204 REPORT OF COMMISSIONER OF FISH AND FISHERIES. 



tion gained ground that the herrings only spawned every other year, an 

 opinion to which I cannot give positive assent, at least to such an ex- 

 tent as would be necessary. 



In comparing the above-mentioned i^orwegian and the Bohuslan fish- 

 eries (the latter having for theii' object herrings which come to the coast 

 for a totally different purpose than spawning), it will soon be found that 

 the phenomena are very similar, and that the spawning-herring fisheries 

 are immediately followed by a longer or shorter period of new-herring 

 fisheries ; and I have even been led to suppose, leasing my opinion on 

 the development of the last great Bohuslan herring -fisheries, that all 

 great herring-fisheries, at least in Bohuslan, are not only followed but 

 also preceded by a similar period of " new-herring" fisheries. By this 

 term as well as by the term " period of spawning-herring fisheries," I 

 understand, of course, only separate portions of one and the same great 

 l^eriod of herring-fisheries ; and as the intervals between two such great 

 periods on the coast of Bohuslan generally last from sixty to one hun- 

 dred years (an average of seventy), these intervals would be shorter on 

 coasts which are nearer that part of the ocean where the herrings chiefly 

 find their food, for instance, the western coast of Norway, and possibly 

 in very favorable localities almost imperceptible. It is evident that the 

 "new-herring fisheries" are much less certain than the "spawning-her- 

 ring fisheries," which is very noticeable on the west coast of Norway. 



It is also my opinion that the " new herrings" on the west coast of 

 Norway belong to an entirely difl:erent race of herrings from the Nor- 

 wegian spring-herring,'^^ and that they may possibly be identical with 

 those herrings which i^eriodically visit the coast of Bohuslan. The cir- 

 cumstance that the "new herrings" were not generally seen during that 

 part of the fishing-period when spawning-herrings were caught, such as 

 was the case during the Norwegian spring-herring fisheries, is said to be 

 owing to the weaker " new herrings" ha^ing been chased by the stronger 

 spawnersto those regions which these had formerly occupied themselves. 

 According to this supposition it would seem impossible that great 

 spawning-herring fisheries could be going on simultaneously on the 

 coast of Bohuslan and on the western coast of Norway ; but quite likely 

 that those herrings which during autumn have visited the coast of 

 Bohuslan for the purpose of spawning, visit the west coast of Norway 

 later in winter as "new herriugs" or " winter-herrings." 



These suppositions of mine do not claim any higher scientific value, 

 but may nevertheless prove useful by possibly directing attention to 

 the necessity of collecting and combining facts relating to the history of 

 the herring-fisheries much more than has been done hitherto. 



52. After having thus briefly mentioned the different theories regard- 

 ing the migrations of the large races of herrings and the i)henomena 

 which characterize the large fishery-periods, we must mention the nu- 



^■^ Compare, however, the above-mentioned entirely different opinion regarding the 

 relation of the "winter-herring," communicated by H. Strom. 



