200 
THE BOOK OF FISHES 
SALMON EGGS ON TRAYS READY FOR SHIPMENT 
Eggs are packed in this manner for transfer between hatcheries and for distant shipment. The eggs 
packed in a case can, if kept cool and moist, remain out of water for several weeks without impair¬ 
ment. One hundred thousand eggs may be carried in a case. 
PERIODICITY OF THE RUNS 
While the Pacific salmons run with 
more or less regularity, year after year, 
two of the species exhibit, in particular 
streams or regions, a marked periodicity 
in abundance which is so well established 
that it can be predicted with certainty 
years in advance. 
The Blueback, or Sockeye, in certain 
streams shows a climax in abundance 
every fourth year. This is especially 
marked in Puget Sound and Fraser 
River, where the years 1905 and 1909, 
for example, were characterized by im¬ 
mense runs, while in 1906 and 1910 the 
abundance, as shown by the catch, was 
only one-fourth or one-fifth as great. 
The quadrennial periodicity in Puget 
Sound is strikingly shown by the fish 
caught and canned during the years 1903 
to 1910, as follows: 
1903 . 167,211 cases 
1904 . 109,264 
1905 . 82 S ,453 “ 
1906 . 178,748 “ 
1907 . 93,122 “ 
1908 . 170,951 “ 
1909 . 1,097.904 “ 
1910 . 248,014 “ 
The case of the Humpback salmon in 
the Puget Sound region is perhaps the 
best marked example of periodicity. The 
species there is biennial in its appearance. 
One year it comes in incalculable num¬ 
bers, crowding the streams, filling the 
nets, and giving canners all the raw ma- 
