122 American Fisheries Society 



Partly because it has not yet been deemed necessary 

 to have them, and partly for the reason that the exact 

 spawning season of each of the several more important 

 species of salt water fish has never been accurately de- 

 termined, so far as our territory is concerned, Louisi- 

 ana has no salt water fish close seasons. However, it is 

 realized that the same will soon be necessary and investi- 

 gations have been made from time to time with a view to 

 locating their different spawning grounds within this 

 state, as well as their spawning period. 



Net fishing for the taking of salt water fish, from 

 waters within the territory of the jurisdiction of Louisi- 

 ana, is limited to drag seines and hoop-nets ; as is done in 

 the case of fresh-water fish. There is no limit to the 

 length of a seine which may be used for taking the for- 

 mer. The cost of a license under which to fish for salt 

 water fish with a seine is based, however, on the length 

 of it. Hoop-nets must not have leaders or wings at- 

 tached, and must not be set in any body of water less 

 than forty yards in width at low water mark. 



It is illegal to take, or have in possession, any salt 

 water fish less than eight inches in length other than 

 bream, croakers, or sea perch. The law further pro- 

 hibits any person, firm or corporation engaged in the 

 salt water commercial fisheries, from buying any speicies 

 of salt water fish measuring less than eight inches in 



length. . 



Seines when being hauled for salt water shrimp often 

 bring in large quantities of salt water fish. In that case, 

 those that are found to be injured or dead may be re- 

 tained, but those hauled out alive and uninjured must be 

 liberated as the seine is brought out of the water. A 

 great many fish are destroyed annually by shrimp seines 

 as a majority of those hauled in with a fairly good catch 

 of shrimp, are either found to be dead or badly injured. 

 The larger proportion of such are usually left to be de- 

 stroyed by birds and animals, especially the smaller fish 

 which cannot well be used for food. There does not ap- 

 pear to be any practical method of preventing this. A 



