52 FISH AND GAME COMMISSION 



Flatfish. / 



Our earliest larp:e commercial fishery industry and still our most 

 iiiiliortaiit fresh market fishery is the traAvling for flatfishes in central 

 and northern California. The research work in this fishery has been the 

 gathering of data for life history studies of the several species of fishes 

 making up the commercial catch. Considerable progress has been made 

 in determining the size groups of each species and the species composi- 

 tion of the catch. Data have been collected toward determining growth 

 rate, size at maturity and spawning characteristics for each species. 

 The outstanding accomplishment so far has been the persuasion of the 

 fishermen to adopt larger meshed savings gear, thereby reducing the 

 wastage of young fish. Experimental hauls are now being made with 

 other types of trawl nets and of various sizes of mesh to determine for 

 the industry the most efficient gear. A less spectacular but equally 

 important accomplishment has been the introduction of detailed fishing 

 logs on the boats and a recording of the j-ield from numbered block 

 areas of the ocean. This is a basis for depletion studies which have 

 been started. 



Minor Research Projects. 



Minor research studies range from a special report, which may 

 require only a week or two in preparation, to investigations extending 

 over two or fhvoo years, but as contrasted with the major portions of 

 our program they are i-elatively of short duration and tempoi-ary 

 importance. Vor ('xam))lt', several icixn'ts have been made on the fish 

 or clam resources of limited areas for use in the state legislature, and 

 others have covei-ed the character of the commercial catch of some 

 species. Two more extensive minor studies are the experiments in the 

 tagging of striped bass in llie San Francisco Bay and river area to 

 determine migrations, and the annual census of the population of 

 clams at Pismo Beach to measure the rate of depletion and the possible 

 beneficial effects of the area closed to clam digging. 



Boat Trips. 



In the absence of a special research vessel, the ocean work has been 

 carried on by an arrangement for part time use of the two patrol boats, 

 Bhufin and Albacore, supplemented by trips on board vessels of the 

 commercial fishing fleet. The nature of our work during the last two 

 years lias called for an in'creasing amount of time spent at sea 

 by staff members. The longer voyages of two to six weeks have usualh' 

 been made by the Bluefm, and many of the shorter trips of two to 

 twenty days have been made aboard the Albacore. During the bien- 

 ninm. .'^7 iiiii)ortant research tri])s were made, 21 by the Blucfin and 16 

 l;y the, Alhdcorr. On four occasions, one-day trips employed the patrol 

 boat Broad hill. IT. C. Oodsil made three long tuna tagging voyages 

 in1n soulhern walei's ahuard one (if 1lie 1una vessels of the commercial 

 fh'ct. and nllief slalT iiienihers have made nuinerous one- and two-da}' 

 tri]js willi eoiiauercial fishei'men. 



Publications. 



The results of the research work are reported and in most cases 

 published for disti-ibution. The more comprehensive reports are issued 



