490 VERTEBRATE FAUNA OF LAKELAND 



MULLER'S TOPKNOT. 



Rhombus punctatus, Bl. 



Recent research has failed thus far in detecting this small fish 

 upon the coast-line of Lakeland ; a misfortune which renders it 

 necessary to fall back upon an undated note in T. C. Heysham' s 

 handwriting. This fragment, inscribed in weird and mysterious 

 characters upon a tiny morsel of paper, informs us that T. C. 

 Heysham owed his opportunity ' of examining a specimen of 

 this scarce fish to the kind attention of Mrs. Miller of our 

 [Carlisle] fish market, who received it from Cardunock on 

 Saturday last.' The remainder of the note recapitulates the 

 well-known distinctions between the present species and Bloch's 

 Topknot. 



PLAICE. 



Pleuronectes platessa, L. 



Dr. Heysham quaintly remarks that ( the plaise (sic) is 

 very plentiful ; ' but the fish taken inshore are chiefly small. 

 There is an old saying, still current among the fishermen of the 

 English Sol way, that ' Plaice improve as the grass grows! It is 

 certain that they improve in condition as the season of spring 

 advances, probably because they obtain an increased and superior 

 supply of food as the temperature rises. Their colour varies 

 with the ground upon which they live. The upper surfaces of 

 those caught upon mussel scars are much darker than in such 

 Plaice as have been taken off clean sand. Plaice are usually in 

 better condition during the winter months than the Flounder. 

 The ova of the Plaice hatch in April in our waters. The newly- 

 hatched young are of a reddish colour. 



COMMON DAB. 



Pleuronectes limanda, L. 



This Dab is very plentiful in the English Solway waters in 

 some seasons, while in others few are seen. It was scarce, for 

 example, in the summers of 1890 and 1891. This Dab arrives 

 in our shallow waters in the spring of the year, and lies upon 



