270 MARKETABLE BRITISH MARINE FISHES 



is ii inch long and shows six bands. It is distinguished from 

 the turbot by these bands, by its narrower form, and by the 

 greater number of fin-rays. In the oldest stage figured by 

 Raffaele the transformation is practically finished, the two eyes 

 are on the left side, and the bands are breaking up into spots. 

 These specimens were obtained at the surface of the sea, in the 

 Bay of Naples. 



Like the young turbot, the brill in the stages just described 

 are found with unfailing regularity and in considerable numbers 

 every year at Plymouth, at the surface of the fishing harbour, 

 Sutton Pool. They swim quite at the surface, having a large air- 

 bladder which enables them to support themselves in the water 

 without exertion, and they are carried by the flood-tide into the 

 harbour. 



A number of these young brill were reared in the aquarium 

 at Plymouth. One of them was nearly 3I inches long in October 

 when about six months old, and four others were from 3 to nearly 4 

 inches in the same month. Two were kept till the following April, 

 and were no larger than those which were killed in October,namely, 

 between 3 and 4 inches in length. That these results are not 

 altogether unnatural is shown by their agreement with the con- 

 clusions to be drawn from the size of the young brill taken in the 

 shove-nets at Cleethorpes from April to July ; ten of these varied 

 in length from 3 to 5| inches, and must necessarily have been 

 hatched the preceding season. 



The brill reaches maturity probably at a slightly smaller size 

 than the turbot ; the smallest ripe male in the North Sea was 

 10 inches long: of females the smallest mature was 13 inches, 

 the largest immature under 16 inches. As in the case of the 

 turbot both mature and immature are taken at about 12 fathoms, 

 to the north of Heligoland. The history of the young brill 

 agrees closely with that of young turbot, the yearling fish being 

 confined to the shallowest water near the shore, the older immature 

 with some mature being found between 10 and 20 fathoms; 

 beyond 20 fathoms usually only mature fish occur. 



