THIRTY-FOURTH BIENNIAL REPORT 15 



this unification of effort, the improvement of hatchery methods and 

 the adoption of a sound fish planting policy, great strides have been 

 made in its primary function, the production of trout and salmon. An 

 increase in the production of small mouth bass has been assured by the 

 completion of the Central Valleys Hatchery near Elk Grove, which will 

 be devoted entirely to the production of spiny rayed fishes. The duties 

 of fish rescue, which have been assumed by the Bureau of Fish Con- 

 servation, are being coordinated with the spiny rayed fish production 

 program. 



The research activities of this bureau are closely correlated with 

 production and distribution. . Among the problems that have been con- 

 sidered are the weighing and counting system of enumerating the 

 hatchery output, diet and disease control, the maintenance of an egg 

 supply on a salvage basis, stream and lake surveys, and the considera- 

 tion of the role played by the so-called rough fish in the waters of the 

 State. The improvement and upkeep of the twenty-six hatcheries and 

 twenty-seven egg taking stations constitutes a problem in itself which 

 has been made easier of solution by an efficient system of hatchery 

 inspection. Extensive construction and improvement have been accom- 

 plished through government relief agencies, notably the new hatcheries 

 at Basin Creek, Prairie Creek and Elk Grove. 



The Cooperative Trout Investigation, in which the California 

 Division of Fish and Game, the United States Bureau of Fisheries and 

 Stanford University have been taking part, has just completed four 

 years of activity which has resulted in the uncovering of a large 

 amount of valuable information, much of which has already been pub- 

 lished. 



BUREAU OF GAME CONSERVATION 



The Bureau of Game Refuges and the Bureau of Game Propaga- 

 tion were combined during the biennium into one organization, the 

 Bureau of Game Conservation. All Division functions having to do 

 with game birds and mammals are being administered by this bureau. 



Since this reorganization, there has been laid the foundation for 

 game management in California based on the determination of the 

 annual kill of our several game species through the compilation of 

 statistics provided by sportsmen on their hunting license applications. 

 The employment of the statistical method in the solution of game 

 problems is only now in its second year, but the results have been 

 extremely gratifying. 



The state game farms have increased their production consider- 

 ably during the biennium. This has been due to the continued 

 improvement of game farming methods and to the employment of 

 some eight hundred additional holding pens provided by sportsmen 

 throughout the state. The quail refuge program that is being con- 

 ducted in connection with the Los Serranos Game Farm in southern 

 California, is demonstrating the degree to which natural propagation 

 may be stimulated by management practice. 



The maintenance, at a high degree of efficiency, of the waterfowl 

 refuges and the observation of waterfowl conditions has been con- 

 tinued. Studies have been made of California's big game herds, par- 

 ticularly the mule deer and antelope of the northeastern corner of the 



