20 THE ZOOLOGIST. 



effect upon the domestic issues, the numbers of those marrying 

 on Christmas morning at the Parish Church, and elsewhere, 

 being much larger than during indifferent seasons. The ancient 

 Yarmouthian axiom that " Of all the fishes in the sea — Herring 

 is king," still holds good in many ways. 



December ZOth. — A fine roach was caught on the Wensum, 

 near Norwich, on the 19th by Mr. T. Tubby. Weight 2 lb. 

 1\ oz., length 15 in., girth Yl\ in. Our largest Norfolk 

 roach on record is one of 3 lb., with a length of 17 in. and girth 

 of 12^ in. It was caught at Eanworth Broad, on the Bure, on 

 July 31st, 1883. 



Mr. Thos. C. Bising, writing to me from Lowestoft on 

 December 22nd, states that "extraordinary shoals of Herring-fry 

 inshored in August, off the town. It was very interesting to 

 watch the small emerald-green Garfish shooting into the midst 

 of a bunch, and seeing the open space they were given instantly ; 

 small Eels were also buBy in such a feast of plenty. I have also 

 noticed ... a flock of large Gulls that have been living in 

 some fish-working premises quite in the midst of the town. 

 They stand in a row upon the ridges, and at times fly in circles, 

 and seem to have copied the evolutions of the pigeons. A 

 shortage of fish-offal makes them sharp-set. There are more in 

 the district than ever I saw before." In the neighbourhood of 

 Yarmouth the big Gulls which mustered up so numerously in 

 October had become much scarcer by the end of the fishing. 

 The habit of perching on ridge-tiles, although of long usage' in 

 Scotch fishing-centres, is quite a new feature in Yarmouth, 

 having started during the 1914 Herring-scarcity period. The 

 clean-plumaged Black-headed Gull now habitually haunts the 

 filthy outlets of the town sewers. 



Mr. Bobert Beazor, fish merchant, writes December 24th, 

 complaining that " rare specimens " were notoriously scarce on 

 the fish-wharf during the 1915 fishing, but truly remarks that 

 " this (smaller) fishing and the dreadful war have taught us all a 

 great lesson, for fish which at one time were much despised were 

 now found by all classes of the people, and came to be appre- 

 ciated by them, as splendid and wholesome food. I must 

 mention two species there were here almost wholly neglected 

 hitherto : First, the widely distributed and abundant ' Dog- 



