﻿REPORT 
  OF 
  COMMISSIONER 
  OF 
  FISH 
  AND 
  FISHERIES. 
  CXLI 
  

   STRIPED 
  BASS 
  IN 
  CALIFORNIA. 
  

  

  In 
  the 
  summer 
  of 
  1896 
  tlie 
  writer 
  made 
  some 
  special 
  studies 
  of 
  the 
  

   striped 
  bass 
  in 
  the 
  waters 
  of 
  California, 
  supplemental 
  to 
  the 
  inquiries 
  

   carried 
  on 
  in 
  1894, 
  an 
  account 
  of 
  which 
  has 
  been 
  published 
  by 
  the 
  Com- 
  

   mission.* 
  

  

  Distrihution. 
  — 
  The 
  striped 
  bass 
  continues 
  to 
  be 
  most 
  numerous 
  in 
  

   San 
  Francisco 
  Bay 
  and 
  its 
  tributaries 
  ; 
  it 
  is 
  also 
  taken 
  in 
  small 
  numbers 
  

   in 
  Monterey 
  Bay, 
  and 
  regularly 
  ascends 
  the 
  coast 
  as 
  far 
  as 
  Russian 
  

   River, 
  which 
  stream 
  it 
  enters. 
  A 
  few 
  have 
  been 
  taken 
  as 
  far 
  south 
  as 
  

   Los 
  Angeles 
  County. 
  Up 
  to 
  1896 
  Russian 
  River 
  was 
  the 
  supposed 
  

   northern 
  limit 
  of 
  its 
  range, 
  but 
  in 
  February 
  of 
  that 
  year 
  two 
  medium- 
  

   sized 
  bass 
  were 
  taken 
  in 
  the 
  Gualala 
  River, 
  which 
  divides 
  Sonoma 
  and 
  

   Mendocino 
  counties 
  and 
  is 
  nearly 
  100 
  miles 
  north 
  of 
  Russian 
  River. 
  

   From 
  time 
  to 
  time 
  in 
  1896 
  small 
  shipments 
  of 
  striped 
  bass 
  reached 
  the 
  

   San 
  Francisco 
  market 
  from 
  Alviso, 
  in 
  Santa 
  Clara 
  County; 
  these 
  were 
  

   taken 
  in 
  the 
  sloughs 
  which 
  connect 
  with 
  the 
  extreme 
  southern 
  end 
  of 
  

   San 
  Francisco 
  Bay, 
  into 
  which 
  they 
  are 
  supposed 
  to 
  run 
  for 
  the 
  pur- 
  

   pose 
  of 
  spawning-. 
  This 
  is 
  the 
  first 
  year 
  the 
  species 
  has 
  been 
  reported 
  

   from 
  this 
  locality. 
  Very 
  few 
  are 
  caught 
  at 
  Sacramento, 
  and 
  none 
  in 
  

   salmon 
  gill 
  nets 
  ; 
  the 
  few 
  obtained 
  are 
  taken 
  in 
  seines 
  hauled 
  on 
  the 
  

   bars 
  for 
  catfish. 
  They 
  are 
  found 
  from 
  June 
  to 
  October. 
  In 
  weight 
  

   they 
  range 
  from 
  1 
  to 
  10 
  pounds, 
  no 
  large 
  fish 
  being 
  observed. 
  

  

  Abundance. 
  — 
  The 
  abundance 
  of 
  this 
  fish 
  in 
  the 
  San 
  Francisco 
  Bay 
  

   region 
  is 
  remarkable 
  and 
  shows 
  no 
  signs 
  of 
  diminution; 
  in 
  fact, 
  the 
  

   receipts 
  in 
  the 
  markets 
  have 
  been 
  steadily 
  increasing 
  from 
  year 
  to 
  year, 
  

   and 
  1896 
  showed 
  a 
  large 
  gain 
  over 
  1895. 
  The 
  increased 
  catch 
  is 
  due 
  

   entirely 
  to 
  increased 
  abundance, 
  and 
  does 
  not 
  represent 
  more 
  active 
  fish- 
  

   ing 
  operations 
  or 
  the 
  employment 
  of 
  more 
  apparatus; 
  on 
  the 
  contrary, 
  

   it 
  is 
  probable 
  that 
  less 
  fishing 
  is 
  now 
  done 
  than 
  formerly, 
  when 
  the 
  

   good 
  prices 
  received 
  for 
  bass 
  were 
  an 
  incentive 
  that 
  is 
  now 
  lacking. 
  

  

  In 
  April, 
  1896, 
  a 
  deputy 
  of 
  the 
  California 
  Fish 
  Commission 
  seized 
  a 
  

   lot 
  of 
  nets 
  that 
  had 
  a 
  mesh 
  below 
  the 
  size 
  permitted 
  by 
  law. 
  They 
  had 
  

   been 
  set 
  in 
  Honker 
  Bay, 
  an 
  arm 
  of 
  Suisun 
  Bay, 
  and 
  consisted 
  of 
  200 
  

   fathoms 
  of 
  5-iucli 
  gill 
  net 
  and 
  about 
  180 
  fathoms 
  of 
  trammel 
  net, 
  all 
  

   belonging 
  to 
  one 
  fisherman. 
  The 
  nets, 
  when 
  seized, 
  had 
  a 
  large 
  number 
  

   of 
  striped 
  bass 
  in 
  them, 
  weighing 
  from 
  7^ 
  to 
  25 
  pounds, 
  and 
  averaging 
  

   10 
  or 
  12 
  pounds. 
  The 
  deputy 
  making 
  the 
  seizure 
  reports 
  that 
  about 
  

   465 
  fish 
  were 
  taken 
  out 
  and 
  given 
  away, 
  the 
  total 
  catch 
  thus 
  being 
  not 
  

   less 
  than 
  5,000 
  pounds. 
  

  

  So 
  abundant 
  was 
  the 
  fish 
  in 
  the 
  Sacramento-San 
  Joaquin 
  delta 
  in 
  

   the 
  spring 
  of 
  1896 
  that 
  one 
  salmon 
  fisherman 
  reported 
  that 
  '' 
  the 
  

   spring 
  run 
  of 
  salmon 
  this 
  year 
  was 
  all 
  striped 
  bass." 
  In 
  the 
  fall 
  of 
  

   1895, 
  while 
  fishing 
  for 
  salmon 
  off 
  Sherman 
  Island, 
  in 
  the 
  San 
  Joaquin 
  

   River, 
  this 
  fisherman 
  had 
  the 
  following 
  experience: 
  He 
  had 
  set 
  a 
  large- 
  

  

  * 
  A 
  review 
  of 
  the 
  history 
  and 
  results 
  of 
  the 
  attempts 
  to 
  acclimatize 
  fish 
  and 
  other 
  

   wateranimalsinthePacificStates. 
  By 
  HughM. 
  Smith, 
  M. 
  D. 
  Bull. 
  U. 
  S. 
  F. 
  C. 
  1895, 
  

   pp. 
  379-472. 
  

  

  