ANDREWS — .REMARKS ON TRAWLING. 39 



Pleuronectidae, and of the Cod, Haddock, and Ling — led them to deposit 

 the ova in such places of security, either in sheltered recesses guarded 

 by reefs, or on coral beds, or rough grounds, where the attachment of 

 the ova would be secure, and where no trawl net could possibly be 

 worked. 



The larger boats, therefore, could never interfere in such soundings 

 either to the destruction of spawn or fry ; but the smaller-sized cratt, 

 with their hand trawls and pole nets, were the most destructive of all 

 systems of fishing to the young of all kinds of fish. 



The recommendation of drawing boundary lines from headland to 

 headland, against trawlers fishing within those prescribed lines, was 

 another very erroneous and injurious view against the utility of such 

 modes of fishing ; for very frequently in bays and inlets, soundings of 

 fifteen to twenty fathoms were included within those lines that had 

 clean ground for the trawl boats, and where the depths of water were 

 such that neither spawn was deposited nor fry found. If all systems 

 of trawling were prohibited within the five-fathom line, it would be 

 the most effectual means of giving ample protection, and, at the same 

 time, of removing those obstructions to trawling that ought never to 

 have been enforced. 



In the . frequent opportunities he had of trawling in Dingle and 

 other bays he always noted the several species of fish that were taken, 

 and had found that the most minute were readily taken in trawl nets of 

 the large boats in deep water. Among these were the several species 

 of Gobies, the Gurnards, Soles, Lingula, Psetta arnaglossa, and other 

 small species. The soundings were generally from twenty to thirty-five 

 fathoms. 



A few of these fish taken in those soundings Mr. Andrews begged 

 to submit, being beautiful specimens, chiefly of Gohius bipunctatus and 

 G. unipunctatus. With these there is a specimen of the Mackerel Midge, 

 Motella glauca. He exhibited them this evening merely to show that 

 it is by no means difficult to capture those minute-sized fish in the net 

 of the largest trawl. 



He said that he would have much to say in a future paper with re- 

 ference to these, and to several species of the Gobidse. These small fish 

 were taken in twenty-five fathoms water, soft sand. 



He did not think that the Gobius niger or its habits have been accu- 

 rately described, and that much confusion appears to exist with regard 

 to the distinctive characters of G. bipunctatus, G. unipunctatus^ and se- 

 veral others of these minute species. Some appear to be but mere 

 varieties in different stages of development. The black spot, which on 

 the first dorsal fin is said to be characteristic of G. unipunctatus, is 

 merely a marking that many of the young of the Gobies present, and 

 which is peculiarly seen in the young state of the several species of 

 Trigla, or Gurnards, as in cuculus, lyra, and gurnardus. 



The numerous specimens that he had taken of the young of Trigla 

 gurnardus had proved to him that Trigla blohii was no other than the 

 state of the young of T. gurnardus. 



