142 REPORT OF COMMISSIONER OF FISH AND FISHERIES. [16] 
ring” was doubtless composed of so-called ‘ray herring” or ‘blood her- 
ring.” As to this fact most fishermen agree in their reports, and quite 
frequently they call the ‘‘new herring” simply “ray herring” or ‘blood 
herring.” 
By “ray herring” or ‘blood herring” we mean smaller herring which, 
in small numbers, make their appearance every year, just prior to the 
arrival of the spring herring. Boeck* says that the “blood herring” 
are very lean; that they have hardly any trace of sexual organs, and no 
fat whatever. He supposes that ‘ possibly they are stragglers from the 
spring-herring schools of the previous year, which on account of not 
having ready access to food have not been able to feed enough to have 
their sexual organs fully developed.” Sars, referring to Boeck’s state- 
ment, considers them as barren herring. In the Bergen Museum we 
now have several (12) specimens of herring, labeled “ray herring” or 
“blood herring,” caught during the years 1864 and 1865. It was of 
course exceedingly interesting tome toexamine these specimens. Not 
one of them could be said to “ have hardly any trace of sexual organs,” 
and none were without these organs; both the roe and the milt were 
distinctly seen and in course of development, though not yet fully 
matured. With most of the small specimens, measuring 27.5 to 28 
centimeters in length, the roe and milt were still in a very early stage 
of development, in the transition period from stage II to stage III, as 
Heinke terms them;{ the largest breadth of the ovary was 6 to 9 milli- 
meters; in some of the other specimens the sexual organs had been 
further developed; thus in one fish, measuring 27.5 centimeters inlength, 
the greatest breadth of the milt was 17 to 18 millimeters ; and in another 
one, measuring 26.5 centimeters in length, the greatest breadth of the 
ovary was 16 millimeters, corresponding to Heinke’s stage III. In larger 
specimens the roe and milt were still farther developed. All these - 
herring were doubtless what are called ‘‘ray-herring” or ‘ blood her- 
ring.”t Most of these specimens came from the Bergen Fishery Ex- 
position of 1865. They were labeled “ray-herring,” &c., by experienced 
men, and were placed on exhibition as representatives of these kinds of 
herring. From this I am led to suppose, that as far as the roe and milt 
are concerned, the “‘ray-herring” differ from the common mature spring 
herring by a more or less unfinished development of these organs 3 
and this opinion is confirmed by many fishermen whom I consulted on 
the subject. To mention one case: Regarding those ‘‘ray-herring” which 
formed part of the schools of ‘new herring,” a report from Stavanger, 
under date of January 9, 1873, says that specimens of the ‘“ new: her- 
* BoECK: Om Silden og Sildefiskerierne, p. 23. 
t Die Varietdten des Herings, 1877, p. 69. 
t These names are given to the herring according to the greater or less development 
of the roe and milt, and according to the Jeanness or fatness of the herring. By 
‘*blood herring” the fishermen understand the leanest herring whose roe and milt 
are ina very early stage of their development. They are called ‘‘ray-herring” after 
they have gone to sea. 
