456 REPORT OF THE COMMISSIONER OF FISH AND FISHERIES. 



v.— FISH PROPAGATION IN THE GREAT LAKES. 



Since tlie inception of practical lisb-culture in belialf of tlie commer- 

 cial fisheries of the United States, the Great Lakes have been a favorite 

 and favorable field for the practice of artificial methods for the pres- 

 ervation and increase of the sni)ply, and more extensive operations 

 have here been carried on than in any other part of the country. 



The fishes to which tlie most attention has been devoted are those 

 caught in largest quantities and having the greatest food value, viz, 

 the common whitefish, the lake trout or salmon trout, and the wall- 

 eyed pike. Besides these there are others of growing importance, the 

 artificial increase of which should be considered, chief of Avhich is the 

 sturgeon. 



The propagation of other fish besides those now cultivated is desired 

 by fishermen and dealers of the several lakes. The increase of fishes 

 not hitherto extensively propagated will not only be for the immediate 

 benefit of the industry, but will indirectly inure to its advantage by 

 diverting some attention from fishes whose abundance has been dei)leted 

 and afford them an opportunity to reproduce with less molestation. In 

 Lake Ontario the fish now most important to the fishing interests is the 

 walleyed pike; the decline in the fisheries for whitefish and trout have 

 brought this fish into great x^romineuce, the supply is inadequate for the 

 demand, and the increase of the fish by artificial means is earnestly 

 sought. 



The growing demand for sturgeon, for both its flesh and eggs, has in 

 several of the lakes resulted in a noticeable diminution in the abun- 

 dance of the fish within a comparatively short time, and there seems 

 no reason to believe that the suj^ply will, under natural conditions and 

 present methods, be much longer maintained in lakes Brie, St. Clair, 

 Michigan, and, doubtless, all the other lakes. 



In the foregoing pages some references have been made to the results 

 of propagation in the difi'erent lakes. It now remains to illustrate the 

 extent of tiie efforts made to replenish the lake fisheries, and to record 

 some general observations on fish-culture in the Great Lakes. 



The following table represents the fish-cultural work in the Great 

 Lakes accomplished by the U. S. Commission of Fish and Fisheries to 

 and including the year 1890-91. It shows for each lake the number 

 of fry of each species deposited in the lake waters. 



