laiaelitttfllmt, 1308 Ql\\t l^nxtth BUUb Mnxmn nf iFtBlj^ri^B Mb tBtahlialjmnil, ifmutxans, (©rganisatiujt, iScBourrra, (3pttSittam, a«& Arljieoemfufa fflaeljitigUiti (gotirnimrnt l^cittfitig ®ffitf 13DH ? G. Brown Goook 1887-1888 John J. Brick I 896 -I 898 UNITED STATES COMMISSIONERS OF FISHERIES SPKNCKK I'. liAIKI) 1871-1887 lALL McDonald 1888-1895 GKOKOE M. HnwEKS iSgS to date ■aBliiitntnit. 13118 ®I|^ MxxxUh S^MtB fMumx nf Jtsli^rt^s 3Jts iEstahltsl)inrHt. iFuurtimia, ©rgaittzattnn. ISriuinrrra. flD^tnattnns. aiift Arlitrurmruts JHaHljttujton (Smirritmrttt Jlriuliitg (ffffRtf 1908 U. S. DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE AND LABOR secri;tarv OSCAR S. STRATS ASSISTANT SECRETARY WILLIAINI R. WHKKLKR BUREAU OF nSHERIES COMMISSIONER OF I-ISHERIES GEORGE M. BOWERS EXECUTIVE STAEK Pcfiuly ConniiissiKiicr - - - - Chief Clerk Chief, Division of 1-ish Culture Chief, Division of Scientific Inquiry Chief, Division of Statistics and Methods - Architect and En_s;incer - - - Superintendent, Car and Messenner Sen ice - . Iccountant - . . . . . High M. Smith Irving H. Dunlap John W. Titcomb Barton W. Evermann Alvin B. Alexander Hector von Bayer J. Frank Ellis William P. Titcomr oc 130 I: I90b CONTENTS rage Establishment and Functions ._--.------- 5 Organization --------------- 7 Resources and Investment ------------- 9 Cultivation and Distribution of Food Fishes -------- 10 General Importance and Extent ---------- 10 Species Cultivated ------------ 1 1 Hatcheries Operated ------------12 Output and its Distribution ---------- 23 Popularity of the Work ----- . - - . . _ 28 Scientific Inquiry -------------- 30 Statistics and Methods of the Fisheries --------- 36 Alaska Salmon-Inspection Service -------- - 46 Relations with the States and with Foreign Countries ----- 50 Publications --------------- 53 Some Results of the Work ------- ----- 56 Fish Culture ._----------- 56 Acclimatization .-.-_----.--- 66 Biological Investigations and Experiments ------- 72 Commercial Fisheries ------------ 77 THE UNITED STATES BUREAU OF FISHERIES ITS ESTABLISHMENT, FUNCTIONS, ORGANIZATION, RESOURCES OPERATIONS, AND ACHIEVEMENTS By HUGH M. SMITH Deputy Commissioner of Fisheries ESTABLISHMENT AND FUNCTIONS PRIOR TO 1 87 1 there was no branch of the United States Government especially charged with the consideration of fishery affairs, although fishery questions of greater or less import, some domestic, some foreign, had been arising ever since the achievement of national independence. Several of the States had already established fish commissions, and there arose among the State fishery authorities and the members of the American Fish Cultural Association (now the American Fisheries Society) an urgent demand for a national bureau devoted to fishery interests. Congress was thus influenced to action, and in the year named passed a joint resolution creating the oflfice of Commissioner of Fish and Fisheries, whose duties were specified as follows : The commissioner of fish and fisheries shall prosecute investigations and inquiries on the sul\ject, with the view of ascertaining whether any and what diminution in the number of the food-fishes of the coast and the lakes of the United States has taken place; and, if so, to what causes the same is due; and also whether any and what protective, prohibi- tory, or precautionary measures should be adopted in the premises; and shall report upon the same to Congress. It was further provided that the Commissioner should be a civil officer of the Government, of proved scientific and practical acquaintance with the fishes of the coast, who should serve without additional compensation. The man generally regarded as preeminently qualified for the new position was Spencer FuUerton Baird, then Assistant Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution, who received the appointment, at once entered on his duties, and continued the efficient and highly respected head of the Commission until his death, in 1887. Professor Baird was succeeded by one of his ablest assistants. Dr. George Brown Goode, eminent as administrator, ichthyologist, and fishery expert, who, 5 6 THE UNITED STATES BUREAU OF FISHERIES however, voluntarily relinquished the Commissionership after less than a year's incumbency in order to devote his entire time to the National Museum, of which he was Director. Next came Commissioner McDonald, practical fish-culturist and inventor of important mechanical appliances now used in the hatching of fish all over the world, who served until his death, in 1895, and was the first salaried Commissioner. He was followed by Capt. John J. Brice, a retired naval officer, who held the office for two years and was succeeded in 1898 by the present Commissioner, Hon. George Meade Bowers, under whose ten years' administration the service has grown in all its branches. MEMORIAL TO COMMISSIONER BAIRD This granite bowlder with bronze tablet in honor of the first United States Commissioner of Fisheries was placed at the Woods Hole station in 1902 by the American Fisheries Society, "in recognition of his inestimable services to ichthyology', pisciculture, and the commercial fisheries." From the very outset of its career, the fishery service has had the active support and cooperation of many of the leading biologists, fish-culturists, and fishery experts of the country, whose volunteer assistance has been an important factor in its development and efficiency. The early years of the Bureau were devoted to an active investigation of the condition of the fisheries of the Atlantic coast. Great Lakes, and other sections; to studies of the interior and coastal waters and their inhabitants, and to exploration of the offshore fishing banks. The cultivation of useful fishes was soon taken up throughout the country, and quickly attained large proportions. The natural expansion of the work was materially augmented from time to time by acts of Congress, and in ORGANIZATION 7 a comparatively short time the operations came to have a very wide scope. In more recent years the work has been still further extended, so that at present there is scarcely a phase of aquiculture, of the fishing industry, or of biological and physical science as connected with the waters that does not come within the purview of the Bureau. For manv years the Bureau was without any executive control in fishery affairs. Under the Constitution the States legislate for themselves in such matters and the Federal Government has assumed no jurisdiction. The Bureau thus had no direct voice in the making or enforcing of any measures for the protection or preservation of aquatic animals, and its position, compared with the fishery service of other countries, was anomalous. In its advisory capacity, however, the Bureau has acquired an influence upon fishery legislation, and has now been given executive powers in Alaska for the enforce- ment of a comprehensive code of laws affecting the salmon fisheries. In the interests of the fur-seal fisheries the Bureau has since 1893 been called on to study the life history and migrations of the seals, to inspect conditions on the islands, and to submit recommendations concerning the killing of the animals. ORGANIZATION Until 1903 the Bureau was known as the " LInited States Commission of Fish and Fisheries," and was an independent institution of the Government, responsible directly to Congress. In that year it was included in the new Department of Commerce and Labor, becoming the United States Bureau of Fisheries, as known at present. The work at the outset naturally fell under the three general heads of scientific investigation, fishery inquiry, and fish-culture. This classification has been extended and perfected, and enters into the organization at the present time. The permanent personnel of the service includes 325 persons, of whom 83 are on duty in Washington and 242 are at outside stations, at laboratories, and on vessels. The officials under the Commissioner are a Deputy Commissioner, a chief clerk, and a chief of each of the three divisions before referred to. AD subordinates are appointed, after passing the prescribed examinations, from the registers maintained by the Civil Service Commission. The Deputy Commissioner is the executive next to the Commissioner, and acts with full powers in the latter's absence. The Commissioner's office, which represents the administrative division of the Bureau and has the chief clerk at its head, has under it the accounting office, the office of the architect and engi- neer, and the office of vessels, in addition to the library, records, correspondence, and property. In this division there is a technical and clerical force of 18 persons, not including messengers, watchmen, janitors, engineers, firemen, and laborers, and the 34 civil employees in the vessel service. O THK UNITED STATES liUREAU OF FISHERIES riif Chief of the Division of Fish Culture, with an office force of 7, directs the operations at the hatcheries and the planting of fish. Each hatcherv has a force consisting of a superintendent, fish-culturist, skilled laborers, etc., the number of employees for all the stations reaching a total of 168. In addition to these there are 13 superintendents, fish-culturists, and other employees at large. During the busy seasons the hatchery force is increased by the temporary employment of many spawn-takers and laborers as the work requires. For the distribution of eggs and young fish there are 6 transportation cars permanently "°^^flwfe' HEADQUARTERS OF THE BUREAU OF FISHERIES, WASHINGTON, D. C provided with crews of messengers, numbering in all 26 men. The car and messenger service is under the immediate direction of a superintendent. The Division of Scientific Inquiry includes besides its chief 6 scientific assistants and a number of clerks. Three special agents are employed in the Alaska inspection service, which is under this division, and 3 persons are per- manently employed at the biological laboratory at Beaufort, North Carolina. Numerous investigators and assistants are also employed temporarily as needed for the study of special problems at the laboratories and in the field. RESOURCES AND INVESTMENT RESOURCES AND INVESTMENT The only funds available for the operation of the Bureau are the moneys voted annually by Congress. The comparatively large sums collected yearly in the Alaska salmon-inspection service are covered intact into the Treasury. From its very modest beginning, with $5,000 allowed for its work, the Bureau has won such recognition from Congress that the appropriations for its main- tenance have increased steadily, and for the current fiscal year, ending June 30, 1909, reached the substantial amount of $803,920, apportioned as follows: Administration: Salaries $45 , 380 Miscellaneous expenses 8, 000 Propagation of food fishes: Salaries — Office ii,8jo Stations and field service 156, 420 Car and messenger service J3, 100 Miscellaneous expenses jyj, 000 Inquiry respecting food fishes: Salaries — Office 13, 640 Biological station at Beaufort, N. C 2, 700 Miscellaneous expenses 30, 000 Statistical inquiry: Salaries ly, 140 Miscellaneous expenses 7. 500 Vessel service: Salaries 29, 420 Miscellaneous expenses 70, 000 Alaska salmon-inspection service (salaries 6, 300 Special: Establishment of station for propagation of fresh-water mussels in Mississippi Valley 25, 000 Construction of new steam vessel for Alaska service 20, 000 Improvements and repairs at stations 44, 500 Repairs to steamer Albatross 18, 000 Total 803,920 The land owned and occupied by the Bureau at its fish-cultural and bio- logical stations has an aggregate area of over 12,000 acres, with a value of $240,000. The improvements and equipments at these stations represent an investment of more than $1,000,000. Other property of the Bureau includes 4 seagoing steam and sail vessels, 20 steam launches, and 150 small sail, power, and row boats, which, with equipment, have a value of $300,000. Its 6 fish- transportation cars are valued at $45,000. The aggregate investment of the Federal Government in property devoted to the fishery service is thus about $1,585,000. lO THE UNITED STATES BUREAU OF FISHERIES CULTIVATION AND DISTRIBUTION OF FOOD FISHES '1'Ik' artificial propagation of fishes was not contemplated at the time the Bureau was formed, but was instituted by an act of General Importance Congress in 1872 at the instigation of the American Fish Cultural Association, which had been organized two years before and had taken a leading part in the establishment of the Bureau. The fishes to which attention was given first were the shad, the Atlantic salmon, and the whitefish. This work proved so popular that it was extended annually, was supplemented by efforts in acclimatization, and soon overshadowed all other branches. The Bureau has labored to make its operations commensurate with the extent of the fisheries in public waters, and with the inevitable exhaustion of the native fish life in the smaller lakes and streams incident to the development of the countrv and the increase of population. The policy, as enunciated by Doctor Goodc, has been to carry out the idea that it is better to expend a small amount of public money in making fish so abundant that they can be caught without restriction and serve as cheap food for the people at large than to expend a much larger sum in preventing the people from catching the few fish that still remain after generations of improvidence. From this standpoint it is perhaps fortunate that up to the present the Bureau has not had to devote its major energies to the formulation and enforce- ment of fishery legislation, but has been able to work directly for the increase of fish life. PubUc or Government fish-culture has in America attained tre- mendous proportions, and exceeds in extent and importance that of all other countries combined. However, the neglect of some of the States to provide the minimum protection to certain species inhabiting interstate and inter- national waters has not only negatived the fish-cultural work of the Bureau and of the States themselves, but has practically inhibited it by preventing the possibility of securing an adequate supply of eggs, thus making desirable and necessary the institution of a new policy placing interstate and international waters under the jurisdiction of the General Government. In the work of the Bureau of Fisheries the United States Government has an especial and unique claim to the epithet "paternal." The stocking of waters with food fishes is a direct benefit to the public, not only increasing the very material that supports an enormous industry, but providing food itself for the individual who will use his hook and line. From year to year, as the importance of the work has become increasingly evident, additional hatcheries have been built, the capacity of existing hatcheries has been enlarged, the scale of the operations has been extended, new kinds of fishes have been added to the output, and new sections have been brought under the direct influence of the work. CULTIVATION AND DISTRIBUTION OF FOOD FISHES II At the end of the first ten years of the Bureau's existence the fishes that . were being regularly cultivated were shad, carp, 1 he Species Cultivated , . , , « ^i i- i 1,1,1 , chmook salmon, Atlantic salmon, landlocked sal- mon, rainbow trout, brook trout, and whitefish, in addition to which the propa- gation of several others had been undertaken experimentally. The list now is six times as long, and the annual output is ten times the aggregate for the ten- year period ended in 1881. The main energies are devoted to the important commercial fishes — shad, whitefish, lake trout. Pacific salmons, white perch, yellow perch, cod, flatfish — and the lobster, which are hatched in lots of many millions annually. More widely popular, however, are the distributions of the fishes of the interior waters which are generally classed as game fishes. Although representing only about 10 per cent of the output of the hatcheries, this feature of the work is very important, for it supplies choice kinds of fish for public rivers, lakes, and ponds, and for fishing preserves and private ponds and streams in all parts of the United States. The fishes most in demand for these purposes are the landlocked salmon, the different species of trout, the grayling, the basses, the crappies, the sunfishes, and the catfishes, but various others are also handled. Following is a classified list of the native fishes artificially propagated during 1908: The c.wfishes (Silurid.e): Spotted cat, blue cat, channel cat {Ictalurus punctatus). Horned pout, bullhead, yellow cat {Ameiurus ncbulosus). Marbled cat (Ameiurus ncbulosus marmoratus). The shads and herrings (Clupeid.b): Shad (Alosa sapidissima). The salmons, trouts, whitefishes, etc. (Salmonid.