196 TRANSACTIONS LIVERPOOL BIOLOGICAL SOCIETY. 



ON THE TOW-NETTINGS COLLECTED 

 IN THE IRISH SEA. 



By A. Scott. 



This report deals with the tow-nettings made when 

 the steamer was carrying out various observations in the 

 territorial area under the administration of the Joint 

 Committee, and also when visiting the off-shore fishing 

 grounds between Lancashire and Isle of Man. In addition 

 to the collections taken by the steamer, a fairly regular 

 series of surface gatherings have been made by Mr. 

 Chadwick, at the Biological Station, Port Erin, and are 

 included in the report. 



The majority of the collections made by the steamer 

 are from inside the territorial waters, and are fairly repre- 

 sentative of the conditions of pelagic life along the whole 

 roast Tine of the district. Those from the off-shore fishing 

 grounds are naturally less numerous than the in-shore 

 ones. They were obtained on the few occasions when the 

 steamer was engaged on special work outside the district. 



The tow-nettings from Port Erin were all taken in 

 the Bay, in the vicinity of the Biological Station. Port 

 Erin Bay, from its position in the centre of the Irish Sea, 

 presents more uniform conditions than the in-shore waters 

 of the mainland. Its salinity is not interfered with, as is 

 often the case of the Ribble and Mersey estuaries, by the 

 outward flow of large volumes of fresh water. There is 

 also less likelihood of the water being contaminated by 

 the deposit of land debris. 



An accurate knowledge of the distribution of pelagic 

 or other organisms can only be obtained when observations 

 are carried out with fair regularity over a wide area. It 

 is well known that animals and plants though pre- 



