SEA FISHERIES 135 



content with the comparatively meagre total of 

 31,000, there does indeed seem room for optimism. 

 On the other hand, the reflection that if the stock 

 of cod remains about constant, only two out of 

 the 4,500,000 ova attain maturity almost paralyses 

 the imagination as to the destructive forces at 

 work. 



The eggs are expelled into water, whilst a male 

 is " standing by/' fertilised in the water, and, 

 except in the case of the herring, whose eggs 

 sink, those of the chief food fishes float to the 

 surface, where they undergo the first stages of 

 their development. Except in the case of the 

 herring again, which has definitely localised 

 spawning grounds, there has hitherto been little 

 reliable evidence as to the existence either of 

 stereotyped spawning migrations, or of very 

 definite breeding grounds in the case of the chief 

 food fishes. The great Lofoten cod fishery in 

 spring is based on such a migration, as it is at 

 this time of the year that the cod approach the 

 coast in dense shoals for spawning purposes. 

 During the summer, after the spawning is over, 

 the cod disappears northwards. But with respect 

 to the spawning habits of fishes in the waters 

 most frequented by British fishermen we know 



