xlii YORKSHIRE— VERTEBRATE FAUNA. 



diversity which exists in the sea-bed, and partly also by the 

 proximity of the ' Dogger Bank,' that famous nursery of the 

 North Sea. 



Of the 249 British species of fishes, 155 are recorded as 

 having occurred in Yorkshire. The claims of seven — the Basking 

 Shark, Large-spotted Dogfish, Starry Ray, Northern Chimaera, 

 Sparus or Dentex, Four-horned Bullhead, and Atherine — are 

 however insufficient, until confirmed by further research, to entitle 

 them to admission into the county fauna. 



Of the 148 species thus recognised 32 are inhabitants of fresh 

 and 4 of estuarine or brackish waters, the remainder being 

 marine. 



Of the fresh- water fishes none call for remark save the Grayling, 

 a form interesting on account of the irregularity of its distribution 

 in Britain, which is probably more widely diffused and abundant 

 than in other counties. 



Of the marine forms several 'species are worthy of note. The 

 Argentine, Ray's Sea-Bream, and Banks' Oarfish appear to have 

 occurred more frequently than elsewhere in Britain. The Eagle 

 Ray and the Hebridal Argentine, of which very few British 

 examples are known, have occurred singly in Yorkshire. Other 

 rarities noted are the Fox Shark, Greenland Shark, Spinous 

 Shark, Black Sea-Bream, Bergylt, Maigre, Blackfish, Spanish 

 Mackerel, Tunny, Red Bandfish, Jago's Goldsinny, Tadpole Hake, 

 Sea-horse or Hippocampus, Sunfish and Lancelet. 



Several species have been first described or recorded as British 

 from specimens taken in the county, such as Banks' Oarfish, Ray's 

 Sea-Bream, and the Short-headed Salmon, while Yorkshire speci- 

 mens of other species have been figured by Yarrell, or represent 

 them in the British Museum collections. 



The present work is the means of adding the following species 

 to the county fauna — the Sharp-nosed Ray, Long-nosed Skate, 

 Striped Surmullet, Black Sea-Bream, Red Bandfish, Striped 

 Wrasse, Goldsinny, Poor or Power-Cod, Rough Dab or Sand- 

 sucker, Sailfluke, Smear Dab, and Dwarf Sole — twelve in number. 



Dr. Lowe's useful list of the Fishes of Norfolk, published in 

 1873, includes 124 of the species here admitted as British, besides 



