PROPAGATION AND DISTRIBUTION OF FOOD FISHES, 1923. 29 



the fiscal year to the time of planting amounted to only 7,000. They 

 had attained an average length of 4 inches at the time of planting. 

 From a stock of 48,000 eggs and 34,000 fry of the steelhead on hand 

 at the beginning of the fiscal year 78,000 No. 2 fingerlings were reared 

 and distributed during the fall in various lakes and streams in the 

 State of Washington. Egg collections of this species began on 

 March 30 and ended May 29, with a total of 519,000, this number 

 exceeding last year's collection by nearly 200,000. 



DUCKABUSH (WASH.) SUBSTATION. 



It is estimated that during late August and early September a suf- 

 ficient number of chum salmon entered the Duckabush River to per- 

 mit of a collection of 15,000,000 eggs. Unforunately, it was impos- 

 sible to capture more than a small percentage, as nearly three- fourths 

 of them escaped over the traps during a period of high water. Fish- 

 ing and spawning operations were conducted from August 30 to Sep- 

 tember 20, and 4,501,000 eggs were secured. A second run of this 

 species occurred about the middle of November, but the water stages 

 were even more dijSicult, and only 140,000 eggs were taken. From a 

 small run* of humpbacked salmon entering the river with the early 

 chums, a collection of 874,000 eggs was made. Silver salmon opera- 

 tions included the planting of 109,000 fingerlings No. 2, carried over 

 from the stock of the previous year, and the collection of 537,000 eggs, 

 the latter being obtained at irregular intervals between November 28 

 and March 11. As a rule, silver salmon ascend the Duckabush 

 throughout the winter, individuals frequently being seen as late as 

 May 1. The fish are hard to capture, however, as they travel mostly 

 on high- water stages and easily escape the traps. Therefore, while 

 the collection made is a fair average for the station, it does not rep- 

 resent more than 20 per cent of the total run. The product of these 

 eggs was returned to the river in the fingerling Nos. 1 and 2 stages. 

 The year's output from this hatchery also included 78,000 steelhead 

 fingerlings No. 1, which were liberated in the Duckabush River and 

 adjacent tributaries. 



BBINNON (WASH.) SUBSTATION. 



From chum salmon entering Walcot Slough on flood tide and 

 caught with a seine on the ebb 10,790,000 eggs were taken, the collec- 

 tions commencing on November 22 and ending December 31. As fish 

 were still running at the rate of several hundred per day after the 

 collections had been discontinued, the trap pickets were removed to 

 allow them to pass unhindered to the spawning grounds above. After 

 development to the eyed stage most of the eggs were transferred to 

 the Duckabush substation to be hatched, and 75 per cent of the prod- 

 uct was returned in the advanced fry stage for liberation in the 

 slough. From the eggs retained at the station 1,040,000 advanced 

 fry were produced. For the first time since fish-cultural work was 

 undertaken at Brinnon a small collection of silver-salmon eggs was 

 obtained. The run of this species is believed to be the direct result 

 of annual plants of young salmon made by the bureau in the slough 

 in recent years. 



