OCCASIONAL NOTES. Q7 
parts of the coast, is by no means plentiful. It derives its English name of 
“Thresher” from its supposed habit of attacking and striking the Grampus 
with its long fox-like tail.— Ep.] 
OccuRRENCE oF THE Bonrro at PrymoutH.—In September last a 
specimen of the Bonito (Scomber pelamys) was caught in a trammel-net in 
the Cattewater, Plymouth. I examined the fish, and found its length to 
be one foot eight inches and a half; pectoral-fin, six inches—much longer 
in proportion to the length of the specimen than shown by Mr. Couch in 
his figure of this species. Another about the same size, but with the 
pectoral-fins still longer, was taken some years previously near Plymouth. 
Yet they did not equal those of a closely-allied species, the Germon or 
Long-finned Tunny (Scomber alatunga), which I at first thought it might 
be.—Joun GaATCOMBE. 
[The Bonito of the tropics, so well known to navigators, is rarely seen in 
British waters, although, according to the late Mr. Couch, a few specimens 
have been taken from time to time on the Cornish coast., The colour of 
the fish is a fine steel-blue, darker on the back, the sides dusky. and whitish 
below; behind the pectoral-fin is a bright triangular section of the surface, 
from which four dark longitudinal lines extend backwards to the tail. The 
specimen above noticed is not a very large one, the species sometimes 
attaining a length of two feet six inches.—ED.] 
Lance Tunny on tHE Coast or Norvorx.—EHarly on the morning of 
the 24th of November, 1876, a large Tunny (Thynnus vulgaris), exhausted, 
but not quite dead, came ashore at Bacton, on the Norfolk coast, where [ 
saw it on the following day, and took the following measurements :—Total 
length from the point of the upper jaw to the centre of the tail, 7 feet 
4 inches: length of first dorsal-fin, in inches, 10°8; of second dorsal, 15°5; of 
pectoral, 15-8; of ventral, 10°3; of abdominal, 14°2: breadth of tail from point 
to point, 33-4. The finlets, which were ten in number on the back and 
nine on the abdomen, were rather Jess than an inch in depth; the lateral 
prominences above the tail were about two inches wide; the ridge on the 
side of the body, in a line with the upper ray of the pectoral fin, projected 
about a quarter of an inch, and was 18°7 inches long ; from the gape to the 
point of the upper jaw measured 8 inches, and the eye was 21 inches in 
diameter, with a silvery green iris and a very dark blue pupil. The teeth 
were very small, and the upper jaw projected slightly beyond the lower, 
which is the reverse of what is stated by Yarrell and Couch. Both the 
upper and lower jaws were pink, this colour reaching backwards for about 
two inches from the extremity of the jaws. The general colour of the 
upper parts of the fish was nearly black, of the sides silvery gray, and of 
the lower parts, and also of the gill-coverts, silvery white. The first dorsal 
fin was purplish black, the second dorsal pale pink, shaded in places with 
dark purplish, the pectoral fin resembled the first dorsal, except that it had 
