92 TRANSACTIONS LIVERPOOL BIOLOGICAL SOCIETY. 



the 5 fathom line, while the last is pretty generally distri- 

 buted between Lancashire and the Isle of Man. Nephrops 

 norivegicus, the Norway lobster, is extremely abundant off 

 the south end of the Isle of Man and between the 

 northern end and Cumberland, coming up in immense 

 quantities. These Crustacea undoubtedly constitute a 

 large part of the food of such fish as the Cod and Whiting. 



A number of very interesting rarer forms have also been 

 taken, viz : — Cardium echinatum and Isocardia cor ; 

 Tritonia hombergi, Eolis tricolor and E. rufibranchialis 

 and probably E. viridis; Calocaris macandrece, Pasiphcea 

 sivado, Munida bamffica, and some parasitic Bopyrians ; 

 also the brittle star Amphiura chiajii. 



These observations on the fauna of the district besides 

 being interesting from a purely scientific point of view are 

 of importance economically as they afford us information 

 as to the feeding grounds of the fish, and may give some 

 clue as to the movements or migrations of species. Prob- 

 ably the most important factors influencing the life, habits 

 and prosperity of fish — and therefore of the corresponding 

 fisheries — are their spawning grounds, their feeding 

 grounds and their enemies. 



