﻿CXLII 
  REPOKT 
  OF 
  COMMISSIONER 
  OF 
  FISH 
  AND 
  FISHERIES. 
  

  

  meshed 
  salmon 
  gill 
  net 
  near 
  one 
  of 
  the 
  breaks 
  in 
  the 
  island, 
  through 
  

   which 
  the 
  water 
  pours 
  from 
  a 
  tule 
  lake. 
  No 
  salmon 
  had 
  been 
  caught, 
  

   and 
  he 
  was 
  taking 
  the 
  empty 
  net 
  into 
  his 
  boat 
  (having 
  stowed 
  fully 
  

   half 
  of 
  it), 
  when 
  suddenly 
  the 
  water 
  was 
  churned 
  into 
  foam 
  near 
  his 
  

   boat 
  and 
  around 
  his 
  net 
  by 
  a 
  school 
  of 
  striped 
  bass 
  that 
  had 
  evidently 
  

   just 
  come 
  out 
  of 
  the 
  tule 
  lake. 
  He 
  realized 
  that 
  a 
  large 
  number 
  of 
  

   fish 
  had 
  struck 
  his 
  net 
  and 
  set 
  about 
  to 
  secure 
  them. 
  One 
  end 
  of 
  

   his 
  net 
  was 
  close 
  to 
  shore, 
  and 
  he 
  hailed 
  some 
  fishermen 
  on 
  the 
  bank, 
  

   who 
  began 
  to 
  lift 
  that 
  end 
  of 
  the 
  net, 
  throwing 
  the 
  fish 
  on 
  land, 
  while 
  

   he 
  emptied 
  the 
  other 
  end' 
  into 
  his 
  boat. 
  The 
  catch 
  consisted 
  of 
  700 
  

   fish 
  of 
  nearly 
  uniform 
  size, 
  and 
  averaged 
  30 
  pounds 
  each. 
  This 
  fish- 
  

   erman 
  states 
  that 
  if 
  his 
  whole 
  net 
  had 
  been 
  out 
  he 
  would 
  probably 
  

   have 
  lost 
  all 
  or 
  part 
  of 
  it 
  from 
  the 
  weight 
  of 
  the 
  fish. 
  This 
  catch 
  of 
  

   21,000 
  pounds 
  was 
  sold 
  at 
  less 
  than 
  5 
  cents 
  a 
  pound, 
  in 
  San 
  Francisco. 
  

  

  Grounds, 
  movements, 
  spawning, 
  etc. 
  — 
  Evidence 
  is 
  accumulating 
  to 
  show 
  

   that 
  the 
  striped 
  bass 
  remain 
  in 
  the 
  tule 
  lands 
  for 
  long 
  periods, 
  or, 
  at 
  

   least, 
  do 
  not 
  move 
  to 
  and 
  from 
  salt 
  water, 
  as 
  they 
  do 
  on 
  the 
  Atlantic 
  

   coast. 
  Schools 
  are 
  often 
  found 
  in 
  the 
  delta, 
  and 
  large 
  catches 
  are 
  made 
  

   without 
  any 
  fish 
  having 
  been 
  caught 
  below, 
  and 
  the 
  fishermen 
  think 
  

   the 
  fish 
  have 
  suddenly 
  emerged 
  from 
  some 
  tule 
  lake. 
  The 
  opinion 
  is 
  

   entertained 
  that 
  the 
  striped 
  bass 
  often 
  become 
  landlocked 
  in 
  the 
  tule 
  

   lakes, 
  to 
  be 
  liberated 
  by 
  some 
  freshet 
  or 
  high 
  tide, 
  thus 
  explaining 
  their 
  

   sudden 
  occurrence 
  in 
  a 
  certain 
  place 
  when 
  nets 
  above 
  and 
  below 
  have 
  

   taken 
  none. 
  Above 
  the 
  Strait 
  of 
  Karquines 
  the 
  fish 
  are 
  usually 
  of 
  

   uniform 
  size 
  in 
  the 
  different 
  schools, 
  while 
  in 
  the 
  straits 
  they 
  are 
  apt 
  

   to 
  vary. 
  Large 
  catches 
  are 
  often 
  made 
  at 
  the 
  outlets 
  of 
  the 
  tule 
  lakes. 
  

  

  With 
  few 
  exceptions, 
  the 
  food 
  of 
  the 
  striped 
  bass 
  in 
  the 
  fresh 
  waters 
  

   consists 
  of 
  carij. 
  

  

  Additional 
  information 
  has 
  been 
  obtained 
  indicating 
  a 
  protracted 
  

   spawning 
  period 
  for 
  the 
  fish 
  on 
  the 
  California 
  coast. 
  On 
  June 
  4, 
  1896, 
  

   a 
  15-pound 
  striped 
  bass, 
  examined 
  by 
  the 
  writer 
  in 
  the 
  San 
  Francisco 
  

   market, 
  was 
  found 
  to 
  be 
  a 
  nearly 
  spent 
  male 
  from 
  which 
  ripe 
  milt 
  was 
  

   running. 
  On 
  July 
  3 
  both 
  male 
  and 
  female 
  ripe 
  fish 
  (sent 
  from 
  Benicia) 
  

   were 
  observed 
  in 
  the 
  San 
  Francisco 
  market. 
  In 
  October, 
  1895, 
  a 
  San 
  

   Joaquin 
  Eiver 
  fisherman, 
  while 
  taking 
  a 
  bass 
  from 
  a 
  salmon 
  net, 
  observed 
  

   a 
  large 
  quantity 
  of 
  ripe 
  eggs 
  to 
  fall 
  into 
  the 
  bottom 
  of 
  his 
  boat. 
  

  

  The 
  present 
  abundance 
  and 
  rate 
  of 
  increase 
  of 
  striped 
  bass 
  in 
  Cali- 
  

   fornia 
  render 
  almost 
  unnecessary 
  at 
  this 
  time 
  the 
  consideration 
  of 
  the 
  

   question 
  of 
  their 
  artificial 
  propagation. 
  It 
  can 
  not 
  be 
  said 
  that 
  those 
  

   now 
  taken 
  form 
  a 
  large 
  part 
  of 
  the 
  run. 
  Few 
  persons 
  fish 
  especially 
  for 
  

   them, 
  the 
  largest 
  part 
  of 
  the 
  catch 
  being 
  taken 
  incidentally 
  in 
  salmon 
  

   nets. 
  When 
  the 
  conditions 
  change, 
  as 
  they 
  probably 
  will 
  in 
  time, 
  the 
  

   artificial 
  propagation 
  of 
  striped 
  bass 
  in 
  California 
  may 
  become 
  desirable. 
  

  

  Striped 
  bass 
  trade 
  of 
  San 
  Francisco. 
  — 
  Practically 
  the 
  entire 
  catch 
  of 
  

   striped 
  bass 
  is 
  consigned 
  to 
  the 
  San 
  Francisco 
  dealers, 
  whose 
  receipts 
  

   afford 
  an 
  accurate 
  basis 
  for 
  determining 
  the 
  catch. 
  Their 
  receipts 
  

   during 
  recent 
  years 
  have 
  increased 
  almost 
  100 
  per 
  cent 
  annually, 
  and 
  

   in 
  1896 
  amounted 
  to 
  about 
  361,000 
  pounds. 
  

  

  