of the Fishery Board for Scotland. 



19 



mg areas within tlie limits of the Firth, or of the distribution of immature 

 fish at different seasons. 



The statistics of the fish caught within the closed area by line fisher- 

 men above referred to, have been collected for the past three years. The 

 totals and the average per ' shot ' for each fishery district for that period 

 are as follows : — 



District. 



1894. 



1895. 



1896. 





Gwts. 



Average. 



Cwts. 



Average. 



Cwts. 



Average. 



Wick, . . . 



19,008 



2-47 



23,009 



4-03 



31,556 



5-40 



Lybstcr, 



4,408 



4-91 



3,977 



377 



4,241 



287 



Helmsdale, 



15,826 



3-52 



16,669 



4-15 



18,360 



471 



Cromarty, . 



21,346 



307 



19,193 



2-93 



15,317 



2*51 



Findhorn, . 



60,074 



4 04 



68,761 



4-86 



63,521 



4-46 



Buckie, 



48,540 



4 21 



50,489 



4-66 



57,450 



5-05 



Banff, 



49,292 



2-94 



76,491 



477 



66,471 



3-82 



Totals, 



218,494 



3 "05 



258,590 



4-43 



256,916 



4-26 



It is interesting to compare the figures given in this table, which show 

 the total quantity of fish caught by line within the closed waters, with 

 the figures showing the total quantity of the same kinds of fish landed in 

 each district, and caught both within and without the closed area. 



Thus, excluding herrings, sprats, and mackerel, which are, of course, 

 not comprised in the special statistics appended to this report, it is found 

 that the total quantities (cwts.) of white-fish landed in each of the 

 districts, in 1896, were as follows : — 



Wick. Lybster. Helmsdale Cromarty. Findhorn. Buckie. Banff. 

 61,429 4241 IS, 390 15,317* 63,521 61,088 66,565 



Comparison of the figures show that almost all the line-caught fish 

 landed in these districts are taken from the closed waters of the Moray 

 Firth. The Wick district comprises only a comparatively small part of 

 the coast of the Moray Firth, while it includes the north coast of Scotland 

 as far as Cape Wrath ; and the totals for the whole district are, of course, 

 derived from the whole extent of coast within its limits. Yet rather 

 more than half the total quantity of fish landed in the district is drawn 

 from the Moray Firth. All the line-caught fish in the districts of Lybster, 

 Cromarty, and Findhorn are returned has having been obtained from the 

 closed waters. In Helmsdale district 18,360 cwts. were taken from the 

 closed waters and 30 cwts. from the open waters ; in Buckie district the 

 respective quantities were 57,450 cwts. and 3638 cwts. ; and in Banff 

 district they were 66,471 cwts. and 94 cwts. respectively. 



With regard to the increase or decrease in the quantities taken in 

 each year in the closed waters it will be observed that a considerable 

 increase occurred in most of the districts as between the years 1894 and 

 1896, and a relatively small decrease as between 1895 and 1896, both as 

 regards the absolute quantity of fish landed and the average quantity 

 caught per 'shot' of the lines. Only the two districts, Lybster and 

 Cromarty, show a continuous decrease, both in total quantity landed and 

 in the average per 'shot.' The number of 'shots' made in the closed 

 waters have steadily increased on the part of the large boats, while they 

 have diminished on the part of the small boats. Thus, in 1694, 7082 

 'shots' of the long lines were made ; in 1895 the number was 7710 • and 

 in 1896, 11,915. " The small boats in 1894 made 54,866 'shots'; in 1895 



