ORE A T BRIT A IN. 203 



are of about I or 2 inches in length, and may occasionally 

 be found under stones at low water-mark. 



As food. Mr. Cornish found its flesh to be excellent. 



Habitat. From the coasts of Northern Europe, round 

 Great Britain to France, where, however, it is very rare. 



Round the British coast it is by no means rare, and even 

 common off Cornwall. Several examples have been ob- 

 tained in the Orkneys ; it occurs at intervals off Banffshire 

 and along the whole line of coast ; Aberdeen ; not common 

 at St. Andrews ; Firth of Forth, where Parnell observes 

 that it is rarely seen except during stormy weather ; off 

 Berwickshire rare. Mr. Anderson Smith obtained three 

 examples in 1882 from Loch Creram in Argyllshire. Two 

 examples taken in February, 1852, at Redcar (Rudd, 

 4 Zoologist,' p. 3504), and a third recorded by Ferguson ; 

 also, in 1836, several found there on the beach, but none 

 for the succeeding eight years ; in fact, it is of rare occur- 

 rence in Yorkshire ; one at Bridlington on May 27th, 1881 ; 

 the Medway. Along the south coast it has been very 

 frequently taken ; at St. Leonards, in 1872 ; August 23rd, 

 1865, one at Boirsand, Devon, another March I2th, 1873 ; 

 while off that county it is frequent during the spring 

 months ; at Weymouth, in August, 1854, a fine example 

 was taken by a trawler ; off Teignmouth, in January, 1843, 

 one 6^- inches long was captured in a drift-net. Mr. 

 Cornish, recording one taken in May at Penzance, re- 

 marked that he had obtained forty-eight examples since 

 1858. Bristol Channel ; Swansea and Anglesea. 



In Ireland, one 6\ inches in length was taken March 25th, 

 1835, at Ardglass, co. Down ; September 3Oth, 1842, Dr. 

 Ball obtained one 7-f inches long off Kingstown Pier ; two 

 more were purchased in the Dublin market and sent to the 

 University Museum ; in 1865 one was captured in the 



