Food and Spawning of Dab. 49 



inches long. It is important to bear such facts in mind when 

 dealing with the knotty question of undersized fish. 



The dabs' food is quite varied in character, depending some- 

 what on the time of year and much on the locality where 

 fished ; altogether, it is a gross feeder. In the early spring 

 months in the Fairway channel andHadleigh Ray mouth, small 

 dabs feed on young shrimps, Mysidae, Amphipods and such 

 minor crustaceans, on worms, young mussels, &c. During 

 midsummer, at the Girdler and Oaze, and towards the Nore, the 

 dab preys upon larger crabs of various sorts (shore, swimming, 

 spider and hermit crabs), adult shrimps, (rarely shell-fish ?), 

 worms and zoophytes (so-called " whiteweed "=Sertularia, &c.). 



In September, just above the Chapman Light, on one occasion 

 we noted the stomach contents to be sand stars (=Echinoderms), 

 shrimps, crabs, molluscs ( = Tellina, Mytilus juv,, &c.), and fish 

 (=6ro%). In middle of November, on the Essex shore below 

 Southend, we procured dabs whose food was mainly whitebait 

 or young sprats, besides crab's ova in bunches, pieces of flat-fish, 

 &c. Again, in December, in the upper Blyth Sand the food 

 consists of lobworms, the flesh, and occasionally comminuted 

 shells, of young mussels, Tellina and Terebella worm, &c.* 



The spawning grounds of the dab have not of a certainty 

 been located by the Leigh fishermen, nor have we ourselves 

 satisfactorily cleared the enigma. The fish are well known to 

 be full-roed during winter, and that spawning occurs in the 

 spring time ; nevertheless, some say examples with roe, though 

 not ripe (immature fish ?), turnup all the year round. On the 

 other hand certain old experienced fishermen assert that by the 

 end of April, during May, even till June, all the dabs caught are 

 in a spent condition, and then generally rejected by them. 



During all the winter, however, ripe dabs are caught right 

 up the Estuary, and therefore, as they believe, most probably 

 spawn there. They add that the little dabs are generally not 



* Compare Ramsay Smith, 10th Ann. Ren F.B.S. for 1891 ; and Herdmau & Scott, 

 lst-3d. Reports Lancashire Sea-F. Lauor. 1802-1894. 



