Herring Investigations at Plymouth. VIII. The Transition from Larva to Adolescent

Abstract

Investigations concerning the main events in the transformation of the transparent eel-shaped larval herring into the silvery and scaled adolescent fish may proceed along two lines. In the first place, information may be sought as to the biological processes which bring about each event. For example, attention may be directed to the study of the differential growth of the body by which the form of the adult is attained; or, to the manner in which the scales are developed. But, secondly, it is of vital importance to learn how much the events of metamorphosis are affected by circumstances of time and place. Thus, at Plymouth, as elsewhere, we need to know the extent of possible differences in form and size between young fishes which have metamorphosed from larvæ born at different times.