74 



Appendices to Fmrtli Annucd Report 



^he period April, May, June, has been purposely arrancred to contain a 

 record of such lish as are caught during that time, and of which it is diffi-- 

 cult to say whether they are stragglers remaining from the winter, or pre- 

 cursors of the summer #«hery. By keeping them apart, the principal 

 periods will not be influenced, in the event of some special distinction be- 

 tween the fish of these two peiiods appearing to obtain. 



The latter table shows that practically not only the medium-sized, but 

 also the largest and smallest fish are represented in all the districts ; for 

 the slight fall in the maximum size in the two districts of Montrose and 

 Anstruther, lying as they do contiguous to and between Stonehaven and 

 Berwick, does not appear to me of much importance. The same remark 

 applies to Fraserburgh. The specimens from Leith and Cromarty were 

 taken near the Beattly Firth and in the Firth of Forth respectively, and 

 probably were first year's spawners. 



So far, then, as extreme limit of size goes, we can scarcely say that in 

 that respect there are herring peculiar to any one district. Some of the 

 averages irt the tables, owing to the small number of fish at my disposal, 

 are, perhaps, scarcely fair statements of the prevailing size of the filsh 

 frequenting the locality ; these I have indicated by an asterisk ; as to the 

 others the table indicates that no very bruad distinction can be drawn 

 between the fish from difterent localities, so far as their general size is 

 concerned. Where there is a difference in the average size it will often 

 be found occurring among fish from the same locality and in consecutive 

 months. But this distinction as regards time, not place, is often really 

 not so great as it seems ; for it appears from more minute examination of 

 the figures (although the table does not show it), that the difference is 

 caused by considerable variation in size of those herrings which have been 

 procured so nearly at the same time — within a few cUys of each other, 

 although not in the same month,-— that this difference cannot satisfac- 

 torily be founded on for placing them in separate varieties. Further, the 

 same difference may appear between the fish procured in the same waters, 

 and at the same date, but in different years. As regards locality those 

 of the Xorth-East Coast have, if anything, the highest averages during the 

 winter and spring season, the West Coast and the South-East following. 

 Taking the highest and lowest average lengths in the period — January, 

 Februar}-, March — we find the greatest difference is 90 mm,, a relatively 

 large variation ; but if we leave out the insufficient samples from Ber- 

 wick, Leith, and Cromarty, the difference becomes reduced to 46 mm. 

 (IJ inches). In July, August, and September, the difference is 32 mm. 

 (1^ inches). A reference to the monthly table of averages shows con- 

 siderable variation in size in the same cUstrict. When we examine the 

 summer averages, we scarcely perceive any difference between the fish in 

 each locality, but we do see a certain reduction in the value of the figures 

 as compared with those of the winter season, and the exceptions in the 

 table are found to be more apparent than real, when we come to exa- 

 mine singly the figures which compose these averages, on which the 

 actual number of fish included has occasionally a slightly irregular 

 effect. 



The higher average of size among the vrinter fish than among the 

 summer is better seen in the following table of the percentage of fish 

 received during • the tlipee periods • already referred to, as the division of 

 the fish into their localities is ignored in this table, and they are treated 

 as a whole. The t^ible is, of course, only of value if we grant that the 

 differences shown in the table of avei'ages are insufficient to constitute 

 special local varieties. 



