RAPPORTS. XIV: THOMPSON — 4 — 



1. The amount of Fishing on the principal fishing grounds. 



2. The Distribution of the various species of fish. 



3. Variations or fluctuationsin the catch from year to year. 



A fourth subject, namely the periodical fluctuations in abundance from month to 

 month, will also be treated, but still more briefly. These, as well as other questions, 

 will be dealt with in greater detail than is now possible in a forthcoming publication of 

 the Board of Agriculture and Fisheries. 



I. The Fishing Grounds 

 a. The Number of Voyages made to the Several Areas 



(Table 1, la— e.) 



The English Sailing Trawlers (Table I a) continue to fish within precisely the same 

 region indicated in my former report, that is to say, within an area around Yarmouth 

 and Lowestoft, extending from the English to the Dutch Coasts. Practically the whole 

 of the fishing again took place in areas B2, B3 and C3, but in somewhat different pro- 

 portions than formerly, especially as regards the deep water area C3, where the amount 

 of fishing has diminished to about one half. Still, taking the mean of the whole five 

 years, fishing is nearly equally divided between these three areas. 



As regards the areas frequented by the English Sailing Liners and Steam Liners, 

 these also correspond closely with what was set forth in our former report. But, while 

 the rough chart given in that report (p. 5) scarcely needs to be drawn anew, yet there 

 are one or two changes noticeable within recent years that deserve attention. 



Firstly, with regard to the Sailing Liners (Table I b), there is a marked tendency to 

 increased fishing in area B3, the shallow water area off the Dutch coast. In 1906 no 

 liners were recorded as fishing there, but 296 landings were made in 1910. Likewise in 

 all the C areas (areas, that is to say, from 40 — 60 metres depth) the amount of fishing 

 increased; but on the other hand in Dl there was a considerable diminution, from 160 

 landings in 1906 to 50 in 1910. The total number of landings of Sailing Liners; small 

 at the best, is not greatly diminished in the five years under review. 



The number of landings of Steam Liners at English ports, not yet very large, has 

 greatly increased. There were 203 landings in 1906 and 422 in 1910, but the year 1908 

 was the busiest year of all, and the mean for the five years is almost identical with that 

 of 1910 (Table I e). The great bulk of the fishing is in areas Dl and E. The Dogger 

 Bank area (Bl) is scarcely visited by this class of vessel (Table 1 c). 



Lastly, with regard to the trawlers (Table I d) there are certain noticeable changes 

 to be observed within the last five years, as has also been remarked by Mr. Archer in 

 the Report of the Board of Agriculture and Fisheries for 1910. I have illustrated the 

 main features of this change on fig. 2, which represents the number of landings from 

 the various areas in 19 10, expressed in terms of a percentage of the mean number for 

 the five years. It will be seen that a somewhat sinuous line may be drawn from North 

 to South through the North Sea, such that the number of landings by steam trawlers has 

 tended to increase everywhere to the west, and to diminish everywhere to the east thereof. 



