California State Fish k Game

Caanniission
•Puill(Tu^r.— No- 5221

0/u^^ .....il Parks,

Buildingii and fieservations.

California Fish and Game

" CONSERVATION OF WILD LIFE THROUGH EDUCATION."

Volume 12 SACRAMENTO, JANUARY, 1926 Number 1

CONTENTS.

Page

THE ECONOMIC VALUE OF BIRDS Harold C. Bryant 1

CALIFORNIA'S NEW STATE GAME FARM Harold C. Bryant 18

MONEY IN THE BANK W. L. Scofield 13

PURSE SEINES FOR CALIFORNIA SARDINES W. L. Scofield 16

BARGE FISHING ON THE SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA COAST

Win. C. Van Deventer 19

HUNTING WITH ANIMAL BLINDS IN MERCED COUNTY J. E. Newsome 20

CONDITIONS OF EXISTENCE OF FISH IN LAKE TAHOE AND TRIBUTARY

STREAMS G. A. Coleman 23

EDITORIALS 28

FACTS OP CURRENT INTEREST 44

COMMERCIAL FISHERY NOTES '. 45

CONSERVATION IN OTHER STATES 46

LIFE HISTORY NOTES 47

REPORTS —

Violations of Fish and Game Laws 48

Financial Report : 49

Fishery Products, July to September^ 1925 50

THE ECONOMIC VALUE OF BIRDS.

By Harold C. Bryant.

The economic or dollar and cents value is but one of the values
pertaining to bird life. At present this is the value most emphasized
but it is not necessarily the only basis for an estimate of a bird's
worth. It is to be hoped that a basis of valuation which takes into
account all tangible values will be more widely used in the future.
However, this presentation will be limited to some of the outstanding
values of bird life from the doUar-and-cents viewpoint.

As a rule we have decided upon a bird 's value entirely upon circum-
stantial evidence. If a bird were found in a field it was at once
supposed that it was eating grain. If a bird were seen in an orchard
tree, it was at once supposed to be eating fruit and so immediately

45139

CAMFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

blacklisted. In more immediate years, an attempt has been made
to base valuation on more dependable information. Consequently,
we find men now engaged in the study of the food of birds attempting
to find exactly Avhat a bird does in the open and exactly what it eats.

WESTERN MEADOWLARK

PROPORTIONS or DIFFERENT KINDS OF

FOOD FOR THE YEAR

ANIMAL FOOD
VEGETABLE FOOD

5 9.6%

40.4%

Fig. 1. Diagram showing- relative amounts of various items in the diet of the
western meadow lark as computed after a study of the stomach contents of nearly two
thousand birds taken at all seasons of the year.

A Frenchman was the first to actually show what a bird eats by
exhibiting the stomach contents. He prepared charts by pasting the
different elements of food on cardboard. This evidence was shown
to the French Academy of Science, to demonstrate exactly what various

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME. 6

birds were eating in France. Then a man in New Jersey adopted this
method of stomach examination and investigated the food of the robin.

In 1895, the Federal Government became interested in placing a
valuation on our common song birds. A bureau of the United States
Department of Agriculture undertook some investigations of the food
habits of birds. Investigation continued until now there is a mass
of literature dealing with the food of birds. Over one hundred
thousand stomachs of birds have been examined by the Bureau of
Biological Survey alone. Data on the food of almost any North
American species is available. A bibliography dealing with articles
on the food of birds in North America by W. L. McAtee (U.S.D.A.,
Biological Survey Bull. 43) is available and wall furnish abundant
references for those interested.

If we study the matter we find that birds occupy a very important
place so far as control of insects is concerned. There is a wonderful
balance in nature. Were it not for the tree, certain insects could not
live ; if it were not for the insects, certain birds could not exist ; and
in turn, but for certain birds the trees could not exist because of the
control of the insects by these birds. True, birds are not the only
check on insects. Parasites, climatic conditions and other factors
form checks on insects, but birds do play a part and a very important
part in insect control. It has often been pointed out that if insects
were not held in check they would soon populate the earth. In some
instances, thirteen broods of young are reared each year and the
increase is tremendous. There are said to be 400 insects injurious
to the oak, 165 injurious to the pine and 186 injurious to the willow.
What chance would the trees have if insects were allowed to propa-
gate unchecked !

The following proofs that birds act as an important check on insect
life are offered : First of all most birds eat insects, and some birds eat
nothing but insects. Many birds that feed upon weed seeds or grain
during the winter season always turn their attention to inse'cts during
the spring when they are feeding their young. Many birds appear to
turn their attention to grain only in winter when insects are not
available. Examination of thousands of stomachs of such birds as
wrens, flycatchers and swallows show that these birds feed entirely
upon insects. More than 99 per cent of the food for the entire year
for these birds is made up of insect food.

Along with this continual demand for insect food on the part of
the bird we discover some very interesting adaptations for the catch-
ing of insects. The flycatchers, for instance, have rather broad flat-
tened bills with which to snap up insects. An additional aid in
capturing insects in the air is to be found in some hair-like bristles
at the corners of the mouth ; these really increase the size of the mouth
and the bird is enabled by them to know when it has captured an
insect, or when an insect is about to escape.

Birds known as nighthawks, in reality not hawks at all, sometimes
called "goatsuckers," have very large mouths. In the evening these
expert flyers capture insects in mid-air with but slight deviations in
their flight.

The hummingbirds have a very long slender bill adapted for search-
ing in the cups of tubular flowers. They do not feed entirely upon
nectar but also upon insects found in the corollas of flowers.

'2—45139

4 CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

Woodpeckers have -wonderfully adapted structures which enable
them to secure insect larvae from beneatli the bark or even down in
the wood of the trees. First of all they can cling to the side of the
tree. Their feet, instead of luiving three toes forward and one back-
ward, as is the case with most birds, have two forward and two back-
ward, so they are enabled in this way to clamp pincher-like onto the
side of the tree. The tail feathers are strong, stiffened and pointed
to act as a support, for the woodpecker in reality becomes a shelf
on the side of a tree. The bill is chisel-like. Strong muscles in the
head and neck allow the bird to deliver rapid and strong blows against
the side of the tree, sufficient to chip off the bark or even the wood
itself. The tongue of a woodpecker is long and is arranged in such a
waj' that it can be protruded a long distance out of the mouth. The
hyoid cartilages extend from the base of the tongue back over the

Animal food

Vegetu

ble fo(

jd

III.

1

Jan.

1

1

Feb

1

Mar

1

Apr ^_

sss

ZD

1

1

I

1
ZI

]

1
1

1

Aug. i^^g

^^^^^H

Sept 1^

5S^

Oct.

1

I^BBiHn

1

tea

■' 1'™"

1

Nov.

1

1

Dec

1

Total

^^H^^^l

^H|^H

. 1

Fig. 2. Diagram showing the change from animal to vegetable food during late
fall and winter. Computed after stomach examination of a series of western
meadowlarks taken at Newman, Stanislaus County, California.

top of the head in a little groove and each cartilage then terminates
below the eye or in some species near the tip of the bill, after passing
through one nostril. These cartilages act like a spiral watch spring
uncurling and allowing the tongue to protrude much beyond the tip
of the bill. Almost no other bird has such a long tongue, a tongue
capable of reaching deeply into the tunnel of a wood-borer. At the
tip of the tongue are found some little barbs with which to impale the
larva when it is found.

Next, birds have a great capacity for food, and consume large
quantities of it. Attempts have been made to find out exactly how
much food birds need. The easiest way to determine this was to hold
young birds in captivity and by weighing the food find out just how
much they needed. One man experimented with young robins. He
found that a robin one week old would eat 31 cutworms and earth-

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME. 5

worms in a day. On its 16tli day, he fed each bird 68 earthworms
which amounted to over one-half the weight of the bird's body.
Another man worked with crows; he found that young birds before
they leave the nest need at least one-half their own weight of food every
day in order to survive. Estimates have' been secured also by watching
birds as they feed their young and counting the number of trips made
to the nest. In the eastern United States a red-eyed vireo's nest
was watched for ten hours during which time the two parent birds
made 125 trips to the nest. One of the best records, however, was that
made by a pair of grosbeaks, in the eastern United States, which made
426 trips to the nest inside of eleven hours. Caterpillars formed the
main item of food. A pair of chipping sparrows succeeded in carrying
food to their young on 182 different occasions during one day.*

^

,-'j

Fig. 3. The 192 small cutworms shown above were taken from the stomach of
a western robin secured in Inyo County, California.

We have still another method of estimating the food necessary for
a bird. This is by ascertaining the amount of food in a bird's stomach
and then determining the rapidity with which the food is digested.
The United States Department of Agriculture has found 500 mosqui-
toes in the stomach of one nighthawk. An examination was made of
the stomach contents of a red-shafted flicker, and there were found
5000 ants which had been eaten at one meal. One hundred whole
beetles have been taken from the stomach -of a cliff swallow. I have
taken 66 large cutworms and 16 beetles from the stomach of a meadow
lark and out of still another one 44 beetles. One hundred and ninety-

♦Forbush. E. H. 1921, The utility of birds. Dept. of Agri. Commonwealth of Mass.
Dept. Bull. No. 9.

b CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

two cutworms were taken from one robin's stomach, a bird secured in
Inyo County. Turning to weed-seed eating birds, we have even larger
numbers. From the stomach and crop of one mourning dove have
been taken ToOO weed seeds, from another 9200 weed seeds. This
should be sufficient evidence that birds do need large quantities of food.

Birds also have very rapid digestion. By feeding captive birds
known quantities of food and then examining their digestive tracts
after a lapse of time, tlie rate of digestion can be ascertained. Experi-
ments of this kind liave shown that non-game birds digest a meal in
from two to four hours. This means that one of these birds needs
at least three meals each day. For instance, in estimating the food
of the robin mentioned above, multiply the 192 cutworms eaten at
one meal by three and we get some idea of the amount the robin might
have eaten in a day. Not only is there a great capacity for food but
there is also a rapid digestion of it.

Still more important is tlie relation ivhich hirds have to an insect
outbreak. Insects are not necessarily always injurious until they
appear in abnormal numbers. If it can be proved that birds eat the
insect most abundant then they play an important role at the time
of an insect outbreak. Now we have considerable evidence that birds
act as a police force or as a standing army; ready to move across
country to where insects are most numerous. Forbes* in Illinois
studied very carefully the food habits of birds in an orchard where
cankerworms Avere aljundant. Observations were carried on in two
orchards, one w^liere cankerworms were abundant and the other where
they were present in fewer numbers. Results showed that birds in
the orchard where the cankerworms were numerous, were taking a
much larger percentage of cankerworms than in the orchard where
worms were not so numerous.

INIany years ago a university professor in Nebraska investigated the
relation of birds to the periodic outbreaks of the Rocky Mountain
locust. He found that practically every kind of a bird, from one of
the size of a hummingbird to one the size of a pelican, fed upon these
insects when they became abundant.

Here is evidence from our own state. In 1911 near Mt. Shasta
there appeared a plague of caterpillars, black hairy caterpillars that
feed on Ceanothus. They gave much trouble by defoliating brush
and polluting the water supply of several towns. Still later of course
there followed myriads of butterflies. Butterflies were so abundant
that hundreds could be counted inside one square foot on moist ground
where they gathered to drink. Now as a rule birds do not eat butter-
flies. They do not seem to like butterflies although we do not know
just why. However, an investigation showed that five California birds
had turned their attention from their usual food and were feeding
largely upon these butterflies, brewer blackbirds, western kingbirds,
and meadow^ larks taking the larger number.

Periodically there is an outbreak of grasshoppers in some portion
of our great valleys. A census was taken of the number of birds in
a region so infested which showed that birds were unusually abundant.
A census taken in another part of Merced County, similar in character
but where grasshoppers were not so abundant, showed that the birds

*Forbes, S. A. 1885. The regulative action of birds upon insect oscillations. III.
State Lab. Nat. Hist. Bull. 1.

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME. 7

had actually moved across country to where the insect food was most
abundant and most easily obtained.

Everything points to the fact that birds actually turn their atten-
tion to the insect most available and in so doing they must bear an
important relation to the control of an insect outbreak. We do not
know how many outbreaks may have been stopped by birds before
the insects became apparent. Of course we can not depend upon the
birds alone for stopping insect outbreaks, but certainly we should
considel* them an important natural method of control.

Birds may have a relation to weed control. Many plants are very
prolific. They produce thousands and sometimes hundreds of thou-
sands of seed annually. Here again plants would very easily take the
earth if certain control measures were not to be found in nature. By
stomach examination it has been found that one dove had eaten 9200
weed seeds for a single meal. Many states are wondering if the dove
is not more important as a weed destroyer than as a game bird. The
goldfinch prefers seeds of dandelion and sunflower, cosmos, etc. In
captivity they appear to need seeds of this sort. Some birds in taking

Fig. 4. The roadrunner, often accused of destroying the eggs of quail, feeds
largely on insects, mice, lizards and small snakes. Judging from many examinations
of stomach contents it must be only an occasional individual that destroys nests and
eggs of other birds.

certain kinds of seeds become seed distributors. Occasionally they
may help to spread plants we do not wish distributed. For instance,
the red-shafted flicker sometimes eats the seeds of the poison oak.
These seeds are not digested but are sometimes carried many miles
away. Thus, this bird may really play an important part in seed
distribution.

The most evident good accomplished by birds is the destruction
of rodents. Hawks and owls are considered our best rodent destroyers.
Some men are willing to pay their boys ten to twenty-five cents for
every gopher captured. A pair of barn owls have' been known to
capture ten gophers in a single night and carry them to their young.
Most of the hawks and all of the owls are extremely beneficial because
they destroj^ the very things that we wish to have destroyed. The
marsh hawk is an excellent mouser, likewise, the roadrunner, although
he feeds largely on lizards and snakes. From the stomach of a great
blue heron I have taken two large pocket gophers. Most readers are
aware of the good work of this bird in alfalfa fields.

8 CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

Game birds have a very evident food value but although this may
be emphasized, their part in insect and plant control could likewise
be demonstrated.

To balance the harm against tlie good accomplished by each kind
of bird becomes the duty of every complainant of the depredations
of birds, for quick judgment seldom leads to the truth about a bird's
food habits. Furthermore public sentiment supports both federal
and state laws giving protection to all insectivorous species.

It is hoped that the economic value of common birds has been con-
vincingly presented by showing their relation to insect and rodent
control. The good accomplished is the more evident because of
adaptations for catching, large capacity, rapid digestion and habit
of taking insects most abundant. Realization of the part played by
birds should be common knowledge to both old and young so that
natural resources may be better appreciated and protected.

CALIFORNIA FISH AND G\ME.

9

10 CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

CALIFORNIA'S NEW STATE GAME FARM.

By Haeold C. Bryant.

The California Fish and Game Commissiou and the sportsmen of the
state are planning to place California in line with other states in game
propagation. Few states have accomplished more in acclimatizing food
and game fishes, but thus far little has been accomplished in the intro-
duction of game. Believing that the time is ripe for concerted effort in
the propagation and acclimitization of game birds, a pretentious program
is planned.

A start Avas made last fall when 5600 young ring-necked pheasants
were purchased in Washington and liberated in Inyo, San Diego and

Fi3. 6. Rearing pens at the new State Game Farm at Yountville, Xapa County.
An area of "3 acres is under cover and there are 472 pens.

Stanislaus counties. Favorable reports have been obtained of these
introductions.

Before another month is past, California will own one of the largest
and best equipped game farms on the Pacific coast. For several
months past a visit would have shown a scene of great activity. More
than twenty men were employed : carpenters busy with the storeroom,
others erecting fences and plumbers installing water pipes.

In order that no mistake might be made as to the site the Commission
secured the expert advice of Mr. Ciene M. Simpson, Superintendent of
the Oregon game farms. On looking over several suggested sites, one
on the state-owned farm at Yountville, Napa County, was selected. Soil
and climatic conditions are ideal. Situated in the foothills near typical
quail country, fifty acres have been appropriated for use. The main
enclosure includes about seven and one-third acres. This area is sur-
rounded with a vermin-proof fence placed on a cement footing and is

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

11

completely roofed with wire. There will be 472 pens, 24 by 24 feet. The
famous Pendleton farm in Oregon has but 324 pens. Driveways for the
feed wagon and a complete Matering system will be provided. By a
system of runways it wdll be possible to move birds from one pen to
another without catching them. Homes for the superintendent and help
are to be built.

In that fifty acres have been set aside for the use of tJie farm, there
will be adequate fields for portable pens and for the growing of food
plants.

Recent successes in game farming have largely been due to etforts to
simulate natural conditions within the rearing pens. Formerly birds
were reared in an open pen containing no growing food and no cover.
At the Yountville game farm no expense has been spared to furnish

Fig. 7. The rearing pens at the new game farm at Yountville showing the
arrangement of the pens.

growing food in every rearing pen. A sprinkler system has been
installed which will keep alfalfa, kale and other plants watered and
growing. Every pen will have moist conditions in half of it and dry
conditions in the other half. The growing food plants give the birds
shelter and teach them to forage so that if they are planted in the wild
they know how to find food. Another advantage with growing plants
within each pen is that plant life attracts insect life and pheasants must
have some insect life in order to thrive.

Already shipments of pheasants have arrived, and before the laying
season begins the pens will be ready. The choicest of breeding stock
has been secured from Oregon and Washington. Hundreds of setting
hens have been secured to hatch and mother the chicks. Where a
few hundred birds were reared on the old Hay ward game farm it is
planned to rear thousands on this new farm.

-45139

12

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

Tlio valley (iiiail situation calls for action and plans are being made
to propagate tliis native game bii'd in I lie hope of replenishing depleted
game covers, liritish Columbia and Washing! on are boasting of the
Hungarian partridge and attempts will l)e made to propagate this bird
in sufiieient nnnd)ers for stoeking. Every effort will be nmde to furnish
in large juuul)ers all of the game birds suitable for acclimatization in
the cultivated districts of the state where native game has disappeared.

Activities in connection with the propagation and introduction of
game is vested in a Bureau of Game Farms. Mr. August Bade, a suc-
cessful game farmer of AVashington, has been retained to superintend
the work. He is stationed at the Yountville farm and on him will rest
the responsibility of a large annual output from the farm.

This new activity in game farming comes after nearly a ten-year

Fig. S. a sprinkler system is to be utilized in watering the food plants to be
placed in every pen. Halt" of each pen will furnish dry conditions, whereas the
other half will be a mass of vegetable growth suitable for both food and cover.

period of lack of interest in this method of game conservation. From
1908 to 1916 numerous pheasants and quail were reared on a game farm
at Hayward and distributed. Wild turkeys were also reared.

Previous to state endeavor along these lines, many private individuals
had attempted propagation and introduction. Some of these ventures
were attempted as early as 1893. A number of pheasants were pur-
chased by the Fish and Game Commission in Oregon in 1894 and given
wide distribution. In 1908 the commission purchased 3500 Hungarian
partridges, some of which were used for breeders at the game farm.
Other early attempts included the attempted introduction of the Chinese
quail, bobwhite, Gambel quail and several species of Mexican quail.
In all, more than a dozen species of game birds were introduced. In
most instances these introductions were followed with optimistic reports

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME. 13

of success but, with the exception of the ring-neck pheasant, none of
these birds established themselves.

Successes in Oregon, Washington and British Columbia give Cali-
fornia sportsmen encouragement. If the state because of a long history
of past attempts can now profit by its mistakes, time and energy will not
be wasted and California will line up with other states that have been
successful in establishing exotic game birds. Nothing in recent years
has shown so earnest an attempt at improving hunting conditions as the
move to propagate game birds in large numbers.

MONEY IN THE BANK.

By W. L. SCOFIELD.

(Contribution No. 59. Department of Commercial Fisheries.)

We all know that the game and fish of this state belong to the people
of California and most of us recognize that they are of great value
from several points of view. However, some of us are not so aware of
the fact that the marine fishes along our coast comprise a resource
of the state that each year yields a return of millions of dollars.

The people of the state, as owners of these commercial fish, are in
the position of the man who is notified that he has been left a large
legacy, a sum of money on deposit in the bank, a sum upon which he
can draw at will. His first question naturally is ''How much money
is there ? ' ' He is told that no one knows the amount of the legacy ; no
one knows how many fish are in the ocean and there is apparently no
method of finding out. It is known only that the sum is large and that
he can draw as much as he pleases. This man, being blessed with
common sense, said "If the sum is very large, the interest each year
must be large so I will adopt this policy : I will draw each year only
the interest on this sum and leave the principal untouched so that I
may continue to enjoy this legacy throughout my life and my
children also may enjoy it." If he had been foolish he would have
decided to squander it by overdrawing and have nothing left in the
end, but instead, he decided on a policy of wise use, in other words he
(the people) adopted the jDolicy of conservation.

Most men, and some women, keep a record on the check book stubs
of how much money they draw from a bank, and the particular man
we are here considering decided to keep such a record. California was
a pioneer in adopting a system of accurately recording the catch of
fish in the state, and our triplicate receipt or "pink ticket" system
is the foundation for our knowledge of commercial fishes.

Our man, having decided to draw only interest and leave the
principal intact, is next confronted with the outstanding all-important
question of ' ' How much may I draw each year 1 ' ' Since the total sum
is not known, the exact annual interest can not be computed before
drawing from the bank. There is left but one thing for him to do, that
is, draw some money, and, when he thinks he is overdrawing, cut down
on the sums drawn. This is the trial and error method necessary when
exact calculations are not possible. But how can he know when
he is overdrawing'? An off-hand examination of the sum drawn from
the bank does not tell him whether this money is just interest or is
part interest and part principal. He might go on for years digging

14 CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

into the principal and not know it oi- he niight draw each year a sum
far less than ihc annual intei-est and be iiiiaw.in' of his lost oijpdftnnil y
to enjoy the full amount ot" the interest.

This sensible man decided to invest a small piution of tlie money
drawn in hiring an expert in such matters to tell him whether or not
he was overdrawing- his quota of interest money at the bank. In this
wa.y there was established in California a research branch of the
Commercial Fisheries Department of the Fish and Game Commission.
Our man with the legacy rightfully expects eventually to get value
received on the money so invested in research. It is the purpose and
the duty of this department of research in commercial fisheries of
California to give to the man with the money in the bank the answer
TO the ciuestion most important to him — "How much may I safely draw
each year?"

The carefully considered program of research adopted by the State
Fisheries Laboratory is directed toward answering the one most
iuiportant question of how much can be drawn each year without
digging into the principal. Stated in other words — when is overfishing
occurring? Strange as it may seem, this question has been given very
little consideration in the past, so there is no accumulation of knowl-
edge on the subject resulting from work done elsewhere, and it has
been necessary to start with an almost clean slate. At another time
we hope to discuss with readers of California Fish and Game the
methods used in arriving at an answer and to present something of the
difficulties and complications met with in trying to answer the ques-
tion; but here we are interested in defining the question to be answered.
It seems that we all do better when we first determine just what we
are going to explain before we start explaining anything, and in
fisheries research it is desirable to understand where we are going
])efore we start anywhere and before we decide on the route to be
followed.

The man with the money in the bank is not overly interested in the
why of things, he wants to know what amount of interest can be
drawn. Applied to any one particular fishery we must first find out
what is happening in that fishery before trying to explain why it is
occurring or might occur. The complete answer to the question of
overfishing will undoubtedly involve the reasons for occurrences, but
the chief Ciuestion is one of icliaf, not U'liy. In this particular fishery,
is the commercial catch greater than it should be or less than it might
be with safety?

Should we stud}' the life history of a certain fish, its spawning
liabits, its food, its migrations and the ocean currents or temperatures
that might govern its movements? Perhaps so if we can see where
such questions will tie in with the goal at which we wish to arrive ;
that is, the determination of overfishins'. The above questions are big
ones and there is very little known about them to start with, so the
road toward answering them will be long and rocky ; but that need not
frighten us if the road leads to our goal. There is a more certain and
possibly more direct route that gives much promise of leading us
toward determining overfishing. An examination of the commercial
catch itself gives promise of answering the question we Avant answered.
The two methods for examination of the catch to determine overfishing

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME. 15

have been discussed elsewhere, so need only be mentioned here as
stndi&s of boat catches from year to year and changes in the normal
proportion of age or size classes in the catch from year to year. We
expect such studies to answer directly the question of overfishing and
to determine at what point the money drawn from the bank ceases
to be interest and begins encroaching on the principal. We do not
expect the answer to be quickly and easily forthcoming, for
unfortunately we have found this road also to be long and rocky. The
full understanding of the catcli may involve most if not all of the
difficult questions as to life history and habits of the fish, but of them-
selves they do not promise much in the way of a direct answer to the
most important question of how much money our man should draw from
the bank each year.

The commercial catch is by no means a simple thing and the supply
of fish is subject to natural fluctuations. If the legacy in the bank
is in the form of common stock of a somewhat unstable or seasonable
industry, the value of the legacy fluctuates and the interest rate is
changeable so that our man will no doubt have to figure his interest
as averages over a period of years. Suppose this money is common
stock of a cotton mills company. To foretell possible future fluctua-
tions, our man may wish to know aliout cotton milling, sale of goods,
or even purchase and production of raw cotton, provided he is unable
to learn about these fluctuations from a direct examination of the
amounts he is drawing from the bank each year. But after all, what
does the man receiving the legacy care about cotton? If he is
interested at all, he will wish to know about cotton only as it affects
the amount of interest he is able to draw from the bank.

The owner of the cotton stocks has hired an expert for the one primary
purpose of distina'uishing between interest and principal in the money
drawn from the bank. Should this expert study cotton? If he goes
in for an exhaustive study of cotton, will he be in a position to answer
the question the owner of the cotton stock is asking him? It would
appear that the expert might better start with an examination of the
money drawn from the bank, since it gives promise of solving directly
the primary question.

By some such line of reasoning, the staff of the State Fisheries
Laboratory decided to first examine the commercial catch to find out
what was happening there before becoming involved in questions of
why something happened. The laboratory staff conceives its chief duty
to be the examination of the commercial catch to determine whether
or not overfishing is now occurring. This involves a study of the
catch to learn the signs by which overfishing manifests itself. These
signs were not known. In fact, very little is known about overfishing
and there is no store of information to draw^ upon, so we are having
to find out for ourselves and incidentally blaze a trail that should help
others as well as ourselves later on in the study of other fisheries. We
are limited as to staff and funds, so have concentrated on the two
most important commercial fisheries of the state, sardine and albacore.
We are earnestly striving toward Ihc answer to the chief question
and already have learned a inuriber of valuable things about the
catch and what may be expected of it. We hope to show the man
with the monej^ in the bank that his judgment was sound when he

16 CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

decided to venture a small investment in research to determine essential
facts rather than going it blind and trusting to luck.
Transmitted November, 1925, San Pedro, California.

PURSE SEINES FOR CALIFORNIA SARDINES.

By W. Li. SCOFIELD.

(Contribution No. 58. Department of Commercial Fisheries.)

In the first years of sardine canning in California the only net that
could be depended on to take large quantities of fish was the purse
seine, but this gear fell into disrepute and for ten years was classed
as ob.solete while another type of net was universally adopted. Within
the last few months there are indications that the discarded purse
seine is staging a comeback and may again dominate sardine fishing in
this state.

The first catelies of California sardines in sufficient quantities to be
considered commercial catches were made in gill nets, that is nets
with a mesh of such size that the sardine could push his head into an
opening in the net, but in backing out would catch his gill covers in
the webbing and thus become entangled. Gill nets are still used
occasionally for sardines, but the catch is very small and this method
of fishing is employed only for supplying a small local fresh fish market
or for catching sardines to be used as bait for some other fish.

When sardine canneries were established* in California it was found
that gill nets could not supply the plants and it became necessary to
employ the purse seine. This net is of small mesh but is very long
so that it can be laid out in a circle around a school of fish, the webbing
hanging like a curtain about the school. A strong line run through rings
at the bottom may be pulled to close the net at the bottom, thus trapping
the fish in the pocket or purse formed by the net. This type of
fi.shing gear enabled fishermen to capture enough sardines to keep the
small capacity canneries of the early days supplied with fish part of the
time, but the catch was uncertain, was fluctuating in amount and
frequently failed when fish were most needed at the cannery.

There were several reasons why the purse seine of early days failed
to yield a steady supply of fish. In the first place the fishermen were
not familiar with the habits and movements of the sardine. Schools
were located by seeing fish .jump at the surface or by seeing the fish
in shallow water in the day time, and fishing at first was confined to
the daylight hours. Later it was discovered that sardines could best be
located at night by the phosphorescent light resulting from their move-
ments in the water, and as a result daylight fishing was gradually
abandoned, especially at Monterey. The early purse seines were circled
by hand from skiffs and pulled by liand, Avith the result that the "lay-
out" and "pursing" were delayed and the hand work required a crew
of ten to twelve men, thus running up costs of operation. Another
reason for early failure, at Monterey at least, was the fact that gear

* The Golden Gate Packing Company built the first California sardine cannery
in 1890 at North Beach, San Francisco, but about two years later the equipment was
shipped to the newly established Southern California Fish Company at East San
Pedro, where canning was begun in 1892. At Monterey, Mr. F. E. Booth started
packing .sardines in 1902 and built a cannery in 1903 under the name of Monterey
Canning Companjr.

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME. 17

(net and boats) was furnished by the cannery, and fishermen were
paid wages by the month so there was small inducement to scout for
fish or to acquire the knowledge necessary for success in a new fishery.
Most of the early purse seining (before 1905) was confined to shallow
w^ater, because in deep water the sardines were almost sure to be
frightened and duck under the lead line before the net could be
"pursed" by hand. During most of the year sardines were not to be
found in shallow water in the daytime.

In spite of the crudities in the purse seine method of fishing, this
net furnished all the sardines used by the canneries up to 1905, and its
use was continued till 1915 at least and possibly a year or two later.
There were improvements in the construction of the net, but the greatest
advance made in method of fishing was the use of a power boat in
"laying out" and a power winch to purse the net. This cut down
operating time and the net was more and more used in deep water
so that tlie purse seine became more successful in later years, but it
failed to liold its own in competition with a new type of Mediterranean
net introduced into California from Algeria on the north African coast.

The great drawback of the old style purse seine, aside from cost of
operation, was the fact that slow pursing allowed sardines to "dive"
under the lead line. Petro Ferrante, an experienced and inventive
Monterey fisherman, suggested that the net called "lampara" used
in the Mediterranean might solve the difficulty as it had a large bag
into which the fish might be driven before they "dived." Accordingly
in 1905 "Sir. F. E. Booth sent to Tangier and purchased one of these
nets which promptly tore to pieces the first time it was used, but from
it, as a model, other "lamparas" were constructed and used at
Monterey. They were successful from tlie first and revolutionized
sardine fishing in California. The lampara was soon adopted in
Southern California as it yielded a greater and more continuous catch
and was cheaper of operation. A crew of nine men with a lampara
could do the work of ten or twelve men with a purse seine. However,
the discovery of night fishing and increaseci skill and knowledge were
contributing factors to the success of the lampara and the purse seine
continued in use for day fishing until 1915 or later, but the purse net
was steadily being supplanted by the new type of gear.

The lampara is a highly specialized net with long wdngs of very
large mesh serving. to frighten the fish into the large bag of small
mesli. The large mesh permits of the lead line being pulled rapidly
so that it partially closes the bottom of the net, but the action of the
net in the water is somewhat that of a scoop such as used by grocers
with the small mesh bag holding the catch.

The lampara Avas used in addition to the purse seine eciuipment for
the ten years following 1905, and for the next ten years (1915-1925)
it was the only net used for sardines with the exception of the Japanese
round haul net which is merely a modification of the lampara and is
operated in the same manner and is built on the same plan as the
Mediterranean net. The "round haul" net of southern California is
almost identical with the lampara used at Monterey.

The purse seine although crowded out of the sardine fishery by the
lampara was by no means forgotten, and by 1915 was being used in the
catching of barracuda, wb.ite sea bass, vcllowtail and mackerel in

18 CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME,

soutlicni California.* Later this net was nsed foi- tuna, and l)y 1020
the estimated number of purse seine boats operating was placed at 100.
It soon became evident that there were too many boats so engaged and
many of these fisliermen have been forced into other lines of work.

Tn January of 1925 the owner of one purse seine boat at San Pedro
])rocured one of the old small mesh purse seines and decided to again
try out this old time gear on sardines. He met with success and by
the middle of November, 1925, there were 25 purse seines employed regu-
larly in the sai'dine fishery of San Pedro. Other such nets are bring
ordei'od a7id tbe purse seiners feel confident that the worm has turned.
They lliink the dethroned purse seine will drive out the lampara and
in a short time will again dominate sardine fishing in this state.

The reasons given for the return of the purse seine are many and
somewhat eonti'adictory. The purse seiners claim that this net is pi-ov-
ing more successful than the lampara or round haul and that they get
larger catches with less effort. The purse seine is credited at San
Pedro with being superior on nights of rough weather, in fog and
when sardines are active or "wild." It is claimed that power hauling of
the net is quicker, cheaper and more successful in catching fish than
the hand ]>ulled lampara. It is possible that purse seiners forced
out of other fisheries are of necessity turning to sardines to save their
investments in boats. It is also possible that the skill and general
experience gained in purse seining for other species is proving so
valuable that the purse net is actually more successful now than otlnM-
types of gear. Many of the present purse seiners have also had rou.nd
haul experience in the sardine fishery so are more familiar with the
sardine than the early purse seiners. This much is certain, the large
purse seine boat with its deep hold wnll carry a larger tonnage of fish
than the round haul launches used at present in San Pedro. These
launches carry the catch on deck by using side boards, whereas the
Monterey fishermen employ lighters or barges for transportating th(^
catch. Lighter capacity can be increased indefinitely. Round haul
fishermen give as their reason for carrying the catch on deck tliat,
in the warmer water of southern California, fish piled deep in a lighter
would be unfit for canning. The southern fishermen are handicapped
by having to go farther to the fishing grounds, so that transporting
the catch on the deck of the launch is easier than towing a lighter.
Purse seiners claim that fish from the deep hold of their boats is
uninjured for canning purposes and the cannery managers agree to the
extent of willingly accepting purse seine fish.

The apparent success of the purse seine in competition with the
round haul nets of San Pedro may be due to the real worth of the
purse seine gear, but it is possible that success is due more to the respec-
tive fishermen than to the kind of gear used. Aside from the purse
seiners, there are very few white men engaged in fishing sardines at
San Pedro. Most of the round haul crews are Japanese with little
knowledge of navigation and lacking in all-around fishing experience.
This might possibly explain the partial failure of the round haul net,
especially in foggy and rough weather. The relative merits of the

* Fish P.ulletin Xo. 9 of "California Fish and Game Commission." Preliminary
Investigation of the Purse Seine Indii.stry of Southern California, by Tage Skogsberg.
See page 9.

CALIFORNIA FiSII AND GAME. 19

Iwo lyix's of gear could well be tried out at Moutere.y \y\u'\v the Italian
lampara fishermen have had years of experience in catching sardines.

The purse seines now being used at San Pedro are not, of course,
the same nets as used in the tuna fishery, but are smaller special nets
made with small mesh for sardines. The present sardine purse nets
are, roughly, 200 fathoms long by about 20 fathoms deep with a mesh
size of 1 or 1^ inches. Webbing is usually tarred. The net is hauled by
power wanch, and dipping into the boat or brailing is usually by power
hoist from a boom.

On the southeastern coast of the United States the purse seine is the
standard gear for capturing the thousands of tons of menhaden that
are caught for the purpose of reduction into fish meal and oil. The
large capacity boats employed are efficient for handling fish intended
I'or reduction, but such methods are poorly adapted to handling fish
intended for canning. It is, however, possible to handle edible fish in
large boats by the use of special methods, such as freezing or by chilling
as is now being tried out in the menhaden industry. Another possibil-
ity is the so-called "unit system" in which fish are loaded into small
units as boxes or baskets which can be stacked without crushing the
fish. The added cost of such protective measures may more than offset
the advantages of quantity transportation wdien applied to the present
fishing conditions in the California sardine industry. Chilling methods
may develop as a means of tiding over days of poor catch rather than as
economy in transportation. At any rate purse seining seems to be a
method adapted to quantity handling and long distance transporta-
tion, while sardine fishing in California is conducted at short distances
from the canneries, so there is less advantage in each boat handling a
large tonnage. Cheapness of operation will probabh' decide whether
the round haul or the purse seine will finally win in the present com-
petition at San Pedro. Whichever gear proves to be most successful,
the battle will be watched with considerable interest.

Transmitted November, 1925, San Pedro, California.

BARGE FISHING ON THE SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA COAST.

By Wm. C. Van De'venter.

For many years the people W'ho wished to fish in salt water had only
lliree methods from which to choose. They had to have a boat, fish
from a pier or fish from a beach. All of these methods had their draw-
backs. The boat method was more or less limited to those w^ho owned or
were willing to pay the price of renting a boat. Fishing from piers or
from the beach is rather slow as the fish are scattered Jind usually run
very small in size. About five years ago Mr. A. B. Hohenshell of Long
Beach conceived the idea of a fishing barge. This idea combined
many very desirable features not found in the other methods of fish-
ing. First, it is movable and can be towed to a location where fish
may be caught. Second, it is large enough so that several hundred
people can be accommodated. Such a large number of people using
it makes it possible for the owner to charge a low rate for the privilege
(»f fishing. Thus such a barge makes it possible for nearly everyone
to go fishing and be insured of a good catch. Since the first introduc-
tion of fishing barges along this coast a great number have sprung

4 — 45139

20 CATJFORNIA FISH AND OA^JE.

into t'xislt'iicc. and todax' altout Iwcnty art' I'miiid almi^ llie coast Itoiu
Santa Barbara to San ])iego.

When ti-^lii]!.;:' was first started from a i)arge, crinipnient was old
and dirty. The tirst one had few accommodations on it, for the owner
did not wish to risk any more money on the venture than was necessary.
The idea was new and the risk great. However, from the start the
venture proved a success. Today this man has a barge, Paproca V,
that is fitted witli all the conveniences that are found on any boat.
The barge is decked with concrete and has a capacity of two hundred
and fiftj' people. A lunch room, lounge room, toilets, sleeping quarters
for the convenience of the fishermen are provided, as well as (juarters
for a crew of five men. The barge is lighted by an electric system and
water to wash the deck is furnished from a pumping outfit.

Transportation to and from the barge is provided by two boats that
make hourly trips during the day and a trip at ten in the evening.
The best fishing ground is located about four miles southeast of the
Long Beach pier and these boats make the trip in about twenty-five
minutes. «

Fish are caught at every hour of the day. Mackerel are caught in
the largest number, but at times bass, barracuda, and occasionally bonita
schools surround the barge and are caught in large numbers. If one
wishes to fish on the bottom and uses the proper gear, halibut and an
occasional black sea bass ma.y be caught. To insure a constant supply
of mackerel, the barge is located in a favorable locality. Then to keep
the mackerel around the barge, chum is constantlj^ thrown out. This
method of chumming insures a good supply of mackerel at all times.
The mackerel gear is furnished free and consists of a long bamboo pole,
with line, leader, sinker and hook attached. Mackerel or anchovies
are used chiefly for bait. At night lights are hung over the sides of the
barge and schools of small sardines and anchovies are attracted by the
lights. These small fish in turn attract the mackerel which feed
on such small fishes, and the mackerel are easily caught in large
]iumbers. The best time for fishing is in the dark of the moon. Some
people prefer night fishing to the day method, but I believe that the
best fishing is at dawn or dusk.

