﻿MANUAL 
  OF 
  FISH-CULTURE. 
  135 
  

  

  Florida, 
  about 
  November 
  15, 
  the 
  season 
  of 
  greatest 
  abuudance 
  being 
  

   February 
  and 
  March. 
  In 
  the 
  Savannah 
  Eiver, 
  Georgia, 
  and 
  the 
  Edisto, 
  

   South 
  Carolina, 
  the 
  run 
  begins 
  early 
  in 
  January 
  and 
  ends 
  the 
  last 
  of 
  

   March. 
  In 
  the 
  jSTorth 
  Carolina 
  rivers 
  these 
  stages 
  of 
  the 
  migration 
  are 
  

   a 
  little 
  later. 
  In 
  the 
  Potomac 
  Eiver 
  advance 
  individuals 
  appear 
  lale 
  

   in 
  February, 
  but 
  the 
  fish 
  is 
  most 
  numerous 
  in 
  Ai^ril. 
  In 
  the 
  Delaware 
  

   River 
  the 
  maximum 
  run 
  is 
  about 
  the 
  1st 
  of 
  May. 
  It 
  reaches 
  the 
  Hud- 
  

   son 
  1-iiver 
  the 
  last 
  of 
  March, 
  and 
  is 
  found 
  in 
  the 
  Connecticut 
  toward 
  

   the 
  end 
  of 
  April, 
  is 
  most 
  abundant 
  the 
  last 
  of 
  May, 
  and 
  leaves 
  the 
  

   stream 
  late 
  in 
  July. 
  In 
  the 
  Kennebec 
  and 
  Androscoggin 
  rivers, 
  Maine, 
  

   it 
  is 
  first 
  taken 
  in 
  Ai)ril 
  and 
  has 
  left 
  by 
  the 
  middle 
  of 
  July. 
  In 
  the 
  St. 
  

   John 
  River, 
  New 
  Brunswick, 
  it 
  appears 
  about 
  the 
  middle 
  of 
  May, 
  and 
  

   in 
  the 
  Miramichi 
  River, 
  New 
  Brunswick, 
  late 
  in 
  May. 
  

  

  The 
  main 
  body 
  of 
  shad 
  ascends 
  the 
  rivers 
  when 
  the 
  temperature 
  of 
  

   the 
  water 
  is 
  from 
  5G° 
  to 
  00°, 
  the 
  numbers 
  diminishing 
  when 
  the 
  tem- 
  

   perature 
  is 
  over 
  G6°. 
  Successive 
  schools 
  enter 
  the 
  Potomac 
  from 
  

   February 
  to 
  July, 
  the 
  males 
  x^receding 
  the 
  females. 
  Of 
  G1,000 
  shad 
  

   comprising 
  the 
  first 
  of 
  the 
  run 
  received 
  at 
  Washington, 
  D. 
  C, 
  from 
  

   March 
  19 
  to 
  24, 
  1897, 
  90 
  per 
  cent 
  were 
  males. 
  Toward 
  the 
  close 
  of 
  the 
  

   season 
  males 
  are 
  extremely 
  scarce. 
  

  

  The 
  movement 
  of 
  the 
  shad 
  up 
  the 
  rivers 
  is 
  not 
  constant, 
  but 
  in 
  

   waves, 
  causing 
  a 
  rise 
  and 
  fall 
  in 
  the 
  catch. 
  In 
  some 
  of 
  the 
  rivers 
  the 
  

   fishermen 
  claim 
  that 
  a 
  fairly 
  well-defined 
  run 
  occurs 
  late 
  in 
  the 
  season, 
  

   consisting 
  of 
  a 
  somewhat 
  different 
  fish, 
  known 
  as 
  "May 
  shad." 
  

  

  The 
  erection 
  of 
  impassable 
  dams 
  along 
  the 
  rivers 
  and 
  streams 
  was 
  

   probably 
  the 
  first 
  thing 
  to 
  curtail 
  the 
  natural 
  spawning-grounds 
  of 
  

   these 
  fish 
  and 
  to 
  seriously 
  check 
  their 
  natural 
  increase. 
  

  

  As 
  shad 
  enter 
  the 
  rivers 
  only 
  for 
  the 
  purpose 
  of 
  spawning, 
  the 
  

   fisheries 
  are 
  necessarily 
  prosecuted 
  during 
  the 
  spawning 
  season, 
  and 
  

   often 
  ui)on 
  the 
  favorite 
  spawning-grounds. 
  The 
  increase 
  of 
  population 
  

   necessitates 
  a 
  larger 
  supply 
  of 
  fish 
  and 
  requires 
  the 
  use 
  of 
  more 
  

   apparatus, 
  and 
  the 
  number 
  of 
  shad 
  that 
  reach 
  fresh 
  water 
  is 
  therefore 
  

   greatly 
  curtailed 
  by 
  assiduous 
  fishing 
  with 
  all 
  kinds 
  of 
  contrivances 
  in 
  

   the 
  estuaries 
  and 
  in 
  the 
  mouths 
  and 
  lower 
  parts 
  of 
  rivers. 
  Under 
  these 
  

   conditions 
  of 
  a 
  restricted 
  spawning 
  area 
  and 
  increased 
  netting 
  shad 
  

   would 
  soon 
  be 
  exterminated 
  without 
  artificial 
  x)ropagation 
  ; 
  or 
  the 
  fish- 
  

   ery, 
  at 
  least, 
  would 
  greatly 
  diminish 
  and 
  become 
  unprofitable. 
  Such 
  a 
  

   crisis 
  was 
  fast 
  approaching 
  in 
  1879, 
  when 
  the 
  Fish 
  Commission 
  entered 
  

   upon 
  systematic 
  work 
  in 
  shad 
  propagation. 
  

  

  From 
  their 
  birth 
  until 
  their 
  return 
  to 
  the 
  rivers 
  shad 
  are 
  j)reyed 
  

   upon 
  incessantly 
  by 
  other 
  fish, 
  so 
  that 
  the 
  larger 
  portion 
  of 
  the 
  young 
  

   do 
  not 
  survive 
  their 
  few 
  months' 
  sojourn 
  in 
  fresh 
  water, 
  and 
  of 
  those 
  

   which 
  leave 
  the 
  rivers 
  each 
  season 
  probably 
  not 
  one 
  in 
  one 
  hundred 
  

   reaches 
  maturity 
  to 
  deposit 
  its 
  eggs 
  and 
  contribute 
  to 
  the 
  perpetuation 
  

   of 
  its 
  species. 
  In 
  the 
  rivers 
  striped 
  bass, 
  white 
  perch, 
  black 
  bass, 
  and 
  

   other 
  predaceous 
  fishes 
  devour 
  the 
  young, 
  and 
  when 
  they 
  reach 
  salt 
  

   water, 
  sharks, 
  horse-mackerel, 
  kingfish, 
  etc., 
  undoubtedly 
  destroy 
  many 
  

  

  