PROPAGATION AND DISTRIBUTION OF FOOD FISHES, 1924 429 



when first hatched, placing tlieni in the ordinary shipping cans on 

 removal from the ponds. This method has been more successful 

 than past attempts to hold the fry in tanks or troughs. Tlie usual 

 iron frame retainers were placed around the schools of IVy before they 

 scattered from the nests. 



MAMMOTH SPRING (ARK.) STATION 



[Dell Brown, Superintendent] 



Though this station is primarily adapted to the culture of small- 

 mouth black bass, great difficulty is experienced in securing from 

 local waters sufficient adults to fill brood stock requirements, and 

 most of the bass transferred here from northern waters refuse artificial 

 food. The season's work with this species was greatly interfered 

 with and the output curtailed by unseasonably cold inclement 

 weather. The first spawning occurred in early April, and fi-om the 

 81 nests of eggs deposited in the course of that month there was 

 an output of approximately 48,000 No. 1 fingerling fish. 



In view of the existing shortage in the number of brood large- 

 mouth bass, the year's production of fingerling fish of that species 

 was much larger than might have been expected. These fish 

 spawned from April 4 to the end of June. The large-mouth bass at 

 this station do not appear to take to the artificial nests as readily 

 as do the small-mouth ba-5s, but when they do occupy them the 

 results in fry are much larger. Before the young fish leave the 

 nests cheesecloth retainers are placed around the schools, and they 

 are transferred to the ponds used earlier in the season for the rear- 

 ing of small-mouth bass. 



ORANGEBURG (S. C.) STATION 

 [G. W. N. Bkown, Superintendent] 



Owing to the unusually severe weather prevaihng in late February 

 and early March the spawning of the large-mouth black bass began 

 fully 15 days later than ever before at this station. The first eggs 

 were discovered on March 5. and the fish continued to spawn at in- 

 tervals until about the middle of June. A large majority of the first 

 eggs deposited were killed by sudden temperature changes, and the 

 subsequent loss of fry was very heavy, the unusually roily water 

 making it difficult to locate the schools of young fish. 



In addition to the work with ti\e black bass, limited numbers of 

 warmouth bass and bluegill sunfish (bream) were produced. Public 

 sentiment appears to favor the introduction of the latter species in 

 most of the waters of the State, and with the view of increasing the 

 output it is quite probable that some of the ponds now devoted to 

 bass culture will hereafter be stocked with sunfish. 



SAN MARCOS (TEX.) STATION 

 [Mark Riley, Superintendent] 



Though the work at this station involved six species of fish, as is 

 shown in the general distribution statement on page 434, most of the 

 facilities were concentrated on the propagation of the large-mouth 

 blackbass, for which there is a wide and steadily increasing clemand in 

 State of Texas. The total output was somewhat below that of the pre- 



