xxvi 



Second Annual Report of the 



Scientific 

 Investigations. 



Result of Mr 

 Matthews' in- 

 vestigation. 



The Firth of Forth takes contained over 6 J per cent, of young 



young Herring 

 have been 

 destroyed as 

 Sprats. 



From Mr Matthews' report it will be seen that examples of the 

 takes of the fish caught by the sprat fishermen were examined 

 practically every second day, during the months of December, 

 January, and February, and that after examining over 9000 speci- 

 mens, representing in round numbers a total take of 600,000,000 

 fish, under inches in length, it was found that 



1. The Moray Firth takes contained under 1 per cent, of young 

 herring. 

 2 



herring. 



3. The Beauly Firth takes contained 15 per cent, of young 

 herring. 



4. The Firth of Tay takes contained over 21 per cent, of young 

 herring. 



The report further shows that (1) about 23,040,000 young 

 herring were destroyed in the Moray and Beauly Firths; (2) 

 94,250,000 young herring were destroyed in the Firth of Tay, and 

 that about 26,000,000 young herring were destroyed in the Firth 

 of Forth, during the sprat fishing, giving a total destruction for the 

 three Firths of 143,690,000 young herring, which if taken in 

 Estimated that autumn would yield about £400,000. Of these 109,950,000 were 

 143,690,000 used as manure. The Board regrets not only that so many young 

 herring have been destroyed, but also that so much valuable food has 

 been wasted, and that the sprats, instead of being used for manure, 

 have not, like the pilchards at Cornwall, been preserved as sardines. 

 The Board thinks it will be advisable to continue the investigations 

 as to the destruction of young herring for another year. 



"When the food of the herring was under consideration, it was found 

 that the structure and function of the various paits of the alimentary 

 tract had not been fully studied, and hence Professor Stirling, 

 D.Sc, of the University of Aberdeen, was requested to investi- 

 gate these points. The result has been that the Board is able to 

 present a valuable paper (see Appendix F., No I.) on the digestive 

 process in fish. Although there has neither been time nor sufficient 

 material for an exhaustive inquiry, some interesting results have 

 already been obtained, the organ, e.g. which has hitherto been known 

 as the ' crop ' in the herring, has been found to be something more 

 than a mere receptacle, and to correspond practically in structure 

 to the large cardiac portion of the stomach of the mammal. When 

 the inquiry has proceeded further we shall be able to give a com- 

 parative account of the digestive process in fish. This will be a 

 valuable supplement to the papers on the food of fishes which the 

 Board hopes to present in future Reports. 



The Board, having learned that the winter fishing had begun on 

 the Ballantrae Bank, requested Professor Cossar Ewart, on the 

 3rd March, to join the fishery cruiser H.M.S. ' Jackal' at Girvan, 

 and inspect the spawning grounds. As the result of this inspec- 

 tion, a number of interesting observations were made. 



The well-known Ballantrae Bank, which lies from 2 to 3 miles 

 from the shore, at a depth of from 7 to 11 fathoms, and measures 

 about 3 miles in length by about 1J miles in breadth, was found 

 to be a glacial deposit, with the surface consisting chiefly of stones, 

 gravel, and coarse sand, and coated here and there with patches 



Prof. Stirling 

 requested to 

 study process 

 of 



Fish 



Inspection of 

 Ballantrae 

 Bank ordered. 



Nature and 

 extent of 

 Bank. 