Barge fishing is an established institution among southern California
fishermen and is constantly gaining more popularity. This statement
may be further emphasized when one learns that the Paproca in its
five years existence as a fish barge has handled over one hundred thou-
sand pay customers and a countless number of deadheads of which
no record has been kept.

HUNTING WITH ANIMAL BLINDS IN MERCED COUNTY.

By J. E. Newsome.

In the early seventies a man named Charley Smith who formerly
hunted for the market in the tules below Stockton, left there and came
to Merced County, locating near the Santa Rita ranch where he intended
to hunt for the market. In watching the cattle feeding around the
ducks and geese he conceived the idea of training an animal to use
as a blind to approach ducks and geese. He was very successful in his
undertaking and killed thousands of game birds which were taken to

CALIFORNIA FISII AND GAME.

21

Fig. 9. Series of photographs showing a market hunter with an animal used
as a blind ; the approach, the shot, and the kill. More than a hundred birds
were sometimes killed with the discharges from a large-bore gun before this type
of slaughter was prohibited.

22 CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

Merced ;iiul shijiped to market. INliller and Lux hauled thciii to IMcrced
free of eliar.ire 1o iX<'\ rid of the birds ;is they Avere destroying a great
• luantity of feed. In lliosii (hiys ihcy used large bore double-barrel
guns as they did not have automatic and piiini) guns. Smith did not
hunt many years. While there was an abundance of game the market
was very poor and the express charges were high. Smith, no doubt, was
the inventor of the live blind. Later he took his daughter Lillian Smith,
who Avas a noted rifle shot, and traveled with. Buffalo Bill's AVild West
Show.

Tlie next hunting with an animal blind was done by the Browning
brothers. They hunted on the West Side in the Salt Slough country and
Imd two large steers. A large negro worked one of them and they used
large bore double-barrel guns. Their game liad to be hauled to Merced
as that was the nearest shipping point, there being no railroad on the
west side. There were no bridges and the ferries were a long way
aiiart. They had two scows, one on Salt Slough and one on the river
near old Dover. The wagons Avere loaded on the scows and the horses
swam the slough and river. Two wagons and teams were used and a
load was taken to market every day as it required two days to make the
trip. The largest shot they ever made was 184 ducks. They did not
hunt very long as game was very cheap and it was quite an expense to
get it to market.

There was not a great amount of hunting done for the market until
the West Side railroad was built. Then there were several outfits in
the fields all using large steers, the first being Knight & Jefllers,
followed by John Reeves, James Knapp, Lambert, S. B. Roundtree,
James Peterson, Ed Alders. Tom Rooney, Ed Lang, Saling and others.
Lang used a single-barrel gun with a very large bore and all used
steers as blinds. There were no horses used as blinds until after a
law was passed to prohibit the use of a live animal blind. Then the
horses came in style as they were too easily caught with a steer. AYlien
the old timers gave up the chase, the younger ones took it up with
improved methods of slaughter. They used carts with three and four
horses abreast and trained to run and automatic guns with extension
magazines holding nine or eleven shells. Others had two automatics
bolted together and the trigger connected so that they would botli
go at once, and with extension magazines holding nine shells each,
making eighteen loads in all. After the law was passed prohibiting the
use of guns with a larger bore than Xo. 10 there were a great many
four-barrel guns used. Later the automatic came into use.

What became of our quail? In the years of 1876-77 and 78 Perry
McDowell, Elisa Manning and S. B. Roundtree hunted quail for market
in the West Side hills. Li the season of 1878 the three men shipped 950
dozen, or 11,400 quail. In two days and a half, two of them killed
45 dozen, or 540 quail. They were shipped by stage to Gilroy, from
there by train to San Francisco. There were other hunters who followed
them and hunted quail until they were taken off the market.

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

23

CONDITIONS OF EXISTENCE OF FISH IN LAKE TAHOE AND

TRIBUTARY STREAMS.

By G. A. Coleman, Biologist, California Fish and Game Commission.

The maintenance of a supplj^ of game fish in Lake Tahoe, or any
other lake, is not such a simple matter as most people imagine. Quite
the contrary. Because of the great number of factors involved it is an
intricate problem, requiring the most careful and extended observations
and constant study.

We must first take into consideration the physical conditions, viz.,
the bottom, which is constantly changing, and next the temperature
of the Avater, which, on account of the great depth, nearly sixteen
liundred feet for an area covering nearly three-fourths of the lake, with
a very steep decline and a very limited shallow shoreline, has a range of
20 degrees F. over the deeper part, and 20 degrees higher in the shal-
lower parts near the shore where it reaches a temperature of 80 degrees
F. during the summer. The temperature directly affects the density of
the water, the summer sun warming the surface waters and causing
them to become so much lighter than the deeper colder waters that the
currents set up by the Avind can no longer flow to the bottom. Hence a
superficial circulation is set up and a distinct thermocline is established
above which the water is warm (40-60 degrees F.) and constantly
aerated, while below this the temperature is comparatively constant
(39-39.9 degrees F.), but stagnant. This area of constant circulation
is comparatively shallow, extending to a depth of about 100 meters
while the area of constant temperature and no circulation occupies
a depth of about 400 meters.

The amount of dissolved oxygen in the water upon which the fish
are dependent for their supply is directly affected by these zones of
circulation and stagnation, due to temperature. According to studies
made by the United States Bureau of Fisheries during the month of
July, 1913, the point of complete saturation (100 per cent) is reached
at about 25 meters, from' which point it declines rapidly to 100
meters where it reaches 89 per cent, below which it remains fairh^
constant, reaching 88.4 degrees at 501 meters fnear the bottom).
A little study will show that this agrees almost exactly with the tempera-
ture zones. Now these temperature zones are destroyed at the coming
on of winter by the lowering of the surface temperature, and a com-
plete circulation is set up during the winter and early spring.

Since all fish are extremely sensitive to changes of temperature
(being affected by as small a.s .2 degrees F.) as well as by the supply of
dissolved oxygen in the water, it is reasonable to account for the move-
ments of the trout in the lake upon this basis.

All fi.sli, but especially the Salmonidffi, which includes the salmon
and the trout, migrate for two principal reasons, to obtain a proper
food supply and for the purpose of securing suitable spawning ground.
Tlie first of these movements is daily and periodical according to the
movements of their food, while the second is seasonal, occurring either
ill the fall or spring according to the habits of the fish.

With the native lake trout, which is primarily a deep water trout,
The change of temperature gives them untice that spring is arriving,
their first response being an immediate (piest of food to relievo the

24 CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

long" fast which they have had in deep water, during which they have
existed upon the accumulation of fat obtained during the previous
season. The several species of minnows in the lake are their natural
food, hence they immediately move to the haunts of the minnows
which are the comparativeh- shallow waters along shore. They are
ravenously hungry, and their condition at this time and at the spawn-
ing time immediately following will therefore largely depend upon
the supply of minnows.

The minnows feed upon aquatic insects, both larvfe and adults, with
a small proportion of plankton (microscopical plant and animal life)
in the water. These in turn are dependent upon the algce growing in
the shallow waters along ■ shore, except for certain minute algas,
crustacean and protozoan forms which live and breed in the open
waters.

It is necessary also to have an adequate supply of the larger rooted
aquatic plants in these shallow waters in order to furnish food and
protection for the aquatic insects and protection for the young fish
of whatever variety.

This aquatic vegetation depends in its turn upon a proper supply
of nitrates in the water and soil. This is usually lacking in a mineral
soil and can only be produced in a marly or vegetable soil by certain
nitrogen-fixing bacteria which taki^ the nitrogen from the air and water
and work it over into a form suitable for absorption by the growing
plant tissue. The process of decay is also constantly going on, giving
off immense quantities of carbon dioxide which is absorbed and held
in suspension by the water, where, if in any considerable quantities,
it becomes a menace to the fish lift. The growing plants take up this
excess carbon dioxide, using it in starch building in connection with
chlorophyll.

So we might go on almost indefinitely, because there is an almost
endless connection and dependence between the plant and animal forms
of this vast w^ater community. "With an idea of obtaining some clue
to this intricate puzzle — game of life — which is far more complicated
than any cross-word puzzle ever invented — biologists have made exten-
sive and quantitative studies of the larger lakes throughout the world,
as to the composition and abundance of the plankton (microscopical
animal and plant life). This has been determined by a method of
counting the organisms in an average sample of the water at different
depths and expressed in numbers per cubic centimeters, or in cubic
centimeters per cubic meters, or in my own studies, where possible, by
weight in actual dried food material per cubic foot of water as grams
per cubic foot, which may be figured as pounds in any given area
according to conditions and depth. This to my mind is the only
practical economic basis upon w^hich we can base a reliable estimate of
the number of young and mature fish that a lake will support. It
gives us, too. the basis for comparison of one lake with another, wdiile
the composition of the plankton gives us the key to the problem of w^hat
species of fish will do best in any lake or stream. But of course all
the existing' conditions must be taken into consideration before aii
intelligent system of distribution can be adopted.

In consideration of the causes for the former abundant and now
intermittent supply of the native lake trout (Sahno henshawi), we

CALIFORNIA PISH AND GAME, 25

must remember that vast geological changes have taken place within the
life of this species. Many hundreds of years ago (comparatively recent
as to geological time) there existed just across in Nevada a wonderful
lake which is known to geologists as Lake Laliontan, covering an area
equal to if not greater than Lake Superior, with which Lake Tahoe was
connected by the Truckee River and Honey Lake. Eagle Lake and
others were also directly connected. Evidence is abundant that the
species which was named the Tahoe trout was at that time the
characteristic trout of this great lake system. Now, however,
lakes Pyramid and Winnemucca, which have become very much changed
as to the composition of the water and physical conditions, are all that
remain of this great lake. Formerly there w^as direct connection
between Tahoe and this great lake through which the trout could pass
freely. But you know what has happened within the past few years,
all of which has had its effect upon the supply of lake trout and upon
the other trout associated with it.

The silver trout, for example, is now very rare in Tahoe, while a
related, if not identical, species is almost extinct in Pyramid and
Winnemucca. The white fish too is apparently becoming scarce. In
all this great array of changes it woulcl not be possible to put one's
finger on any one and say that it alone is the cause of the scarcity or
disappearance of any one of these species of fish. They have all con-
tributed. To say, therefore, that the trouble has been caused by the
introduction of Mackinaw trout is utterly absurd. Probably they have
contributed a small share, but the change would have occurred with-
out them, and we have the Mackinaw which still furnishes a consider-
able amount of sport and is a very good fish.

Probably one great factor is the shifting and destruction of the
food supply. Mother Nature usually maintains a perfect balance
between her different species of plant and animal life, but occasionally
she gives them a general shaking up, probably on the theory that they
need it in order to develop new species and to put new life in the old.
So she sends floods, drouths or other cataclysms which disturb the
balance for a time until the different forms become adapted to the
new conditions.

Man himself, this lord of creation of which we are so proud, is
probably the greatest disturber of this balance of all the forces of
nature. To satisfy necessities or imaginary necessities, for pleasure,
or out of pure deviltry, he has created a list of wants which would
make those of any ordinary animal, content with mere existence, pale
into insignificance. In order to create for himself a suitable habitation
he destroys entire forests. In order to clothe himself in fine raiment,
he sacrifices herds of domestic animals. But these are not sufficient.
He must, in pursuit of fur and feather, accomplish the destruction of
vast numbers of wild animals and the complete extinction of not a few
species. To satiate his ever increasing appetite and satisfy his chang-
ing tastes, vast herds and flocks of domestic animals and fowls are
daily butchered and tlie products of garden, orchard and fields con-
sumed. The immense supply of fish food in our vast oceans is
neglected, and in order to satisfy this so-called sporting instinct the
comparatively small numbers of edible fish in our mountain streams
and lakes are ruthlesslv destroyed. Surely it is true that we as a

26 CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAilE.

nation, oil account of our great abundance of all these things, have
become the most careless and wasteful nation on the face of the earth.
(For instance, on a hotel menu of 1850 there were indicated fifty
kinds of meat, mostly game and fish.)

It is full time, therefore, that we call a halt, take account of stock
and learn whither we are drifting. Otherwise, we are in sad danger
of having handed out to us the same fate which we have so freely
handed out to our fellow creatures. A few far-seeing individuals,
i-ealizing what this wanton destruction would mean, have been able by
persistent and heroic effort, often at great personal sacrifice, to cause
laws to be enacted for the protection of our wild life and to create game
refuges in which our wild animals might have protection in the breed-
ing season. If you do not believe that the wild animals and birds
appreciate and recognize the establishment of these refuges, you have
only to spend a few quiet Aveeks within the borders of a newly created
one and watch them flock in from without the borders.

Finally it came to be recognized that with all these precautious the
production could not keep pace with the annual destruction wrought
by our ever-increasing population, both native and tourist, in their
annual migrations to the mountains, without the help of artificial means
of propagation. Hence the establishment of fi.sh hatcheries to keep up
a supply of fish in our lakes and streams and the establishment of game
farms has become a necessity.

All this, however, is not enough. AVe must immediately take steps to
secure the cooperation of the tourists, campers and sojourners at our
resorts, in the proper use, and not abuse of the privileges they
annually enjoy amidst the grandest scenery and greatest variety of
climate of any part of the world. Protective laws and their enforce-
ment are all right, perhaps, as a restraint, but they are only incidental.
Control to be reasonable must be flexible. The trouble is we have too
many laws which are not enforced and too little knowledge on the part
of the general public as to the u'lr]i of these laws, with a consequent
disrespect and disregard for all law and law enforcement officials.

In my personal contact with all kinds of people. 1 have yet to find
the individual whose innate love for nature would not in some way
manifest itself, through his own knowledge obtained by first-hand
observations, by a desire to obtain information on the habits of our wild
creatures through reading, or listening to the observations of others.
Children are the most eager for this knowledge, and thanks to our
loyal and progressive teachers in our public schools, they are obtaining
this information through daily lessons, in every grade from the kinder-
garten up, in nature studies supplemented by their own observations,
at home and on the way to and from school. Alonfr with this knowledge
comes respect for and tender care of every living thing, and especially
of the wild animal and plant life. Fish habits are taught through daily
care of goldfish in the schoolroom by the children themselves, with
an occasional visit to a large aquarium, supplemented by fishing trips
mostly by the boys. The work of scout masters along this line is
strongly to be commended. This work will have its effect upon the
rising generation.

^Meantime we have old sinners like ourselves to contend with. And
this is truly a herculean ta.sk. "SVe need for this work the liparty coop-

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME. 27

eration of every resort owner, proprietor or manager, all of the various
United States government agencies, especially the forest service and
reclamation service, all of the state departments, all of the corporate
lumber and hydro power plant interests, our own legislature and
governor, and the press. With this cooperation all along the line, we
can in a few years accomplish much toward the restoration of our
wild life. But such is the task that even with all these agencies work-
ing in perfect harmony, it wull take years to restore anything like the
original condition of things existing only a comparatively few
years ago.

28

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME

A publication devoted to the conserva-
tion of wiid life and published quarterly
by the California State Fish and Game
Commission.

Sent free to citizens of the State of
California. Offered in exchange for
ornithological, mammalogical and similar
periodicals.

The articles published in California
Fish and Game are not copyrighted and
may be reproduced in other periodicals,
provided due credit is given the Cali-
fornia Fish and Game Commission. Edi-
tors of newspapers and periodicals are
invited to make use of pertinent material.

All material for publication should be
sent to H. C. Bryant, Museum of Verte-
brate Zoology, Berkeley, Cal.

July 6, 1926.

"The best Insurance that the state can
take out in the interest of the sportsman
and the outdoor lover generally is to see
that facilities for study and investigation
are enlarged upon. The lack of biological
data Is, without doubt, one of the great-
est single factors in retarding develop-
ment of a larger conservation program,
involving better and wiser legislation and
greater efficiency in production."

R. H. Clock

RALPH H. CLOCK. FISH AND GAME
COMMISSIONER.

In December, 1925, Governor Richard-
son appointed Judge Ralph H. Clock of
Long Beach as Fish and Game Commis-
sioner to succeed Frank M. Newbert.
.Tudge Clock for many years practiced
law at Tyong Beach. California, was then
appointed a superior judge for Los
Angeles County. After a short period of
service upon the bench he resigned to
again resume his private practice.

Judge Clock is an outdoor man, loves
the open and is intensely interested in fish
and game. He is an ardent angler and
an enthusiastic sportsman. In fact, he
is exceptionally well qualified to have a
part in determining conservation policies
in this state.

FISH AND GAME COMMISSION
REORGANIZED.

At a meeting of the State Board of
Fish and Game Commissioners held in
San Francisco on January 18th, the resig-
nations of Mr. George Neale, executive
officer, and of Mr. Charles Gilmore,
assistant executive officer and attorney,
were accepted. Mr. B. D. Marx Greene,
who for nearly a year has handled the
legal work for the Commercial Fisheries
Department, was selected as executive
officer. Mr. J. S. Hunter, in charge of
the San Francisco office, was appointed
head of a new law enforcement depart-
ment, and he will have entire charge of
all of the patrol force in the state. This
last appointment is the beginning of a
plan to center the activities of the
commission in various departments
lieaded by competent executives.

Far greater efficiency in the managp-
ment of fish and game affairs is to be
expected from the reorganization planned
by the commission newly appointed by
Governor Richardson.

THE NEW EXECUTIVE OFFICER.

The new executive officer, Mr. B. D.
Marx Greene, is a native Californian,
born in San Francisco. He has been
a practicing attorney in California for
the past eighteen years, part of which
time he served as city attorney of
Berkeley, and was for twelve years
city attorney of Pittsburg and Antioch
in " Contra Costa County. For several
vrars. commencing in 1918, he specialized
rate proceedings before the California
Kailroad Commission, being retained by
over fifty cities and counties in northern
California to act as their counsel in
electric, gas and transportation cases.
In August. 1924, he was retained by the
Fish and Game Commission as special
counsel to handle the litigation arising

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

29

from the commission's effort to prevent
the overuse of sardines for the manufac-
ture of fertilizer. This subject finally
became of such supreme importance to
the commission and the people at largo
that his employment was made perma-
nent as attorney for the Commercial
Fisheries Department of the commission
to handle the sardine litigation and other
matters pertaining to that department.
The final result of this work for the com-
mission has resulted in the saving of the
sardine crop for edible purposes and has
completely blocked the attempt of certain

B. D. Marx Greene, Executive Officer.

interests to commercialize this food fish
for nonedible purposes.

On .Tanuaiy 18th of the present year,
Mr. Greene was chosen executive officer
by the commission for the express pur-
pose of reorganizing the commission and
putting it upon a business basis. Mr.
Greene was not chosen on account of
intimate knowledge of fish or game, but
to act as a business executive. Conse-
quently, he plans to depend upon respon-
sible department heads for the technical
work of the commission and his time will
be devoted mostly to coordinating these

departments and putting the work of
each upon an efficient and workable basis.
Mr. Greene stands willing both to receive
and accept suggestions and advice, and
his future policy in handling the commis-
sion will be that of maintaining close
contact not only with the men associated
with him in the work of the commission,
but with the general public. The Bureau
of Biological Survey at Washington
found this method of having a business
executive to handle the routine overhead
work a splendid one, and it is expected
that the present plan will work out to
the utmost satisfaction of all concerned.
The department heads feel fully confi-
dent that the new executive officer will
give the commission the best administra-
tion yet attained.

COMMISSION'S WORK REORGANIZED.

The work of conserving the fish and
game resources of California is a great
ind'ertaking and the numerous employees
of the commission must work together if
real accomplishments are to be attained.
.Tust as the efficient administration of
any large corporation is dependent upon
a selected group of department heads
upon whom responsibility is fixed, so in
the work of the Fish and Game Commis-
sion similar departmental organization
lias become necessary. In fulfillment ,>£
the promise to give conservation work a
thoroughly businesslike administration,
the work of the commission is to be
accomplished through certain depart-
ments and bureaus. The main depart-
ments will be Administration, Patrol,
Fishculture, Ladders and Screens, and
Commercial Fisheries. Less important
branches of the work will be designated
as the bureaus of Accounts, Education
and Research, Publicity, and Game
Farms.

The executive officer will hold cabinet
meetings attended by each department
head and by such bureau heads as are
needed for matters under discussion. At
these meetings matters of policy and
projected plans will be discussed. The
executive officer will parcel out the actual
work to the various departments and
bureaus and will devote his time to mat-
ters of business management and policy.
He is to supervise all the work of the
organization, and each department and
bureau head will report in writing
monthly so that he may have full knowl-
edge regarding activities and progress.
District offices at Sacramento and Los
Angeles will be subsidiary rather than
independent.

Some idea of the working out of tho

30

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

plan of orsanization may be obtained by
the following skeleton outline of the
functions of the various departments.

COMMISSIONERS.

I. Zellerbach. president. M. J. Connell,
R. II. Clock.

The three Fish and Game Commis-
sioners will determine upon general
policy and organization. Departmental
heads will be present at all meetings of
the commission and will be consulted
whenever policy concerning their depart-
ment is determined. Full publicity will
be given the actual policies set at these
meetings.

EXECUTIVE OFFICER.

r.. D. Marx Greene, executive officer and
attorney.

The executive officer will be in reality
the general manager of the organization.
To him will fall the duty of coordinating
the work of the various departments,
passing judgment as to the necessity and
feasibility of projects, detertnining prece-
dents of projects and preparing the
budget. Supervision of all legal work of
the commission Avill also fall to his hands,
^luch of the routine answering of letters
will be parceled out to various depart-
ments.

DEPARTMENT OF PATROL.

J. S. Hunter, chief of patrol.

Demand for a more unified patrol serv-
ice has been met by the organization of
a Department of Patrol with J. S. Hunter
in claarge. As the result of knowledge
of law enforcement and long years of
service. Mr. Hunter is eminently fitted
for this position. The Department of
Patrol will have complete charge of law
enforcement work in the state with the
exception of the fisheries patrol off the
coast of southern California. The state
is to be divided into a dozen or more
districts and a captain of deputies will
be appointed to have charge of the men
in each district. Individual deputies will
report directly to the captain of deputies
and through him to the chief of patrol.
In addition there will be a group of
unattached men at the central office who
will be held in readiness to be sent to
any district in the state where assistance
is needed. It is expected that under this
system the work of the patrol service will
be unified and that each man will know his
duty and act accordingly.

DEPARTMENT OF FISHCULTURE, SCREENS
AND LADDERS.

W. H. Shebley, in charge.

As in the past the duties of this depart-
ment will be the establishment of hatch-
eries, the rearing of food and game fishes-
and the stocking of the waters of the state
with the fish reared and the supervision
of screen and ladder installation.

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCIAL FISHERIES.

N. B. Scofield, in charge.

As in the past the Department of
Commercial Fisheries will be charged with
the regulation and control of commercial
fishermen and canners, the compilalion
of statistics relative to the catch of fish
and all matters pertaining to the con-
servation of the fish and fisheries iilnim
the California coast. There will be more
rigid control of matters related to food
fishes in the making of oil and fertilizer
and the State Fisheries Laboratory will
continue to secure data as to the life
history and habits of the more important
food fishes.

BUREAU OF ACCOUNTS.

H. R. Dunbar, assistant executive officer,
in charge.

Mr. H. R. Dunbar, located at Sacra-
mento, has been appointed assistant execu-
tive officer in charge of accounts. Mr.
Dunbar will be entirely responsible for
all the records and accounts of the com-
mission. By means of a revolving fund
it will be possible to pay expenses very
quickly after they have been submitted.

BUREAU OF EDUCATION AND RESEARCH.

H. C. Bryant, in charge.

It will be the function of this bureau
to continue educational work in the
schools, to issue educational bulletins,
furnish lectures, lend motion pictures and
lantern slides and edit the quarterly
magazine California Fish and Game
together with all other publications. It
will also be the duty of this bureau to
keep files containing data relative to the
life history and habits of all game species
and to supervise game research work of
the commission.

bureau of PUBLICITY.

Rolin G. Watkins, in charge.

For some time the Fish and Game Com-
mission has needed wider publicity as to
accomplishments and plans. Tlie work
of furnishing the newspapers with full
information relative to activities of the
commission will fall upon this bureau.

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

31

For I lie prosent this buroaii will also
liMVf cliariix^ of pnllntioii.

RUREAU OF GAME I'AUMS.

August Bade, iu charge.

As provided by law this bureau will
have in charge the importation, propaga-
tion and distribution of game birds. All
matters relative to the new state game
♦ farm at Yountville will naturallj^ fall
within the sphere of this bureau. •

RESULTS EXPECTED.

1. Each department and bureau head
will know his place and function in the
organization.

2. Each department and bureau will
be furnished a budget and will know what
new work can be undertaken.

3. Methods of procedure will be deter-
mined largely by the men concerned in the
actual undertaking.

4. There will be opportunity for a
working plan for future years.

5. Coordination of the work of the
\arious departments and centralization
of authority will greatly increase efficiency
and assure better acnievement.

SERVICE BULLETIN WILL BE
ISSUED.

The employees of the Fis-h and Game
Commission have become so numerous
and they are so widely scattered that it
has become necessary that a closer touch
with a head office be secured through the
i.'ssuance of a service bulletin. It is
hoped by this means to unify the working-
force of the commission. The bulletin
will contain information useful in build-
ing up a more efficient service. The
first number, issued on January 30, con-
tained articles on the new commissioners,
the new executive officer and an outline
of the departmental organization. Stress
was .laid on the reorganization of the
patrol service as a distinct department
with J. S. Hunter in charge. It is
planned to issue this service bulletin
regularly every month. The material will
not be for publication and the bulletin
will go to employees only.

COMMISSION'S WORK PRAISED.

In the April issue of Sunset Magazine
(out March 15th), designated as the Fish-
ing Number, an article, "Gasoline and
Trout," by Walter V. Woehike, calls
attention to the good work now being
done by the California State Fish and
Game Commission to increase the trout
population in our mountain streams and
to prevent the yearly catch of sardines

in California waters fi'om being turned
into fertilizer instead of food products.
Credit for the recent marked imi)rovr'meu:
in these matters is given by the writer
to the present vigorous administration
of the commission under the leadership of
Mr. Zellerbach.

Tlie issue contains a number of other
articles of special interest to fishermen.
Chief among them is one by the noted
author and sportsman, Zane Grey, entitled
"The Log of the Gladiator." It is a
vivid diary account of this famous writer's
swordfishing experiences last summer off
Catalina Island with a part,y of enthusi-
astic deep-sea anglers. "Mostly About
Trout," as told by Tod Powell to D. R.
Lane, urges sportsmen to make their trout
fishing more of a fine art, and advocates
more widespread use of the barbless hook,
so that trout whicli have been caught
may be returned to the stream without
serious injury to them. "When you go
trout fishing, fish for sport, and not for
fish," is Tod Powell's argument.

IN MEMORIAM.
Henry J. Abels.

Relatives, frienas and associates of
Henry J. Abels, veteran employee of the
Fish and Game Commission, were shocked
to learn of his sudden passing on AugusL
21, 1925. He was stricken with an
attack of apoplexy while on duty in
the Santa Barbara Mountains, about
twenty-eight miles east of Santa Maria.

Henry J. Abels was born July 20,
1S76, at San Luis Obispo, California, and
was six years old when his parents
settled in Santa Maria. In 1S94, he was-
appointed United States Forest Ranger
for the Santa Barbara National Forest,
being one of the first rangers appointed
in California. In 1899 he was appointed
game warden for Santa Barbara County,
which office he held eight years. He was
appointed an Assistant Fish and Game
Commi&'sioner in 190G. In 1917, by
unanimous vote of the board of super-
visors, Mr. Abels was appointed county
game warden of Santa Barbara County.

Deceased was past master of Hesperian
Lodge No. 264, F. & A. M., member of
Omar Commandery No. 30 K. T. ; Al
Malaikah Temple, A. A. O. N. M. S. of
Los Anseles, and Santa Maria Lodge No.
90 K. of P.

Known for his courtesy, tact and fair-
ness in the discharge of his duties, Mr.
Abels made a host of friends. An
enthusiastic worker, he was continually
engaged in espousing the principles of

32

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

conservation. His iintinn'ly passiiiu-
brought to an tMiil tin cnvial)lo rerord of
nineteen years in state service.

Mr. Abels is survived by his wife, a sou
and a daughter.

Bernard Luttrell.

Bernard Luttrell, 27 years of age, who
had for several months been a deputy of
the Fish and Game Commission in Siski-
you County, was accidentally shot while
on a hunting expedition on ^loflatt Creek,
October 12, 102r).

Bernard Luttrell and his father, Ben-
.iamin Luttrell, his uncle, Peter H. Lut-
trell, and his three brothers, Superior
Judge Charles J. Luttrell of Yreka,
Dr. Luttrell of San Francisco and
George E. Luttrell, teacher at Ten-
nant, California, had met according to
custom for an annual hunting expedition
on INIoffatt Creek, their favorite hunting
ground.

Bernard Luttrell was in a tree to get
a better view of deer that might be
stalked by his companions in the brush.
On descending the tree the trigger of his
gun caught on a twig, the weapon was dis-
charged and one side of his head blown off.

He leaves a widow and three small
children. During his service with the
commission he proved himself to be a
fearless and conscientious warden. Those
who worked with him gave high praise
to his ability.

DUCKS DIE FROM ALKALI
POISONING.

Early in the fall reports came from the
Tule Lake district of northeastern Cali-
fornia and fi'om the vicinity of Gridley in
the Sacramento Valley to the effect that
thousands of birds were to be found dead
in these localities. Several investigations
were started by federal and state officials.
Judging by examinations made at the
State University, statements to the effect
that cholera was responsible are not
tenable. Post mortem examinations of
a number of ducks from the Sacramento
Valley showed symptoms of alkali poison-
ing. The digestive tract was empty but
filled with mucus:, and there was a
tendency for the inner lining to peel off.
Otherwise the birds appeared to be in
splendid condition. All bacterial tests
proved negative. As has been true in the
past, the disease disappeared after the
first rain.

HATCHERY WATER SUPPLY.

In hatchery operations the purity and
temperature of the water supply are all
important. As a rule difficulty is to be

fiuind in the high (emiioraturo of the
water in late summer, which gives trouble
in keeping the fish in a healthy condition.
In the case of one hatchery in the state
it is the coldness of the water which has
given difficulty. The water at the Tahoe
Hatchery comes from a very cold spring,
the water having a temperature of
88 degrees. Water at this temperature
retards the growth of fish so that they
are jiractically sixty days in development
behind fisli reared in warmer water. The
water from this spring is also low in
oxygen content. Plans are now being
made to improve conditions by aerating
and raising the temperature of the water
about ten degrees by running it through
a pond system and aerating fountain
before it enters the hatchery. With this
accomplished, fishcultural operations at
this hatchery can be speeded up and
greater efficiency gained.

GAME LAWS BECOME POPULAR.

Chas. E. Hughes recently made this
statement : "The surest way to make
government and law unpopular is to per-
mit it to be both ineffective and annoy-
ing." Apply this to fish and game laws
and we perhaps see the reason for their
unpopularity twenty years ago. As the
force of wardens has become more effec-
tive and their methods less annoying, fish
and game laws have come into favor. No
one thing has so greatly shown the change
in attitude as the willingness on the part
of judges to give maximum fines. In spite
of present attainment there is still much
to gain. With increasing settlement of
the country and increasing number of
foreigners to poach upon game resources,
there must be more rigid enforcement.
Too many people believe that law enforce-
ment is wholly up to the game warden,
whereas in reality the attitude of mind
of each individual counts.

Help popularize fish and game laws !

NEW PLANS FOR GAME REFUGE
BILL.

During the meeting of the Western
Association of Fish and Game Commis-
sioners held at Denver last August,
representatives of five great conservation
societies joined in drawing up a new
plan for securing an adequate set of game
refuges. Misunderstandings were cleaned
up and a new start made when, by resolu-
tion, recommendations of D. H. Madsen,
Fish and Game Commissioner of Utah,
the chief opponent of the game refuge
public shooting grounds bill which has
failed to pass in two sessions of congress,
were adopted. The resolution was as
follows :

CALIFORNIA PISH AND GAME.

33

Resolved, That the action of the offi-
cers of the International Association of
Game, Fish and Conservation Commission-
ers, in conference with tlie officers of the
Western Association of State Game Com-
missioners, in accepting, in principle, the
amendments to the Federal Game Refuge
Bill offered by Commissioner D. H. Mad-
sen of Utah, is hereby approved by this
convention ;

And be it further resolved, That the
Western Association of State Game Com-
missioners, the International Association
of Game, Fish and Conservation Commis-
sioners, the American Game Protective
Association, the National Association of
Audubon Societies and the Izaak Walton
League, are requested each to appoint one
member of a committee of five for the
preparation and the submission to con-
gress of the bill in accordance with this
resolution.

This committee was immediately ap-
pointed as follows : William C. Adams,
Massachusetts, for the International Asso-
ciation of Game, Fish and Conservation
Commissioners ; David H. Madsen, Utah,
for the Western Association of Game
Commissioners ; John B. Burnham, New
York, for the American Game Protective
Association ; George H. Selover, Minne-
sota, for the Izaak Walton League of
America ; Dr. T. Gilbert Pearson, New
York, for the National Association of
Audubon Societies.

It was hoped that this getting together
of advocates and opponents of the former
game refuge public shooting grounds bill
would eliminate the old snags of "new
federal tax," "more federal bureaus" and
"more federal policing." However, this
was not to be. The proposed bill which
was to substitute for the federal license
fee a federal sales tax on sporting arms
and ammunition as a means of providing
funds for the purchase of refuges and
maintenance did not meet with the
approval of the administration. Con-
sequently the committee voted unani-
mously for discharge because of the impos-
sibility of accomplishing the object for
which they were appointed.

A duplicate of last year's bill has been
introduced in both senate and house and
friends of the measure are asking oppo-
nents to forget differences', submerge
prejudices and unite in support of the
measure.

THE GAME WARDEN NEEDS SUP-
PORT, NOT CRITICISM.

At the meeting of the Associate!
Sportsmen's Clubs of California held on
December 10th, the game warden was
both abused and commended. When the
only warden present was called upon he
feelingly called attention to the habit of
those reporting game violations of report-
ing the matter several weeks after the

offense happened, of giving Utile real
dependable evidence fin which the warden
might work, and of seldom being willing
to appear in court as a witness. Cer-
tainly we are expecting too much of a
warden if we expect him to catch single
handed all violators in a district often
comprising two or more counties.

One great step forward has been taken
in the helpful attitude of judges. The
next necessary thing is to secure the
cooperation of all citizens in bringing to
justice the violator of the game law. We
are now sure that the courts will do their
share in making the violator think twice
before he acts.

PLAN BIOLOGICAL SURVEY OF
LAKE TAHOE.

Mr. George A. Coleman, biologist for
the Fishcultural Department, has made
several important surveys iu recent
months. On completion of work at Clear
Lake where a complete biological survey
of the food available for fish in this lake
was made, attention was turned to the
Lassen National Park area. Encourag-
ing reports were obtained relative to the
plants of steelhead in Juniper and other
lakes, and if recommendations relative to
introducing a food supply in some of the
lakes are carried out, tish in these moun-
tain lakes will become more numerous.

Plans are now being made for a com-
plete biological survey of Lake Tahoe.
In addition to an effort to find out
exactly the natural food supply available
for fish, an attempi. will be made to
determine the depth at which the various
kinds of fish found in the lake feed. Spec-
ial copper line equipment will be utilized
to make these determinations.

Another important problem concerns
the white fish of the Truckee basin which
has been greatly depleted. Efforts wi-1
be made to artificially propagate this fish.
A number of hatcheries in the middle
west specialize on the propagation of
white fish and there is no reason why
California should not be active in similar
work.

THE ANNUAL KILL OF MULE DEER
IN MODOC COUNTY.

The concentrated hunting which takes
place in the lava beds in Modoc County
is shown by the report of mule deer
killed during the season of 1925 as re-
ported by the forest service. The number
actually checked within the Modoc
National Forest shows 510. The aver-
age number checked in the past three
years is 323. The season of 1924, on
account of the closing of the forest, was
a very light year, which brought down
the total.

34

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

THE WORLD'S RECORD BROAD-
BILLED SWORDFISH.

On July 12. i;V2."i. .Mr. F. A. Galespie
of Beverly Hills, an executive member of
the Tuna Club, took a broa<lbilled sword-
fish {Xiphias gladius) weishins -171
l>onnds. This proved to be the world's
record. Equipment consis-ted of a 24
thread line with a breaking strain of
03 pounds. The fish took fifty-five min-
utes to land. Mr. Galespie was out for
tuna when a big broadbilled swordfish
was found loafing on the surface. Sev-
eral times bait was thrown to within ;i
few feet of the fish without result, bur
finally the swordfish became interested
and was hooked. The previous record for
thi.s fish was 52S pounds, a record held
by Mr. Harry J. Mallen.

VIOLATOR HEAVILY FINED.

As an evidence of his determination to
aid the Fish and Game Commission in
the enforcement of the fish and game laws.
Judge Ernest AVindle of Avalou. Santa
Catalina Island, recently imposed a fine
of $400 upon a violator, together with
ninety days suspended sentence. Peter
Zar. an Austrian fishing out of San
Pedro, was the defendant in the case and
was brought into Judge Windle's court
by fish and game deputies Walter Engelke
and X. C. Kuukle for a violation of the
law which prohibits the use or possession
of a purse seine in fish and game district
Xo. 20.

ARE WE COMING TO CLOSED
SEASONS ON TROUT?

Overfishing in some sections of the
state is causing the angler anxiety. De-
pleted streams in other states are satis-
factorily handled when the Game Com-
mission has plenary powers and is able
to close them. In California it takes an
act of the legislature to close a stream to
fishing.

A recent report from Michigan is to
the effect that following a survey of the
trout streams of that state by several
experts, the game commissioner advo-
cates the closing of all trout streams of
the state for a period of five years.

The fish hog may well ponder over
this recommendation. If care is taken
and if a fisherman thinks about the other
fellow who may want his share from
that stream, there is real hope that no
such policy will be adopted in this state.
If. however, each angler selfishly gets
all he can continually, our sti-eams are
bound to be depleted and drastic measures
will become necessarj-.

PELICANS AND FISH.

Man is forever condemning some bird
i)r some animal for its depredations.
Sometimes these accusations have a basis
in fact, and at other times they are chance
judgments. In view of the fact that
sentiment against the pelican and cormo-
rant secured emendation of the law and
placed these two birds on the "black list"
the following summary of investigations
by E. Raymond Ilall under the direction
of the Bureau of Biological Survey during
the summer of 1924 are pertinent. In
an article entitled "Pelicans vs. Fishes
in Pyramid Lake" published in The Con-
dor, Vol. 27, pages I47-1W. the follow-
ing summary appears :

The white pelican is not detrimental,
either directly or indirectly to the fishing
industry of the Pyramid Lake region.
However, local sentiment is in the main
antagonistic toward this bird, because it
is believed to eat large numbers of trout.
With the increasing popularity of Pyramid
Lake as a summer resort, and ^vith the
present lack of protection accorded this
bird, the species will, in no great length
of time, cease to breed there.

