REPORT OF COMMISSIONER OF FISH AND FISHERIES. CXXXVII 



Micliigan ; E. A. Tuliau to Lake Hmou; W. A. Wilcox to Lake St. 

 Clair and the St. Clair and Detroit rivers; Seymour Bower and C. H. 

 Stevenson to Lake Erie; and H. M. Smith and C. H. Stevenson to Lake 

 Ontario. Mr. Tulian and Mr. Bower, who were detailed from the 

 Division of Fish-calture, had taken part in the investigations of 1885, 

 and the office was fortunate in again securing their services. The 

 preparation of the report covering this inquiry is completed and it is 

 therefore possible at this time to give an accurate summary of the 

 prominent features disclosed. 



Since the inception of fish-culture on a large scale in the United 

 States the Great Lakes region has been a favorite and favorable field 

 for carrying on that work. Every State having a frontage on the 

 lakes has appreciated the importance of artificial propagation in main- 

 taining and increasing the supply of food-fishes and has given its 

 appreciation practical form by establishing a board of fish commission- 

 ers and founding one or more hatching stations. The General Govern- 

 ment has also cooperated with the States in every lake. 



The species to which the greatest attention has been given are white- 

 fish {Coregonus clupeiformis)^ lake trout {Salvelinus namaycush), and 

 wall-eyed pike {Stizostedion vitreum). A knowledge of the present and 

 l)ast abundance of these fishes becomes a matter of great importance, 

 the determination of which naturally falls to the consideration of this 

 division. Besides the fish now propagated there are others of growing 

 importance to which attention should be directed, in view of the prob- 

 able necessity at an early date of securing their preservation and mul- 

 tiplication by artificial means. Chief among these is the sturgeon. 



A comparison of the present and past abundance of the whitefish is 

 not entirely satisfactory and involves some elements of uncertainty. 

 There are at least five species of whitefish of commercial importance 

 occurring in the Great Lakes, viz, the common whitefish [Coregonus 

 clupeiformis), the lake herring or cisco [C. artedi), the bluefin or 

 blackfin whitefish {C. nigripinnis), the Menominee or round whitefish 

 [C. quadrilateraJis), the whiting, or Musquaw River whitefish (C. labra- 

 doricus), and the tullibee, or mongrel whitefish (C. tullibee). While all 

 of these are not of marked economic value, at least three are taken in 

 considerable numbers, and the others occur in greater or less abun- 

 dance in some lakes. The superficial differences between some of these 

 are not very pronounced and not always recognized by the fishermen 

 and others. It therefore happens that in making returns of fish taken 

 a fisherman may give a number of species under the general name 

 of whitefish, and being thus recorded an incorrect idea is formed of 

 the abundance of CoregonuH clupeiformis in a certain lake or place. 

 There is every reason to believe that in 1880 several minor species of 

 Coregonus were recorded with the common whitefish; and it is known 

 that in 1885 the same thing was done in some lakes, the species thus 

 combined with C. clupeiformis being G. nigripinnis and G. quadrilateralis. 



The improper use of common names of fishes also makes difdcult the 



