of the Fishery Board for Scotland. 
393 
at the Marine Biological Station at Puffin Island.-^ One of the special 
ohjt'cts of the promoters of this institution is to make a thorough investi- 
gation of the marine fauna and flora of the district ; and already over 
1500 species have been recorded, from diatoms to seals and* cetaceans. 
Many of these are new to British seas, and several new to science, 
Professor Herdman describes what he has done in the demarcation of 
biological zones on the shore, and recounts some observations and experi- 
ments on two organisms that live above high-water mark, Harpadicus 
fidvns and Littorina rudis. These have naturally become habituated in 
great measure to terrestrial conditions. In the experiments the copepod 
thrived and reproduced in almost fresh water, while the mollusc lived 
longer in fresh water than in sea water, and can live best of all in air. 
Professor Herdman gives an account of the fifth cruise of the 'Hytena' 
in the neighbourhood of the Isle of Man, and of further successful experi- 
ments with the electric light in tow-netting. In a paper on Monstrilla 
and the Cymbasomatidse Mr J. C. Thompson describes a new species, 
Monstrilla longicornis, and discusses the relationship of the genus. While 
agreeing with Mr Bourne that the term Cymhasoma must be withdrawn 
in favour of Monstrilla^ Mr Thompson adheres, to the view !,that this 
remarkable group forms a distinct family, the Cymbasomatidse. The 
volume also contains a report upon the Nudibranchiata of the district 
by Professor Herdman and Mr J. A. CKibb, which includes an account 
of interesting experiments made to test the edibility to fish of various 
species of nudibranchs. There are also papers by Dr Hanitsch on the 
Porifera of the district, and by Mr A. 0. Walker on the Higher Crustacea 
of Liverpool Bay. 
The Fifth Report on English Sea Fisheries,! contains reports by the 
three inspectors. It is stated that during 1890 considerable progress was 
made in carrying into effect the Sea Fisheries Regulation Act, 1888; 
sea fisheries districts having been formed for the coasts of the counties 
of Northumberland, Durham, the North and East Ridings of Yorkshire, 
a portion of the Parts of Lindsey in Lincolnshire, portions of Essex and 
Kent, Cornwall, portions of Glamorganshire and Cheshire, Lancashire, 
Westmorland, and a portion of Cumberland, embracing altogether up- 
wards of 700 miles of coast. The District Committees in some cases have 
drawn up very stringent regulations regarding certain modes of fishing, 
the mesh of nets, close times, the deposition of ashes, rubbish, &c. 
It is pointed out that the number of steam trawlers is increasing. The 
value of the sea fisheries of England and Wales last year was .£4,742,612 ; 
the number of fishing boats registered (besides some undecked boats) was 
8050, of which 700t5 were reported as employed during the year ; the 
number of fishermen and boys constantly emploj^ed is given at 32,503, 
and the number of persons occasionally employed at 9312. Mr Frj^er 
states that the English oyster fisheries suffered very much from the 
severe winter of 1890-91, the destruction being chiefly in the French 
oysters imported for fattening; at W^hitstable hardly a single one of these 
have survived. It is also stated that the ' worm disease ' has appeared in 
some of the oyster-beds in the neighbourhood of the Thames estuary ; 
due, seemingly, to Polydora ciliata. Mr Fryer deals at some length with 
the immature fish question, and he discusses various ways in which 
regulation might be carried out. Attention is also called to the use 
of the shrimp-trap in the French coast {vide pp. 209, 210). The Report 
* 'Third Annual Report of the Liverpool Marine Biological Station on Puffin 
* Island,' Proc. Biol. Soc, Liverpool, vol. iv. p. 36, 1890. 
t Sea Fisheries, England and Wales, Fifth Annual Reports of the Inspectors 
{for 1890). 
