PACIFIC FISHERMAN 



PACIFIC FISHEIRMAN 



Issued on the 5th of Each Month 



Devoted Exclusively to the Commercial Fisheries of 



the Pacific Coast. 



Published by 

 Faoifio Trade Freis Oorporatlon 



A. V. COMINGS, Editor 

 MILLER FREEMAN, Manager 



Suite 101 Qrand Trunk Fler, Seattle, IT. S, A. 



United States and Mexico, per year $4.00 



Canada and Foreign Countries in Postal Union 4.50 

 Single Copies 35 



All changes and new copy for advertisements 



must be furnished prior to the 15th of each month. 



Entered as second-class matter May 5, 1903, at 

 Seattle. U. S. A. 



Hon of the combined forces of protection and propa- 

 gation is bound to manifest itself in greatly im- 

 proved conditions at no very distant time. 



Through the spring consiilerabie attention was de- 

 voted to tlie experimental feeding of 300,000 Chinook 

 salmon fry on canned salmon prepared especially 

 for the purpose. In the process of canning, the food 

 was ground to a fine pulp. Before feeding it was 

 necessary to work it tlirough a small mesh screen, 

 and at the same time care was exercised to pour 

 oft and remove as much oil as possible. The young 

 salmon soon learned to take the food readily and 

 for some time appeared to thrive, but after four or 

 five weeks they lost their thrifty and active appear- 

 ance.. They continued to take the food readily, but 

 evidently it did not give them the proper nourish- 

 ment. Feeding continued for 57 days, during the first 

 19 days of which the loss was 7 2-3 per cent, while 

 thereafter the ratio of loss steadily increased. Pre- 

 vious experiments in feeding a straight diet of canned 

 salmon have resulted similarly, but where it has 

 been frequently and regularly alternated with other 

 food such as liver and mush, results have been sat- 

 isfactory. 



Last August a new field station was opened on 

 tlie Rogue river at Grants Pass, and during the 

 fall the excellent take of 5,726,000 Chinook salmon 

 eggs was secured. This new station bids fair to 

 rank among the best in Oregon. Operations at other 

 points included a take of 440,000 Steelhead eggs on 

 Eagle creek, a tributary of the Clackamas river, 

 while 345,200 eggs of the same species were ob- 

 tained on the Illinois river near Selma. As a result 

 of collections during the fall and winter of 1910, 

 plants of 639,000 Chinook and 189,000 Coho fry oc- 

 curred last spring at the latter station. 



CAl^IPOBHZA, 



Opcraiicns in California were in the main confined 

 to the propagation of Chinook salmon on waters 

 tributary to the Sacramento. As for several years 

 past stations were operated on the MoCloud river at 

 Baird, on Battle creek near Anderson, and Mill creek 

 at Tehama. In addition, a new station for the propa- 

 gation of Rainbow trout was operated at Hornbrook. 

 The California work was under the local direction of 

 Mr. G. H. Lambson, with headquarters at Baird. 



Collections of Chinook eggs fell below the average, 

 being 7,676,900 at Baird, 11,590.000 at Battle Creek, 

 and 10,183,000 at Mill Creek, or less than thirty mil- 

 lion all told. This rather light take was due to 

 unfavorable stages of the streams where operations 

 were conducted. At Baird, extreme and long con- 

 tinued high water in the spring prevented the in- 

 stallation of racks until after many salmon had 

 passed upstream, while at Battle creek and Mill 

 creek, where only the fall run is handled, condi- 

 tions were reversed, the water being so low that but 

 relatively few fish entered the hatchery streams. 



At Hornbrook 2,298,450 eggs were secured. As is 

 often the case in handling wild trout, considerable 

 difficulty was experienced in obtaining a sufficient 

 number of ripe males during the earlier part of the 

 run. On the Truckee river near Sparks, Nevada, 

 about 600,000 black-spotted trout eggs were taken. 

 This work is subsidiary to the general salmon op- 

 erations in California. 



Several years ago the propagation of striped bass 

 was successfully undertaken at Bouldin Island, al- 

 though owing to physical difllculties egg collections 

 were not large. It is proposed to revive this work 

 at a point where conditions appear more favorable, 

 a site on the Feather river near Live Oak now being 

 under consideration. The striped bass is regarded 

 as one of the best food and game fishes on the 

 Pacific Coast. It is a native of the Atlantic and its 

 establisljment on the western seaboard has resulted 

 solely from two transplantings made by the federal 

 government. In 1S79 there occurred near San Fran- 

 cisco a plant of striped bass, mostly under 3 inches 

 long, from the Navesink river. New Jersey. Again 

 in 1883 a deposit of 300 small fish from the Shrews- 

 bury river, also in New Jersey, was made near the 

 same place. The acclimatization of the striped bass 

 on the Pacific Coast may be pointed to as one of 

 the most noteworthy achievements in this line of 

 endeavor. 



During the winter of 1910-1911 a plant of 750.000 

 Coho salmon fry from the Klamath river was made 

 in the Sacramento at Redding. From all available 

 records in these waters, and since the Coho does 

 not naturally frequ'nt the Sacramento, the possi- 

 bility of a return from this experimental planting is 

 a .valted with interest. 



