384 Roosevelt JVild Life Bulletin 



plantings within the Park. At this time the practice of allowing the 

 hotels and camps to take trout for table use was prohibited, this 

 taking effect on August 15. 1919. During that summer alone there 

 had thus been used commercially over 7,500 pounds of trout, in 

 spite of the fact that the act of dedication, Alarch i, 1872, states that 

 the Secretary of the Interior was instructed to "provide against the 

 wanton destruction of fish and game found within said park, 

 and against their capture or destruction for the purpose of mer- 

 chandise or profit." In 1921 about half the eggs collected were 

 planted in the Park. In 1922 the Bureau of Fisheries conducted its 

 investigation of the pelicans, resulting in the official statement already 

 quoted from Rich, suggesting a reduction of their numbers. During 

 the 22 years that records have been published of egg collecting in 

 this lake, over 187,000,000 trout eggs have been taken, of which 

 an unknown but relatively small number — about 32 millions — were 

 planted in the Park, and of these. 21 millions were planted in 1922 

 and 1923. The waters are now clearly recognized as becoming de- 

 pleted. This is clearly and primarily due to the too extensive egg 

 collecting, and to the commercial use of trout on tables ; and sec- 

 ondarily, to excessive angling; and lastly, and least of all, to the 

 pelicans and the gulls. The general practice of depleting waters 

 about fish cultural stations, which Kendall (24) has pointed out, 

 has been in full swing here with its injurious effects, and indicates 

 very clearly that our National Parks are not the places to locate such 

 general fish collecting and distributing stations. The Park authori- 

 ties have now restricted the shipping of eggs out of the Park, have 

 prohibited commercial use of trout by hotels and camps, and are mak- 

 ing greater restrictions on angling. This, I think, fairly states the 

 background needed for consideration of the relation of the pelicans 

 to the trout. Certainl}-. if angling is to be continued, and to be 

 maintained with the increasing numbers of Park visitors, a fish 

 cultural plant is absolutely necessary; but it should be conducted 

 solel}- from the standpoint of the welfare of the Park, and not as a 

 general public utility and for commercial use. This was advocated 

 in 1901 and 1902 by ^Major Pitcher, Acting Superintendent, in his 

 annual reports. 



Is this large colony of pelicans worth careful preservation, frora 

 the standpoint of future generations of Americans ? From several 

 standpoints the pelicans are unique birds, entitled to careful pro- 

 tection, as there are certainly only a very few places, and possibbr 

 none outside of Yellowstone Park, where their preservation can be 



