of the Fishery Board for Scotland. 



beam-trawling, as well as in the open waters adjacent. Both in the Firth 

 of Forth and St Andrews Bay the falling off in flat fishes has been 

 considerable. In 1891 the average number of such fishes caught in each 

 haul of the trawl within the Firth of Forth was 115*0, while last year 

 it was 106*3; and in St Andrews Bay the corresponding averages were 

 109*4 in 1891, and 84*0 in 1892. At the stations in the open waters, 

 where trawling is freely carried on, there was also a decrease in the 

 average number of flat fishes caught in each haul — from 50*8 to 43*0 off 

 the Firth of Forth, and from 261*8 to 50*3 off St Andrews Bay. In the 

 closed waters of both areas, on the other hand there was a slight increase 

 in the average number of round fishes captured, and a similar but more 

 pronounced increase in these fishes also took place in the open waters. 

 As stated in previous reports, it is to be expected that considerable 

 fluctuations should occur from year to year in the abundance of fish on 

 these grounds, especially in the more migratory round fishes. But it is 

 remarkable that flat fishes should continue to indicate a steady decline in 

 numbers, notwithstanding the prohibition of beam-trawling within the 

 territorial waters. The statistics of the ' Garland's ' trawling experiments 

 during the last seven years in the closed and open waters of St Andrews 

 Bay and the Firth of Forth are as follows, the figures indicating the 

 average number of fishes obtained in each haul of the net in each of the 

 years mentioned :— 



Year. 



Closed Area. 



Open Area. 



Flat Fish. 



Round Fish. 



Total. 



Flat Fish. 



Round Fish. 



Total. 



1886 



131-1 



79-6 



213-9 



70-6 



54-6 



128*5 



1887 



270-6 



115-9 



390-1 



109-0 



148-3 



261-0 



1888 



163-9 



80-5 



248-7 



90-4 



93-5 



186-2 



1889 



148-2 



34-5 



187-1 



94-8 



49-2 



147-5 



1890 



201-9 



80-9 



288-0 



417 



110-1 



154-2 



1891 



112-2 



43-7 



161-6 



156-3 



34-7 



196-5 



1892 



95-1 



53-9 



156-4 



46-6 



63*3 



112-5 



In order that comparison may be made between the results obtained in 

 the first few years following the prohibition of trawling and those 

 obtained in the last' few years, they have been reduced to averages as 

 follows : — 



Years. 



Closed Area. 



Open Area. 



Flat Fish. 



Round Fish. 



Total. 



Flat Fish. 



Round Fish. 



Total. 



1886-1888 



188-6 



92-0 



284-2 



90-0 



98- 



191-9 



1890-1892 



136-4 



59-5 



201-6 



31-5 



67-7 



154-4 



From these figures it is evident that flat fishes and round fishes have 

 diminished in numbers both in the closed and in the open waters. Further 

 examination of the trawling records shows that, comparing the first three 



