PKOPAGATIOX AND DISTRIBUTION OF FOOD FISHES, 1925 491 



An assignment of rainbow-trout eggs, transferred from the Saratoga (Wyo.) 

 station, and one of steelhead salmon, shipped from one of the Oregon substations,. 

 were received during the spring and incubated at Medina Lake. In each case 

 considerable losses were sustained in the egg and fry stages, though enough 

 survived to justify the experiment. Of the few thousands of these fish thus far 

 planted localh', many are known to be doing well in the swift waters of the 

 Medina River, just below the large dam. 



Tupelo (Miss.) Station 



[C. R. WiANT, Superintendent] 



By means of stocks of wild fish obtained from local ponds and streams during the 

 late summer and fall of 1924, the station's brood stock of large-mouth black bass 

 was increased to 500 fish, ranging in weight from 1 to 5 pounds. At the approach 

 of the spawning season the fish were apportioned in four ponds, according to 

 size. Three hundred and forty of the larger ones were divided between tvv-o ponds 

 covering an area of 2.38 acres; 110 fish, ranging from 1 to 2 pounds in weight, 

 were installed in a pond slightly larger than two-thirds of an acre, while the 

 remaining 50, averaging about 1 pound each, were placed in a shallow pond 

 abundantly stocked with aciuatic vegetation. Very few, if any, returns were 

 exiDected from the latter pond. However, these fish and those in the pond next 

 in size were the first to begin spawning. The segregation of the fish according 

 to size proved of material advantage in the work, since thereby the fry came on 

 in two periods, allowing tiine for the entire collection and distribution to be made 

 by the station force, and as soon as the fry season was over in the ponds where 

 spawning first occurred it was possible to seine them for fingerling fish without 

 endangering the nests of the late spawners. The distribution of young bass from 

 the four ponds during the fiscal j-ear aggregated 430,000 advanced fry and 137,205 

 fingerlings. 



A fairly successful season was experienced in the propagation of sunfish. The 

 distribution of this fish was undertaken on September 9, and in the course of the 

 fall 73,375 fingerlings were delivered, supplying 205 applicants in various parts 

 of Mississippi and Alabama. Small distributions of crappie, rock bass, and 

 catfish were also made. 



Lakeland (Md.) Ponds Substation 

 [Supervised by Washington oflBce of fish culture] 



This pond system, located about 8 miles from the citj^ of Washington, was 

 leased by the IBureau of Fisheries in the spring of 1923. Early in the spring of 

 1924 two of the ponds — Nos. 1 and 3 — were stocked with adult largemouth black 

 bass ol^tained from the Potomac River, and a third pond, known as No. 2, was 

 stocked with brood crappie transferred from the Edenton (N. C.) station. As a 

 result of such stocking 47,376 black bass from 2 to 6 inches in length and 14,595 

 fingerling crappie were collected for distribution to applicants in the fall of 1924. 



An interesting feature of the work was the growth attained bj^ all of the finger- 

 ling fish, e.specially the black bass. On June 17, 1924, 3,000 No. 1 fingerling 

 largemouth bass were transferred from pond No. 3 to pond No. 5, which has no 

 connection with other ponds of the series. This pond was drained early in Octo- 

 ber and approximately 1,900 fish from 4 to 6 inches long were secured from it. 



During the spring of 1925 the ponds were again stocked with largemouth bass 

 and crappie, as well as smallmouth bass and bream. 



CENTRAL STATION AND AQUARIUM, WASHINGTON, D. C. 



[L. G. Hareon, Superintendent] 



The maintenance of the aquarial exhibit at central station was more than 

 ordinarily successful, due to the decreased use of chlorine in the city water supply. 

 During the year 1,980 specimens of fish and marine animals, representing 36 

 species, were on display, while in the small exhibit hatchery eggs of the brook 

 trout, rainbow trout, whitefish, cisco, shad, and yellow perch, all of which were 

 shipped from the bureau's stations, were incubated, and the resulting fry retained 

 for a time. The supph" of live fish was replenished as necessary from collections 