-e): Common whitefish (Coregonus clupeijormis). Lake herring, cisco [Argyrosomus artedi). Chinook salmon, king salmon, quinnat salmon (Oncuihyiichus tschawylscha). Silver salmon, coho (Oncorhynchus kisutch). Blueback salmon, redfish, sockeye (Oncorhynchus nvrka). Humpback salmon (Oncorhynchus gorbuscha). Steelhead (Salmo gairdneri). Rainbow trout (Salmo irideus). Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar). Landlocked salmon (Salmo sebago). Yellowstone Lake trout, cut-throat trout, black-spotted trout (Salmo lewisi). Colorado River trout, black-spotted trout (Salmo pleuriticus) . Golden trout (Salmo roosevelti). Lake trout, Mackinaw trout, longe, togue (Cristi-vomcr namaycusk). Brook trout, speckled trout (Salvelinus fontinalis). Sunapee trout (Salvelinus aureolus). Canadian red trout (Salvelinus marstoni). Hybrid trout (Salvelinus aureolus -\- jontinalis). The graylings (Thvmallid.b): Montana grayling (Thytnatlus monianus). The basses, sunfishes, and crappies (Centrarchid/E) : Crappy (Pomoxis annularis). Strawberry bass, calico bass (Pomoxis sparoides). 1 12 THE UNITED STATES BUREAU OF FISHERIES The basses, sunfishes, and crappies (Centrarchid^e) — Continued. Rock bass, red-eye, goggle-eye {Ambloplites rupestris). Warmouth, goggle-eye (Chcenohryttus gulosus). Small-mouth black bass (Micropterus dolomieu). Large-mouth black bass {Micropterus salmoides). Bluegill sunfish (Lepomis pallidus). The perches (Percid/E): Pike perch, wall-eyed pike, yellow [)ike, blue pike (Stizosiedion vitreum). Yellow perch (Perca flavescens). The sea basses (Serranid^): Striped bass, rockfish (Roccus lin-eatus). White bass (Roccus chrysops). White perch (Moron-e amcricana). Yellow bass (Morone inlerrupta). The drums (Sci^nid.e): Fresh-water drum (Aplodinotus gruiiniens). The labrids (Labrid.e): Tautog, blackfish (Tautoija oiiitis). The cods (Gadid^e): Cod (Gadus callarias). Pollock (Pollachius virens). Haddock {Melanogrammus (i-glijinus) . The flounders (PlEuronectid^): Winter flounder, American flatfish (Pscudoplcuroncctes iimcricaiius). Crustaceans: American lobster [llomariis amcricnnns). In addition to the foregoing, various kinds of fishes are obtained from the overflows in the Mississippi Valley and are distributed. Among these are tlie small-mouth buffalo-fish {Ictiobus bubalus) , the pike {Esox lucius) , the pickerel {Esox reticulatiis) , and several sunfishes (chiefly Eupomotis gibbosus). From this same source are also collected large numbers of large-mouth black bass, crappies, rock bass, and bluegill sunfish. The following introduced species are cultivated to a limited extent : Carp (Cyprinus carpio). Propagated chiefly for food for other flslies. Goldfish (Carassius auratus). Propagated for ornamental i)urposes. Tench {Tinea tinea). Cultivated varieties, green tench and golden tench; propagated for ornamental purpo.ses. Ide {Lcticiscus idus). Cultivated variety, golden idc; projiagatcd for ornamental purposes, luiropean sea trout {Salmo trutta). I.och Leven trout {Salmo trutta kvenensis). Kish-cultural stations are established by special act of Congress, and their location and construction are determined bv the The Hatcheries Operated „ ,^ , , j. ^, -i i i ' •. Bureau after a careful survey of the available sites in a given State. The plans and specifications for each station are prepared in the office of the architect and engineer with reference to the nature of the operations to be conducted and the topographical conditions, and the work of constructing buildings and ponds is usually done by contract. Sometimes, however, the Bureau takes direct charge of construction, as in the case of the salmon iiatcheries in Alaska. CULTIVATION AND DISTRIBUTION OF FOOD FISHES 13 The usual buildings at a fish-cultural station are the hatchery proper, a residence for the superintendent and his family, and necessary outbuildings. At some stations there may be also power house, foreman's or fish-culturist's dwelling, mess hall, and stable. The superintendent's and other quarters are furnished gratis, but station employees provide their own subsistence. All sections of the country are now familiar with Government fish-cultural work. In addition to the regular hatcheries, with their permanent personnel .and living quarters, there are maintained numerous auxiliary hatcheries or SUPERINTENDENT'S RESIDENCE AT A NEW ENGLAND TROUT-HATCHING STATION substations which from the nature of their work do not re(|uire a permanent force and are therefore, for economic and administrative considerations, operated as adjuncts of nearby hatcheries. Some of the auxiliary stations, however, have more extensive operations than the hatcheries with which they are con- nected, and such will doubtless in time be made regular stations. There is also another class of stations, known as field or collecting stations, which serve as temporary headquarters for parties engaged in obtaining eggs from wild fishes. In 1908 the fish-cultural work was conducted in 27 States and Terri- tories at 55 hatcheries and subhatcheries and 64 field stations. */lEW OF INTERIOR OF THE GLOUCESTER HATCHERY Shoninjj aiHoinalic tidal boxes in whicli buoyant ova arc incubated. CULTIVATION AND DISTRIBUTION OF FOOD FISHES 15 While marine operations have been conducted from time to time at various places on the Atlantic coast from Maine to Florida, and have been addressed to a large number of species, the only permanent marine hatcheries are in Maine and Massachusetts, with the species handled at each as indicated in the following table. The places shown under each station are the centers of egg- collecting operations. Other sea fishes that have in previous years been arti- ficially propagated and may again come under the hand of the fish-culturist are the haddock, the scuppaug, the sheepshead, the sea bass, the mackerel, and the squeteague, some of which were hatched on the steamer Fish Hawk in Chesapeake Bay and Florida. Marine Hatcheries. Species Boothbay Harbor, Me Pemaquid, Me Portland, Me Kittery Point, Me Gloucester, Mass Beverly, Mass Boston, Mass Cohasset, Mass Hull, Mass Marblehead, Mass Lolister Plymouth, Mass Cod. Portsmouth, N. H | Lobster. Rockport, Mass Lobster Woods Hole, Mass Chilmark, Mass Dartmouth, Mass . I Lobster. East Greenwich, R. I Flatfish. Gay Head, Mass < Lobster. Gosnold, Mass ' Lobster. Nantucket, Mass Lobster. Plymouth, Mass Cod. Sandwich, Mass ' Lobster. Waquoit, Mass _ _ I Flatfish. Westport, Mass Lobster. West Tisbury , Mass Lobster. Yarmouth, Mass Lobster. Cod, lobster. Lobster. Lobster. Lobster. Cod, pollock, llatfish, lobster. Lobster. Lobster. Lobster. Lobster. Cod, tautog, flatfish, lobster. Lobster. The fish-cultural work on the eastern coast streams was centered at 6 hatcheries and subhatcheries in 1908. At i of these the principal species handled is the Atlantic salmon, at 4 the shad, at 3 the yellow perch, at 2 SHAD-HATCHING STATION ON ALBEMARLE SOUND. NORTH CAROLINA The recent passage by the State legislature of laws reducing the obstruction by nets in the waters through which the shad must run to reach their spawning grounds has made it possible for this station again to collect large numbers of eggs from fish caught for market, and practically to insure the perpetuation of a fishery that had previously been ilirt-atencd with speedy extinction. SHAD HATCHERY AT BATTERY ISLAND, MARYLAND na River, and one of the oldest and most successful hatcheries for shad. White perch and yellow perch also arc liatched at this point. CULTIVATION AND DISTRIBUTION OF FOOD FISHES 1/ the white perch, and at i the striped bass. In recent years the Bureau has operated a shad hatchery on the Delaware River, and has detailed the steamer Fish Hawk for shad hatching in Maine, New Jersey, North Carolina, and Florida. The Central Station, in Washington, is operated largely for ex- INTERIOR OF SHAD HATCHERY AT BATTERY ISLAND, MARYLAND perimental and exhibition purposes, but sometimes receives large numbers of eggs from the adjacent river stations, especially when the latter are overstocked. Hatcheries on East Coast Rivers. Location. Fishes handled. Craig Brook, Penobscot River, Me Atlantic salmon, landlocked salmon, hump- back salmon, brook trout. Staceyville, Upper Penobscot River, Me Atlantic salmon. Havre de Grace, Susquehanna River, Md Shad, yellow perch, white perch. Bryans Point, Potomac River, Md Shad, yellow perch. Edenton, Albemarle Sound, N. C-- Shad. Weldon, Roanoke River, N. C Striped bass. Washington, D. C, Potomac River Shad, yellow perch, white perch, etc. 5577S-0S- i8 THK UNITED STATES BUREAU OF FISHERIES In order to counteract the effect of the very exhausting fisheries of the Great Lakes, the Government has maintained hatcheries for many years, and in 1908 operated 6 belonging to the United States and 2 belonging to the State of Michigan. The fishes to which attention is given are those which enter most The principal slatii HATCHERY AT NORTHVILLE, MICHIGAN lake trout; also operatt-d for brnok trout ai outh black bas: largely into the catch of the fishermen, namely, the whitefish, cisco, lake trout, and pike perch, the annual output of which now exceeds i K billions. Under arrangement with the Canadian authorities, 2 egg-collecting stations for white- fish, cisco, and lake trout are maintained at points in Ontario. CULTIVATION AND DISTRIBUTION OF FOOD FISHEvS Hatcheries on the Great Lakes. 19 Location. Fishes handled. Cape Vincent, Lake Ontario, N. Y Whitefisli, lake trout, brook trout, steel- head, landlocked salmon, pike perch, yellow percli. Put-in Bay, Lake Erie, Ohio Wliitefish, lake cisco, lake trout, pike perch. Kelleys Island, Ohio a _ Whitefish. Middle Bass Island, Ohio " Whitefish. Monroe Piers, Mich.o Whitefish, pike perch. North Bass Island, Ohio <» Pelee Island, Ontario (Canada) « Port Clinton, Ohioo Toledo, Ohio " Northville, Mich.'' Alpena, Lake Huron, Mich Beaver Island, Lake Michigan, Mich.<2_ Charlevoix, Lake Michigan, Mich Detroit, Detroit River, Mich. <: . Algonac, Lake Huron, Mich." Bay City, Lake Huron, Mich." Belle Isle, Detroit River, Mich. a Grassy Isle, Detroit River, Mich." Sault Stc. Marie, St. Marys River, Mich.<;__ Duluth, Lake Superior, Minn Isle Royale, Mich.o Keweenaw Point, Mich.'' Marquette, Mich.o Ontonagon, Mich." . . _ Rossport, Ontario (Canada) a Whitefish, lake cisco. Whitefish, lake cisco. Whitefish, lake cisco, pike perch. Pike perch. Lake trout, etc. Whitefish, lake trout. Lake trout. Whitefish, lake trout. Whitefish, pike perch. Pike perch. Pike perch. Whitefish. Whitefish. Whitefish, lake trout. Whitefish, lake trout, pike perch, etc. Lake trout. Lake trout. Lake trout. Lake trout. Lake trout. a Egg-collecting stations. ff Interior station, headquarters of the fish-cultural work in Michigan, the lake-trout eggs are hatched. <■ Hatcheries belonging to State of Michigan, leased by Bureau of Fisheries ntly located, and place where most of The hatcheries on the rivers and lakes of the Pacific coast region are devoted almost exclusively to the various salmons. In California, where the Bureau established a salmon hatchery as early as 1872, there is one central or main station, at Baird, on the McCloud River, with important collecting and eveing stations on two other tributaries of the Sacramento. In Oregon a central hatchery at Oregon City, on the Willamette River, has 3 subhatcheries on tributaries of the Columbia in Oregon and Washington, and 3 subhatcheries on tributaries of the Rogue River, Oregon, in addition to several egg-collecting stations. The interests of the large salmon fisheries of the Puget Sound region are safeguarded by a hatchery on Baker Lake, on the Skagit River, Washington, 20 Till'. rxiTKI) STATES BUREAU OF FISHERIES witli an important auxiliary at Birdsview. The two latest additions to the western salmon hatcheries are at Yes Bay and Afognak, in Alaska, at which points innnense numbers of blueback or sockeye salmon are now being put forth. A significant feature of artificial propagation on the Pacific seaboard is that in the Columbia basin the hatching of the acclimatized shad has begun on a small scale, and in the Sacramento basin the cultivation of the acclimatized striped bass has commenced under conditions which indicate that more eggs of this species mav be obtained in California than in any of the States to which the fish is native. IIatciiivries on the P.vcinc Co.vsT Stki;.\ms ,\.\i> I.akks. HANDLED. ISaird, Sacramento River, Cal CliiiKxik salmon. Battle Creek, Cal.". _ Chinook salmon. Bouldin Island, Cal Striped Ijass. Mill Creek, Cal." Cliinook salmon. Vreka, Sacramento River, Cal,'' Rainbow trout. Baker Lake, Wash- - . - Chinook salmon, lilueliack salmon, luinip- back salmon, silver salmon. Birdsview, Wash Chinook salmon, blueback salmon, luun|)- back salmon, silver salmcm, stcelhcad trout. Oregon City, Willanu'lle River, Oreg -. Chinook salmon, silver salmon, steelhead trout, etc. Big Wliite Salmcjn, Columbia River, Wash Chinook salmon. Eagle and Tanner creeks, Columbia River, Chinook salmon. Oreg." Eagle Creek, Clackamas River, Oreg.'' .. StccUiead trout. Little White Salmon, Columbia River, Wash. Chinook salmon. Rogue River, Oreg Chinook salmon, stcelhcad trovit, silver salmon. Applcgate Creek, Oreg.''- - Chinook salmon, steelhead Iroul, silver salmon. Findley Eddy, Rogue River, Oreg Chinook salmon, silver salmon. Illinois River, Rogue River, Oreg - Chinook salmon, steelhead trout. Willamette Falls, Willamette River, Oreg- Shad. Yes Bay, Yes Lake, Alaska Blueback salmon. Afognak, Afognak Island, Alaska Blueback salmon. " Statinlis whiTO c-ggs arc collected and eyed. '' Collecting stations. The hatcheries in the interior regions constitute the most numerous class, and their output reaches the largest number of people. Their operations are addressed chiefly to the so-called "game" fishes, which, while caught mostly by anglers, nevertheless constitute an important eletnent of the food supply. At these 'stations large numbers of fish are reared to the tnigerling or yearling sizes CULTIVATION AND DISTRIBUTION OF FOOD FISHES 2 1 before being released ; for this purpose more or less extensive pond areas are required. A peculiar kind of station which is included in this general class is that devoted to the collection of fishes of various kinds obtained from the over- flows in the upper Mississippi Valley. In the lowlands along the streams in this region the spring floods receding leave disconnected sloughs and pools, which either become dry during the summer or, if they remain until the winter, freeze ARTIFICIAL SPAWMINQ POND AND RACEWAY Used in culuirc of riiiiihow trout ul the Wytheville. \'irgiiiia, station. solid, and the immense numbers of bass, crappy, and other desirable species therein are lost in the ordinary course of events. By seining these waters the Bureau thus obtains large numbers of fish that would otherwise perish, returning some of them to their native streams and distributing others to adjacent waters. In the autumn of 1908 six cars were employed in moving the fishes thus rescued. The following table, giving the interior fish-cultural stations and their auxil- iaries, shows that in 1908 there were operated 23 of these stations and substations 22 THK UNITED STATES liUREAU OF FISHERIES where hatching operations were conducted and 21 others where eggs or fish were simply collected : Hatcheries in Interior States. Location. Pishes handlsd. lidzenian, Mont. — Brook trout, rainbow trout, black-spotted trout, golden trout, steelhead trout, landlocked salmon. Redrock, Mont Grayling. Bullochville, Ga Black basses, sunfishes, rock bass, catfish, etc. Ervvin, Tenn Black basses, sunfishes, rock bass, yellow perch, rain- bow and brook trouts, catfish, and minor species. Green Lake, Me - - Landlocked salmon, brook trout. Uranch Pond, Me." . _ Landlocked salmon, brook trout. Grand Lake Stream, Me- Landlocked salmon, brook trout. Rainbow trout, golden trout, black-s])(ittc(l troul, brook trout, landlocked salmon, grayling. Cheesman Lake, Colo." Rainbow trout. Darrah, Colo." Brook trout. Edith Lake, Colo." Brook trout. Eldora Lake, Colo." Brook trout. Englebrecht Lake, Colo." Brook trout. Grand Lake, Colo Black-spotted truut. Grand Mesa Lakes, Colo- Black-spotted truut, rainbow trout, hro(]k tmut. Musgrove Lake, Colo." .. Brook trout. Ridgway Lake, Colo." liniiik troul, rainl>o\v Iniut. Twin Lakes, Colo." _ . _ Brook troul. Zocble Lake, Colo." Brook trout. Mammoth Spring, Ark Black basses, rock bass. Black basses, crappies, sunfishes, rock bass, pike perch, yellow perch, brook trout, lake trout, rain- bow^ trout, black-spotted trout, catfish. Hellevne, Iowa * _ Large-mouth black bass, crappies, sunfishes, yellow perch, fresh-water drum, buffalo-fish, catfish. La Crosse, Wis.b Large-mouth black bass, crappies, sunfishes, rock bass, yellow perch, white bass, pike, bufTalo-fish, catfish. \orth McGregor, Iowa & Large-mouth black bass, crappies, sunfishes, yellow- perch, drum, pike, bulTalo-fish, catfish. .Nashua, N. H ._ Lake trout, brook trout, Sunapee trout, rainbow- trout, hybrid trout, landlocked salmon, chinook salmon, small-mouth black bass. Cumberland Center, N. HS Brook trout. Lake Sunapee, N. H." Brook trout, vSunapee trout. « Stalio 6 Statio c Statini i for the collection of eggs i for the rescue of young and iidult fishes where eggs are coUectetl :md eyed but iin ed lands of Mississippi River and tributaries. CULTIVATION AN'D DISTRIBUTION* OF FOOD FISHES Hatcheries in Interior States — Continued. 