M asurements of spawned Chlnooks at Baird and 

 at Baitle creek seem to Indicate that the fish at the 

 latter .station are slightly the larger. The maximums 

 are re.spectlvely, males 4,5.5 and 50 Inches; females, 

 30.5 and 35.7 inches. 



During the summer Dr. Charles W. Greene of the 

 University of Missouri, continued at Baird his study 

 of the salmon. The distribution of fats with par- 

 ticular reference to the function of the pyloric 

 eoeca, was made a special inquiry. The results of 

 this work will be published by the Bureau of Fish- 

 eries. 



The old idea that in the propagation of salmon 

 larger fish can be produced by selecting the larger 

 males for fertilizing the eggs is now questioned. Dr. 

 C. H. Gilbert states that since the larger males are 

 only the older fish nothing will be accomplished to- 

 wards producing a larger race by the exclusion of 

 the smaller males. 



The recent development of large irrigation pro- 

 jects on the Sacramento river has become a menace 

 to salmon propagation in these waters. In their 

 Journey downstream after being released at the 

 hatcheries 300 miles or more from the sea. great 

 numbers of small fish are carried into the in- 

 takes of the ditches and soon are cast upon the 

 ranchers' fields. Large extensions of irrigation work 

 may be expected and soon the loss of fry will be 

 so great as to make it impossible to maintain the 

 run of salmon. Screens sufllclently fine to prevent 

 the entrance of small fish catch such quantities of 

 debris that their use is often impracticable. Recent 

 investigations by the California Fish Commission 

 shows that there is also a considerable loss of young 

 salmon caught in small ponds, which dry up after 

 the spring noods. It would seem that a remedy lies 

 in reieasmg the fry at a point below the intakes of 

 tlie irrigation ditches, if plants are not made so 

 close to salt water as to reduce too greatly that 

 period of residence in fresh water necessary to the 

 welfare of the young salmon- 



ftT.ftBTT*. 



The bureau's fish cultural operations in Alaska 

 were continued as in the past at Afognak and Yes 

 bay. The run of Sockeye salmon at Afognak was 

 some what lighter this summer than usual, limit- 

 ing the take to 30,520,000 eggs, or less than half the 

 capacity of the hatchery. In addition, 6,472,000 

 Humpback and 224,700 Coho eggs were taken. It is 

 the intention hereafter to expand the propagation 

 of Humpback salmon. Although mis valuable fish 

 is still numerous in flie waters of Alaska, steps 

 must soon be taken to conserve the supply before 

 too great inroads have been made by the demands 

 of commercial fishing. The time has arrived when 

 the artificial propagation of Humpback salmon in 

 Southeastern Alaska is highly necessary, and a Hsli- 

 cultural station devoted to this work is certainly 

 most desirable. At Alognak several million Sockeye 

 eggs were taken tliis year from waters tributary to 

 Malena bay and transported overland to the hatch- 

 ery on the Afognak side. An expansion of this work 

 is in contemplation. Fry liave been released from 

 the Afognak station for only three seasons hence 

 results therefrom are hardly to be expected before 

 another year has elapsed. 



This fall the matchery at Yes bay was filled to 

 its capacity of 72,000,000 Sockeye salmon eggs. The 

 fall of 1910 this maximum was first secured; in the 

 four years' operation prior to that time the run 

 had not been of sufficient proportions to permit fill- 

 ing the hatchery. There are good reasons to believe 

 that the large take of eggs the last two seasons is a 

 concrete benefit from the propagation work begun 

 at this point in the fall of 1905. A consignment of 

 2,000,000 eggs was sent this season to Oregon for 

 Columbia river waters. 



At Yes bay special attention has been given to 

 the use of salt as a means of removing dead and 

 unfertile eggs, and the work has now reached a 

 high degree of efficiency. The solution is now ap- 

 plied to eggs freshly taken as well as to eyed eggs. 

 The advantages of its use are manifold, but its 

 chief value is in saving labor. Its expeditious ap- 

 plication permits the prompt elimination of dead 

 eggs and is thus of great benefit in reducing con- 

 tamination and infection. Further, it is believed that 

 the salt solution acts as a tonic or stimulant to the 

 good eggs. The secret in the practical application 

 of the salt bath is to get the solution of the proper 

 strength. The operation is based on the simple fact 

 that the specific gravity of the good eggs is slightly 

 greater than that of the bad eggs. The method con- 

 sists in immersing the eggs in the solution; the 

 good ones sink while the dead float and are easily 

 skimmed oft. The process is superior in every way 

 to the laborious and at times even injurious pick- 

 ing by hand. A novice will meet most diftlculty in 

 getting the bath of proper density, for if it is too 

 weak all the eggs will sink, and if too strong all 

 will remain afioat. The balance is so sensitive that 

 the fresh water which adheres to a basket of eggs 

 as it Is lifted from the hatchery trough to the re- 

 ceptacle containing the solution is sufficient to affect 

 the result with succeeding baskets unless a little 

 of the stock solution is added every few minutes. 

