PISCES. 



41 



as the " young of some better known species." Nothing but 

 aquariums can settle these questions for us. 



The Yellow Skulpin. ( CalMonymus lyra). The G-emmeous 

 dragonet. This very handsome fish is now recognised as the 

 adult male, whilst the dusky skulpin or sordid dragonet (C. 

 dracunculus) is the adult female or immature young of the 

 same fish. It is heavily armed with a jagged spine at the 

 lower back angle of the operculum. Though small, its flesh 

 is excellent. Not uncommon. 



The Angler. {Lophius piscatorius). The fishing frog. The 

 Devil fish. Common. 



Couch abandons the small winged angler and the long angler. 



LABLIDJE. — (The Wrasses). 



(Pronounced, in the singular, Eaa). I follow Mr. Couch (see 

 " Fauna") in giving the Wrasses with great reservation. He 

 speaks of the confusion from which they were only " emerging " 

 when he wrote in 1838, but I, having had unusual opportunities 

 of examining the family, (having, for several years for a holiday 

 month outright, caught never less than a dozen a day, of all sorts 

 of wrasse) am at present inclined to a belief that the Labridse 

 are not of so many species as the books say, and that the con- 

 fusion which Mr. Couch noticed in 1838 is by no means at an 

 end. 



Ballan Wrasse. (Labrus maculatus). The " Johnraa " of the 

 country people. Very common. With this one, must go, in 

 my opinion, the greenstreaked wrasse (Z. lineatus) as its 

 female or immature young. Couch (Fauna) apparently at 

 one time favoured this view, although he retains the green 

 wrasse in his larger work. 



The Comber. (Z. Comber). This wrasse is rare if it is a distinct 

 species, but I incline to think it an accidental variation of 

 the young Ballan wrasse. 



The Blue striped wrasse. (Z. coquus). Male ; takes with it as 

 its female the three-spotted wrasse (Z. trimacidatus), and to- 

 gether are a beautiful pair of fish, and not at all uncommon. 



The Scalerayed Wrasse (Acantholabrus Couchii) is admitted by 

 Yarrell and by Couch, but is so rare, and its peculiarity of 

 beirg scale-rayed is so un-English, that I am unwilling to 

 rank it as a Cornish wrasse, although it may well be a scale- 