23 « See also in list of Great Lakes hatcheries. ' Stations for the rescue of young and adult fishe f Stations for the collection of eggs. from overflowed lands of Mi: Location. Fishes handled. Black basses, crappies, sunfishes, rock bass, rainbow trout. Brook trout. Loch Leven trout, steelhead trout, sraall-mouth black bass, and minor species. Pike perch, black bass, and minor species. Large-mouth black bass, crappies, sunfishes, pike perch, yellow perch, catfish, and minor species. Small-mouth black bass, landlocked salmon, steel- head trout, lake trout, brook trout. Brook trout. Brook trout. Brook trout. Brook trout. -Brook trout. Pike perch, yellow perch. Large-mouth black bass, crappies, sunfishes, rock bass, warmouth bass. Rainbow trout, black-spotted trout. Loch Leven trout, brook trout. Brook trout. Black-spotted trout. Large-mouth black bass, sunfishes, yellow bass. Black basses, rainbow trout, black-spotted trout, brook trout. Northville, Mich." .- -- Quincy, 111 -- Meredosia, 111.'' . . St. Johnsbury, Vt Darling Pond, Vt.'' _ Lake Mansfield, Vl'- Lake Mitchell, Vt.'- --1. Swan ton, \'t _ . _ . Yellowstone Park, \Vy Tupelo, Miss White Sulphur Springs, W. \'a The Output and its Distribution The fish-cultural work of the Federal Government has now attained a magnitude that can not readily be comprehended, and is increasing at an exceedingly rapid rate. Especially marked has been the increase in the hatchery product during the past ten years, owing in part to the establishment of new stations, in part to the extension of operations at existing stations, and in part to greater efficiency of methods and appliances. The work during the fiscal year ended June 30, 1908, reached larger proportions than ever before, notwithstanding a shrinkage in the operations addressed to several important species. In the following summary by species of the fecundated ova, the fry, and the fingerlings, yearlings, and adults distributed in the past year it will be noted that several fishes included in the list of species cultivated do not appear in this table, for the reason that the entire stock was retained for breeding pur- poses. Ornamental species are likewise omitted from the table. 24 THE rxiTED STATES lU'REAU OF FISHERIES Summary of Distributionof Fish and Eggs during the Fiscal Year 1908. Species. Eggs. Fry. Fingerlings. yearlings, and adults. T ital. Catfisli 277, 601 277, 601 Carj) BulTiilo-rish Shad Whitefish . . Lake cisco _ _ Chinook sahiion Silver sahiion_ Bluebaek salmon Humpback salmon Steelhead trout Rainbow trout Atlantic salnioi. Landlocked saliimn Black-spotted trout ^ Loch Leven trout. . Lake trout- . Brook trout Sunapcc trout Graylin<; Pikes. . Crappy and stra\vl>trry h: Rock bass Wannouth bass Sinall-moulh black bass__ Large-mouth black bass Sunfishts Pike perch Yellow perch Striped bass White perch White bass Fresh-water drum. _ Cod Pollock Tautog Flatfish Lobster Total 760,000 I 79,316,600 1 Y), 266, 000 384, 480, 000 IJ, 790, 000 I 3, 200, 000 68,385,550 24,998, 185 296, 000 1 13, 420, 714 75,000 69,883,305 7,185,748 .133.7^5 1,123,146 830, 000 253, 650 2,079,514 190, 000 441, 281 768,380 4,230,540 2.734,000 ■ 25,267,078 1 , 473, 400 6, 307, 048 19" • 736 200,000 1,047,000 18, 725, OHO 2, 080, 000 232,312 -'3, ')i>n 2 231,797 57.932 59. 000 2 713,600 30. 003 151.526 I 442, 376 55.012 3 182,080 3 471. 292 200, 268 25,090 1,638 78,940 ,S88, 047 J02,8lO 193,438,000 I 382,576,000 68,045 4.333.500 ' . .. 321, 670, 000 - 500 26, 000 235. 365.000 66,454, 000 794, 000 - 389,642,000 ' 180, 932, 000 I, Oil 277 601 ,350 40 5"" 80 076 600 23 746 000 15 990 000 95 615 532 13 774 646 69, 958 305 7 185 748 I 5"5 871 3 797 250 2 109 517 782 807 6 441 296 55 012 31 1 1 183 251 ■58 740 191 736 1 247 000 200, 268 25,090 1 . 638 311. ^^^ 611,947 202, 810 412, 163, 000 384, 724.043 4. 333. 500 327,410, 000 500 26, 000 238,365.000 66, 454, 000 794, 000 389, 642, 000 180,933,011 457,647,0551 2,398,886,257114,922.968 2,871,456,380 CULTIVATION AND DISTRIBUTION OF FOOD FISHFS 25 While the Bureau does not lay undue stress on mere numbers and con- siders the vitality of the fish and the conditions under which they are planted as of paramount importance, the foregoing figures are certainly very suggestive; and as a further statement of the magnitude of the fish-cultural work it may be of interest to record that the aggregate output of the hatcheries from 1872 to 1908 was about 22,365,200,000, of which about 10,341,700,000 represents the work of the past five years. BUILDINGS AND REARING PONDS OF TROUT STATION AT SPEARFISH, SOUTH DAKOTA The first consideration in the distribution of fishes is to make ample return to the waters from which eggs or fish have been collected. The remainder of the product is consigned to suitable public or private waters. All applications for fish for private waters and many of those for public streams and lakes are transmitted through and receive the indorsement of a United States Senator or Representative. The fish are carried to their destination in railroad cars or by messengers who accompany the shipments in baggage cars. During the fiscal year 1907 the Bureau received 6,346 apphcations for fish, nearly all for game species. The demand, especially for the basses, crappies, and catfishes, is greater than can be met with present resources. 26 THR UNITED STATF;S BUREAU OF FISHERIES The supply of particular fishes available for distribution, and consequently the numljer allotted to individual applicants, is largely determined by the differ- ence in methods of hatching the different species and the present facilities therefor. The area and character of the water to be stocked must likewise be considered. The water area that would receive a million pike perch fry would perhaps be assigned no more than 200 or 300 black bass 3 or 4 inches long, or four to eight times that many if the bass were planted as fry. The explanation is in the fact that pike perch can be propagated by the hundred million, while INTERIOR OF A .TYPICAL.TROUT. HATCHERY black bass, hatched by other methods or collected from overflowed lands, can be produced only in comparatively small numbers. The Bureau does not attempt to assign any applicant more than a liberal brood stock of the basses or sunfishes. With brook trout, which are distributed both as fry and finger- lings, allotments of fry are many times larger than allotments of fingerlings 3 to 4 inches long. Fishes arc distributed at various stages of development, according to the species, the numbers in the hatcheries, and the facilities for rearing. The com- CULTn'ATION AND DISTRIBUTION OF FOOD FISHES 27 mercial fishes, hatched in lots of many mihions, are necessarily planted as fry. It is customary to distribute them just before the umbilical sac is completely absorbed. Atlantic salmon, land-locked salmon, and various species of trout, in such numbers as the hatchery facilities permit, are reared to fingerlings from I to 6 inches in length; the remainder are distributed as fry. The basses and sunfishes are distributed from the fish-cultural stations and ponds from some three weeks after they are hatched until they are several months of age. A FISH TRANSPORTATION CAR ; of tliis kind ai lit use by the Bur incubiited while oi fish are ca When the last lots are shipped the basses usually range from 4 to 6 inches and the sunfishes from 2 to 4 inches in length. The numerous fishes collected in overflowed lands — basses, crappie, sunfishes, catfishes, yellow perch, and others — are 2 to 6 inches in length when taken and distributed. Eggs are distributed only to State hatcheries or to applicants who have hatchery facilities. The varying usage in the classification of young fish as to size has caused such confusion and difficulty that the Bureau has adopted the following uni- 28 TIIK UNITED STATES HURRAU OK FISHERIES form definitions, which have been approved by the American Fisheries Society and represent the general sentiment of State and private fish-culturists : Fry — fish up to the time the yolk sac is absorbed and feeding begins. Advanced fry — fish from the end of the fry period until they have reached a length of • inch. Fingerlings — fish between the length of i inch and the yearling stage , the various sizes to be designated as follows: No. i , a fish i inch in length and up to 2 inches; No. 2, a fish 2 inches in lengtli and up to 3 inches; \o. p,. a fish 3 inches in length and up to 4 inches, etc. Yearlings — fish that are i year old, but less than 2 years old, from the date of hatching; these may be designated No. i , No. 2,No.3,etc., after the plan prescribed for fingerlings. Fish are delivered to applicants free of charge at tlie railroad station nearest the point of deposit, and for this purpose is maintained a special car and messenger service, which is one of the most important branches of the - / fisli-cultural work. In the early days baggage cars were employed, but these have now been supplanted by an equipment which not only affords more comfort to fish and attendants, but makes it possible to transport the fish much greater distances and with smaller percentage of loss. The cars, of which there are now 6, are of standard size, and are attached to regular express and local passenger trains. Each car has 20 or more large water tanks along the sides in which to carry fish, compartments holding more than 1,000 gallons of reserve water, a boiler room, and a plant for pumping both water and air into the fish tanks. There are also an office, kitchen, pantries, refrigerator, and 6 Pullman sleeping berths, with other facilities for the convenience and comfort of the crew of 5 men (including a cook) who live on the car throughout the year. The Gov- ernment furnishes the cook, fuel, and utensils, but the men provide their own food. For small shipments of fish and for supplying places ofi" the main railway lines messengers detached from the cars carry fish in lo-gallon cans in baggage cars. The distributions last year required travel amounting to 83,840 miles by the Bureau's 6 cars, and 263,196 miles by detached messengers — a total of 347,036 miles — of which 11,826 for cars and 8o,Si6 for messengers were furnished by the railroads free of charge. There are few enterprises undertaken by the United States Government f 1 ,v/ 1 ^'^^t ^^^ more popular, meet with more general and Populanty of the Work , , , ^ -i . 1 ., ,1 generous support, and have contrn)uted more to the prosperity and happiness of a larger number of people than its fish-cultural work, an evidence of which fact is afforded by the attitude and action of Congress. The comparatively large budget for the various branches of the Bureau's work is voted each year without an\- opposition whatever, and the api^ropriations are increasing yearly. When special needs arise and their merit is presented to Congress, special appropriations can usually be obtained; and (Tovernment fish-culture is so popular in the country at large and the demand for new hatcheries is so widespread that an extraordinary number of hatchery CULTIVATION AND DISTRIBUTION OF FOOD FISHES 29 bills have been introduced and favorably considered in recent sessions of Con- gress. The Bureau advocates the building of new hatcheries as one of the best and most remunerative measures that can possibly be undertaken by the Fed- eral Government, but it rarely has to take the initiative, and on several occasions the establishment of a hatchery has been proposed by Congress before the necessity for it has actually developed. During each of the recent sessions of Congress, had all the bills providing for new hatcheries become laws the Bureau INTERIOR VIEW OF FISH TRANSPORTATION CAR cd tanks where fish arc carried, and Pullman sleeping berths f.. would have been seriously handicapped in designing and constructing the new buildings and ponds and in supplying competent persons to operate them. In the first session of the Sixtieth Congress, which began in December, 1907, and ended in May, 1908, there were introduced loi distinct bills, carrying an aggre- gate appropriation of $2,142,000 and providing for 74 hatcheries and 4 labora- tories in 43 States and Territories. While the manifold operations of the Bureau touch directlv or indirectly practically the entire population of the United States, they appeal with special 30 THE UNITED STATES BUREAU OF FISHERIES force to the commercial fisherman, the fish dealer, the amateur angler, the student of aciuatic biology and physics, the owner of small ponds, lakes, or streams, and the professional cultivator of fishes, mollusks, and other water creatures. SCIENTIFIC INQUIRY The first duties undertaken by the Bureau after its organization involved ^ biological investigations, and the operations up to the present time have con- MARINE HATCHERY AND LABORATORY, WOODS HOLE, MASSACHUSETTS Kstablislied twcnty-tive years ago, and devoted to the culture of cod. flounders, and lobsters, the output of which in 1907-8 was 337 millions. Also the headquarters of important biological investigations of the east -coast fauna, the labora- tory privileges being accorded gratuitously to qualified students. tinned to have a distinctly scientific basis. In making his original plans for the systematic investigation of the waters of the United States and the bio- logical and physical problems they present, Commissioner Baird insisted that to study only the food fishes would be of little importance, and that useful con- clusions must needs rest upon a broad foundation of investigations purely scientific in character. The life history of species of economic value should be understood from beginning to end, but no less rcciuisitc is it to know the his- SCIENTIFIC INQUIRY 31 tories of the animals and plants upon which they feed or upon which their food is nourished; the histories of their enemies and friends and the friends and foes of their enemies and friends, as well as the currents, temperatures, and other physical phenomena of the waters in relation to migration, reproduction, and growth. In jDursuancc of this policy the Bureau has secured the services of many prominent men of science, and much of the progress in the artificial propagation RESIDENCE AT THE MARINE STATION, WOODS HOLE, MASSACHUSETTS Formerly the summer headquarters of the and by te: Bureau, and now occupied by the officials of the laboratu iporary assistants engaged in special work. of fishes, in the investigation of fishery problems, and in the extension of knowl- edge of our aquatic resources has been due to men eminent as zoologists who have been associated with the work temporarily. Among such men recently have been Alexander Agassiz, Hermon C. Bumpus, Gary N. Calkins, Bashford Dean, Charles H. Gilbert, Theodore Gill, C. Judson Herrick, Francis H. Herrick, David Starr Jordan, A. D. Mead, George H. Parker, Jacob Reighard, Henry B. Ward, William M. Wheeler, and Henry V. W^ilson. Their services have been 32 THK UXITKD STATES BUREAU OF FISHERIES n the services of specialists for particular problems, and through them the Bureau has not only been able to give to the public the practical results of applied science, but has contributed to pure science valuable knowledge of all forms of aquatic life. The small permanent staff of the Bureau concerns itself more directlv with studies of fishes and their environment, with the conservation of diminishing commercial species, and the development of new or improved methods of increas- ing the supply. Such lines of work are undertaken as the need appears or as assistance is asked for, and keep the scientific assistants in the field for extended MARINE BIOLOGICAL LABORATORY AT BEAUFORT. NORTH CAROLINA This statiim. built in 1901. is favorably located for the study of the aquatic fauna of the southeast coast. The laboratory building is 174 feet long and 42 feet wide in the main portion, has a large museum and aquaria, and accommodates about 30 workers. Adjoining the laboratory building are a power plant and a mess house and kitchen. periods each year. The most important work in hand at present concerns aquatic products other than fishes — namely, oysters, fresh-water mussels, sponges, and the diamond-back terrapin, in all of which cases the