BUREAU OF FISH CONSERVATION 



Charged with the management of the State's inland waters, the Bu- 

 reau of Fish Conservation continues to carry on a fisheries management 

 program based on sound biological investigations, research and fact 

 finding. 



With additional water required each year for the needs of irriga- 

 tion, hydroelectric power development, industrial and domestic nse due 

 to a population increase of nearly 1,000 persons per day and already 

 having a population of 11,000,000 and boasting of over one million li- 

 censed anglers, the managing of California's approximately 5,000 lakes 

 and 25,000 miles of fresh-water streams in order to provide satisfactory 

 fishing is indeed a very complex problem. In carrying on a long-range 

 program of fisheries management the Bureau of Fish Conservation is 

 faced with the continuously increasing task of a program of fisheries in- 

 vestigations, propagation, pollution control, fish screens, fish rescue, flow 

 maintenance and stream improvement. A summary of each of these 

 activities follows. 



HATCHERY OPERATIONS 



The ever-increasing demand for catch able fish to satisfy a greater 

 number of anglers each year has been partly met by bringing into pro- 

 duction one new hatchery and by remodeling and enlarging several of 

 our older units in order to better adapt them to the rearing of larger 

 fish. Trout and salmon produced by hatcheries during the period covered 

 by this report amounted to 1,109.01)5 pounds as compared to 952,768 

 pounds during the previous biennium. This increase was made possible 

 by bringing into operation our new Fisli Springs Hatchery, Inyo 

 County, and by improvements at Mt. Shasta and Crystal Lake Hatch- 

 eries. While fingerling trout are required for airplane stocking of re- 

 motely located lakes where fishing pressure is comparatively light, the 

 trend toward planting larger fish continues and each year finds our 

 hatcheries producing less fingei-lings while increasing the number of 

 catchable sized fish. 



Unprecedented storms ranging throughout Northern California and 

 extending as far south as the Tehachapis during November, 1950, caused 

 stream flows to reach flood stage and considerable flood damage was 

 experienced at Prairie Creek, Mt. Tallac, Kern River, Kaweah and Yuba 

 River Hatcheries. At the latter two locations, damage was so extensive 

 that repairs could not be made, and since both of these locations were 

 outmoded installations and suitable for rearing fingerlings only, they 

 were permanently closed and all reclaimable material salvaged. 



Fish hatchery construction projects, some of which have been planned 

 since 1940, did not get under way as rapidly as expected during the fore- 

 part of this biennium. This was mostly due to slowdowns occasioned by 

 unsettled world conditions brought about by the Korean situation involv- 

 ing our national defense program. Many materials used in normal con- 

 struction work were brought under government control and materials 



(21) 



