REPORT OF COMMISSIONER OF FISH AND FISHERIES. XXXVII 



24,997,000. The cost of collectin g, developing, aud transporting the eggs 

 at this and the Fort Washington stations was $3,796.45, which is at 

 the rate of $127.60 per million, or 78 shad for one cent.' There has been 

 a marked gradual increase in efficienc}* of the force in transporting and 

 hatching eggs, the percentage of loss diminishing year by year from 

 1883, when it was 29 per cent., to 1884, when it was 26 per cent., to 

 1885, when it was 10 per cent., while in 1886 it was only 7 per cent. 



The Battery Station. — The work of the shad season began April 18 

 and ended June 10. The first run of fish continued for a week. All 

 the runs of the season were very large. The number of eggs collected 

 was 60,766,000. The supply of hatching apparatus was inadequate to 

 meet the requirements. The number of fry hatched was 45,231,000, the 

 percentage of hatching being 74.4; 43,776,000 fry were shipped away 

 and deposited mainly in the Susquehanna Eiver and other tributaries 

 of the northern part of Chesapeake Bay ; 1,000,000 fry were sent to 

 Oregon, besides 585,000 eggs, resulting in a deposit of 850,000 fry in 

 the Columbia River. 



Worh of the Fish Hatch.— From April 26 to May 1 the Fish Hawh 

 visited the fishing shores and gillers in the northern end of Chesapeake 

 Bay, and obtained 2,192,500 eggs for the Battery Station. During most 

 of May the vessel was engaged on the Delaware in transporting spawn- 

 takers, aud in collecting, transferring, aud depositing eggs. 34,454,500 

 eggs were obtained, from which 23.196,000 fry were hatched on board 

 aud 21,018,000 deposited in the Delaware River. 



Worh of the Halcyon. — From April 27 to May 23 the steamer Halcyon 

 was occupied in Chesapeake Bay and in the Delaware River in gather- 

 ing, transferring, aud hatching eggs, and depositing the young shad. 

 4,561,000 eggs were taken; most of them were transferred to Battery 

 Station or to the Fish Hatch, while some were hatched on board and 

 deposited. 3,000,000 fry were received from Battery Station and de- 

 posited in the tributaries of the Upper Chesapeake. 



The Cold Spring Harbor Station. — Late in April 1,796,000 shad eggs 

 were received from the Central Station at Washington. Only 100,000 

 fry were obtained from these, and deposited in the Hudson River, near 

 Albany. 



Experiments in planting shad. — Attempts have been continued to ac- 

 climate shad in the Colorado River of the West, and thus to establish 

 fisheries on the Colorado, Gila, aud other tributaries of the Gulf of Cali- 

 fornia. This experiment was began in 1884 by the deposit of 983,000 

 fish, followed by 998,000 eggs in 1885 and 850,000 eggs in 18S6, making 

 a total of 2,S31,000, all of which were planted at the Needles, if suc- 

 cessful, the fry deposited in 1884 should return as mature fish in 1888. 



The effort to transfer shad to the Columbia River basin was repeated 

 also. 1,000,000 fry, 200,000 eggs on trays, and 3S5,000 eggs in hatching 

 jars were sent out from Havre de Grace on May 9, 18S0. The eggs in 

 jars gave the best results, and this may indicate the proper method of 



