The use of vertebral counts to discriminate between North Sea herring stocks

Abstract

The influence of water temperature in the eastern English Channel, in January, on the mean number of vertebrae (VS) in herring of the Downs stock caught along the East coast of England in July of the same year, is demonstrated. Vertebral counts are shown to be sensitive to temperature and, hence, mean VS cannot be used to discriminate between herring of the Bank and Downs stocks.