312 ME. F. DAY ON SOME BRITISH FISHES. 



and body were covered with oval light spots, some of which were 

 also seen on its dark dorsal fin. The large round black spot, 

 surrounded by a light ring, on the cheek and the band on to the 

 opercle were well marked. Lips very thick. 



Labeus maculatus, Bloch, var. Donovanx 



? Comber, J ago, in Ray's Synopsis Pise. p. 163, fig. 5. Comber, Pen- 

 nant, Brit. Zool. ed. i. 1776, iii. p. 252, pi. xlviii. fig. 122, and ed. ii. 

 1812, iii. p. 342, pi. Iviii. Labrus lineatus, Donovan, Brit. Fishes, 

 iv. pi. lxxiv; Turton, p. 99; Fleming, p. 209; Jenyns, p. 209; 

 Yarrell, ed. h, i. p. 315, c. fig. Labrus cornubiensis, Couch, Trans. 

 Linn. Soc. xiv. pt. 1, p. 80. Labrus Donovani, Cuv. 8f Vol. xiii. 

 p. 39; Yarrell, ed. ii., i. p. 315, c. fig.; Gunther, Cat. iv. p. 71 ; 

 Sleindachner, Ich. Span. u. Port. 1868, p. 25, t. iv. fig. 2. Labrus 

 comber, Yarrell, Brit. Fish. ed. i., vol. i. p. 289, c. fig., also in ed. ii. 

 & iii. Green Wrasse, Couch, Fish. Brit. Isles, iii. p. 30, pi. exxvi. f. 1, 

 and Comber Wrasse, iii. p. 32, pi. exxvi. f. 2. 



The varieties of Labrus maculatus to which my remarks will 

 be almost confined are those that have been included under the 

 terms of the Green Wrasse of Donovan and the Comber Wrasse 

 of Pennant. They are very easily distinguished by their respec- 

 tive colours ; but, as pointed out by Thompson in 1837 (P. Z. S.), 

 the tints of the Ballan Wrasse are prone to assume so many 

 changes, that he proposed to term it Labrus variabilis, under 

 which he included L. lineatus, or the Green Wrasse of Donovan. 



Yalenciennes first drew attention to the Green and Comber 

 "Wrasses being probably identical, and suggested that such might 

 eventually turn out varieties of the Labrus bergxjlta, the L. macu- 

 latus of Bloch. Yarrell and Couch, however, continued to consider 

 the Green and the Cornier both as distinct species, and different 

 from the Bergylt or Ballan. Thompson, as I have stated, con- 

 sidered the L. lineatus as a variety of L. maculatus, but omitted 

 any reference to the Comber Wrasse ; while White placed all these 

 forms under that of Labrus bergylta, but without stating his 

 reasons for doing so. Guuther located the Green Wrasse, L. line- 

 atus, Donovan, as a synonym of L. maculatus, Blocb, but gave 

 L. Donovani, Cuv. & Val., as a separate species, on which very 

 probably L. comber of Pennant has been founded. Steindachner 

 has described and figured L. Donovani, Cuv. & Yah, the adult of 

 the Comber of Pennant and others. This brings us to consider 

 whether the Green and the Comber Wrasses are distinct species, 



