Report of the Committee on Marine Zoology. 241 



Eoyal Society of Edinburgh, and in the " Magazine of Zoo- 

 logy and Botany," under the name of Monochirus minutus. 

 He does not include it in his " Fishes of the Firth of Forth," 

 and the Committee are not aware of its having before been 

 obtained there ; but from the occurrence of so many speci- 

 mens in one day, it would seem to be not very rare. Some 

 of the specimens were brought home alive, and one of them 

 lived for nearly three months, until killed by the recent 

 severe cold. It was very sluggish, remaining always at the 

 bottom of the aquarium, and seldom moving unless disturbed. 

 When fishing with the seine net along the shore eastward 

 of Leith, a number of species were taken, which will give 

 some idea of the fishes which occur on this limited portion 

 of the coast. The most abundant fish, of course, by far, is the 

 mud flounder, Platessa flesus, along with which were always 

 a considerable number of plaice, Platessa vulgaris, and a few 

 salt water flounders, P. limanda, the proportion of the latter 

 being very small to the other two. One or two specimens 

 of the common sole occurred during the season, and a single 

 specimen of the brill, Rhombus vulgaris. Numbers of small 

 thornbacks, Raia clavata, occurred along with these on the 

 sandy portions of the shore, mingled with shoals of young 

 Triglm. The sting fish, Trachinus vipera, the armed bull- 

 head, Aspidoplwrus cataphractus, and the one-spotted goby, 

 Gobius unipunctatus, were in abundance in spots where 

 much ulva and enteromorpha grew. Two or three specimens 

 of the common pipe fish, Syngnathus acus, occurred along 

 with these, and a considerable number of the green cod, 

 Merlangus virens. A few specimens of the viviparous blenny 

 and five-bearded rockling also occurred, and a single speci- 

 men of the sordid dragonet, Callionymus dracunculus, and 

 one of the short spined cottus, Coitus scorpius. The spotted 

 gunnel fish, Muraenoides guttata, was not scarce in pools 

 among the Black Eocks, and proves a most admirable fish 

 for the aquarium, living long, and becoming quite tame 

 when fed with small earth worms. Two small salmon trout 

 (Salmo trutta) were caught during the season, each about 

 two pounds in weight, one close to the Black Eocks, and the 

 other near Portobello. 



