PROCEEDINGS OF SOCIETIES. 
37 
confirms a more extended geographic range of animals or of plants ; on the other, it 
rewards his researches, and affords to him new objects of inquiry. In many papers 
brought before this Society, analogy has been shown, bearing upon the characteris¬ 
tics of the western and southern coasts of this country with those of Spain, Portugal, 
and the Mediterranean, especially with reference to the botany and to the 
marine zoology; and also instances have been noticed of peculiarities of the south¬ 
west coast with the southern and western parts of Cornwall, which, to some extent, 
prove the physical agency of temperature, humidity, and soil, in the development of 
geographic botany. Before submitting to your notice the subject of the present 
paper, u An Addition to the Ichthyology of Ireland,” I shall briefly make some 
remarks upon the Percoides, or perch tribe, to a division of which family it belongs. 
These fish (the perches) are extremely numerous both in genera and species, and 
in the lakes and rivers of Europe, and in the seas of warm climates, afford excellent 
and wholesome food. The far greater number of Percoides have the ventral fins 
inserted under the pectorals, and form the first, division, or thoracic perches. These 
are further characterized by seven rays to the gills, two fins on the back, and all 
the teeth dense and even. To this division belongs the common perch of our fresh 
waters, the Perea fluvialis. Distinctions of the opercula and tongue characterize 
others, as the sea perch, or Bass (Labrax lupus), which is found of much finer 
quality on the English coasts than the coasts of Ireland, although I have seen them of 
good flavour taken in Wexford harbour. Very large specimens of the Bass are found 
on the coasts of the United States. An extensive series of the division might be enu¬ 
merated, remarkable for their beauty, and for their usefulness as food, especially 
the Aspro vulgaris, the zingel of the Rhone, and the Perea zingle of the Danube, 
and the common pike-perch, the Lucioperca sandra of the Danube, the Elbe, and 
the Oder. These, as I have before remarked, might be transported with useful 
results to the barren waters of our inland lakes. 
The second division of the Percoides are distinguished by the single dorsal 
fin, have seven rays in the gills, but the genera are placed according to the 
characters of the teeth. To these belong the Serrani, a very numerous marine 
species, frequent in the Mediterranean, but chiefly abounding in seas of warm 
latitudes, brilliant and beautiful in their colours, and excellent as food. They 
seldom range so far north as Britain. Two species, however, that inhabit 
the Mediterranean have been recorded as British, the smooth Serranus (Ser- 
ranus cabrilla) and the dusky Serranus (S. gigas), both taken on the coast 
of Cornwall. The former is of common occurrence on the coast of Sicily. 
The denticulated or serrated preoperculum, and the bony operculum, terminated 
with one or two points, are characteristic of the genus. This leads me to the 
description of what now is established as an addition to the Ichthyology of this 
country, the “Polyprion cernium,” Cuv. The genus is formed from a single species 
common in the Mediterranean, and having an extensive range to the western isles, 
Madeira, and known on the coast of America. It is fully described in the supple¬ 
ment to Yarrell’s History of British fishes, as “ Couch’s polyprion,” having been 
first recorded as British on the coast of Cornwall. It is also known as the stone 
Bass, and the wreck fish. The genus Polyprion is distinguished by being entirely 
covered with small rigid scales ; all the opercular bones are denticulated, strong 
bony ridges and asperities covering the head, and over and behind the eyes; but 
the most remarkable character is a strong bony ridge on the operculum, in a line 
above the pectoral fin, and directed backwards, ending in a point. The discovery 
of the fish now submitted to the meeting (and which has been so well and carefully 
preserved by Mrs. Baker, of Grafton-street) is due to Mr. Eugene Moriarty, a most 
intelligent fisherman, of Dingle, who superintends the stores and management of 
the Dingle men in the employment of the Royal Irish Eisheries Company. 
When forming my records of every incident connected with the sea fisheries of the 
coast of Kerry, Mr. Moriarty mentioned the circumstance of a singular fish which 
he recollected to have been taken some years since in Dingle Bay, following and 
feeding upon the barnacles attached to floating wreck timber; but he never knew an 
instance of the fish being taken by the hook. His accurate description satisfied me 
that it was a species unrecorded on the Irish coast. In the month of September 
last Mr. Moriarty was fortunate enough in obtaining this fine specimen under most 
