BRISTOL BAY AND ALASKA PENINSULA SALMON STATISTICS 75 



Table 6. — Salmon caught and fishing appliances used in the Port Moller district, l!Jl'2 to 1927 



Note.— According to Cobb (loc. cit.), a saltery was operated on tlie Bear River in the years 1902 to 1906, but we have no record 

 of the catch or pack during tliose years. 



The fluctuations in the catch of red salmon are somewhat peculiar in that the 

 "peaks" and the "valleys" come at two and three year intervals. Withoiit much 

 doubt this is to be explained by the predominance of 5-year fish in the runs and the 

 existence of two maxima and two minima in each cycle of five years. Thus, referring 

 to Figure 11, the peak coming in 1916 probably is associated with the peak of 1921, 

 and that again with the peak of 1926, while the peak of 1918 is associated mth those 

 of 1923 and 1924. On account of the few data available for study, we have not 

 thought it worth while to calculate the correlation of catches at different intervals 

 (as was done for Bristol Bay), but the fluctuations are sufficiently well marked to 

 warrant such a tentative interpretation. 



The catch of king salmon has fluctuated considerably, up to a maximum of 

 over 35,000 fish. There was a slight reduction in the average annual catch during 

 the interval from 1921 to 1925, inclusive, but the catches of 1926 and 1927 were 

 among the best on record, being exceeded only by the catch of 1916. There seems 

 to be no evidence here of depletion nor of any reduction in the catch due to the 

 regulations. 



The catch of chums dropped suddenly in 1920 from an average of over 100,000 

 to the relatively low level of less than 30,000. The catch has been increasing grad- 

 ually since that time and by 1927 was over 80,000. The sudden drop may have 

 been due to depletion, but it seems more likely that it was due to economic causes, 

 inasmuch as the catch has increased during the past seven years in spite of the 

 reduced intensity of fishing brought about by the decrease in gear and the extension 

 of the weeldy closed season. 



