Removal of Lampreys from ff)e Interior 

 Waters of Rev *Jorfy 



By Prof. H. A. SURFACE; M. Sc. 



T 



HE fishes in the interior waters of the 

 State of New York have at least three 

 serious enemies whose habits have not 

 been fully studied from the economic standpoint. 

 These are the Lake Lamprey {Pctromyzon marinus 

 unicolor De Kay), the Gar, Gar pike, Long-nosed 

 Gar, or Billfish {Lepisostens ossais Linnaeus), and 

 the Water dog, Mud Puppy or Necturus {Necturus 

 maculatus Rafmesque). 



Of course these have been studied by many 

 scientific men and much has been written about 

 them. They have been described and re- 

 described, named again and again, dissected, 

 drawn and photographed, kept alive in tanks, 

 their eggs and various parts of their bodies have 

 been sliced into pieces less than a thousandth of 

 an inch in thickness, and a little has been pub- 

 lished about their habits and destructiveness; but 

 never has their destructive influence been made 

 sufficiently prominent, nor has a rational word 

 appeared in' print about any practical method of exterminating or even reducing any 

 of them, nor has the public yet awakened to the great necessity of the most serious 

 efforts on the part of man in behalf of these very economic and eminently 

 practical subjects. 



There is no doubt in the mind of the writer but that we have named above, in 

 order of destructiveness, the three most serious enemies of fishes in the interior of this 

 State, each of which surely destroys more fishes annually than are caught by all of the 

 fishermen combined. 



The next important enemies of fishes, in order of destructiveness, according to our 

 observations and belief, are spawn-eating fishes, water snakes, carnivorous or preda- 

 ceous aquatic insects (especially larvas), and piscivorous fishes and birds. We hope 



A POOL IN THE RAQUETTE RIVER, 



