CALIFOENIA FISH AND GAME. 



91 



amount of fishing and hunting. This in 

 turn has to a considerable extent resulted 

 in a decrease in the number of wild 

 game, especially deer, quail and grouse. 

 Except in the higher mountains, remote 

 from roads and trails, there is annually 

 a decided reduction in the number of 

 grouse. Mountain quail are also decreas- 

 ing slowly but surely. The number of 

 bucks reported killed annually during the 

 open season (not including the number 

 of does and fawns that are killed, and 

 bucks out of season, and all species killed 

 by predatory animals) is, no doubt, ex- 

 terminating the deer quite rapidly. 



The proposed establishment of game 

 refuges by the federal government in 

 cooperation with state legislative enact- 

 ment, will aid materially in the propa- 

 gation of wild game. Three refuges are 

 proposed for the El Dorado National 

 Forest, located in the extreme northern, 

 extreme southern and central portions, all 

 bordering on or near the western bound- 

 ary and extending far enough east to 

 afford game protection during summer 

 and winter. — B. J. KoTOK. 



SUGGESTED CHANGE OF PRESENT 

 TROUT LAW. 



As the number of fishermen increase 

 along the north fork of Eel River it 

 becomes more and more noticeable that 

 the classing of the Eel River steelhead 

 as a trout is working some hardship on 

 the sportsmen. As the law is now, the 

 limit is 50 fish, or 10 pounds and one fish, 

 or one fish of 10 pounds or over. As very 

 many of these fish weigh over 10 pounds, 

 a sportsman catching one of, say, 

 11 pounds weight, would be obliged to 

 stop for the day. This, it seems to me, 

 is somewhat of an injustice, and I would 



suggest some plan whereby the limit 

 would be three fish per day regardless of 

 weight. — C. V. Beereton. 



SQUIRREL POISON AND RATTLE- 

 SNAKES. 



The statement in the October number 

 of California Fish and Game that the 

 eating of poisoned squirrels will kill 

 rattlesnakes appears to have been ques- 

 tioned. Here is an incident I give for 

 what it is worth : 



The members of Camp No. 1, of the 

 Biological Survey, on the California 

 Forest last year, found a rattlesnake 

 writhing in a fit and half dead. Upon 

 killing the snake they found it had 

 swallowed a squirrel and they readily 

 determined that the squirrel had been 

 eating poisoned grain. It is probable 

 that the squirrel was not dead when 

 seized by the snake, but at any rate it 

 seems positive that the strychnine will kill 

 rattlesnakes. In connection with this, 

 the records of the Covelo District for the 

 past seven years show definitely that the 

 snakes are decreasing in number. — C. V. 

 Breretok. 



TROUT PLANTING IN THE SANTA 

 BARBARA NATIONAL FOREST. 



Through the efforts of Forest Super- 

 visor Hall a number of streams in the 

 Santa Barbara National Forest were 

 stocked last autumn with trout fry sup- 

 plied by the Fish and Game Commission. 

 In each case the fish were planted above 

 impassable falls where no fish were to be 

 found. Bouquet Canyon received 4,000 

 eastern brook ; Lime Canyon, a branch of 

 Cachuma Canyon, received 2,500 rainbow 

 and 25,000 Loch Leven ; Rincon Creek 

 received 5,000 steelhead. 



BURLlNGAMb 



PUBLIC 



LIB. 



