- 136 — 



Poutassou). Spawning also occurs in the more northern parts by the ling {Molvu molva) 

 and the whiting (G. merlangus) , the only two of the species spawning on the Icelandic 

 coasts we have found spawning in the Bay. In this regard the Bay resembles most the 

 Channel and the most southern parts of the British Isles of all the regions investigated, 

 but it may be mentioned that there is also a considerable resemblance to the Mediter- 

 ranean, where the majority of the species which spawn in the Bay of Biscay so far as 

 known also spawn (Merluccius, G. luscus, minutus, poUachius, Poutassou, Gadiculus and 

 Molva elongata). 



A general view over the distribution of the temperatures as described here during the 

 spawning time of the principal gadoids and for the whole of the Atlantic region from 

 Iceland to Spain is given on the Chart fig. 11 p. 137. 



b. Deep Water 



The various charts of distribution show the depths found by us within the regions 

 investigated, for example Chart VIII. By "deep water" is here meant depths about 1000 

 meters or more. As the charts of distribution show, our investigation in deep water were 

 made over the belt ("Atlantic Slope") where the continental banks slope more or less 

 steeply towards the eastern part of the basin of the Atlantic Ocean, but also beyond this 

 belt, thus south of Iceland and S.W. of Ireland, as can be seen from the Charts I — Vlll. 



I shall here describe the hydrographical conditions for the different parts of the 

 regions investigated at a depth of 1000 meters. With regard to the depths between 200 

 and 1000 meters and those greater than 1000 meters I may refer to the hydrographical 

 section fig. 12, p. 140—41, through the north-eastern part of the Atlantic Ocean, which shows 

 how extremely slowly any changes in temperature and salinity occur in a vertical direction 

 in general when we are beyond the coastal banks. From this rule however the slope of the 

 submarine ridge between Iceland and the Faeroes must certainly be excepted. 



The deep water region investigated by us falls into two distinct parts very clearly 

 defined hydrographically, namely, the waters N. and E. of the submarine ridge between 

 the Hebrides — Fseroes — Iceland and E. Greenland and the waters S. and W. of this. 



I. In the first, which has obtained the name of the Norwegian Sea (or the "deep 

 cold area") and which in addition to the Polar Sea includes all the waters between Nor- 

 way and Iceland— Faeroes, the temperatures in 1000 meters or even less are negative and 

 the salinity less than 35 "/oo, and the fauna has been proved to be totally different from 

 that in even the nearest parts of the Atlantic Ocean, a very important fact clearly 

 expressed by H. Jbngersen in the publications on the Danish "Ingolfs-Exp edition" in 1895 

 — 96. Of the gadoids dealt with in this work none live in the deep cold area, and of 

 the rest so far as known only one species namely Onos Reinhardti. 



II. The waters S. and W. of the submarine ridge mentioned, which in contrast to 

 the Norwegian Sea may be called the Atlantic deep-water region, thus include the areas 

 W. and S. of Iceland, W. of the Faeroes and the British Isles and the Bay of Biscay. 

 The temperatures in 1000 meters depth are here always positive and the salinity over 

 35 "/oo. From the hydrographical section fig. 12 and the Chart fig. 12 we see that the 

 temperature at a depth of 1000 meters increases somewhat evenly from north to south, 

 except along the southern edge of the submarine ridge between Iceland and the Faeroes where 



