Fish Culture in Inland Waters 321 



Many of the little mountain brooks literally teem with small trout, 

 frequently too small to be legally caught, yet some of them are adult 

 fish and probably will attain no larger size. Small brooks of what- 

 ever character, from mountain rivulets to sluggish bog brooks, seem 

 to contain trout. Hundreds of these trout are caught every year, and 

 it is a question whether any harm is done thereby, for while a few 

 may reach the lakes or river and become large fish, most of them 

 remain in the brooks, reach maturity, and spawn while still small 

 fish." 



Need of Fish Preserves. There is already an actual failure of 

 the egg supply of some species of fish and there is an impending 

 failure of the supply of still others. The most serious problem 

 appears to concern the landlocked salmon, lake trout and brook 

 trout in the Eastern states, and it has been seen that the pike- 

 perch is similarly a matter of concern in Minnesota. Like condi- 

 tions with this latter species and even others may obtain in other 

 localities. If such conditions are not already apparent they probably 

 will be sooner or later. 



Of course, it is quite obvious that the species of most limited 

 natural distribution, are the ones most imminently threatened. 

 Already one or two such species have been practically extermi- 

 nated. The case of the landlocked salmon has already been cited 

 and emphasized. The lake trout and brook trout are more of local 

 than general concern just at present. But it may be considered as 

 significant that the United States Bureau of Fisheries and the 

 New York State Conservation Commission now buy many of the 

 brook trout eggs which they hatch and distribute, from private or 

 commercial concerns. Probably this is due to the fact that, while 

 commercial trout eggs are expensive, the cost is less than it would 

 be to go to the remote waters where the fish may still be common. 

 The immediate wild waters, as has been shown, do not now afiford 

 an adequate yield. The trouble encountered and problems that 

 arise concerning brood stocks, eggs and young trout in many 

 hatcheries, taken into consideration with the receding sources of 

 supply of wild eggs are surely ominous and merit careful thought. 



It is quite noticeable that most of those species which are not 

 stripped and hatched " artificially," but which are allowed to breed 

 naturally, and are protected and assisted in the process, afiford 

 fewer and less serious problems of maintenance of the stock, than 

 do those species previously cited, and some of them are more 

 amenable to pond cultural processes. The foregoing facts give rise 

 to the warning that something in the direction of conservation of the 

 egg supply and the breeding stock must be done as soon as possible. 

 To that end the suggestion here made is that the most practicable 

 measure would be the establishment of natural sanctuaries for each 

 species concerned, similar in purpose to game sanctuaries. In other 

 words a natural body of water might be selected, which would afiford 

 sufficient area and volume, and adequate conditions for the main- 

 tenance of a brood stock of each species with which the State is 



