86 



Investigations on the Life- Hi story 

 TABLE II. 



Such a table shows : --As regards 



(a) MUSCLE. 



1. The percentage of solids is throughout the season markedly 

 higher in the fish at the mouth than in the fish in the upper 

 reaches of the river. 



2. The percentage remains unaltered both at the mouth and in 

 the upper reaches till August. 



3. In October and November the percentage of solids falls 

 markedly both at the mouth and in the upper reaches. 



4. The October and November salmon in the estuary contain in 

 the thick 7 per cent, and in the thin 8 per cent, more water than 

 the salmon in May, June, July, and August, and thus, though the 

 weight of the muscle does not show a diminution, there is actually 

 a marked diminution in its solid constituents, and its weight is 

 kept up by the addition of water. In the October and November 

 fish in the upper waters, the thick contains 12 per cent, and the 

 thin 15 per cent, more water than the thick and thin of fish in the 

 estuary earlier in the year. This development of a more watery 

 condition of the flesh is of considerable importance in estimating 

 the food value of the salmon. 



