﻿REPORT 
  OF 
  THE 
  COMMISSIONER 
  OF 
  FISHERIES. 
  21 
  

  

  from 
  Marcli 
  17 
  to 
  March 
  22, 
  when 
  a 
  heavy 
  southwest 
  storm 
  arose, 
  

   accompanied 
  by 
  rising 
  temperature, 
  and 
  before 
  its 
  subsidence 
  the 
  

   spawning 
  season 
  of 
  yellow 
  porch 
  had 
  ended. 
  The 
  egg 
  collections 
  

   amounted 
  to 
  286,325,000, 
  and 
  the 
  output 
  of 
  fry 
  to 
  229,060,000. 
  

   Collections 
  of 
  white-percli 
  eggs 
  were 
  begun 
  April 
  8 
  and 
  discontinued 
  

   May 
  20, 
  the 
  573,000,000 
  obtamed 
  yielding 
  372,450,000 
  fry, 
  in 
  addi- 
  

   tion 
  to 
  20,000,000 
  eyed 
  eggs 
  shipped 
  to 
  applicants. 
  

  

  Tlie 
  collections 
  of 
  shad 
  eggs 
  for 
  the 
  Battery 
  station 
  extended 
  from 
  

   April 
  19 
  to 
  May 
  20 
  and 
  numbered 
  only 
  6,861,000, 
  as 
  compared 
  with 
  

   a 
  take 
  of 
  12,175,000 
  in 
  1912. 
  In 
  addition 
  to 
  the 
  growing 
  scarcity 
  of 
  

   shad 
  in 
  this 
  river, 
  a 
  most 
  discouraging 
  feature 
  of 
  the 
  shad 
  work 
  is 
  

   the 
  constantly 
  increasing 
  number 
  of 
  set 
  nets 
  operated 
  by 
  commercial 
  

   fishermen. 
  The 
  use 
  of 
  these 
  permits 
  destruction 
  by 
  eels 
  of 
  most 
  of 
  

   the 
  eggs 
  contained 
  in 
  fish 
  taken, 
  owing 
  to 
  the 
  time 
  that 
  elapses 
  

   between 
  the 
  capture 
  and 
  the 
  tending 
  of 
  the 
  nets. 
  

  

  On 
  the 
  Potomac 
  River 
  some 
  difficulty 
  was 
  experienced 
  in 
  the 
  yel- 
  

   low-perch 
  work 
  by 
  the 
  mild 
  open 
  winter, 
  which 
  permitted 
  extended 
  

   operations 
  by 
  the 
  commercial 
  fishermen 
  and 
  depleted 
  the 
  supply 
  

   of 
  brood 
  fish 
  to 
  such 
  an 
  extent 
  that 
  it 
  was 
  impossible 
  to 
  secure 
  a 
  

   sufiiciently 
  large 
  stock 
  of 
  breeders 
  to 
  fill 
  the 
  Bryan 
  Point 
  hatchery 
  

   with 
  eggs. 
  The 
  collections 
  were 
  made 
  between 
  February 
  21 
  and 
  

   March 
  14, 
  and 
  resulted 
  in 
  obtaining 
  10,301 
  brood 
  fish, 
  about 
  half 
  

   the 
  number 
  desired. 
  The 
  spawning 
  of 
  these 
  fish 
  was 
  completed 
  by 
  

   March 
  24, 
  the 
  total 
  yield 
  of 
  eggs 
  amounting 
  to 
  124,800,000, 
  an 
  aver- 
  

   age 
  of 
  12,115 
  per 
  fish. 
  A 
  consignment 
  of 
  3,900,000 
  eyed 
  eggs 
  was 
  

   transferred 
  to 
  Central 
  station, 
  and 
  the 
  remaining 
  stock 
  produced 
  

   113,923,000 
  healthy 
  fry, 
  which 
  were 
  distributed 
  in 
  the 
  tributaries 
  

   of 
  the 
  Potomac 
  River 
  from 
  Broad 
  Creek, 
  Md., 
  to 
  Occoquan 
  Creek, 
  Va. 
  

  

  A 
  new 
  feature 
  of 
  the 
  shad 
  work 
  on 
  the 
  Potomac 
  River 
  was 
  the 
  

   conversion 
  of 
  a 
  large 
  scow 
  into 
  an 
  auxiliary 
  hatchery, 
  capable 
  of 
  

   carrying 
  3,000,000 
  eggs, 
  by 
  installing 
  thereon 
  a 
  table 
  of 
  32 
  McDonald 
  

   jars 
  and 
  a 
  gasoline 
  pumping 
  plant 
  of 
  a 
  capacity 
  of 
  2,000 
  gallons 
  per 
  

   minute. 
  The 
  water 
  for 
  this 
  hatchery 
  was 
  pumped 
  into 
  a 
  50-gallon 
  

   barrel 
  elevated 
  3 
  feet 
  above 
  the 
  hatching 
  table, 
  and 
  the 
  connections 
  

   were 
  arranged 
  for 
  a 
  gravity 
  flow 
  of 
  water 
  to 
  .the 
  jars. 
  The 
  scow, 
  

   thus 
  fitted 
  up 
  and 
  provided 
  with 
  a 
  force 
  of 
  two 
  experienced 
  shad 
  

   culturists, 
  was 
  moored 
  in 
  Occoquan 
  Bay, 
  Va., 
  for 
  the 
  purpose 
  of 
  

   promptly 
  and 
  properly 
  caring 
  for 
  all 
  eggs 
  that 
  might 
  be 
  secured 
  

   within 
  a 
  24-hour 
  period 
  from 
  the 
  gill-net 
  fishermen 
  operating 
  in 
  that 
  

   vicinity, 
  such 
  collections 
  being 
  transferred 
  to 
  the 
  main 
  hatchery 
  

   every 
  night 
  by 
  the 
  steamer 
  PJialarope. 
  The 
  provision 
  of 
  this 
  sub- 
  

   sidiary 
  hatchery 
  will 
  be 
  the 
  means 
  of 
  saving 
  large 
  numbers 
  of 
  eggs 
  

   that 
  would 
  otherwise 
  be 
  lost 
  through 
  failure 
  to 
  give 
  them 
  attention 
  

   &s 
  soon 
  as 
  taken, 
  the 
  location 
  in 
  question 
  being 
  too 
  far 
  distant 
  from 
  

  

  