Pacific Coast Fishery Resources. 



11 



that section the soft parts are salmon- 

 colored and are eaten raw by the natives. 

 It 'is generally called the "gum boot," 

 from its shape. 



The Giant Chiton (Cryptocliitoii stel- 

 Icri], found on the California coast, 

 attains sometimes a length of ten inches. 

 When properly cleaned and dried the 

 mantle and valves much resemble a toy 

 boat, and find a ready sale in the curio 

 stores. They have also been made into 

 shades for electric lamps. 



ABALONE This mollusk is put to two 

 uses in California : the fleshy part is used 

 as food, either fresh, dried or canned, 

 while the shell is used for ornamental 

 purposes. In more northern waters is 

 found the Japanese abalone (Haliotis 

 gigantea}, which up to the present has 

 been practically ignored, although it is 

 fully as valuable from an edible stand- 

 point as its southerly relatives, and as 

 the latter are rapidly decreasing in 

 abundance it will doubtless soon become 

 an object of pursuit to the fishermen of 

 AVashington, British Columbia and 

 Alaska. 



CRUSTACEANS. 



SHRIMPS AND PRAWNS These crusta- 

 ceans are in quite general use in the coast 

 states, but their pursuit has been 

 neglected in Alaska. 



Shrimp are found in a number of 

 places in southeast Alaska, being fairly 

 abundant at times in the vicinity of 

 Wrangel, while the investigations of the 

 Albatross have shown that they are 

 abundant in the waters of central Alaska, 

 south of the Alaska Peninsula. During 

 the month of July, 1913, I found large 

 numbers in the stomachs of cod delivered 

 by the fishermen at Pirate Cove, on Popof 

 Island, in the Shumagin Islands. They 

 have been reported from a few places in 

 western Alaska. As the discovery of the 

 presence of shrimp in Alaska has been 

 what we might term accidental, it is 

 probable that other, and even more pro- 

 lific, grounds would be found if sought for 

 specifically. 



Prawns have been found in southeast 

 Alaska, in the vicinity of Wrangel. 

 Some prospecting was done in 1909 and 

 a few of these crustaceans, known to the 

 fishermen of Puget Sound as "big-spots" 

 (which average 5 inches in length), 

 "coon-stripes" (2 inches in length), and 

 "pinks" (1 to 11 inches in length) were 

 gathered. Later investigations disclosed 

 them in abundance in this vicinity and 

 considerable quantities are now shipped 

 right along in a boiled and dried condi- 



tion, the shells, when the crustaceans are 

 prepared in the last named manner, being- 

 sold as fertilizer. They will undoubtedly 

 be found in other parts of the territory 

 when search is made for them with the 

 proper apparatus. 



CRABS The "Dungeness" crab (Can- 

 cer magister) inhabits the Pacific coast 

 and ranges from Alaska to Lower Cali- 

 fornia. It is becoming scarce in the 

 regions from California to British Colum- 

 bia, but is exceedingly abundant in 

 Alaska, and for many years the residents 

 have been catching and eating them. In 

 1909 the business of catching and ship- 

 ping them to Puget Sound was first under- 

 taken. In the beginning all were shipped 

 alive, packed in seaweed, but so many 

 died on the way or arrived in bad condi- 

 tion that finally all were boiled before 

 being shipped. They were shipped during 

 the summer months when a closed season 

 on AVashington crabs prevailed. Owing 

 to certain peculiar conditions prevailing 

 on the sound in 1913, none were shipped 

 from Alaska in that year, and the busi- 

 ness has not been resumed since. 



The Red crab (C. productus), like the 

 other, is of a large size and is found from 

 Alaska to the Gulf of California. In 

 color the animal is dark red above and 

 yellowish beneath in the adults, but vari- 

 able in the young. It inhabits rocky shores 

 and is captured in the same way as <7. 

 magister. This is an edible crab, and 

 w r ill doubtless be much sought after soon 

 as a result of the growing scarcity of 

 C. magister. 



Owing to the cheapness and abundance 

 of the canned crabs imported from Japan, 

 the business of canning them has lan- 

 guished on this coast, but as crabs are 

 said to be decreasing in Japanese waters 

 it may be that eventually our" packers 

 will be able to do some business in this 

 line. 



BARNACLES The giant barnacle (Bal- 

 anus cvcrmanni), occurring in great pro- 

 fusion in the northern section of Puget 

 Sound, and possibly elsewhere on the 

 coast, are very delicious in flavor, and 

 when boiled fresh in hot water are just 

 as palatable as shrimp, crab or clam. As 

 they will stand shipment for long dis- 

 tances, they would be especially suitable 

 for marketing in the Middle AVest. They 

 are as easy to can as oysters. Specimens 

 are frequently found of a height of six 

 inches and a diameter of five inches. 



CRAWFISH This small freshwater 

 crustacean is quite common in the sloughs 

 of the AA r illiamette River and its tribu- 

 taries, in Oregon, and also in many of the 



