108 SALMON AND TEOUT IN ALASKA. 



On August 19, 131 cliarrs were taken in a seine haul in a spawning 

 creek. One hundred and twenty-eight of these were feeding on 

 maggots; 3 contained insects, and 1 a cottoid; 54 were without sal- 

 mon eggs; but the remaining 77 contained from 1 to 110 eggs each, an 

 average of 16. At this time there were few live spawning salmon in 

 the creek, and few dead eggs in sight in the eddies, where earlier 

 there had been an abundance. The trout were more numerous than 

 at any previous time, in schools of 30 to 50 as well as many isolated 

 individuals. 



In the salt water about Karluk Beach they were even more abun- 

 dant than in the lake. Sometimes as many as 2,000 are taken in a 

 single haul, and ordinarily at least 500. No effort is made to destroy 

 them. July 20, 220 of these were examined for stomach contents. 

 The most common food was small crustaceans of several species, 

 next in abundance sand launces, both adult and half grown being 

 quite common; young cod were found in many, 40 being taken from 

 one stomach. Xo other fish were found. July 25, of 22 examples, 

 7 to 18 inches in length, from the hatchery corral (fresh water). 17 

 were feeding; 2 had salmon eggs, 1 had 5 2-inch salmon fingerlings, 

 others had various crustaceans. Of 19 examples, 10 to 20 inches in 

 length, from the lagoon, examined July 28, only 4 were feeding. One 

 had eggs, 1 maggots, 1 young sand launces, and the other some uniden- 

 tifiable fish. No rainbow or cutthroat trout were seen in Karluk 

 Lake. 



July 14, 1903, the stomachs of 28 rainbow trout, 2 cutthroat, and 2 

 charrs, taken in the Naha, were examined. None contained young 

 salmon; 1 contained small eggs like herring eggs, and all the rest 

 contained only cadcUs larvae. The fish ranged from 2 feet to about 8 

 inches in length. At that time of year many coho young are resident 

 in the river. 



During the summer of 1905 many trout of the three species from 

 Yes River were examined. No record was kept of the number, "but 

 it amounts to at least a hundred. In these the food was mainly 

 caddis and insects from the surface. No young salmon were found, 

 though coho young were present in the stream. 



Trout and charrs have been taken near the hatchery at the head 

 of Heckman Lake with, numbers of fry in their stomachs. The exact 

 conditions are not known. In the planting of large numbers of fry 

 or small fingerlings, some are sure to be at least for a time chsabled 

 and numbers can reachly be captured by an active fish. The loss is 

 apt to be especially large if the plant is made in a vicinity where bad 

 eggs have been dumped, and the waters thus "baited." 



The sculpin or bullhead would seem to be a more dangerous enemy 

 to the salmon fry than is the trout. It lurks under the stones in just 

 such places as the fry will seek for shelter. Its movements are ex- 

 tremely rapid and its appetite insatiable. 