It is true that trout are decreasing in
numbers, both in the lakes and in the
rivers of the region. This is due to a
multiplicity of causes. Most important of
these is the depletion of water in the
Truckee River. Formerly, between Octo-
ber and June, the common trout of Pyra-
mid and Winnemucca lakes, Salmo
hfushaivi. ascended the Truckee River to
spawn. Fish culturists say that this,
like some other species of trout, requires
running water to insure fertilization of
the eggs, hence it can not reproduce in
the lakes. Insufficient water in the
Truckee River at the critical season not
only prevents most of the fish from
reaching their spawning grounds, but
results in the death of those fish that do
get into the river. On May 17, dozens of
Salmo henshaici, weighing from 5 to IS
pounds each, were found dead in pools
of the Truckee River just below the Indian
Reservation Dam. Conditions of this kind
have existed in previous years at other
dams along the river (see Snyder, 1917,
p. 42). The fish could not pass the Indian
Reservation Dam because there was no
water to flow through the fish ladder.
Later in the year fish died along the
river in great numbers because of the
stagnant condition of what water there
was. The stench from decaying fish is
said to have become so offensive that,
near Reno, men were employed to bury
them. This lack of water is the result
of dry seasons, construction of the Derby
Dam (which is said to divert the water
that naturally flowed down the Truckee
River into the Carson River), and the
general withdrawal of water for irrigation
purposes.

Only one of the Nevada irrigation
ditches taking water out of the Truckee

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

35

River has a screen, according to persons
familiar witli the situation ; and this
screen was stated to be inadequate.
None of the ditches that I examined had
a screen. A heavy toll of trout is taken
when the fry wander out into the smaller
ditches and into the fields. The Derby
Dam, the largest of the several dams in
the river, has no adequate fish ladder by
which the fish may ascend to their former
spawning grounds.

Sewage from the several cities and
refuse from sawmills and paper mills are
emptied directly into the river, and are
unquestionably detrimental to the fish
life, especially at periods of low water.
Some of this refuse is said to accumulate
in pools and kill the spawn of the trout.

The critical factor in the welfare of the
trout of Pyramid and Winnemucca lakes
is the condition of the Truckee River,
which, for the reasons stated above, no
longer permits of the fish ascending to
their spawning grounds. Furthermore,
the river is no longer supplying the nor-
mal amount of water to the two lakes.
Indeed, the level of these lakes goes
down several feet each year. The develop-
ment of other irrigation projects along
the Truckee River now under considera-
tion, including the construction of reser-
voirs, will no doubt further decrease the
amount of water reaching Pyramid and
Winnemucca lakes.

The white pelican, then, is probably in
no way responsible for the decrease
which is so apparent in the number of
trout. The causes of this decrease are
man-made, and those which are believed
to be the most salient have just been
pointed out.

CALIFORNIA LEADS IN FISHERIES.

The statistics for 1922, compared witii
those available for former years, strik-
ingly reveal the changes talcing place in
the Pacific coast fisheries. With the
development during the last decade of the
tuna and sardine fisheries, California has
forged ahead to the leading place among
the Pacific coast states. The number of
persons engaged in fisheries increased
from 4129 in 1908 to 8452 in 1915 and
9173 in 1922. The investment increased
from $1,059,000 in 1908 to .$5,824,263 in
1915 and to .$13,047,414 in 1922. The
\-alue of her products increased from
$1,970,000 in 1908 to $2,500,702 in 1915
and to $0,773,981 in 1922.— .\nnual Re-
port of the Commissioner of Fisheries,
year ending June 30, 1925.

MOUNTAIN SHEEP INTRODUCED.

W. R. Hearst is making some interest-
ing experiments with big game animals
on his ranch at San Simeon, California.
Sizeable herds of buffalo, elk. antelope,
deer, reindeer and wild goats are to be
found on 450 acres of fenced land. The

most recent introduction is of eighteen
Rocky Mountain bigborns secured in
Alberta Park, Canada. Mr. Hearst now
owns the largest collection of big ganv.^
animals in the state, and the results of
his experiments will doubtless deterniin<^
to what extent the Pacific Coast Sports-
men's Club and similar clubs will jnirsue
their intention of establishing large game
preserves.

FISHING AT CATALINA.

Angling near the Miannel Islands con-
tinues to attract anglers from far and
near. That large fish are available and
make the, journey worth while is evidenced
by the annual awards of the Tuna Club.
For the season 1924 the largest fish were
as follows: tuna, heavy tackle, 149;.
pounds'; tuna, light tackle, 117^ pounds;
marlin swordfish. heavy tackle, 345
pounds; marlin swordfish. light tackle, 191
pounds; broadbill swordfish, heavy tackle,
328 pounds.

.T. W. Jump secured the Brewster
medal for the largest tuna. It weighed
191 pounds.

FUR CONSERVATION ESSENTIAL.

The perpetuation of fur-bearing ani-
mals in the wild is as much a matter for
public concern as the conservfition of any
other natural resource. Although admin-
istration of forests, fish and game may
rest with either individual states or the
federal government, the maintenance of
the fur supply is primarily the business
of the states. The I'uUed States Depart-
ment of Agriculture is charged with the
enforcement of the Federal Lacey Act.
a law which regulates intersrate commerce
in wild animals and supplements state
legislation in efforts for the conservation
of fur animals. In administering the law
the attitude of the department is one ol"
cooperation and coordination and not
federal control. — U. S. D. A. Farmers
Bull. 1469.

BLACK-TAILED DEER SUCCESS-
FULLY REARED.

On Decoration Day, four years ago.
our neighbors out on a picnic found a
female black-tailed fawn .iust born and
not even able to stand up. Believing
it deserted, they brought her back to us
that evening and we fed her warmed
cow's milk from a bottle and nipple.
As this food made the fawn sick, we
tried boiled milk and water in equal parts.
Under this diet she quickly recovered
and soon became a wonderful pet. fol-
lowing us everywhere like a dog and
crying "ma-ma" like a bal)y to let ns

36

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

know she was luingry. We fed her about
every two lionrs during the day and twice
during the night. "We named lier Yvonne.
The following November, a young man
who was leaving town and who was the
owner of a five-year-old buck asked the
Fish and Game Commission permission
to transfer him to us. Dick was a nice

at the same places, asking for her milk
the same way.

Two years ago in August, Yvonne had
her first baby, Maggie, and a week after.
we were very much surprised when
Pierrette, only fifteen months old, become
mother of a beautiful little buck. Jiggs-.
Ver.v few people know that it takes two

Fig. 10. Complete series of antlers from a nine year old
black-tailed deer. Here is evidence that the number of
points does not accurately indicate age. Photograph by
R. O. Rampont, Ukiah, California.

three pointer, of ordinary size, quite
gentle.

The next year after in May. another
female fawn was found on the Orrs Spring
road by the body of her dead mother and
nearly starved. We raised Pierrette by
the same method that we did Yvonne.
She had e.xactly the same habits, sleeping

hundred days for a doc to have a fawn.

Last year in July both had twins and
this last June, Yvonne, Pierrette and
Maggie (the first deer born in our place)
gave us six more fawns.

In less than four. years, starting with
two female fawns and a buck we found
ourselves possessing a herd of fifteen deer.

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

37

Although we have just a block of ground
in the center of the city of Ukiah, yet it
is an ideal place for them, just like a
forest.

All the deer are in fine shape all year
long. Every morning each one gets
about a quart of rolled barley. During
the spring and summer we feed them
grass, alfilaria, kale, any kind of vege-
tables, especially potato peelings, brush
(poison oak, chamiso, madrone, oak
limbs, fruit tree leaves.) Later we give
them grape suckers and ripe fruits, and
in the winter, dry alfalfa and acorns.
They have rock salt all the time. They

OPEN SEASONS FOR FUR BEARERS.

Ill-advised open seasons are a natural
result of lack of sufficient information
regarding the life habits of fur animals
on the part of farmers, trappers, mem-
bers of the fur trade, legislative com-
mittees and even of conservationists. The
seasons established by a number of states
do little to prevent the decrease of fur
bearers in certain sections. A defect
frequently noted in present fur laws is
that the open season provided is so long
that it permits trapping before pelts are
prime in fall and after breeding is in
progress in spring.

Fig. 11. A black-tailed deer reared by R. O. Rampont, Ukiah, California.
Photograph by R. O. Rampont.

nre very fond of bread, candies, peanuts,
rigarettes and chewing tobacco.

Our bucks lose their horns about Wash-
ington's birthday. The accompanying
picture shows Dick's entire set of horns
when nine years old. (See Fig. 10.) You
will note that for five years he was a
Ihree pointer, the last two years a four
pointer. Jiggs, only two years old, is a
three pointer. "We are convinced that
horns do not always indicate the age of
a deer.

We have demonstrated what can be
done in deer farming when proper care
and protection is given. Judging from
our experience, it should be possible to
increase the game in any part of the
United States. — R. O. Rampont, Ukiah,
Cal.

Fur is in prime condition for harvest-
ing at one brief season only. An open
season of more than three months dura-
tion is not justifiable anywhere in the
United States if the prime condition of
peltries and the economic status of fur
animals were taken into consideration.
That the seasons are not wisely detei'-
mined is emphasized by the fact that far
too many unprofitable pelts are coming
to the raw-fur markets every year. A
keener appreciation of conditions revealed
by studies of the habits, breeding seasons
and periods of prime fur on the part of
those concerned with the framing of laws
and regulations governing trapping would
result in increased pelts of superior qual-
ity reaching the markets, thus allowing
greater financial rewards to trappers and

38

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

at the same time augmenting the num-
bers of breeders in the covers.

A few generations ago furs of many
kinds were commonly taken in all sec-
tions of the country, but now, with the
depletion or extinction over great areas
of certain of the more prized species, the
most valuable fur bearers, from the view-
jioint of financial returns from the annual
catch, are muskrats. skunks, raccoons and
opossums.— U. S. D. A. Farmers Bull.
1460.

AN ANTI-POLLUTION PLATFORM.

("ougressnian Clarence MacGregor in
an addres.s before the New York Water-
ways Association quoted and endorsed The
Outlook's anti-pollution platform:

The nation has an inalienable right
to clean Maters.

Disposition of the waste of industry
is a proper charge against industry, and
against industry alone.

No corporations and no communities
have any more right to pollute the waters
with their waste than have citizens to
dump refuse on their neighbors' property.

He is not an alarmist when he says :

Civilization must not be allowed to
destroy itself. "U^e must not be blind to
the fact that the destruction of natural
resources is suicide. Our civilization, is
too ruthless. We dry up our streams by
failing- to protect our forests. We kill
the bird life by taking away their dwelling
places and leave the fields open for the
pests that destroy our agriculture. We
kill off our fish by destroying their home.
We create cesspools from which to extract
our drinking water. We fill our grave-
yards with the victims of our barbarity.
We are more than foolish. We are abso-
lutely stupid. — The Outlook, Oct. 28, 1925.

CAUSES OF FUR DEPLETION.

The value of the annual catch of fur-
bearing mammals in the United States
25 years ago it was roughly estimated at
$2.3.000.000. Today it is estimated at
.$70,000,000. If the supply of fur ani-
mals had been maintained in suitable
areas the income to trappers would have
greatly exceeded present-day values.
Much of the actual loss on furs- taken
could be eliminated by confining trapping
to i)eriods of prime fur, exercising care
to remove pelts properly and to cure them
thoroughly before shipment to raw-fur
receiving houses.

Trapping too early or too late and fail-
ing to care for furs properly have resulted
in a loss of approximately 20 per cent
of the annual catch. Receiving houses
are i-esi>ousible foi- much of this waste
Ijy sending out early price lists con-
laiuiug quotations on prime furs not
obtainable at the time — a formal invita-

tion to the trapper to begin operations
at once. By such action not only does
the receiving house accept uni>rimo ])elts
bur the trapper gets a smaller return
than he would have received by starting
operations during the season of prime fur.
All fur bearers increase rapidly under
reasonable protection, and if the unprimo
animals now killed every year were left
for breeding stock this-- jn'obably would not
decrease the annual catch more than .")
per cent, and within five years the supply
of wild fur animals would without doubt
be increased 50 per cent. — U. S. D. A.
Farmers Bull. 1469.

That many trappers have been per-
mitted to ply their trade out of season
and to gather pelts to the point of ex-
termination of the fur bearers over large
areas is only one cause for our presenr
shortage. Serious responsibility rests
also on fur buyers and their agents, who.
by accepting at a price all skins offered,
thus marketing illegal pelts, tempt trap-
pers to make a thorough clean-up all
along their trap lines. Another factor in
the scarcity of fur animals is found in the
greatly reduced fur-producing areas. The
encroachment of civilization naturally
reduces the extent of such areas, but more
thought and attention can well be given
to the indiscriminate drainage of swamps
and to the unnecessary cutting and
destroying of forests and cover.

Taking an unprime pelt is a deliberate
waste of one of nature's most valuable
and beautiful gifts, and not until trappers
and raw-fur men learn to look upon it
as such will the best use of our valuabK'
resources in fur be realized. — U. S. D. A.
Farmers Bull. 1469.

ARIZONA ESCAPES GAME LAW
MUDDLE.

Last fall Arizona fittempted to recodify
its game laws by means of referendum.
The move was sponsored by the State
Game Protective Association and the
state game wai'den. It was intended to
submit the matter to the voters at the
general election in 1926, but the legisla-
ture at the last meeting ordered it sub-
mitted this year. As a consequence
passage of the measure would have closed
all legal hunting and fi.shing in the state,
abolished the state game department, fish
propagation work and all other activities
until the legislature met and new laws
were enacted. As a consequence it was
necessaiy to first put on a campaign
asking sportsmen to kill the bill, and
later by means of an injunction to order
the Game Law Repeal Bill off the refer-
endum ballot. Through ilu^ last metho'l
the situation was saved.

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

39

"THE CODE OF AN ANGLER."

1. Ho holds lliiil a .uood Jislicniiaii iml
(inly can catdi fish iiut is one who riuidiy
couserves angling,- as a sport.

2. He realizes that fish must have
homes in which to live, therefore he
sees to it that good forests and waters
are made available and Ifept available
for abundant fish life.

3. He knows well the enemies of the
fish — the water snake, the hawk, the
otter — and he takes of his time and money
to rid fish life of these menaces.

4. He loathes that human "fish-hog"
who ruthlessly wastes and destroys, and
he vigilantly brings to bay these robbers'
of our fish.

5. He is tortured by that ghastly night-
mare, pollution of waters, and he fights
everlastingly to keep clear waters clear,
and to redeem foul v.aters to purity.

6. He is a student of fish life and
habits. Thus he knows that both the
size and number of fish depend directly
upon the abundance of the food supply.
Therefore lie conserves bait life, and
water vegetation. — Forest and Stream,
April 1925, p. 216.

THE REAL SPORTSMAN AND THE
BAG LIMIT.

The days when admiration went to
the man who boasted of his big killings
and of exceeding the bag limit are fast
l)assing. Sentiment now favors the
sportsman who has a "gentleman's limit."

Many a sportsman who in days past
has been accustomed to getting the limit,
now believes in fixing his own bag limit.
Furthermore he is willing to express
his ideas in the hope that others will
see the wisdom of taking only a fair
share.

In California, too many sportsmen still
kill more game than they are able to
use. Game is vanishing as civilization
advances, and a love for and desire to
perpetuate the wild things of nature as
well as a desire for more fish and game
should induce the real sportsman to fix
his own bag limit, regardless of the sneers
of some of his fellows', whose selfish
l)ractices will turn from them the very
favor which they seek — the favor of
liuhlic opinion. — B. E. P.

WARDEN POSTS SIGNS.

Game Warden W. B. Sellmer of Marin
County posts the following warning as
ho patrols his county :

GAME WARDKN

W. B. SELI^MEU

JS DUE

HERE TOD A'/

He Might Be Watching You Noio

Are You Hunting or Fishing Within the
Law? IP NOT

Can you afford to have your reputation
ruined by a fish or game violation?

Can you afford to be recognized as a
flsh or game hog by the public?

Can you afford the publicity usually
given such a violator?

Can you afford to be branded as an
unreliable and untrustworthy citizen?

Can you alTord to pay a heavy fine or
serve a jail sentence?

YOU CAN NOT!

DON'T TAKE A CHANCE

Such a reminder may set many a
violator to thinking. The results will b-
watched with interest.

THE LIFE HISTORY OF THE
GRUNION.

The highly specialized spawning habits
of the grunion or "little smelt" are very
different to those of other known fisliev.
In fact, its adaptation of the tides and
its method of laying its eggs to protect
them from marine enemies is one of the
really remarkable stories in the annals
of natural history.

Fish Bulletin No. 10, a contribution
from the State Fisheries Laboratory
entitled "The Life History of Leuresthc>i
tenuis, an Atherine Fish with Tide Con-
trolled Spawning Habits" by Frances N.
Clark is a continuation of the work
begun by W. F. Thompson.*

During the months of March, April.
May and June, or after the highest tide,
this fish comes in on the sandy beaches
of California to spawn. The female lays
her eggs several inches below the surface
of the sand and far above the level of the
average tide.

Although in this way the eggs escai)e
the dangers of the sea, certain enemies
less formidable confront the lai'vae of
the grunion. The Saprinus sulcifrons,
a beetle, boring its way into the sand,
often uncovers and devours them. But
the greatest dangers are to be found in
physical conditions. Should the sand
so dry out that the eggs lose their mois-
ture, should they be swept out to sea too
soon after spawning, or should they fail

* Thompson, W. F., 1919. The Spawn-
ing of the Crrunion, Leuresthes tenuis.
California Fish and Game Commi.s.sion,
Fish Bull. No. 3.

40

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

to 1)0 liberated from the sand at the
l)ropor timo — those are the real daugors
to which the eirgs are subject. But the
fish is usually able to escape these perils.
It runs in with I ho highest waves shortlj'
after the full moou which enables it to
reach the area where the sand is being
deposited. This prevents the eggs from
being washed out by succeeding tides.
The tides accompanying the dark of the
moon just two weeks after the spawning
are very much higher and uncover and
liberate the larvae.

lOxporiments have proven that the
larvae can not liberate themselves from
the sand, but must await the action of
the waves for their deliverance. They are
capable of lying in their capsules for two
weeks after the proper time for hatching
(an unusual phenomenon) but this is in-
jurious and results in the failure of many
of the young to survive. So the failure
of the tide to reach them at their normal
hatching time and deliver them consti-
tutes a grave danger.

Miss Clark has brought out in her
paper the following new facts in regard
to the life history of the grunion :

1. Growth of the ova toward maturity
begins as early as January and continues
throughout the spawning season.

2. As soon as one batch of eggs matures
and is spawned out, another batch begins
to develop, is matured, and spawned out
two weeks later. Thus, after an in-
dividual fish starts spawning it continu ,s
to spawn periodically on each series of
high tides throughout the breeding season.

3. Tlie interval between spawnings is
apparently fifteen days instead of two
weeks. This condition results in the
fishes spawning on later and lower tides
during the higher series of high tides than
on the lower series of high tides.

By a study of the scales and length-
frequency data, it was found that
Leuresthes matures at the end of the first
year. For the population studied, ap-
proximately 25 per cent of the fish spawn
again at the end of the second year and
7 per cent at the end of the third year.
No fish were found spawning at the end
of the fourth year.

Leuresthes grows rapidly during the
first year, the males reaching an average
length of 110 mm. and the females of
119 mm. After the firet year and the
resulting attainment of sexual maturity,
increase in length falls off rapidly, but
increase in weight continues at only a
slightly diminished rate.

As a result of the long protracted
spawning season, growth of the mature
fish ceases during the months of May,
June and July, and is resumed again in

the fall. This cessation of growth dur-
ing the sunnner months results in the
formation of a breeding annulus on the
scales. Growth continues during the
winter and a winter annulus is formed
only in rare cases.

CALIFORNIA'S GAME BIRDS ENJOY
WINTER IN ALASKA.

A notable scarcity of such migratory
wild fowl as' ducks and geese occurred
during the recent fall and winter flight
in a number of the western states, par-
ticularly in California. Sportsmen and
others interested in the conservation of
our wild life have expressed alarm at this
scarcity, fearing that this indicates a
liermanent decrease in the numbers of
these birds.

The Biological Survey of the United
States Department of Agriculture recalls,
however, that there was a notably large
northward flight of birds in the spring
of 1925, and that the situation looks far
more serious than it is. The warm winter
on the coast of British Columbia and
southern Alaska is without parallel. No
snow is reported below the 1000-foot level
in the very region of southeastern Alaska
where a year ago deer were starving
owing to the heavy snowfall which buried
their food.

Telegraphic reports to the Biological
Survey during the third week of January,
1926, showed an unprecedented number
of ducks and geese remaining along the
coast of southern Alaska and northern
British Columbia. An abundance of
ducks and geese has been noted as far
north as the flats about the mouths of
the Copper and Bering rivers. From
Wrangell, Alaska, come reports of many
ducks and geese on the flats near there,
and the Stikine River flats in northern
British Columbia are reported to be free
of snow and ice. A wireless dated Jan-
uary 22 from the Alaska Game Commis-
sion advised the Biological Survey that
large numbers of mallards and thousands
of geese were on the Stikine flats, a
remarkable occurrence for this time of the
j-ear.

The scarcity of birds in various parts of
the west during the fall and winter of
1925 and 192G does not necessarily mean
a corresponding actual decrease in the
total number of the existing wild fowl.
Mild fall and winter weather in southern
Canada and along the northern border
of the United States and the deficient
rainfall in the west have caused erratic
movements among these birds, many of
their usual haunts having been passed
over by them in the southward flight.

The fact that millions of birds are

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

41

reported on some of the large wintering
grounds in the southern parts of the
country is evidence that vast numbers of
them have come down from the north.

BACK TO PRIMITIVE METHODS.

A newspaper item states that three
archers invaded the Siskiyou Mountains
during the deer season. We must at least
admit that hunters? so armed must use
greater skill in securing their game, and
certainly the more ingenuity one puts
into the hunt the more he gets out of it,
at least in mental stimulus. With both
high school and college students practicing
archery, it may well be that the bow and
arrow will have to be considered in future
legislation. At present no game laws
mention this sort of weapon.

ORGANIZATION SEEKS LIMITATION
OF FIREARMS.

Branding firearms as mere aids to reds,
robbers, bandies and hold-ups, certain
organizations attempt to curtail the use
of weapons. Discovering that one-half
million revolvers are delivered in the
United States mails annually, one organ-
ization plans ti> ask congress for a law
making pistols and revolvers nonmailable,
and would place the issuing of permits
to purchase revolvers under authority
of the United States Army. The organ-
ization which supports this point of view
is called "The American lieclamation
Society, Inc." Its last advertising cam-
paign was made through literature of a
well known milling company. The move-
ment is said to be nation wide.

Undoubtedly there is need for more
care in the use of dangerous weapons, but
the constitution of the United States
guarantees to every man a chance to
defend himself. Tliere are few who grant
that this society is taking the proper
means to improve conditions.

FOOD OF PHALAROPES, AVOCETS
AND STILTS.

Phalaropes have long claimed interest
by bird students because the males are
plainly garbed, incubate the eggs and
rear the young. Anyone who has watched
these birds as they spin and dab on the
surface of the water has speculated as
to their food. A recent bulletin (U. S.
D. A. department bulletin 1359) brings
interesting infrrmation relative to the
food of these birds. The northern phala-
rope is a fairly common migrant in Cali-
fornia. According to the results of
stomach examination, the food of this
bird is made up almost entirely of animal
matter, beetles' and flies being taken in
largest quantities. Some small weed seeds

are also consumed. Most of the th(^
food is of slight economic importance
as the form.s taken are of no significance
in relation to crops or other products.
However, during May and June, large
quantities of mosquito larvae are con-
sumed. The food of two summer visitant
birds which frequent alkali ponds in the
interior valleys is given in the same
bulletin.

The avocet appears to be a notable
destroyer of weevils and the black-necked
stilt of bill bugT. This comment is made
on the avocet as a game bird : "In some
regions the 'snipe,' as the avocet is some-
times known, is considered a game bird
or is hunted for food. Shooting avocets
has no element of sport, however, as it
is easy to walk within gun range of
them, and they are fearless and frequently
come around to examine the hunter.
Though the birds are of fair size, the
fle.sh is not savory and offers no excuse
for killing them. They rightfully have
l)een removed ."rom the category of game
b'rds and are now accorded full protec-
tion under the regulations of the federal
migratory-bird treaty act. This is fortu-
nate indeed for their continuance, as they
are large and conspicuous and easily
killed. They rear but one brood of four
young each season and are subject nor-
mally to many dangers, so that with
shooting the species would soon be ex-
terminated. With increase in cultivation
of lands throughout their range their
haunts have been much restricted. The
birds remaininc:' have in many instances
been brought into closer relation with
man, so that the good they do is more
apparent."

In that these shore birds usually arrive
long after the hunting season has closed,
and depart before the fall opening, they
are accorded fair protection in California.

COMMITTEE TO INVESTIGATE
STATUS OF RUFFED GROUSE.

The periodic cycles of scarcity and
abundance of the ruffed grouse in eastern
states has been the subject of conversa-
tion among sportsmen for many years,
but until recently there has been no
serious attempt to solve this fundamental
problem. An investigation committee
was appointed by the American Game
Protective Association in December, 1924.
Two workers on the problem, Dr. A. A.
Allen of Cornell University, and Dr. A. O.
Gross of Bowdoin College, are obtain-
ing valuable data. In October, 1925,
the Massachusetts Fish and Game Pro-
tective Association formed a subsidiary
committee and this committee hopes to
raise a fund of $10,000 to carry on an

42

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

investigation over a period of years. The
radio is boins used as a means of inter-
est ins persons in the investisations and of
sirurinu the necessary specimens for the
use of the seientisis actually engnsed in
the work.

PROPOSED SANCTUARY FOR WILD
ANIMALS IN SOUTH AFRICA.

A bill for the permanent establishmenr
of a great national park and sanctuary
for wild animals will come before the
union government of South Africa.
Hopes are entertained that a final
obstacle, the presence of some privately
owned land within the scheduled area,
vill be overcome, and that the union,
by passing the bill, will create an asset of
the highest commercial, popular and
scientific value.

The Transvaal, in which the proposed
park is situated, has the credit of being
Ihe first state in Africa to realize the
importance of protecting wild life. In
March, ISOS, two years before the con-
ference of African powers called by the
late Lord Salisbury led to the establish-
nisnt of reserves and sanctuaries in
many parts of Africa, the Transvaal
government had set apart a district on the
Sabi River between the Drakensbei'g
Mountains and the Lebombo Hills adjoin-
ing Portuguese East Africa, as a sanc-
tuary in which it was forbidden to "hunt,
shoot, seek or in any way to intimidate,
to chase or to drive, or in any way dis-
turb anj- game or birds in the game
reserve."

The country is known as low veld or
bush veld. From east to west it rises in
height graduallj- from about 400 feet
above sea level to about 2000 feet. It is
subtropical climatically, and consists
of a s-eries of undulating ridges and
sleep-cut water courses forest clad except
below the 1200 foot level, where it be-
comes savannah country with rocky out-
crops, the home of troops of baboons.
There are a few large perennial rivers
flowing from west to east and a multi-
tude of tributary water courses, most
of them now as a result of the gradual
('esiccation of South Africa dry except
(hiring the rains.

In 1923, under pressure from the com-
panies, the government excised the whole
V. estern area of the reserve, amounting to
about 1,500,000 acres, between the Oli-
fants River on the north and the Croco-
dile River on the south.

There remain about seventy farms
within the area which are still private
l>roperty, and it is th^ acquisition of these
at a fair price that is the final obstacle
to be overcome. If these are purchased
and the remaining area of the original
reserve permanently established by the

union government as a national park and
sanctuary, as conlemi)lated by the bill,
South -Vfrica will gain i)ossession of one
of the greatest rc'scrves in Ihr world. —
Science, Aug. 14, 1025.

VIREOS DESERVE ENCOURAGEMENT.

During the summer almost anywhere in
the United States at least one species of
vireo, and usuallj' more than one, is to be
found flitting about in the trees or
shrubbery. In the east and central
regions the common species is the red-eyed
vireo, but the white-eyed, warbling, and
yellow-throated vireos also are abundant.
The Philadelphia, blue-headed, button and
Bell vireos are more or less widely dis-
ti-ibuted. As with other common species
of birds, the question as to whether or
not vireos are beneficial is legitimately
raised, and to answer it, the Biological
Survey of the United States Department
of .Vgriculture has made a study of their
food habits, by examining the stomach
contents of a great many of these birds.

The conclusions reached are set forth
in a recent report (Department Bulletin
l.>55), "Food Habits of the Vireos: A
Family of Insectivorous Birds." The
food of the several vireos- is shown to be
very similar though sometimes varying in
proportions. Most of the insects eaten
are either neutral or definitely injurious in
their ecouomic relations, and may be
placed on the credit side of the account
of these birds. All vireos are especially-
fond of caterpillars. Scale insects are
a notable item of vireo food, and other
trpe pests are freely eaten. Many destruc-
tive weevils were fojnd in the stomachs
fx.'^imined. including such fonns as the
clover-leaf, clover-roc t, cotton-boll, and
nut weevils, the plum curculio and bark
beetles. Vireos also destroy ants and
grasshoppei"s. Useful insects taken by
the vireos' include some of the hymeuop-
terans, predacious bugs, and beetles,
among which are ladybird beetles, which
are almost uniformly beneficial. Although
it is regretted that vireos consume as
many ladybirds as the evidence indicates,
yet they also devour many of the pests
attacked by the ladybird, which must,
in part excuse them. As fruit-eaters' thi;
vireos are practically harmless.

Those interested in the bulletin may
obtain a copy, while the supply lasts, by
writing to the United States Department
of Agriculture at Washington, D. C.

CONSERVATION OF WILD LIFE PRE-
SENTS COMPLEX PROBLEMS.

To protect the lives of the useful or
harmless wild animals and bii'ds of the
countiy and at the same time to guard
growing crops and livestock against depre-
dations of injurious wild life is the com-

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

43

plex problem in conservation wliich the
Biological Survey of the United States
Department of Agriculture is constantly
facing and attempting to solve. The
services of this bureau become more im-
portant as time goes on and the scope
of its organization is enlarging accord-
ingly. Especially has this been the case
during the fiscal year ended June 30, 1925,
according to the annual report of the
chief of the Biological Survey.

The increasing occupation and develop-
ment of the United States, says Doctor
Nelson, make it increasingly diflBcult to
maintain even a fair representation of
the once enormous natural resources in
game and fur-bearing animals and game
and insectivorous birds in this country.
At the same time, the wide-spread herds
of domestic stock and the extension of the
farming areas have given predatory ani-
mals and harmful rodents of many species
an abundant food supply, under the in-
fluence of which their numbers increase
and necessitate active control.

To accomplish the varied tas^s involved
in these problems calls for field and
laboratory investigational work by trained
specialists, and the maintenance of
warden service to safeguard federal wild-
life refuges and to enforce federal game
laws, as well as a force to conduct field
campaigns to control wild animal and
occasional bird pests.

The economic phases of the bureau's
work have included operations for the
control of predatory animals, chiefly in
the west. Skilled hunters have been
detailed to take these destructive animals
wherever they occur, and to patrol borders
especially in Arizona and New Mexico for
animals coming across the international
boundary. That predatory animals have
been considerably reduced in numbers is
shown b.y the fact that 352 wolves were
taken, 37,255 coyotes, 228 mountain
lions, 2945 bobcats, and 61 Canada lynxes.
In addition probably twice as many
coyotes were killed in poisoning cam-
paigns. Measures to reduce the numbers
of coyotes and bobcats have also served
to check the spread of rabies', which is
carried by these animals. In coopera-
tion with state extension services and
other state and private organizations,
constant warfare is waged by the Bio-
logical Survey against injurious rodents,
which consume vast quantities of grain
and grasses in the West.

The study and conservation of fur-
bearing animals, for many years one of
the projects of the bureau, has been since
July 1, 1924, designated as a separate
division of fur resources. Under this
division i.s maintained an experimental
fur farm at Saratoga Springs, N. T.. for
investigational work in the propagation
of fur-bearing animals in captivity.

The Alaska game law, passed by the
last session of the 68th congress, provided
for the establishment of an Alaska Game
Commission of five members, all residents
of Alaska, and one of them the chief
representative of the Biological Survey
in the territory. The resident commis-
sioners appointed by the Secretary of
Agriculture to enforce the law and the
regulations promulgated by him will have
available for their use the vast store of
information on birds and mammals in
the files of the department and the coop-
eration of the Biological Survey.

The appropriation of funds by congress
for the establishment of the Upper
Mississippi River "Wild Life and Fish
Refuge, extending for about 300 miles
between Rock Island, 111., and Wabasha,
Minn., has brought the number of federal
wild-life reservations under the jurisdic-
tion of the Biological Survey to 70. These
refuges and preserves for wild birds and
animals are distributed over the United
States, and in Porto Rico, Hawaii and
Alaska, and constitute an extensive phase
of the conservation work of the bureau.

Copies of the annual report of the
Bureau of Biological Survey may be had,
while the supply lasts, by addressing the
United States Department of Agriculture,
Washington, D. C.

A FISHERMAN TO HIS SON.
By Maurice M. Frink.
My son, when you have older grown
I'll take you to a lake I've known
At midnight, noontime, dusk and dawn ;
I want to show you where I've gone
To find my freedom — where I've spent
Days of gladness and content.
I want to be in the boat with you
When the bass are hitting — ^want you to
Learn from me,

0 son of mine,
How to swing
A fishing line !

I've been young — too well I know

The rocky road your feet must go.

But I know, too, a path that clings

To wooded hill where the peewee sings,

Where dogwood grows, and oak and pine ;

And all I ask, O son of mine,

Is to row a boat for you some day

Along that shore where the willows sway —

To be with you

When first you feel

A leaping bass

Unwind your reel !

I want my son to sleep, as I
Have slept, beneath the sky —
I want the day's first gleaming dim
To waken something deep in him ;
I want my boy to learn to take
His troubles to that shining lake
And lose them there. And so I wish,
O son of mine, tliat you may fish !
I'or my boy's sake

1 ask it, God — •
Teach him to love
A casting rod !

44 CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

FACTS OF CURRENT INTEREST.

At Medicine Lake the forest ranger reported 76 deer killed during
the first twelve days of the open season.

From Audubon societies and women's clubs have come many
protests against the new law passed by the last legislature which took
protection from the cormorant and white pelican. The California
brown pelican still receives protection.

Considerable complaint was made by deer hunters because present
laws allow no legal method of taking deer from an open district
into a closed district. Much was made of the possible waste of
venison because of the restriction, but little of the added protection
afforded deer.

The new state game farm at Yountville is now a reality. Equip-
ment is installed and over a thousand pheasants have been hatched.

An investigation as to the cause of death of deer in the epidemic
in northern Sonoma County has been instituted.

Last fall an attempt was made to market in San Francisco
several barrels of cold storage game birds from South America.
Three varieties of tinamous were identified in the shipment, including
the famous large rufous tinamou.

During October and November, the educational department of the
commission gave twenty-two lectures, most of them at schools, with
a total attendance of 8650.

CALIFORNIA PISH AND GAME.

45

COMMERCIAL FISHERY NOTES.

N. B. ScOFiELD, Editor.

PURSE SEINING IN SOUTHERN
CALIFORNIA.

When the new law relative to purse
seine boats went into effect in southern
California, it no doubt made things look
pretty blue for the purse seine boat
owner. As it was these boats were getting
most of their revenue from the barracuda
catch. On seeing that it was unlawful
to take barracuda with the purse seine,
they Immediately began to look for some
other way to use these boats and nets.
Some of them went to Mexico, chartered
a barge, which they anchored down thero
to leave their nets on (we would not
let them bring barracuda in here with
net on boat) and have been going to
Mexico for barracuda ever since. Some
of the boats appear to be doing well.
When they prohibited the taking of barra-
cuda in our waters, the rorice went up.
there naturally being a scarcity. The
gill netters are making pretty fair
catches now and they will eventually
. be able to supply the market in good
shape.

Quite a few of the purse seine boats
have been used this summer for tender
boats carrying tuna and skipjack from
the barges in Mexico to San Pedro and
San Diego. This sardine season there
will be something like twenty purse seine
boats fishing sardines with the purse
seine. There are about six of them
operating now and about fifteen more
getting ready. I think that very likely
they will revolutionize the method of
catching sardines. TTiey seem to have
better luck catching them than the Jap
boats and the packers say that they
come in in better shape.

A few of the purse seine boats thought
that they would try out the law but
found that it did not pay after being
convicted several different times. The
purse seiners do not blame anyone but
themselves for passage of this law, as
they will admit that they were asleep at
the switch, and did not put up any
opposition at the Legislature. It was
not a Fish and Game Commission bill,
but was sponsored and really put through
by the gill net fishermen.

For awhile after the law became effec-
tive purse seine boats could be bought
pretty cheap, but now since they have
found they can do fairly well on the
Mexican fishing and can catch sardines,
it is a different story.

I believe that the purse seine boat can

be used in other ways, such as the long
line for gill netting, fishing for albacore
off shore at a greater distance than the
smaller boats can go, and in fact I
think they might be adapted to most any
kind of fishing for which the smaller
boat is used. Our fishery is now growing
into larger type boats and I think the
larger boats will eventually displace the
smaller ones. — H. B. Nidever.

A CLOSED SEASON FOR NORTHERN
HALIBUT.

A closed season has been placed on
Pacific coast halibut from November lath
to February 15th, by the International
Halibut Commission. Under the order
of this commission it is unlawful to
catch halibut on the Pacific coast of
North America or to land them at any
port in the United States or Canada dur-
ing the closed time. It is provided that
halibut caught accidentally while fishing
for other fish may be utilized by the
crews on the boats for food while at
sea but any s-uch halibut on board the
fishing boat must be turned over to the
federal authorities immediately upon
landing.

This order does not apply to the fish
known as California halibut or bastard
halibut which is a large flounder and
not a halibut, but it does apply to the
large northern halibut which is occasion-
ally caught by fishermen in northern
California waters and by the trawlers
operating out of San Francisco.

FROZEN FISH IMPORTED FROM
JAPAN.

On January 29th in Sacramento in
the Japanese fi*h markets there were six
consignments of fresh fish imported from
Japan by four different markets. _ The
fish were semifrozen. One species is
known as the snapper. It has a sheeps-
head head and nose almost milk white
in color and weighs- about three-fourths of
a pound. It sold in the markets for
eighty cents a pound. The other species
known by the Japanese as a kajouro
resembles a barracuda and is almost
eleven inches Icmg, very slim and delicate.
These sold for seven cents per fish, each
weighing less than one-half a pound
apiece. As long as I have been on the
commission, I have never seen a shipment
of fresh fish from Japan.— W. J. Green,
Sacramento, California.

46

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

CONSERVATION IN OTHER STATES.

MINNESOTA PLANS TO PLANT
FINGERLINGS.

The ^linnesota department of con-
servation Ls rapidly installing ponds in
order to rear trout to the fingerling stage
before planting. The plans to rear the
fish to greater size are being undertaken
because of the destructiveness of sprina
and early summer freshets on fry, and
the fact that insufficient natural fool
exists in the streams in the early part of
the season. During the past season it
was necessary for two hatcheries to plant
fry. owing to the high temperature of the
water not permitting their retention to
a later stasre of arrowth.

BRITISH COLUMBIA TRIES ACCLIMA-
TIZATION EXPERIMENTS.

According to an item appearing in the
Canadian Field Xaturalist, the Game
Conservation Board of British Columbia,
in its endeavor to improve game condi-
tions, has introduced the muskrat on Van-
couver Island. In the hope that the fur
resources of the island may be improved
a small number were trapped on the
lower mainland and planted in various
places. Four mountain goats secureil
from Banff, Alberta, in January, 1924,
have been released in the elk reserve at
Cowichan Lake, Vancouver Island. This
is the beginning of a determined effort
to acclimatize the Rocky Mountain goat
on the island.

ILLINOIS NOW HAS DEPARTMENT
OF CONSERVATION.

