230 Roosevelt Wild Life Bulletin 



After reading this description of the lake and the conditions 

 obtaining in it as presented by Professor Smallwood, and consider- 

 ing the number and kinds of fish that have been planted one is com- 

 pelled to agree that the lake is a very clear object lesson in over- 

 stocking. It is shown that from 1887 to 1916, both inclusive, 

 17,535,850 food and game fish had been planted in this comparatively 

 small and relatively barren lake. This number comprised five species, 

 four of which were notably predacious fishes, consisting of brook 

 trout (683,850); lake trout (1,067,000); rainbow trout (91,000); 

 brown trout (6,000). The largest number of all is that of the com- 

 mon whitefish (15,688,000). These figures were furnished by the 

 superintendent of the Saranac hatchery. 



It would appear that the most signal success as concerns the pres- 

 ent number of fish has been with the whitefish. This is not astonish- 

 ing when it is known that food stated to be utilized by all ages of 

 whitefish is the most abundant fish food in the lake, and when the 

 large numbers of young whitefish annually planted are considered. 

 It is inferred that of the other four introduced species, only the brook 

 trout now occurs, and probably it may be inferred that the stock of 

 both brook trout and whitefish is maintained by the annual restock- 

 ing, and not by natural reproduction. 



While Prof. Smallwood's opinion that even more extensive 

 plants of brook trout in the past would not have increased the present 

 brook trout supply in the lake is quite likely correct under past and 

 present conditions, it is more than likely that a considerably greater 

 supply of brook trout would have been maintained if no other species 

 had been introduced, especially providing there are natural spawning 

 beds for the trout in tributary streams. But as Prof. Smallwood 

 says: "It is becoming more and more apparent that we must not 

 only know the breeding habits of the small minnows, pumpkin seeds, 

 etc., the fry of which serve as admirable food for the food-fish 

 fingerhngs, but also the natural history of all the hfe of a given body 

 of water. It is a well-recognized biological axiom that no organism 

 can live unto itself alone. This applied to our problem means that a 

 clear and adequate supply of water is not the only factor that must 

 be considered in deciding to restock great bodies of water with fish 

 fry. But rather the intricate and more or less obscure conditions 

 that determine the sum total of life in each body of water must be 

 taken into consideration. Such studies alone furnish a correct basis 

 for determining the extent to which an animal may draw upon a 

 given source of food, upon the available body of food and many 

 kindred problems. Before the State can wisely un-dertake to place 

 more fingerlings in the ponds, it ought to know whether there is 

 enough available food to keep them at least from starving." 



