XXIII.-REPORT OF OPERATIONS AT NORTHVILLE AND ALPENA 

 STATIONS FOR THE SEASON OF 1883-'84. 



By Fbank N. Clark. 



PRELIMINARY WORK. 



The work at the Northville Station from the beginning of the fiscal 

 year until about the middle of August consisted only of the usual rou- 

 tine — cleaning and repairing ponds, assorting the stock of fish, &c. 

 Two hands of the winter working force were retained through the sum- 

 mer, and were kept quite busy with that work. All the breeding fish 

 were placed in ponds connected with race-ways, and the fry in the others. 

 The floats which had been used on the ponds to furnish shade were 

 found to gather a considerable amount of JEungoid matter, which sloughed 

 off and polluted the water; we therefore had them removed and con- 

 structed shades of boards laid on sleepers extending across the ponds. 



The volume of water being inadequate to the increased amount of 

 work laid out for the season, we found it necessary to adopt apparatus 

 that would increase its availability. A supply of McDonald's closed 

 jars was obtained, and the tanks rearranged for their accommodation. 

 These jars are specially adapted to the use of a limited water supply, 

 as they can be arranged to run the same water through several of them. 

 With the open jars the water can only be used once, unless there 

 is fall enough to admit of placing several tiers of jars one above the 

 other. The work of reconstructing the tanks and placing the jars was 

 completed and the hatchery ready for the reception of eggs by the 1st 

 of November. 



THE WHITEFISH WORK. 



The first installment of whitefish eggs— four cases— was received at 

 Northville, from the islands in Lake Erie, Kovember 14, and the first 

 arrival at Alpena was received November 5. Although the bad weather 

 caused a very light catch of fish in the lower lakes, we had a supply of 

 eggs greatly in excess of that of any former year, owing to our much more 

 extensive arrangements for obtaining them. The heavy storms which 

 prevailed on all the lakes from the 10th to the 15th of November 

 effectually stopped the pound-net fishing, and our only supply after that 

 time was derived from the gill-net work in Lake Huron. It is a fact 

 well known by fishermen that when the whitefish are driven from their 

 coast spawning grounds by storms they will not return during the season. 



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