 However, after some experience the operator can 

 easily regulate this condition. A salinometer for 

 testing the density of the solution is a useful ad- 

 junct. This in.strument is merely a sealed glass 

 tube weighted at one end which floats vertically in 

 the solution. A scale within the tube gives the 

 readings for density. Tests can also be made by 

 trying a few eggs, both good and bad, as the solu- 

 tion is being mixed. 



At Yes bay it is customary to wait until five or 

 ten million eggs are far enough advanced to stand 

 moderate concussion, which is as soon as the line of 



the embryo shows plainly upon being held up to 

 the light. They are then stirred thoroughly with 

 the hand thus causing the unfertile eggs or "emp- 

 ties" to die and turn white. When first killed the 

 unfertile eggs are as heavy as the good eggs, hence 

 it is necessary to wait three days before the solu- 

 tion will not work well if there is much sediment. 

 A basket is taken from the hatching trough and is 

 drained for a few moments. It is then immersed 

 until the rim is nearly level with the surface of 

 the solution. All the eggs rise but soon the good 

 settle and the rim of the basket is then shoved be- 

 neath the surface and drawn to one side, leaving 

 the poor eggs floating in the solution. The entife 

 operation does not take over two or three minutes. 

 If perchance the brine is too weak or too strong, or 

 if for other reason the operation has been unsatis- 

 factory, the process should not be repeated until the 

 following day with that particular basket. Two ex- 

 perienced men can handle ten million Sockeye eggs 

 in a day. If the eggs are at all poor, at least twenty 

 pickers will be required to accomplish the same 

 amount of work. The process has during the past 

 season been applied with great success to the lake 

 trout work on the Great Lakes. There is no reason 

 why it should not be extended to all branches of 

 trout and salmon culture. 



The taking of salmon eggs by the methods of in- 

 cision Is now exclusively practiced at the federal 

 fish-cultural stations on Pacific Coast waters. This 

 process consists of killing the ripe female salmon 

 by a blow on the head, following which an incision 

 is made in the wall of the abdomen from the pectoral 

 fins to the vent. The knife is not inserted far enough 

 to injure any of the eggs. The method of incision 

 possesses marked advantages over the old process 

 of forcible expression by hand. In the latter, manj 

 eggs were ruptured by the heavy pressure often 

 necessary in forcing them out. A waste of good 

 eggs left in the folds of the organs within the fish 

 occurred, while on the other hand eggs but partially 

 mature and hence incapable of development were 

 often torn from the ovaries in the stripping process. 

 Even when so ripe that the eggs flow freely from 

 the vent without pressure there are usually a few 

 immature eggs in the ovaries. These immature 

 eggs cannot develop and are only a nuisance in the 

 hatchery, adding to the labor and spread of infec- 

 tions. When taken by incision the only eggs se- 

 cured are those fully ripe and at the same time no 

 good eggs need be left within the body cavity. The 

 hand of the operator is usually inserted to lift up 

 the organs in which the eggs are more or less en- 

 folded. Effective results cannot be obtained unless 

 the incision is made clear from the pectoral fins to 

 the vent. The entire operation requires less time 

 than stripping by hand pressure. Bleeding the fish 

 by cutting off the tail or head before excision of 

 the eggs has been practiced occasionally. Experi- 

 ments have clearly demonstrated that such procedure 

 is entirely unnecessary as the few drops of blood 

 occasionally getting into a pan of eggs will cause no 

 harm whatsoever. The value of taking salmon eggs 

 by the plan of incision is so well established that 

 the old method is no longer acceptable. 



An important feature of the work in Alaska was a 

 continuation of the count of Sockeye salmon running 

 up Wood river. The problem involved is to ascer- 

 tain for a series of years the number of fish reach- 

 ing the spawning grounds. By adding to this num- 

 ber the number caught by fishermen in the bay. con- 

 clusions may be reached in due course whereby the 

 escapement of breeding salmon necessary to main- 

 tain future runs can be determined. A barrier is 

 constructed across Wood river, and the salmon are 

 counted as they pass through gates provided for 

 the purpose. The results of the count for four years, 

 the number caught by fishermen, and the percentage 

 of escape will be found in the following: 



Caught No. Percentage 



by Counted in of 



Year Fishermen Wood River Escape 



1908 9,000,000 2,600,000 29 



1909 5,800,000 893,000 15 



1910 5,000,000 670,000 13 



1911 2,800,000 350,000 12 



As a result of the data from the Wood river 

 studies, it is hoped that definite standards can be 

 established for regulating future fishing, so that 

 fishermen may have all the surplus over and above 

 the escapement of fish neces.sary to perpetuate the 

 supply. Assuming that the four-year cycle is cor- 

 rect, there ought to be returns next year from the 

 1908 run. Thus, the catch next season, plus the 

 number which will be counted as escaping up Wood 

 river to the spawning grounds, will represent the re- 

 turn from 2,600,000 counted as the escapement of 

 1908. Continued study for a series of years along 

 this line is certain to be productive of great benefit 

 to all concerned. 



