1919 GAME AND FISHEEIES. 



Hatchebies. 



In accordance with my recommendation of last year I am pleased to report 

 that a hatchery 38' x 76' has been built in Current Eiver Park, Port Arthur, 

 under the supervision of Mr. George H. Eapsey, Superintendent of this Department, 

 and to whom I desire to give due credit. The building is well constructed and 

 fully equipped for the hatching of both speckled and lake trout, whitefish, herring 

 and pickerel with ideal conditions as to the source and supply of pure water and 

 tho hatchery, as a whole, is considered by the authorities to be as modern and 

 efficient as any hatchery in the Dominion, having a capacity for 75,000,000 white- 

 fish and 15,000,000 trout. The completion of this hatchery will place four hatcher- 

 ies under the operation of this Department for the season of 1919. 



I would recommend the erection of ponds for rearing speckled trout fry at 

 Mount Pleasant and Port Arthur as better results can be obtained by rearing the 

 fry until they attain the size of fingerlings and, when all danger of spring floods 

 is over, a supply of natural food is more favourable. 



I regret to report that, on acount of the unfavourable weather conditions of 

 last spring, the bass hatch proved a failure for the first time in ten years. Similar 

 failures have been reported from other hatcheries outside of the Province and was 

 due to the fact that the temperature of the water as late as July 6th, which is well 

 beyond the normal period for the small moulh bass to hatch, did not register higher 

 than 57 degrees P., a temperature too low for the bass to spawn in breeding ponds. 

 The result has been that, instead of the bass preparing their nests and hatching 

 as nature intended, they simply scattered their eggs which were a total loss. The 

 water must have a temperature of at least 64 degrees P. before the small mouth 

 bass will spawn properly. 



The fall collection of spawn did not reach my expectations and, no doubt, the 

 collection was greatly affected by adverse weather conditions and, in the north, 

 on account of the prevailing epidemic of influenza. For the first time the Depart- 

 ment has been successful in collecting 170,000 brook trout spawn for the Mount 

 Pleasant Hatchery and 1,500,000 speckled trout spawn from the famous Fepigon 

 stock for the Port Arthur Hatchery. The output of the new hatchery at Normandale 

 consisted of 1,400,000 pickerel dore, 15,500,000 whitefish and 38,000,000 herring 

 fry and were all planted in the waters of Lake Erie. Adding to these figures the 

 hatch of 2,000,000 pickerel dore fry at the Port Carling Hatchery, which were 

 placed in the Muskoka waters, makes a grand total of 56,900,000 as a total distri- 

 bution by the Province. This is the first year that the Department undertook the 

 propagation of fish other than game species and this distribution may be considered 

 as a very creditable showing for the initial year. 



Acknowledgment. 



I wish to publicly express through you my appreciation of the hearty co-opera- 

 tion given by all of the Railway and Transportation Companies who have materially 

 assisted in the inspection and enforcement of the Act by the various officers of this 

 Department and in the matter of handling the Government fish car and distribution 

 of fry wherever requested. 



My thanks also extends to employees of the Department who have rendered 

 faithful services and to other Departments of the Provincial Government for their 

 assistance and co-operation and I refer particularly to the officers of the Provincial 

 Police and the Officials and staff of the Forestrv Branch. 



