98 REPORT OF THE SECRETARY OF COMMERCE 



The Eden ton (N. C.) station was successful in securing an in- 

 creased number of shad, but this gain was offset by a sliarp reduction 

 of operations on the Potomac River. The run of shad was greatly 

 reduced for reasons which have not been fully determined, but are 

 ascribed to the severe winter. No effort was made to propagate 

 yellow perch on the Potomac River, but scattered production was 

 obtained from other hatcheries. No glut herring were handled at all. 



C oin/mercial species^ inteHor waters. — The closure of all the com- 

 mercial hatcheries on Lake Michigan was responsible for a negligible 

 production of whitefish and lake trout. No attempt w^as made to 

 secure eggs of the cisco or lake herring. While the Duluth (Minn.) 

 station was in operation it was possible to secure only a limited 

 number of eggs. Tlie Cape Vincent (N. Y.) station, as has been 

 the case for the last several years, was unable to secure any worm- 

 while number of eggs of the commercial species, and therefore con- 

 centrated its activities on game forms. With the pike perch, how- 

 ever, cooperative activities with the State of Ohio at Put in Bay 

 yielded a record collection of eggs, yielding an output of 836,000.000 

 fry. The eggs were incubated at both the State and Bureau's 

 hatcheries. 



RESCUE OPERATIONS 



Reduction of the appropriation for fisheries work in the Upper 

 Mississippi Wild Life Refuge to negligible proportions made it 

 impossible to carry on the rescue or salvage of fish to the extent fol- 

 lowed under normal conditions. Fish become trapped in landlocked 

 sloughs upon recession of the water throughout a large part of this 

 refuge. Seining crews are sent out to salvage them and return them 

 to open waters. Lack of financial resources for the support of a 

 normal number of crews reduced the number of rescued fish in 1934 

 to 22,643,000, in comparison with a normal collection of over 50,000,- 

 000. Controlled semiartificial ponds within the refuge were oper- 

 ated, however, to produce a satisfactory yield of bass. Some rescue 

 work was carried on in the vicinity of the Fairport (Iowa) station. 



AQUARIUM 



The aquarium located under the main lobby in the Department of 

 Commerce Building is becoming increasingly popular. It has been 

 visited by many organizations such as Boy Scout troops and biology 

 classes, as well as miscellaneous students and the general public. 



At the close of the year there were on display 1.533 fish, com- 

 prising 62 varieties, and 107 aquatic animals of 6 varieties. During 

 the year a stock of chinook salmon, hatched in the aquarium, has 

 been reared; and there is now on hand a vQvy creditable display of 

 this species, comparatively little known in the East. Over one-half 

 million trout, salmon, whitefish, perch, and shad eggs were displayed 

 and hatched in the model hatching apparatus maintained for demon- 

 stration purposes. This activity, together with a model fishway, 

 has been a source of great interest. 



The staff of the aquarium has been called on frequently for expert 

 advice in problems relating to the maintenance of home aquaria, 



