FISHES OF NEW YORK 193 



appearing with age; gill rakers very long and slender, about 40 

 on the lower part of the first arch; dorsal origin midway 

 between tip of snout and end of scales, dorsal base one eighth 

 of total length without caudal, longest dorsal ray equal to pos- 

 torbital part of head, last dorsal ray one half the length of 

 longest; ventral under about middle of dorsal, its length three 

 eighths of head; anal base a little shorter than dorsal base, its 

 longest ray one fifth, and its shortest ray one tenth of greatest 

 depth of body; caudal fin well forked, its longest rays three 

 fourths of head; pectoral fin about two thirds as long as the 

 head. Scales very deciduous. Abdomen with weak serratures, 

 before and behind the ventrals, 28 scutes in front of and 13 

 behind the ventrals. D. 18; .A. 17. Scales 14-57. Vertebrae 

 56. Peritoneum dusky; back and head deep blue, tinged with 

 vellow; opercles yellowish, tinged with violet; iris silvery; sides 

 silvery with bright reflections. Length 12 to 17 inches. North 

 Atlantic ocean, on our east, coast south to Cape Hatteras, 

 spawning in the sea. 



The sea herring is the most important food fish of the world 

 and it is undoubtedly the most abundant of all the fishes. Its 

 food consists of small invertebrates, chiefly copepods and the 

 larvae of worms and mollusks. It forms the most important 

 food of many of our valuable food fishes including the cod, had- 

 dock, halibut, bluefish, and a great many others. Herring 

 spawn at two seasons, spring and fall, the first spawning con- 

 tinuing from April to June and the second season between July 

 and December. The eggs are adhesive and are -deposited on 

 the bottom, where they adhere to seaweeds and other objects 

 of support. The egg is about - 2 - - inch in diameter. The hatch- 

 ing period lasts from 12 days to 40 days, according to the tem- 

 perature of the water. Sea herrings were artificially hatched 

 as early as 1878, both in Germany and in the United States. It 

 has been estimated that the annual yield of sea herring is 

 3,000,000,000 fish, principally taken in Norway. 



The herring occurs on our east coast from Labrador to New 

 York. - When found as far south as New York, it usually occurs 



