24 



female plaice to fill the boxes once, and counting in the 

 males required to fertilise the eggs, another 25 would be 

 wanted, making 100 in all, or 200 to fill the boxes twice. 



Under the existing arrangements, where we have no 

 spawning pond, and only a small steamer to depend on for 

 our supplies, it is practically impossible to collect the 

 number of eggs required. This has been fully demon- 

 strated during the past season. Instead of even 23 

 millions, only aibout 4 millions in good condition could be 

 obtained. The weather, on the whole, was suitable for 

 the work ; with unfavourable weather the results would 

 have been much worse, as the steamer is not of sufficient 

 size to carry on such work in a rough sea. 



The system of collecting eggs by means of the steamer 

 has some disadvantages. It is liable to be interrupted 

 at any time through accidents to trawl gear, or by a 

 continuation of bad weather, and a large number of 

 eggs are necessarily collected which are not suitable for 

 incubation. At the same time, it ought to be remembered 

 that the fry hatched out from eggs collected in such a 

 manner and afterwards set free, as has been done this 

 season, represents a great gain. Practically 95 % of the 

 fry set free were hatched out from eggs taken from fish 

 caught by the trawlers for the market, and these eggs would, 

 in the ordinary run of work, have been entirely lost. 

 Much could be done to minimise the enormous loss to the 

 fish population of the sea which accompanies the capture 

 of ripe fish during the spawning season if the steamer 

 were of sufficient size to visit the trawlers for the purpose 

 of collecting eggs in all ordinary weather. 



The scheme advocated by Professor Mcintosh and others, 

 that trawlers should be furnished with suitable vessels for 

 the collection and fertilisation of the eggs, which would 

 then be returned to the sea, is certainly a good one if it 



