﻿50 
  REPORT 
  OF 
  THE 
  COMMISSIONER 
  OF 
  FISHERIES. 
  

  

  and 
  when 
  a 
  suitable 
  location 
  is 
  found 
  it 
  is 
  hoped 
  that 
  Congress 
  will 
  

   provide 
  an 
  adequate 
  appropriation 
  for 
  the 
  acquirement 
  of 
  the 
  land 
  

   and 
  the 
  construction 
  of 
  the 
  station. 
  

  

  The 
  spawning 
  season 
  of 
  the 
  pike 
  perch 
  in 
  Michigan 
  waters 
  was 
  

   between 
  April 
  11 
  and 
  28. 
  The 
  total 
  collections 
  of 
  eggs 
  from 
  fish 
  

   turned 
  over 
  to 
  the 
  Bureau 
  by 
  the 
  commercial 
  fishermen 
  operating 
  in 
  

   Sagmaw 
  Bay 
  and 
  at 
  the 
  mouth 
  of 
  the 
  Pine 
  River 
  amounted 
  to 
  

   167,850,000, 
  of 
  which 
  35,000,000 
  were 
  shipped 
  green 
  to 
  outside 
  

   Federal 
  and 
  State 
  hatcheries. 
  Fifteen 
  million 
  eyed 
  eggs 
  were 
  turned 
  

   over 
  to 
  the 
  Michigan 
  State 
  Fish 
  Commission, 
  to 
  fulfill 
  the 
  terms 
  of 
  

   the 
  lease 
  of 
  the 
  Detroit 
  hatchery, 
  and 
  25,530,000 
  fry 
  were 
  hatched 
  

   from 
  the 
  remainder 
  and 
  liberated 
  on 
  the 
  spawning 
  grounds. 
  

  

  When 
  the 
  windstorm 
  which 
  created 
  such 
  havoc 
  in 
  the 
  upper 
  lakes 
  

   struck 
  the 
  west 
  end 
  of 
  Lake 
  Erie, 
  whitefish 
  had 
  assembled 
  on 
  the 
  

   spawning 
  grounds 
  in 
  considerable 
  numbers, 
  but 
  as 
  the 
  weather 
  prior 
  

   to 
  that 
  time 
  had 
  been 
  too 
  warm 
  for 
  the 
  holding 
  of 
  fish 
  in 
  crates, 
  no 
  

   penning 
  operations 
  had 
  been 
  undertaken 
  at 
  the 
  various 
  field 
  stations 
  

   operated 
  m 
  connection 
  with 
  the 
  Put-m 
  Bay, 
  Ohio, 
  station. 
  The 
  

   wmd 
  blew 
  so 
  violently 
  for 
  three 
  days 
  that 
  the 
  water 
  was 
  driven 
  from 
  

   the 
  west 
  end 
  of 
  the 
  lake 
  to 
  such 
  an 
  extent 
  that 
  it 
  feU 
  from 
  4 
  feet 
  to 
  

   5 
  feet 
  below 
  the 
  normal 
  level. 
  Fishing 
  apparatus 
  of 
  all 
  kinds 
  was 
  

   greatly 
  damaged, 
  and 
  the 
  waters 
  became 
  so 
  roily 
  that 
  the 
  fish 
  deserted 
  

   the 
  spawning 
  grounds, 
  and 
  in 
  some 
  places 
  returned 
  only 
  in 
  compara- 
  

   tively 
  small 
  numbers. 
  The 
  fisheries 
  in 
  the 
  vicinity 
  of 
  Port 
  Clinton 
  

   and 
  along 
  the 
  south 
  shore 
  of 
  the 
  reefs 
  sustained 
  the 
  greatest 
  damage. 
  

   Along 
  the 
  west 
  shore 
  the 
  nets 
  were 
  more 
  or 
  less 
  protected, 
  and 
  the 
  

   current 
  from 
  the 
  Detroit 
  River 
  soon 
  cleared 
  the 
  water 
  in 
  the 
  vicinity 
  

   of 
  the 
  fisheries 
  at 
  Monroe 
  Piers, 
  producing 
  ideal 
  spawning 
  condi- 
  

   tions. 
  Here 
  the 
  fish 
  congregated 
  m 
  immense 
  numbers, 
  permitting 
  

   of 
  a 
  catch 
  far 
  in 
  excess 
  of 
  any 
  previous 
  year's 
  record. 
  At 
  the 
  Bureau's 
  

   field 
  station 
  at 
  this 
  point 
  15,694 
  impounded 
  fish 
  yielded 
  122,160,000 
  

   eggs. 
  These, 
  added 
  to 
  the 
  eggs 
  purchased 
  direct 
  from 
  the 
  fishermen, 
  

   brought 
  the 
  season's 
  collections 
  in 
  the 
  Monroe 
  Piers 
  field 
  to 
  306,360,000, 
  

   and 
  had 
  there 
  been 
  facilities 
  for 
  handling 
  them 
  man\^ 
  more 
  might 
  

   have 
  been 
  secured. 
  The 
  aggregate 
  collections 
  from 
  all 
  of 
  the 
  Lake 
  

   Erie 
  fields 
  amounted 
  to 
  488,240,000, 
  far 
  more 
  than 
  could 
  be 
  handled 
  

   m 
  the 
  Put-in 
  Bay 
  hatchery 
  with 
  the 
  existing 
  facilities. 
  Shipments 
  

   of 
  green 
  eggs 
  to 
  the 
  number 
  of 
  233,760,000 
  were 
  forwarded 
  direct 
  

   from 
  the 
  fields 
  of 
  collection 
  to 
  various 
  Federal 
  and 
  State 
  hatcheries, 
  

   and 
  similar 
  disposition 
  was 
  made 
  of 
  12,160,000 
  after 
  the 
  eye-spots 
  

   appeared. 
  The 
  remamder 
  were 
  developed 
  at 
  the 
  Put-in 
  Bay 
  station, 
  

   producing 
  163,200,000 
  healthy, 
  vigorous 
  fry, 
  all 
  of 
  which 
  were 
  

   returned 
  to 
  the 
  spawning 
  grounds 
  m 
  the 
  lake. 
  

  

  The 
  Ohio 
  State 
  Fish 
  Commission 
  having 
  arranged 
  to 
  cover 
  all 
  

   available 
  territory 
  in 
  a 
  search 
  for 
  lake-herring 
  eggs, 
  the 
  Bureau 
  made 
  

   no 
  attempt 
  to 
  take 
  up 
  that 
  work. 
  Moreover, 
  in 
  view 
  of 
  the 
  enor- 
  

   mous 
  collections 
  of 
  whitefish 
  eggs, 
  there 
  would 
  have 
  been 
  no 
  room 
  

   for 
  lake-herring 
  eggs 
  had 
  any 
  been 
  secured. 
  

  

  Only 
  fair 
  results 
  were 
  attained 
  in 
  the 
  pike-perch 
  work 
  on 
  Lake 
  

   Erie. 
  No 
  severe 
  storms 
  occurred 
  in 
  the 
  course 
  of 
  the 
  spawning 
  

   season, 
  which 
  extended 
  from 
  April 
  7 
  to 
  May 
  7, 
  but 
  a 
  succession 
  of 
  

   gales 
  in 
  several 
  of 
  the 
  fields 
  prevented 
  the 
  installation 
  of 
  the 
  fisher- 
  

   men's 
  nets 
  until 
  the 
  season 
  was 
  well 
  advanced. 
  Especially 
  was 
  this 
  

   true 
  at 
  Port 
  Clinton, 
  ordinarily 
  one 
  of 
  the 
  most 
  prolific 
  sections. 
  

  

  