of the Fishery Board for Scotland. 



311 



TABLE XXXVI., showing Percentages of Mature Herrings caught on 

 the East and West Coasts, arranged according to the relative 

 position of the Dorsal Fin on the Body Length (less Head and Caudal 

 Fin). 



Ratio of 

 Dorsal Fin 

 Position. 



Winter. 



Summer. 



East 

 Coast. 



West 

 Coast. 



East 

 Coast. 



West 

 Coast. 



•448 to '460 



% 

 1*0 



% 

 5-0 



% 



% 



•461 to -472 



5-3 



5'0 







•473 to -4S4 



10-1 



11 '8 



27 



4-9 



•485 to -496 



33*3 



32-5 



17-0 



26-8 



•497 to -508 



24-2 



287 



26-3 



29-3 



•509 to -520 



18-3 



11-3 



40-0 



34-1 



•521 to -532 



5-8 



5-0 



12'2 



4-9 



•533 to -545 



2-0 



1*2 



1-8 





In Table XXXII. each grade of head seems to be combined with a 

 certain position of the dorsal fin in much the same way among both the 

 summer and winter herrings. 



Table XXXIII. indicates that there is a tendency towards the pectoral 

 fin holding a more anterior position where the herring has a relatively long 

 head, than in other cases. It should be noted that, so far as the table 

 shows this, it does so correctly ; for the ratios in these tables are taken in 

 respect to the body length only, the variable, and therefore disturbing 

 effects of tlip lengths of the head and caudal fin being eliminated. This 

 variation in the position of the pectoral fin relatively to the back of the 

 head, and the fact that this variation extends to the whole pectoral girdle, 

 is also clearly seen if the more laborious process is employed of taking the 

 girdle from one fish and fitting it on another of exactly the same dimensions 

 as to length and depth of body and position of fin, or inversely of length 

 of head, when more or less — sometimes very considerable — variation 

 is found to exist in the amount of the curvature of the girdle, but more 

 especially the supra-clavicular and post-temporal portions of it. 



Table XXXIV. shows similar results in respect to both the winter and 

 summer fish, but the arrangement followed in this table does not of course 

 show that which has been already stated as to the relative lengths of the 

 head and tail in each season. 



In respect to the absolute lengths of the head and tail of the winter fish 

 72 per cent, had their heads longer than their tails, 18 per cent, had the 

 head shorter, and 10 per cent, had the head and tail of equal lengths. Of 

 the summer herrings 53 per cent, had the head longer, 38 per cent, shorter, 

 and 9 per cent, equal to their tail lengths. 



I have already stated that the dorsal fin length generally exceeds the 

 length of the anal fin on the same fish. The following table shows this 

 with reference, not to their relative proportions to the body length, but as 

 represented by their actual size in mm. 

 2 R 



