12 



DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND GAME 



The manual is designed to provide specific information 

 on problems relating to management and operation 

 and is to serve as a comprehensive reference source 

 on policies, procedures, regulations and general de- 

 partmental information. 



Complete, up-to-date copies of the loose-leaf mim- 

 eographed manual are being maintained at all major 

 offices and installations of the department. 



A streamlining of the supervisory positions at the 

 state fish hatcheries, undertaken in response to the 

 changeover from small fingerling hatcheries to big new 

 multi-crop installations, was completed by the de- 

 partment and the State Personnel Board during the 

 biennium. 



The new set-up strengthens supervisory organiza- 

 tion and control by splitting the old top supervisory 

 class of Fish Hatchery Foreman into two new classes, 

 Fisheries Manager I and Fisheries Manager II. 



WILDLIFE PROTECTION 



The growth of California's army of sportsmen has 

 more than kept pace with the over-all population 

 growth of the State in the postwar period. From July 

 1, 1948, to the close of the current biennium, the 

 State has grown by 31 percent, whereas the numbers 

 of sportsmen buying fishing and hunting licenses in- 

 creased by 32 percent from July 1, 1948 through 1955. 



The problems created for the department's law en- 

 forcement branch by the increased hunting and fishing 

 pressure have been manifold, particularly since there 

 had been no increase in the warden force for many 

 years. The last addition was in the 1948-49 Fiscal Year 

 when 32 men were added to the staff. 



Studies conducted by the department aboard the reseorch vessel Noutilus 



led directly to the enactment of legislation requiring alt crab traps (pots) 



to provide openings to permit undersize crabs to escape. Arrows show 



iour-inch circular openings. 



(Fish and Game Photn by D. W. McFadden) 







By the end of the 1955-56 Fiscal Year there was 

 one warden for every 10,392 license buyers. The De- 

 partment of Finance recommended that the ratio be 

 one for every 7,500. The 1956 Session of the Legis- 

 lature responded to the request of the Department of 

 Fish and Game by authorizing 30 additional game 

 wardens and six additional game warden captains, 

 bringing the total law enforcement branch to a strength 

 of 253, of which 213 are wardens and the others 

 captains and supervisors. The new men were to begin 

 their duties in the 1956-57 Fiscal Year. At the 1955 

 figure of 1,938,027 licensed hunters and anglers, this 

 additional force will provide a ratio of one warden to 

 ever>- 8,972 sportsmen. 



Ratio to Grow 



The ratio will undoubtedly soon be greater, how- 

 ever, since indications at the close of the biennium 

 were that license buyers will top the 2,000,000 mark 

 in the next fiscal year for the first time in the State's 

 history. 



More sportsmen in the field meant a sizeable increase 

 in the work load of wardens during the biennium. In 

 spite of this, the wildlife protection function was able 

 to report a 15 percent increase in arrests over the 

 1952-54 period. To achieve this mark, wardens had to 

 put in long hours of overtime work without added 

 compensation. 



A Department of Finance report in 1954 estimated 

 that wardens average 12 hours per day in the field. 

 Wardens were called on for cooperative efforts of the 

 department with other state agencies, became area 

 leaders in pheasant co-ops, aided in the stream flow 

 maintenance program, checked fish screens and lad- 

 ders in routine patrols, aided in fish rescue work, 

 worked on pollution control and fact-finding projects, 

 appeared before public groups, helped in searches for 

 lost persons and cooperated with other agencies dur- 

 ing forest fires and other emergencies. 



Wardens Helped in Flood 



One such eniergenc\' was the disastrous floods of 

 the winter of 1955. At least 75 department men con- 

 tributed efforts above and beyond the call of duty 

 during the period. In some cases wardens were able 

 to give the first alarm of the trouble to come; in 

 others they formed the only communication with the 

 outside world for flood stricken communities. 



MARINE FISHERIES 



The Marine Fisheries picture was a variegated can- 

 vas of some very bright and some very dark hues 

 throughout the biennium. The brightest spots were 

 found in the shellfish fisheries and the darkest in the 

 ocean fisheries, although each contained its opposite 

 patches of dark or bright. 



Two record salmon catch years, a revitalized o>"ster 

 industry, new legislation to protect the market crab 



