Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1885-05-23
FLOATING FISH EGGS.
Some Facts About PlseatoriaI Propa-
CATION.
Fronl Natnre.

From Nature.
The prevalent notion among the older
naturalists was that fishes of all kinds de-
posted their eggs on the bottom of the sea,
and that extensive migrations were made
by various kinds for this purpose, the gen.
eral impression being that the majority
proceeded shoreward to deposit their eggs
in the shallow water. This impression
was probably due to the fact that the sal
mon, and perhaps the herring, followed
this habit, the former proceeding up rivers,
and the latter selecting certain suitable
banks Gotten near land) covered with sea-
weeds and zoophytes, or a bottom COM
posed of stones and gravel. Building
their notions on these facts, it was as
sumed by the older observers that all ma
rine fishes followed similar habits. Thus
1t was supposed that the cod, paddock,
whiting, ling, hake end other fishes fire.
quented certain banks for the purpose Of
d. posting their eggs, and that various
Nat fishes, such as the larger examples Of
turbOt and sole, came from deep water TO
shallow water for the same end. Such
conieetures, however, were found to devil
ate very considerably from the actual
condition.
Among the earliest to notice that the
eggs of certain marine fishes tlOated were
the cod fishermen Of the Loffoden Islands,
off the coast of Norway. These Norwe-
gians had noticed that what they called
the ''roe" Of the Goldfish floated in the water
on the great fishing banks, and often at
certain seasons to such an extent as to
make the water thick. Prof. g. o. SHrs,
Inspector of Fisheries In Norway, to whom
this remark was made, supposed that the
fishermen had mistaken some of the lower
marine animals for the eggs of fishes, for
such feature was in direct opposition to
anything he knew OF the spawning of
fishes. The subject, however, was soon
set at rest, for he proceeded in 1864 to the
fishing grounds above mentioned, viz. of
the L0ffoden Islands, and captured in the
tow-nets immense numbers OF the eggs
of the cod floating at the surface
of the sea. Next year, indeed, on a calm
day, Prof, Sars found the sea covered with
a dense layer Of floating spawn, so that
with sufficiently large net he could have
taken tons of IL. This occurred over
celebrated fishing ground, on which the
cod were present in enormous numbers,
so as to form what the fishermen called
''fish mountain" Sars also found that
the Ova OF the paddock tloated, and among
the eggs procured from the surface of the
sea were some from which young fishes
resembling gurnards emerged, and he cor
rectly concluded that the ova of the CUR
nard followed the same habit as those of
the cod and paddock.
The impetus given to such observations
by the energetic action of the United
States Fish Commission enabled the
Americans to corrObOrate the discovery Of
the Norwegians in regard to the floating
of the ova OF the cod, which lately have
been artihcially Matched on a somewhat
extensive scale on their coasts. The la
bOrs of the distinguished Prof. Alex.
Agassiz in the same country have further
added to our knowledge of floating eggs,
so that the number of fishes in which this
occurs is considerable. Thus the majority
of the American founders, certain kinds
of wTasses CtenOJdbTus) }, a species Of
Sparkling OsmeruS, several species of
cottus, cod paddock, gurnard, shad,
mackerel and Spanish mackerel, a kind of
dory ZeaS), and the frog-fsh are among
those which have floating eggs. The late
DIR. Main, of Gothenburg, further increased
the list by discovering that the eggs of the
plaice were similarly buoyant; and &.
Brook has recently added to this category
the eggs of the lesser weever.