404 



U. S. BUREAU OF FISHERIES 



The bureau received a gratifying amount of cooperative assistance 

 from clam fishermen and others engaged in the industry, and from 

 reports furnished by the fishermen it is beheved tliat the work is 

 producing vahiable results in maintaining the supply of mussels in 

 certain areas. The following summary shows the fields in which 

 mussel operations were prosecuted in 1924 and the number and species 

 of mussels handled in each. 



Summary of infection of fishes, fiscal year 1924 



1 This mussel is not first class in quality and fishes are infected with it only when first-class mussels are 

 not available. 



MARINE FISHES 



Taken as a whole, the fish-cultural work of the marine stations 

 may be regarded as successful, the total egg collections of the group 

 being nearly 25 per cent greater than in the preceding year. This 

 increase was made possible by the large collections of winter-flounder 

 eggs obtained, all of the stations engaged in this branch of the work 

 securing them in much larger numbers than last year. On the other 

 hand, there was a shortage of nearly 267,000,000 cod eggs, as com- 

 pared with last year, this being occasioned by the almost complete 

 failure of the cod work at the Woods Hole (Mass.) station. The 

 work with this species at the Gloucester (Mass.) station assumed 

 larger proportions than evei; before in its history. 



BOOTHBAY HARBOR (mE.) STATION 

 [E. E. Hahn, Superintendent] 



In the course of the fall and winter every effort was made to secure 

 cod and haddock eggs for stocking the hatchery at this point but 

 without success. No schools of spawning fish of either of these 

 species could be located in waters along the Maine coast, and the 

 alewives passing by on their way to spawning grounds in fresh waters 

 were immature. 



Unusual success was attained, however, in the work with the 

 winter flounder, the egg collections and output of fry of that species 

 being among the largest in the station's history. Seventy-eight fyke 



