14 CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME 



TAGGING OF STRIPED BASS " 



By G. H. Clark 



A little over a year ago, on September 20, 1932, the first striped 

 bass {Roccus lineatus) was tagged under an investigation which had 

 been instigated by the California Division of Fish and Game and 

 strongly urged and sponsored by the sportsmen of California, to deter- 

 mine the movement of the stripers. An agreement had been arranged 

 between the Division and the sportsmen, which provided that the Divi- 

 sion furnish the tags and other e(iuipment and keep records of the 

 tagging and of the tags recovered, and that the sportsmen cooperate by 

 assisting in the actual tagging. 



On September 20 and 21, 1932, the Division commenced the work 

 by tagging 50 striped bass, after which instructions on tagging pro- 

 cedure were issued and given to the sportsmen's organizations and 

 tagging equipment was also supplied for distribution by these organiza- 

 tions to responsible striped bass anglers, so that these men could tag 

 bass while on their fishing trips. By the end of the first year, Septem- 

 ber, 1933, 294 fish had been tagged :' 158 by the Division and 136 by the 

 sportsmen. During this period of a year, 35 tagged fish had been caught 

 or 11.9 per cent had been recovered one year or less after being tagged 

 and liberated. 



It is, of course, realized that no very definite results from tagging 

 can be gained until large numbers of fish have been tagged. Conse- 

 quently, in order to expedite the work, the Division tagged 179 bass on 

 October 17, 18 and 19, 1933, and 206 on November 7, 8 and 9, 1933. 

 The sportsmen tagged 11 after September 1, 1933, which made the 

 total number of fish tagged 689. Since September, 1933, there were 7 

 recoveries, bringing the number of recovered tags to 42, or a 6 per cent 

 return of all fish tagged. 



The striped bass tags consist of two celluloid discs, one red and 

 one white, one-quarter inch in diameter, and a nickel pin l-pj inches 

 long. The white disc contains a number and the inscription, ' ' Cali- 

 fornia Division of Fish and Game," and the red disc contains the 

 inscription, "Return to Division of Fish and Game, San Francisco, 

 Calif." The tag is put on between the two back (dorsal) fins one- 

 (juarter of an inch below the ridge of the back. 



Procedure for tagging is as follows: When a bass is caught on the 

 line, it is brought aboard the boat or on shore. The back of the fish is 

 grasped with the left hand, using a wet gunny sack to protect the 

 hand from spines and to prevent rubbing off of more slime than neces- 

 sary. Next, the hook is removed as carefully as possible, the gunny 



• Contribution No. 136 from the California State Fisheries Laboratory, Novem- 

 ber 14. 1933. 



This work was taken over by the writer after E. C. Scofleld resigned from 

 the Division of Fish and Game. Scofleld had started the work and determined 

 and ordered the type of tag suitable for tagging striped bass. S. H. Dado of 

 the Division made the awls for tagging, lias helped with the tagging done by 

 the Division and has kept a duplicate record of tags. I am indebted to the Bureau 

 of Patrol for use of the launch Quinnat, in tagging and to the members of its 

 crew for their assistance. 



