of thr Fishery Board for Scotland. 1.05 



afterwards, and yet from that period to the end of the year the young 

 haddocks at Aberdeen added about three inches to their length. More- 

 over, the use of a fine-meshed net (| incli) both on the bottom and in 

 midwater yielded no haddocks smaller than 150 mm. (5|- inches) in 

 January, and none smaller than 137 mm. in December. It seems 

 surprising that a haddock should grow, on the average, to a length of 

 7i inches from the time it was hatched from the egg early in April until 

 December, when it is about eight months old, and that others, no doubt 

 hatched a month or so earlier, should in the same period reach a length 

 of over 84 inches. 



With regard to the haddock when one year old, or in its second year, 

 the only haul made during the spawning season was the one in the deep 

 water ofi' the Shetlands on 10th March, and tiie computed size of the 

 series Avas 173 mm., or 6j| inches, while the corrected average is about 

 165 mm., or 6| inches. 



In the hauls made in Aberdeen Bay and in the deep water o3 

 Aberdeen, this series was well represented on some occasions, but on 

 others the haddocks of the second year were not abundant. It was, 

 moreover, difficult in some cases to differentiate this group from the next 

 older generation, and there is therefore not the same certainty in regard 

 to the increase at different periods as with the first series. 



In Aberdeen Bay the average size of 58 taken on 30th May was 215-3 

 mm., or 8| inches, the range being from 174 to 241 mm. These 

 haddocks were a little under fourteen months old. On 13th June 110 

 ranged from 181 to 263 mm., the mean size being 224*5 mm., or 8^ 

 inches, the increase in the fourteen days amounting to 9'2 mm. On 10th 

 September 200 varied in length from 197 to 317 mm., the average size 

 being 264"7 mm., or lOy^^ inches, showing an increase in the ninety days 

 of 40 '2 mm. The hauls in October, November, and December yielded 

 very few haddocks of this series, viz. 49, 3, 4, and 4, and the averages 

 were small. These haddocks, like the whitings of corresponding age, 

 apparently moved out from the inshore waters in the months named. In 

 1890, however, they were more abundant, and gave higher averages. 

 Thus 516 on 8th-13th October had a mean size of 281 9 mm. ; and 1001 

 on 31st October-lst November a mean size of 293'3 mm. On December 

 17th-19th 263, ranging from 237 to 345 mm., had an average size of 

 295*3 mm., or llf inches. This would represent a growth of about 80 

 mm. (3|^ inches) from the end of May. 



In the deep water off Aberdeen 750 taken on 28th June ranged from 

 168 to 278 mm., and the average size was 230*2 mm., or a little over 

 nine inches. On 30th July the mean size of 311 was 244*5 mm., and 

 the range from 184 to 293 mm. ; on 21st August 540 ranged from 202 

 to 308 mm., the average size being 2508 mm. On 5tli November the 

 mean size of 219 was 273*2 mm., and the range between 230 and 312 

 mm. ; and on 16th December the mean size of 457 was 277*4 mm., and 

 the range from 223 to 325. Only 24 were taken on 15th January, and 

 they ranged from 240 to 334 mm., the average being 286*8 mm. In the 

 202 days, from 28th June, the apparent increase amounted to 56*6 mm., 

 or about '2\ inches. 



The information in regard to the growth of the haddocks in their third 

 year in Aberdeen Bay is less complete, owing partly to the comparatively 

 small number of specimens taken and also to the difficulty in many cases 

 of precisely defining the limits of the group. On 30th May seventy-one 

 ranged from 262 to 372 mm., the average being 315*7 mm., or 12| inches. 

 On 6th June 486 taken with the ordinary otter-trawl ranged from 264 to 

 371 mm., the average being 3193 mm. On 13th June the correspond- 