problem is to find means to offset the results of long-continued overdraft upon the natural supplv. The Bureau has also the services of a fish pathologist — a position speciallv created by Congress at the solicitation of the Commissioner. This assistant has devoted most of his time to the study of diseases among fishes at the hatcheries of the Government and of various States, and has added greatly to the existing knowledge of the causes and prevention of many of the affections which often prove so serious in fishes under cultivation. His field includes also the investigation of conditions due to pollution of waters. SCIENTIFIC INQUIRY 33 Two seaside laboratories are maintained by the Bureau for the prosecution of investigations in pure and apphed science. One of these is located at Woods Hole, Massachusetts, the scene of the first biological work undertaken after the establishment of the Bureau. It was built in 1883, and is in conjunction with a marine fish hatchery. Here also are extensive wharves, at which the largest vessels may lie, and protected harbors for small craft. A large residence build- ing at this station was for a number of years occupied as the summer head- quarters of the Bureau, the entire executive and oflfice force being transferred from Washington. The other laboratory is situated on a small island near Beau- fort, North Carolina, and was constructed in 1901. The land for both of these stations was donated by private individuals. In addition to their function in the investigations of the Bureau itself, these laboratories are open to the public for study and scientific research. Students and professors in colleges and any other qualified investigators may have the facilities of the laboratories upon request, and these opportunities are largely availed of each year. For the survey of offshore fishing grounds, the study of pelagic fishes, and the general exploration of the seas, the Bureau has had, since 1882, the steamer Albatross, which was specially designed and built for this work and has con- tributed more to the knowledge of the life and physics of the sea than any other vessel. The Albatross is a twin-screw iron steamer, rigged as a brigantine, of 1 ,074 tons displacement and 384 net tonnage, and was built at a cost of $190,000, including original equipment. The complement of officers and men, numbering about 80, is furnished by the Navy; there is in addition a small civilian staff, including a resident naturalist and a fishery expert, to whom the practical work of the ship is intrusted. After spending several years in the investigation of the fishing grounds of the Atlantic coast of North America, the Albatross was dispatched to the Pacific Ocean in 1888 and has since confined her operations to those waters. The vessel has made three extended cruises to the southern and eastern parts of the Pacific, several cruises to the Hawaiian Islands and Japan, and many visits to Alaska, in addition to numerous surveys on the coast of the Pacific States, all having for their object the investigation of the physics and biology of the regions visited, the determination of their aquatic resources, and the study of their fisheries. In 1 907 the vessel began a biological survey of the waters of the Philippine Archipelago, and is now engaged on that work. The deepest sounding made by the Albatross — near the island of Guam — was 4,813 fathoms; the greatest depth at which the vessel found life was 4,173 fathoms; the greatest known ocean depth is 5,269 fathoms, near Guam, ascertained by the U. S. S. Nero while using Albatross apparatus. 55778— oS 3 34 THE UNITED STATES RUREAU OF FISHERIES Work similar to that done by the Albatross is conducted by the steamer Fish Hawk on the Atlantic coast. This vessel, built for the Bureau in the winter of 1879-80, is of 441 gross tons burden, and has a naval crew of 45 men; it is equipped for sounding and dredging, and has recently been employed chiefly in the exploration of the coastal waters and inshore fishing grounds of New lingland while attached to the laboratory at Woods Hole. The vessel is convertible into a hatchery, and has been engaged in the hatching of shad and other fishes along the entire coast from Maine to Texas. TRIAL FISHING ON THE ALBATROSS This experimental catch of cod and halibnt i s taken in twenty minutes by the .\lbatross wliile explo off the coast of Ahiska. The Bureau's large collections of natural -history specimens are deposited in the United States National Museum. The duplicates, however, are not retained for Government purposes, but are distributed upon request to public schools and colleges. In this way hundreds of thousands of specimens represent- ing all groups of aquatic animals have been supplied for educational purposes. 36 THE I'NITKD STATES lU'REAl" OF FISHERIES STATISTICS AND METHODS OF THE FISHERIES The first duty to which the Bureau of Fisheries was assigned, namely, the investigation of the reported decrease of food fishes in New England, necessarily involved the collection of statistics of production, personnel, and capital. Since that time this branch of the work has been conducted without interruption, and in it have naturally been included the various other subjects affecting the economic and commercial aspects of the fisheries. Among its functions FISHING A NEW ENGLAND POUND-NET are (i) a general survev of the commercial fisheries of the country; (2) a study of the fishery grounds with reference to their extent, resources, yield, and con- dition ; (3) a study of the vessels and boats employed in the fisheries, with special reference to their improvement ; (4) a determination of the utility and effect of the apparatus of capture employed in each fishery; (5) a study of the methods of fishing, for the special purpose of suggesting improvements or of discovering till' use of unprofitable or unnecessarily destructive methods; (6) an inquiry into the methods of utilizing fishery products, the means and methods of trans- portation, and the extent and condition of the wholesale trade; (7) a census of the fishing population, their economic and hygienic condition, nativity, and STATISTICS AND METHODS OF TH?: FISHERIES 37 citizenship; (8) a studv of international questions affecting the fisheries; (9) the prosecution of inquiries regarding the fishing apparatus and methods of foreign countries. The mackerel schooners ar market for the catch, yield of mackerel on o unprecedented abundr MACKEREL VESSELS AT A BOSTON DOCK ! among the fastest and handsomest vessels of the Atlantic coast, and Boston is the principa. Fishing is done chiefly with purse seines, to manage -which large crews are required. The ir coast has been uninterruptedly small for twenty-two years, preceded by a period of almost The coUection of statistics of the commercial fisheries and the industries dependent thereon constitutes the major part of this work. The information is required in great detail, and is obtained by the personal inquiries of a ^ 38 Till-: TNITRD STATKS Hl'RF.Ar OK FISHERIES small corps of agents, who visit all the fishing communities and interview fishermen, fish dealers, vessel owners, factory proprietors, and others. While the Bureau is not authorized by law to enforce demands for data, it very rarelv happens that information is refused; on the contrary, the objects and value of the work being now well understood, many thousands of fishermen keep accurate records for the special use of the Bureau, and dealers, transportation companies, prcparators, etc., permit free access to their books. The relatively small force available for the collection of statistics, the magni- tude of the territory to be covered, and the extent of the fisheries prevent the canvass of more than one section of the country during one season; and it has been found impossible to cover the entire coastwise and interior fisheries oftener than once in four or five years. Herewith are the latest available statistics gathered by the Bureau for the general fishing industry. These figures show that 219,534 persons were engaged in the fisheries, $94,254,839 were invested in vessels, boats, apparatus, and other property, and the products had a value of $61,047,909. Statement of the Persons Engaged and the Capital Invested in the Fisheries of the United States. Persons emiiloyed Vessels fishing Tonnage - Outfit-.- Vessels transporting Tonnage Outfit. -- Boats Seines Gill nets and Iraniiiul ntis Pound nets, trap nets, and weirs. _ Fyke nets . . . Beam trawls and paranzcllas Wheels and slides Eel and lobster pots . _ Dredges, tongs, rakes, scrajjes, etc. Lines.. Other apparatus _ Shore and accessory property Cash capital. Atlantic and Gulf States. Number. | Value. Pacific Coast States and Alaska. 161,923 4.584 85.43:^ 1,686 29. Total 61,489 3,888 143. 824 7.384 19.033 66 37 228,086 $8, 170,256 3, 006, 425 1,847,469 29.S. 257 3, 981, 761 5M- 227 782,338 I . 540, 83s 94, 180 I, 696 775 248. 974 4ii.4-'4 347.079 .S5. 347 20,571, 131 15.013.676 121 $621,017 8,250 289, 897 334 2,771.022 62, 255 >o. I. 55 77^ 8,611 680 446 41 49 68, 055 I, 528,91 1 282, 244 1,095. 282 1,444,510 4, 610 6.371 168, fXX) 7. 131 44.421 45.075 10,473.781 7,205,650 $56, 902, 850 $26,055,977 STATISTICS AND METHODS OF THE FISHERIES 39 Statement of the Persons Engaced and the Capital Invested in the Fisheries of the Unitkd States — Continued. Persons employed Vessels fishing Tonnage - Outfit Vessels transporting Tonnage Outfit Boats.. - Seines , Gill nets and trammel nets Pound nets, trap nets, and weirs. _ Fyke nets Beam trawls and paranzellas Wheels and slides Eel and lobster pots Dredges, tongs, rakes, scrapes, etc. Lines Other apparatus Shore and accessory property Cash capital Great Lakes and interior waters. 25,201 194 3,506 500 12, 156 992 102, 604 4,848 40, 7-24 4 Total. S634. 450 402 400 529 76 657 617 261 154 766 612 804 063 379 219.534 4.899 97, 188 2,038 92,492 480 13 683 24 994 16 215 4,809 022 3 429 588 $1 1, 296, 012 83, 800 5,652. 255.039 12,912 60, 203 107 90 228,086 3,443.724 4,687, 891 371,466 6, 040, 438 893, 083 2,535,424 3, 602, 408 360, 169 8,067 169, 255 248, 974 432,238 416,494 116,637 35,853.934 25,648,914 i 254, 839 Note. — The years to which these figures pertain are 1905 for New England, 1904 for the Middle Atlantic States, 1902 for the South Atlantic and Gulf States, 1904 for the Pacific States, 1907 for Alaska, 1903 for all interior waters. Statement of the Products of the Fisheries of the United States. Atlantic and Gulf States. Pacific States and Alaska. Pounds. Value. Pounds. Value. Fishes: 52,061,580 35,435 I. 201, 135 16, 575, 661 1,019,032 3,006, 610 4, 184,363 5,252,858 77,498,674 S473, 811 1.253 90,956 781,802 41,818 26,556 138,761 168, 102 2, lOI, I 19 2,1^9,282 $51,820 Bluefish . 212,062 3,075 Buffalo-fish Butterfish i Catfish . . - 923, 144 7.694.944 Cod 193,966 1 40 TIIK UNITKD STATES BURF.Ati OF FISHF.RIF.S Statement of the Products of the Fisheries of the United States — Continued Fishes — Continued. Cra|)])y and stravv1)erry bass . Croaker _ _ Cusk„._. Drum, fresh-vvattr Drum, salt-walcr Eels Flounders German carp Haddock- _ Hakes. . _ Halibut Herrings Mackerel Menhaden Mullets Perch, while- Perch, yellow_ Pike perches Pike and pickerel _ Pollock Pompano Rocklish - Salmons Scup Sea bass Shads Sheepsheacl Silver hake Smelts Snapper, red .Snappers, other Si)anish mackerel Spot Squeteagues Striped bass Sturgeons Suckers Sunfishes- Swordfish- Tautog Trouts Atlantic and Gulf States. Pacific States and Alaska. Pounds. Value. Pounds. Value. 253, 506 $7, 154 138,931 6,910,903 '21. 34" S3, '45 9, 079, 866 '39.964 5.550 ■31 4, 063, 230 '09,055 3, 636, 964 212, 160 9, 676, 172 290, 186 8,418, 145 155, .SI 2 1,328,271 78, 778 9'>. 374 1. 607 77.065,441 '■258,763 35.938,627 419,384 3. 7>5.776 237,876 12, 091 , <)()() 358, 930 83. 390, 554 692, 854 4,455,729 35.407 16,323,612 I, 106, 741 134,992 3. 666 562, 427,449 4'. 734. 178 709, 067 '2,952 423 -^ 674. 763 160,875 587, 885 25.547 31,200 ■ . 505 ■54.359 '0,045 39. 033. 093 305,436 876, 305 56, 905 a, 850 4. 502 1 , 896, 467 267.389,335 63, 409 12,589,958 86, 368 20, 161 250, 320 183, 219 4.282,313 28,065, 130 1,688,352 489. 505 '3. 146 2, 634, 046 68, 060 5.549.935 37, 866 628, 860 69, 710 2.762,202 79- 973 418,360 11,419 160, 270 2,965.381 708, 465 11, 7.14 2, 023,476 43. 794. 980 1.233,959 988,524 31.548 2,601,354 259, 926 1,570,404 92. 1 16 1.475.925 137,3" '37,981 4. 271 751.655 '8,757 1 1 , 343 554 .-,,311,369 205, 567 28, 298 STATISTICS AND METHODS OF THE FISHERIES Statement of the Products op the Fisheries of the United States— Continued. 41 Fishes — Continued. Whiting and kingfish Other fish Fish oil MoUusks: Abalone Clams, hard-shell. Clams, soft-shell and other Cockles, winkles, conchs, etc. Mussels Oysters Oyster and other s'.iells Scallops Squid - - - Crustaceans : Crabs - Crawfish King crabs - Lobster Shrimp and prav\ n , Shrimp shells - Spiny lobsters Reptiles and batrachians: Alligator hides Frogs Terrapins and turtles Mammals; Fur-seal pelts Hair-seal pelts Otter pelts . - . Whalebone . Whale oil 'Ambergris Sea -elephant oil Sea-elephant skins Walrus products Minor products Miscellaneous: Sponges Seaweeds All other products . Total Atlantic and Gulf States. 178,650 ^45.417 ^6,325 $56. 107 Jio, 136 856 Pacific States and Alaska. 8, 193. 844 8, 130.430 93. 734 1,551. 850 215, 1:51,914 19.975. "5 1.586, 151 I, 119,369 1,320,364 543.7^^ 13.510 6, 705 17,417,581 20,488 297, 658 17.307 34. 137.937 723.845 71,664 3. 897 2, 303, 000 8, 903 11,898, 136 1.364. 7-; I 16, 186, 905 288, 344 349.927 9, 210 856, 936 40. 779 I, 289 94. 586 3. 283 55.950 3.933.554 94 590, 625 5,000 18,367 193.037 246.565 16, 900 25.000 600 346, 889 841, 000 2,886,040 364, 422 34. 120 39.926 3,748,766 )f74. 186 718, 837 19, 191 824,948 I 9, 155 871,008 I 65,078 308, 080 , 30, 280 28,215 1.764 2,665,696 1,031,523 8,730 ' 218 25 1 . 360 10, U54 6, 081, 606 181, 904 187, 200 12,480 1,3". 750 I 93.544 950, 000 4, 390 1,078,065 43,406 28,095 92, 364 75,417 3,562 120, 191 408, 419 8,749 7.575 59,320 198,589 1,512,283,708 2,010 336,521,752 484, 649 13.354 16, 703 529.614 20, 796 2,267 34. 380 $16,553,301 j!^^ 42 THK UXITKD STATES lU'REAl' OK FISHKRIKS Statement op the Products of the Fisheries ov the United States — Continued. Kishes: Alewives Barracudas- Black basses.. Bluefish Bonito Buffalo-fish.. Butterfisli Catfish Cod Crappy and strawberry bass . Croaker. Cusk Drum, fresh-water. Drum, salt-water... Eels Flounders German carp Haddock-. Hakes Halibut Herrings Herring, lake Mackerel Menhaden Mullets Paddlefish Perch, white Perch, yellow Pike perches Pike and ])ickerel. Pollock Ponipano Rockfish Salmons Soup Sea bass Shads Sheepshead. Silver hake. Smelts Great Lakes and interior waters. 644, 936 6,542,001 I, 143, 800 178,952 1.432.257 6, 492, 885 10, 868, 404 I, 296, 911 125,858 8.750 23, 600 $56, 605 3 '3, 841 336. 135 54. 034 87,810 1 1 , 409 361,870 816,046 53.565 156,727 456,470 69.677 5.629 875 52, 061, 580 ■;. "94,717 "■939,571 16, 575, 661 1 , 23 1 , 094 "4,534. "4" 4, 184,363 12,718,003 85, 193,618 ".397,306 7.032,243 9, 079, 866 3,512,881 4, 063, 230 3, 81 s, 916 18,094,317 18,942,763 77,065,441 35,928,627 15, 806, 776 87, 846, 283 32, 177,689 16,458, 604 562,427,449 41, 747, 130 1,432, 257 2, 674, 763 10, 899, 604 I, 451 , 270 29, 033, 093 9"o, "55 1, 896, 467 267, 601, 561 9. 216, 731 4, 282,313 28,563,385 2,634,046 5,549,935 3,414,662 S473, 811 53,073 150,471 781,802 44, 893 340, 397 138.761 531.529 2,295,085 61, 188 142, 076 139,964 87.941 109.055 223,569 445, 698 442, 255 1,258,763 419.384 596, 806 728,261 816,046 1, 1 10, 407 1,452,062 709, 490 53, 565 160,875 182, 274 457.975 79.722 305.436 61,407 63, 409 12,615,748 250, 320 183,219 1,702,373 68, 060 37, 866 152.403 STATISTICS AND MKTHODS OF THE FISHERIES 43 Statement of the Products of the Fisheries of the United States — Continued. Great Lakes and interior waters. Fishes — Continued. Snapper, red Snappers, other. _ Spanish mackereL Spot_ Squeteagues Striped bass Sturgeons Suckers Sunfishes Swordfish Tautog Trouts Whitefish Whiting and kingfish Other fish Fish oil Mollusks: Abalone Clams, hard-shell Clams, soft-shell and other , _ Cockles, winkles, conchs, etc Mussels Mussel shells Oysters Oyster and other shells Scallops__ _ Squid, Crustaceans: Crabs Crawfish King crabs Lobster Shrimp and prawn Shrimp shells Spiny lobsters Reptiles and batrachians: Alligator hides Frogs Terrapins and turtles. _. 1,647,306 $91,372 9, 087, 213 178, 940 I. 325. 521 : 33. 295 17, 069, 284 7,728,761 1,657,805 51,856,430 244, 464 190, 884 336, 049 524, 283 951,864 350, 186 7.897 24, 7»» 17, 292 13.763.653 401.349 3. 673. 846 2,023,476 44. 783. 504 4. 171.758 3,261,212 9.538,639 2,088,519 3.311,369 847, 756 20, 158,954 7,728,761 1, 178, 650 13,651,988 745, 162 824, 948 9, 064, 852 8,438,510 93. 