SEA FISHERIES LABORATORY. 119 
might be cited from our statistics. On the other hand 
Mr. Ascroft and others who have an extensive practical 
acquaintance with the fishing of the district, seem to think 
that the two species are not found on the same ground, 
but that the sole is more abundant outside the banks and 
the solenette in the channels inside, and that the sole 
lives usually on a muddy bottom, and the solenette on 
sandy ground—the prevalent colours of the two species 
in our neighbourhood certainly favour this latter view. 
However there can be no doubt that for a considerable 
time in summer the soles and solenettes are to a large 
extent associated together in the Horse Channel, Welsh- 
man’s Gut, Ribble Gut, and other Channels where the sole 
fishing is prosecuted. 
As to their food, our statistics show that they feed 
together on the same forms, various Crustacea, Annelids 
and Mollusca—with the addition of Copepoda in the case 
of the solenette. Consequently it 1s my opinion that, as 
far as our investigations go, there is considerable ground 
for supposing that the solenette which is very plentiful 
in our shallower waters—and, it must be remembered, is 
a perfectly useless fish from the economic point of view— 
really interferes with the sole and is probably accountable 
for a good deal of the enormous mortality which must 
take place amongst immature soles. If there was much 
destruction of young fish by larger carnivorous fish in our 
inshore waters, if for example the Turbot was an abundant 
fish, then the numerous solenettes might be of great use 
in serving as food and so giving the young soles a better 
chance of escaping being eaten. But that is not the case 
here, so I think there can be no doubt that it would do no 
harm to the sole fishery, and might do good, if the 
solenettes were killed off. We may regard with equa- 
nimity their capture in large numbers by Shrimp-trawlers 
