﻿60 
  REPORT 
  OF 
  COMMISSIONER 
  OF 
  FISH 
  AND 
  FISHERIES. 
  

  

  When 
  young 
  salmon 
  or 
  trout 
  first 
  begin 
  to 
  feed 
  they 
  are 
  quite 
  unable 
  

   to 
  swallow 
  full-grown 
  maggots, 
  and 
  small 
  ones 
  are 
  obtained 
  for 
  them 
  by 
  

   putting 
  a 
  large 
  quantity 
  of 
  fly 
  spawn 
  with 
  a 
  small 
  quantity 
  of 
  meat, 
  

   the 
  result 
  being 
  that 
  the 
  maggots 
  soon 
  begin 
  to 
  crowd 
  each 
  other 
  and 
  

   the 
  surplus 
  is 
  worked 
  off 
  into 
  the 
  lower 
  box 
  before 
  attaining 
  great 
  size. 
  

   No 
  attempt 
  is, 
  however, 
  made 
  to 
  induce 
  the 
  young 
  fish 
  to 
  swallow 
  even 
  

   the 
  smallest 
  maggots 
  until 
  they 
  have 
  been 
  fed 
  a 
  while 
  on 
  chopped 
  

   liver. 
  

  

  Maggots 
  are 
  produced 
  and 
  used 
  in 
  considerable 
  numbers, 
  sometimes 
  

   as 
  many 
  as 
  a 
  bushel 
  in 
  a 
  day. 
  The 
  fish 
  eat 
  them 
  eagerly, 
  and 
  appear 
  

   to 
  thrive 
  on 
  them 
  better 
  than 
  on 
  dead 
  meat. 
  Having 
  great 
  tenacity 
  of 
  

   life, 
  if 
  not 
  snapped 
  up 
  immediately 
  by 
  the 
  fish 
  they 
  remain 
  alive 
  for 
  a 
  

   day 
  or 
  two, 
  and, 
  as 
  they 
  wriggle 
  about 
  on 
  the 
  bottom, 
  are 
  almost 
  cer- 
  

   tain 
  to 
  be 
  finally 
  eaten, 
  which 
  is 
  a 
  great 
  gain 
  in 
  cleanliness 
  and 
  economy, 
  

   as 
  the 
  particles 
  of 
  dead 
  flesh 
  falling 
  to 
  the 
  bottom 
  are 
  largely 
  neglected 
  

   by 
  the 
  fish 
  and 
  begin 
  to 
  putrefy 
  in 
  a 
  few 
  hours 
  and 
  foul 
  the 
  troughs. 
  

   As 
  the 
  growth 
  of 
  maggots 
  can 
  be 
  controlled 
  by 
  regulation 
  of 
  the 
  tem- 
  

   perature, 
  they 
  may 
  be 
  kept 
  all 
  winter 
  in 
  a 
  pit 
  or 
  cellar 
  and 
  used 
  as 
  food 
  

   for 
  fish 
  confined 
  in 
  deep 
  tanks 
  not 
  easily 
  cleaned. 
  

  

  In 
  the 
  rearing 
  of 
  maggots 
  the 
  offensive 
  odors 
  of 
  decaying 
  flesh 
  may 
  

   be 
  partly 
  overcome 
  by 
  j^utting 
  it 
  away 
  in 
  boxes, 
  after 
  the 
  visits 
  of 
  the 
  

   flies, 
  and 
  covering 
  it 
  with 
  pulverized 
  earth. 
  Only 
  flesh-eating 
  maggots 
  

   have 
  yet 
  been 
  tried, 
  and 
  the 
  trouble 
  may 
  possibly 
  be 
  rectified 
  by 
  culti- 
  

   vating 
  the 
  larvae 
  of 
  other 
  species, 
  such 
  as 
  the 
  house-fly, 
  the 
  stable 
  fly, 
  

   etc., 
  or 
  a 
  little 
  white 
  maggot 
  known 
  to 
  grow 
  in 
  heaps 
  of 
  seaweed, 
  if 
  

   their 
  rate 
  of 
  growth 
  is 
  found 
  to 
  be 
  satisfactory. 
  

  

  Occasional 
  use 
  has 
  been 
  made 
  of 
  fresh 
  fish 
  for 
  direct 
  feeding, 
  but 
  when 
  

   thrown 
  into 
  the 
  water 
  after 
  chopping 
  it 
  breaks 
  up 
  into 
  fibers 
  to 
  such 
  

   an 
  extent 
  that 
  it 
  is 
  not 
  satisfactory, 
  unless 
  in 
  a 
  coarsely 
  chopped 
  form, 
  

   for 
  the 
  food 
  of 
  large 
  fish. 
  A 
  few 
  barrels 
  of 
  salted 
  alewives 
  have 
  been 
  

   used, 
  and, 
  if 
  well 
  soaked 
  out 
  and 
  chopped, 
  they 
  are 
  readily 
  eaten 
  by 
  the 
  

   larger 
  fish 
  and 
  can 
  be 
  fed 
  to 
  fry, 
  but 
  are 
  less 
  satisfactory 
  with 
  the 
  latter, 
  

   and, 
  like 
  fresh 
  fish, 
  break 
  up 
  to 
  such 
  an 
  extent 
  that 
  they 
  are 
  only 
  to 
  be 
  

   regarded 
  as 
  one 
  of 
  the 
  last 
  resorts. 
  

  

  Fresh-water 
  mussels, 
  belonging 
  almost 
  wholly 
  to 
  a 
  species 
  of 
  Unio^ 
  

   have 
  been 
  occasionally 
  gathered 
  with 
  nets 
  or 
  dredges 
  in 
  the 
  lake 
  close 
  

   to 
  the 
  station 
  and 
  opened 
  with 
  knives 
  and 
  chopped. 
  The 
  meat 
  is 
  

   readily 
  eaten 
  by 
  all 
  fishes 
  and 
  appears 
  to 
  form 
  an 
  excellent 
  diet. 
  It 
  is 
  

   more 
  buoyant 
  than 
  any 
  other 
  article 
  tried, 
  sinks 
  slower 
  in 
  the 
  water, 
  

   and 
  gives 
  the 
  fish 
  more 
  time 
  to 
  seize 
  it 
  before 
  it 
  reaches 
  the 
  bottom; 
  

   but 
  the 
  labor 
  involved 
  in 
  dredging 
  and 
  shelling 
  is 
  a 
  serious 
  drawback. 
  

  

  During 
  the 
  seasons 
  of 
  1886 
  and 
  1888 
  some 
  use 
  was 
  made 
  of 
  mosquito 
  

   laf 
  v*, 
  collected 
  from 
  pools 
  of 
  swamp 
  water 
  by 
  means 
  of 
  a 
  set 
  of 
  strain- 
  

   ers 
  specially 
  devised 
  for 
  the 
  purpose 
  and 
  from 
  barrels 
  filled 
  with 
  water 
  

   disposed 
  in 
  convenient 
  places 
  near 
  the 
  rearing-troughs. 
  The 
  larvae 
  (or 
  

   pupae) 
  were 
  strained 
  out 
  and 
  fed 
  to 
  the 
  fish. 
  I^^o 
  kind 
  of 
  food 
  has 
  been 
  

  

  