646 REPORT OF THE COUNCIL. 



The International Fisheries Investigations. 



Section L— NORTH SEA WORK. 



A. THE TOTAL PROGEAMME OF INVESTIGATIONS. 



The share of the international programme undertaken by the Association 

 consists of the following parts : — 



1. A scientific survey, by means of the s.s. Huxley, of the trawling 

 grounds lying between the east coast of England and about 3° 30' 

 E. longitude. 



The survey of the continental grounds, from which the largest 

 supplies of undersized flat-fish are derived, falls to the share of 

 Denmark, Germany, and Holland ; but investigations on these grounds 

 by the English boat have already been carried out, and will be con- 

 tinued in future from time to time, so that the fullest possible in- 

 formation may be provided concerning the distribution and sizes of fish 

 in this important region. 



On all the North Sea voyages of the s.s. H^ixley arrangements have 

 been made so that the following points may receive particular 

 attention at each station: — 



(i.) The nature of the bottom. 



(ii.) The nature and abundance of animal life living on the bottom 



and serving as food for fish or otherwise, 

 (iii.) The size and weight of the fishes caught, 

 (iv.) The food of the more important fishes. 



(v.) The condition of the fishes as regards sex, maturity, or spawning, 

 (vi.) The temperature of the sea at surface and bottom. 



All fishes of marketable species which are caught are counted and 

 measured. The weight of the catch is separately determined for each 

 species. The records thus obtained are vised for comparing the relative 

 abundance and mass of particular species on different grounds, and the 

 differences in the range of size exhibited by the fish of different areas 

 at different seasons of the year. 



2. A simultaneous survey of the regular fisheries on the trawling 

 grounds with the assistance of reliable masters of commercial fishing 

 vessels. 



The promises of assistance received by the Association from in- 

 fluential boat owners and fishermen are sufficiently numerous to 

 enable a careful selection to be made of the most reliable and competent 

 men for this work. About fifty sailing trawlers from the southern 

 ports and fifty steam trawlers from the northern ports will be em- 

 ployed during the first year. Whether the number of co-operating 



