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Part III. — Twentieth Annual Beport 

 XI. 



Another trip was made on the "Lochnagar" from 15th to 21st 

 January. The first haul was made on the 15th oft' Aberdeen, in 57 

 fathoms, Tod Head beaiing W. by S., and Giidleness nearly N.W., 

 and it lasted for one hour and five minutes, there being a breeze from 

 (S.W. and a slight swell. The otter-trawl contained only 245 fishes, of 

 which 83 were marketable, namely, two cod, six codlings, 37 haddocks, 

 seven whiting, two plaice, one lemon dab, four witches, one megrim, 22 

 common dabs, and one gi"ey skate. The unmarketable consisted chiefly 

 of common dabs and haddocks. The small-meshed net contained 1571 

 small fishes, as follows : — 



On this occasion the small-meshed net had meshes 6 mm. square. 



The fishing in Aberdeen Bay was also very poor. Three hauls were 

 taken. The first was shot in 16 fathoms and ended in seven fathoms, 

 off" the Black Dog, and lasted an hour. The catch was extremely 

 small, there being only six whitings in the otter-net, with a consider- 

 able quantity of weed. In the small-meshed (6 mm.) net there were 

 914 small whitings, 214 common dabs, three haddocks, one bib {Gadus 

 luscus), six codling, one sprat, 27 armed-bullheads, 36 Gohius minutus, 

 one solenette, three long rough dabs, and six common pipe-fishes 

 (>S'. ac2is). The other two hauls were made in from seven to fourteen 

 fathoms, and lasted altogether eight hours. The number of fishes 

 caught was 451, of which 53 were marketable. The particulars are as 

 follow : — 



There were also taken one bib or brassie, four grey skates, and one 

 picked dog-fish. The haul was remarkable, in the general paucity of 

 fish, for the un visually large numbers of the starry ray. They are most 

 numerous in Aberdeen Bay in the winter. The fish landed the next 

 day amounted to 4;^ cwts. of cod and -^ cwt. of saithe, which brought 

 £5 10s. 3d. 



The vessel then proceeded to the Moray Firth, and arrived on the 

 Caithness coast at 11 p.m. on the 17th, but found the coast lined with 

 herring drifters, and was unable to shoot the trawl until 8.30 next 

 morning. It was towed for three hours in sixteen to twenty fathoms 

 oft" Lybster, and the net was found to have been badly torn from the hard 

 ground there. The catch comprised only 142 marketable fishes and six 

 unmarketable, the former being three cod, 29 codling, 102 haddocks, 

 one whiting, one plaice, and six lemon soles. The wind was light, from 