Illinois has added to its state organiza-
tions a Department of Conservation
charged with the promotion of fishing.
hunlang, wild-life protection, dissemina-
tion of information concerning the in-
dustrial phases of wild-life conservation,
reforestation and general forestry, and
the prevention of pollution in Illinois
streams and lakes. The bill provides
for a director and an assistant director. —
American Forests and Forest Life.

CONSERVATION AGENCIES REOR-
GANIZED IN MINNESOTA.

Under a law enacted by the ^Minnesota
legislature last session, a department of
conservation becomes one of fourteen

departments to replace ninety-three
boards, commissions and bureaus.

The new department of conservation in-
cludes a commissioner of forestry and fire
prevention, a commissioner of game and
fish, and the state auditor, who is to he
commissioner of lands and timber ex
officio.

The law provides that the commissioner
of forestry and fire prevention shall be
chairman of the department, and the
governor has appointed State Forester
Grover M. Conzet to this position. Mr.
Conzet has been state forester for the
past two years and has the confidence of
the conservation interests of Minnesota. —
American Forests and Forest Life.

ALABAMA INTRODUCES FORESTRY
INTO THE PUBLIC SCHOOLS.

The elements of conservation arp to be
a required study in the schools of Ala-
bama. Special emphasis will be placed
on forestry as a subject.

MINNESOTA GAME DEPARTMENT
USES SLED DOGS.

A team of huskies is owned by the State
Game and Fish Department of Minnesota,
for this is the only possible means of
transportation for game wardens during
winter weather in the northern part of
the state. The team was secured prima-
rily to aid in patrolling the Superior
Refuge.

MICHIGAN VIOLATORS PAY HIGH
PRICE FOR GAME.

According to a Michigan magazine,
five Detroit Italian hunters paid .S4C>3 for
fourteen song birds they had killed. Each
man paid a fifty dollar fine and costs,
and their guns and car were confiscated.
The seizure of automobiles carrying con-
traband game is made possible under a
new statute. In another instance three
hunters paid $900 for killing a fawn
doe weighing forty-five pounds. They
were charged with killing and possessing
deer out of season and with the possession
of a headlight with which they "shined"
their game. Each paid SlOO fine and
costs, and the car and rifles seized were
valued at .$600. Confiscation laws make
law enforcement much easier.

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

47

LIFE HISTORY NOTES.

A HORNED DOE.
On October 3, 1925, Mr. Roy BuUard
of Reedley, Fresno County, killed a mule
deer with well developed horns. At an
elevation of about nine thousand feet,
on the ridge between the middle and south
fork of Kings River on the middle fork

nearly two hundred pounds, the buck
being slightly the largest. The doe had
three points and a nineteen-inch s'pread.
Three instances of horned does being
taken have come to the notice of the Fish
and Game Commission the past season.
This one is apparently the largest on
record.

Fig. 12. Four point buck and horned doe of mule deer with I. A. Jones at left and
Roy Bullard of Reedley, the killer of the horned doe, at the right. Photograph
October 3, 1925, by F. A. Bullard.

slope, two deer were seen together. One
proved to be a doe with horns and the
other taken by Mr. F. A. Bullard proved
to be a four point buck. Both animals
were in fine condition, and each weighed

In the accompanying photograph the
horned doe is seen at the right with Mr.
Roy Bullard in the background, and
the buck at the left with Mr. I. A.
Jones. — F. A. Bullard, Dunlap, Cal.

48

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

REPORTS.

FISH CASES.
July, August and SeDtember, 1925.

Number
Arrests

Violations of Angling License Act 17

Molations of Commercial Fishing License Act 40

Trout: over bag limit 8

Trout: closed district 2

Striped bass: over bag limit; undersized 40

Striped bass: sale, closed season 1

Striped bass: spearing 1

Salmon : illegal spearing 1

Sturgeon: taking, possession 1

Crabs: possession, females__ 1

Crabs: closed season 3

Clams: over bag limit; undersized 86

Abalones : over bag limit; undersized 26

Abalones : taking with diving apparatus 1

Barracuda: undersized 3

Salt water eels: undersized 2

Lobsters : closed season 4

Fishing within 250 feet of fishways 4

Illegal night fishing 1

Obstructing streams ; failure to maintain fish ladder 5

Pollution of streams 1

Nets: illegal possession or use 43

Totals 291

Fines Jail

Imposed Sentences

(days)

$365 00

475 00

195 00

100 00

935 00

25 00

100 00

25 00

25 00

25 00

100 00

2,770 00 100

820 00

50 00

75 00

40 00

80 00

100 00

30 00

100 00

50 00

2,825 00

9.310 00

100

GAME CASES.

July, August and September, 1925.

Number Fines Jail

Arrests Imposed Sentences
(days)

Violations of Hunting License Act 47 ?630 00

Deer: hunting, killing, possession, closed season 32 2,115 00 30

Deer: failure to retain skin-horns 11 1,000 00 50

Deer skins: evidence of sex removed 3 125 00

Deer: over bag limit 1 150 00

Deer: killing, possession; does, fawn, spike bucks 31 1,700 00 180

Ducks: killing, possession; closed season 17 415 00 2

Geese: killing, possession; closed season 3 75 00

Mudhens : killing, possession ; closed season 1 25 00

Shorebirds : killing, possession 1 50 00

Doves: killing, possession; closed season _ — __ 16 463 00

Quail: killing, possession; closed season 20 810 00

Pheasants: killing, possession 1 100 00

Sage-hens: killing, possession; closed season 1 25 00

Non game birds : killing, possession 6 50 00

Bear: killing, possession: closed season 3 50 00

Squirrel : killing, possession 2 75 00

Rabbits : cottontail, brush : killing, possession ; closed

season 13 310 00

Night hunting 7 90 00

Trespass 4 ibO UU

Game refuge: hunting or possession of firearms 14 275 00

Totals '— ~2fi 8,693 00 262

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

49

License sales:

STATEMENT OF INCOME.
For the Period July 1, 1925. to September 30, 1925, of the Seventy-seventh Fiscal Year.

Detail

Total

Angling $129,888 00

Hunting.

Market fishermen's

Trapping 1925-1926.

Wholesale fish packers' and shell fish dealers'.

Game breeders'

Fish breeders'

Kelp

41,257 00

24,280 00

349 00

895 00

15 00

10 00

10 00

Total license sales $196,704 00

Other income:

Court fines $14,482 00

3,175 73

46

1.866 68

21 48

10 00

186 00

- 115 50

971 46

Fish packers' tax.

Kelp tax

Fish tag sales

Game tag sales

Sale of beaver hides

Sale of nets and lines

Abalone inspection

Interest on bank deposits.

Total other income $20,829 31

Total income $217 533 31

STATEMENT OF EXPENDITURES.
For the Period July 1, 1925, to September 30, 1925, of the Seventy-seventh Fiscal Year.

Function

Materials
and

Supplies

Salaries

and
Wages

Service

and
Expense

Property

and
Equipment

Total

Administration:
rinmTTiiRsinnprs

$186 68
1,678 35

$186 68

Executive offices

$253 60

484 04

21 10

$5,331 80

$1,970 41

9 234 16

Printmg

484 04

Research and publicitv .

1,345 00

201 63
178 94

1,567 73
178 94

AmHpnt and Hpath plaims

Department totals

$758 74

S46 24

1,224 40

119 94

247 50

3,684 11

$6,676 80

$2,565 00
4,911 70
4,150 67
1,681 88
3,875 51

$2,245 60

$794 94
1,267 46

752 96
90 05

355 90

$1,970 41
$3 00

$11 651 55

Commercial fish culture and conservation:
Superintendence

$3 409 18

Tnspppt nn and patrol

7,403 56
5 092 03

Research

68 46

Statistics

2,019 43
7,991 13

Propagation and distribution of salmon

75 61

Department totals ..

$5,322 19

S18 52
5 55

$17,184 76

$2,655 32
600 00

$3,261 31

$682 33
329 35

$147 07

$25,915 33
$3,356 17

Sporting fish culture:
Superintendence .

Rppnial field invpstigaiinns

9341 SO

Printing

Propagation and distribution of trout

13,145 97

18,402 31

2,349 52

$94 47

33,992 27

Department totals

$13,170 04

$21,657 63

$3,361 20

$42 10
26,696 50

S94 47

$38,283 34
$42 10

Patrol and law enforcement:
Prosecutions and allowances

General patrol

$2,036 40

$36,433 30

$2 00

65 168 20

Department totals

$2,036 40

$4,930 75

20 60

2 30

$36,433 30
$525 00

$26,738 60
$1,410 33

$2 00

$65,210 30

Fish and game conservation:
Game bird introduction

$6 866 08

Printing

20 60

Game farms

102 55
133 92
760 00
977 76

104 85

Mountam lion hunting .

375 00

508 92

Mountain lion bounties

760 00

State fair exhibit

3,148 04

127 50

4,253 30

Department totals

$8,101 69

$1,027 50

$3,384 56

$5,376 10
14 93

$12,513 75

License commissions

$5,376 10

Tahoe camping grounds

$20 05

$656 00

$0 45

691 43

Grand totals

$29,409 11

$83,635 99

$44,382 30

$2,214 40

$159,641 80

50

CALIFORNI.\ FISH AND GAME.

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via San Diego...

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72,328
232,552

126,283

1,111

7,867

28,140

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70,883
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18,592

142,819

5,741

159,776

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San Luis Obispo,
Santa Barbara,
Ventura

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80,518

51,312

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Eels

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CALIFORNI-^ FISH AND GAME.

51

t

1,542,778
603

1,785

"l",283

2,470,930

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44,366

1,736

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Skipjack

Smelt

Sole

Splittail

Striped Bass

Stingaree

Suckers. _

Surf Fish

Swordfish

Tomcod

Trout— Farm...

Trout — Steelhead..

Tuna..

Tuna — Bluefin

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45140

California Fish and Game

"CONSERVATION OF WILD LIFE THROUGH EDUCATION"

Volume 12 SA.CRAMENTO, APRIL, 1926 Number 2

CONTENTS.

Page
THE STRIPED BASS IN CALIFORNIA A. B. i^cnfirhl and H. C. Bnjant 55

A SPINY LOBSTER SEASON AT SAN DIEGO Cohnni F. Maddox 75

THE CALIFORNIA RING-TAILED CAT ^YaUcr Fri/ 77

EDITORIALS 79

FACTS OF CURRENT INTEREST 99

WATCH FOR MARKED SALMON 100

COMMISSION ACTIVITIES 101

COMMERCIAL FISHERY NOTES 105

LIFE HISTORY NOTES 106

CONSERVATION IN OTHER STATES 109

REPORTS-
FINANCIAL REPORT 111

VIOLATIONS OF FISH AND GAME LAWS 112

FISHERY PRODUCTS, OCTOBER TO DECEMBER. 1925 114

THE STRIPED BASS IN CALIFORNIA.

By N. B. ScoFiELD and H. C. Bryant.

To develop a fishery which has been known to yield over 1,750,000
pounds valued at a half million dollars annually, with an original out-
lay of less than a thousand dollars, to say nothing of continuous,
superb sport and valuable food furnished the anglers of the state, is
an accomplishment that merits review. The striped bass, originally
native to the Atlantic seaboard, is now a common food and game fish
of California, the basis of a great fishery, and so highly prized by
anglers that numerous bass clubs find existence in the cities and bass
fishing enthusiasts line the banks of sloughs whenever this fish is pro-

56 CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

curable. Unquestionably, next to trout, the striped bass is the most
popular game fish of northern California.

Boccus linneatus, although known commonly as striped bass, is in
reality not a true bass, nor is it a true perch, though possibly related
to both. Most ichthyologists consider it a transitional type between
the perch and the sea bass. Among fishermen, especially in the south,
the fish has long been dubbed "rock fish."

The original distribution of the striped bass or "rock
Geographical fish" included the Atlantic coast from the Gulf of St.
Distribution. Lawrence to northern Florida, with a few more or less
authentic records of its occurrence in the Gulf of Mexico.
As indicated by the fisheries, its present centers of abundance lie
between Cape Cod and North Carolina, where it ascends all suitable
rivers to spawn and in the pursuit of food. According to tradition,
many years ago it was very abundant on the New England coast, north
of Cape Cod, in the Bay of Fundy, on the Coast of Nova Scotia and gulf
coast of New Brunswick. In the United States north of Cape Cod, it
is now comparatively rare. Although formerly known to ascend the
St. Lawrence in large numbers, some of them as far as Quebec, this
fish is now very scarce in that river. In the early nineties, the striped
bass was most abundant in the Chesapeake and Delaware Bay region
and in the waters of New York and southern New England.

Plantings of Striped Bass in California.

1879 — 135 from New Jersey, near Martinez.
1882 — 300 from New Jersey, Suisun Bay near Army Point.
1899 — Less than dozen. Humboldt Bay.

1903 — 75 (size, 2 to 3^ lbs.), Brackish lagoons of Orange County, mouth of
Santa Ana River.

1905—80 (5 to 8-inch fish), Brackish lake at Crescent City, Del Norte County.
1909 — Car load (6 in. to 4 lbs.). North Santa Ana River. Orange County.
1916—1800, North San Diego River. San Diego County.
1916 — 2000, Morro Bay. San Luis Obispo County.
1919—1500, Bolsa Chica, Orange County.
1919—1500, Morro Bay, San Luis Obispo County.

"The striped bass was first introduced into the
Introduction Into waters of the Pacific slope in 1879, at the same time
California. that a consignment of eastern lobsters was taken

across the continent. The acclimatization of this
species was undertaken at the suggestion of Mr. S. R. Throckmorton,
then chairman of the California Fish Commission * * *.

"In July, 1879, Mr. Livingston Stone, of the United States Fish
Commission, made a collection of living striped bass in the Naveesink
River, New Jersey, for transportation to California. He obtained 132
fish from 1| to 3 inches long and 30 medium-sized specimens. Twenty-
five of these died during transportation and several were thrown away,
but the remainder, about 135, reached California in good condition and
were deposited in Carquinez Strait at Martinez.

' ' The second and only other plant of striped bass in California waters
was made in 1882, when Mr. J. G. Woodbury of the California Fish
Commission carried about 300 fish, 5 to 9 inches long, from the Shrews-
bury River, New Jersey to Suisun Bay, where they were deposited
at Armv Point, about 3 miles from the preceding plant." (Smith,
1896.)

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME. 57

Increase in size was noticeable in the catches of succeeding years.
In September, 1883, a 17-poiind striped bass was taken at Monterey
Bay. The following month a 16-pound fish was caught in, the Sacra-
mento River. On March 11, 1884, an 18^-pounder was offered for sale
in the San Francisco market. Ten years after planting, on June 16,
1889, a 45-pound striped bass was sold on the San Francisco market.
(Smith, 1896.)

In 1889, hundreds of them weighing from one-half to a pound each,
were being caught and sold in the San Francisco markets. From 1889
to 1892, the number caught had increased 250 per cent. After 1900
they were occasionally taken in tributary streams. Previous to 1903
striped bass weighing twelve pounds were taken in the Feather River
near Oroville and were numerous in the Tuolumne River above Modesto
in the Stanislaus and in the Merced and San Joaquin rivers. In the
Sacramento River striped bass have been taken as far north as Kennett.

For many years there was no great extension of range along the
coast. Striped bass were limited largely to the Sacramento and San
Joaquin rivers, with occasional specimens being taken from Monterey
Baj^ northward as far as the mouth of Russian River in Sonoma County.
By 1896 it was fairly abundant in the mouth of Salinas River ; a few
years later it was taken in the coastal streams of Oregon, and in the
fall of 1906, a half dozen specimens were secured by the U. S. Bureau
of Fisheries in traps at the mouth of the Columbia River. (Smith,
1910.)

In 1925 striped bass were being caught in commercial quantities in
the Coos Bay region, Oregon, and dealers at Big Bend, Oregon, were
looking for a market for these fish in California.

Considering the small number of fish introduced and their remark-
able increase in a few years, the result obtained from the introduction
of the striped bass into California is one of the greatest feats of accli-
matization of new species of fish in the history of fishculture.

Desirous of furnishing the northern coast coun-
Additional tries with this most desirable food fish an attempt

Transplantation. was made in 1899 to introduce the striped bass into

the streams entering Humboldt Bay. Most of the
shipment died en route and less than a dozen were actually planted.
Whether or not this plant was successful is not known, but three or
four specimens were secured in the Eel River ranging as high as twenty
nounds in weight in 1907, and an occasional bass is taken in Klamath
River to the north.

In 1903 seventy-five bass six inches to three and one-half pounds in
weight were planted in brackish lagoons at the mouth of the Santa Ana
River in Orange County. Another plant was made the following year.
Finally a carload of striped bass ranging in size from six inches to four
pounds in weight was collected in 1909 in the Straits of Carquinez, at
Port Costa, within two miles of where the original plant of bass was
made twenty-seven years ago and transported without loss of a single
fish to southern California, where they were distributed in suitable
waters of limited area in Orange County. This third shipment made
into these waters within eight years was expected to determine beyond
all question their adaptability to the conditions found there.

On Ocober 26, 1916, eighteen hundred small striped bass were planted
near the mouth of San Diego River by the Fjsh and Game Commission,

58

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

and since that time small striped bass have on several occasions been
observed near the place of planting.

^Ir. A. G. Pearson of San Diego reported that on or about June 20,
IDli), he took several small striped bass ranging from five to eight
inches in length in San Diego River near its outlet into ^lission Bay.

The fry at the time of planting were between two and three inches
long, being fish of the year, spawned in April or May, 1916. If these
fry had grown at the rate they do in San Francisco Bay they would
have reached the size of five to eight inches in 1917, during their second
year. If the fry reported by Mr. Pearson were some of the fry liber-
ated in 1916 they were in their fourth year and their rate of growth
had been remarkably slow. It was suggested that these five to eight-
inch fish were the progeny of the fish planted in 1916, but that can

Fig. 14. Catch of striped bass on Salinas liiver June 9, 1921. Five of these fish
weighed 15 pounds or over. The fishermen are G. O. Clark, E. W. Smutz, and
Douglas Hollingworth of Watsonville. Photograph by G. A. Clark.

hardly be, as a sufficient length of time had not elapsed. It is pretty
certain that striped bass do not spawn earlier than their fourth year,
and the fish planted in 1916 would not have completed their fourth
year until the spring of 1920. It would seem more probable that other
striped bass plants have been made of which we have no record, or else
that striped bass have strayed to the south and occasionally spawn as
far south as San Diego.

In the same year a plant was made in Morro Bay. Again in 1919
5000 small striped bass were secured in the Sacramento River and 2500
shipped in the fish car of the Fish and Game Commission to Morro Bay,
San Luis Obispo County, and 2500 to Bolsa Chiea, Orange County.

On Saturday, November 15, 1919, the California Fish and Game
Commission shipped about 2500 striped bass from two and one-half to
five inches in length to the Fish and Game Commission of the Territory

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME. 59

of Hawaii to be planted in streams in the vicinity of Honolulu. The
fish were caught in a seine on the Benicia fiats, held in live cars until
sufficient were collected to make the shipment, and then were put
aboard the Matson Navigation Company's steamer Maui. Here the
fish were distributed in six large salmon tierces that had been arranged
on the main upper deck in from the office of the chief engineer, who
took personal charge of them.

Although known to be an anadromous fish, the
Life History striped bass is to be found in the San Francisco Bay

and Habits. region or in the lower Sacramento or San Joaquin

rivers in varying numbers in any month of the
year. In the lower rivers, however, more of them are caught in the
spring and autumn.

Two distinct migrations take place. In the spring of the year,
beginning during March and extending through April, May and part
of June, the spawning migration of striped bass takes place. They
come from the deeper holes in the lower rivers and bays, also from the
ocean, and run well up the Sacramento and San Joaquin rivers and
some of the smaller tributaries like Napa River. This run consists
mainly of large bass. The averaee w^eight of these fish was formerly
between twelve and fifteen pounds. Thirty-pound fish were common,
and occasionally fifty and sixty-pound fish were caught. At present
feW'Cr large fish are taken and the average weight is less.

In the fall of the year the run of what is known as "winter bass"
takes place. These fish average much smaller. They come into the
bays, run into the sloughs and for some distance up the rivers for
the purpose of feeding. Some of these bass may be with spawn, but
the eggs probably are not deposited until after March when the water
temperature gets above sixty degrees. This fall run commences
usually in September, the time being somewhat variable, and lasts
from two Aveeks to two months. The fish of this run are often imma-
ture bass, not often over five or six pounds, and according to the fisher-
men, are bright and fresh from the sea. The small sized bass are more
apt to be found in schools than the large fish, and the large catches in
gill nets are usually of this size. This is particularly true of catches
in gill nets in the lower bays. In the lower bays they are often found
on the flats voraciously feeding on schools of small fish, making a
sucking noise similar to that of the carp when feeding at the surface
of the water. Often a school of these bass will run into one of the
numerous tule-lined sloughs of the Sacramento and San Joaquin deltas,
evidently attracted by the small river fish which they drive before
them, feeding as they go. Such schools are often indicated by a large
number of shags, gulls and fishing birds which take this advantage to
feed upon the maimed and frightened fish. Several years ago com-
mercial fishermen would look for these bass schools in the sloughs and
would occasionally make catches so large they could not take all in
their boat and would have to put some on the bank and come back later
for them. But these catches are no longer made, for in 1915 the legis-
lature passed laws which closed the sloughs to commercial fishing.

Striped bass during these two runs or at any other time seem to be
quite notional. They will suddenly appear on the river fishing drifts
and as suddenly disappear again, and no trace of them can be found.
Commercial fishermen who have had fifteen or twenty years' experience

60 CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

fishing for tlieiii iu these waters still trust mostly to ehanee iu locating
them, not being able to figure out their movements other than that
rough water spoils the fishing, the theory being that they leave the flats
and sloughs in rough weather and take to the deeper parts of the river
where the nets do not reach them.

Nearly twenty years ago when an attempt Was made in California
to artificially propagate striped bass, most of the large ''spawn" bass
were being caught on the San Joaquin River near Bouldin Island.
But this is now changed, and although there is a spawning migration
of bass in the lower San Joaquin River, the larger run is now in the
Sacramento River and were caught in nets as far up as the mouth of
Feather River until netting was prohibited above the bridge at Sacra-
mento by the legislature in 1925. After spawning they ascend the
rivers for long distances, or enter the sloughs or flooded lands in search
of food, for after spawning they again become voracious feeders.

In the years 1903, 1904 and 1905 spawn bass were so plentiful about
Bouldin Island that the fishermen, in order not to glut the market,
agreed among themselves to catch no more than 600 pounds to the
boat .each twenty-four hours. They frequently got more than double
this amount at one drift of a gill net.

Many of these fish were with mature eggs and the fishermen all
testify that the bottoms of their fish lockers were covered with eggs.
The main .spawning season is between the middle of April and the
middle of June. The spawning migration commences in the bay and
lower river a month earlier than this.

SPAWNING.

"The striped bass spawns in the late spring and early summer,
ascending rivers and their tributaries for the purpose. The prin-
cipal streams on the Atlantic coast of the United States are those flow-
ing into Albermarle Sound, Chesapeake Bay and New York Bay.
From North Carolina to New Jersey the spawning time appears to be

in late April and early May; farther north, in late May and June.
* * *

"An observer described some of the breeding habits of the fish to
the effect that when a female was in spa'wning condition the males
gathered about her in great numbers. A single female which might
weigh from five to fifty pounds would have around her twent}^ thirty
or fifty small male fish, all of which weighed less than two pounds
each, and they seemed to be the only males present. The water was
stated to be discolored with blood from the fish 'finning' one another
while contending for the female." (U. S. Bur. of Fisheries Mem-
orandum.)

The eggs of the striped bass are about one-twentieth of an inch in
diameter, produced in large numbers. In spawning operations at
Bouldin Island, California. 20,000 to 500,000 eggs were secured from
ripe females. Two females spawned produced 1,000,000 eggs each.
According to a report a twenty-pound female in the east has produced
1.500,000 eggs estimated on the basis of 25,000 to a quart.

Convinced of the advisability of attempting to increase the supply
by artificial propagation, an investigation of hatchery sites was begun
by the California Fish and Game Commission in 1907. The funds at
that time being insufficient to bear the expense unaided, the subject was

CALIFORNIA PISH AND GAME.

61

taken up with the United States Bureau of Fisheries at Washington,
with the result that Capt. G. H. Lambson, in charge of the salmon
hatching work of the Federal Bureau of Fisheries in California, was
instructed to cooperate. Accordingly, in the month of May, 1907,
operations were commenced at Bouldin Island, on the San Joaquin
River, at which point a small hatchery building was constructed at
the expense of the commission. A small pumping plant for the pur-
pose of raising water into two tanks of 2000 gallons each to furnish
the necessary amount of water for hatching operations was also in-

<x*-,i«i''/i*^fSrfi«»«

'N

-' -V.'

A

/ /

Pig. 15. Three striped bass caught by trolling in Salinas
River July 9, 1921, by Douglas Hollingworth of Watson-
ville. The fish weighed 12, 14 and 17 pounds respectively.
Photograph by G. A. Clark.

stalled. The equipment of the hatchery, McDonald hatching jars, was
furnished by the United States Bureau of Fisheries. The hatchery
depended on the commercial fishermen for any ripe eggs they might,
take.

Although fishermen took a lively interest and assisted in every way,
yet the results were unsatisfactory. It was found that by the same
methods followed in "stripping" trout and salmon, the eggs and milt

2 — 45140

(i2 CALIFORNIA FISH AXD GAME.

could be taken from striped bass, and yet neither the eggs nor milt be
sufficiently matured to insure fertilization. The result was many eggs
were taken that were apparently ripe, but whose fertility could not be
definitely iletermined until after the eggs wei'e placed in the hatchery.
The total take of eggs for the first year 's operations was about eighteen
million, about three times the amount taken up to that time on the
Atlantic coast in a single season of which there is am' record. The
percentage fertilized and hatched, however, was small. From many
lots of eggs no fish hatched. Other lots hatched 5 per cent only, and
from that up to 50 and 60 per cent. One lot hatched a very high
percentage of the eggs.

Nevertheless, the results of the season's work were encouraging, for
hatching striped bass was still in the experimental stage, and the
results in number of egg? hatched during the season of 1907 were much
better than had been obtained on the Atlantic coast. It was not deter-
mined just why so many eggs failed to hatch, but it was laid to unsuit-
able water or some defect in hatchery method.

The season of 1908 found the hatchery better prepared for work
and equipped with microscopes and apparatus for determining the
cause of the failure of so many eggs to hatch. This season the run
of bass was almost a failure, and the take of eggs so small that many
of the experiments came to nothing for lack of eggs with which to
experiment.

It was soon found that the first cleavage of the germinal disc in the
developing egg takes place about two hours after fertilization. So
with the microscope it was possible to tell within two hours after the
eggs were taken just what per cent was fertilized and developing. It
was found also that the loss of eggs was not due to bad water or any
defective method of handling the eggs in the hatchery, but due to the
nonfertilization of the eggs. That fungus could be established through
the use of copper sulphate 1-500,000 parts was demonstrated.

Hatching takes place about three days after impregnation. The
yolk-sac is not entirely absorbed until after the seventh day, and the
stomach is not well developed until about the thirteenth day.

Young fry were kept for two weeks in McDonald hatching jars by
removing the siphon tubes and replacing the top with silk bolting cloth.
allowing a small stream of water to flow on the cloth.

Artificial propagation was finally abandoned after further discour-
aging work in the seasons of 1909 and 1910, when few ripe females
were obtainable.

RATE OF GROWTH.

"The rate of growth is very rapid. Young fish an inch long found
in the Delaware Eiver in the second week of June, about the middle
of October were observed to have grown to the length of four and one-
half inches. Young fish five to nine inches in length, which are taken
in quantities in the Potomac in February and March, are supposed to
be the young of the previous year.

' ' The striped bass has been kept in a small pond of fresh water and
fed upon crabs and oysters, increasing in about eleven months from six
to twenty inches in length. It is stated that in a Rhode Island pond a
bass weighing one-half to one pound in June increased to a weight of

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

63

six pounds in the following October." (U. S. Bur. Fisheries Mem-
orandum. )

SIZE ATTAINED.

According to the U. S. Bureau of Fisheries, the largest striped bass
records are of several taken at Edenton, North Carolina, each of which
weighed 125 pounds. One taken at Orleans, Massachusetts, weighed
112 pounds. Such a fish would measure at least six feet in length.

Fig. It). A striped bass weighing 62 i pounds caught in the Napa River by
William "West September 11, 1911. This is the largest fish recorded for the Napa
River. Photograph by William West.

although

the

Individuals of 60 and 70 pounds are not uncommon,
average is probably not over four or five pounds.

Mr. George Neale, former executive officer of the Fish and Game
Commission, saw and weighed a striped bass in a San Francisco market
that tipped the scales at 78 pounds. The dealer told him that two days
before he had one weighing 82 pounds. This was about 1910.

The fish shown in the accompanying photograph, the largest bass
ever caught in Napa River by hook and line, was taken by William

64 CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

West September 11, 1911. This fish weighed 621/^ pounds and was
taken on a 7B Wilson spoon, all copper.

Another bass caught in Napa River February 27, 1925, by A. C.
Doble weighed 44 pounds and measured 49 inches by 29 inches in girth.

In November, 1924, Messrs. Johnson and Kelly, using live suckers
as bait, caught two liass weighing 82 and 54 pounds each, r■espectivel3^
in the Russian River near iMonte Rio. ]\Ir. Jim Cahill of Scbastopol
secured a 57-pound striped bass in Forest Pool on the Russian River
in October, 1924. Several 40 and 45-pound bass were taken in the
same river during the season of 1925.

There are many unverified statements as to the size of striped bass
caught 3'ears ago when larger ones were taken more often.

Fish weighing less than three pounds (now size limit of 20 inches)
are protected the year round in California, and fish of more than ten
pounds in weight can not be taken during the spawning season.

HABITS.

"The striped bass, although migratory and anadromous, does not
cover great distances nor spend much of its life in the ocean as does
the salmon, for it may be found in the range throughout the year. It
may be taken in salt, brackish or fresh water, even being kept in arti-
ficial ponds of fresh water for considerable lengths of time \vithout
detriment." (U. S. Bur. Fisheries Memorandum.)

Young fish apparently feed in shallow water, for they are often
found in overflow areas and must be rescued w-hen these areas dry up
in the fall. jMany young fish also feed in San Francisco Bay, for a
bay with rivers entering it is always a nursery for young fish. Where
there is an intermingling of fresh and salt water, as in the upper San
p'rancisco Bay, there is a prodigal growth of small animal life, includ-
ing shrimps and other species of small crustaceans. Upon this small
life the young fishes feed.

When Chinese shrimp fishing was allowed in upper San Francisco
Bay, large numbers of small striped bass were killed in the nets during
winter months. The boats which fished below San Pablo Bay in the
deeper water near Red Rock and the stone quarry on the opposite side
caught smaller quantities of young fish than those above in San Pablo
Bay, but they caught more of the young striped bass than any others.

There is evidence to believe that in the late fall and winter the young
bass of the year which have reached a length of from three to five inches
abandon the shallow water of the "flats" and move into the deeper
water of the channels and thence pass out into the ocean where they
spread up and down the coast for a short distance. During the spring
young bass of this size appear in numbers in the shallow waters of the
inner lagoon of Drakes Bay and in the shallows at the head of Tomales
Bay. To the south they appear in Elkhorn Slough, but these may be
the result of bass spa^\Tiing in Salinas River. We know of no proof
that striped bass spawn in Salinas River. It is believed that no
spawning takes place in either Drakes Bay or Tomales Bay or the fresh
water tributaries and that the young bass appearing there come from
San Francisco Bay. It is known that the young bass of the year are
plentiful in San Francisco and upper bays until the cold of winter
comes on. In collecting the young bass for transplanting small meshed

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME. 65

seines are used, and experience in getting these fish for shipment has
taught us that the best time to get them in numbers is in the fall before
cold weather sets in, and that after cold weather sets in it is about
impossible to find enough to make a shipment. The fact that the
shrimp nets formerly set on either side of the straits between San Pablo
and San Francisco bays in about 30 feet of water caught considerable
numbers of young striped bass of the year while they were drifting out
on the ebb tide is the best of evidence that there is a seaward migration
of the young bass in the fall and winter. It is not likely that these
young bass which pass out to sea return for at least a year. Investi-
gations on the age and rate of growth of striped bass in the San Fran-
cisco Bay region now being carried on by the commission is likely to
throw much light on these questions. Already it is fairly well shown
from a study of the scale growth to determine age, that a large pro-
portion of the bass studied passed out of fresh water in the fall and
made a large sea growth during their second year. A smaller number
remain until the second winter before migrating to the sea and these
make their large sea growth in their third year.

Many of these fish were with mature eggs, and the fishermen all
testify that the bottoms of their fish lockers were covered with eggs.
The main spawning season is between the middle of April and the
middle of June. The spawning migration commences in the bay and
lower rivers a month earlier than this.

Striped bass occasionally reach fresh water at the headwaters of
streams in their spawning migration. Two fish weighing five and six
pounds, respectively, were taken in Dry Creek, a tributary of the Napa
Kiver, during the spring of 1925. This species is known as far up
the Sacramento River as Redding and up the San Joaquin as far as
Mendota dam.

In 1914, according to W. P. West of Napa, a bass was speared near
Calistoga, 27 miles from tidewater. Fish have frequently been seen
above the Trancas dam just above tidewater, but in distinctly fresh
water pools. They appeared to be in a very excited state of mind,
moving swiftly around as if looking for a way out. This dam consists
of six fish ladders with a rise of at least 12' feet, the water in the
ladders being very swift. The fish must necessarily jump to get up.
When the fish are found above this dam they will not touch any bait
no matter what is offered.

Every fisherman knows that striped bass are very sporadic in their
occurrence and that in a place where large catches have been made
one day the fish are not to be found the next day. Supposedly the
same school of fish remain in the same pools to feed each day, even
though there may be a daily migration with the tides. Inability to
catch fish with hook and line is not always an indication of "no fish,"
but may be only an indication that they are not feeding. The move-
ments of striped bass in a stream are not definitely known and much
is still to be learned regarding feeding preferences.

FOOD.

The striped bass is reputed to be a voracious fish preying largely
upon smaller fishes, and is particularly abundant at the time of the
spring runs of shad and alewives or river herring. At this season

66

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GA?4E.

it is well fed and plump. To some extent it frequents the rocky
shores and beaches of bays and sonnds at high tide in search of crabs,
shrimp and other food, and, at the months of creeks, smaller individ-
uals lie in wait for the schools of small fishes and crustaceans which
supply them with food. It also subsists upon mollnsks, sea worms, etc.
(U. S. Bur. Fisheries Memorandum.)

Fig. 17. A striped bass caught February 27, 1925, in the Napa River by
A. C. Dobbs. The fisli weighed 44 pounds, had a length of 4 9 inches and a
girth of 29 inches. Photograph by Ed Bowen.

FOOD OF ADUIjT STRIPED BASS IN CALIFORNIA.

The food of the adult striped bass in the rivers is principally carp,
hardheads and split-tails. Nearly all the fishermen claim that when
the carp is plentiful it is their principal food. They even advance
the theory that the bass are not so numerous in the San Joac(uin be-
cause the carp are not so plentiful on the lower river as they were,
and they run up the Sacramento because of their great abundance in
those waters.

CALIFORNIA PISH AND GAME. 67

An investigator for the United States Bnreau of Fisheries in 1894
reported that seven out of every ten striped bass examined in California
contained carp. Carp even as large as two pounds have been found in
stomachs. In spite of this evidence there are many who believe that
live carp are not taken if other small sealed fishes are obtainable.

In the stomachs of bass W. P. West of Napa has found crabs, min-
nows 6 inches long, clams, duck entrails and sardines. Crabs and small
fish appear to be the favorite food of bass in the Napa River.

Fishermen have occasionally found a dead striped bass with a cat-
fish caught in its throat by the spines. Catfish weighing up to two
pounds appear to be a common item in the diet in the sloughs.

FOOD OF YOUNG STRIPED BASS IN CALIFORNIA.

An examination of the stomachs of fifty young bass averaging three
inches in length which were taken at "Morrison's Bight" in Napa
Creek on September 10, 1908, showed the following contents : Crusta-
ceans, a species of My sis, 30 per cent ; of young shrimp, 15 per cent ;
of a species of Gammarus, 1 per cent; of an isopod, 1 per cent, and 1
small crab; marine w^orms or annelids, a species of Nereis, 45 per cent;
of species not recognizable, 5 per cent; small fish, species not recogniz-
able, 2 per cent.

It will, therefore, be seen that on this feeding ground at least, marine
worms comprise 50 per cent of the food, crustaceans of marine species
48 per cent, and small fish only 2 per cent. The young shrimp and
young fish were taken from the stomachs of young bass of three to four
inches in length and the other small crustaceans from the stomachs of
specimens three inches and under in length, showing that the young
bass begin feeding on the small species of crustaceans and worms, and
as they grow in size are able to take the shrimp and young fish.

COMMERCIAL VALUE.

While the striped bass in California has come to be best known by
the general public for its value as a game fish it is at the same time
a very valuable commercial food fish and in the markets is prized next
to salmon. The annual commercial catch of striped bass in California
is near one million pounds and this amount is conserved in the state for
under our state laws it can not be exported from the state. The amount
of bass caught by anglers and used for food each year is hard to esti-
mate but it probably would raise the total bass catch in the state to
one million pounds.

"According to the Census Report of 1908. the striped bass fishery of
the United States then amounted to 3,657,000 pounds, valued at
$314,000, the Atlantic coast fishery exceeding that of the Pacific coast
by only 105,000 pounds with a value of $45,000.

"On the Atlantic coast, Maryland, Virginia and North Carolina
are paramount striped bass states, of which, according to the 1908
census, in order of pounds of fish caught, Maryland w^as first with
640,000 pounds, valued at $65,000 ; North Carolina second, with 510,000
pounds, valued at $36,000 ; Virginia third, with 502,000 pounds, valued
at $46,000. Of the remaining Middle Atlantic states. New Jersey and
Delaware show the largest quantity — 53,000 pounds each — valued at
$7,400 and $7,300, respectively, followed by New York with 32,000

68 CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

pounds, valued at $5,300, and Pennsylvania with only 7,200 pounds,
valued at $800." (U. S. Bur. Fisheries Memorandum.)

On the Pacific coast. California is the only state with a striped bass
fishery. During the eighties it commanded a high price even selling for
$1 a pound. However, by 1890, the striped bass was so well acclimated
that it had become a well known market fish and sold for a less price
than those marketed within its natural habitat in the east. In 1893
the San Francisco markets received only 79,738 pounds, but three
years later this amount was increased to 363 J47 pounds. In 1895 the
price dropped to as low as six cents per pound. By 1899 this market
was receiving nearly a million and a quarter pounds which brought
the fishermen $61,814. In 1904 1,570,404 pounds were landed at San
Francisco for which the fishermen received $92,116.

The 1908 census gave California 1.776,000 pounds, valued at $135,000,
and the 1915 statistical bulletin of the Bureau of Fisheries shows
1,784.448 pounds, valued at $146,928.

With rigid restrictions relative to season and size limit in recent
years (1916-1923). the fishery continues to yield from 600,000 to
1.500,000 pounds annually. At retail this fish sells for about 35 cents
a pound.

The principal market Catch is secured by gill net fishermen mainly
from upper San Francisco bays and the lower Sacramento and San
Joaquin rivers. A few are caught commercially with hook and line.

PROTECTIVE LEGISLATION.

