334 BULLETIN OF THE UNITED STATES FISH COMMISSION. 



No. 4 was almost ready to spawn, and the sexual organs of the other 

 three were so much developed that the latter half of May must be sup- 

 posed to have been their spawning season. At the same time several 

 spawners were examined which had been caught in the middle of March 

 in the Mjofiord in Iceland. The maximum length of these herring was 

 347.5, 353.5, and 350 millimeters, respectively, and the weight of the 

 spawn-bags 71, 62, and 91 grams, respectively. The spawning season 

 of thesH Iceland herring sets in probably somewhat earlier than that of 

 the Norwegian herring. We have merely stated this because the spawn- 

 ing season of both these kinds of fish sets in later than that of the spring 

 herring. 



The Loffbden herring had been caught in the Borgefiord. This fiord, 

 which is scarcely half a mile long, and somewhat narrower, is connected 

 with the Polar Sea by a narrow sound, not quite a quarter of a mile 

 long, which can only be crossed by boats in a few places when the tide 

 is in, and which is almost dry when the tide is out. The Poilen, a sheet 

 of water farther inland, which is somewhat larger than the fiord, is con- 

 nected with the latter by a short watercourse about 3 feet deep. The 

 greatest depth of this fiord is said to be 40, and that of the Pollen 60 

 fathoms. In the fiord the tide can be noticed, but not in the Pollen, 

 whose waters are said to contain but little salt. The herring prefer to 

 stay in the fiord, but they have also been caught in nets in the Pollen. 

 Besides herring the Gadus virens is occasionally caught in the fiord, 

 and both here and in the Pollen not a few salmon and salmon trout. 

 It is said that there are no other fish in these waters. 



From information furnished by the inhabitants of this region, it ap- 

 pears that about ten years ago, during the " great herring" period, her- 

 ring first made their appearance in these waters, some probably as 

 early as the autumn of 1871, and that, unable to leave them, they prop- 

 agated here, which may be concluded from the circumstance that young 

 fry of all sizes are found, even up to the " Christiania herring," which 

 must be considered as. the oldest offspring of the immigrants. The large 

 specimens which we examined belonged, therefore, to the original im- 

 migrants. The fisheries take place almost exclusively in spriug when 

 the ice has melted, and when large schools of herring appear on the 

 coast. It is difficult, however, to catch the herring, because they are 

 very shy. At other times they are but rarely caught in nets. As only 

 nets with large meshes are used, only full-grown fish are caught. Dur- 

 ing the present year 30 tons have been taken; but as a general rule 

 the quantity is much less. In exceptional cases 50 tons have been taken 

 in a year. 



From all the information obtained it seems certain that one and the 

 same tribe of herring has lived and propagated in this natural aquarium^ 

 The conditions, strange in more than one respect, under which these 

 herring have been compelled to live during this long period in their invol- 

 untary imprisonment, do not seem to have had any hurtlul influence on 



