OUR HERITAGE OF THE FRESH WATERS 
97 
Photograph by S. N. Leek 
A NATIVE SON AND NATIVE TROUT: WYOMING 
The Trout shown here are doubtless one of the numerous species of the 
Rocky Mountain region, known as Black-spotted or “Cutthroat”—probably 
the Yellowstone Trout {Salmo lewisi) inhabiting the Snake River basin 
above Shoshone Falls. 
been introduced; but, al¬ 
though fully protected, the 
supply gradually diminish¬ 
ed to the vanishing point. It 
would seem, therefore, that 
the race cannot breed In¬ 
definitely in fresh waters, 
but must renew its fertility 
through occasional baths in 
the vitalizing sea. 
Complete exclusion from 
the brackish or fresh waters, 
where it spawns, would 
doubtless lead to extermi¬ 
nation as readily as long- 
continued imprisonment in 
absolutely fresh water. Ac¬ 
cording to the records of 
anglers, the largest speci¬ 
mens are those taken in 
salt or brackish waters. 
The White Perch belongs 
to the tidal region of the 
Atlantic coast from Nova 
Scotia to South Carolina. 
It is abundant around Long 
Island and in the Hudson 
River up as far as Albany. 
It is taken through the 
ice in the Hudson, where 
it is present throughout the 
year. 
It is equally abundant in 
the Delaware and Susque¬ 
hanna rivers and Chesa¬ 
peake Bay, ranging well up¬ 
stream, and is commonly 
taken in pound and fyke 
nets along the coast. 
In North Carolina the 
annual catch amounts to 
1,000,000 pounds. Anglers 
catch it in abundance and 
net fishermen keep the 
markets well supplied with 
it. Fishery statistics show 
that the market catch along 
the Middle Atlantic States 
sometimes amounts to 
2,000,000 pounds a year. 
The White Perch is good 
eating, either from fresh or 
salt water. Hook-and-line 
fishers find Shrimp bait the best, but it responds 
readily to Minnows, young Eels, small Crabs, or 
any of its natural foods. Specimens of two or three 
pounds are reported from the eastern end of Long 
Island. In fresh waters, worms, grasshoppers, and 
other insects are effectively used. 
The White Perch rises to the fly, especially in 
fresh waters, and resists bravely when hooked. A 
fish a foot long weighs about two pounds, but this 
is larger than the average. 
It is a gregarious species, usually frequenting the 
shallower waters along shore. Spawning begins 
soon after the ice leaves and lasts a couple of months. 
Females have been taken with eggs as late as June lo. 
Fish-cultural experiments have shown that the 
eggs can be hatched artificially in from three to 
five days. 
Considering the adaptability of the White Perch 
to the conditions of captivity, especially in brackish 
water, there is reason to suppose that it will receive 
more attention from fish-culturists than it has in 
the past. Anglers would know it better if its range 
extended farther inland. 
BROOK TROUT (Salvelinus fontinalis) 
{For illustration see Color Plate, page ii 6 ) 
The Brook Trout Is the favorite game fish of 
America. Originally found from Labrador west¬ 
ward to the Saskatchewan and southward along 
the Alleghenies to Georgia, it has been carried by 
fish-culturists to the Rockies, the Sierras, the upper 
Mississippi Valley, and wherever rapid streams of 
suitable temperature are found. 
It has almost disappeared from lowland streams 
in the North, which have become unsulted to it as a 
result of deforestation and water pollution. 
