224 



Appendices to Fourth Annual Report 



this fish, 7| inches long, was captured of! the Firth of Forth on 8th Feb- 

 ruary 1886, and presented to the Board by the Granton Steam Trawling 

 Company. This species has occasionally been met with along the East 

 Coast of Scotland before, but is not common at any part of the British 

 coast. In the specimen referred to the dark spots on the dorsal and anal 

 fins are well pronounced, and the caudal extremities of these fins are not 

 so square as those given in Day's figure (Brit. Fishes, vol. i. pi. 88, fig. 

 1) ; indeed, they more nearly resemble the terminations of these fins in M. 

 iricirrata. The anal fin is 3| inches long, while the length of the posterior 

 portion of the dorsal is 4J inches. The anterior ciliated portion of the 

 dorsal, the rays of which are very short, is kept in constant vibratile 

 motion when the fish is alive, and a distinct current is produced in the 

 water. 



6. Motella tricirrata (Bl.), Three-bearded Rockling. — A fine specimen 

 of this species was received from Mrs Stewart of Leith. . It was caught 

 on the 7th January 1886, in the Firth^^of Forth, between May and Bass. 

 It is a male, and measures 18 J inches in length. The margins of the fins 

 were blood-red. The species is not particularly rare, but it is seldom so 

 fine an example is secured. The largest British specimen recorded was 20 

 inches long (Thompson). It is curious to note that all the specimens 

 examined by Day and Thompson were males ; and it is very desirable 

 that the sex of all specimens captured should be ascertained, as the absence 

 of females seems unaccountable. In this specimen the testes were not well 

 developed. Its ally, M. mustela, spawns in the summer, and the eggs are 

 pelagic. 



7. Phycis hlennoides, Greater Fork-beard. — One or two specimens of 

 this species seem to be captured yearly on the East Coast. Specimens were 

 recorded in the Second and Third Annual Reports of the Fishery Board. 

 A good specimen, 24 inches in length, has recently been sent to the 

 Central Laboratory by the Fishery officer at Peterhead. The fish was seen 

 swimming at the surface off Burnhaven, on 17th February 1886, and was 

 secured by means of a clip. This makes the fifth specimen that has come 

 under our notice in three years. 



8. Hippoglossus vulgaris, L., Holibut. — A large holibut captured off 

 the Berwickshire Coast on the 18th of May was found to contain nearly 

 ripe ova. The fish weighed 91 lbs., and was taken by a Bitten weem great 

 line boat 100 miles off St Abb's Head. The Fishery officer at Berwick 

 informs me that holibut are rarely landed there with the ova so well 

 developed. A part of the ovary, weighing 6 lbs., was sent fresh to the 

 Central Laboratory. It was estimated that the part sent was about one- 

 third of the whole ovary, which must have therefore weighed close on 18 

 lbs. The eggs were in three stages of development : — 



(1.) The bulk consisted of unripe ova about 2*55 mm. in diameter, 

 which were yellowish in colour and very oily outside. 



(2.) Nearer the centre there were patches of ova similar in size to the 

 above, but white and opaque. In these a large number of yolk spherules 

 could be made out. 



(3.) Amongst the patches of opaque eggs were little clusters of larger 

 ova, which were quite transparent, and showed no division of the yolk into 

 small spherules. It is probable that these eggs were quite ripe. They 

 floated at first on being placed in sea-water, but being dead they soon sank 

 to the bottom. The largest measured about 4-25 mm. in diameter. I did 

 not not notice any oil globule. 



In order to estimate roughly the number of ova in the whole ovary an 

 ounce of the smaller eggs was weighed, and the number counted. There 

 were 5530 eggs to the ounce. Taking off 3 lbs. for the weight of the 