734 1,580,065 51.856,430 217, 787, 610 19,983,845 1.586, 151 1.370,729 40.219,543 503.328 2, 303, 000 11,898, 136 17.689,539 950, 000 I, 078, 065 349.927 345. 259 1,409.314 $418,360 11,419 171,974 65.759 1,265,507 352,042 232,954 196, 304 52,606 205,567 28, 298 I, 081, 117 350, 186 56, 107 313,835 20, 047 9. 155 1.385.442 574.002 13.510 8,469 530,098 t8,449, 104 20, 706 297. 658 27.361 905.749 24, 274 8,903 1,364.721 393, 696 4,390 43,406 40. 779 26,077 114,494 4 44 TIIK I'NITF.n STATKS lU'REAU OF FISHKRIF.S Statement of the Products of the Fisheries of the United States — Continued. Mummals: l'"ur-seal pelts Hair-seal pelts_ . Otter pelts Whalebone Whale oil Ambergris Sea-elephant oil Sea-elephant skins- Walrus products- - Minor products Miscellaneous: Sponges Seaweeds All other products Total Great Lakes and interior waters. Pounds. Value. Total. $40 9^. .S64 7.5.417 6, 861 176, 141 4. .HI. 973 94 590, 625 T , 000 8,749 7.57,S 346, 889 900, 320 4, 108, 829 S484, 649 13,354 3.5. 1 10 7-':!, 651 267, 361 16, 900 25, 000 600 5.771 7.791 ,^64. 4^^ .^6. 387 76.398 185, 187, 239 $5,012,598 2,033,992,699 $61,047,909 Supplementary Tarlk SnowrNr; Certain of the Above Products in Bushels, Gallons, and Number. Clams, hard-shell Clams, soft -shell and oilier Mussels Oysters Oyster and other shells " Scallops Cockles and'winkles. . . Oil, fish whale . - sea-elephant Fur-seal pelts Alligator hides Otter skins liusliels- _ . . do ...do ...do-.-. ...do ...do.... do ... -Lillons _ d.i (In . ._ nuinl)er_ . do.... . do . 843 48 31. 112, 264, 9. 99. 578, 78, 15, 70, 4. 106 851 946 515 910 358 400 375 930 7.SO 394 410 537 " Exclusive of torld and inus.scl sliells STATISTICS AND MKTHODS OF THE FISHRRIKS 45 The two most important fishing ports on the Atlantic coast are Boston and Gloucester, from which places upward of 433 vessels, of 24,000 net tonnage, valued at $2,150,000 and carrving over 6,000 men, arc employed in the fisheries. The daily arrival, unloading, baiting, A BUSY DAY AT T WHARF, BOSTON flitting, and departure of the fresh-fish fle and interesting spots in Boston. akc T Wharf < Most of the vessels are schooner rigged, and engaged in fishing on the high seas or on the "banks" lying off the United States and the British provinces. In the yearjjigoy about 200,000,000 pounds of fish, having a first value of over ^ 46 THE UNITED STATES BUREAU OE FISHERIES $5,250,000, were landed in the ports named. For the purpose of keeping in close touch with the condition and extent of these fisheries, which afford a good criterion of the New England fisheries as a whole, two local agents are employed to collect daily statistics of receipts, and this information is incorporated into a special bulletin issued monthly and widely distributed to the trade. It is the expectation that this local statistical sersice will be extended to other important centers. The Bureau has conducted several investigations of the fisheries of the Hawaiian Islands and Porto Rico, and is now engaged in a study of the fisheries of the Philippine Islands. The latest information obtained gives the following figures for Hawaii and Porto Rico; for the Philippines no complete data are available, but it is estimated that the industry yields annually products to the value of $10,000,000 to $15,000,000. Persons engaged in fishing Value of vessels, boats, and apparatus eniployed___ Quantity of catch (pounds) Value of catch. Hawaii Porto Rico (1903). (1902). 3.241 748 $309,217 S35. 826 6.972,735 2, i6g, 770 $677, 897 $106,022 ALASKA SALMON-INSPECTION SERVICE The fishing interests in Alaska, representing an investment of §9,000,000 and yielding last year a product valued at more than $10,000,000, have received especial attention from the Government ever since the Territory was acquired, in ISO;. The seal fisheries, at first considered the most valuable sources of rev- enue, were at once placed under protective legislation. Later there appeared a similar need of regulation of the salmon fisheries, which have now come to support industries many times more valuable than the seal fisheries and stand- ing in large proportion to the total fishing interests of the whole I'nited States. The Alaska salmon-inspection service has thus grown to be one of the most important branches of Government fishery work, and it is one of the few instances where the Government has assumed legislative powers over fishing. Supervision of the salmon fisheries, as of the seal, was at first given to the Treasury Department, and it remained under that jurisdiction until 1903, when it was transferred to the Department of Commerce and Labor, by which it is administered through the Bureau of Fisheries. There are three agents in this field, whose duty it is to inquire into the methods by which fish are caught, prepared, and marketed, and into the conditions of supply, to report thereon and recommend legislation, and to enforce existing laws. For these purposes ALASKA SALMON-INSPECTION SERVICE 47 the entire region is canvassed every year, the agents remaining on the ground throughout the fishing season, from June to September. The protection of the Alaska salmon fisheries has been a difficult problem. The unheard-of magnitude of the resources invited a corresponding recklessness and improvidence. As the canning industry developed, every device that could be used for wholesale capture of fish was put into operation, and gradually all of the favorite streams of the salmon became so blocked with seines, gill nets, traps, and barricades that but a small proportion of the fish could find passage to the spawning grounds, and the future supply was thus most seriously endan- SALMON TRAP IN AN ALASKAN RIVER extensively used in tli ;. The largest traps ha Bristol Has ' leaders mr egion. and takes immense than half a mile li.ng. and • gered. The Alaskan aborigines likewise conducted their fishing in a very destruc- tive way, often placing impassable barriers in streams up which salmon were running, and, through ignorance or indifference, leaving the obstructions in place after the full supply of fish had been secured. It was soon apparent that the laws and regulations were inadequate to meet the special conditions pre- vailing, and were of such a nature as to make their enforcement very difficult. In 1903 a special commission was appointed to make exhaustive study of the natural history of the salmons of Alaska and to submit recommendations for an improved regulation of the fisheries. As a result a new code of laws is now 48 THE UNITED STATES BUREAU OE FISHERIES in effect and promises to prevent the threatened decHne in these enormous indus- tries. Witli increased restrictions as to fishing methods, obstructions in streams, close seasons, etc., the Department of Commerce and Labor is empowered to set aside any streams as spawning preserves whenever such course shall be desir- able, all fishing in such waters to be prohibited. A license tax is required on all salmon products; from the payment of this tax, however, all canning and NATIVE METHOD OF SETTING GILL NETS, ALASKA Tlu- llc-ts iir>- si-1 llnis .111 the sll.irc- ..f NuslKiuak Hay, and at l.nv lidu art- kit tlltirtiv hari-. salting establislnnents are exempted upon condition of t^eir returning young salmon to the streams in the ratio of i,ooo fry to every i-o cases of salmon canned. Three private hatcheries, representing extensive canning interests, were in operation in 1907 and liberated a total of 119,000,000 young fish. The Government itself has undertaken extensive hatchery work, having now in oper- ation a station at Yes Lake established in 1905 and one at Afognak Bay just completed. In tlie two years of its operations the Yes Bay hatchery has produced and liberated over 61,000,000 salmon fry. ALASKA SALMON-INSPECTION SERVICE 49 The seal and salmon fisheries have hitherto overshadowed all other aquatic resources in Alaska, not only in commercial value but in revenue to the Gov- ernment. The rental from the fur-seal islands alone has more than repaid the purchase price of the Territory, and the tax derived from the salmon fisheries now amounts to about $90,000 a year. Some long-neglected products are gradu- ally coming into importance, however, and the cod, halibut, and herring fisheries ALASKAN FISH TRAPS AND RUNS Used by natives on Chilkoot Stream for obtaining their winter supply of salmon. especially have undergone remarkable development in the last few years. Since it became a part of the United States, Alaska has yielded fishery products amounting in value to $158,000,000, of which about $49,000,000 was derived from fur seals, $86,000,000 from salmon, and the remaining $23,000,000 from all other acjuatic products. The sum paid by the United States to Russia for the Territory of Alaska was only $7,200,000. 55778— oS 4 5° Till': UXITKI) STATKS liURKAT OF FISHERIES RELATIONS WITH THE STATES AND WITH FOREIGN COUNTRIES From tho ht'i^iiinini; of its career the Bureau has maintained cordial rela- tions with tlie tisiiery authorities of the various States. The policy has been to aid and supplement, never to supplant, the work of the .States; and the field is so large and the objects in view have such importance and conunon interest that there should never arise cause for unfriendly rivalry. The coop- eration in lish cultural, bioloj^ical, and fishery work has been extensive. WHITEFISH AND PIKE-PERCH HATCHERY AT PUT-IN BAY, LAKE ERIE, OHIO The .iKgrcgate output of this station in 1907-8 was over 564 niilliun \inii'g tisli. besides 7.; niillici Twenty-seven of the States have hatcheries of their own, and to any of these the Bureau transfers eggs and fry when they are available and desired. This policy is not only an aid to the State work, but facilitates the hatching by relieving congestion at the C>overnmcnt stations, and it also permits the most judicious planting of the fish. The Bureau has in a number of cases taken over and operated hatcheries owned by the States, and in others the egg collections are made conjointly. In the Pacific salmon work there was for years coopera- tion between the California Fish Commission and the Bureau, and much of the whitefish and pike perch work on Lake Erie has been done by the Bureau work- ing with the States of Ohio and Pennsylvania. RKLATIOXS WITH STATKS AND KORRIGN COUNTRIES 51 In the vStates that have no means for undertaking the fish-cultural work the Government is looked to for the stocking of both public and private waters; and, for that matter, the Bureau distributes young fish to applicants in all States without distinction. In the introduction of nonindigenous fishes, how- ever, the Bureau responds to applications only with the approval of State authorities. The evil that may result from the indiscriminate planting of The arrangement of the ja PART OF INTERIOR OF PUT-IN BA in the form of a ' liattcry " cconomizL's HATCHERY ice and facilitat rdling of eggs and fry. new fishes, especially the predaceous species, is obvious, but as it is not gen- erally recognized by applicants that the popular black basses and trouts, for instance, do not dwell together in amity, full precaution is taken to secure requisite information before the fish are supplied. The extent of Government aid to State hatchery work may be judged from the following table, showing the numbers of eggs consigned gratis to State fish commissions during the year ended June 30, 1908. THK rxiTEU STATES lU'REAU OK FISHERIES Allotments of Eggs to State Fish Commissions, Fiscal Year 1908. Statb and Species. California; Cliinonk saliTion___ Colorado: Black-spotted trout Lake trout Idaho: Brook trout Illinois: Pike perch Maine: Landlocked salmon Wliile perch Maryland: Rainliow trout Yellow ]iereh Massachusetts: Rainliow trout.. Michigan: Landlocked salmon Lake trout Pike perch Missouri: Brook trout C.ra ylinj; Pike perch Nevada: Lake trout Brook trout New Hani])shire: Chinook salmon Lake trout New York: Whitcfish Landlocked salmon Number of eggs. 68,647,550 125, 000 50, 000 1 00, 000 25, 000, 000 100, 000 700, 000 150, 000 2, 080, 000 15,000 10, 000 500, 000 43, 000, 000 100, 000 50, 000 5, 000, 000 100, 000 200, 000 100, 000 504, 000 15, 000, 000 20, 000 State and Species. New York — Continued. Lake trout Ohio: Whitefish Lake cisco Oregon: Chinook salmon. Pennsylvania : Whitefish Lake cisco Silver salmon Black -spotted trout. Lake trout Pike perch Utah: Rainbow trout Vermont : Lake trout Brook trout Wisconsin : Whitefish Steelhead trout Rainbow trout Grayling Wyoming: Steelhead trout Black -spotted trout- Lake trout Grayling Total. Number of eggs. 300, 000 " 3<>, 906, 000 a 2 070, 000 1 485, 000 676 860, 000 10 720, 000 100 000 126 000 500 000 6144 725 000 50 000 300 000 84 500 15 000 000 50 000 100 000 50 000 20 000 63 000 50 000 ,SO 000 440 161 050 .' The Ohio iMsh Commission cooperated by furnishing a vessel and crew, and defrayed the expenses of collecting these eggs. l>The Pennsylvania risli Commission contributed the cost of collecting these eggs. In addition to the eggs distributed as above, 3,500,000 yellow-perch fry were consigned to Connecticut and 1,475,000 lobster fry to Massachusetts; and of rainbow-trout fingerlings, yearlings, and adults, 44,800 were donated to .Maryland and 5,000 to Nebraska. The oyster-producing States more than any others have asked for the assistance of the Bureau's scientific staff. In Alabama, Florida, Louisiana, Maryland, .\ortli Carolina, South Carolina, and Texas extensive surYeys have PUBLICATIONS. 53 been made or are being made, the oyster grounds charted, biological and phys- ical conditions studied, and the path to successful cultivation pointed out. In North Carolina the declining shad fishery was recently investigated in both its natural history and statistical aspects by the Bureau at the request of the State authorities. State hatcheries have frequently called for aid in the study and treatment of epidemics among the fry and young fish. The results achieved in these various instances will be referred to elsewhere. International courtesy has prompted the donation of American fish eggs to foreign governments, and the hardiness of such eggs and the facility with which they may be transported out of water for long distances have resulted in the establishment of some of the best of our food and game fishes in distant lands. Thus the brook trout and other American salmonoids are now thriving in Argentina; the brook trout, the rainbow trout, and the black bass are widely distributed in Europe; the rainbow and brook trouts are found in several Japanese lakes; and some of the finest trout fishing in the world is afforded by the rainbow trout in New Zealand, where also the chinook salmon, the blueback salmon, and various other American fishes are now flourishing. Dur- ing the past year about 4,000,000 eggs of salmons and trouts were shipped aljroad. When the Bureau is unable to supply such requests from its own stock, it acts as agent in the purchase from private fish-cultural establishments, supervising the packing and the transportation to the point of embarkation. PUBLICATIONS The 65 large volumes which represent the United States Bureau of Fish- eries on library shelves are not the mere routine report or annual statement of funds disbursed and duties discharged. The scientific study and the practical experiment which are the foundation of the Bureau's work yield results of manifold interest and far-reaching significance, and such results are corre- spondingly fruitful of discussion. The dissemination of the knowledge they afford is, moreover, a recognized function for which the periodical document issue is the established medium. The subject-matter of these volumes is thus coextensive with the scope of the operations of the Bureau — it is biological, fish-cultural, and commercial, treated from standpoints both technical and economic. The names of J. A. Allen, Baird, Bean, Bumpus, Dean, Farlow, Forbes, Gill, Gilbert, Goode, Jordan, Rathbun, Ryder, Verrill, and numbers of other well-known biologists give the publications authority in science; and the reports of Baird, again, and the pioneers, Atkins, Clark, Green, Hessel, McDonald, and Stone, and their successors, constitute practically a history of fish culture in America. The Manual of Fish Culture, first issued in 1897 and revised in 1900, is yet the only publication in English covering that subject. The seven-volume "Fisheries and Fishery Industries of the United States," 54 'I'l"' rXITED STATKS liURRAU OF FISHERIES by Cioode and his associates — Clark, Collins, Ivarll, Elliott, McDonald, and True — thoui^h published about twenty years ago, remains a standard work of reference. Of special interest and value during recent years have been the numerous con- tributions of livermann, either alone or in collaboration, on the fishes of Hawaii, Porto Rico, the interior and coastal waters of America, etc. ; the