570 KEPOKT OP COMMISSIONER OF FISH AND FISHERIES. 



that these schools of codfish which come early belong to a distinct 

 variety, which, diiicriug in this respect from the codfish proper, stays 

 far out at sea all the year round, and is by the approaching masses of 

 codfish driven toward the coast. From what I could learn from the 

 fishermen, it seems certain that some of these fish, by their peculiar . 

 color and thicker body, show a great similarity to the coast variety of 

 the codfish found along the whole coast of Norway. But, on the otlier 

 hand, it is certain that the fishermen, when speaking of this fish, also 

 mean the codfish, and although it makes its appearance in the begin- 

 ning of January, it does not differ from the codfish i^roper in any 

 essential i)oints. The only distinguishing mark of this codfish is said 

 to be, that the skin covering the inside of the abdomen is white, while in 

 the codfish proper it is dark. This mark seems, however, to be confined 

 to individuals, for 1 have among the so-called announcing fish, which 

 the fishermen called codfish, found some with a dark abdominal skin, 

 and during the fishing season codfish proper with a white skin. 



The coming in of the fish, which may be said to begin in January, 

 generally lasts during all of February till the middle of March. The 

 fishermen say that the codfish come in till the 12th of March, but it is 

 of course impossible to fix an exact date. There are many circumstances 

 which may either retard or accelerate the coming-in of the codfish, so 

 that one year it may end sooner than another. The general experience 

 has been, that after a southwesterly wind and mild weather following 

 it, the fish come in quicker than after northerly or easterly wind and 

 cold weather. The cause assigned for this is, that the sea has larger 

 waves during a southwesterly wind, and the current going toward the 

 coast drives the fish in the same direction. This theory, however, can 

 only be accepted conditionally. To judge from what we know about 

 other fish, the contrary might be expected, as it is well known that not 

 only the salmon, but also several salt-water fish, as the mackerel, seem 

 to take special delight in going against the current and wind. The real 

 cause, I think, must rather be sought in the considerably higher tem- 

 perature of the deep water, which in the above-mentioned kind of 

 weather is communicated to the water near the surface. 



The codfish do not come near the coast in one great mass, but always 

 in schools, which, small in the beginning, gradually increase in size until 

 they assume such large dimensions that they are called " fish-mount- 

 ains." Daring good fishing seasons this expression does not seem an 

 exaggeration. I have been assured that the codfish are often so closely 

 packed, to a height of 20 to 30 fathoms above the bottom, that the fish- 

 ermen who use lines can notice how the weight before it reaches the 

 bottom is constantly knocking against the fish. 



It often happens that although it is known that great masses of cod- 

 fish, so-called "fish-mountains," fill the sea at certain places, none can 

 be caught either with seines or lines. The fishermen say that the fish 

 at such times keep entirely quiet, with their heads downward. Noth- 



