55 



Van den Ende says that very rich catches of herring took place 

 in the Zuiderzee about 1832; Schlegel mentions the years 1825 — 36 

 as having been exceptionally rich in this regard ; a third author 

 (Sloet's Journal XI. 1855.) tells us, that there are two kinds of 

 Zuiderzee-herrings, viz., ordinary herrings and so-called »ijle" 

 (empty) herrings, and that the latter were seen for the first time 

 in the year 1828. On a single day (4 December 1828) 60.000 

 »tal" (numbers) of 200 herrings each were taken. These diffe- 

 rent statements agree with oue another and show that about 

 that time (1825 — 28 — 32 — 36) immensely rich catches of herrin o's 

 took place in the Zuiderzee. It will not be easy to settle now , 

 whether the assertion, that this herring was a shotten one, is 

 right. Though in a paper published in 1856 (Onze Tijd XVII. 

 p. 289) the same statement is published , and though I have found 

 that it is still the opinion of different persons who are in relation 

 with the Zuiderzee-fishery , that this herring is a shotten one, I 

 should not like to say that it is my opinion also — I often had 

 occasion to observe that it was not the opinion of the fishermen 

 either. 



Hoffmann ^) studied the question as to what time of the year 

 this herring was ripe. According to him this happens about the 

 middle of April, or, when spring is late, not before the end of the 

 said raonth. He was successful in artificially fecondating the eggs 

 of the herring; these eggs came out in water containing 0.743% 

 of salt. The eggs developed in a normal way in wooden tanks 

 with running water at a mean-teraperature of 9.4° C. and were 

 ready in about 1 2 days. The young herring coming out of the 

 egg has a quite larva-like appearence, with a length of 6.2 or 

 6.4 m.m., it possesses a yolk-sac the greatest diameter of which 

 is about 1 m.m. As to the metaraorphoses through which this 

 larva has to pass before we are able to recognize in it a young 

 herring, Hoffmann did not succeed in observing them : like the 

 German Comraission he failed to rear the larvae in aquaria. 



l) Verslag Staat Nederl. Zecvisscherrjen. 1878. Bijlage II. 