Doubtless protective measures are largely responsible for the contin-
ued supply of this splendid food and game fish. As early as 1889 it was
feared that the recently introduced striped bass were being exterminated
before they had come to maturity and had a chance to reproduce. A
county ordinance in San Francisco was accordingly passed prohibiting
the sale of striped bass under eight pounds in weight. Later it was
made unlawful to take bass under one pound, this limit being raised to
three pounds in succeeding years.

By 1909 it was believed that additional protection was necessary as
the intensity of the fishing was increasing owing to a large export trade
and high prices. Accordingly, a nonexport law was enacted. This law
was deemed advisable in spite of the fact that a closed season for com-
mercial fishing had been declared during the spawning season in May
or June.

The closed season did very little good for the reason that the season
for salmon and shad was open at the same time and as each of those fish
are running at that time large numbers of bass were killed in the nets
and thrown away.

The striped bass conservation problem is a complicated one. Dur-
ing the spring spawning migration of striped bass we also have in the
Sacramento and San Joaquin rivers shad and salmon which are also
running up for the purpose of spawning. The shad are ininning during
the latter part of March, through April. May, and into Jume. Salmon
are running during this time and until October. The only time during
which shad may be taken in commercial quantities is during this migra-
tion, and the main fishing grounds are in Suisun Bay and the lower
rivers. Shad can not be caught without catching bass at the same time
and it is extremely difficult to so regulate salmon fishing that striped

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME. 69

bass will not be caught at the same time. If nets are used for salmon
or shad while striped bass are running, striped bass wull surely be
caught. If gill nets with meshes less than eight and one-half inches be
]irohibited so as to permit salmon fishing, the catch of bass is light, but
the fishermen are not able to take shad as they are taken with meshes
measuring from five and one-half inches to six and one-half inches. To
prohibit nets with meshes less than eight and one-half inches during the
entire shad run would be entirely too severe.

LEGAL PROTECTION.

Laws now provide against the shipment of striped bass out of the
state; prohibit the sale or shipment of striped bass formerly less than
three pounds in weight, now a size limit of twenty inches; the sale of
striped bass of ten pounds or over in weight between March 1st and
May 31st; the sale of striped bass of any size between May 16th and
July 31st, or between September 17th and November 14h ; the taking or
having in possession at any time of any striped bass of less than twelve
inches in length ; the taking within Disricts 1, 2 and 3 of more than five
striped bass per day ; with provision against sale ; the taking of striped
bass between one hour after sunset or one hour before sunrise, or in
nets on Saturday and Sunday ; and the use of nets with a mesh smaller
than five and one-half inches.

A law prohibits the use of nets with meshes measuring between five
and five-eighths inches and seven and one-half inches in San Francisco
and San Pablo bays, between March 1st and July 31st. This measure
adopted to prevent shad fishing in these w^aters is a splendid protection
to the striped bass spawning run through those bays. Besides this,
fully 1000 miles of sloughs in the San Francisco Bay region have been
closed to commercial striped bass fishing. The Sacramento River has
been closed to commercial fishing above the city of Sacramento and the
San Joaquin River has been closed above the Santa Fe railroad bridge
in San Joaquin County. As a concession to the angler, a person may
have in his possession in any one calendar day, not to exceed five striped
bass between twelve and twenty-one inches in length, but such
striped bass must be caught only with hook and line and must not be
bought, sold or offered for sale.

It can be seen, therefore, that careful protection has been given
striped bass in California, in fact, much greater protection than has
been afforded in eastern states. Protection of spawning fish, closed
seasons, size limit and limited sale, all contribute to the safeguarding
of this valuable fish.

STRIPED BASS DECREASING.

For many years depletion has been evident in eastern states. For
instance the 1920 season's catch of striped bass for the state of New-
York was only 24,437 pounds. The catch in California during the
same period amouned to 671,731 pounds. In California there is also a
decrease in catch. The annual commercial catch of striped bass shows
a decrease of about 50 per cent since 1915.

If we are to use the commercial catch as an index of the abundance
of bass we should be sure that we take account of all factors affecting
the catch. If the fishing area, the seasons, netting restrictions and

3 — 45140

70 CALIFORNIA PISH AND GAME.

fishing methods remain the same and still the catch falls off, then we
can bo quite sure that the bass are becoming less abundant, although
we can not be sure whether it is the commercial fishing, water pollu-
tion, loss of too many spawners or unfavorable spawning conditions
that are causing the decrease. But to be on the safe side we should
consider connnei'cial fisliing the main cause.

On the other hand if fishing areas have been reduced, closed seasons
established or restriction placed upon nets, it can not be rightly argued
that the decreased catch means decreased abundance of bass. In the
case of our striped bass the fishing area was greatly reduced in 1915,
and several sloughs and rivers were closed before that. Closed seasons
have been established and netting restrictions have been adopted which
have made it unprofitable for fishermen to operate in San Pablo Bay
during the' spring spawning migration. It was to be expected that the
catch would fall off. The fishing restrictions were enacted for the
purpose of reducing the catch and if the reduced catch shows anything
it shows that the restrictions were effective and that the bass are getting
the protection they need and it is totally unfair to use the reduced catch
as an argument that the bass are being exterminated.

If the fishing restrictions adopted are sufficient, the catch should,
after a time, remain the same or even increase. The length of time it
would take to show the benefit of the protection would depend upon the
age at which the protected fish matured and spawned. Along this line
it is interesting to note that, in spite of added protection given by our
legislature in 1921 and 1923, the commercial striped bass catch in 1922
showed an increase of 84,000 pounds over the preceding year, and each
year since has shown an increase in the catch.

However, along with this decrease in the commercial catch prior
to 1922 was a decided scarcity of bass in many of the haunts where
both anglers and commercial fishermen formerly found them abundant.
The present scarcity is most noticeable in most parts of San Pablo Bay
and in the mouths of sloughs tributary to it. On the other hand, striped
bass are apparently more plentiful in some other places, and good
angling has been enjoyed in places where they had been caught only
in very limited numbers before. There are some ardent striped bass
anglers who believe that these fish are just as plentiful as they ever
were. They believe that some of the sloughs have been fished out by
anglers, but that in some cases the bass have moved from their old
haunts and have to be sought in other places. Some of the commercial
fishermen say that the bass are about as numerous as ever but that they
have moved, and that the best net fishing is to be found in places
where the bass were formerly not so abundant.

Some commercial fishermen believe that striped bass are not so
abundant as formerly.

Most bass anglers are firmly of the opinion that the bass are not only
less plentiful but that they are on the road to extermination. Typical
of the arguments advanced is the following :

"Great spawning grounds of the striped bass are located in the
middle channel of the San Joaquin River. Large fish with a great
accumulation of eggs are found there. Formerly as high as 1000 to
2000 pounds of large spawning striped bass would be taken there with
nets at one time. In 1907 one angler took 39 fish weighing from 12 to

CALIFORNIA PISH AND GAME.

71

36 pounds. Now from 75 to 80 per cent of those taken rim from two to
five pounds in weight."

In spite of discouraging reports good seasons come. The year 19^4
was an especially fine season for the angler of striped bass. The average
price in the market continues to be 35 cents per pound.

It is our belief after reviewing all the evidence that striped bass are
not so plentiful as they were. Large sized "spawn" bass are less
abundant than they were, which is a pretty sure sign of over-fishing.
But the increase in the catch of bass beginning with the year 1922 in
spite of added fishing restrictions of 1921 and 1923 is the best of evi-
dence that the bass are becoming more plentiful and that the effect of
the fishing restrictions adopted began to show first in 1922 and that
there is now a steady increase in the number of striped bass. It should
not be argued that the falling off of the commercial catch prior to 1922'
shows that the bass were being fished out by the nets and that there we're
less than half as many bass as in 1915. It is very much more likely that
the 50 per cent decrease in the commercial catch was almost entirely
due to the very good restrictive legislation which has been obtained
through the efforts of the Fish and Game Commission's efficient en-
forcement of the protective laws.

The usual method of protecting fish against overfishing is to restrict
the catch, and when efficient protective measures are adopted and
enforced the resulting decrease in the catch should not be used as
evidence that the fish are being exterminated. The scarcity of bass
in some of their old haunts about San Pablo Bay we believe is largely
due to the bass moving to other regions. This movement is caused
mainly by the pollution of San Pablo Bay waters by the government's
dredging operations about Mare Island and in dredging the channel
from Mare Island to Pinole Point. Much dredging has also been done
about the mouths of the more important sloughs. The continued
stirring of the mud by dredging operations has caused the tides to
carry great quantities of silt over the bay and into the mouths of the
sloughs, where it has settled to the bottom like a blanket, and almost
entirely killed the diatoms and other plant life which form the basis
of the food supply of fishes.

This condition was called to our attention by Dr. Albert Mann of
the Carnegie Institution after he had made a diatom survey of San
Francisco and San Pablo Bay waters. Dr. Mann was alarmed by the
conditions he found in San Pablo Bay and stated that if we are to
preserve our fisheries we will have to guard against the blotting out
of diatom life by silt from dredging operations such as are taking
place in our bays and rivers. There can be no doubt that the pollu-
tion of the waters by sediment from the dredgers has caused the bass
to largely abandon their old haunts about San Pablo Bay. Oil pollu-
tion may also be a contributing factor.

AS A GAME FISH.

The striped bass is a very popular game fish in the east, principally
secured by surf-casting along the coast of southern New England
and Long Island. In various rivers, such as the Potomac, small fish
are caught by ordinary bait fishing. The baits employed may be squid,
strips of some shiny fish such as menhaden, small silvery fishes, pieces

72 CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

of crab, preferably "shedders," fiddler crabs, ''bloodworms," clams,
mussels, etc. Sometimes artificial lures, such as "squid," spoons and
even flies are effective. (U. S. Bur. Fisheries Memorandum.)

Along the Pacific coast the striped bass is most often caught in the
bays near mouths of rivers, in sloughs and slow moving streams.

To the angler the striped bass is "a gallant fish and a bold biter."
It is eagerly sought for by a host of anglers because of the excellent
sport offered in its capture as well as the delectable white meat so
desirable as food.

Night fishing has been much in vogue, but this fish is such an erratic
biter that there is no definite proof that fishing is mvich better during
hours of darkness. Legal restrictions have put commercial niglit fish-
ing under the ban.

I\Iost anglers claim fishing becomes poorer in streams and sloughs
during cold or stormy weather. The fish are supposed to seek the
deeper pools at the mouths of streams at such times.

Famous old fishing grounds include San Antonio Slough near Peta-
luma, Oakland Estuaiy, San Leandro Bay and Petaluma Creek at
Schultze's Slough.

Between 1910 and 1915 Cache Slough and tributaries was a notable
fishing ground. During this period Mr. George Neale of Sacramento
caught many bass weighing from eight to 35 pounds. Reclamation is
responsible for the destruction of this area as a fishing ground.

In the clear water of Prospect Slough on the lower Sacramento bass
formerly took the spoon readily, and this was a popular fishing ground
for those who enjo^'ed the sport of catching the striped bass with rod
and reel. The usual method was to troll behind a gasoline launch.
Large numbers were taken in this manner in other sloughs.

Favorite resorts of anglers in the bay region at present are Sausalito,
Petaluma, Napa, Rodeo and Crockett. Baker's Beach, San Francisco,
is a favorite for surf-casters. Excellent sport is to be found at the
mouth of Elkhorn Slough on Monterey Bay near Watsonville. Bait
casting from shore brings results in the same locality.

Striped bass take the hook savagely, make runs and sometimes leap
from the water, shaking themselves to be rid of the hook. Then they
often go to the bottom to sulk. However, the runs of this fish are not
so formidable and persistent as those of the steelhead trout and salmon,
and the fish is more easily brought to gaff.

In California the same tackle is ordinarily used as is used for salmon.
Trolling usually gives the best results in brackish water, but many are
taken from the banks of sloughs with hand lines or casting rods. A
heavy sinker keeps the hook near the bottom. Bait hooks, plugs and
spinners are used. Squid is one of the favorite baits.

In the east the No. 4 or 5 O'Shaughnessy hook appears to be pre-
ferred and the white worm or bloodworm is the favorite bait.

Striped bass reach the Napa River and the sloughs in this section
from San Pablo Bay by two passages— Mare Island Straits into Shoal
Water Bay and Sonoma Creek into the sloughs northwest of Shoal
Water Bay. During eight months of the year. September 1st to May
1st, a great many anglers from all sections of the coast states find sport
in this region. Many local residents have barks in the sloughs and
motor down Saturday afternoons for the week-end fishing. The lower
portion of the Napa River is a favorite place, and at Cutting Wharf

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME. 73

several men have boats to hire for this purpose. Cutting Wharf has
been taken over by Napa County and put in first-class condition.
Ample parking space for autos with gravelled road approaches and
comfort stations are provided. On Sundays from 50 to 75 automobiles
are frequently parked at this one spot.

"After the heavy rains when the river is washed out, good bass
fishing is to be had as far up as the city of Napa. The fishing in 1924
was better in all this section than in any of the past seven or eight
years.

"In bait fishing, sardines, clams and bullheads are considered the
best. In the sloughs the bass are accustomed to the drawings from
wild ducks, hence this makes good bait, as do also breasts of mud hens
and skinned small birds such as linnets, sparrows, etc. Bait hooks
are usually 5, 6 and 7 sizes. Many artificial lures are used with suc-
cess— Stewart and "Wilson spoons, Nos. 4, 5 and 6 ; Basserinos, Redhead
and Lucky 13 ; Heddon Wiggler, dark or light according to w^hether
the water is clear or turbid at high tide. Trolling is best over the
mud flat feeding grounds. From half-tide to low, the channels give
best results." — Dr. Robert Crees.

Ed. J. Glos of Napa reports conditions as follows:

"During the late fall and early winter of 1924 the w^riter had very
good success trolling for bass in the main fork of the Napa River
above Cutting Wharf. The fish taken were of exceptionally good
size, running from 6 to 37 pounds, the majority weighing from 12 to
20 pounds. ]\Iost of the females were full of spawn. The lure used
was Heddon plug of the silver side variety, scale finish.

"When fishing in deep water, best results were obtained by trolling
behind a power boat and using at least 100 yards of No. 9 line with
no sinker. It is evident that the fish stay in schools, for once the
fisherman gets a strike he will, by continuing to work the spot, get a
strike nearly every time his plug passes the same place.

"Many of the fish strike very lightly two or three times before
striking hard and many times they get hooked on the outside of the
head. They seem to strike more readily on fast tides than on slow
tides, and mostly on outgoing tides, although many are caught on
incoming tides.

"Anglers using live split-tail and whitefish have good success.
Dead bait, such as sardines, clams, etc., are also good. The writer
has cleaned bass with almost every variety of food in their stomachs —
one time even a chicken foot — showing that they eat almost anything."

Erratic fishing conditions in Napa River are thus described by W.
P. West:

"When using a basserino in waters below the town of Napa, the
fish are nearly always caught somewhere on the head or under the
gills, very seldom in the mouth. It is believed that the fish strike to
fight and not for food. It has been observed that one year someone
will use a spoon and make a big catch. Immediately everyone uses a
spoon and good catches are made by all, while apparently fish can not
be caught with anything else at the time. In the season of 1923 a
spoon was the best troll, while during 1924 spoons proved of no avail
but bass plugs brought results."

Thirty years ago, W. P. West caught a good many bass at the town
of Napa, ranging from 10 to 16 inches, using cooked shrimp as bait.

74 CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

"In later years, pollution from garages and tanneries has ruined
fishing of all kinds in the vicinity of Napa except when rains have
purified the river; then it is possible to catch fish in town for a few
weeks out of the year, whereas formerly they could be taken nearly
the year around.

"During the fall of 1924 fish died in Napa River within a radius
of six miles from the cit}' of Napa. The stench from the thousands
of dead fish floating on the water became so bad that it was necessary
to chemicalize the carcasses.

"Years ago bass were so numerous in the lower reaches of Napa's
sloughs that a man rowing a boat would strike a fish every few minutes
with his oars. In recent years bass fishing in these sloughs has been
largely abandoned because almost every slough that formerly afforded
good fishing has been levied off. This prevents the bass from reaching
well protected spawning and feeding grounds, and, if the practice is
continued, it will surely prevent future increase of the species."

BIBLIOGEAPHY.

1890. Biennial Report of the Board of Fish and Game Commissioners, State of
California, for the years 188S-1890, State Printing Office, Sacramento, 67
pp. illus.
1904. Ibid, for the years 190^-1904, 112 pp. illus.
3907. Ibid, for the years 1905-190<5, 112 pp. illus.
1910. Ibid, for the years 1908-1910, 127 pp. illus.
Jordan, D. S.

1905, Guide to the study of fishes (Henry Holt & Co., N. T.) Vol.
II, 599 pp., illus.
Jordan, D. S., and Evermann, B. W.

1916. American food and game fishes (Doubleday Page & Co., N. Y.,
572 pp. 10 pis. many figs, in text.

Hulit, Leonard.

1919. Angling for the striped bass. Forest and Stream, 89, pp. 404-
405. 440-442, illus,
Scofield, N. B.

1910. Notes on the striped bass in California. Twenty-first Bienn. Rpt.
of the Bd. of Fish and Game Commrs. of the St. of California, pp.
104-109, 1 pi.
Scofield, N. B. and Coleman. G. A.

1910. Notes on spawning and hatching of striped bass eggs at Bouldin
Island Hatchery. Ibid, pp. 109-117, 3 figs, in text.
Shebley, W. H.

1917. History of the introduction of food and game fishes into the
waters of California. California Fish and Game. 3. pp. 1-12. 1
pi. 2 figs, in text.

Starks, E. C.

1919. The basses and bass-like fishes of California. California Fish and
Game, 5, pp. 59-68, 9 figs, in text.
Smith, Hugh M.

1895. Notes on a reconnaissance of the fishes of the Pacific Coast of
the United States in 1894. U. S. Bur. Fisheries Bull. 14. pp.
223-288.
1896. A review of the history and results of the attempts to acclimatize
fish and other water animals in the Pacific States. U. S. Bur.
Fisheries Bull. 15. pp. 37&-472, illus.
1910. The United States Bureau of Fisheries, its establishment,
functions, organization, resources, operations and achievements.
Proc. Fourth International Fisheries Congress. U. S. Bur. Fisheries,
Bull. 28, pp. 1367-1411, pis. CXLIII-CLYI.

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME. 75

A SPINY LOBSTER SEASON AT SAN DIEGO.

By Coburn F. Maddox.

At 6 o'clock on the morning of the fifteenth of October, 1923, I
hurried to the San Diego water front and the Fishermen's Wharf
armed with a "lobster stick" carefully measured off and marked at
101/2 inches minimum and 16 inches maximum lengths. This maxi-
mum and minimum size limit is set by our California fish and game
laws for the taking of spiny lobsters (Panitlirus interruptus) in
season.

This was my first lobster season with the Commercial Fisheries De-
partment of the Fish and Game Commission, and, having heard the
talk prevalent on the water front regarding the so-called "lobster
fleet," I expected to see the boats come racing in to port as they had
done during the preceding albaeore season. So imagine my surprise
when it was evident that there were no boats "racing" in. It was,
in fact, 11.30 a.m. before the first boat of the season, the Tola,
arrived with a cargo consisting of but two lath wood containers holding
but 160 pounds of the delectable crustaceans. These lobsters were
alive and of a dark bro\^Ti color. As they were weighed out by the
market man receiving them, they were closely inspected by me. They
were then sorted into groups as to size ; those measuring from 101/4
inches to 14 inches being classed as "smalls" and those measuring
from 14 to 16 inches, inclusive, were termed "bulls." The "smalls"
bring a few cents more per pound than the "bulls."

The lobsters were then put into metal baskets made of strap iron
about an inch and a half wide and spaced about three inches apart.
These containers hold 500 pounds and, when filled, were lowered into
vats of boiling water containing salt in the proportion of 200 pounds
salt to 420 gallons of water — or about a 50 per cent solution of salt
and water. After boiling 20 minutes they were lifted out of the vats,
a scarlet mass, and dumped out onto a smooth floor, evened out and
hosed down with cold fresh water to wash the scum off and partially
cool them. When completely dried on the outside and entirely cooled
off they were packed in wooden boxes of 100 pounds each ready for
shipment to any point in this country by truck or railway express, as
they have to be moved quickly when not in cold storage.

The Fish and Game Commission, under a special provision of the
law, allows our fishermen to bring in Mexican lobsters after the close
of our California season and until the end of the Mexican season, which
is usually a month after our season closes, on condition that the captain
of a boat whose cargo consists of imported lobsters files an affidavit
with the local office of the Fish and Game Commission stating the
number of crates (each crate averages 100 pounds) brought into port
and that they are lobsters caught in Mexican waters. All imported
lobsters may be put into cold storage to be sold during the closed
season, provided they are first punched through the tail with the mark
of the company or respective market putting them in cold storage.
For example, the Star Market marks their lobsters with a star shaped
punch, another market has a "V" shaped mark, etc.; any mark being
used that will make a legible, clean cut in the tail of the lobster and
one not being used by any other market or company. In this way

76 CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

if auy lobsters need to be identified it may be easily done by looking
at the list of marks filed with the Fish and Game Commission.

Naturally a portion of the imported spiny lobsters die in transit, ■
and these dead lobsters are sprayed with coal oil and turned over to
an independent fertilizer plant to prevent them being sold as "sec-
onds" to the unsuspecting public.

After being punched and packed in wooden boxes, 100 pounds to the
box, it is necessary, when shipping out during our closed season, that
each box be protected by a permit pasted on it ; said permit having
on it a number, the name of the market making tlie shipment, the
mark with which the lobsters contained therein are marked, the date
of shipment and the signature of the local fish and game deputy on
duty at the port of entry. This permit shows any transportation com-
pany that the lobsters have been duly inspected, as they are not
supposed to accept for shipment any fish or game out of season, and
this permit is insurance to the shipper that his shipment will not be
opened for inspection en route to its destination.

When it is taken into consideration that it has been shown by
scientific investigation that an average spiny lobster is probably be-
tween seven and a half and ten years of age before he attains the
legal minimum length of ten and one-half inches, one realizes that
unlimited catching of this kind of crawfish would soon result in their
extermination. The fact that California has never allowed the can-
ning of our local spiny lobsters has greatly helped to save the species
from extermination. Fortunately for conservation, the only attempt
ever made to can imported ^Mexican lobsters, an attempt made in San
Diego, was unsuccessful due to the process used and the difficulty and
cost of importation.

I have described the method universally used in California for
handling, cooking, transporting and importing these delicious shell-
fish which are in great demand by people generally within the state
and by the winter tourist element especially. These crustaceans are
not only pleasing to the palate but they plea.se the eye as well, for
. they are usually served broiled on the half shell, and the contrast of
the pure white meat with the scarlet red of the shell, the result of
cooking, is most attractive.

The season, the start of which I depicted in the beginning of my
story, resulted in the receipt of 67.948 pounds by the end of the month
of October and 127,635 pounds by the end of our California season,
the last day of February, and 746,959 pounds by the end of the ]\[exi-
can season, April 15th. These figures are put in to give the reader
an idea of the volume of business carried on in these shellfish during
an average season.

This method of handling local and imported lobsters helps to prevent
the depletion of our local lobsters, which a few years ago had become
more or less marked. At the same time it prevents any violation of
our laws by importers of foreign lobsters.

CaLII^ORMIA PlM AiSTD GAME. 77

THE CALIFORNIA RING-TAILED CAT.

Bj' Walter Fry, in charge Nature Guide Service, Sequoia National Park.

The California ring-tailed eat (Bassariscii^ astutus raptot^) is one of
the most remarkable animals of the Sequoia National Park. Owing
to nocturnal habits it is seldom seen by park visitors, but when once
seen it is remembered because of its grace, varied coloring and almost
human facial expression of kindliness. This cat belongs to the raccoon
family; the body length is about 15 inches, and a round slim tail of
nearly the same length is heavily furred to the tip. The body is slender ;
legs short ; height about nine inches ; weight about two and one-half
pounds; ears broad, one and one-half inches, scantily haired; eyes
large, mild and expressive. The fur is strikingly marked with black,
white, brown and gray.

The ring-tailed eat ranges from Costa Rica on the south northward
through Mexico and Texas, thence on to Colorado, southern Utah,
Nevada, and Oregon on the north. Throughout its range it seeks the
warmer climates, as it is not well adapted for cold w^eather. In places
it is fairly abundant, while elsewhere it is very rare and in many
places wanting. In California this mammal is not plentiful anywhere,
but inhabits the Upper Sonoran Zone, usually below 5500 feet, along the
western slopes of the Sierras. In other localities the zonal range differs
greatly from that in California ; in Oregon it is at sea level, while in
Mexico it is from sea level up to 10,000 feet.

The California ring-tailed eat is strictly nocturnal in habit and
wanders far and near in quest of food, eating almost anything that
comes its way. The principal food here is rats, mice, gophers, birds,
frogs, lizards, berries, fruit and many insects. Although the animals
can run somewhat rapidly and climb trees quickly, they seldom catch
their pray except by stalking. These animals hunt alone. I have'
never heard them give voice except when pursued closely or captured.
When approached they will give a short quick bark similar to the
California gray fox, and when captured they utter a shrill cry of fear
and rage.

The breeding season for this locality is April to June. The young
are three and four in number and probably only a single litter is pro-
duced each year. The animals den in rock crevices, under logs and
in hollow trees. In these dens, on beds of dry grasse's and leaves, the
young are born with eyes closed. Their bodies are covered with downy
fur, lighter in color than that of the adults, and the tail bands are
scarcely visible. When six weeks old the' young come out of the den
and at two months they go on nightly hunts with their mother. The
mother weans them at the end of the third month and leaves them to
shift for themselves.

I have had many interesting personal experiences with these animals
and find them intelligent, bold and inquisitive. They are not combative
and they respond quickly to kind treatment, making fine pets.

On May 25, 1906, while I was camped at Rocky Gulch, Sequoia
National Park, I saw two beautiful specimens of these cats, an adult
male and a female. Both were so good-natured and gentle that it w-as
only necessary to feed them a few times to induce them to come into
the cabin wdth me. They became so tame that they would eat from

4 — 45140

78 CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

my hands, climb into my lap, and sleep in a bed that I prepared for
them in the cabin. A few days after my arrival the female had three
kittens, about the size of newly born house cats. For two or three days
the mother would not permit the father to come near them, but later
the family occupied the one bed. The kittens grew rapidly, and
when three weeks old the parents began to carry food to them; at the
age of about eight Aveeks they accompanied their parents on nightly
hunts, returning to the cabin in daytime. Later I was relieved by a
detachment of soldiers, who also made pets of the ring-tail family so
that they became as tame as any house cats.

Scarcely any other wild animal has as many names as the ring-tailed
eat. In the United States it is known as "ring-tailed cat," "miners'
cat." "coon cat," and "band-tailed cat." In Mexico it bears the
name of "cacomixtle," except in Lower California, where it is the
"babisuri." Despite this nomenclature the animal is not related to
the feline family, but is akin to the raccoons. All the common names
in the Ignited States are gradually giving way to that of "ring-tailed
cat." While this common name is not well chosen, as the term "cat"
properly belongs to the feline family, it is now too firmly established
to be dislodged.

AVill the ring-tailed cat continue to thrive and hold its own under
existing laws? Positiveh'. it will not. The animals have no protec-
tion except in the national parks : but as the park areas comprise but
a small portion of their range the protection from this source is but
meager. Outside the parks these pretty animals are being depleted
from year to year by the ever-increasing number of fur trappers. The
animals in the neighborhood of the Seciuoia National Park are not
half as numerous as they were ten years aso. They are not endan-
gered on account of their fur, as it is not high on the market; but as
the trappers make their sets for other animals of higher fur value, the
ring-tailed cats are constantly getting into their traps and are killed
and taken along. "While the animals are not in danger of immediate
extinction in California, I do consider that it will soon become neces-
sary for the state to furnish adequate protection or we shall lose this
beautiful California mammal.

It is not safe to upset the balance of nature' and destroy the many
species of mammals, birds aiid harmless snakes which prey on rats,
mice, gophers, ground squirrels and other vermin. The ring-tailed
cats, the badgers, the skunks, the raccoons, and even the coyotes are
men's best friends; while as to the hawks and snakes, they destroy
hundreds of vermin for each domestic bird taken. Let nature alone
and there will l)e little need to spend millions to poison and to trap
vermin. As it is now. the poison and traps put out only too often
destroy as many friends as enemies.

The campaign against vermin is too often foolishly and thought-
lessly conducted ; and when there is a financial reward for men to trap
and poison, the facts of natural science are neglected. Man is but
slowly emerging from the savage state when the lust to kill was among
the strongest of his instincts. It is easy to appeal to this instinct by
labeling animals as "vermin" to be destroyed without proper consid-
eration of the manv biological factors involved.

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

79

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME

A publication devoted to tlie conserva-
tion of wild life and published quarterly
by the California State Fish and Game
Commission.

Sent free to citizens of the State of
California. Offered in exchange for
ornithological, mammalogical and similar
periodicals.

The articles published in California
Fish and Game are not copyrighted and
may be reproduced in other periodicals,
provided due credit is given the California
Fish and Game Commission. Editors
of newspapers and periodicals are invited
to make use of pertinent material.

All material for publication should be
sent to H. C. Bryant, Museum of Verte-
brate Zoology, Berkeley, Cal.

July 19, 1926.

Enterprising enough to be progressive.
Conservative enough to be safe.

A STRIPED BASS NUMBER.

No introduced fish in the waters of
this state has attracted so large a follow-
ing of devotees as the striped bass.
Angling for thousands, to say nothing
of the tons of fish which reach the markets
of the state, was made possible by the
introduction of about one hundred and
thirty-five striped bass secured in the
Navesink River of New Jersey, and
planted in Martinez Straits near Mar-
tinez, together with a later plant of three
hundred fish made at Army Point near
Suisun. Devotees of the sport throng
the trains each week, and Bakers Beach
in San Francisco is regularly lined with
surf casters. Similar sport is aiforded on
the larger streams both north and south
of San Francisco.

An attempt has been made to furnish
those interested with some reliable in-
formation on this notable food and game
fish. That some features of the article
will call forth considerable debate is
certain, for as one old time angler put it :
"I have fished for striped bass continu-
ously for twenty years and yet I know
practically nothing about this fish." Many
an angler has found his pet theory upset,
not once, but many times. Admittedly
the striped bass is erratic in its habits,
and what may happen in one place does
not always hold in another.

But one point of view has been at-
tempted— that held by the scientist who
may many times have little actual field
experience, but who is skilled in the com-
pilation of dependable data. That of
the angl-'jr himself who often depends
entirely upon field observation remains to
be presented at some future time.

We warn all readers who find this

number of particular interest to place his
copy in safe keeping, for. judging by
past experience, special numbers of this
kind are quickly exhausted, and impossible
to replace.

PLAN DETERMINATION OF AGE AND
RATE OF GROWTH OF STRIPED
BASS.

Complaints of decrease in the abun-
dance of striped bass have led the Com-
mercial Fisheries Department to under-
take a basic investigation regarding the
life history and habits of this fish. Under
the direction of Professor J. O. Snyder of
Stanford University, an effort is being
made to determine the age and rate of
growth of the striped bass by a study
of the scales. Measurements and scale
studies are already helping to answer the
questions as to whether the striped bass
migrates to sea every year with a return
movement for spawning and as to the age
when this fish becomes mature.

TROUT TACKLE FOR STRIPED BASS.

In connection with striped bass fishing,
we think of heavy tackle. Casting rods
are used extenisvely. However, whenever
there is a run of small sized bass in the
Napa River, many obtain thrilling sport
by using trout rods. The best class of
sportsmen are alw^ays seking refinements
in modes of angling, and this is, perhaps,
a step forward. Certainly it takes greater
skill to successfully land a striped bass
with trout tackip.

CONVENTION OF FISH AND GAME
EMPLOYEES.

On March 5 and 6, 1926, the employees
of the Fish and Game Commis'sion for
the first time got together for a confer-
ence. Friday was given over to civil serv-
ice examinations and to a visit to the Uni-
versity of California. On Saturday all
day sessions were held ending with a
banquet in the evening. The program
was educational in nature and the out-
sanding features were the attendance at
the afternoon meeting and the banquet
of Governor Friend Wm. Richardson, the
presence of Dr. H. J. Donaldson, presi-
dent of the Pennsylvania Game Commis-
sion, and the opportunity afforded for
employees to really know and appreciate
the splendid commissioners who direct the
work of conservation, and their competent
executive officer. Ever.vone concerned
was impressed with the splendid body of
men who enforce the fish and game laws
of the state, and a fine spirit prevailed
throughout the meetings. Never was there
a more united approval of a project nor
a more imperative demand for a meeting

80

CALIFORNIA FISH Als^D GAME

of the same kind to be held annually.
The commonest comment made was, "this
should have been done long ago."

On March 7th, automobiles took the
men to the new Yountville Game Farm
in Napa County where a picnic lunch was
eaten on the grounds. Superintendent
Bade of the game farm conducted the men
about and furnished much valuable in-
formation.

BRIEF REPORTS ON CURRENT AC-
TIVITIES WILL APPEAR UNDER
NEW DEPARTMENT HEADING.

It has always been the policy of this
magazine to attempt to bring to its
readers the current activities of the Fish
and Game Commis'sion. A series of
monthly reports from various depart-
ment and bureau heads now make it
possible to add a new department to the
magazine under the heading "Commission
Activities." (See p. 101.) In this
department will be found statements per-
taining to the plans of and accomplish-
ments of the commission.

SCREEN AND LADDER CONFERENCE.

On March 31 there was held at the
executive offices one of the most important
conferences ever attempted by the com-
mission. By invitation there assembled
representatives of practically every power
company in California, interested officials
of irrigation districts and irrigation com-
panies, and private individuals charged
with the maintenance of screens and
ladders in California rivers and streams.
The purpose of the meeting was contained
in the following letter addressed to thesi>
persons by the executive officer :

The Fish and Game Commission is
desirous of calling a conference of power
companies, Irrigation districts, private
water companies, and individuals inter-
ested in the maintenance of screens and
ladders in California streams.

In the past considerable friction has
existed between the Commission and the
various persons and companies affected,
and it seems that the time Is now oppor-
tune to settle old difficulties and plan to
cooperate for the future.

With this end in view, the officials of
the Commission charged with the duty of
enforcing screen and ladder laws feel
that a general and free expression of
opinion on both sides of the question will
bring immediate results and clear up the
situation. We desire to inaugurate a
policy for the future and ask your aid
and suggestions. It seems to us that
there is no necessity for any antagonistic
attitude on either side and with these
objects in view, we earnestly ask you to
be present at a conference to be held in
the office of the Fish and Game Commis-

sion in the Postal Telegraph Building,
San Francisco, on Wednesday, March 31,
1026, at 10 o'clock a.m.

Will you kindly indicate to the under-
signed whether some person will be at
this conference to represent you?

A splendid attitude of cooperation was
shown by the engineers who assembled.
The point which brought out most dis-
cussion was as' to the feasibility of screens
in certain types of streams. It was defi-
nitely pointed out by the representatives
of the Fish and Game Commission that
.iud,gment as to whether a screen is needed
or not would not be ceded to any com-
mittee but that this judgment is entirely
in the hands of the Fish and Game
Commission. The main need so far as the
commission is concerned is engineering
advice as to the selection of the particular
type of screen to be used under given
conditions and wholehearted cooperation
in the enforcement of the screen and lad-
der law.

As a result of the meeting two com-
mittees were appointed to work with the
experts' of the commission. The com-
mittee for the power companies, the high
stream diverters. is made up of G. H.
Bragg, chairman, Pacific Gas and Electri<,'
Company. W. H. Dennis. Southern Cali-
fornia Edison Company. H. K. Fox. San
.Toaquin Light and Power Company, W.
L. Huber, Southern Sierra Power Com-
pany. The committee representing the
irrigation districts, low stream diverters.
G. H. Atherton, Delta Farms Company,
Stockton. W. L. Combs, South San Joa-
quin Irrigation District, and William
Durbrow, Glenn-Colusa In-igation dis-
trict.

These cotomittees are to report some
time in the future as to their findings.

There is no necessity for an antago-
nistic attitude on either side, and it was
impressed on the gathering that the com-
mission is more than willing to cooperate,
in every particular, to the end that the
laws affecting fish screens and ladders-
may be enforced without working a hard-
ship upon anyone.

CALIFORNIA MAN APPOINTED ON
ADVISORY COMMITTEE ON FISH-
ERIES.

In recognition of his accomplishments
in fisheries conservation work in Cali-
fornia, X. B. Scofield, in charge of the
Department of Commercial Fisheries of
the Fish and Game Commission of Cali-
fornia, was accorded an exceptional honor
by Secretary of Commerce Herbert
Hoover when he was selected to serve
as one of the five members of a recently
appointed advisory committee on scien-

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

81

tific investigations for the United States
Bureau of Fisheries. In creating this
board it was Secretar.v Hoover's object
to bring together a wide range of inter-
ests particularly able to advise Commis-
sioner of Fisheries Heni*y O'Malley in
the scientific program of the bureau in
order that it may give the most adequate
results for the needs of the fisheries
throughout the country.

During the past ten years as director
of the commercial fisheries work for the
State of California, Mr. Scofield has
built up a program for the conservation
of the fisheries which far surpasses that
of any of the other states. Under his
direction a state fisheries laboratory has
been established, and the quality of the
work being carried on by its corps of
research workers has been recognized by
our federal government to the extent that
two members of the staff, Elmer Higgins
and O. E. Sette, have been chosen as
division chiefs for the United States Bu-
reau of Fisheries, while Will F. Thomp-
son was selected from there to direct the
halibut investigations for the Interna-
tional Fisheries Commission.

Mv. Scofield has been active in the
promotion and enforcement of fisheries
legislation and has gained particular rec-
ognition in his efforts during the past
seven years to conserve the sardine sup-
ply by preventing the unrestricted use of
fish fit for human consumption in reduc-
tion plants.

A NEW INTERNATIONAL FISHERIES
COMMISSION.

Word was received on April 28 that
as the result of a new Mexican treaty an
International Fisheries Commission of
four members has been appointed by
Pi-esident Coolidge. As one of the mem-
bers of the commission, the president
selected Mr. N. B. Scofield, in charge of
the Commercial Fisheries Department of
the California Fish and Game Commis-
sion. The other American member of this
commission is Henry O'Malley, chief of
the Federal Bureau of Fisheries, and the
Mexican appointees are Jose R. Alcarez,
chief of forest service, and Carlos E.
Bernstein, in charge of fisheries in the
Gulf of California district. The duties
of the new commission are as follows :

"To aid the labors of corresponding
agencies in the nations represented in
conservation measures.

"To prevent smuggling of marine prod-
ucts.

"To make recommendations relative to
revenues upon imports and exports of
fish."

This is the second honor to be con-
ferred upon Mr. Scofield within the past
few months. The commission takes pride
in the fact that Mr. Scofield's ability has
been thus recognized. It is expected that
even though his new duties may separate
him from direct service with the Com-
mercial Fisheries Department he will
continue to act in an advisory capacity.

THE NEW YOSEMITE HATCHERY.

A hatchery in Yosemite National Park
has been agitated for some time. Once
complete plans had been drawn and con-
struction work practically started, diffi-
culties arose which postponed construc-
tion. During April, 1926, at a meeting
held in San Francisco, an agreement
between the National Park Service and
the Fish and Game Commission was
drawn up which provides for the lease of
land in YosemiLe National Park and the
construction thereon of a hatchery build-
ing, and rearing ponds. The agreement
also provides for the erection of an
aquarium for the display and exhibition
of various species of fish. The contract
holds for the term of ten years with
provision made for renewal.

