176 TRANSACTIONS LIVERPOOL BIOLOGICAL SOCIETY. 
bling the halibut in that respect. The name of the halibut 
is derived in Dutch, German, and French from the name 
for flounder—‘‘ Heilbot,” ‘‘ Heilbutt,” and ‘‘ Fletan.” 
Under favourable conditions the flounder has a very 
rapid growth. ‘They have been known to reach the weight 
of 5lbs. A few years ago some young flounders, under an 
inch in length, were taken from the Ribble, at Preston, 
and placed in a reservoir near to Blackburn, and they 
arrived at 1 lb. weight each in two years. They would be 
most valuable fish to keep the water snails down in 
reservoirs used for the supply of towns. 
All flat fish rest on one side of the body, and that one 
of the eyes which is underneath in the young, passes 
over the nose, so that both eyes are on the same cheek in 
the mature fish. ‘he flounder generally rests on the left 
side, but one finds many reversed individuals resting on 
the right side; while it is a very rare occurrence in the 
other flat fish to so vary. 
The flounder, as a food fish, is highly esteemed in 
London, but it is not so much esteemed in Lancashire. 
In my opinion you cannot have a much worse tasted fish 
when going from the rivers to the sea for spawning pur- 
poses, or a much better or firmer fish when returning from 
the sea after spawning. 
The food of the flounder consists principally of worms 
and Crustacea. It is very fond of Corophiwm longicorne, 
which frequents in enormous numbers the mudflats in our 
estuaries. The flounders follow the rise of the tide on to 
the mudflats, and retiring to the channels on its return, 
they bury themselves in the sand until the tide again 
enables them to reach feeding grounds. They also eat a 
quantity of bi-valve Molluscs and fresh-water snails. I 
have seen their borings for bi-valve Molluses close to 
high-water line on the flat sands of Morecambe Bay. 
