and camera, and 

 took some interesting pictures, also a clever photo of a 

 4 megrim' which fell to the rod of Capt. H. I give the local 

 name of this freak, which is really a mule or bastard fish, 

 between brill, sole, dab, and plaice ; to all appearance it 

 might have been a cross between a sole, brill, flounder, or 

 sand-dab and a rockling. . . ." Some other high-flown 

 descriptive matter as to colouring, etc., was added to the 

 above. 



I at once replied, expressing astonishment at the remark- 

 able description given to the little stranger, and assured the 

 readers of the Angler's News that there was a true species 

 known as the megrim or scald-fish, to which, among other 

 Latin synonyms, was added the generally accepted name of 

 Arnoglossus laterna ; and giving details, as far as known, of 

 its habits and peculiarities. 



The report of a meeting of the British Sea Anglers' 

 Society, among other matters, included information with 

 regard to the exhibition of the fish : " Mr. Boyton sub- 



