12 REPORT OF THE COMMISSIONER OF FISHERIES. 



with the avaihable facilities to transfer the eggs from the fishing 

 grounds to the station, owing to the necessity of maintaining an 

 equable temperature, but with improved steamer service and more 

 suitable equipment this difficulty has apparently been overcome. 



Owing to changed fishing methods around Gloucester (Mass.) the 

 collection of pollock eggs in 1911 was the largest ever secured for that 

 station. Until 1909 pollock fishing was conducted almost wholly with 

 hand lines operated from sailing vessels, but of late motor boats fitted 

 out with gill nets and several large steam netters have taken up the 

 work. From this source more fish w-ere obtained than could be 

 handled to advantage with the force of spawntakers available. 



With the view of artificially propagating the menhaden, investi- 

 gations were conducted at the Woods Hole station, but no material 

 results were obtained owing to inability to secure ripe fish of both 

 sexes at the same time. As fish with nearly ripe spawn have been 

 taken in considerable numbers both in spring and fall, it seems clear 

 that the menhaden has two spawning periods, the first occurring in 

 the brackish coastal waters northward, and the second in the open sea 

 southward. 



Notwithstanding the large catches of shad reported in Chesapeake 

 Bay, there was a shortage in the egg collections and in the output of 

 fry at the stations on the Potomac and Susquehanna Kivers. Stormy 

 weather and unfavorable water temperatures at both stations affected 

 the run of fish to some extent, but the principal obstacle was the 

 failure of a fair percentage of fish to pass the cordon of pound and 

 other nets operated in the bay and near the mouths of these rivers. 

 The successful operation of suitable local laws in the Albemarle 

 Sound region has enabled the Bureau yearly to increase the output 

 of shad from the Edenton (N. C.) station, the distribution of fry 

 in 1911 surpassing that of any previous year. The clause of the 

 regulations in force in 1910, which prohibited the fishing of gill 

 nets within 800 yards of a pound net, was this year changed to 400 

 yards, thus affording gillers fishing in the Bureau's interest a wider 

 field of operations. 



The white perch and yellow perch operations on the Susquehanna 

 River resulted in a substantial increase in the output of both species 

 at the Havre de Grace (Md.) station. At the Bryans Point (Md.) 

 station on the Potomac River more yellow-perch eggs were obtained 

 than could be handled in the jars available, and the remainder were 

 successfully hatched in specially constructed cylindrical wire baskets 

 suspended in the river on stakes. The total output of white perch 

 and yellow^ perch exceeded that of any previous year. 



The artificial hatching of striped bass was conducted in the usual 

 way at the Weldon (N. C.) station, but the hindrances heretofore 

 encountered were again in force and rendered the work almost inef- 