reports of Benedict, Rathbun, and others on crustacean resources, of Herrick on the lobster, of Kunz on pearls, of Moore on oysters and oyster culture, of Parker and Herrick on the special senses in fishes, and various other papers by regular assistants of the Bureau on economic, biological, and fish-cultural subjects. In addition to the foregoing, the publications treat of the physical conditions in lakes and streams, the methods used in deep-sea investigation, and all forms of minute animal and plant life in their relation to fishes — reaching into the fields of oceanography, hydrography, geology, and chemistry, as well as biology. The Bureau is thus responsil)le for a literature which no bibliography of natural .science could omit and which has an educational value and popular interest widelv acknowledged and availed of. For the first ten years of the existence of the Bureau its publications were comprised in a series of annual octavo volumes known as the Commissioner's Report. In 1881 another series was begun, likewise of annual issue, and desig- nated "Bulletin of the United States Fish Commission." These two series endured as instituted until the year 1905, when new legislation brought about a change. So far as form is concerned, however, the change affects only the Com- missioner's Report. This report is no longer a bound book containing a detailed discussion of the vear's work with special reports appended, but is reduced to a brief administrative statement of results, occupying less than 50 octavo pages. The special reports formerly published as appendixes and making up the major portion of the original volume are now issued as separate, independent pamphlets under distinct title-pages and covers. These papers are in general fish-cultural and economic, being detailed accounts of special investigations or experiments briefly noticed in the Commissioner's Report and as a rule contemporary. The rela- tionship of their subject-matter is recognized in their size and typographical style, which is such as to permit them to be bound, if desired, with the Com- missioner's Report to which they pertain. They are issued at no fixed intervals, but from time to time according to quantity and character of material and the exigencies of printing, each annual group, however, being usually completed within the year the Commissioner's Report is issued. The Bulletin remains as heretofore, composed of papers (chiefly technical) upon all phases of aquatic biology studied by the Bureau or its collaborators. The volumes are annual, in royal octavo, with continuous pagination and general index. The separates are issued at irregular intervals, as are the pamphlets just described, and a volume is ordinarily closed within the year following the date PUBLICATIONvS 55 in its title. The present volume of the Bulletin, which is ncarins; completion, is the twenty-seventh, for the year 1907. The publications are distributed gratis to all persons or institutions that desire them. A permanent mailing list is maintained, and individual requests also are complied with as received. The change affecting the content of the annual report, however, carried with it a new plan in the general distribution of docmnents. The laws establishing the Report and Bulletin had contemplated their issue in the form of annual bound volumes only, though it was possible to obtain a small edition of special papers in advance as separates. The separates, of course, offered the advantage of promptness in publication, convenience to the reader interested in a particular subject, and economy to the Bureau where without them it would have been necessary to supply entire volumes to persons desiring only a part. Accordingly, when revision of the printing laws made a new course possible, the pamphlet form was adopted almost exclusively for general distribution, exception being made only in the case of reference libraries, Government Departments, public fishery organizations, institutions of learning, etc., for whose purposes the annual bound volumes were better suited. To all other addresses on the mailing list and to all subsequent correspondents the Bureau forwarded a circular announcement of the change which was to take eft'ect, furnishing a classification of subject-matter, and asking to be advised what papers would be desired in future. To the extent of the edition provided, any or all of the documents published are now supplied in accordance with the wishes thus ascertained. The subjects covered in the papers may be classified as follows: 1 . Annual Report of the Commissioner. 2. Fish-culture: (a) Methods. (6) Distribution of fish and eggs (c) Fish diseases and parasites. 3. Aquatic biology: (a) Economic investigations. (6) Explorations and surveys, the methods, apparatus, etc. (c) Descriptions of species and faunal lists. (d) Morphological, physiological, and pathological studies. 4. Statistics and methods of the commercial fisheries. 5. Special subjects, such as oysters, sponges, pearls, fur seals, investiga- tions of popular interest, etc., to be designated by applicant. For convenience of reference all publications of the Bureau are given a serial number, document 635 being the last issued. A list of titles of all avail- able documents, arranged by numbers and indexed by subjects, is kept up to date and can be had upon request. Most of the earlier numbers are now out of print, some of the most valuable works unfortunately being no longer obtain- able from any source unless from second-hand book dealers. Of some important 56 THF. I'NITED STATES BUREAU OF FISHERIES recent works an edition of 2,000 was exhausted within a year, and several doc- uments of particular public interest have run through eight or ten editions. It is now possit)le to supply only a few odd hack volumes and some 300 different pamphlets. The permanent mailing list, which is steadily growing, includes at present some 1,500 addresses, representing various National and State government departments, fishery organizations and biological societies, public libraries and museums, colleges, newspapers and magazines, numerous fish-culturists, edu- cators, students, sportsmen, and other persons with related interests. It is in the daily requests for particular papers, however, that the public interest in the Bureau's work is most manifest. During the past year, which has shown an especially marked increase in this respect, 25,423 documents were sent out in response to special requests. As already stated, the Bureau distributes its publications free upon request. The Conmiissioner's Annual Report and the Bulletin (but not the independent pamphlet reports) can also be obtained free from Members of Congress, each United States Senator and Representative receiving a quota from the edition provided for this purpose. The Bulletin in this edition is the cloth-bound vol- lune, delivered annually. All of the documents can be purchased in pamphlet form from llic Superintendent of Documents, Government Printing Office, Wasliinglon, I). C, at a price representing ten per cent more than actual cost. SOME RESULTS OF THE WORK Much evidence can be adduced to show that the fish-cultural operations of „. , _ , the General Government are of direct financial ben- rish Culture , , , _, , . , efit to the country at large. Ihe results m the case of some sjjecies have been so striking and so widespread that it would be almost as supererogatory to refer to them as to discuss the utility of agriculture; in the case of other species there can be no doubt of the value of the work, although it may be possible only occasionally to distinguish the effects of human interven- tion on the fish supply from the effects of natural causes. The outcome of the Bureau's efforts to increase the food supply is naturally most evident in the case of small streams, lakes, and ponds, of which thousands have been success- fully stocked with the most desirable food and game species. It is not necessary to refer further to this work, but a few of the important results of operations on public waters may appropriately be mentioned. The leading river fish of the eastern seaboard is the shad. No other anadromous species has been more extensively cultivated and none is now so dependent on artificial measures for its perpetuation. Inasmuch as the prin- cipal fisheries are in interstate or coastal waters and the movements of the fish from tlie high seas to our rivers and back to the high seas place it beyond the SOME RESULTS OF THE WORK 57 claim to ownership which might be urged by the various States were the shad a permanent resident within their jurisdiction, it seemed especially desirable and necessary that this species should be fostered by the General Government for the benefit of the entire country. For this reason, and owing to a serious decline that had already set in, the shad was one of the first species whose artificial propagation was taken up by the Bureau, and its cultivation is to-day a leading factor in fishery work, almost every large stream having been the site of hatching operations. The extent of the work may be gaged when it is stated that nearly Engaged in hydrograplii FISHERIES STEAMER FISH HAWK jrvcys on the New England coast, and often i east-coast rivers. iployed as a sliad hatchery 3,000 millions of voung shad have been planted by the Bureau in coastal streams; and a verv significant point is that the eggs from which these fish were hatched were taken from fish that had been caught for market, and hence would have been totallv lost if the Bureau had not collected them from the fishermen. The great multiplication of all kinds of fishing appliances on the coast, in the bays, in the estuaries, and along the courses of the rivers resulted in the capture of a verv large part of the run each season before the shad reached the spawning grounds, and hence the natural increase was seriously curtailed, and, 58 THE UNITED STATES BUREAU OF FISHERIES in some streams, almost entirely prevented. Yet the shad catch increased, and for many years the fishery prospered in the face of conditions more unfavorable than confront any other fish of our eastern rivers At length, however, the unrestricted fishing became greedy to an overwhelming extent. The mouths of the rivers and the lower waters through which the shad must pass became so choked with nets that fishing gear farther upstream could make but slender hauls; and for several vears there has been a steadv decline in catch, which MAIN DECK OF STEAMER FISH HAWK Sliowing arrangement of McDonald automatic jars for hatching shad threatens to result in the extinction of the fishery. The Bureau has continued its efforts in propagation, but these are curtailed by the factor that is also destructive to the fishery. When they first enter the streams the shad are not ripe and are useless to the hatcheries, and the spawntakers must therefore wait for the run farther upstream ; but with the recent exhaustive fishing in the salt waters so few fish have escaped that the egg collections have diminished to an alarming extent, being reckoned now in millions where formerly they were SOME RESULTS OF THE WORK 59 hundreds of millions, lender such conditions it is impossible to propagate enough fish to offset the quantities taken, and the shad fishery is fast being deprived of its one support ; while the present meager shad catch together with the enforced curtailment of propagation speaks even more convincingly of the value of artificial measures than did the preceding increase. >(E IN JRLD s seine, operated for shad and alewives kind. The net proper was 9.600 feet ^2,000 feet as the total sweep of the s^ by steam power and the labor of 80 many as 3.600 shad were taken at one time. Recently the season's yield of shad fell to after having been carried on for a century. This se LARGEST SE at Stony Point. Virginia, on the Potomac River, was the longest net of the in length, and the hauling ropes at the ends were 22.400 feet long, giving eine. only one end of which shows in the illustration. The seine was hauled men. and was drawn twice daily, at ebb tide, throtghout the season. As haul, and 126.000 in one season, and 250.000 alewives were caught at one o. and the fishery was cor of eggs for the quently discontinued i urcau's shad hatchery this The long continuance of the Penobscot as a salmon stream for many years after all other New England rivers had ceased to carry this fish is directly attributable to the work of the Bureau on that stream. So dependent on artificial measures has been the perpetuation of the salmon supply that it is believed the obliteration of the run and the wiping out of a long-established fishery would ensue within five years after the suspension of fish-cultural opera- 6o THE UNITED STATES BUREAU OF FISHERIES tions. Physical conditions in the Penobscot have become so unfavorable for the passage of salmon to the spawning grounds that natural reproduction is now almost if not altogether inhibited; and the only noteworthv source of young salmon is the eggs obtained by the Bureau from salmon purchased from the tlshcrmen. Large run of tributa bers of these traps are s< salmon. The fish thii if the Penobscot, A PENOBSCOT RIVER SALMON the IVncbsccl dnriiic tlu- short ^ Evidence is not lacking to show that the long-continued and increasingly extensive fish-cultural operations on the Great Lakes have prevented the deple- tion of those waters in the face of the most exhausting lake fisheries in the world. The luscious whitefish, the splendid lake trout, the excellent pike perch, or wall- eyed pike, may be hatched in such numbers as to assure their preservation without serious curtailment of the fisheries. The absence of concerted protective measures, however, on the part of the various States interested has the tendency SOME RESULTS OF THE WORK 6l to minimize the effects of cultivation and would seem to justify, if not impera- tively demand, the assumption of jurisdiction by the Federal Government. The magnitude of the salmon fisheries of the Pacific States has required very extensive artificial measures to keep up the supply. The operations of the Bureau, in combination with those of the States, have been gradually extended in both scale and scope until they have now attained a tremendous extent and are addressed to all the species whose cultivation is as yet demanded. OPEN-AIR SALMON-REARING TROUGHS These troughs are used at the Craig Iiroi)k (Maine) hatchery for rearing AlUintic and landlocked salmon. The quantity of Pacific salmon eggs collected by the Bureau in 1908 was over 200,000,000, equivalent to 1,700 bushels. A remarkable fact in the history of the Pacific salmons — of which there are five species — is that without exception all fish which enter any stream on the entire coast die after once spawning, none surviving to return to the sea. This wise provision of nature to prevent the overstocking of streams has been made fooHsh by the appearance of man on the scene ; he not only catches the salmon in the coast waters and the lower courses of the rivers with gill nets, seines, and pound nets, in the upper waters with the same appliances supplemented by the 62 THE UNITED STATES BUREAU OF FISHERIES fish wheels, and on the spawning grounds with all sorts of contrivances, but in certain sections even carries his foolhardy greed to the extent of barricading .:^m?^^:' ^ 0; J^ - --«tto^jrifct-v'T>' *^'m B^l^^^^l m^^sp^^H ^i' }k^ • ■ -lA tt'»l.aHW'''!^ ^^^-^-_^^^^_^^^_ «'y-<>IBBB|^^^^^^^^^B ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^1 ■jH' "^x^si ^^^^H 1 jj^^^P 7^ «__ jS*JV" ■u ■^1 SALMON HATCHERY AT BAIRD, CALIFORNIA The pioneer salmon hatchery on the Pacific coast, located on the McCloud River, a snow on Mount Shasta. The station can accommodate 25 million eggs at one 5 million young chinook or quinnat salmon and 15 million eyed eggs. Operalio at Haltlc Creek, and Mill Creek (where 74* million eggs of the chinook salmor prime factor in maintaining the salmon run in the Sacramento River. swift stream formed by the melting me, and in 1907-S produced about 5 of this hatchery and its auxiliaries were taken in 1907) have been the the streams so that no fish can reach the waters where their eggs must be depos- ited. Natural reproduction, thus so seriously curtailed, is not sufficient to keep SOME RESULTS OF THK WORK 63 up the supply in many of the streams where fishing is most active, for many of the eggs escape fertilization, many more are eaten by the swarms of predaceous fishes that haunt the spawning beds, and many are lost in various other ways during the long hatching period; while the helpless fry and alevin fall a ready prey to the same fishes in the upper waters and the young salmon have to run the long gauntlet of the rivers only to meet new foes in the estuaries, on the coast, and in the open sea. cted by the Bii RACK AT BATTLE CREEK, CALIFORNIA ept salmim on theii hatcheries. nds .Tiid supply eggs for th( It is, therefore, no wonder that artificial propagation on a large scale is imperatively demanded in the western salmon streams, and is actively urged and highly commended by fishermen, canners, business men, and the public at large. The beneficial influence of the work of the Government, supplemented by that of the three coast States, has been unmistakable in some sections and can not be doubted in general; but it is of course very difficult to distinguish definitely the increase due to natural from that due to artificial propagation. 