470 
BULLETIN OF THE UNITED STATES FISH COMMISSION. 
Dr. 0. H. Eigenmann. in a paper on the food-fishes of the California fresh waters, 
contained in the report of the California fish commission for 1888-1890, calls attention 
to the comparative scarcity of species in the fresh waters of the State. He says : 
There is comparatively a very limited variety of fishes in California. A stream which in the 
Mississippi Valley would harbor 75 or 100 different species of lish would in California scarcely contain 
20. This is due to two causes : 
(1) Many of our streams become entirely dry during the summer, and no species that does not 
migrate to the sea, or the lower or higher water courses, can exist in them. 
(2) It is a law in the distribution of fresh-water fishes that the greater the water system the 
larger the number of species of fish found in any of the tributaries. The tributaries of the Sacramento 
thus have much fewer species than the tributaries of the Mississippi, and the tributaries of the 
Mississippi much fewer than the tributaries of the Amazon. To be more precise, one naturalist has 
caught as many species of fish in one of the tributaries of the Mississippi in a day as there is known 
from the entire region west of the Sierra Nevada. 
By saying that the number of species of fresh-water fishes is limited, I do not wish to imply that 
the food-fishes are less in number or inferior in quality, merely that we have less Variety — a defect 
which can be remedied by introducing other species. The most prominent food-fishes of the Mississippi 
Valley which are not indigenous to California are the various catfishes, the buffalo, pickerels, most of 
the sunfishes, especially the black bass, perches, and the bass. Several of these have already been 
introduced. 
Mr. A. B. Alexander, fishery expert on the Albatross , regards mackerel ( Scomber 
scombrus ), bluefish ( Pomatomus saltatrix ), and haddock ( Melanogrammus ceglifinus) 
as among the most desirable fishes that conld be introduced into these new waters. 
He says : 
The species of deep-sea Atlantic fish that would be most appreciated by the Pacific Coast people, 
in the opinion of the writer, are the mackerel, bluefish, and haddock. It is quite evident that no 
other fish would meet with such sale as these, for the reason that all three species are best when eaten 
fresh, which would suit the tastes of the inhabitants of every city on the west coast. Salt fish are in 
no great demand, and as a rule those which are brought to market in any other state except fresh are 
seldom called for. 
The haddock, if successfully planted on the Pacific Coast, would meet with a demand equal to 
auy salt-water fish brought to market. The haddock is a profitable fish to buy as compared to the 
red rockfish and cultus-cod, there being less "waste to it. 
The mackerel is in demand the world over, and if introduced on the Pacific Coast would be 
appreciated by fisherman, buyer, and consumer. There is little doubt that mackerel would live and 
propagate on that part of the coast from Monterey Bay southward. Monterey Bay would be a good 
locality to plant young fry, for the reason that the Pacific mackerel are found in that bay as numerous 
as anywhere on the coast, and it is but reasonable to suppose that where one species is found the other 
would live, as both species are found in the Atlantic, and some years in the same locality. 
It would not be advisable to make a planting of haddock farther south than the latitude of San 
Francisco. It is very probable that in the vicinity of Cape Flattery would be a better place. 
The well-known predaceous habits of the bluefish might be regarded as a draw- 
back to the transplanting of the fish, although there can be little doubt it would 
prove a highly esteemed addition to the food and game resources of the coast. The 
hake ( Phycis clmss ), the cusk ( Brosmius brosme ), and the pollock ( Pollachius virens ) 
could also be acclimatized as easily as the haddock, but as they are less valuable as 
food they need not be further considered. 
The scup or porgy ( Stenotomus chrysops ) would unquestionably find a congenial 
habitat in San Francisco Bay and in other shore waters of the coast, and it would 
also be a well-received addition to the fresli-fisli supply of the region. As a food-fish, 
it is superior to the viviparous perches now so extensively consumed in San Francisco. 
