FOREST AND STREAM 
639 
literally up in the air, for trout, and along their 
sides were minute air bubbles, which broke away 
at a touch. 
The trouble was at once diagnosed by Dr. Bean 
as Pop Eye, a very rare, though scientifically 
recognized, affliction which sometimes attacks 
fish in hatcheries. It was caused by a large ex¬ 
cess of air in the water, which got into their 
systems. It worked into the eye sockets, making 
the eyes bulge out, thus giving rise to the name 
Pop Eye, and inflated the skin so that the trout 
couldn’t stay down. 
'When a valve in the supply pipe was opened the 
confined air blew out with a rush. Measures for 
decreasing the air in the water soon relieved the 
fish, though the station staff were slower in re¬ 
turning to normal. Water for hatcheries must 
frequently be aerated, but it is seldom that any, 
except some artesian water, like that at Chau¬ 
tauqua, must be de-aerated. 
Following the development of Pop Eye at 
Chautauqua, specimens of a small red organism 
from Rockland Lake, in the southeastern part of 
the state, were preserved in alcohol and sent to 
Commission. They are about the size of the head 
of a pin, and have been present in Rockland Lake 
in large numbers this season. As many bass, 
perch and pickerel were found dead simultane¬ 
ously, the loss of the fish was attributed by the 
fishermen to these “insects,” which some of them 
said “clung to minnows like a leech and sucked 
their blood.” Identification as the Diplodontus, 
an aquatic mite, was made by State Zoologist 
Willard G. Van Name, who said that “the state¬ 
ment in the books as to food and habits of these 
animals are of a general and rather indefinite 
nature. They are said to feed on small aquatic 
animals, and some to be in their younger stages 
parasitic on aquatic insects, but no mention is 
made of their ever attacking fishes. Whether adult 
or nearly adult specimens, such as these submit¬ 
ted, would be parasitic at all,” said Mr. Van 
Name, “seems somewhat improbable.” Further 
testimony as to their parasitic attacks upon fish is 
desired by the Commission and fishermen who 
find incontestable evidence, in Rockland Lake or 
in other waters, of that fact, not heretofore 
known, have been requested to inform the Con¬ 
servation Commission, sending specimens in alco¬ 
hol if possible. 
Another troublesome fish disease, resulting in 
the blindness and death of large numbers of trout 
perch in Oneida Lake last month, was charged to 
the account of a minute worm parasite, by the 
Fish Culturist of the Commission. It gets into 
the lens of the eye, causing cataract and event¬ 
ually loss of the eye itself. The fish are not di¬ 
rectly killed by the parasite, but when the sight 
uf both eyes are gone they starve to death. 
Thus the lowly crayfish is exonerated. Fisher- 
nen about Oneida Lake have believed that this 
resh water crab picked out the eyes of the trout 
>erch with its claws, since many of the fish have 
>een found on the shore with their eyes gone. But 
vith the indictment found against Diplostomum, 
he generic name of the worm parasite, another 
oust lie against the kingfisher, the herons of 
>ther birds that feed on small fish, as accessories 
>efore and after the fact. The final host of tk_ 
■arasite is a bird, which eats the fish. The para- 
ite is then voided by the bird, and the affection is 
pread. 
The parasite also attacks pike perch, yellow 
erch and bass, though its ravages are most mark- 
d in the trout perch, which constitutes one of the 
foods of the larger fish. The trout perch run 
into small streams in May to spawn, and they are 
then very commonly mistaken for small pike 
perch. The erroneous identification of the small 
fish caused concern among the Oneida Lake fish¬ 
ermen, who believed that the larger game fish 
were dying in great numbers. The little ones are 
entirely distinct, however, as Dr. Bean pointed 
out, never running much over four inches in 
length. They have a small adipose fin on the back, 
near the tail, while in the pike perch this fin is 
absent. Moreover, these little four inch fish are 
full of spawn, which they deposit in May, where¬ 
as the pike perch reach a weight of from two to 
three pounds before spawning. During the 
spawning season last May a considerable epidemic 
of cataract, followed by blindness and death, oc¬ 
curred among the trout perch of Oneida Lake, 
and specimens were obtained by the Conservation 
Commission which clearly establish the cause. 