As originally contemplated, the hatch-
ery was to be built of stone and was to
be located near the confluence of lUillou-
ette Creek and the Merced River.

From an educational point of view a
hatchery could not be located in a better
place. Over two hundred thousand visited
the park last year and when the new
road is open the numbers will probably
double. Many of the thousands of visitors
would gladly make use of an opportunir.v
to see a fish hatchery in operation. Per-
sons having seen the methods used in fish
propagation would become more interested
in fish conservation.

VIOLATORS TAKE NOTICE!

The new dollar-a-year deputies recently
appointed by the Fish and Game Commis-
sion will have full powers to enforce the
fish and game laws. Furthermore, the
names of these men are to be kept secret
with a definite purpose in view. Many
a violator this coming year will rather
suddenly wake up to the fact that the
man near him on the stream or the hunter
in the next blind is a full fledged game
warden when he is suddenly arrested for
having more than the limit of fish or of
ducks.

jNIost of the regular deputies are marked
men so far as the violator is concerned,
but it will take some time for the violator
to become acquainted with all of the
dollar-a-year men which have been ap-
pointed.

82

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

We wonder whether there are many
otlier instances where men are sufficiently
enthusiastic about a natural resource to
be willing to do the "dirty work" of law
enforcement with no greater incentive
than that of helping to conserve a natural
resource.

NEW REARING PONDS CON-
STRUCTED.

Heretofore it has been the policy of
the Fish and Game Commission to hold
and feed trout at the hatcheries until
about two to three inches long be-
fore planting ; now plans are being
made to hold some fingerlings until three
and one-half to five inches long and then
liberate them naturallv in various streams.

Hatchery in Humboldt County will care
for 100,000 fish.

Other western states have experimented
with the pond rearing system for several
years, and this year California will take,
a foremost place in experimentation of
this kind.

OUR GREAT TASK.

Willi the ever-increasing population
of our state, the easy accessibility of our
forests and streams caused by the building
of highways and trails and the use of
the gi'eatest destroyer of life, both human
and wild animal — the automobile — we
have a hard and never-ending task before
US' to protect the remaining animals and
fishes of our state. Forty vears ago there

Fig. 18. Black-tailed deer feeding in a meadow in Monterey County. Photograph

by William Jeffrey.

The plan contemplates the construction
of fifteen rearing ponds wliich will accom-
modate about 2,700,000 small fish. In
most instances these ponds wnll be built
along side of some mountain stream that
needs constant stocking and the young
fish will be cared for by experts.

Local sportsmen's clubs are planning
the construction of four of these holding
ponds. One such pond, to be built in
Castle Creek near Dunsmuir. Shasta
County, will accommodate 150.000 fish.
Two such rearing ponds will he located
in the Tahoe region ; one of them to be
the largest of all with a capacity of 400,-
000 fish. A new pond at the Fort Seward

were more fish and game in one county
in California than there are now in half
the state. When I began to study the
problem of conservation as a boy and
young man. forty years ago. there was
only a population of 800,000 in the entire
state, and no one advertised California as
the sportsmen's paradise at that time,
for the elk and antelope were practically
exterminated and a marked depletion was
already noticed among the fish in our
inland waters as well as among the
smaller game animals and birds. Now,
with a population nearly five times as
great, and everybody looking to the great
out-of-doors for pleasure and recreation.

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

83

aud the capitalization of our wild life by
writers and advertisers urging tlie whole
world to come to California, we are facing
a stupendous task. We can only hope
to keep what is left of our wild life by
working earnestly for a shorter hunting
and fishing season and using all our
efforts to meet the new policy of coopera-
tion and friendly relationship in the
great task before us. — W. H. Shebley.

PIECING OUT THE BAG LIMIT.

It seems almost incredible that certain
so-called sportsmen continue to piece out
their bag limits. It was reported to us
recently that a man made this statement :
"The early morning flight was almost
entirely of small ducks. I secured my
limit but just about this time the big
ducks began to come in and, desiring some
good mallards, I continued to shoot. Each
time I secured a mallard or a sprig T
took a small duck out of my bag and
threw it into the water, thus returning
with a legal limit of large ducks."

It is- also well known that some men,
certainly we can not call them sportsmen,
while shooting quail with a pump gun
kill a large number of birds and then
without spending much time to search
for them continue to kill enough birds
so that they secure their limit without
any extra exertion in searching for lost
or wounded birds.

Even falling back on "the spirit of the
law" does not excuse loaste.

HUNTING ACCIDENTS— 1925.

As in past years a compilation of himt-
ing accidents for the year 1925 has been
attempted. Unfortunately accurate data
relative to such accidents are not available
from the Bureau of Vital Statistics. It
has, therefore, been necessary to make

the compilation from newspaper clippings
which have reached our ofiice. This
method is certain to allow of error and
furthermore does not give a complete
check on the number of hunting accidents,
in fact, it seems doubtful whether more
than two thirds of the accidents in the
state are actually accounted for by this
method.

In spite of the acknowledged inaccuracy
the compilation should bring vividly to
the mind of every user of a gun that he
is handling a weapon which is potentially
dangerous to human life. As has been
suggested before, the work of compilation
is worth while if it will put to shame
those responsible for accidental shooting
of fellow humans, and awaken others
sufficiently to handle their weapons with
more care.

The huge toll taken annually in the
United States is stirring many states to
act, and compilations are made and wide
publicity given in almost every state.
The Game Commission of Pennsylvania
not only tabulates the huutin?- accidents
of that state under fifteen different head-
ings, but is collecting data from all other
states. The more populous a state grows,
the more certain is a large crop of hunt-
ing accidents annually as is evidenced by
the fifty-two fatal and 229 non-fatal acci-
dents recorded in Pennsylvania for 1925.

Everyone admits that most of these
accidents are preventable and conse-
quently education along the lines of care-
ful handling of a gun should be the most
effective means of prevention.

This past year, there were several acci-
dents due to a loaded gun in a motor
vehicle. In some states it is made a mis-
demeanor to carry a gun in an automobile
unless it is unloaded and dissembled.

84

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

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CALIFORNIA FISH AND GVME.

87

HUNTING ACCIDENT DATA 1924 AND
1925.

1924 1925

Number persons hunting_250,000 *250,000

Number persons killed 15 16

Number persons wounded

but not killed 22 32

Number self- 'inflicted
accidents :

Fatal 8 11

Nonfatal 13 15

Number accidents in-
flicted by others :

Fatal 7 ."

Nonfatal 9 17

Occurred while hunting
large game (elk,
deer, bear, etc.) :

Fatal 2 7

Nonfatal 6 13

Occurred while hunting
small game :

Fatal 12 9

Nonfatal 16 16

Occurred while hunting

unknown game 0 3

Weapons causing acci-
dents :

Kifles 9 20

Shotguns 27 27

■Revolvers (including

pistols) 1 1

Unclassified 1 0

Where occurred :

In fields or on waters. 25 25

In forests 6 15

In conveyances 3 3

Unknown 2 5

Number injured or killed
in mistake for game
or other wild crea-
tures, if known :

Killed 1 0

Wounded 2 5

♦Approximately.

Boys under IS years of age responsible
for an undue percentage of the injuries
or deaths, about 20 per cent.

DISTRICT ATTORNEY WARNS
HUNTERS.

Prior to the opening of the hunting
season last fall the district attorney of
Trinity County issued a statement that
he would hold huntei's to strict account-
ability if they killed or wounded other
hunters. In this stand he was siipported
by the Forest Service.

Supervisor B. H. Mace addressed the
following communication to all district
forest rangers under his jurisdiction :

"In order to reduce to a minimum
the liability of accidental shooting of
human beings for deer or other game
animals, the district attorney of Trinity
County has decided to call every person
responsible for accidental killing or injur-
ing to strict account.

"In all cases arrests will be made and
the party required to explain the circum-

stances of the accident in court. There-
fore, in order to cooperate fully with the
authorities in this commendable stand, I
should be glad to have you instruct all
fire guards to take prompt action if a
case of accidental shooting in Trinity
County comes' to their attention in order
that the responsible party may be detained
until the arrival of the county officers."

THE ISSUE OF THE RANGE.

Conservationists everywhere have been
incensed at the attempt of western stock-
men to obtain additional concessions in
the national forests. At a recent meet-
ing of the Fish and Game Commission
resolutions- opposing the bill now before
congress were sent to California senators
and congressmen.

The stockmen are seeking the follow-
ing concessions :

1. Reduction of the grazing fees on
the national forests to rates equivalent to
the government's cost of administration.
This would mean $3,000,000 from the
annual revenue of the national forests.

2. A legal status to grazing on the
national forests.

3. Authorization of the creation of a
commission with authority in grazing
affairs superior lo that of the Secretary
of Agricu'ture.

4. The turning of unreserved public
lands, aggregating 18.8,000.000 acres, over
to the states or have them regulated by
the federal government.

If these concessions are granted, the
stockmen will acquire a property right to
grazing lands, which will figure as a
very serious menace for conservationists
to combat.

WILD TURKEYS TRIED IN SAN DIEGO
COUNTY.

Last year the San Diego Fish and
(Tame Protective Association secured some
wild turkey eggs from Louisiana. These
eggs were sent to the San Diego Zoo, but
as it had no setting hens with which
to raise them, they were turned over
to Mr. Glazier, who has a ranch at El
Cajon, California. Seven of the nine eggs
hatched. The young grew to be large as
the ordinary tame turkey, and became
quite domesticated. One of the turkeys
was killed by a lynx, another injured so
badly that it died soon afterwards. The
lemaining five were then sent to a new
game farm near Otay dam south of San
Diego where an attempt will be made to
raise more this year.

WATER POLLUTION.

So many instances of the pollution of
the rivers and harbors of the state have

88

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

come to the atteution of the Fish and
Game Commission that the commission
has organized a special bureau to inves-
tigate and secure evidence of pollution.
An experienced man, Mr. Rolin G.
Watkins, heads this bureau aud he will
conduct a survey of the entire state.
Owners of broken oil or gas pipe lines,
distilleries, factories or other public utilit.v
corporations discharging refuse or poison-
ous matter into the waters of the state
will be held to answer in the courts. No
favors will be shown.

That the courts stand ready to help in
preventing watpr i)ollution is evidenced
by the fines which have been imposed in
two recent cases where oil and other
refuse was being pumped into San Fran-
cisco Bay.

may lose what you thought was a friend
but you will be helping your game warden
and may be making one less offender for
him to watch.

A NEW POLLUTION PROBLEM.
The opening of the season on cormo-
rants and the white pelican has not only
started up considerable opposition among
bird students, but is becoming the basis
of a new pollution problem. Many
hunters accept such an opportunity to
utilize large conspicuous birds as a mark,
shooting "for the fun of it." Instead of
retrieving the birds, they leave them to
decay and rot in the lakes and streams.
The surfaces and shores of certain lakes
are lined with the bodies of such dead

Fig. 19. Wild turkeys reared for the San Diego Fish and Game Protective
Association by Mrs. Guy O. Glazier. It is the intention of the Association to stock
the Cleveland National Forest Game Refuge in San Diego County.

THE BEST GAME WARDEN.

It is impossible for the game warden
to catch every oifender, so why not help
him? People are governed to a great
extent by what the other person may
think of them. When your neighbor
comes in with more than the bag limit,
do not admire him for being a good shot,
and for being clever enough to put it
over on the game warden, for then you
encourage him. Tell him the truth
instead. Point out he is breaking the
law, explain why such a law was passed,
and if he is a true sportsman he will
appreciate your frankness. If not, you

birds with the result that the drinking
water is contaminated.

Considerable complaint has come from
San Diego County where there are several
large storage reservoirs and where these
unprotected birds have fallen to the duck
hunter's gun. At Cuyamaca Lake, forty-
eight dead birds or hopelessly crippled
birds were counted within 300 yards of
the shore line.

Certainly it should not take more than
a statement of this kind, brought to the
attention of duck hunters, to stop this
wanton slaughter with its consequeni
pollution of drinking water.

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

89

A RARE TROUT FROM LOWER
CALIFORNIA.

The rare Nelson's trout was recently
found by members of a scientific expedi-
tion from the University of California
in the Santo Domingo River, Lower Cali-
fornia.

Mr. Chester C. Lamb, Assistant Curator
of Mammals, Museum of Vertebrate
Zoology, who participated in securing
the collection, has this to say regarding
Salmo nelsoni :

"So far as known, only one stream in
Lower California is inhabited by trout,
namely, the Santo Domingo River. This
stream heads on the west slope of th(;
San Pedro Martir Mountains, and the
trout exist chiefly in one of its' branches.
San Antonio Creek, and in that branch
almost altogether above Rancho San
Antonio. At the time our fish were col-
lected, it is believed that the species
existed in only about five miles of the
course of the stream, for the reason that
at least 15 miles of the lower course
was, at that season, dry. About five
miles above Rancho San Antonio are
waterfalls above which no trout are
known to occur.

"There are persistent rumors to the
effect that sooner or later the waters of
this stream are to be diverted for power
purposes from a point above those falls,
in which case, unless the trout be trans-
planted to other waters, the species
would become extinct. It is believed that
there is no other stream in the region that
affords permanent flowing water, such as
the trout could survive in."

The canon of the river in which these
trout live is narrow and deep, and the
water, according to Mr. Lamb, at times;
becomes warm. Insect life, too, is plenti-
ful. The trout were found to be exceed-
ingly abundant and easily caught. About
150 were taken on two fly hooks, one a
brown hackle and the other a royal coach-
man.

The presence of this trout in this
southern stream is explained in that
favorable climatic conditions probably
once existed which allowed trout to
extend their range. In fact the rainbow's
ability to migrate through salt water
makes establishment in any large stream
possible. After a very close comparison
with the other species of trout it has
been found to bear a great resem-
blance to the rainbow trout in that the
size and number of scales is almost the
same. The coloring also is very similar.
This trout is best accounted for as a
geographic race, its slight variations from
the rainbow trout being explained by its

isolation from all other fish and adap-
tation to new conditions. A discussion
based on sixty specimens of this race,
Salmo nelsoni, by J. O. Snyder of Stan-
ford University, may be found in Univ.
Calif. Publ. in Zool., vol. 21, no. 17,
pp. 419-42(3.

MEAGER INFORMATION ON GAME
VIOLATIONS LEADS TO CONVIC-
TION.
On the fourteenth day of January,
1926, I received a report as follows :
That Ray Taylor of Susanville was go-
ing from one to another here in town,
and asking them if they wanted to buy
a quarter of venison for $7.50 a quarter,
telling them that it was good meat and
that Bert Bristol had bought a quarter.
The report also went on to say that the
deer were being killed in the Milford
section of Lassen County. I received
this report some three or four days after
the meat had been sold and thought that
it was too late to find any of the meat
around town. It was not known who
killed the deer or the exact place wliere
the violations were going on. I laid a
trap to catch the parties who were com-
ing in to sell and deliver this deer meat,
but I did not get any results. It seemed
as though they were not going to bring in
any more meat to sell at present.

On January 22, 1926, I drove to Mil-
ford and saw Forest Ranger Bruce
Torgny and told him what I was look-
ing for. I asked him if there were any
trappers in that section trapping and
hunting. He did not know of any.
However, he told me that he was into
Meadow View Station on the twelfth of
January and that he met a party of three
coming out in a Star touring car. He
said there seemed no reason for anyone
to be in there unless they were hunting
at this time of the year. We decided to
go there and see if we could find out
what they were doing in there, as we
could easily find their tracks in the deep
snow. We made the trip in there the
next day, but found nothing that would
give us anything to work on and returned
to Doyle. Here I saw one of my sources
of information, which I try to have
throughout my district in all the com-
munities. He told me that there were
two men at the old Porter homestead;
that they were trapping, hunting and
making jackass brandy. He said that
one of them was a lumberjack from
Westwood and that the other one was
Jack Porter; that neither of them were
any good and were of a bad character.
He said that Porter had come back there
to winter several times and that he al-

90

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

ways killed deer out of season and that
he believed that these two men were the
men that were selling the meat in Susan-
ville, as trapping had been poor and they
were short of money and grub. Ranger
Torgny and I proceeded to Susanville for
a search warrant. I thought it best to
have plenty of assistance, so laid my
information before the sheriff. He at
once decided to send two of his deputies
with me to assist in making the search,
which we did.

On searching the Porter homestead we
found at the end of a well used trail about
50 feet from the house a box, just about
the right size to carry in a car, packed
over half full of deer meat all cut up.
which was parts of two deer. We had
to leave one of the men there, as there
were the two deputy sheriffs. Ranger
Torgny, myself, prisoner, and the box of
deer meat, which weighed quite a lot.
We also had bad roads to go over. Porter
had his car torn down with the rear end
out and some of the gears broken. I
thought that it would give him a chance
to get the things together so they would
not become lost, as it did not look like
he would leave the country without his
car. He promised to come in on Monday,
but instead beat it to Nevada the next
day, and I have heard nothing of him
since. Fred Abbatt plead guilty on Mon-
day, and just after he plead guilty and
before the judge sentenced him I asked
him if he knew Ray Taylor of Susan-
ville. if he was in Susanville on or about
the 12th of January, and he said he knew
Ta.vlor and that he was in Susanville on
the 12th.

I then gave my evidence to the court
showing that Fred Abbatt and J. W. Por-
ter must have had something to do with
the selling of deer meat in Susanville.
Nevertheless, the judge only levied a fine
of SoO or 50 days in Lassen County jail.
and Abbatt is serving his time, as we
knew he would have to. Of course this is
some time to stay in jail for having deer
meat in your possession. — C. O. Fisher,
Susanville, California.

ALASKA HAS GAME COMMISSION.

Alaska now has a game commission to
carry on conservation so that the fur and
game resources will not only be main-
tained but increased. This is a result of
the last session of the sixty-eighth con-
gress when a bill was submitted that had
been planned by sportsmen and conserva-
tionists of Alaska and the United States.
The commLssion consists of five members,
one a representative of the Biological
Survey, who is the executive officer and
fiscal agent, the other four from the four

judicial divisions of the territory. These
men have shown a keen interest in their
responsibilities, and there is a very bright
outlook for the future of Alaskan wild
life.

REAL RESULTS IN BIRD BANDING.

As evidence of the worthwhile interest
in bird banding, a resume of operations
for 1925 by one such bander in Berkeley
is of interest. During the season 573
birds were successfully banded, represent-
ing 22 different species. There were 044
repeats and 38 birds returned that had
been banded in previous years. With such
concentrated work in a particular area
our knowledge relative to the migrations
and habits of birds should be greatly
increased during the next few years.

EFFECT OF OIL POLLUTION ON
MARINE AND WILD LIFE.

The Department of Commerce, Bureau
of Fisheries, Washington, D. C, last year
published a bulletin on the "Effect of Oil
Pollution on Marine and Wild Life."
(Bur. of Fisheries Document, 99-5, pp.
171-lSl.) The conclusion reads as fol-
lows :

Marine life and aquatic birds along the
Atlantic and Gulf coasts have suffered
seriously from pollution of waters by
petroleum oil, but other industrial waste.-;
are undoubtedly responsible for much of
the damage done. This is a serious prob-
lem, primarily because of the vital im-
portance of aquatic life as a source of
food. Oil pollution is detrimental to shell-
fish by destroying the larval forms and
rendering the adult moUusks and finny
fish unfit for food. It causes considerable
destruction of fowl, rendering the birds
helpless through its mechanical action on
the feathers.

SONOMA COUNTY SCHOOLS HOLD
BIRD STUDY CONTEST.

Last fall the county superintendent of
schools of Sonoma County planned a bird
study contest with the purpose of awak-
ening interest and kindly feeling toward
birds. The teachers of the elementarj*
schools were brought together every two
weeks for study, and mimeographed helps
were furnished every teacher. A list of
some fifty common birds were chosen as
subjects of study. The contest closed on
January 16 when a lecturer from the
Fish and Game Commission gave a lec-
ture. Contestants wrote down the name
of each bird as it was shown on the
screen. A prerequisite for taking the
test was demanded in the form of a bird
calendar giving the name of the bird, the
date, where seen and habits. All the
children who were able to correctly iden-
tify, from the pictures thrown on the

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

91

screen, 25 different kinds of birds, were
given a ribbon as a reward.

This scheme was so successful in stir-
ring up intei-est in birds and conserva-
tion that this move of Sonoma County
will doubtless be followed by many other
counties in the state. The best basis for
a future conservation program is to be
found in well laid educational plans in
the schools of the state at the present
time.

PROTECTIVE ASSOCIATION FORMU-
LATES PRINCIPLES.

The following excellent principles were
recently adopted by the San Joaquin

Fish and Game Protective Association ;

With this object in view we hereby
pledge ourselves not only to obey the laws
of the state pertaining to the protection of
fish, game, song birds and forests, but to
use our influence to liave others obey
them.

We agree to report to the executive
committee of this association the name of
any individual who may to our l<nowledge
violate these laws, or any of them, and if
need be to testify against such person to
secure his conviction.

LUMBERING TOWN HAS MANY
HUNTERS.

The lumbering town of Westwood in
western Lassen County contains a large
group of sportsmen. It is .estimated that
at least 1200 men hunted deer last sea-

FiG. 20. Visitors to Sequoia National Park get worthwhile entertainment by
watching the bears come in to feed at the bear pits. That tliey may even be seen
in broad daylight is evidenced by the photograph. Photograph by R. A. Abbott.

This association is formed for the pro-
tection and conservation of fisli, game,
song birds and forests, to create a better
understanding of the rights of the farmer
and more appreciation of the privileges
granted the sportsman by the farmer ; to
encourage the propagation of fish .and
game and the restocking of the game fields
and public waters ; to cooperate with the
state, county and municipal authorities
in strictly enforcing the laws for the pro-
tection of fish, game, song birds and for-
ests, and to assist generally in creating
a better understanding and appreciation
of the value of wild life to the people and
the necessity of its proper protection in
order to insure a future supply.

son, and during the past year the stores
of that city sold 90,000 shotgun shells.
Splendid work is being accomplished by
the Westwood Rod and Gun Club.

LOWER KLAMATH LAKE STILL A
PROBLEM.

That the restoration of the Lower
Klamath Lake reservation is a compli-
cated matter is evidenced by the fact that
there are really four parties interested,
all with certain rights. The owners of
the land hold a contract with the Bureau
of Reclamation which gives them certain
rights including water rights. In fact,

92

California pish aNd game.

they are to use the water which formerly
went into the Lower Klamath Lake on
their lands, and what's left over is likely
to lie pumped or drained into the lake bed
aiul thus part of the lake used as a sump.
When the water rights are cousidei-ed
any problem becomes involved. Further-
more, land owners have planted certain
areas of the reclaimed land with crops
and are making: an earnest endeavor to
make their projects profitable. To this
date they are encouraged ratlier than dis-
couraged and have paid all of their assess-
ments regularly to the government.

The California-Oregon Power Company
owns certain water rights on the Kla-
math River and will naturally refuse to
turn a large quantity of water back into
the lake unless allowed to draw it off
again during low water on the river.
This means that were the rest of the lake
bed utilized as a storage reservoir, there
would be constant change in water level,
and this would endanger breeding water
fowl.

Unfortunately, sportsmen and conser-
vationists apparently count least in the
matter for the rights and are rather in-
tangible as against those of the land own-
ers and the water right owners, even
though it may seem that a better use
could be made of the area.

With matters so involved it appears
that we should first learn the great
lesson that the time to act in such mat-
ters is when drainage is first proposed and
not after a project is completed. If there
is anything to be gained beyond this
important lesson, it will have to be gained
through long years of struggle, for at
present, land owners will inflate the real
value of their land and will sell only
under compulsion. There is, however, a
chance that the prophecy of soil experts
will come true and that agriculturists
will be unable to successfully farm the
land, under which circumstances they
would fail to pay their assessments to
the government and ask for a cancella-
tion of their contracts, or at least sell
out to those interested in the refuge at a
reduced price.

There is no doubt, if we had had the
present day sentiment when this drainage
project was first proposed, there would
still be a Klamath Lake Bird Reserva-
tion. The trouble was that few people
rallied to the cause at the time, which
now appears was the most important time
to save the refuge. However, Senator
Johnson has shown his interest in the
matter, and the Associated Sportsmen's
Clubs are working earnestly and prophesy
final victory.

The latest information relative to the

reflooding of Lower Klamath Lake is as
follows :

1. Senator Johnson has shown his in-
terest in the matter and reports that
through contracts made by the Reclama-
tion Service the matter is so involved
that it seems unlikely of early accom-
plishment.

2. The time limit for reflooding is not
the year 1927, but some ten years or
more hence.

3. There seems to be a tendency on the
part of government bureaus to "pass the
buck."

4. The Associated Sportsmen's Clubs
are working earnestly on the matter and
prophesy final victory.

MIGRATORY INSECTIVOROUS BIRDS
ARE THE FARMERS' FRIENDS.

In the office of the State Department
of Agriculture is a collection of dead kill-
deer which was brought in by the United
States game warden, George Tonkin, for
analysis of the stomach contents to deter-
mine the kind of insects eaten by the
birds. Upon examination it was found
that the stomachs were filled with gi'ubs
and insects injurious to growing crops.

The killdeer is known to be one of the
most useful birds on the farm. In this
he ranks first among all of his species.
The dead birds are a part of a number of
killdeer that were shot by Mike Ligitos,
a renter, on the property of H. E. Franks
on the Garden Highway about eighteen
miles north of Sacramento.

W^arden Tonkin found Ligitos shoot-
ing into bands of killdeer, destroying them
by the dozens. Upon questioning, he pro-
tested that he was "protecting his crops,"
not realizing that the killdeer were his
best friends and were at that time actually
engaged in removing from his fields de-
structive insects and worms. Evidently
he had drawn a hasty conclusion when he
saw the birds among his green peas, which
were just appearing above the ground.

The grubs and other insects had done
serious injury to the young plants. In fact,
there were so many insects in the field
that a large flock of killdeer had been
attracted to the feeding ground. The
birds were easier to see and to shoot than
the insects to destroy, and Ligitos drew
the wi'ong conclusions. As a matter of
fact, if the killdeer had not come on to
the field it is quite possible that the
farmer would have had no crop.

In this connection, the department
wishes to point out that a great many
birds, among which the killdeer, robins,
meadow larks, flickers, and many other
varieties of birds, are the farmers' best
friends. The number of insects annually

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

93

destroyed by the bands of robins which
come each spring saves the farmer thou-
sands of dollars in control measures.

According to Warden Tonkin, the fed-
eral laws specifically protect these birds
against destruction, and farmers appre-
hended shooting without a permit are
liable to arrest and prosecution.

BEAVERS RAPIDLY EXTERMINATED
IN OREGON.

In Oregon beavers are being so rapidly
exterminated that it may become neces-

The value of the skins, at the average of
$7.50 per skin, amounts to $110,257.50.
A report by counties indicates practical
extermination, the first year in several
counties. The Baker County catch
dropped from 738 to 140 the second year,
and practically all counties halved the
catch the second year.

TO A BOY WITH A GUN.

My Dear Billy :

When you arrive in Florida this win-
ter, you will find a little 20-gauge shot-

FiG. 21. A 27| inch Walker Lake trout caught by
Frank E. Briggs. It weighed 13 J pounds. The one in the
left hand was less than an inch shorter but weighed 15
pounds. Photograph by J. Saunders.

sary to place a ban on the trapping of
these animals. A decrease of two-thirds
which can be readily seen by noting the
difference in the number trapped during
two successive seasons, is apparent there.
The season of November 1, 1923, to
February 29, 1924, yielded 11,111 beaver,
while in marked contrast the season
of November 1, 1924, to February 21,
1925, resulted in only 3690 being taken.

gun, which is a gift from me. While my
hair is almost white and it has been a
long time since I was a boy and got my
first shotgun, yet I think I know just
about how you are going to feel. I know
that so well, Billy, that you won't have
to write a letter to tell me, and I know
you couldn't tell it in a letter anyway, so
you just take it for granted that I know
all about it. After you have been out

94

C.VLIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

hunting or practicing and learn some-
thing about hunting and shooting, just sit
down some evening and write me a letter.

There are a lot of things I would like
to tell you about the use and handling of
a shotgun, P>illy, that you must know, aud
I want you to learn them and practice
them quickly to justify my belief that
you have reached the period in your life
when it is projier for you to have a gun.
I am always going to feel more or less
responsible for what you do with your
gun so I am going to ask you to remem-
ber a few very important matters. A
gun will kill or injure game when pointed
right — thus, it might kill or injure per-
sons or live stock, if pointed wrong. The
first matter of importance, then, is how
to handle a gun with safety to yourself
and your companions, or other persons
about as well as with safety to property
and animals. Never until you have
reached a highly developed skill in hunt-
ing, carry your gun cocked or with the
safety off ; this is something I do not do
even now, except when in the known pres-
ence of game. Always open the gun in
getting over a fence or crossing a hazard-
ous place when a fall is possible, and if a
fall is likely, break the gun and take out
the loads and close it.

Of course, never point the gun loaded
or unloaded at any living thing you do
not intend to fire at. This means at a
person or at dogs or animals. When in
the presence of company learn to so
handle your gun whether loaded or not
that it never points toward a person.
Keep it pointed high overhead or low
toward the ground. Watch this particu-
larly in turning around among a group
of persons and also learn to watch the
direction your gun points when carried
over the shoulder. When so carried be
sure that the muzzle points high overhead
and in turning do not let the muzzle
sweep around so as to at any time come
in line with any person or house or auto
or things of that kind. Close attention
to these things as you start out, and
practice of little tricks of caution and
care, soon becomes second nature ; indif-
ference to them results in carelessness
and accidents, often with fatal results.

It is a real pleasure to feel that you
are trusted and to have careful people
want to go hunting on any expedition
with you, or to be welcome into any party
of sportsmen, and the surest way to have
this happen is to observe these and other
simple rules of caution, at all times and
under all circumstances.

If people see that you do not load
j'our gun until you are in the field and
unload as soon as you approach a house

or nlace where you are to rest, and in
loading and unloading handle it so that
it does not point at or toward anyone or
an animal, they know at once that you
have your mind on what you are doing
and that you realize you are handling a
dangerous \veapon and that you know
how. Never leave your gun loaded in
the house, car or boat. Never put your
gun away dirty ; this is a very important
"don't," so long as you are in Florida.
Always keep it thoroughly covered with
oil, or vaseline ; have a heavy woolen rag
saturated with oil handy, and when your
gun is handled remember there is usuall.v
some moisture on a person's hands and
it causes rust and the metal should be
wiped off at once.

Maybe some of these things I have
written seem unusual, but I mean them
as the usual rule. If hunting ducks from
a boat, of course you must have your gun
loaded, but not while moving about. A
friend of mine, a noted trap shot and rep-
resentative of an arms and ammunition
company, nearly lost his life at San-
dusky nearly four years ago. Mr. Blank,
at one time champion trap shot of the
United States, was hunting ducks at San-
dusky, Ohio, with Mr. Blank, one of the
best amateur trap shooters in Ohio, and
as they returned after the evening shoot-
ing, and he was out of the boat and draw-
ing it up on the bank, some flag sticks
caught the muzzle of his gun, as it lay
across a boat seat, causing it to fall off
the seat. It struck something in the boat
and was discharged, and the load tore
away the inside of his upper left arm
and almost tore out his heart. I don't
suppose there were ever two men more
skilled and experienced hunters than these
two men, but with all their care this
accident happened. Mr. Blank recovered,
but will be crippled all his life.

Now, Billy, get it straight — the real
pleasure you will only get when you
learn to use a gun right — when you know
you are safe and your Dad knows you
are safe when you are out with your gun.
You won't be safe and he will know .you
are not safe unless you prove it by prac-
ticing these and other rules in the use of
firearms and good sportsmanship. An-
other thing, it is not my wish to make a
professional hunter out of you, but there
is so much good to be secured, not only
to your body, but to your mind as well,
in going afield with a gun. This little
weapon is not a toy, and yet you must
not expect it to do all the killing. Use
your brain and your Boy Scout experience
and hunt wisely, and the pleasure is not
all in what you bring to bag. Am hop-
ing that you go up to the new location

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

95

and have a chance to shoot some quail,
ducks and rabbits. You can slip down
along the shore and get rabbits most any
evening. Write me about it. With love,

Your Uncle Kent.
— Outdoor Life, November, 1925.

SIX RULES FOR SPORTSMEN.

1. Be a real sportsman. There is more
honor in giving the game a square deal
than in getting the limit.

2. Make sure it's a buck. If you can't
see its horns — she hasn't any.

3. Help to enforce the game law.
Game and fish are public property — only
a game hog will take more than his fair
and legal share. Violations should be
reported to the nearest deputy warden,
forest ranger, or game protective associa-
tion.

4. Respect the ranchman's property.
He regards as an outlaw the man who
leaves his gates open, cuts his fences, dis-
turbs his live stock, or shoots near dwell-
ing. Put yourself in his place.

5. Be careful with your camp fire and
matches. One tree will make a million
matches ; one match can burn a million
trees.

6. Leave a clean camp and a clean
record. Unburied garbage, crippled game,
and broken laws are poor monuments
for a sportsman to leave behind him. —
An Ideal Vacation Land. U. S. Dept.
of Agriculture, 1923.

THE HOMING INSTINCT IN RED
SALMON.

The United States Bureau of Fisheries
has been conducting some important tag-
ging experiments with red salmon on the
Alaskan peninsula. A recent report*
brings out the following interesting facts :

Red salmon that were schooling in the
vicinity of the Shumagin Islands and in
Morzhovoi and Ikatan bays preparatory
to their spawning migration found their
way when tagged to a large number of
different rivers, some of which were lo-
cated along the southern shore of the
Alaskan peninsula, others along its shores
in Bering Sea.

Conclusive evidence that salmon return
to their native streams was secured by
an examination of scales taken from the
fish when it was tagged. Certain distin-
guishing characteristics of the salmon in-
habiting the various streams have been
demonstrated, and studies showed that

♦Gilbert, Chas. H., and Rich, Willis H.,
1925. Second experiment tagging salmon
in the Alaskan peninsula fisheries reser-
vation, summer of 1924. Bulletin Bureau
pf Fisheries, 42, pp. 1-75, illus.

the fish were returning to the streams in
which they were spawned. Data afforded
by the scales was associated with methods
of growth, ages at maturity, amount of
growth and length of sojourn in fresh
water, and other minor characteristics of
development which can record themselves
on the growing scale.

Two streams in close proximity at their
mouths often differ widely in the propor-
tion in which different year classes occur.
A considerable percentage of Nushagak
fingerlings always descend to the sea when
but one year old and they mature and
return to spawn at the age of four or five
years. On the other hand the Kvichak
fingerlings are practically all two or three
years old when they enter salt water and
they mature mostly at the age of six or
seven years. These same differences were
indicated in scale studies.

Red salmon captured in any trap in
the Shumagin Islands, in Morzhovoi Bay,
or in Ikatan Bay on any day during the
fishing season contained an assemblage
of individuals that had originated in
diverse streams, some of which were far
distant from the point of capture and
others nearer at hand, and that when lib-
erated these salmon proceeded each to
the stream of its origin. The theory
widely entertained by those engaged in
the commercial fisheries — that the salmon
constituting the runs to Bristol Bay
form an undifferentiated lot and pass into
one or the other stream in accordance
with the direction of the wind or other
external circumstance — is thus seen to
be wholly without foundation. There is
nothing difficult or abstruse in this prob-
lem. The facts speak for themselves to
anyone who will take the trouble to exam-
ing the evidence. It can not be too soon
realized by those interested in the continu-
ance of our salmon industry that each
stream is an independent unit, that its
salmon runs are maintained if sufficient
numbers are reserved for seed and are
destroyed if this is not done. The Uga-
shik, the Egegik, the Nushagak, the Nak-
nek and the Kvichak — each depends for
its maintenance as an important salmon
stream on the fish that are permitted to
spawn within its own watershed.
HUNTING LICENSES SWELL STATE
REVENUES.

More than 5,000,000 hunting and fish-
ing licenses were taken out during the
season 1924-25 by sportsmen and anglers
throughout the United States, including
Alaska, and the returns to state treasur-
ies amounted to more than $6,400,000.
Detailed figures for the season, just com-

96

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

piled by the Biological Survey of the
T'nited States Department of Agriculture,
show increases in the numbers of licenses
issued and fees I'eceived over the two years
preceding. Two years before the licenses
numbered 4,341,498 and the fees paid
were $5,385,489. One year later 4,395,-
038 hunters paid for their licenses a total

of $5,594,982. During the season 1924-25
the license figures were 5,039,834 and the
fees totaled $6,423,276.87. Pennsylvania,
with 504,130 licenses and fees of $613,-
939.30. headed the list both in licenses and
returns to the state treasury. The com-
plete figures are given in the following
table :

Hunters' Licenses Issued by States for Season 1924-25.

State . Resident Nonresident Alien Angling

Alabama 45,256 138 83

Arizona 26,485 170

Arkansas 3,926 303

California 224,601 930 890

Colorado 96,844 382 6,632

Connecticut 32,399 380

Delaware 1,502 250

Florida (a)

Georgia 29.030 151

Idaho 60,780* 542 1 6,232

Illinois 265,064 1,478

Indiana 163,607 258 12,452

Iowa 144,729* 273

Kansas 109,720 110

Kentucky 80.774 391

Louisiana 110,778 337

Maine 33,863* 3,625 71 422

Marvland 60,516 1,791

Massachusetts 75,484 802 217

Michigan 282,328 2,015

Minnesota ■ 162,824 698

Mississippi (b)

Missouri 174,699 1.208

Montana 64,584 154 10 2,958

Nebraska 140,922* 483* 2,496

Nevada 3.350 15

New Hampshire 58,100* 2.550* 20,600

New Jer.sev 138,948* 1,491* 5,552

New Mexico 15.260 535 8,524

New York 317,384 3,152 10,725

North Carolina (b)

North Dakota 34,784 277

Ohio 362,730 66

Oklahoma 101,135* 322 535

Oregon 53,484 638

Pennsvlvania 501,572 2,558

Rhode Island 11,179 174 74

South Carolina 80,442 899

South Dakota 63,295 2,205 4,318

Tennessee 50,806 425

Texas 71,842 449

Utah 53,840* 1,066* 214

Vermont 38,050* 939* 28,816

Virginia 85,888 1,876 4 712

Washington 182,969* 297* 207 3,083

West Virginia (c) 44,850 106

Wisconsin 180,000 592

Wyoming 22,266* 3,755 35 19,740

Alaska (d) 60 26

4,862,889

41,316

1,535 134,094

Honey returns

$67,136

61

36,479

00

8,561

90

245,591

00

218,294

50

36,199

00

4,002

00

40,598

75

136,336

80

213,578

00

180,363

20

147,459

00

100,226

00

71,160

03

124,565

25

49,212

95

109,524

37

122,936

25

282,016

26

217,787

75

191,922

87

144,510

50

161,129

00

5,175

00

130,254

54

240,584

00

43,426

75

345,969

75

55,539

40

454,402

50

108,398

75

199,490

00

613,939

30

14.029

00

120,393

00

139,672

00

75,201

94

138,295

70

97,481

00

70,434

10

140,789

40

186,561

00

46,440

00

206,600

00

73,644

75

6,964

00

$6,423,276

87

♦Combined hunting and fishing license.

(a) Department of Game and Fresh Water Fish created 1925.

(b) No state commission.

(c) For six-month period only.

(d) No resident hunting license required.

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

97

USE BLACK POWDER TO FRIGHTEN
BIRDS.

