Oct; 12; 1907.] 
FOREST 


| 
|The proof of the Cartridge is in the shooting. The United States Army, 
LOWELL, MASS., 

MANUFACTURED BY 
UNITED STATES CARTRIDGE 
U.S. A. 
accurate and reliable. 
1 
; 
| 
! Agencies: 497-503 Pearl St, 35-43 Park St., New York. 

by careful tests, have proven the VU. S. Cartridges to be the most 
COo., 
114-116 Market St, San Francisco. 


: LAKE TAHOE TROUT AND TROUT FISH- 
ING. 
LAKE TAHOE is one of the largest as well as 
one of the most picturesque American moun- 
tain lakes. From a scientific standpoint it is also 
‘a most interesting body of water, but the study 
Of it has been very much neglected, and com- 
paratively little is known of its physical and bio- 
logical aspects. Lake Tahoe is situated in east- 
barn California and western Nevada. The bound- 
dary line between these two States passes through 
‘it in a north and south direction, only a short 
|distance west of the eastern shore, so that more 
than two-thirds of the area of the lake lies in 
California and less than one-third in Nevada. 
|The thirty-ninth parallel of latitude crosses the 
{southern end. To quote from Le Conte (1883, 
p. 506): “The lake, the largest and most re- 
markable of the mountain lakes of the Sierra 
|Nevada, occupies an elevated valley at a point 
where ‘this mountain system divides into two 
tanges. It is, as it were, ingulfed between two 
jlofty ridges, one lying to the east and the other 
“to the west. As the crest of the principal range 
yof the Sierra runs near the western margin of 
“this lake, this valley is thrown on the eastern 
jslope of this great mountain system.” In dis- 
{cussing the origin of Lake Tahoe, Le Conte 
states that it is highly improbable that the basin 
was scooped out by glacial agencies; that, rather, 
‘the lake was once wholly occupied by ice, a huge 
mer de glace. He is inclined to the belief (1884, 
4p. 45) that: 
j “* * * the small lakes near the southern and 
southwestern margin of Lake Tahoe are really 
tglacier-scooped rock basins, yet the position of 
ithe principal lake, countersunk between two 
ridges of the Sierra Nevada, seems to render it 
‘probable that its basin may, in reality, be a 
4 ‘plication-hollow’ or a trough produced by the 
formation of two parallel mountain ridges and 
afterward modified by glacial agency; that it is, 
in fact, a feature of mountain formation and not 
of glacial sculpture.” 





Transparency.—Lake Tahoe is noted for its 
clear, transparent water. On calm, sunny days 
objects could be distinctly seen on the bottom 
where the water was fifty feet deep. In fact, 
these objects were so plainly visible that the 
water did not appear to have a depth of more 
than ten or fifteen feet. A Secchi’s disk, five 
inches in diameter, just disappeared from view 
at a depth of sixty-five feet. 
Only two kinds of trout are caught in any con- 
siderable numbers. These are Salmo henshawi 
(Gill & Jordan), which has several common 
names, such as Lake Tahoe trout, Truckee trout, 
pogy and snipe; and also Salmo tahoensis (Jor- 
dan & Evermann), which is commonly called 
the silver trout of Lake Tahoe. Locally, the 
males of the former are frequently called red- 
fish because they have copper-colored sides dur- 
ing the breeding season. 
The Tahoe trout or pogy is caught chiefly 
along the western side of the lake and at the 
south end. A large area extending south a few 
miles from Observatory Point seems to be a 
good feeding ground for them, and this is the 
favorite fishing ground of the anglers located 
in the vicinity of Tahoe City. Silver trout are 
most abundant in the northeastern part of the 
lake, in Crystal Bay and Sand Harbor, but a 
few are caught in other parts. The Tahoe trout 
is caught in much greater abundance than the 
silver trout, but it does not attain such a large 
size. The former rarely exceeds a weight of 
six pounds, while specimens of the latter have 
been caught which exceeded this weight by sev- 
eral pounds. The following measurements and 
weights of trout caught in Lake Tahoe are given 
by Treat (1904, p. 866), who does not, however, 
indicate the species he measured and weighed: 
Length. Weight. 
Inches. Pounds. 
1725 1.75 
19.75 2.6 
20.75 3.75 
25:75 5-5 
29.75 9.5 
Some years ago the Mackinaw trout, Cristi- 
vomer namaycush (Walbaum), was introduced, 
and examples of it are caught occasionally in 
the southern part of the lake. During the 
son of 1903 a 10-pound trout of this species was 
caught in the vicinity of Glenbrook. 
All of the fishing in Lake Tahoe is done by 
angling. Fishermen located at several points 
around the lake were visited and interviewed, 
and their methods and fishing gear were ex- 
amined. The method which is almost universally 
employed at the present time differs but little 
from that described by Jordan and Henshaw in 
1878 (p. 198), so that, to use Treat’s appropriate 
sea- 
expression, “it may fairly be said to have been 
born of experience” (1904, pp. 864-860) 
“Years of experience in trolling on Lake 
Tahoe have resulted in the adoption of the de 
vice now employed—a metal, egg-shaped spoon 
of generous dimensions, of burnished copper or 
nickel plated, according to the whim of the 
fisherman. Brass turnbuckles are attached to 
either end of this spoon. A snell and hook is 
fastened to the smaller end while a twisted 

copper wire 75 to 125 feet in length leads to the 
20 feet of cotton line in the hand of the fisherman 
The hook, a large-sized Pennel, Limerick, or 
Sproat for choice, is baited with worms or 
minnows. This gear is trolled from the rear of 
the boat, the line being continuously moved 
back and forth, the latter movement being made 
more quickly than the former so as to insure 
the proper spinning of the spoon. When the fish 
is hooked he is pulled in by main strength.” 
The hook is usually. put about 3 feet irom the 
large spoon and sometimes a small spinner is at- 
tached just above the hook. About the only 
change that is made in this gear is the substi 
tution of a ‘squid’ spoon for the regular one. 
This is a large oval spoon with a large hook 
attached directly to one end and with a swivel 
at the other end for attachment to the line. 
Some of the fishermen consider this spoon bet- 
ter for large trout than the regular one. 
The wire line is made of 4 to 12 strands of 

