60 U. S. BUREAU OF FISHERIES. 
WHITE SULPHUR SPRINGS (W. VA.) STATION. 
[DELL Brown, Superintendent. ] 
Work at this station during the year was conducted along the usual 
lines. The results from trout propagation, both the brook and the 
rainbow, were of a satisfactory nature, but, on the other hand, the 
spawning of the two species of the pond fishes turned out to be an 
almost total failure. 
The brood stock of approximately 2,700 female rainbow trout 2 
years old and older produced 1,058,900 eggs, or more than a half mil- 
lion, in excess of the previous season’s collection. Only 68 per cent 
of them hatched, however, and the cause of this heavy mortality can 
not be explained. On reaching the eyed stage 447,000 were supplied 
to applicants and transferred ‘to other stations of the bureau. The 
remainder were incubated at the station, together with a consignment 
of 100,000 received from the Wytheville (Va .) hatchery. T he brood 
stock of brook trout, consisting of about 150 3-year-old fish and 350 
92-year-old fish, yielded 80,000 eggs, which number was supplemented 
by the purchase ofa million egas from commercial dealers in New 
England. The so-called ‘ ‘white- spot ” cisease caused some mortality 
among the fry of this species just prior to the feeding stage, and a gill 
affection was prevalent later among the fingerlings. Eggs to the 
number of 22,000 were taken from 150 3-year-old albino brook trout. 
The males of this lot appeared to be lacking in virility, and some diffi- 
culty was experienced in obtaining the necessary fertilizing medium. 
Nine thousand fingerlings resulted from these albino aggs, 1,000 of 
which were furnished to applicants, leaving 8,000 on hand at the close 
of the year. 
A consignment of adult smallmouth black bass obtained from Lake 
Erie waters for a brood stock survived the winter without undue loss, 
numbering 115 at spawning time. During the spring 46 nests of this 
species were noted in the ponds, and the output of fry amounted to 
100,500. The 23 largemouth black bass on hand produced 25,800 fry 
and 600 fingerling fish. The results from the rock bass and sunfish 
were negligible. “This condition was attributed in part to lack of 
proper nourishment, it having never been the custom to feed the 
brood-pond fishes at ‘this station. Steps have now been taken to feed 
them on beef heart, and the results will be carefully noted. 
WYTHEVILLE (VA.) STATION. 
[GrorGH A. SEAGLE, Superintendent. ] 
During the spawning season of the rainbow trout the 2,960 adult 
females on hand yielded 870,352 eggs, of which shipments totaling 
480,000 were transferred in the eyed state to applicants and to other 
hatcheries of the bureau. The spawning season was unusually pro- 
tracted, extending from October 10, 1920, to March 15, 1921, the 
wild fish recently introduced into the brood stock probably being the 
later spawners. 
At the beginning of the spawning season 695 2-year-old fish were 
turned over to a representative of the scientific division for experi- 
ment. From these fish 30,500 eyed eggs and 19,000 fry were returned 
to the hatchery stock at the end of the season’s investigations, and 
