34 THE SEA FISHERIES 



proper designation would be Barents Sea. Fishing was at first 

 most extensively carried on in the vicinity of Kanin Noss, on the 

 eastern side of the entrance to the White Sea. The White Sea 

 grounds have proved somewhat disappointing, and the percentage 

 of demersal fish from them landed in England and Wales has 

 decreased from 4-27 in 1911 to i'48 per cent in 1913. The estimated 

 area of these grounds within the three-mile limit and the 200 metre 

 line (109 fathoms) is 128,900 square miles. From the east coast 

 fishing ports to the Kanin Noss grounds and back means a voyage 

 of about 3500 miles. An overwhelming percentage of the fish taken 

 from this region is plaice. During June and July, 1913, the German 

 Government's fishery investigation steamer the Poseidon made an 

 exploratory voyage to the Barents Sea. The results of her investi- 

 gations show that edible demersal fish are of very limited distribu- 

 tion, and that only a very small part of the total area is available 

 for steam trawling. 



The speedy decrease in value of the " White Sea " fishing grounds 

 is shown by the table on the preceding page. 



Two other fishing regions are the Coast of Norway and the Baltic 

 Sea. British trawlers do not frequent these regions, and they are 

 therefore not included in the English statistical tables. The second 

 region of importance is Iceland, where the estimated area of the 

 trawling grounds amounts to 36,600 sq. miles. Next to the North 

 Sea it is the most important area in which British fishing is prose- 

 cuted, though indications of overfishing are not wanting. The 

 fish that were thrown away when this ground was first discovered 

 would now alone make voyages profitable. The Icelandic grounds 

 yield cod, haddock, plaice, halibut, ling and coalfish, all of which 

 are characteristic northern types. It is remarkable that even in 

 the largest areas the general tendency is for the proportion of 

 large plaice to be diminished after five years' steam trawling. 

 The yield of the Icelandic grounds in plaice is appended : — 



England and Wales (Plaice only) 



1906 

 1907 

 1908 

 1909 

 1910 

 1911 

 1912 

 1913 



Total quantity Average catch 



landed. per day's absence. 



186,382 cwts. . . 5-32 cwts. 



172.352 „ .. 5-o8 „ 



124,532 „ .. 3-92 ., 



100.263 ,. •• 371 .. 



90.739 .. •• 3-o8 „ 



101,153 .. •• 3-35 .. 



121.264 „ .. 3-92 „ 



96,245 „ .. 2-6o 

 The Icelandic fishing grounds were, prior to the outbreak of the 



