cessary to deal with additional areas; the numbering of the original areas has not been 

 changed, but new areas A, B, C, D etc. have been added to the chart. The areas numb- 

 ered I to IV lie to the north of the parallel of 62°, in deep water, which only at the 

 eastern fringe of area IV is less than 200 fathoms. They lie outside the region where 

 trawling is carried an, and have accordingly been omitted from the small charts which 

 illustrate this report. Areas A, B and V in like manner are a region unfrequented by 

 fishermen, and lie wholly or almost outside the 200-fathom line. 



The Cod. 



In our statistics a distinction is made between Cod and Codling, as is done in the 

 market itself, where the latter are sold by the cwt. in boxes while the former are ex- 

 posed for sale singly or in small lots. The two classes overlap to some extent, but 

 those fish are usually classed as Cod which measure over 25 inches long (65 cm.), or 

 thereby. 



The Cod landed at Aberdeen are about 35 inches in length (89 cm.), as a mean 

 size^. About one-tenth are below 29 inches (73 cm.), and one-tenth are over 5 feet long 

 (102 cm.). One half of the whole lie between 32 and 38 inches (80 and 97 cm.). The 

 largest Cod reported are from most districts about 4 feet long, but this size is greatly 

 exceeded by some from the West Coast areas, especially about St. Kilda, from which the 

 largest of all measured 5 feet 5 inches (166 cm.); very large fish come also at times 

 from Iceland. 



The fish grouped as Codling are very variable in size, and smaller fish are landed 

 from the near grounds off the East Coast of Scotland than from elsewhere. The mean 

 size of the East Coast fish is just about a foot long (31 cm.), while the mean size from 

 other North Sea grounds is rather over lé inches (42 cm.). One half of the East Coast 

 fish lie between 11 and 15 inches, and one half of the other North Sea fish between 14 

 and 20 inches. One-tenth of the East Coast fish are below 10^/4 inches (26 cm.), and 

 one-tenth above iS^a inches (47 cm.); while one-tenth of the other North Sea fish are 

 below 12 inches (31 cm.), and one-tenth above 25 inches (64 cm.). Roughly speaking, 

 nearly all the fish over 2 feet long (60 cm.) are classed as Cod, and nearly all below as 

 Codling. 



The sizes and probable ages of the Cod and Codling at different seasons and on the 

 various fishing-grounds will be discussed, with other fishes, in another Report; but we 

 shall meanwhile see that the seasonal fluctuations of the large and small fish exhibit 

 notable differences. 



At the outset it is worth while to try to obtain an estimate of the average catch of 

 fish over all our areas and taking all seasons together; and the result is shewn for Cod 

 and Codling in the accompanying charts (figs, i and 2). It must be borne in mind, as 



I The average here given is what statisticians call the Median, and implies that an equal number 

 of fish are above and below this measurement. 



