— 15 — APPENDIX K: KYLE 



work on the Danish eel fisheries'. "It is not sufficient proof he says "that a fishery 

 is suffering from overfishing, because its condition throughout the year is not so rich, 

 nor the fish so large, as they were at periods when, on the whole, there was little fishing ; 

 but if the total quantity of each and all of the fishings decreases steadily over a series 

 of years, then overfishing is taking place — unless the phenomenon is due to other 

 reasons". 



Further, if we take into consideration what has just been shown with regard to the 

 quantities of plaice annually landed from the Kattegat, namely, that they have remained 

 practically constant over a long period of years, we can look at the evidence given by 

 the average catch of a number of boats in a new light. The constancy of the plaice 

 population of the Kattegat leads to the conclusion, that the most strenuous fishing under 

 present conditions does not permanently affect it. An increase in the number of boats or 

 fishing days would simply mean, that, in general, each boat and each day would have less 

 to show for its work than formerly. Overfishing would then arise when the average 

 catch had so diminished all round, that it no longer paid the fishermen to work in the 

 Kattegat. The question is, therefore, as stated in the introduction, more of values than 

 of quantities, of the most economical boat, gear and mode of working, as well as of the 

 demand for fish in the country. Following the same line of thought, we see that a form 

 of overfishing may occur, though the total quantities landed each year were increasing. 

 These considerations will again be taken up later; they are merely mentioned here, to 

 show how small is the importance that can be attached to the average catch per boat 

 or per fishing day, when taken by themselves. 



2. SAvedish plaice fishery in the Kattegat 



When we turn to the Swedish side, we find the remarkable phenomenon of a fishery 

 which, though relatively small in extent, has sprung up and increased, after the Kattegat 

 had been said to be already overfished and its stock of plaice decreasing. Previous to 

 1893, the Swedish plaice-fishery in the Kattegat was entirely along the coast, and it is 

 mentioned in one of the reports about that time, that this coastal fishery, like that on the 

 Danish side of the Kattegat, was believed to have deteriorated. Nevertheless, a deep-sea 

 plaice fishing in the Kattegat was started in that year by the Bohuslän fishermen and 

 has gone on increasing ever since. 



In the description of the Swedish fisheries given in Part I of this work, it has been 

 shown, that the fisheries of the Kattegat are participated in by the three provinces of 

 Bohuslän, Mailand and Malmöhus. It appears from the Reports, that the plaice fishery from 

 Bohuslän as well as from Halland is carried on almost entirely in the Kattegat. At the 

 present time, the "Kvasar" fishing i. e. with welled motor boats and Danish -'snurrevaad", 

 is of greatest importance. The main fishing grounds lie between the Skaw and Laesa. 

 The Halland and Asperö (Bohuslän) fisheries are carried on mostly with gill-nets. It is 

 stated, however, that there is also a fishery for plaice along the Bohuslän coast which 

 is not entered in the statistics. This may be taken to counterbalance the small quanti- 

 ties of sole, turbot and dab which are included with the plaice in the Halland statistics. 



In addition to these, a considerable plaice fishery by means of "kvasar" and snurre- 



' Beretning for 1890—91, p. 161. 



