NEW CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE HERRING-QUESTION, ETC. 209 



sea Dear tbe coast during the whole summer has been filled with great 

 masses of different crustaceans; in other years, they disappeared almost" 

 entirely, or were only accidentally driven to different points of the coast 

 by tbe current, soon to disappear again." One of the most convincing 

 evidences that the small pelagic animals, araoug them the genuine "her- 

 ring-crustacean," are in certain years driven near the coast by the cur- 

 rent, is the existence of salpae, which are as transparent as glass, 

 and which are found either singly or in long-connected chains resem- 

 bling pearl necklaces; out in the open sea they are found every year, but 

 near the coast many years may pass before one sees a single one; and all 

 of a sudden in a certain year they approach the coast in such enormous 

 masses that every bay and sound is filled with them. Tbe occasional 

 occurrence of these animals in large masses has attracted the attention of 

 the fishermen, and is counted among the "signs" which augur a good 

 spring-hen iug fishery during the coming winter, and it would seem 

 probably not without reason. During such a year, the herring will 

 already during summer have come tolerably near the coast, and will 

 consequently arrive early iu winter, &c. 



The so-called " mixed herring," which of late years has appeared in 

 the spring-herring district, is described as an inferior kind of herring, 

 which formerly was not known, and in whose occurrence people believe 

 they see a sure warning that the spring-herring fisheries will soon come 

 to an end. It has been described in many different ways. It probably 

 consists chiefly of herring in different stages of life, which are not yet able 

 to spawn, and are driven toward the coast by the " spring-herring 

 mountains," which approach tbe coast from the sea ; e. r/., the barren 

 "Straalsild," (ray-herring,) or " Solhovedsild," (sunhead-herring,) which 

 are probably fishes that have been left behind from the spring-herring 

 school of the preceding year, have remained near the coast, and, on 

 account of the want of suitable food, have not become ripe for spawn- 

 ing during this year. The longer the route which the advancing 

 masses of the old spawning herring have to travel, the greater number 

 of these young herring, which have never yet approached the open sea 

 in their slow course, will they drive before them, and all the more 

 mixed will the different schools and ages of the herring be. They 

 drive before them first the older ones, which had got farthest out, then 

 the younger ones, which had not got so far, and mix them with the barren 

 Straalsild, (ray-herring,) which they always meet on their approach to 

 the coast, as well as with some stragglers from the great mass of herrings; 

 these latter, of course, being com mon spring-herring, which are nearly ready 

 to spawn. The bulk of the mixed herrings, viz, the young herring which 

 are not yet ready to spawn, are therefore in reality the same herrings 

 which earlier in the season were called summer-herring. Their occur- 

 rence in unusual numbers may, therefore, undoubtedly be a sign of a less 

 productive spring-herring fishery during that year, but does not augur 

 anything regarding the more distant future. As long as the young 

 14 F 



