REPORT OF STATE BOARD OF FISH COMMISSIONERS 59 



these fish are found in countless numbers, and anglers who have fished 

 for them in Eastern States claim that never in their experience have 

 they found them, so plentiful elsewhere. 



In our report two years ago we mentioned that a plant of 300 black 

 bass had been placed in Crane Valley Lake, Madera County. The fish 

 were one and two years old. We have recently received a communica- 

 tion from the president of this water company, stating that while he 

 had been opposed to having black bass planted in that body of water in 

 the first instance, as he believed we should have given him trout, he was 

 now convinced that he had been in error ; that " everybody was catch- 

 ing large strings of fish, and most people considered them quite as gamy 

 and equally as good a table fish as the trout." 



On the other hand, we decline a good many applications for black 

 bass when they are made for waters containing trout or better adapted 

 to trout life than black bass. Our further experience with both varie- 

 ties of fish bears out our judgment that these two high-grade sporting 

 fishes are not adapted to the same waters. They are antagonistic and 

 therefore expend much of their energy in fighting one another, rather 

 than in increasing and multiplying. 



An important plant is to be made this fall in Antelope Valley reser- 

 voir, located in Mono County, a body of water formerly known as Alkali 

 Lake, which has been enlarged by draining the waters of the south fork 

 of Walker River into it, which gives a surface area of more than six 

 square miles. Carp have obtained quite a foothold in this lake, and as 

 our experience shows that black bass will flourish wdierever carp exist, 

 we intend to make a liberal plant in those waters, and believe that in 

 two or three years there will have been added another to the consider- 

 able list of bass lakes in this State. 



Mention was made in our Eighteenth Biennial Report of shipments 

 made into the State of Nevada, from which we take the following 

 extracts: "We confidently believe that in two years the people of Nevada 

 will find that they have an additional food supply in the shape of a fish 

 that can not be excelled for table or gamy qualities." Quoting Mr. D. C. 

 Wheeler, a prominent citizen of that State, in whose 80-acre lake about 

 200 fish ranging from 3 to 8 inches in length were planted, he says there 

 are now "millions of them," and specimens weighing 3^ pounds have 

 been taken. 



We believe it would be wisdom on the part of the Legislature to 

 amend the black bass law so as to make it a misdemeanor for any one 

 to take, ship, offer for sale, buy, sell, or possess more than fifty black 

 bass during one calendar day. 



