of the Fishery Board for Scotland. 



83 



centages of the two shallower watei' areas, xxiii, xxix, which, broadly 

 speaking, comprise the grounds to a distance of about sixty miles from 

 the east coast of Scotland, between the Moray Firth and St. Abbs Head, 

 and the other four deeper-water areas, which comprise over 14,000 

 square miles of the North Sea, extending from off the Moray Firth to 

 the Shetlands, and rather more than half-way to Norway. The quan- 

 tities (in cwts.) as well as the percentages are given. The former do not 

 represent the ratio of productiveness of the various areas, since the 

 amount of lishing was unequal ; but the percentages show the relative 

 proportions among the flat-fishes. 



Thus, of each hundred tons of flat-fishes taken by trawlers in these 

 shallower water areas, about 36 tons are lemon soles, about 33 tons are plaice, 

 about 6 tons are witches, and about 9 tons are megrims. In the deeper- 

 water areas, of each hundred tons caught about 2 tons are lemons, about 3 

 tons are plaice, about 65 tons are witches, and about 22 tons are megrims. 

 Turbot, brill, and dabs are relatively much more abundant in the shallower 

 water, and halibut is more abundant in the deeper water. 



It will be observed from an examination of a chart that the shallower 

 water areas (xxiii, xxix) are not so shallow as the greater part of the 

 North Sea to the south and east of them, and if sufficient information 

 existed to show the relative proportions of the various flat-fishes in that 

 stretch of the North Sea, the contrast with the northern grounds would 

 be still more striking. 



It is evident from these facts regarding the proportional distribution of 

 flat-fishes that if trawling were carried on predominantly in different 

 jDarts of the North Sea in different years, the result on the statistics of 

 the flat-fishes landed would be marked. A mere transference of the 

 fishing from the shallower to the deeper water would cause a decrease in 

 the quantity of plaice, lemon soles, and turbot landed and an increase in 

 the witches and megrims, and this would occur quite apart from change 

 in the other factors. It would not necessarily show any impoverishment 

 of the grounds, but merely a change in the area of fishing. 



In point of fact such a transference of the area of fishing Las taken 

 place in recent years. From the Tables and Charts appended (p. 214) it 

 will be seen that in the first three months of 1891 none of the Aberdeen 

 trawlers fished in the deeper areas referred to. Fishing was then carried 

 on practically within the 50-fathom line, south of 57'30' or 58°, down to 

 about 55° — off the coast of Northumberland and to the northern part of 

 the Dogger — and also in the Moray Firth and around the Orkney Islands. 

 At the period referred to over 93 per cent, of the fish landed were caught 

 from the Orkneys to the Firth of Forth within fifty or sixty miles from 

 the shore. 



The apparatus then used — the beam-trawl — could not be employed in 

 the deeper water, but so soon as the vessels were equipped with the otter- 

 or bsamless-trawl, which can be used up to and even over 100 fathoms, 

 they pushed further to the north-east, where heavy catches were got on 



