604 



TJ. S. BUREAU OF FISHERIES 



at the eastern end of the lake, who fish during the summer for white- 

 fish and herring, and some fishermen still use gill nets at certain 

 seasons for taking sturgeon. Hooks are also used for taking stur- 

 geon, as well as for eels. No pound nets are licensed. 



Many of the fishermen now ply their trade only when runs of certain 

 species may be expected, and at other times they mthdraw their 

 netting. The schools of herring that come ashore at certain places 

 in the fall receive especial attention. 



The best fishing obtains ofi^ the Canadian shore, and the majority of 

 fishermen on the lake are Canadians. Here, also, the fishing boats are 

 small launches and rowboats, but gill nets are the chief apparatus. 

 These are hfted by hand. Trout and whitefish are the principal 

 species taken with large-meshed gill nets and herring with the small- 

 meshed nets. Pound and trap nets are not licensed. Fykes may 

 be fished but are used only at the eastern end, where their catch 

 consists chiefly of rough fish. Hooks are also employed in this 

 region for taking eels and catfish, and a few seines are operated here 

 and elsewhere. The amount of apparatus engaged in the fisheries is 

 increasing. 



FISHING DISTRICTS 



Since only small boats are employed in the fisheries, these can find 

 shelter almost anywhere along the shore, and the principal fishing 

 districts may be most conveniently designated by the larger political 

 subdivisions. On the New York shore these are Jefferson and Oswega 

 Counties, and on the Ontario shore Lincoln and Halton Counties on 

 the west and Durham, Northumberland, and Prince Edward Coun- 

 ties, including the Bay of Quinte, on the east are the important 

 districts. 



PRINCIPAL SPECIES 



The principal species on the American shore in 1922, the last 

 census year, was tlie herring, of which about 187,000 pounds were 

 taken. Wall-eyed pike ranked second, with 141,000 pounds, while 

 carp and bullheads came third and fourth, respectively, with 138,000 

 and 107,000 pounds. 



On the Canadian shore in 1922 whitefish ranked first, with a pro- 

 duction of 2,098,000 pounds, while trout were second with 721,000 

 pounds. Coarse fish — chiefly suckers, pike, catfish, eels, wall-eyed 

 pike, carp, and perch — ranked next in order of abundance. The 

 production in 1917 and 1922 is more fully shown in Tables 13 and 14. 



Table 14. — Weight, in pounds, of the annual catch of each of the important species 

 and amount of gill netting used in the Canadian waters of Lake Ontario, as shown 

 by 10 censuses 



Species 



1880 



1890 



1895 



1900 



Whitefish 



Trout 



Herring, including ciscoes. 



Sturgeon _ 



Pickerel 



Pike 



Eels 



Perch 



Catfish 



Carp 



Mixed and coarse fish 



Gill nets, yards 



729, 000 

 249, 000 

 233,000 



16,000 

 139, 000 



80,000 



(') 



(') 



(') 



360,000 



307,000 



1, 503, 000 



55,000 

 229,000 

 255,000 



18,000 



(') 



(') 



978,000 

 399,000 



936, 000 

 236, 000 



404, 000 



106, 000 



2, 484, 000 



41,000 

 135,000 

 213, 000 



29,000 



(') 



(>) 



(') 



780,000 

 305,000 



126,000 



109, 000 



1, 407, 000 



39,000 

 245,000 

 445,000 



37,000 

 249,000 



(>) 



(') 



714,000 

 346,000 



129, 000' 



60,000 



1, 095, 000 



18,000 



34, 000 



232,000 

 40,000 



283, 000 



267,000 



722,000 

 462, 000' 



> Not separated from "mixed and coarse fish." 