64 THE UNITED STATES BUREAU OF FISHERIES The history of the sahnon fishery in the Sacramento River in Cahfornia, and the recent increase in the catch notwithstanding most unfavorable physical conditions in that stream, afford unmistakable evidence of the value of cultiva- tion. Some very suggestive though not altogether conclusive information rela- tive to the benefits of salmon culture in the Columbia River has been furnished by marking young salmon before releasing them from the hatcheries. The number of marked salmon that returned as mature fish and were captured and reported eW-4 COLLECTING COD EGGS ON A FISHING VESSEL od eggs hatched at the Ne^ the fishing boats, o Kngland stations is the catch of the market fisherme crhaul the fish, and save the eggs of such as are ripe. indicates a very large percentage of survivals and suggests the growing depend- ence on artificial propagation for the maintenance of the runs. In the case of marine hatching operations it is so difficult to prove bene- ficial results that their utility is doubted by some people. When the Bureau began the cultivation of the cod and the lobster many years ago, it proceeded on the principle that tlie efi'ects of the fishermen's improvidence could be coun- teracted by artificial propagation. The ultimate success of cod and lobster cul- SOME RESULTS OF THE \V(JRK 6s ture on the Atlantic coast was therefore confidently expected, and tlie expec- tations have been more than realized. Practical results of an unmistakable character were first manifested nearly twenty years ago, since which time a very lucrative shore cod fishery has been kept up on grounds that were entirely depleted or that had never contained cod in noteworthy numbers in the memorv of the oldest inhabitants. There is much unsolicited testimony on this point from many people who have profited from the operations of the Maine and Massachusetts stations. The benefits have not been confined to the immediate LOBSTER AND COD HATCHERY AT BOOTHBAY HARBOR, MAINE vicinity of the hatcheries, but have extended westward and southward along the Middle Atlantic coast and eastward along the whole coast of Maine. The benefits of lobster culture have been slower in appearing, owing, in part at least, to the less extensive operations and the excessive mortality to which the young are liable; but from all parts of the New England coast there are being received reports of more lobsters, particularly of small size, than have been seen for many years, and there is reason to believe that the long-continued decline of the lobster fishery has been arrested. 55778-08 5 66 THp; UXITI'.D STATES BUREAU OF FISHERIES Acclimatization Economic results of great value have come from the transplanting of native aquatic animals into waters in which they are not indigenous and from the introduction of fishes of foreign countries into the ITnited States. The supply of food and game fishes of every section of the country has thus been increased and enriched, fisheries of vast extent have been established, and the pleasures of angling have been greatly enhanced. BIRD'S-EYE VIEW OF LEADVILLE, COLORADO, HATCHERY the Rocky Mountains, is devo brook, and other trouts. c.f tlic blnck spolU-d. In all the waters of the eastern, central, and southern parts of the United States the range of every important native food and game fish has been extended artificially. Especially extensive work has been done with the black basses {M iciopierus) , the crappies {Pomoxis), the rock bass {Amhloplites), the sunfishes (Lepomis), the brook trout {Sahclinus jontinaUs) , the lake trout {Cris- tivomer namaycush) , the landlocked salmon {Salmo sebago), and the catfishes {Ameiurus and I ctalurus) . Among the more conspicuous examples of this class of work has been the stocking of the Potomac River with black basses, crappies, and catfishes. SOME RESULTS OF THE WORK 67 Among the eastern fresh-water fishes that have been estabhshed and more or less widely colonized in the Rocky Mountains or in transmontane regions are the large-mouth black bass, the crappy, the yellow perch, several catfishes and sunfishes, and the brook trout. Sportsmen of all the Western States can now find excellent black-bass and brook-trout fishing. Colorado, which has known the brook trout only a few years, is thoroughly stocked and affords unsurpassed opportunities for anglers. So successful has been the work in that State that the Government now draws most of its supply of brook-trout eggs therefrom, CATCHING AND SORTING THE BROOD FISH AT A THOUT-CULTUR AL STATION IN THE ROCKY MOUNTAINS and the progeny of Colorado fish are used for replenishing eastern waters from which the original stock was taken for introduction into Colorado. The most noteworthy results of the introduction of native fishes into new regions have been seen in the Pacific States and represent two contributions from the Atlantic seaboard — the shad and the striped bass. The economic outcome of the acclimatization of these fishes is without parallel in the entire history of migratory species. The colonizing of the shad on tlie Pacific coast was one of the greatest achievements in fish acclimatization. Aside from the important '--i]nancial 68 THE rXITKD STATES HCREAU OF FISHERIES results, the experiment was noteworthy because of certain changes that have occurred in the habits of the species, and because the feat of transporting shad frv across the continent at that early day was justly regarded as remarkable, and had a marked influence on the development of fish transportation, which has now attained such perfection. With the experiment were associated two of the pioneer fish-cult urists of America, whose name and fame are known the world over — Seth Green and Livingston Stone. Relatively small plants of shad frv were made in the Sacramento River, California, in 1871, 1873, 1876, STRIPPING AND FERTILIZING TROUT EGGS AT AfSTATION IN THE ROCKY MOUNTAINS. 1877, 1878, and 1880, and in the Columbia River, between Oregon and Wash- ington, in 1885 and 1886, the aggregate for each stream being less than one million and onlv one-hundredth of the plants sometimes made in an east-coast river in a single season. In April, 1873, the first shad was taken in California, and shortly there- after many more were caught in the vicinity of San Francisco; by 1879 the fish had become numerous, and by 1886 it had become one of the most abun- dant food fishes of the State. In 1876 or 1877 shad were first taken in the SOME RESULTS OF THE WORK 69 Columljia, so it is evident that an offshoot from the Cahfornia colony soon migrated northward and had already established itself when the new emigrants arrived from the east eight or nine years later. By 1881 the fish seems to have become distributed along the coast of Washington, and in 1882 reached Puget Sound. It was nine years later, however, when the first pioneer was recorded from Fraser River, British Columbia, and the same year there was a report of shad in Stikine River, southeast Alaska. In 1904 a fine roe shad, caught at Kasilof, on Cook Inlet, was the first known arrival in that remote region. To the southward the fish is found as far as Los Angeles County, and the present range of the species thus extends along about 4,000 miles of coast. It is not improbable that the migrations of the shad will extend still farther. The two great centers of the shad's abundance are the Sacramento basin and the lower Columbia River, and it has been asserted that in either of these • waters more shad could be taken than in any other water course in the country. The catch affords an inadequate criterion of the shad's abundance, for fishermen and dealers report that it would be easily possible, should the demand warrant it, to treble or quadruple the present yield, as most of the fish are now taken incidentally in apparatus set primarily for other species. Viewed from the purely business standpoint, the transplanting of shad to the Pacific coast has been a remarkably good investment. From the best information obtainable, the entire cost of the experiment was less than $4,000, while the aggregate catch for market in California, Oregon, and Washington to the end of 1907 was approximately 15,000,000 pounds, for which the fishermen received $330,000. The history of the introduction of the striped bass on the western seaboard is quite similar to that of the shad, and the result has been equally striking. In 1879, 135 young striped bass from New Jersey were deposited in San Francisco Bay, and in 1882 a plant of 300 small fish from the same State was made in the same place. These meager colonies found the waters of California fully as con- genial as did the shad, and the fish has shown an almost uninterrupted increase in abundance to the present time. From the San Francisco region the species has gradually spread up and down the coast, and its range may eventually equal that of the shad. Up to 1896 the fish had not been reported outside of California, but several years thereafter it began to run in some of the coast rivers of Oregon, and in the fall of 1906 half a dozen fine specimens were caught in traps at the mouth of the Columbia River, the first recorded from that stream. The striped bass, far removed from its ancestral home, has maintained the enviable reputation it enjoys in the East, and is freely recognized by its new friends as one of the best food and game fishes of the Pacific coast. A number of years ago the catch in California exceeded that of any other State, while now it surpasses that of any group of States along the eastern seaboard. The fish has become a prime favorite with anglers, and it is now probably the leading game fish of California. While it always commands a high price in the East, 70 THR UNITKO STATES KURRAT OF FISHKRIF.S and is often to be ranked as a luxury, its abundance in California waters has so reduced the cost to consumers that even the most frugal can afford to eat it, and a comparison made some years ago showed that throughout the year the San Francisco dealers were underselling the New York dealers by many points. The economic importance of the introduction of the striped bass on the Pacific coast may be judged from the fact that the entire cost of transplanting was less than $1 ,000, while the value of the catch to the end of 1907 was about $925,000, a simi representing a yield of more than 16,500,000 pounds. The only fishes which the Western States have given to the remainder of the country are two trouts; but the transplanting of several other trouts is now in progress, and systematic and extensive efforts are being made to establish several of the Pacific salmons in the New Ivngland rivers. The foremost con- tribution of the West to the East is the rainbow trout. The transplanting of this species in regions east of the Rocky Mountains has been a conspicuous success- and has proved a decided boon to many communities. Its acclimatization by the General Government was first undertaken in 1880, although it is probable that some years prior thereto small plants had been made in new waters by State commissions or private persons. It has now been introduced into nearly every State and Territory, and has become one of the most generally known fishes in every part of the country. In Michigan, Missouri, Arkansas, Nebraska, Colorado, Nevada, and throughout the Allegheny Mountain region its trans- planting has been followed by especially noteworthy results. Its position in the streams and lakes of the Eastern States is that of a substitute and not a rival of the brook trout. It is well adapted for the stocking of waters formerly inhabited by the brook trout, in which the latter no longer thrives on account of changed physical conditions; it is also suited to warmer, deeper, and more sluggish waters than the brook trout finds congenial. The anadromous steelhead trout of the Pacific coast has been established in Lake Superior and other parts of the Great Lakes as a result of plants of young fish made in 1896, and has also obtained a firm hold in a number of New I{ngland lakes, proving a very acceptable addition to the supply of food and game fishes. It readily adapts itself to a strictly fresh-water existence, and soon reproduces in its new habitat. The debt that sportsmen owe to the fishery service of the United States and the several States for their acclimatization work is heavy and increasing yearly, and the obligation is shared indirectly, but not the less actually, by hotel keepers, boatmen, merchants, landowners, and others. There could be cited numerous concrete examples of the varied benefits that have come to communities through the stocking of local waters with nonindigenous species. In some cases the improvement in the fishing has so increased the influx of people that land about the waters has increased several hundred per cent in value in a few years. SOME RESULTS OF THE WORK 71 Quite a number of Old World fishes have been introduced into American waters, and some of them have become well known in various parts of the country. Two European trouts, the brown trout and the Scotch lake trout, have been cultivated here for a score of years, and are now found in many private waters. The acclimatization of the European sea trout and the Swiss lake trout has also been effected. None of these fishes, however, has any superiority over native species, and the demand for them is decreasing. The Asiatic goldfish and the European golden ide or orf and tench are now very familiar ornamental species in America, but have little commercial value; the tench, however, is found in a few streams and reaches the markets in small numbers. Of all the exotic fishes, however, none is so well known, so widely distributed, so abundant, and so valuable as the carp, which was introduced from Germany upward of thirty years ago. This fish has excited a great deal of criticism, mostly unfriendly, and it is to-day regarded with disfavor by manv people, chiefly anglers, because of real or supposed habits that are repre- hensible. As a commercial proposition, the bringing of the carp to America has been of immense benefit, for to-day it is one of the common food fishes of the country, it is regularly exposed for sale in every large city and innumerable small towns, it supports special fisheries in 15 States, and it is regularly taken for market in 35 States. The sales at this time amount to fully 20,000,000 pounds annually, for which the fishermen receive $500,000. The principal carp fishery is in Illinois, where fishermen have for years been reaping a golden harvest, finding a ready sale in the West and also sending large consignments to New York in special cars. The next important center is the western end of Take Erie, in Ohio and Michigan, where large special ponds have been constructed and a peculiar form of cultivation has sprung up. Other important carp States are Colorado, Delaware, Iowa, Minnesota, Missouri, New Jersey, New York, Tennessee, Utah, and Wisconsin. It is not as a great market fish, however, that the carp is destined to attain its highest importance among us, but as a fish for private culture and home consumption. The number of farmers and small landowners who are alive to the benefits of private fish ponds is increasing at a very rapid rate, and hundreds of thousands of such in all parts of the country, but particularly in the great central region, will find in the carp a fish well adapted to their needs and conditions. It is probable that the commercial value of carp is insignificant compared with its importance as a food for other fishes. It is extensively eaten by many of our most highly esteemed food fishes and is the chief pabulum of some of them in some places. In a number of the best black-bass streams, like the Potomac and the Illinois, the carp is very abundant and is a favorite food of the voung and adult bass, while in California the introduced striped bass has 72 Till'. UN-ITI-.n STATES lU'REAT OF KISHKRIRS from tlic outset sulisisted larj^ely on carp and may owe its remarkable increase to the presence of this food. The consumption of carp is certainly destined to increase greatly; but even if the catch reaches no