78 TRANSACTIONS LIVERPOOL BIOLOGICAL SOCIETY. 



FISH HATCHING AT PIEL. 

 By Andrew Scott, A.L.S. 



The results from the fish hatching carried on in the 

 spring of 1911 were almost similar to those obtained in 

 previous years. The adult plaice were trawled in the 

 autumn of 1910 in the closed area of Luce Bay by our 

 Fisheries steamer, and we have again to thank the 

 Fishery Board of Scotland for the necessary permission 

 to fish in this protected fishing ground. The flounders 

 were caught in the vicinity of Piel by the police cutter 

 stationed in the Northern section of the Lancashire 

 district. 



Unfertilised eggs from plaice and flounders were 

 noticed floating in the tanks for the first time on February 

 26th. Fertilised eggs from both species of fish were 

 collected and placed in the hatching boxes ten days later. 

 The spawning was earlier in 1911 than in 1910, and was 

 no doubt accelerated by the mildness of the winter. 

 Spawning at sea also appeared to be earlier in 1911 than 

 in the previous year, as many of the whiting caught by 

 the steamer on the off-shore fishing grounds near 

 Morecambe Bay light-vessel for dissection in the first 

 fishermen's class were quite mature. When the fourth 

 class began on May 8th the fish in the tanks had practi- 

 cally finished spawning, and mature whiting were 

 unobtainable at sea. The spawning of the fish in the tanks 

 lasted two months. During that period fully one and a 

 quarter millions of plaice eggs were obtained, and 

 thirteen and a quarter millions of flounder eggs. The 

 incubation of the eggs was carried out in the Dannevig 

 hatching apparatus, and the resulting fry afterwards 

 liberated in the sea. 



The following tables give the number of eggs 

 collected and the fry set free on the dates specified : — 



