Table 4.8 — Average annual harvest of Pacific salmon, by species and type of harvest, mid-1970's 



( Thousands of fish) 



Species 



Harvest in Washington, Oregon, 

 California, Idaho 



Harvest in Alaska 



Total harvest 



Commercial harvest as 

 percent of total 



Total 

 harvest 



Commercial 

 harvest 



Recreational 

 harvest 



Subsistence 

 harvest 



Pink salmon 

 Sockeye salmon 

 Chum salmon 

 Coho salmon 

 Chinook salmon 



704 

 2,150 



338 

 3,381 

 2,150 



Nearly all 

 Nearly all 

 Nearly all 

 60 percent 

 30 percent 



15,305 



8,246 



5,105 



1,434 



587 



15,256 



8,053 



5,051 



1,399 



507 



21 



5 



6 



23 



10 



28 



188 



48 



12 



70 



Total 



8,723 



— 



30,677 



30,266 



65 



346 



Note Data derived from information supplied by individual Stales 



Figure 4.3 



Commercial Harvest of Pacific Salmon by Species, 1956-1977 



H/fil, Lb (Round Weight) 

 440 1- 



All Species 



In the 1950's and 60's, coho and chinook salmon 

 were first introduced to the Great Lakes from the 

 West Coast. Continuing stocking programs (and con- 

 trol of the lamprey eel) resulted in harvests in the 

 mid-1970's of about 1.7 million sport fish annually. 



As a result of the increasing demand and gradually 

 increasing prices for fishery products, by the mid- 

 1970's more than 130 million pounds of finfish and 

 shellfish were raised in controlled habitats and sold 

 for human consumption annually by the aquaculture 



industry in the United States. Warmwater channel 

 catfish was the most important species, yielding 

 about 80 million pounds of fish and over $40 million 

 in sales. This industry now includes at least 2,000 

 commercial fish farmers and perhaps an additional 

 1,000 fee-fishing operations; it is centered in Missis- 

 sippi, Louisiana, and Arkansas. Thirty million pounds 

 of trout are sold by about 100 commercial farms and 

 another 1,200 farms provide fish for stocking private 

 waters; this industry is centered in Idaho and Mon- 

 tana. Salmon, oysters, crayfish, and shrimp are also 

 produced in significant quantities. Although it has 

 been estimated that a total production of 2 billion 

 pounds is possible within two or three decades, there 

 are major institutional, environmental, and economic 

 problems that would haye to be overcome.'^ 



Supply of Furbearers 



Furbearers are discussed separately from other 

 mammals because of their significant economic 

 values as a source of pelts for the national and inter- 

 national fur trade. 



In 1975-76, 13 million pelts brought about $123 

 million at public auctions in the contiguous United 

 States. This figure represents a sixfold increase in the 

 value of pelts between the 1970-71 and 1975-76 sea- 

 sons. The increase in value is due to both an increase 

 in harvests, from 7 million to 13 million pelts, and 

 increases in the values of individual furskins. 



I* Lowell, R. T. Fish culture in the United States. Science 206: 

 1368-72. 1979. 



National Research Council. Aquaculture in the Uniteci States 

 — constraints and opportunities. National Academy of Sciences, 

 Washington, D.C. 123 p. 1978. 



Klontz, G. W., and J. G. King. Aquaculture in Idaho and 

 nationwide Idaho Water Resources Institute, Univ. Idaho, Mos- 

 cow. 86 p. plus appendix. 1975. 



121 