higher point, the introduction of the carp into the United States will remain the leading achievement in fish acclimatization in recent times, and, with the exception of the original introduction of the same fish into Europe from Asia, the most important the world has known. Among the acclimatization experiments that have not yet been pro\ed successful, but that there is every reason to believe will eventually become so, is the transplanting of the lobster {Homarus aniericanus) to the Pacific coast. There is jirobably no food animal of the eastern seaboard whose acclimatiza- tion on the Pacific coast would prove so great a boon as the lobster. As early as 1873 the Bureau made its first move to supply the deficiency, and up to 1889 five attempts to establish the species were made, the deposits being at various points from Monterey Bay to Puget Sound. No positive results having ai)peared, the experiment was renewed in the fall of 1906, when a special carload of brood lobsters, numbering more than all the previous plants combined, was dispatched to Puget Sound, and in 1907 a still more extensive plant, aggregating about 1 ,000 adult lobsters, was made in the same water. Further consign- ments will be made until the lobster is removed from the list of failures and recorded as a great financial as well as gastronomic success. The long-continued and systematic field and laboratory work of the Bureau has resulted in a most thorough knowledge of the Bioiogicannjj^ugations distribution, variation, abundance, habits^ etc., of the fishes and other creatures of the interior, coast- wise, and olTshore waters of the United States, Hawaii, and Porto Rico — a knowledge which is indispensable to the Government in its fish-cultural work and to the various States and insular authorities in their legislative efforts to preserve their fishery resources. The practical results of this work are apparent in numerous specific instances. For a number of years the Bureau has been engaged in an endeavor to develop a jiractical method of fattening oysters. It is the custom of many oyster growers to transplant their oysters, shortly before putting them on the market, to beds where the natural supply of food is luxuriant, and oysters fatten rapidly. In many localities such favorable places are few or entirely lacking, and the o\stennen are comi)elled to put inferior stock upon the market, and thus forfeit the full measure of ])r()fil. The experiments which have been carried on are intended to develop a method of producing these fattening beds artificially in localities where they do not naturally exist. By the use of commercial ferti- lizers it has been found possible to produce the desired abvmdance of oyster food, and the only important problem yet awaiting solution is that of materially increasing the outjmt of tlu- artificial claire emjiloyerl for the experiments. Con- SOME RESULTS OF THE WORK 73 siderable progress toward this end has been made recently, the yield of the claire in 1907 being 176 barrels, against 125 barrels in the preceding year; and, as with a given equipment the expenses of operation are not materially increased whatever the product, this increase, if it can be carried further, as present con- ditions indicate, will result in sufticient margin between the cost of the treatment and the increased value of the fattened oysters to warrant its recommendation as a commercial process. The oysters fattened by this method are as fine as any placed on the market, and have been used with satisfaction at some of the best hotels and clubs of New York, Philadelphia, and W'ashington. Upon two subjects in particular has the Bureau expended much energy and at last achieved results by persistently sounding the note of warning. The utmost efforts in artificial propagation can not save the shad fishery without the aid of laws to permit a certain number of spawning fish to reach the streams; while on the other hand no practicable protective laws can save the oyster sup- ply without cultural work to keep up the beds. The Bureau has no power to do more than hatch fish in the one case, devise methods of culture in the other, and cry out the needs of both; and it lies solely with the States to provide for the needs. North Carolina rose to the emergency of the shad situation a few years ago and asked the aid of the Bureau in determining the actual protection required by the shad, the actual condition of the fishery, and the possible remedies for a rapidly diminishing yield. The Bureau's recommendations were asked for by the State legislature, and a commission was appointed to draft salutary laws, which have since gone into effect, confining gear to prescribed areas and leaving clear channels for the passage of the fish. Immediate result was seen at the Government hatchery in the Albemarle region. The collection of shad eggs in these waters in five years had dropped from 75 millions to 6]4 millions. The next year, which was the first of enforcement of the new laws, the collection was 25^ millions, and in 1908 the most successful shad hatchery was in this State, the egg collections exceeding 55 millions. The oyster fishery has had a common history in all of the Southern States, of which Maryland, once the foremost in oyster production and the last to resort to systematic cultural measures, affords the most notable example. The laws controlling the fishery in Chesapeake Bay have been designed to protect the nat- ural beds, but have not encouraged or protected the oyster planter, and the natural beds, thus practically the sole reliance, in time failed to sustain the tremendous draft upon them. Between 1880 and 1897 the product fell 31.6 per cent; in 1904 it was 39 per cent less than in 1897. The Bureau had for many years pointed out the short-sighted policy that was resulting in the steady decline of the oyster industry, and was at length gratified to find that the State had taken heed of the warning and enacted a com- prehensive law favoring oyster planting. The work that has now been under- 74 TIIK UNITED STATES BUREAU OF FISHERIES taken by the Maryland Shell Fish Commission to remedy the alarming condition of the oyster grounds will be the most complete and accurate of its kind. It consists of the survey and delimitation, by the aid of the United States Coast and Geodetic Survey and the Bureau of Fisheries, of all natural oyster beds in Maryland waters, to be marked and set aside as public fishing grounds operated under the existing protective laws. All other suitable grounds will then be THE OYSTER FLEET AT BALTIMORE H^illiincirc, at the head of ChcKipeake Day. is the leading oyster market of the world. Over 600 oyster vessels, carrying 3,600 men, land their catch here: and nearly 8,000 men on shore arc engaged in handling, shucking, canning, and shipping the oysters. The (iiiantity of oysters landed in Haltimore in a single season has sometimes reached nearly 7,000,000 bushels, worth abimt S3,soo.ooo. reserved by the State to be leased to oyster planters, whose enterprise will be encouraged and their rights protected as was not possible heretofore. Up to 1898 there were few planted beds of oysters in Louisiana waters. Investigation of the oyster grounds by the Bureau in that year, however, led to the passage of beneficial laws and proved a general stimulus to oyster culture in that State, as is shown by the fact that some 20,000 acres of bottom were soon under cultivation. In 1906 the State Oyster Commission, still further to promote the local industry, again asked the Bureau's assistance, and large SOJIK RESULTS OF THE WORK 75 areas of unutilized bottom were examined to determine their productive capac- ity. The conditions were found to be exceptionally favorable, and experi- mental plants produced 3 '-^ to 4 inch oysters in quantities of i ,000 to 2 ,000 bushels per acre, within two years after the cultch was put down. In Barataria Bay, where there had been no oysters whatever, such promising beds were established that several hundred acres of adjacent bottom were immediately leased by prospective planters. Other localities, though they have so far shown no such conspicuous commercial enterprise, may be expected to prove equally productive. Experiments in sponge culture have been in progress for several years, and have now developed a practical system by which sponges may be produced from cuttings at a cost much less than that entailed in taking them from the natural beds. In view of the more rapid depletion of the natural beds which will undoubtedly result from recent changes in the methods of the fishery, the Bureau is convinced that the preservation of the American sponge industry will depend upon cultivation; and as it is estimated that about $1,500,000 worth of sponges were taken in Florida during the past year, the failure of the fishery would be a serious commercial loss to the State. In cooperation with the Rhode Island Fish Commission, the Bureau has developed new methods of lobster and soft-shell clam culture which are being applied with success in New England. Experiments with the hard-shell clam are now in progress at Beaufort. Important work recently undertaken is an effort to establish mussel culture in the Mississippi Valley. The supply of mussels in those waters, on which is based a pearl-button industry valued at about $5,000,000 per annum, with an investment of $6,000,000, is being rapidly exhausted, and the mussel fishermen and manufacturers recognize that without scientific cooperation of the Gov- ernment the business is doomed to early extinction. The Bureau in one season's work has practically, though not conclusively, shown a method by which the pearl mussels can be propagated, and is demonstrating that the work can be carried on at a comparatively small expense in connection with the already established operations in rescuing fishes from the overflowed lands, the fish reclaimed being employed, without injury to themselves, in the dissemination of the larvse of the mussels. There have been liberated 25,000 fish, bearing about 25,000,000 young mussels ready to drop and begin their independent existence, and already past the stage when they are most subject to fatality. The work is also capable of application to waters under private control and will probably become a source of respectable revenue to farmers and others whose property embraces streams, ponds, and lakes. The importance of this work is urgently insisted upon by the National Pearl Button Manufacturers' Association, which embraces practically the entire capital invested in the business. 76 Till': rxiTK.n states iu'rrau of fishkriks In the field of fish diseases great progress has been made in the extension of knowledge of the causes of many of the fatalities which sometimes make a clean sweep of the hatcheries and which heretofore could not be adequately coped with because their etiology was not understood. The services of the scientific staff in this regard have been not only of great benefit to the Gov- ernment, but are highly regarded and frequently availed of by State and private fish-culturists. Among the direct material aids rendered to fish culture in the THE FRESH-FISH FLEET AT T WHARF, BOSTON ;trycr riiiantities of fresh sea fish arc landed at Boston than at any other port in the I'nited States. The principal species are cod. ciisk. haddock, hake, pollock, halibut, swordfish. and mackerel, together with lobsters, oysters, and clains. A day's receipts of fresh fish from the Broimds off the New England coast have sometimes exceeded 2.000.000 V past four or five vears arc the following: (i) Determination of the cause and remedv for the fatal malady known as the "gas disease," which at one station killed 1,200,000 brook-trout fry out of 1,300,000 on hand; (2) isolation of a bacterial organism producing a fatal disease in trout, and discovery of a possible remedv; (3) determination of the cause of a fatal protozoan disease in trout; (4) discoverv of a remedy for the diatom disease of lol)ster eggs and larva?; (5) studies of the causes for tlie dealli of fish in ca])tivit\- aiul the detcTiiiinntion SOME RESULTS OF THE WORK 11 in a number of cases of responsible peculiarities in the water supply ; (6) studies of the character of streams and the effects of various conditions on fishes, which have supplied much information on the subject to the public; (7) determina^ tion of the effects on fishes of galvanized iron and other metallic containers used in transportation of fish and fry, and (8) indication of certain undesirable types of vessels. Gloucester. Mass., fishing vessels ai literally depends the leading fislii 1 in the various in the sea for its t THE FISHING FLEET IN GLOUCESTER HARBOR rt in the Western Hemisphere. Nearly 6,000 persons are employed industries dependent on the fisheries, and the entire population of The importance to the fishing interests of the work of the Bureau in connection with the economic fisheries is widely ap- Commerclal Fisheries predated and freely acknowledged. The statistical inquiries of the Bureau afford the only adequate basis for determining the con- dition and trend of the fisheries and the results of legislation, protection, and cultivation. Among the numerous special matters in which the Bureau has benefited the fisheries the following may be mentioned : By bringing to the attention of American fishermen new methods and new apparatus, new fisheries have sometimes been established and new fields exploited. V 78 THH I'NITED STATKS BUREAU OF FISHERIES By the introduction of gill nets with glass-ball floats for taking cod the winter cod fishery of New England was revolutionized. In a single season shortly after the use of such nets began a few Cape Ann (Gloucester) fishermen took by this means over 8,000,000 pounds of large-sized fish, and as much as §50,000 has sometimes been saved annually in the single item of bait. By the dissemination of information regarding new fishing grounds impor- tant fisheries have been inaugurated. Thus when the al)undancc of halibut off SALT COD DRYING IN THE FLAKE YARD OF A GLOUCESTER FISH-PACKING ESTABLISHMENT the coast of Iceland was made known by the Bureau a fishery was begun which yielded from $70,000 to Si 00,000 annually to the New England fishermen. The Bureau has experimented with various unused or little-used products in order to determine their economic value and to suggest the best ways of util- izing them. Less than fifteen years ago there was practically no market for the silver hake or whiting (Mcrluccius bilinearis) , and immense ([uantities inci- dentally taken in pound nets and other apparatus were thrown away. The Bureau pointed out the possibility of preparing a marketable salt whiting; and SOME RESULTS OF THE WORK 79 it is a significant fact that in a few years the sales of this fish in New England have increased from about 100,000 pounds to 5,000,000 pounds. Owing to the appalling mortality among the crews of the New England fishing vessels, owing in large part to the foundering of the vessels at sea, the Bureau many years ago undertook the introduction into the offshore fisheries of a type of craft which would combine large carrying capacity and great speed with enhanced safety. By correspondence, discussions in the daily press, per- sonal interviews, exhibition of models, and finally by the actual construction of FISHERY SCHOONER GRAMPUS lilt by the United Slates Government as an object lesson. The general adoptic tlic uff5hi:)re fisheries has resulted in great saving of life and property, and has ,f swift, safe ves: .tud the lishcrics a full-sized schooner (the Grampus) with the requisite qualities, the Bureau was able to inaugurate a momentous change in the architecture of fishing vessels, so that for a long time the New England schooners have been constructed on the new lines, with a consequent minimizing of disasters and a decided increase in efficiency. For other fisheries and regions the Bureau has likewise advocated improved tvpes of vessels and boats especially adapted to local conditions, and has published plans and specifications embodying the results of studies of the fishing flotilla of the world. The results of the Bureau's efforts in this line, in 8o . THK CXITi:!) STATKS HrRKAl' OK KISIIKRIHS savinij life and proptTty, in increasing tlie usefulness of the vessels, and in iinprovin.tj the quality of the catch as landed can not be estimated, but the beneficial effects may lie partly apjireciated when it is stated that during the ten years ended in 1883, when the old types of vessels were in use, there were lost by foundering from the port of Gloucester alone 82 vessels, valued at more than S4(X),(X)(), with their crews of 895 men; while during the ten years ending in n;()7 the losses from this cause aggregated only a fourth as nianv vessels and men. ' i:-Ja'09 /t