The New York State Conservation Commission 
which has on its staff, in the person of Dr. Bean, 
a fish culturist of world wide reputation, is con¬ 
stantly engaged in the scientific study of fish life 
and disease. It is believed by the Conservation 
Commissioner George D. Pratt that the fishermen 
can be effectively enlisted in many phases of 
this work, and he is now working out plans for 
securing through fish and game clubs and individ¬ 
ually their closer co-operation in fish study and 
culture and in the very important details of 
proper fish planting. 
A Grand Prize 
for fmoieless Shotgun 
Powder has been 
awarded the Hercules 
Powder Co. at the 
Panama-Pacific Exposi¬ 
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with Infallible. 
Write for our booklet 
called Trapshooting." 
It is worth reading. 
Address 
HERCULES POWDER CO. 
Wilmington, Del. 
HERCULES chPO WDEf^ CO. 
NOVEL FEATURES IN GAME LEGISLATION. 
There are a number of novel features in the 
game legislation in the several states. In Illinois 
and in Oregon veterans of the Civil War are 
permitted to hunt without a license, as half a 
century has elapsed since the close of the war, 
it is not likely that such liberality will result in 
much untoward slaughter of game. Oregon, in a 
spirit of gallantry, issues free licenses to women 
hunters. The license feature has been pretty 
well established over the United States and it is 
pleasing to know that a larger proportion of 
revenue so derived is going for protection pur¬ 
poses than before. States seemed to be prompt 
in changing conflicting sections of the game laws 
to comply with the Federal regulations—a move 
that is to be highly recommended. While the 
average sportsman waits in fear and anxiety on 
the outcome of state legislation with reference 
to game and fish laws, it is to be said that the 
1915 record is much above the average. 
CAUGHT WITH ’’BRISTOL” RODS’’ 
41-2 lb. Rainbow Trout, by Phil. B. 
Bekeart, San Francisco. 
4 3-4 lb. Rainlow Trout. 22 in. long, 
on AutaMe River, at Painfield. 
3 1-4 lb. German Brown Trout, ly 0. 
H. Benscl.ottn, Margaretville. N Y. 
30 lb. Muscallcnge. length 42 1-2 in. 
girth 19 in., by Mrs. Grigsby 
10 lb. 31 in. Muscallonge at Fair Haven, 
by E. H. Corrington, Auburn. N. Y. , 
28 3-4 lb. Gray Trout at Framagami. J 
Ont.. 65 Fred E. Ringw&ld. 
24 lb.Trout caught in Lake of the Woods 
Rainey River. Ont.. by E. D. Calvert. ! 
8. Mrs.Grigsby catehine another ”Musky'' 
10 lbs. on her “BRISTOL” 
“BRISTOL” Steel Fishing Rods won 32 1 
prizes in the National F.& S. 1914 contest-— J 
3 times as many as any other rod. There is 
an “exactly right” “BRISTOL” for each 
kind of fishing: made in various weights, 
lengths, fittings and finish. 
Write for Catalogue 
THE HORTON MFG. COMPANY 
84 Horton 8treet Bristol. Conn.I ' 
High Grade Rifles 
c» eW J Im J P £? Ved Repeating and Automatic 
Standard Rifles. High Power — .25, .30, .35 Caliber 
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Automatic, $18.00 Repeating, $14.50 l* 1 . remittance have preference. Full particulars on request. Parts 
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STANDARD ARMS MANUFACTURING CO., Dept. 6, WILMINGTON, DEL. 
FOR SALE 
One 'hour by°°train n or^to?.**’Th”?h,£ 0 'tot 
ertvAHH 3 Iar i* e jP ond included in this prop 
erty. Address, J. P„ care Forest and Stream. 
CAMERAS FOR SALE CHEAP—Erncmann pla 
camera, Goerz lens, 2 shutters, speed up to 1-2500 se 
io* 4 -in. bellows, weight 34 ozs., size vc 
light and compact. Also Motion Picture Camera ai 
3A Autographic Kodak. The best guns with which 
shoot wild game. Room 47, to East Fayette Stret 
Baltimore, Md. 
^ 7^11 , II J SAFE-Absolutely Water-pro 
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