PACIFIC HERRING 
245 
may disappear for a time. They reappear in early summer and are found feeding close 
to the surface. Thus, schools of fattening herring, actively feeding, appear in late 
May in Chatham Strait and in early June in those western passages which lead into 
Prince William Sound. Schools of fat herring are caught in various parts of Chatham 
Strait until August, after which the bulk of the herring taken are caught off Cape 
Ommaney at the mouth of the strait, in September. In Prince William Sound the 
herring occur in the western passages in June and remain during part of July. In 
late September and October, schools of herring of larger and more uniform size occur 
in a few of the bays on the western shore of the sound. 
In none of these cases does it seem possible, as yet, to trace a well-defined migra- 
tion except perhaps between Shuyak Strait and Halibut Cove, Cook Inlet. Schools 
of large, fat, mature herring occur in Shuyak Strait in July and may remain during 
part of August. About sLx weeks after the appearance of the schools in Shuyak 
Strait, schools of large herring appear in lower Kachemak Bay. It is possible that 
these are the same schools. They gradually work farther up the bay until in Septem- 
ber or October they appear off Halibut Cove. By this time the schools also contain 
fish of smaller sizes. Herring now enter Halibut Cove and the lagoon, where they 
are found until the following spring. Herring of all ages and sizes were found in the 
lagoon, apparently wintering there. 
After the summer and fall fishery is over, herring occur during the winter months 
in some of the bays in southeastern Alaska where they do not usually occur in any 
quantity during the summer; for example, Ernest Sound, Stephens Passage, and 
Klawack Inlet, all of which are close to spawning grounds. But not enough is known 
to justify the view that these are regular migrations. 
VARIATIONS IN SIZE OF MATURE HERRING 
The variation in size of herring taken in different portions of their range plays a 
large part in determining their utilization, since for pickling purposes only large her- 
ring are desired. The herring are naturally smaller in some parts of their range than 
in others. This may be due to enormous differences in growth rate, as that between 
Unalaska and Stephens Passage, or largely to differences in age composition, as that 
between Prince William Sound and Cook Inlet. 
N. B. Scofield (1918) says of the herring entering Tomales Bay, Calif., “They are 
considered the best herring in California and many of the fish reach a length of 10 or 
1 1 inches and are fatter than those found in other parts of the State.” He is evidently 
speaking of the total length. He says further, “The herring of Shelter Cove and 
Humboldt Bay are reported as being only 7 or 8 inches in length, * * The 
longest herring in Thompson’s San Francisco Bay material (1916) was about 10 
inches in total length. 
Fraser (1922) mentions not finding any over 10 inches in length to the base of the 
caudal fin in British Columbia, and 10 inches to the base of the caudal was the longest 
recorded by Thompson (1917). 
In southeastern Alaska herring of mixed sizes occur in the schools. The herring 
here may attain 12 inches in total length, but probably less than 10 per cent are over 
10% inches in total length. 
The Prince William Sound herring are larger than those of southeastern Alaska. 
In the fall, some loads have as high as 75 per cent of the fish, by volume, over 10% 
inches in total length, or about 9% to 11 ounces in weight. Schools in this district 
are composed of herring of mixed sizes. 