The use of black powder as a means of
frightening birds out of vegetable fields
and orchards is advocated by George Ton-
kin, federal game inspector, and the Cali-
fornia Department of Agriculture.

"It is against the law to kill many
varieties of migratory birds," said Mr.
Tonkin; "furthermore, killing often has
the contrary effect, as dead ducks or dead
geese are frequently observed acting as
decoys. Birds are more affected by fright
caused by unusual conditions than by the
death of some of their own number."

Black powder not only explodes with a
loud noise but gives forth a great quan-
tity of smoke which will quickly frighten
a flock of birds and drive them off the
premises. Black powder shells can be
secured in bulk from most of the whole-
sale powder companies, and will be found
a very effective remedy against birds
preying upon vegetable fields, says the
Department of Agriculture.

Furthermore, the black powder is much
less expensive in first cost than the smoke-
less or sporting powders.

From the standpoint of food value,
insect pest destroyers and scavengers,
our wild birds are increasing in value to
the state as well as to the entire nation.
This is probably a greater asset to the
farmer than to any other class of citi-
zens. The study of bird stomach contents
is continually bringing a greater realiza-
tion of this value.

MARKET GROWING FOR GAME PROP-
AGATED IN CAPTIVITY.

The importance of the industry of rais-
ing game birds in captivity must be
judged from the standpoint of both pro-
duction and consumption of the products,
as is the case with the poultry industry
in general. According to the United
States Department of Agriculture there
are more individuals directly interested
in keeping and breeding fowls than in the
production of any other class of animals
or any class of plants. The birds pro-
duced in this way include not only chick-
ens, turkeys, and guinea fowl ; but also
pheasants, peafowl, ostriches, and migra-
tory waterfowl — ducks, geese, and swans
— and these are raised in all parts of the
United States and under a great variety
of conditions. To a discussion in the
latest Yearbook of the Department of
Agriculture on the economic importance
of the poultry industry in the United
States, W. L. McAtee of the Biological
Survey has contributed the following

chapter on "The Game Poultry In-
dustry" :

In the United States the game-bird mar-
ket has undergone a complete change
within a generation. Formerly this mar-
ket was as well supplied both in quantity
and variety as any in the world, the game
consisting entirely of wild birds. Now,
after almost complete elimination for a
period of years through legal restrictions,
the game-bird market, although enor-
mously decreased, is gradually growing.
The birds marketed, however, except for
certain imported species, are for the most
part propagated in captivity.

Between 1870 and 1880 the passenger
pigeon was shipped literally by the car-
load, and a single consignment of prairie
chickens to a New York dealer weighed
20 tons. Wild ducks by the tens of thou-
sands were poured into the game markets
from all the important hunting grounds of
the country. It gradually became evident
that an increasing demand, easily catered
to because of improved facilities for ship-
ping and marketing, was rapidly deplet-
ing the wild stock. Conservation laws
multiplied, sale was prohibited, and
through a final enactment, the federal
migratory-bird treaty act of 1918, the
market for wild game birds in the United
States was practically closed.

This law, as well as those of numerous
states, has provisions designed to permit
and encourage artificial propagation of
game birds and their marketing under
restrictions intended to prevent drafts on
the wild stock, such as our former experi-
ence proved to be incompatible with its
maintenance. Such legislation has devel-
oped unevenly, as is usually the case when
the 48 states act independently. No fewer
than 28 states have fair to good laws on
the subject, and at least 12 others have
made a beginning. The problem is a
dlfRcult one, and game breeders should
realize that there is no disposition to
hamper them ; rather the almost universal
desire is to encourage them so far as can
be done without endangering our present
standard of protection of wild game.

The propagation and sale of migratory
waterfowl (that is. wild ducks, geese, and
swans) is legal under regulations issued
by the secretary of agriculture, and thou-
sands of persons have obtained permits
issued by him to possess, propagate, and
sell birds of this class. Recent figures
compiled show that in one year 4291 game
breeders reared approximately 42,800
birds, of which about 12,200 were sold for
propagating purposes (including those
used for decoys), 10,100 for food, and
8000 were eaten at liome.

The breeding of nonmigratory game
birds, such as pheasants and quail, is
under state regulation, but statistics as to
the extent of the industry are very unsat-
isfactory. State game departments in a
number of instances rear and distribute
many pheasants, but this activity can not
be reckoned in estimating the commercial

98

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

importance of the propagation of these
birds. Definite totals can hardly be at-
tempted with present knowledge of the
subject, but the statement may be ven-
tured that the 13,100 pheasants, exclusive
of importations, sold for food in New York
and New Jersey in 1922 exceeded the
number sold for such use in other states.
The number sold for propagating and
stocking purposes doubtless is far larger,
but definite figures have not been obtain-
able. So far as individual propagators
are concerned, the data available would
indicate that, while fewer are engaged in
the culture of upland than of aquatic game
birds, the numbers of these birds sold for
propagation and for food are somewhat
larger.

Under present conditions the market for
artificially propagated game birds Is
mainly with those desiring to engage in
rearing the birds and with sportsmen who
wish to use them for decoys and for re-
stocking shooting coverts. Prices realized
from these sources are so high that only
a limited demand exists for the birds for
table use, mainly by the most luxurious
hotels and clubs. So long as the demand
for decoy, stocking, and propagating birds
absorbs most of the output at fancy prices,
it is not likely that production of birds
for food will become much more import-
ant than it is at present. However, should
the rearing of game birds continue to
increase, prices would decrease and a
more general market could be established.

FEDERAL BAG LIMITS REDUCED.

The federal daily bag limits on a num-
ber of migratory game birds have been
reduced under an amendment to the
migratory-bird treaty act regulations
adopted by the secretary of agriculture
and approved by the president on March
S. Hunters who formerly enjoyed a limit
of not to exceed 2-5 Wilson snipe or jack-
snipe a day may take only 20 under the

now regulations when the fall shooting
season arrives. The limit on sora has
been reduced from 50 birds a day to 25.
On rails and gallinules, except sora,
a bag limit is prescribed of 25 in the
aggregate of all kinds, but not more than
15 of any one species. A daily bag limit
of 25 is fixed for coots. The season on
black-billed and golden plovers is closed
indefinitely. These reductions and close
seasons apply throughout the country,
regardless of any state law which may
allow greater privileges.

In addition to the above, changes were
made in the open season for hunting
waterfowl in Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky,
New Mexico, eastern Washington, and
the counties of Nantucket and Dukes in
Massachusetts. In Illinois, Indiana, and
Kentucky the open season was changed
from September 16 to December 31 to
the period October 1 to January 15 ; in
New Mexico from October 1 to January
15, to the period October IG to January
31 ; in eastern Washington from Sep-
tember 16 to December 31, to the period
October 1 to Januarj^ 15, and in the
counties of Nantucket and Dukes in
Massachusetts from September 15 to
December 31 (which will continue as the
open season for the remainder of the state
of Massachusetts) to the period October
1 to January 15. These seasons apply
to waterfowl (including ducks, geese, and
brant) and to coots, gallinules, and Wil-
son snipe or jacksnipe, but the close sea-
son continues on wood ducks, eider ducks,
and swans.

All the amendments were recommended
by the Bureau of Biological Survey of
the Department of Agriculture and con-
curred in by the advisory board, migra-
tory-bird treaty act, before being adopted
bv the secretary of agriculture.

4=^

C^yiilFORNIA FISH AND GAME. 99

FACTS OF CURRENT INTEREST.

Lassen and Modoc County sportsmen are advocating shortening
the season on sage hens to five days.

The Associated Sportsmen's Club of California has succeeded in
welding the various protective associations into a strong organization
which should greatly aid in carrying out California's conservation
program.

During the 1925 tuna canning season 34,238,813 pounds of fish
arrived at the canneries in Los Angeles harbor, and more than
6,000,000 additional pounds went to other canneries of Los Angeles
County.

Final arrangements are being made for the building of a hatchery
in Yosemite National Park. At a recent meeting an agreement
between the National Park Service and the California Fish and
Game Commission was signed and plans are being matured.

Demands for the use of the commission's educational films are
continually growing. In several instances farm advisers have used
films for several weeks at a time in connection with farm bureau
meetings. These educational films are carrying a conservation
message to an increasing number of persons annually.

The commissioners have been active in giving talks at fish and
game protective association meetings. They are so whole-heartedly
in the work that they give freely of their time to meetings of this
kind.

During the^ latter part of April several dozen pheasant eggs were
being gathered daily from the breeding pens at the Yountville Game
Farm. During May hatching will begin and the rearing pens will
soon be in use.

Construction will begin during May of a new hatchery building to
replace one impossible of restoration on the Mount Shasta Hatchery
grounds. This is the major project in connection with the extensive
program of repair and restoration of hatchery equipment now
under way.

Complaints relative to pollution have been so many and the need
of investigation so great that the Bureau of Pollution has employed
a chemical expert who will be in direct charge of pollution cases.
Already numerous complaints have been investigated and many tests
made.

100

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

WATCH FOR MARKED SALMON.

NOTIFY AUTHORITIES IF YOU CATCH FISH WITH PARTS OF FINS MISSING.

DuriuK the season of ^9'2^^ marked salmou will be caught in the Sacramento and
Klamath rivei's and along the coast. Some of these will have either the adipose and
left ventral fins removed as in figure 1, or the adipose and both ventrals cut away as
in figure 2.

The first of t h e s e
groups was marked at
Fall Creek and liberated
in Klamath River in the
fail of 1922. The second
was marked at Sisson at
the same time and liber-
ated in the Sacramento
River.

Others were marked by
cutting away the adipose
and right ventral fins as
in figure F, the adipose
and posterior half of the
dorsal fins as in figure J.
or both ventral fins as in
figure S. These fish were
marked at Fall Creek in
1923 and liberated in the
Klamath River as de-
scribed in Califoexia
Fish a:sd Oame, Vol. 10,
No. 1, page 9.

It is requested that
anyone who secures one
of these fish measure its
length from the tip of
the snout to the middle
of the caudal fin, deter-
mine the sex, cut each
mutilated fin from the
body, scrape a hundred
or so scales from the side
of the bod.v, write down
the length, sex, date and
place of capture, his own
name and address, and
mail all this to the State
Fish and Game Commis-
sion, San Francisco. The
fins should be well salted.
The scales may be spread
out between two pieces of
paper. The commission
will pay 50 cents for such
data relating to each fish
if it proves to actually
be a mai'ked individual.
and so determined by a
scientific assistant of the
commission.

The marking of these fish is a feature of a program of scientific investigation on
the part of the Fish and Game Commission relating to the habits and life history of
species of economic importance. The results of such investigations contribute toward
conservation and maintenance of the fisheries, and it is hoped that fishermen, dealers
packers and consumers will cooperate when opportunity ofifei-s.

CALIFORNIA PISH AND GAME. 101

COMMISSION ACTIVITIES.

At the last civil service examination for deputy fish and game
commissioner, on March 5, approximately 150 candidates took the
examination. This number included temporary employees.

During the months of February and March, 107 arrests were made
and fines totaling $5,685 were imposed. Niunerous seizures of
illegal fish and game were made, including 168 pounds of striped
bass. The heaviest fines imposed were those of $250 each on two
fishermen for using illegal nets in the Sonoma River.

Forty-four dollar-a-year deputies have been appointed and more
are to be appointed in the immediate future.

The numerous news items issued by the Bureau of Publicity are
being used by more than two hundred newspapers. Adequate
newspaper publicity is now being attained.

A mimeographed "Service Bulletin" now goes to all employees
at monthly intervals. It contains information relative to more
efficient and unified handling of conservation work.

Patrol districts under competent captains have been created as
follows :

Mount Shasta — Wm. M. Lippincott Yreka

(Counties of Siskiyou, Shasta, Modoc and north-
east Trinity)

Sacramento Duck — S. J. Carpenter Maxwell

(Counties of Tehama, Glenn, Colusa, Butte, Sut-
ter and the southwest corner of Yuba)

Sacramento — D. E. Roberts Murphys

(Counties of Sacramento, Yolo, El Dorado,
Amador, Calaveras, San Joaquin and eastern
Solano)

San Joaquin — J. E. Newsome Newman

(Counties of Madera, Mariposa, Merced, Stanis-
•'.'•■■ laus and Tuolumne)

Fresno— tE. W. Smalley Stanford

(Counties of Fresno, Kings, Tulare and Kern)

San Francisco — M. S. Clark San Francisco

(Counties of San Francisco, Alameda, Contra
Costa, San Mateo and Bay patrol)

Los Angeles — C. S. Bauder Los Angeles

(All the counties of southern California)

There has been prepared by the Department of Fishculture a list
of all screens and ladders which have been ordered installed by that
department over a long period of years, and a further list of those
streams where such installations are necessary and where orders

102 CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

have not been made. Also a letter has been forwarded by the chief
patrol officer to every deputy, instructing him to make a personal
survey of his district and report the present condition of all screens
and ladders and all places where new installations are necessary.
These reports are now coming to hand and within the next few weeks
the commission will be in a position to enforce the screen and ladder
law in a way never heretofore attempted. Many individual instances
of inadequate screens and ladders have already been investigated by
the commission.

Owing to the depth of snow on the high Sierra passes, difficulty
will be experienced this year in reaching the Rae Lakes Egg Collect-
ing Station sufficiently early to secure a good take of eggs.

Mr. George Coleman, biologist, is making a biological survey of
conditions of Lake Tahoe and tributary streams. The work will be
continued throughout the summer.

The old Kaweah temporary hatchery located at Power House No. 1
is being moved to a new site three miles farther up the river, where
the water will be tested this summer as to its suitability for fish-
cultural purposes. If the water proves satisfactory, arrangements
will be made to construct a permanent hatchery on this site.

Although the total catch of sardines has been less than that for
last season, yet the pack will show an increase of 25 per cent, amount-
ing to something over two million cases.

&vi, s-^: s^a

A fish bulletin detailing the results of the sardine investigation
carried on by the State Fisheries Laboratory is now ready for press.
The bulletin represents only part of five years of work, but it is
expected to form a distinct contribution to the science of fisheries
conservation.

A biological investigation of striped bass has been carried on
during the winter to determine the age, and rate of growth, also the
size and age at which bass mature, and to secure data upon which
to determine the proper minimum mesh of nets to be used. Micro-
scopical studies of the scales have greatly aided in the studies.

it

A very important conference was held at Bakersfield on March 23
at the office of the horticultural commissioner relative to predatory
animal control in game refuge 1-M. Sheep herders maintaining that
coyotes from the refuge prey upon their sheep, asked permission to
use poison to exterminate them. Acting upon the policy adopted by
the cabinet in regard to predatory animal control, opposition was
made to the use of poison pending completion of a comprehensive

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAMK. 103

report now being- prepared by Mr. Joseph Dixon. In the interim the
commission will allow trapping of coyotes under the direction of the
Bureau of Biological Survey. The decision was satisfactory to
county officials.

During the past winter 3,765,000 salmon eggs were hatched at the
Fall Creek Hatchery. Of this number 1,165,000 were liberated in
the Klamath River during the month of March. About half of the
remainder will be held in the ponds for fall planting.

At the Fort Seward Hatchery there are 1,697,000 young salmon on
hand and in fine condition.

Trout spawning operations on the Klamath River progress satis-
factorily during the spring. Spawning fish did not appear in very
great numbers early in the season, owing to low water.

Up to April 1. 1,182,000 trout eggs had been secured at Bear Lake
and were being hatched in the Bear Lake Hatcheries. Eggs were
secured from Kidd Creek, Grout Creek, and North Creek.

Mr. R. J. Irvine has been employed by the Bureau of River and
Harbor Pollution to conduct investig"ations relative to pollution and
to make chemical tests as to the quantity of pollution. All the known
sources of stream or bay pollution in the San Francisco Bay region
have been visited within recent weeks and reports made.

Pollution by crude oil has been found to be one of the most serious
problems before the pollution bureau. This is caused largely by
improper cleansing of wastes from large oil refineries. Still another
serious problem is that of tannery and distillery wastes. Two
important investigations of these problems are under way at the
present time. In several localities reports of pollution, due to dis-
charge of crank case greases and oils by garages through city sewer
systems, have been investigated, and recommendations for solution
or improvment of the situation made to Major Rolin G. Watkins,
director of the pollution bureau.

By the end of March, Superintendent Bade of the Yountville Game
Farm was collecting six dozen pheasant eggs daily. During April
nearly double that number were being laid. Inculoators as well as
hens are being used in hatching operations. The breeding stock of
ring-necked pheasants numbers 256. Four other varieties of pheas-
ants are to be found in the pens, together with a few Hungarian
partridges and valley quail.

r#jr^ ^3 ^^

During the past few months many calls have come in for employees
to address various organizations, notably fish and game protective
associations. New policies and problems confronting the commission

104 CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME,

have been frankly discussed with the sportsmen of the state. The
following report indicates the extent of this activity:

Date Auspices Lecturer Attendance

Mar. 2— Garfield P. T. A., Berkeley Bryant 185

Mar. A — S. F. Aquarium Society, San Francisco Scofield 50

Mar. 4 — Sardine Exporters, San Francisco Greene 20

Mar. 11 — County Supervisors Convention, San Diego_- Bryant 235

Mar. 11 — San Joaquin Fish and Game Protective Zellerbach 350

Assn., Stockton Greene

Hunter

Mar. 16 — Los Gatos Fisli and Game Protective Greene 80

Assn., Los Gatos Hunter

Mar. 18 — University High School, Oakland Bryant 650

Mar. 18 — Berkeley Evening High School, Bekeley Bryant 130

Mar. 20 — San Diego Fish and Game Protective Assn., Greene 21

San Diego Hunter

Mar. 23 — Lindsay Fish and Game Protective Assn., Zellerbach 776

Lindsay Greene

H unter

Mar. 24 — Stanislaus-Tuolumne Counties Fish and Zellerbach 400

Game Protective Assn., Modesto Greene

H unter

Mar. 27 — Santa Cruz Rod and Gun Club, Santa Cru2__Zellerbach 300

Scofield
Greene

Mar. 31 — Gilroy Game Protective Assn., Gilroy Watkins 50

Mar. 31 — Camp Fire Girls, Berkeley Bryant 10

3257

For three years Chas. Latieze, of 115 Bernard street, and Leon
Condere, of 1351 Mason street, San Francisco, played at "hide and
seek" with fish and game wardens. In all that time (despite their
belief that the men were violators of the fish and game laws), the
wardens were unable to "catch them with the goods." Every time
they were approached it was foimd that they had previously gotten
rid of their illegally taken catch of fish.

The chase came to an end on the Pescadero road April 25,
when Patrol Captain M. S. Clark and Patrolman Jack Burke, of
the Fish and Game Commission, overtook the pair, and, searching
their car, found 78 trout hidden in the bottom of boxes of lettuce
and artichokes they were bringing up from Latieze 's ranch. Justice
of the Peace Ellis C. Johnson completed the story when he fined
Latieze $200 in his court at Daly City the following morning. Latieze
pleaded guilty to the charge against him and accepted responsibility
for possession of the fish.

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

105

COMMERCIAL FISHERY NOTES.

By N. B. SCOFIELD, Kditor.

FISHERY STATISTICS FOR 1925.

Statistics compiled by the Commercial
Fisheries Department of the Fish and
Game Commission show a large catch of
fish for the year 192ri. The total of all
fish taken in California waters in 1925
(exclusive of moUusks and crustaceans)
was 404,002,066 pounds. Mollusks and
crustaceans contributed 10,751,246
pounds, bringing the total up to 414,753,-
312 pounds. To this may be added 12,-
045,512 pounds taken in Mexican waters
and brought to the canneries and mar-
kets at San Pedro ; and 10,078,075 pounds
taken in the same area and landed at San
Diego, for a total of 22,382,587 pounds
of "immigrant" fin-bearing beauties. The
gross total of all fish handled by Califor-
nia market fishermen during the year is
thus given as 218,567.7 tons.

Some fish ! The figures thus given out
show a gain of slightly in excess of 2.S
per cent over the figures of 1924.

The greatest gain in any one species is
that of the skipjack {Euthijnniis bonito),
a fish of the mackerel family and some-
what similar to the tunas. The total
figure for this variety in the year 1925
was but 8,768,114 pounds, but this was
an increase of 546 per cent over the
catch of the previous year. From a posi-
tion of no importance in 1924 the skip-
jack rose to that of fourth in all fish
taken (other than sardines) in 1925.

The sardine, California's greatest com-
mercial fish, showed a total of 315,294.986
pounds taken in 1925, an increase of 29
per cent over the 1924 catch. This vari-
ety comprised 78 per cent of all fish taken
in California waters last year. The sar-
dine take was 72,609,028 pounds greater
than that of the year 1924.

The albacore and other tunas, classed
as California's second most interesting
fish crop, increased at the rate of 33' per
cent in 1925. Something over 5000 tons
of this variety came into San Pedro and
San Diego from Mexican waters. The
California take was 28,837,702 pounds.

The salmon, for many years one of
California's largest fish crops, fell off 5
per cent last year. The total catch for
the year was 9,525,753 pounds. The catch
in striped bass increased 26 per cent, with
a total of 837,773 pounds.

The smallest take in the state com-
mercial fish crop was that of steelhead
trout (Salmo irideus), of which 222
pounds were taken in California waters.
Mexican waters contributed none of this
variety.

Among the other varieties showing a
deci-easc in 1925 were : yellowtail, white
sea bass, sculpin and white bait. These
decreases ran from 10 to 42 per cent.

Shad, which is taken only in the Sacra-
mento River and its tributaries, showed
an increase of 80 per cent. The total
catch was 2,439,826 pounds.

Flatfish, including halibut, flounder,
sole and sand dabs, increased but 2 per
C3nt. Mackerel increased 8 per cent.

Among the crustaceans the 1925 take of
crabs increased by 100 per cent. The
take of spiny lobster increased 43 per
cent. Mollusks showed little or no change.
Abalones increased from 2,241,812 pounds
in 1924 to 2,352,866 pounds in 1925.

An interesting sidelight on the figures
thus made public is that San Pedro leads
all other state ports in fish tonnage.
The total landed there in 1925 was 218,-
086,323 pounds. Monterey ranks second
with a total of 132,226,106 pounds. Sar-
dine canning operations at both those
ports are declared to be the cause of
this condition.

The figures can best be appreciated by
comparing them with those of such fish-
ing ports as Boston, Gloucester and
Seattle, where the fish catch landed dur-
ing the same period was 149,038,498,
49,471,954, and 32,394,460 pounds, re-
spectively, according to figures of the Fed-
eral Bureau of Fisheries.

SALMON TO BE TAGGED ON CALI-
FORNIA COAST.

In cooperation with British Columbia.
the United States Bureau of Fisheries
and the states of Oregon and Washing-
ton, the Department of Commercial Fish-
eries is undertaking the tagging of 2000
salmon caught by trolling along the coast
of California. Representatives of the
Fish and Game Commission will go out
with the trolling boats and purchase the
fish from the fishermen as they are
caught. A numbered metal tag will be
securely clamped to the tail of the fish
and it will be immediately returned to
the water.

The object of this experiment is to
determine the migration of the salmon.
It is expected to furnish some interesting
results, for last year British Columbia
did some tagging to the westward of
Vancouver Island and two of the fish
tagged there put in an appearance in the
Sacramento River, California, and over
fifty were recovered in the Columbia
River. As salmon are known to return

106

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

to their jiaront stream for the purpose of
spawniiii;, the capture of the two tagged
salmon in the Sacramento Iliver is evi-
dence tliat our Sacramento salmon wan-
der far alield, which brings about inter-
state complications and inlcrnalional
complications as well.

A reward of 50 cents is being offereil
for each tag returned to the Fish and
Game Commission with information con-
cerning where the fish was taken and
the dale and method of capture.

NEW MEXICAN TREATY INCLUDES
FISHERIES REGULATION.

Tin' following is from an article ap-
pearing in the April, 192G, issue of the
J'dcific Fi.slicniion. and is of interest to
the commercial fislieries industry in south-
ern California :

"The new treaty recently negotiated
between the United States and Mexico,
which is expected to become effect-
ive in the near future, provides for
a more definite policy in the regulation
of international fisheries adjacent to
the boundai"j' of the two countries,
and is expected to bring about more
satisfactory conditions in the Lower
California fishery whose product goes
mainly to United States markets. Pro-
vision is made for a commission to con-
sist of two representatives of each gov-
ernment, whose unanimous recommenda-
tions will serve as a guide for coopera-
tive legislation. The treaty also takes
u\> narcotics and iaimigration questions,
which have occupied public attention to
the exclusion of the fishery features.

Owing to the great interest of Califor-
nia in the border fisheries, N. B. Sco-
field, chief of the Commercial Fisheries
Department of the State Fish and Game
< 'ommission, Avas some time ago called to
Washington for consultation on the mat-
ter. A question arose as to whether the
terms of the treaty might not tend to

transfer a measure of the state's control
of its fisheries (o tlie federal government;
but iMider the wording adopted there
seems to be little possibility that this
would occur. On the other hand, the
treaty is expected to be highly advantage-
ous to the southern California tish i)ack-
ing industi-y, as well as to Mexico, which
derives a large revenue from American
fishing operations based at Lower Cali-
fornia ports.

It is understood that there has in the
past been some lack of uniformity in the
administration of the fisheries in I.,ower
California; the export tax on fish is nom-
inally .$;30 per ton, but it is believed that
some operators have been paying only
half that amount, and consideralde poach-
ing also has been done. The treaty is
said to provide that all fishing boats will
be required to clear from ports of the
country in whose waters they have been
operating, which will facilitate the uni-
form collection of duties and place opera-
tors on an equal footing. It is thought
possible, also, that the treaty may result
in a reduction of the tax. In view of the
various advantages, Mr. Scofield feels
that the treaty will be of benefit to both
countries in so far as it deals with fishery
matters."

Advice from Washington states that
President Coolidge has approved the
names of Henry O'Malley (chief of the
United States Baireau of Fisheries) and
N. B. Scofield as the two commissioners
on the International Fisheries Commis-
sion— United States and Mexico — to rep-
resent the T''nited States.

PATROL BOAT ALBACORE GETS
NEW ENGINE.

The gasoline engine in the patrol launch
Albacore, in southern California, which
has seen eight years' service, is being
replaced by a 65 h.p. full Diesel black oil
engine.

LIFE HISTORY NOTES.

IVIOUNTAIN SHEEP TAKEN CAPTIVE.

Sportsmen of the San Joaquin ^'alley
were much interested last winter when
reports were received that a strange ani-
mal had been seen near Woody, Kern
County. This animal resembled the do-
mestic ram except that it had a body
somewhat like a deer and a head like a
sheep. It was first reported by a motor-
ist who saw it standing by the side of the
road. A day or two later it was seen near
Glenville, about eight miles east of
Woody. The following day, Mr. Benton
Martin, while looking for cattle near his

ranch, saw this animal, and with the aid
of his dogs succeeded in roping and taking
it home.

This animal, which proved to be a
mountain sheep, seemed to be at home in
its new surroundings and was allowed to
run loose in Mr. Martin's barn and corral,
from which it escaped during the night.
However, several pictures were taken of
this sheep, one of which is reproduced
herewith.

Many reports are received that moun-
tain sheep have been seen in the high
nioiiiitains of Tulare County, hut the

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

1'07

only report verified was when Dr. Joseph
Grinnell was called as an expert witness
in a case involving- the killing of a moun-
tain sheep near Milo, in Tulare Count.y.
That sheep, a female, and the ram de-
scribed above are the only ones of actual
record for this county in years.

Old hunters state that mountain sheep
were formerly plentiful in the Mount
Whitney and Kern River country, but
none have been seen in recent years.

Mountain sheep are not uncommon in
eastern Inyo County, and many wonder
if this specimen, caught at least 75 miles
as the crow flies from its natural habitat,
is one of the Inyo sheep strayed from its
home iu the desert, or if it had been held

INVESTIGATIONS OF DEER DISEASE
IN MENDOCINO COUNTY.

During the past winter numerous re-
ports have come from Mendocino County
that deer were dying from some sort of
disease and that most of these deer were
young. An investigation made by Roy
Ludlum of the Fish and Game Commis-
sion leads to the view that at least some
of the stories were unfounded ; in fact
that perhaps they were started purposely
to keep hunters out of certain territory.
One man who reported many deer sick,
admitted when questioned that there were
only a few specific instances. Most of
the newspaper items were evidently based
on information furnished the Biological

Fig. 22. Stray Sierra mountain sheep discovered and photographed near Woody,
Kern County. It is a very rare instance when a mountain sheep wanders so far
below timber line. Pliotograph by B. Martin.

in captivity and had escaped and was
heading for its home when discovered and
caught ; or if this is one of the surviv-
ors of the bands that once roamed the
high mountains of Tulare County. The
last theory seems the most probable, as
this sheep has not been seen since its
escape two months ago, showing that it
still retained its inherited cunning.

Cattlemen and sportsmen have been
requested to report any information in
reference to this sheep, and it is hoped
that more will be heard later. — O. P.
Brownlow, Porterville, California.

Survey by this man. In the Island Moun-
tain region, the particular area covered
in the investigation, there was no indica-
tion that any great number of deer had
died from an epidemic.

A report by Frank Clarke, who made
studies of the deer disease in -Trinity
County several years ago, is to the effect
that a considerable number of young-
deer died in the vicinity of Laytonville,
and he explains their death as follows :

"The fawns got a bad start last sum-
mer. There was an abundance of native
grasses. The quantity was unusually

108

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

great, while the quality was lacking.
Permit me to cite my own business. The
calves and lambs that were born in Feb-
ruary and early March got a good start
and developed at about an 85 per cent
rate, while those that cann" in April or
May (just a few dozen in my ens-) were
almost 'useless' unless i)ut in .111 alfalfa
field during the summer.

Up here we had a great deal of rain
during April, May and June. The gras.ses
grew to unusual heights. Nature ful-
filled its mission in that ease : coarse
stalks and seed. But nutriment was lack-
ing proportionately, while fiber and acid
predominated. Having exhausted them-
selves, the plants did not furnish any late
green seed. The mass of stuff fell down
and in general a great deal of it moulded
and rotted.

These conditions prevailed in this sec-
tion of the country : domesticated stock
did not fatten well, and, as I have stated
above, the late born did nothing without
unusual help. The fawns come here about
May. Last season they fared like every-
thing else, maybe worse. The acorn crop
here was very light; but autumn came
early and winter was mild, otherwise the
deer would have fared badly. There was
what the ranchers call 'fine feed' all win-
ter. But the young deer didn't seem to
thrive. They came out into the grass,
ate heartily, got diarrlKpa. and many of
them died. The rations they got during
the first months of their existence were
doubtless lacking in vitamines. In this
instance I do not believe there was
any definite disease, at least nothing
which could be controlled. I believe
the present trouble is one that occurs
nearly every year, sometimes worse than
others. The popular opinion among old
timers, like my father, is that during
winters of abundant rank growth of grass
like this past winter, the deer will be
affected with 'scours.' This seems to be
true especially when there is lots of
clover, green and rank. I remember that
the winter of 1900 and 1901 was warm
and wet. There was abundant feed and
the deer got sick and died everywhere.
That time the grown deer were affected
as well as the young ones. We had a
man building a fence at that time. He
and his family nearly starved because
the deer were too thin to eat. He hunted
all over the country and found plenty of
deer, sick and dying. He was a careful
observer and did not exaggerate.

It is claimed that the fawns are born
later in the spring now than they were
years ago. This seems reasonable when
we consider that 'stocking' the country
has literally killed out certain plants that

formerly furnished green feed for deer all
year around. The depletion of their nor-
mal foods naturally hampered their nutri-
tion and growth. A female under im-
paired conditions does not usually breed
as soon as one under favorable condi-
tions."— H. C. Bryant, Berkeley, Cali-
fornia.

REPORTS ON ANTELOPE FAVOR-
ABLE.

During the past year numerous ante-
lope have been seen in Secret Valley, Las-
sen County, and several small herds have
been reported regularly in Modoc County
near Alturas. One herd said . to have
numbered but six a few years ago con-
tains twenty-two at the present time. —
H. C. Bryant, Berkeley, California.

SISKIYOU COUNTY PAYS A BOUNTY
ON COYOTES.

On November 15, 1925. Siskiyou County
placed a bounty of $5 each on coj'otes.
Between that date and January 31,
1926, trappers have collected bounty on
522 coyotes. A greater portion of ' these
coyotes were caught in the Scott River
basin. This part of Siskiyou County is
our best deer country, and these coyotes
have taken a heavy toll in the past two
years. A large number of wild cats have
been taken this winter, some extra large
ones. — Wm. Lippincott, Yreka, California.

SALMON FAVORED BY UNUSUAL
CONDITIONS.

The past season salmon have had a
better chance than usual to run the gaunt-
let of fishermen's nets in Carquinez
Straits. The abundant rarn brought on
freshets which made conditions impossi-
ble for the laying of nets. Then durlyg
April a strike of fishermen gave a chance
for another run of salmon to reach their
spawning grounds. Of course this is just
in addition to the regular opportunities
afforded salmon through a close season,
a one day a week, when net's are not
allowed in the river. That salmon still
grow to be of large size is evidenced by
one taken on April 20, 1926, at Sutter-
ville, which weighed 66 pounds. — W. J.
Green, Sacramento, California.

STURGEON ON INCREASE.

The sturgeon is the only fish in the
State of California given total protection
by law ; furthermore, this fish is one of
the largest fishes found in fresh water.
Originally very abundant, its numbers
were decimated by Chinese who used
set lines. A further factor is to be found
in the fact that the eggs are the basis of
that delectable dish of the epicure — caviar.

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

109

For a number of years past the sturgeon
has seldom been seen in streams ; how-
ever, during the last year complaints by
Sacramento River fishermen have been
on the increase. This big fish occasion-
ally strikes a salmon net, causing con-

siderable damage. Fishermen near Rio
Vista have also reported seeing this large
fish occasionally break the water. It is
to be hoped that these reports really mean
that this fish is again on the increase. — ■
W. J. Green, Sacramento, California.

CONSERVATION IN OTHER STATES.

OREGON HAS NEW BAG LIMIT ON
TROUT.

At the request of sportsmen who are
vitally interest in maintaining angling in
the lakes of the central Oregon district,
the bag limit on trout has been reduced
by the game commission to thirty fish or
fifteen pounds and one fish in one day ;
and sixty fish or thirty pounds and one
fish in any seven consecutive days.

ILLINOIS EXTERMINATING WOOD-
CHUCKS.

Jt has become necessary for the state
of Illinois to employ poison as a means
of ridding itself of woodchucks. This is
against the law, as no wild game or other
animals even when found destroying prop-
erty may be poisoned. However, the De-
partment of Conservation has now au-
thorized the farmers to use cyanide of
potassium, but only under the direction
of an expert or representative of the de-
partment. Many fur-bearing animals
inhabit the home of the woodchuck, and
it is for this reason that this care must
be taken, and only the expert is able to
detect the presence of these animals.

OREGON CLOSES CERTAIN LAKES.

Oregon has determined upon a policy
of closing certain depleted lakes and
streams to anglers for a period of ten
years. It is understood, however, that
any of these streams may be reopened
when requested by organized sportsmen
of the counties in which the streams are
located. In this we see an extension of
the refuge idea to fish. As a rule a stream
and all of its tributaries are closed by
an order of the State Game Commission.
In Klamath County five streams and four
lakes have been closed to the angler, to-
gether with a section of the Klamath
River and a small area on Link River
below a dam. About sixty lakes and
streams have been closed in Lane County.
Many of the small mountain lakes which
formerly contained no fish life, but which
were recently stocked, have also been
closed for a period of three years. It is
evident, therefore, that an extensive pro-
gram has been mapped out.

MISSOURI INCREASES REFUGE
SYSTEM.

Missouri began a game refuge system
about two years ago with the purchase
of one 12,000-acre tract and another 5000-
acre tract. Now comes the announce-
ment of the establishment of a game
refuge of 2000 acres of virgin timber
land in Mississippi County. A single
strand of heavy galvanized wire will sur-
round the sanctuary. Along this wire
metal signs will be hung at intervals of
100 yards, "Trespassing at any time for
any purpose is unlawful." This 2000-
acre enclosure will be the cover for wild
animal life and will be left in its natural
condition and undisturbed except for an
occasional inspection trip of the refuge
keeper.

Feed will be furnished birds in the
form of grain which will be planted in
certain places and left to grow. A public-
spirited citizen donated the area to the
state of Missouri.

PENNSYLVANIA ISSUES EDUCA-
TIONAL BULLETIN.

The Board of Game Commissioners of
Pennsylvania has just issued a bulletin
entitled "Year's Program for Bird Pro-
tection" by George M. Sutton, chief o? edu-
cational service. In the introduction it
is pointed out that an educational service
with a trained ornithologist in charge
has been established. The new bulletin
is designed primarily for use in the pub-
lic schools of the state. The friends of
bird life, the enemies of birds and meth-
ods of protecting and attracting bird life
are the main subjects treated. Attractive
photographs are used in illustration.

MISSOURI CLOSES SEASON ON DEER.

Missouri's remnant of deer have been
reduced to only 395, due mainly to the
great inroads made by dogs. There is
to be a closed season on deer for five
years, during which period it is hoped to
increase the deer population of the state.
This can only be done with the additional
cooperation of the fox hunters, the own-
ers of the dogs.

110

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

ILLINOIS LICENSES HUNTING CLUBS.

At a I'Pceut meoting of the Illinois Gen-
eral Assembly many changes were made
in the game and fish code. Of particu-
lar interest is section 27(7 on hunting
clubs. This new regulation requires any
person or club holding land for the pur-
pose of hunting migratory birds to make
application to the Department of Con-
servation and pay a license fee of $10.
An accurate daily register must be kept
showing number and kind of migratory
birds killed, which shall be open to inspec-
tion tf> persons having authority to en-
force the game laws of Illinois. If no
record is k(>iit b.v one hunting on a pri-
vate roser\ .iliiin hi' can be held under the

contention that all game in possession
was shot in one day.

Persons not hunting on a reservation
will not have to keep daily records, but
they can not exceed the daily limit of
migratory birds.

INDIANA'S EDUCATIONAL WORK.

The conservation commission of Inili-
ana hires a school lecturer whose duty it
is to give conservation lectures at the
various schools of the state. Part of this
lecturer's salary is paid by the Audubon
Society. With a fully equipped Ford and
lantern, this man is able to reach prac-
tically all of the schools of tlie state.
His aim is "to make sportsmen conserva-
tionists out of mere killers."

CALIFORNIA PISH AND GAME.

Ill

STATEMENT OF INCOME.

October, November and December, 1925.

License sales: Detail Total

Angling. -... $55,262 00

Hunting 75,463 00

Market fishermen's 4,860 00

Trapping 2,247 00

WTiolesale fish packers' and shellfish dealers' 325 00

Game breeders' 30 00

Total license sales $138,187 00

Other income:

Courtfines $17,736 00

Fish packers' tax 23,794 82

Kelp tax 1 20

Fish tag sales - 829 81

Game tag sales 26 44

Interest on bank deposits 724 06

Sale of nets and twine 150 00

Total other income.. $43,262 33

Total income $181,449 33

STATEMENT OF EXPENDITURES.
For the Period October 1, 1925, to December 31, 1925, of the Seventy-seventh Fiscal Year.

Function

Administration:

Commissioners

Executive offices

Printing

Research and publicity

Accident and death claims.

Department totals

Commercial fish culture and conservation:

Superintendence

Inspection and patrol

Research

Statistics

Propagation and distribution of salmon.

Department totals

Sporting fish culture:
Superintendence.

Special field investigations

Propagation and distribution of trout.

