CULTUEE OF YELLOW PEECH 191 



tachment for the strings of eggs ; but tHey are 

 not needed in hatchery-ponds for yellow perch 

 because equally good if not better material for 

 holding spawn can be provided. Brush fas- 

 tened to the banks around the sides is gener- 

 ally used. 



Spawning Habits. — Considering the average 

 small size of the yellow perch, the number of 

 eggs which a female will deposit is prodigious, 

 and the length of the fertilised string is truly 

 marvellous. A medium-sized female will give 

 from 30,000 to 50,000 eggs, and there is reason 

 to believe that one at her best will furnish more 

 than one hundred thousand. Each string is in- 

 variably several times longer than the fish 

 which deposited it, and after fertilisation and 

 hardening is usually more than double the 

 weight. It is possible for a fish 18 to 20 inches 

 long, perhaps smaller, and less than two pounds 

 in weight, to deposit a string of eggs over seven 

 feet in length, which will weigh nearly or quite 

 three pounds, and will almost fill a four-quart 

 measure. The eggs are held together by a 

 jelly-like substance, and the ribbon-like string 

 appears to be crumpled, so that the eggs dotted 



