according to the various stretclies of coast, still in this respect 

 the difference betrreen the Tfest, South and East coasts is slight. 

 The speed of gr-::arfth in the first period in any case depends on the 

 temperature of the sea water and varies therefore according to the 

 different coastal sections and the different seasons on these 

 stretches of coast. Under normal conditions the first three stages 

 (larval) on the Norwegian YJest Coast last "26 to 29 days* On the 

 South and East coasts a fevi days less (according to Dannavig, approx» 

 24 doys)o On other coasts this tine ma.y be significantly shorter so 

 that for instance in the southern ITorth Sea near Jlelgoland it is 15 

 days on the average. On the West Coast the young lobster reaches 

 in the first period the 6th or 7th stage and has thus passed through 

 five to six moultings^ o¥i the South and East Coasts it can reach 

 possibly one stage more cubing to the fact that development takes 

 place soraeiThat earlierc On other coasts with a higher mean tenper- 

 atvire (e.ge Helgoland) it canbeconc still older during the first 

 period (9th stage)-. On tlie ITorivegian West Coast the lobster reaches 

 in the first period a size of approximately 22 ram., exceptionally 

 even 26 raio On other coasts it can also become somewhiit larger 

 (30 mm. at Helgoland) since it passes through more stages. The 

 number of moultings decreases gradually during the follov/ing periods 

 (for tT/'iTo reared individuals there ^vere foia* in the second period, 

 for one of these individuals there vrere two in the third, fourth and 

 fifth periods), until ultimately they decline to one per period. 

 The normal size that is attained in the second period seems to be 

 6 to 6-g cins.j later the grovrth varies more and more not only for 

 different individuals but tilso for different, moultings of the same 

 individual© Shedding of older individuals can entirely fail to 

 appear in one period. The increase in size for each shedding varies 

 betvreen one and. tv/o cmsc (it is oh the average le6 ons.), rarely 

 more or less than .this meas\irenent. In regard to the growth one 

 can divide the individual lobsters of the Norv^egian West Coast into 

 four groups; l) v/ith shedding in each period and an average 

 increase in size of about 2 cms. per period; 2) v/ith moulting in 

 each period and an average increase in size of about 1.5 cinsoj 

 3) one in which shedding may not take place during a particular 

 period and therefore vfith a lower average grovfth (approximately 1.1 

 cms.) per period; and 4) v.'ith an average increase in size of only 

 0.8 to 0»9 cms. To the second and third groups belong the majority 

 ,of individuals c Ag the size for the beginning of sexual maturity 

 'of the females on the Norv^egian West Coast is 24 to 25 cms., so this 

 villi be reached in the 9th year of life by individuals that belong 

 to the first group-, by the second group in the llth year of life 

 by the third group in the 13th, and by the fourth in the 14th or 

 15th. In order to reach the size permitted to be caught 8 to 10 

 groT.i:h periods would be necessary for the' 'majority. On the Soiith and 

 East Coasts v^here sex maturity of the- femtiles begins at somuivhat 

 smaller size and where ^./ossibly growth proceeds more f lickly during 

 the earlier stages (concerning this there are yet no obser^/ations) 

 sex maturity as. well as tlie legal size limit is reached correspond- 

 ingly earlier yet the difference should hot amount to more than one 

 to tv\ro years* 



If we calculate the grovrth of the assumed average size of all 

 individuals (lc5 to lo6 cms.) sex maturity is reached in the llth 

 grovirth period and the legal fishin;; size in the 9th. (p. 85) 



14 



