326 U. S. BUREAU OF FISHERIES 



With the view of meeting the greatest need of the bureau, which is 

 for more bass, crappie, and other warm-water pond fishes, the prop- 

 agation of such species on a large scale at a number of pond loca- 

 tions in various sections of the United States is being considered. 

 If such plans can be carried out, ponds varying in size from 50 to 

 100 acres will be utilized for the production of fingerling fish, which 

 will be distributed in the fall when 3 or 4 months old. For this 

 purpose the bureau now is cooperating with the State of Florida 

 in establishing bass hatcheries in that State. The Florida authori- 

 ties are greatly interested in the fishing question because of the large 

 number of visitors to the State during the winter. The tourist sea- 

 son and the spawning period of the bass overlap to a certain extent. 

 It would be a rather delicate undertaking to refuse fishing privileges 

 to tourists, but if fishing be permitted during the bass spawning 

 season it will not be possible long to maintain the supply of bass 

 in Florida waters. In propagating bass the greatest benefit will be 

 derived from the development of public interest in protective meas- 

 ures. 



The bureau continues to make annual collections of bass and other 

 warm-water fishes from overflowed lands bordering the Mississippi 

 River. These are distributed principally in waters in the States of 

 Minnesota, Wisconsin, Iowa, and Illinois, only a very small number 

 being sent to more remote points. During the year the station at La 

 Crosse, Wis., made preparations for taking up the production of fish 

 in the territory included in the upper Mississippi wild life and fish 

 refuge. Boats and other movable equipment required for the work 

 were obtained, but as the Government had not purchased any land 

 under the provisions of the act creating this refuge no expenditures 

 could be made for improvements to natural ponds. As soon as the 

 property has been acquired the bureau will take steps to utilize the 

 most suitable natural reservoirs for the breeding of fish. 



On the Pacific coast, the Atlantic coast, and in the Great Lakes 

 region the usual attention has been given to salvaging the eggs of 

 the more important commercial fishes taken in the nets of the fisher- 

 men. At western stations as many of the small salmon produced 

 from such eggs as facilities in the various fields would permit were 

 held in nursery ponds and reared to the larger fingerling sizes before 

 releasing them on local spawning grounds. Every spring spawn 

 takers are sent out from the Gloucester (Mass.) station with vessels 

 bound for the offshore fishing banks to take ripe spawn from the 

 cod and haddock obtained in fishing operations. As a result of such 

 work last season over 100,000,000 cod eggs and about 50,000,000 had- 

 dock eggs were fertilized and planted on the local spawning areas, 

 their distance from land being too far to permit forwarding the 

 spawn to the hatcheries for development. It is believed that this 

 work is producing substantial results. In the Michigan field atten- 

 tion has been given to the production of lake-trout fingerlings, and 

 if plans now under consideration can be put into execution it is 

 purposed to rear several million lake trout annually in the vicinity 

 of Alpena, Mich. This work can not be extended to the rearing of 

 whitefish, as young fish of that species can not be fed artificially. 



In connection with the propagation of buffalo fish in Louisiana, 

 a new hatchery has been erected at Pelba, where a water supply 



