506 The Zoologist — December, 1866. 



and the sanguine, for Nature, not Art, malies tlie naturalist — the 

 practical knowledge, and not the book and museum. A man of twenty- 

 five may have collected less and worked out more than him of eighty. 

 Once more, in the name of a country whose seas are teeming with 

 riches, I pray that communications may be made to the ' Zoologist,' 

 and not merely buried among the musty archives of some local and 

 unknown society. 



Notes of 1866. 



Jagd's Goldsinny (Crenilabrus rupestris). — Counted by Thompson a 

 scarce fish on our coasts, and critically mentioned by Yarrell ; the 

 goldsinny is notwithstanding an abundant fish on our coast. Fishing 

 from the rocks for wrasse (Irish "brame") is the time this species is 

 most often taken; and, as this pursuit is only followed by children, 

 Jago's goldsinny is but little known. Occasionlly it is taken in the 

 dredge, and by hand-lines when trying for the sea-bream (Irish carp). 

 It will take many baits — crab, lug, the sea-mud centipedes and shell- 

 fish. Being a very slow-taking fish it is seldom hooked till the more 

 ravenous kinds have ceased to bite, and even then not often, from its 

 frequent nibblings not getting time to take the hook, which is, gene- 

 rally speaking, far too large for its extremely small mouth. The more 

 dazzlingly bright and calm the day, the better to take the goldsinny. 

 Many a day, at low water, have I fished for wrasse to feed my birds 

 \vith, or perhaps merely to watch the bottom, with a line four or five 

 feet below the surface, from one of our shell-covered granite rocks, 

 and though the bottom would be strewn with beautiful things, yet 

 nothing could be more beautiful than the changing colours of this 

 lovely little fish. Slowly he would approach the bait, and with his 

 sharp and fierce-looking teeth, chew it away by degrees till some 

 smaller fish would drive him away for the time; but as soon as all 

 seemed still he would come and chew away again till the hook was 

 bare. The next bait might catch him, but often not at all. This 

 chewing habit of the wrasses is generally thought to be sucking, the 

 lips undoubtedly originating the opinion, but their frequent wringings 

 and bitings when taking a bait would negative this opinion. Of their 

 sucking powers I will speak again under another species. The maw 

 of this fish generally contains broken shell-fish. The greatest length 

 I have seen it in these waters is about six inches. The female is full of 

 eggs in June. The flesh is bad, greenish and foul-smelling. Yarrell's 

 description is good, but our fish is more often pink than golden, and 



