ACCLIMATIZATION OF FISH IN THE PACIFIC STATES. 
439 
Tlie planting of eels in waters of California was next accomplished in 1879 under 
the same circumstances that attended the introduction of several of the other fishes 
to which reference is made in this paper. The transportation of the fish across the 
continent was again superintended by Mr. Livingston Stone, whose report* contains 
all that is recorded regarding the history of the experiment. The supply of eels con- 
sisted of about 3,000 individuals obtained by Mr. Seth Green in the Hudson River, 
New York, and about 500 others secured by Mr. H. W. Mason in the Nave sink 
River, New Jersey, in connection with the taking of striped bass intended for the 
same shipment. The tank of eels from the Hudson River was thrown away en route, 
as Mr. Stone saw that there was no possibility of their reaching the coast alive; the 
others (about 500 in number) reached Sacramento on June 18 in good condition and 
were deposited in the Sacramento River and Alameda Creek. 
In July, 1882, Mr. J. G. Woodbury, of the California fish commission, took 10 eels 
from the Shrewsbury River, New Jersey, to California, in connection with the trans- 
portation of striped bass. They were carried west without loss by keeping them in a 
well-ventilated box in which moist eelgrass was placed. These eels were apparently 
larger than those in the previous plants, being from 12 to 24 inches in length. They 
were planted in Suisun Bay in water about a foot deep, on the edge of the tales. “ On 
being put into the water they immediately bored straight down into the soft mud, 
and in a moment were all out of sight.” 
OUTCOME OF THE EXPERIMENTS. 
The results of the introduction of eels to California waters are not fully known, 
and reports of the capture of the fish are unsatisfactory and somewhat contradictory. 
The first reference to the taking of an eel in California appears to be that given in the 
biennial report of the State commissioners for 1874-75. They say: 
Of the fresli- water eels placed in a tributary of the Sacramento River, we learn that one had been 
caught in Willow Slough, in Yolo County, which had grown to be more than a loot in length. We 
have no knowledge that the salt-water eels placed in Sacramento Bay have ever been seen. 
In the report of the commissioners for 1876-77 it was stated that a few eels had 
been caught, but they had not become numerous. The next report recorded the cap- 
ture of several “taken in the fresh water, near Sacramento, full grown, and 3 feet in 
length.” In 1880 the commissioners stated: 
Occasionally we hear of an eel being captured, but as yet they have not shown an increase in 
proportion to that of other imported fish. 
The statements regarding this fish in the report for 1883-84 conflict somewhat 
with the foregoing: 
Eels, placed in our waters by the former commissioners, have not been a success. It is probable 
that the place where they were deposited and where they have made their home has not yet been 
discovered; at all events, none have been taken since they were planted. It seems to us that they 
ought to do well in our inland waters, as they are fond of the bottoms of ponds or streams where 
mud prevails, as is the case in our lakes and rivers. 
Under the probably erroneous caption, “The first California eel caught,” the 
American Naturalist for April, 1882 (page 326), contains this note: 
The San Francisco Chronicle of February 8 reports the catch by George Bird of the first eel, 
resulting from the plant of 12,000 made by the California fish commissioners. It was caught on the 
easterly shore of San Francisco Bay and measured 3 feet in length. 
* Report on Overland Trip to California, 1879. (U. S. F. C. Rept. 1879, pp. 637-644.) 
