52 



FISH AND GAME COMMISSION 



Figure 11. California landings of rockfish and flatfish (flounder, sole and turbot) 



decline has resulted partly from poor market conditions and partly from 

 a shortage of rockfish on some of the banks. The increase in catches of 

 sole has resulted from a steady increase in the number of boats, increase 

 in the efficiency of <jear, development of new fishinp' grounds in waters 

 decpci- than were formerly fished, and in the utilization of species for- 

 iiH'i-ly regarded as trash fish. For example, the previously unutilized 

 Dovei- sole now provides the largest poundage of any single species of 

 flalfisli. Tiic in<'reased use of this species was largely responsible for 

 the fact that llic catch of fl.atfish in li)48 was the greatest ever recorded 

 in the State's history. The industrj^ is just beginning to take large quan- 

 tities of scaly-fin ( Px'llingham) sole, another formerly unutilized species. 

 Tn spite <»f tlic increase in total landings, the trawl fishery is not 

 as liealtli\- as il would seem. There has been a tlecided decline in the 

 catches of previously utilized fish and to some extent in the Dover sole, 

 a c()n(litioii that li;is sefionsly wori'ied the industry. Part of this has 

 (h)nl)th'ss heen due to a great increase in the nnmher of boats, but part 

 of it has also heen due to unnecessary waste of small fish, and the resulting 

 (Irclihc iu the numbers available. Pi'ior to 11)40, the trawlers were com- 

 pany-ow ncil, ami there were rehit i \('l.\' few companies. At the suggestion 

 of llie l)i\isi(in el' h'ish and (iamc these com|)anies voluntarily limited 

 tliemsel\('s to the use of nets with a hag of five-inch mesh or greater. 

 'I'liis peiinitted ihe escape of large (piaiifities of small uonsaleable flat- 

 fish. In more recent yi'ars the hoats ha\-e heen operated hy individual 

 owners; hence, the old agi'eement between the companies no longer held. 

 The boats have been using nets with a mesh as fine as 2i inches, and 

 the use of such gear resulted in the loss of large quantities of fish which 



