. 104 _THE AUSTRALIAN NATURALIST. 
= derision of the local angler or fisherman when he. hears of 
Victorian Yellowtail that size is .easily imagined. The local 
Sea’ Mullet is known in Victoria as Sand Mullet—a term 
_ applied here to an insignificant species. Many other instances 
_ are given. : 
Mr. Stead points out that now—when the peoples of 
Australia and New Zealand are devoting more atiention to 
their fish-fauna and their fisheries—is the time to grapple 
with this question, and that the surest way of dealing with 
it is for the various Governments (that have not already done 
so) to co-operate with each other, and officially devote atten- 
tion to the matter by appointing, permanently, competent. 
men to study this and allied Fisheries questions, 
The lists given will be useful for reference purposes. 
“AQUATIC INSECTS.” 
Abstract of Presidential Address, 1st Aug., 1911, by 
W. B. Gurney, FES. 
We are perhaps apt to conceive the terrestrial animals con- 
stitute the great bulk of the animail life of the globe. Yet, 
of the 12 large groups or phyla of the animal kingdom, six 
are wholly aquatic, and the other six largely consist of aquatic 
forms. Almost every type, therefore, from the simple single- 
celled Protozoans to the highest animals, from the Amoeba 
ane Globigerina to the huge warm-blooded whale, is repre- 
sented in the water fauna. 
On land, the Phylum Arthropoda, which includes In- 
sects, Spiders, Centipedes, etc., is most numerous in species 
and individuals. his predominance ‘s in great part due to 
the success of the little animals known as insects. The In- 
secta, ib is estimated, include about 250,000 distinct species 
so far described and named. As Dr. David Sharp has pointed 
out, “Insects far outnumber in species all other terrestrial 
animals together.’’ Let me indicate this with regard to tho 
Australian fauna. According to Messrs. Lucas and: le 
Souef’s recent work, ‘‘Birds of Australia’? (1911), there are 
863 species of Australian birds. In contrast, note, there are 
10,000 species of beetles alone, described from Australia. Of 
other forms, there are 5/ species of Amphibia, 202 Reptiles, 
and 181 Mammals, which, with the Birds, makes a total of 
1303 Australian vertebrates. There are, however, at a rough 
estimate, over 20,000 Australian insects described. 
The success of insect life is considered due in part to 
their small size, their numerous progeny, and their acquisi- 
tion of wings. The predominance of insects stops at the 
water’s edge, for though aquatic insects are plentiful they | 
are not nearly so numerous as on land. And this leads us to 
