Occurance of Eggs of Echiodon drummondi Thompson on the Coast of County Kerry

Abstract

As part of a programme of research on the spawning of bass Dicentrarchus labrax (L), tow-netting for pelagic fish eggs has ben carried out on various parts of the Irish coast during the years 1967 to 1971 inclusive. In May, 1970, in the course of tow-netting in Blasket Sound, Co. Kerry, eggs of the pearlfish Echiodon drummondi Thompson were taken in three hauls. Most of the eggs were hatched out and the larvae reared for some days. This appears to be the first record of the eggs of this species on the Irish coast. The following discusses the natural history of pearlfishes and the hauls in which pearlfish eggs were obtained.