Department totals

Patrol and law enforcement:
Prosecutions and allowances .
General patrol

Fish and game conservation:

Game bird introduction

Game farm

Mountain lion hunting

Mountain lion bounties

Department totals

License commissions

Total Fish and Game Commission.

Materials

and
Supplies

$142 33

2,772 05

24 55

$2,938 93

$185 70

944 69

616 32

10 96

5,470 29

$7,227 96

$17 47
"l5",559li'

$15,576 68

$622 96

$203 80

$826 76

$26,570' 33

Salaries

and
Wages

$5,454 99

1,095 00

6,549 99

$2,637 10
8,240 23
2.617 50
2,023 38
4,448 33

$19,966 54

$2,575 00

129 03

12,358 69

$15,062 72

$35,413 89

$350 00
375 00

$36,138 89

$77,718 14

Service

and
Expense

$27 55
1,156 19

204 90
807 30

$2,195 94

$1,261 61

1,776 12

805 81

143 84

333 94

$4,321 32

8578 64

54 17

2,438 10

$3,070 91

23,471 57

$0 50

152 58

385 12

1,180 00

$25,202 75
$16,565 30

$51,356 22

Property

and
Equipment

$84 72

$84 72

$66 99
31 55

71 36

$169 90

$3 50

174 03

$177 53

$108 75

$929 05

$1,037 80

$1,469 95

Total

$27 55

6,838 23

2,772 05

1.324 45

807 30

$11,769 58

S4.084 41

11,028 03

4,071 18

2.178 18

10.323 92

$31,685 72

$3,174 61

183 20

30,530 03

$33,887 84

$12 98
59,617 17

$0 50

1,635 43

760 12

1,180 00

$63,206 20
$16,565 30

$157,114 64

112

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

FISH CASES.
October-Noveniber-December, 1925.

Number
Arrests

Violations of Angling License Act 13

Violations of Commercial Fishing License Act 1

Trout : over bag limit 6

Trout : offering for sale 1

Striped bass: over bag limit; undersized 13

Striped bass : sale, closed season 2

Crabs: undersized 13

Crabs: closed season 1

Clams: undersized; over bag limit : 33

Cockles: undersized 2

Abalones : undersized; over bag limit 48

Lobsters: undersized 19

Lobsters : closed season 2

Salmon : taking, other than with hook and line 14

Salmon: over bag limit 1

Halibut: undersized 2

Barracuda: undersized 1

Fishing within 250 feet of fishways 4

Pollution of streams 3

Illegal night fishing 3

Nets: illegal possession or use 8

Totals 190

Jail

Fines

Sentences

Imposed

(days)

1290.00

10

2.5.00

125.00

100.00

245.00

60

50.00

200.00

25.00

1.325.00

50.00

1,050.00

730.00

125.00

1,100.00

100.00

40.00

100.00

25.00

540

200.00

90

75.00

600.00

$6,580.00

700

GAME CASES.
October- November -December, 1925.

Number
Arrests

Violations of Hunting License Act 68

Violations of Fur Trapping Regulations 4

Deer: hunting, killing, possession; closed season 35

Deer skins : evidence of sex removed 1

Deer: killing, possession; does, fawns, spike bucks 10

Ducks: killing, possession; closed season 1

Ducks: over bag limit 12

Wood ducks: killing, possession 1

Shorebirds : killing, possession 16

"VN'ild pigeons : killing, possession 2

Doves: killing, possession; closed season 1

Cranes: sandhill, killing, possession 2

Quail : over bag limit 1

Quail: killing, possession; closed season 28

Pheasants: killing, possession 2

Nongame birds: killing, possession 12

Rabbits : cottontail-brush ; killing, possession ; closed

season 10

Squirrels: killing, possession 3

Shooting from power boat, automobile 18

Night hunting 33

Totals 260

Jail

Fines

Sentences

Imposed

(days)

11,115.00

10

60.00

2,760.00

150

50.00

450.00

50.00

440.00

25.00

440.00

50.00

25.00

50.00

25.00

1,050.00

125.00

30

300.00

230.00

95.00

301.00

2

710.00

$8,351.00

192

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME

113

SEIZURES OF FISH AND GAME.

July- August- September.

GAME
Quail 2

Doves 71

Nongame birds 3

Deer meat, pounds 1912

Rabbits 22

6

1

38

___. 3

3

1

Bear meat, pounds 10

Robins

Plover

Ducks

Sagehens

Tree squirrels.
Bear hides

FISH

Trout 246

Striped bass 579

Barracuda, pounds 6500

Pismo clams 4914

Crabs 19

Abalones 201

Salmon, pounds 12,350

Crab meat, pounds 260

Smelt, pounds 10

Catfish 115

Lobsters 36

Nets 2

October- November -December.

Quail 95

Doves

Pheasant 3

Nongame birds 9

Deer meat, pounds 944

Rabbits 3

Beaver hides 1

Robins 2

Ducks 1449

Tree squirrels 9

Shorebirds 268

Seagulls 3

Deer liides 10

Bear hides

Sandhill crane-
Mud hens

Geese

Wood ducks

Pigeons

1
1
2
139
2
5

Trout 167

Striped bass 276

Barracuda, pounds 2863

Pismo clams 1073

Lobster 506

Crabs 781

Crab meat, pounds 551

Abalone 329"

Salmon, pounds 1188

Nets 3

Catfish, pounds 86

Spear 1

Halibut, pounds H

Cockles 22'

114

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

E

u.

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V

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via San Diego..

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CALIFORNIA PISH AND GAME.

115

1,126,511
180
115

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California Fish and Game

"CONSERVATION OF WILD LIFE THROUGH EDUCATION"

Volume 12 SACRAMENTO, JULY, 1926 Number 3

CONTENTS.

Page

DEPLETION OP THE PISMO CLAM IN CALIPORNIA__Wtniam C. Herrington 117

SUGGESTED DATES OF OPEN SEASON ON DEER IN CALIFORNIA

James Moffltt 124

FISH AND GAME COMMISSION ADOPTS NEW POLICY OF FISH PLANTING

B. D. Marx Greene 12S

A BIRD HOUSE COLONY Grace M. French 130

EDITORIALS -- 134

FACTS OF CURRENT INTEREST , 144

COMMISSION ACTIVITIES 145

COMMERCIAL FISHERY NOTES 149

LIFE HISTORY NOTES ^ -- 151

CONSERVATION IN OTHER STATES 153

reports-
Violations OF Fish and Game Laws 155

Financial Report 150

Fishery Products, January to March, 1926-- -- 1 15S

DEPLETION OF THE PISMO CLAM IN CALIFORNIA.

By William C. Herrington.
Contribution No. 57 from the State Fisheries .Laboratory.

On certain sections of the California coast the Pismo clam beds sup-
port a fishery of considerable magnitude. During 1925, commercial
diggers shipped more than 323,000 pounds of these clains from the
Pismo-Oceano and Morro beaches. The fishery is, however, of much
greater importance as a source of recreation and food supply to thou-
sands of tourists and auto campers, as well to the local inhabitants of
the region. During favorable low tides in the summer months of
recent years, hundreds and sometimes thousands of automobiles were
to be seen parked on the long sandy beaches at Pismo, Oceano, and

46333

118 CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

Morro, while their occupants Avere engaged in digging this esteemed
niolhisk. In former j-ears the Pismo clam was found in abundance on
most of the open sandy beaclies of California from Santa Crnz south-
ward. Due to unrestricted digging in the early years, the ])eaches
were rapidly depleted, especially near the areas of densest population,
until at present the clams are found, in any abundance, only on the
]Morro and Pismo-Oceano beaches in San Luis Obisi)o County.

An investigation of the life history and growth of the Pismo clam
was begun by F. W. Weymouth in 1919. The results of his work were
published in 1923 in Fish Bulletin No. 7 of the California Fish and
Came Commission. Since ]923 inem])ors of the staff of the State
Fisheries Laboratory have utilized the results obtained by Weymouth,
in making an annual census of the clam population in the beaches of
San Luis Obispo County. The purpose of the work has been to obtain
material for a further study of the Pismo clam and to observe the
effect of restrictions of size and bag limit in preserving its abundance.

The highly localized life of the clam in the intertidal zone of easily
accessible beaches has provided an excellent opportunity for a quantita-
tive study of the effects of dominant year classes, successful spawning
seasons, and overfishing, on the abundance of a species. Any infor-
mation on such questions is of value because of its possible application
to the life history study of less accessible animals.

This article is written to bring to the attention of those interested
in the future abundance of the clams, a brief description of the deple-
tion in the fisher}^ which has occurred since the first census of the
beaches was made in 1919. A more detailed explanation of methods,
data, and calculations will be published at a later date.

Oceano beach has, in recent years, furnished the greatest abundance
of Pismo clams on the California coast, and is also the only beach for
which we have complete records from 1919 to the present. For the
foregoing reasons it has been selected as the location of the present
investigation. Work done on the other beaches during the last three
years bears out, in all the essentials, the results obtained at Oceano.

In order to study the fluctuations in the abundance of the clams,
several cross-sections of the beach were made each year. The sections
were of a standard width and made at the same location on succeeding
years. All of the clams were taken from the sections, then counted,
measured, and their ages read. Comparison of the data obtained from
corresponding sections on subsequent years shows the fluctuations in
the abundance and size of the clams in such a section. As these sec-
tions were made at representative locations on the beach, their fluctua-
tions in abundance give a measure of the fluctuations in the popula-
tion of the entire beach.

Tables 1 and 2 give the results obtained from the cross-sections made
at Oceano during the years 1919-1925. Table 1 gives the total number
of clams taken from the cross-section each year and the year classes
from which they came. Table 2 gives the same data, but with the
number of each year class reduced to per cent of the total number of
clams from the section for the respective years. Examination of the
table shows that the greater part of the clam population from 1919-
1924 was formed by the 1919 class. This is graphically shown in figure
23. The solid line represents the number of clams of all ages taken

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

119

from the Oceano section for each year since 1919. The dotted line
shows the number of clams of the 1919 class taken each year from the
section. If the area beneath the solid line is considered as a repre-
sentative sample of the entire beach population for the years repre-
sented, then the area beneath the dotted line gives the proportion the
1919 class formed of the total and the cross hatched area gives the
proportion of all other classes. This graph shows to what extent the
1919 class has dominated the clam population in the beach since 1919,
and how the destruction of this class must necessarily cause a great
depletion of the total population.

TABLE 1.

Number of Pismo clams of each year class obtained from the Oceano cross-sections since 1918.

The sections were 16cm. wide.

Date

September 11, 1919
November 23, 1920.
July 23, 1921_
August 25, 1922.
October 24, 1923.
November 25, 1924.
October 30, 1925.

Before
1918

1918

16d

4
42
31
11

0

0

1919

704 ±
490
418
465
317
169
5

1920

1

2

13

20
5
1

1921

0
12

6

11

2

1922

3

29

31

4

1923

1924

65
54

1925

Total

720
495
462
524
386
294
74

TABLE 2.
The figures from Table 1 in percentages.

Date

Before
1918

1918

1919

1920

1921

1922

1923

1924

1925

Total

September 11, 1919

November 23, 1920

0
0
0
0

1
0
0

2
1
9
6
3

0

0

98
99
91
89
82
58
7

0
0
2
5

2

2

0

O

2
4
3

1
7

10
5

0
2
4

22

72

7

100
100

July 23, 1921

100

August 25, 1922

100

October 24, 1923

100

November 25, 1924

100

October 30, 1925.--.

100

The dotted line in figure 23, showing the decreasing number of clams
of the 1919 year class in succeeding years, forms the mortality curve of
the class. The heavy mortality between 1919 and 1920 occurred dur-
ing the first year of the young clam existence, when they were small
and more or less at the mercy of their natural enemies. For the next
two years the mortality was very slight. During this time the
clams were large enough to be safe from their natural enemies, and yet'
too small to be dug by man. From 1922 through 1925, the clams of the
class were reaching the minimum legal size limit of 4f inches. Because
of the scarcity of larger and older clams, the members of this new
class were dug in great numbers by the clammers. The effect of this
extensive digging is shown in the curve from 1923 to 1925. About
one-third of the total number were taken each year until at the end
of 1925, the entire class had been nearly wiped out.

The depletion of the 1*919 class, and consequently of the entire fish-
ery, is shown in another manner in figure 24. This graph shows the
length frequency curves for the clams from the Oceano cross-sections
at the end of 1924 and 1925, In the 1924 cux've, the first peak near the

2—46333

120

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

2 cm. length represents the class spawned in 1924, the next two peaks
are for the 1923 and 1922 classes, and the great peak about the 11^ cm.
length is due largelj^ to the 1919 class, which makes up 58 per cent of
the total population and dominates the j^ear groups of 1921 and 1920, as
well as all the older groups. The cross-hatched area shows the pro-
portion of clams which were above legal size. The 1925 curve repre-
sents the population one year later. The most important change dur-
ing the 3'ear is in the 1919 year class. The members of this group
have practical^ all passed the minimum size limit and due to the
heavy fishing, few of them have escaped the diggers. The other year
classes have moved along as expected, and as they are below the
legal limit, they have suffered little depletion. This is, indeed, a strik-

600

\

1

\

^"^

^

-^00

VJ

o

1
1

^^fc

k

200

^^JnWxwwx I

•

«v

<^T

•o Tot

al numbe/

' of c/ams

of all cla

sses

^^v

—

•• A/u/

■nber of c/om^ of /9/

9 year c/o^

s

^

0

*

/9/9

/920

/92I

/922

/923

/924-

/9ZS

Fig. 23. Graph showing the influence of the dominant year class of 1919 on
tlie abundance of clams at Oceano Beach. The solid line shows the total
number of clams taken from the Oceano cross-section each year since 1919.
The dashed line shows the number of these which were of the 1919 year class.
The values are from Table 1.

ing conmientary on the imminent fate of llie clams once they have
passed the size of legal protection.

The growth of the numerous 1919 class to legal size during 1923.
1924, and 1925, caused a great increase in the available supply of
clams in the beach. This increase in the abundance of large clams
caused a general belief, among many people interested in the fishery,
that the Pismo clam was coming back to the abundance it enjoyed in
former years. A glance at figure 24 shows how fallacious is such a
belief, for the recent abundance is but a temporary condition caused by
the growth of one numerous year class. Due to the heavy fishing, the
clams of this class were practically wiped out in three years. Enough
of the clams were left at the end of 1925 to furnish a moderate supply

caijIfornia fish and game.

121

to the few diggers during the winter of 1925-1926, but when the
heavy summer fishing is again imposed in 1926, the full effect of the
great depletion will be felt.

Now that the 'supply of large clams is, for the present, nearly
exhausted, the question is, What can we expect of the future supply?
Any future supply of clams must come directly or indirectly from the
younger year classes now in the beach. A knowledge of such classes
is, therefore, essential to any intelligent program for the future. The
only class now found in anv abundance at Pismo or Oceano is that of

so

40

-JO

%20

10

30

\ 20

I
I 10

LENGTM rRCOUENCy CURVE
of all clamj from

crois section £'
Oceano Nov 2S, /9Z4

kA\

jQL

/

.••

LENGTH FREQUENCY CURVE
of all clams from

cross section A
Oceano Beach l9iS

:^

B

.^

:^

V .^*wni^.

5 6 7 8 9 10

LCNGTH IN C€NTIIHCT£f>S

II 12 13 /4 IS /6

L£NCTM IN INCHES

Fig. 24. Length frequency curves for cross-sections at Oceano in
1924 and 1925. In curve A, for 1924, the mode about the 1.8
cm. length represents the 1924 year class. The great mode
about the 11.8 cm. length is largely due to the 1919 year class
which dominates the year groups of 1921, 1920 and 1918. The
shaded area shovi's the proportion of the clams virhich have
reached legal size. Curve B is for a cross-section made one
year later at the same location as A.

1924. This class, although the most abundant since 1919, is but 11 per
cent as numerous as was that class at the same age. It can, therefore,
be expected under present conditions to have a correspondingly small
influence on the future supply. Indeed, the increasing scarcity of the
large clams will make the small ones more and more the victims of

122 CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

thoughtless and unprincipled diggers, and if they are not rigidly pro-
tected, it may well be that few of them will ever reach legal size, or
mature sufficiently to spawn and thus help perpetuate their race.

If any intelligent program for the preservation of the Pismo clam
fishery is to be carried out in the future, it is essential that there be
an understanding of the agencies that have caused the present deple-
tion. The data collected since 1919 gives a general idea of the enor-
mous number of clams removed by these agencies. Our cross sections
show that at Oceano in the fall of 1922, there were approximatel}^
5,270,000 Pismo clams in a single mile of beach. When it is consid-
ered that the productive area of the Pismo-Oceano Beach is from seven
to nine miles in length, it is evident that even if the foregoing esti-
mate is high, the total number of clams must have been enormous.
Three years later in the fall of 1925, similar sections show that the
number of clams had been reduced to 750,000 individuals for a mile of
beach; a reduction in three j-ears of 4,520,000 clams, or 86 per cent.
The cross-sections were made near the middle of the productive area
and can be considered as representative of, at least, the central section
of the beach. During the three years for which the data is cited, there
occurred no great natural catastrophe which could account for such
a mortality. There have been reports now and then of the destruction
of clams by the presence of oil from tankers loading at Port San Luis.
In the cases reported the destruction has been comparatively slight,
and in no case would it begin to account for the observed depletion of
the clam beds.

The only agency, of which we have knowledge, that could have
produced the great depletion which has taken place, is man, as repre-
sented by clam diggers of all kinds. These diggers can be divided into
two groups, the commercial and the amateur. Commercial diggers
ship practically their entire catch to outside markets and are required
to possess a state license. Because of these two checks on their activities,
they are comparatively easy to watch and control. On the other hand
the amateur digs clams for use or for the fun he derives from the per-
formance, and either uses his catch himself or gives it to friends.
There is no record of the extent of his activities, and any calculations
as to their effect on the fishery can be considered as but rough estimates.

The records of the Fish and Game Commission show that the total
weight of the commercial catch from the entire Pismo-Oceano beach
during the three years, 1923-1925 was slightly under 575,000 pounds.
This represents a total of somewhat less than 550,000 individual clams.
Our cross-sections show that at Oceano a single mile of beach suffered
a depletion of 4,520,000 clams during this same period. It, therefore,
seems quite evident that the commercial diggers can liave been but a
minor factor in the depletion of the beach.

The part played b.y the amateur diggers in the depletion of the
Pismo clam fishery is difficult to analyze because of the lack of any
statistics on the amateur catch. In order to obtain am^ conception of
this phase of the fishery, we must fall back on the observations of
dependable eyewitnesses. At any low tide during the summer of 1925,
several hundred machines were parked along the hard, smooth Pismo-
Oceano beach, while their occupants were busily engaged in obtaining
their limit of clams. On week-ends and holidays this number was
increased many times. Mr. Edwards, the fish and game deputy at

CALIFORNIA PISH AND GAME.

123

Oceauo during the summer of 1925, stated that on several occasions
during that time he had counted and estimated about 1500 machines
parked on the beach, while their drivers and passengers were digging
eiam>s. His figures are fur the number of machines present at the time
his count was made, and do not take into account the diggers who must
have been on the beach at other hours during the day or at the low night
tides. These estimates were corroborated l)y residents near the beach
and by our own observations. It is impossible to obtain any accurate
recorci of the number of clams taken by such a group, but a general idea
of the amount can be arrived at by some rough estimates. If we make
the conservative assumption that each machine carried two diggers,
then at a time such as observed by Mr. Edwards there would be 3000
diggers on the beacli from the automobiles alone. As the clams were

^ T '•V

Fig. 25. I'ismo rlanis from Watsonville Beach. Tlie niimliers of clammers along
beaches where this large clam is to be found has increased to such an extent
that the future of this shellfish is threatened.

located well up on the beach at low tide and were very numerous, espe-
cially during the early summer, the limit of fifteen clams Avas easily
obtained even by the most inexperienced. Assuming that each digger
obtained his limit, the three thousand autoists would obtain a total of
45,000 clams.

Considering the number of times such a group was present during
the summer and the number of clams dug by smaller ' parties during
the week, it can readily be seen that the catch secured by autoists,
campers, and local diggers might account for the great decrease in the
number of clams in the beach since 1922. The great volume of auto-
mobile traffic along the coast highway would probably account for a
large part of the depletion, as Pismo and Oceano are favorite stop-over
points for tourists and campers. These estimates are for the Pismo-
Oceano beach only. Morro beach lies off the main traveled road and,

3—46333

124 CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

due to its remote location and to the greater abundance of clams at
Pismo and Oceano, has been less frequented l\v both commercial and
amateur diggers.

The eondition which has made the IQl'O class so readily susceptible
to the inroads of the unskilled diggers, was the location of the clams
Avell up the beach in the interlidal zone. There appears to have been
very little diffusion of the individuals of this class into deeper water
where they would have been less readily accessible. A number of
trials made at low tide in Avater from two to five feet deep indicated
that the clams at this depth were less abundant late in 1925 than at any
time since records have been kept. This condition makes the stripping
of the intertidal zone even more alarming as the reserve stock of clams
in deep water is small and will have a correspondingly small influence
in maintaining the fishery.

This brief survey of the present condition of the Pismo clam beaches
in San Luis Obispo County indicates that they are at a very critical
stage. Unless drastic measures are taken in the very near future, these
beaches will soon be reduced to the same condition that is now found
at Long Beach, Anaheim Beach, and other southern California beaches,
where this clam was formerly abundant. In considering protective
measures, it must be remembered that at present the number of diggers
is so great in comparison to the supply of clams left in the beach, that
reduction of the bag limit would serve merely to slightly retard the
disappearance of the clams. Measures must be devised which will pro-
tect the present young year classes until there has been an opportunity
for a new breeding stock to be built up. The alternative is the loss of
a valuable natural riesource. and the waste of the productive possibili-
ties of many acres of beach.

SUGGESTED DATES OF OPEN SEASON ON DEER IN

CALIFORNIA.

By James Moffitt.

The recommendation recently made bj^ the San Joaquin County
Game and Fish Protective Association that the laws be changed to pro-
vide a uniform opening date. September 1, for the deer season has
prompted the writer to set forth the following opinions based on per-
sonal experience. Newspaper publicity given the above mentioned
resolution indicates that it results from the belief that antlers are in
the velvet prior to September 1.

I believe that our present game laws as regards deer hunting are
the most sensible of any and very nearly perfect. It seems unfortu-
nate that they should be criticized in what I believe the wrong direc-
tion. However, suggestions for change are usually made with the
sincerest intentions for the benefit of our deer; and after all the only
way we can effect improvement is by recommending changes.

I have hunted for the past five or six years in Sonoma and Men-
docino counties, and for at least five years prior to that have made
observations on deer in Marin and Sonoma counties and I believe that I
fiiTi -well acquainted with conditions in this section. The deer start shed-
ding the velvet in July, usually about the 15th. and once begun the

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

125

process is a speedy one. I have never seen a buck in the velvet after
August 1. A five-pointer that I killed near Glen Ellen in Sonoma Valley
on this date had a few shreds of dry skin adhering to the base of his
antlers. The latest date on wliich I have seen a buck in complete velvet
in this section is July 25. While a few backward individuals may
retain the velvet a short time after the first of August, I am certain
that by far the greater proportion lose it before this date. Reports
from hunters in the region south of San Francisco Bay, Mount Ham-
ilton and Livermore sections, indicate that this also holds good there.
Therefore, it will be seen that there is little danger of bucks being in
the velvet on the opening of the season, August 1 in this section, what-
ever the objections to this may be.

The closing date in this region is now September 14. Permitting
shooting after this date would be absolutely wrong as the coast deer

Fig. 26. Columbian black-tailed deer killed near Glen Ellen, Sonoma County,
California, by the author, August 1, 1921. Note hard, fully matured condition
of antlers entirely free of velvet. Photogi-aph by James Moffltt.

start "running" very early. In Mendocino County, about twenty-five
miles northwest of Cloverdale on the headwaters of the Garcia River,
where I have done considerable hunting, the bucks' necks start swelling
about September 1, and by September 15 are considerably enlarged,
showing that the rutting season is at hand. Due to their greater
activity at this time and also to the fact that they forsake the brush
for the wooded sections for the acorns which fall at that time, much
better hunting is afforded during the last two weeks of the season than
during the previous four. It would be against all principles to hunt
after this time when bucks are running with does, and any change in
the season in this section should be towards an earlier closing date, if
necessary. However, the present open season seems about ideal, as
deer appear to be increasing yearly and there is no apparent need for
any change or reduction in bag limit.

126

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

Ill the Sierras in the Tahoe region and in Alpine County, where I
liavc also hunted doer for tlio past twelve years, they appear to be
about six weeks heliiiul those above meutioiied. i lia\e never seen a
deer out of the velvet, or even eoinmencing to shed it on September 1,
and I believe that Septemlier 15 is about the average date w^heii shedding
is comi)leted. If there is objection to hunting them when in the velvet,
the season should not open until September 15, that is, two weeks later
than at present. This, I believe, would be a good plan, not for the
reason that antlers are still in the velvet, but because it would save
many deer from other than the more enthusiastic hunters. Most of
the summer vacationists who incidentally go deer hunting are out of
the mountains by mid-September, while regular hunters could go out
after this date just as well, w'hen they would find the mountains more
attractive through the absence of a crowd of novices. Also two holidavs.

Fig. 27. Rocky Mountain mule deer killed near Lake Tahoe, Placer County,
California, by H. C. Moffitt, September 1. 1921. Note that the horns are in
complete velvet, round iiointed, and far from the mature condition. Photo-
graph by E. G. Schmieden.

Labor and Admission days, would be avoided, Avith their attendant
tribe of nimrods.

Up to five or six years ago I noticed a marked increase in the number
of deer in the Sierras, and since that time they seem to be holding their
own in numbers. (This probably is because of the wise extermination
of mountain lions, and the establishment of game refuges for the
preservation of a breeding stock.) As hunting increases, as it is
bound to do, it may become necessary to impose further restrictions
here. In my mind the first move should be to shorten the season to
four weeks, commencing two weeks later than it does now and closing
as at present on October 15. This, as above indicated, should effect

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME. 127

a considerable saving. Under no circumstances should the season be
prolonged after mid-October, for in the first place there are rarely
any deer in the higher mountains on that date, as they suddenly
migrate west at the first snowstorm, usually about October 10, and
secondly because some are about to start "running" by this date,
although the majority probably does not do so until nearly a month
later. If further restrictions are necessary, the bag limit should be
reduced to one buck per season. In the case of large animals, such as
are found in the Sierras, this should be sufficient for anyone.

The shortening of the season to four weeks and the protection of
forked-horns in IModoc County as enacted at the last legislature, was
an excellent move. Rather tlian working a hardship on hunters in
this section, it is actually a blessing, as it is here that hunters go for
big heads. By protecting forked-horns there will be more large
deer available, for after the first season, it is evident there will be just
as many deer of legal age to kill, less the small percentage that die of
natural causes during their third year, as in previous years.. It is to
be regretted that the law was not also applied to Siskiyou or at least
to the eastern portion of that county, as mule deer range there as
iibundantly as in Modoc County. Last season, many hunters secured
forked-horns there the first two weeks of September. It is possible that
the "no forked-horn" law could be applied with advantage to all tlie
Sierra Nevada country, where deer do not attain full size until the
fourth or fifth year. It is excellent legislation both from the conserva-
tion standpoint and the extra caution it imposes on the hunter. Need-
less to say, it will not work in the coast counties, as here most old
bucks revert to forked-horns (known as "Pacific" bucks), and bucks
with more than two points on a side are scarce.

The present season in Game District 1?, comprising Humboldt, Del
Norte and Siskiyou counties, with the exception of the change sug-
gested above for the latter county, seems to be about the right thing,
since the deer here are later in shedding the velvet, running, etc., than in
the counties to the south. These functions probably occur here at about
the same time as in the Sierras, therefore the two areas may be con-
sidered together as regards opening and closing dates. Due to the
type of country and number of hunters, however, there does not seem
to be the danger of diminishment here that may exist in sections of the
Sierras.

As I have had no experience in Districts 4, 4^, or 4f, comprising the
southeastern portion of the state, or in Monterey, San Luis Obispo,
Santa Barbara, or Ventura counties, the southern portion of District 3,
I am not in a position to discuss the status of the deer there.

In conclusion it may be inferred that I believe the game laws, as
applied to deer in California at the present time, pretty thoroughly
cover the situation, and that sufficient evidence to necessitate any
drastic changes at present does not seem to exist, except possil)ly in
Siskiyou County as already indicated.

A marking system, the use of tags, such as has been advocated, is a
good thing and one which we should all work for. Let us hope that
some action to secure the same will be taken at the next legislature.

128 CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

FISH AND GAME COMMISSION ADOPTS NEW POLICY OF

FISH PLANTING.

By B. D. Marx Greene.

A recent survey of the apportionment of trout for distribution
throughout the state revealed the inadequacy of the present system.
Thus it appears that tlie highly competent and efficient work of Mr.
Shebley and his staff is dissipated by the subsequent unsatisfactory
handling of the fish.

After the trout leave the fish cars, the responsibility of ^Ir. Shebley,
superintendent Department of Fishculture, really ceases and much of
the commission's efforts and money spent in propagation of trout is
virtually wasted through an inefficient and unpardonable method of
distribution. This is not Mr. Shebley 's fault. He is in no wise to
blame. It is the fault of the commission.

The whole trout planting system is based upon applications from
individuals and organizations, requesting fish, and in most cases desig-
nating only generally where they are to be planted. The commission
has depended entirely on outsiders to choose localities to be planted
and to do the planting.

To a certain extent the sportsmen have a just cause of complaint, but
yet again they, themselves, are to blame, for it is their incessant and
unceasing demands for fish and more fish and the political and other
pressure which they have brought upon our commission that has led
to the present conditions.

Kecently the writer checked over some 500 applications for fish. The
reason for so doing was that Mr. Shebley did not wish, alone, to take
the responsibility of not shipping Loch Leven and brown trout to
regions which have received them in the past but which, in accordance
with our new policy, are not to receive them in the future. In other
words, many waters which are strictly rainbow waters have in the past
been stocked with Loch Leven and brown trout, and ]Mr. Shebley did
not wish, personally, to take the responsibility of cutting down the
requested allotments. Time and time again, in checking over indi-
vidual applications, instances were found where last year brown and
Loch Leven trout were sent to an applicant, who this year will be
furnished with rainbow or brook trout only. In some instances, Mr.
Shebley had penciled a note on the application to the effect that the
lower waters of the region proposed to be stocked were adaptable to
Loch Leven and brown trout, leaving it to me to say whether or not
they should be sent this year. ]\Iy question to Mr. Shebley would, in
each instance, be ''Can we rely upon the applicant to put the brown
and Loch Leven in the lower reaches and the rainbow in the upper
reaches?" and, in practically every instance, he would reply that there
could be no guarantee of such planting, and that we would run the
risk of having Loch Leven and brown trout again planted in rainbow
waters. Consequently, I have been ruthless in cutting the applications,
and from one end of this state to the other there is going to be a clamor
from malcontents who do not receive the amount and kind of fry they
requested.

Furthermore, many of these people are not only willing, but actually
request, that they be given Loch Leven and brown trout, whereas, to

CALIFORNIA PISH AND GAME. 129

be consistent, we must restrict these varieties to the levels below the
3500-foot contour, or to localities where they can not pass into rainbow
streams.

In cheeking over the applications one finds that the applicants seem
to feel that they have a "Grod-given" right to a certain quota of fisli.
In most instances they only generalize as to what streams they will
plant. In other words, they feel that they have a property right in a
certain amount of trout fry, and that they can plant them when and
where they choose.

Our entire planting system is fundamentally and entirely erroneous.
It is as much the commission 's duty to see that proper plants are made
as it is to rear healthy fry. Surely, if our new game farm were to
hand out pheasants and quail to any person who asked for them and
were to let them plant the birds when and where they wished, it would
lie a failure. It is our duty to see that proper localities are selected,
which will harbor and protect the birds and yield the best results.
This year, every pheasant delivered from the game farm will be planted
by our own men, and we will take the full responsibility for the
planting. This should have been the case with our trout planting.

From personal contact with our deputies and sportsmen's organiza-
tions throughout the state it is apparent that only too often the fol-
lowing conditions occur during the planting season :

For many months an organization of enthusiastic sportsmen will
meet frequently to discuss planting problems for their streams; thej^
make up their minds as to what streams shall be planted and the num-
ber of fry necessary, and then file their application with the Sacramento
office of the Fish and Game Commission. This application is fully
considered along with hundreds of others and an allotment is made,
often, of necessity, in quantities less than requested. Advance notice
of the arrival of the fish car is given to the applicant — and then all of
the carefully arranged plans seem to miscarry. The men who had
signified their willingness to be on hand to receive the fish and care
for them are detained by urgent personal matters — the truck that had
been promised fails to arrive — a haphazard, untrained crew meets the
fish car, and, becoming weary of their labors after going a portion of
the distance, they dump the fish into the first available stream. No
equalization of water temperature is attempted ; proper aerating of
the water is neglected, and the fish are often dead or dying long before
they reach their proper destination. This, I am reliably informed, is
not an exaggerated picture.

Furthermore, each of the parties planting fish is required to make
a report to the Fish and Game Commission specifying what fish are
planted and where, and the condition of the plant. These reports are,
in many instances, not furnished ; or, if furnished, are not accurate.

Any accident to the fish is blamed upon the commission whicl),
unfortunately, has no possible method of cheeking up to find where
the blame should properly be placed.

This criticism is, perhaps, a little too general. There are many
individuals, and some organizations, that cooperate with us fully in
1)lanting, notably the Fresno organization under the leadership of Mr.
Grimes. Their planting can not be bettered, but these men and
organizations are in the minority.

180 CALIFORNIA FISPI AND GAME.

Hereafter the commission will receive no applications for trout fry.
It will immediately jiroeecd to make a thoroniih, state-wide investiga-
tion and sui-vey to detennine what species of lish are now in our streams
and lakes, their approximate abundance, and the species that should
he planted in the future. Prior to the opening of the next planting
season, a decision will he made as to the str'eams and lakes that will be
planted — Ihe ]>roper number of fiy will be allocated to each and
tlu'u, in each cnunty oi- locality, certain individuals will be selected
who can coopei-ate with our local patrol to insure that the fry intended
for a certain stream or lake are actually ]ilanted therein.

Furthermore, adequate resting stations with troughs are to be
established throufrhout the state in suitable locations, and the fish left
there until adequate and ])roper transpoi'tation can be arranared. All
])lantinir must be done under the supervision of conunission employees
who will be trained in the work, and thoroughly coached by Mr. Shebley
prior to the time their new duties begin.

AiTangem(>nts are now being made for a large map, to be placed in
^Ir. Shebley 's office, and used as a key to all of our streams and lakes,
so that we may visualize our planting problems. This map, by appro-
priate colorings based on the survey now under way, Avill show the
needs of future ]dantings.

A BIRD HOUSE COLONY.

By Grace M. French.

The appearance some years ago of a pair of bluebirds in our' yard at
Carlton, Oregon, prompted us to put up a bird house for them. It
was a fearful and wonderful structure viewed in the light of later
experience and knowledge of the birds; it was made from a small box
a foot long and ten inches high. Two doors were cut on opposite sides
at the level of the floor. The roof was gabled, and the house then
painted a bright red color.

The male bluebird of this ])air was innnediately attracted to the
house, but the female would have nothing to do with it, and chose to
nest in another house that was nailed to the trunk of an oak tree.
There she raised three broods, fifteen in all, that summer. The male
bluebird took the two first fledged broods to sleep in the red house each
night and in that way kept other birds from nesting therein. That
fall (1915) we had a band of seventeen bluebirds in the yard, and for
the last few years ])luel)irds have occupied six of the houses. They are
by far the most quarrelsome of any bird nesting in the yard. During
the first two weeks of Febru.ary there is a constant state of excitement
among them and by Valentine's day they are mated and looking over
the houses. As they stay liere all winter' they have the first choice and
the swallows and wrens have to take wliat is h^ft. There are, however,
over iifty bird houses on the two acres iu*ar our home and birds
invariably find nesting sites to their taste.

The birds become so accustomed to persons moving about the yard
that they pa.v little or no attention to them. For example, I once
stood within ten feet of a northern violet-green swallow^ that was dis-
puting a piece of nesting material with a bluebird. Curiosity seems
to be one of the leading traits of the blue])ird, for they are constantly

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME. 131

peeking into the doors of the other bird houses. I have never known
the bluebirds to kill any l)ird or destroy a nest, but they keep the
other tenants of the bird houses continually on the defensive during
the nesting season.

During very cold Avinter weather the bluebirds leave the yard and
resort to the fir woods, where one hears them calling from the tops of the
tall trees. Here I have watched them foraging on the bark of trees for
insects. As soon as the weather moderates they come back to the hill
on which our home is built.

Sometimes, in winter, as many as a dozen bluebirds will sleep under
the same roof, but they do not necessarily choose the same house each
night. Unlike the bluebird, in this respect, the slender-billed nuthatch
will go to the same house every night for months, unless, perchance, the
bluebirds appropriate it, but if the nuthatch can once get inside, he
can fend off any number of bluebirds. Despite this seeming regu-
larity, these nuthatches are whimsical, for they will frequently desert
a site that has l^een their home for two or more seasons.

The Oregon chickadee prefers more natural nesting sites, so we
sawed out sections of hollow limbs and put them up in suitable places.
Since then we have had one and sometimes several pairs of these
attractive and useful birds living in the orchard. The chickadees also
sleep in the houses in winter.

A male Gairdner woodpecker has appeared in the yard every evening
for many months. He gives his call, then ducks into his chosen house,
part of a hollow liml) of an old apple tree set on top of the clothes line
pole.

We have six larger houses which have been occupied by flickers.
Occasionally a pair of sparrow hawks will leave the woods and raise
their young in one of these houses. The Lewis woodpeckers have
never nested in the bird houses, but nearly every winter one or more
of them come to the yard to feed on the bountiful supply of acorns to
be found on the large oak trees on the hill, and to sleep in the houses.

The red squirrels store acorns in the bird houses and often make
their nests there in winter. In search for these stores of acorns the
stellar jays go from house to house and pull out the old nests, thus
cleaning them for the birds. Once, when I wanted to show the right
type of bird house to a group of school children, I took down a house
that had been nailed on a large oak tree and found that it not only had
a nest in it, but that the squirrel was at home. He had stuffed the door
full of moss, and he set up a noisy chatter at the unexpected house
moving.

If a pair of swallows seem disturbed at something near their old
home it is wise to take the house down to investigate, for wasps occa-
sionally make their paper nests in a bird house or a noisy buml)lebee
may use one of these cozy places to set up housekeeping.

In some localities the house wren seems to have gained a bad reputa-
tion, but I have nothing but good to tell of him. In my large colony
of bird houses, these wrens have attended strictly to their own affairs.
As many as six house wrens have nested on the acre near the house,
and watching from the window, I have never yet observed them to
interfere with the other birds ; nor do the swallows or bluebirds bother
the wrens or show any concern when they nest near them, despite the
fact that some of the houses are not more than ten feet apart. The

4—46333

132 CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

house wrens take all sorts of nooks and any size of house for a nest.
One pair used a large barrel, that liad previously served a flicker, and
another a pasteboard l)ox that had held feed in the weather vane feed-
ing station. Though I have found house wren nests in all sorts of
places, they are usually to be found in sunny or exposed sites. For
instance, one nest was Ijehind a piece of loose bark on a large oak tree
far out in the pasture. However, one associates the house wren with
the dwellings of man and that is where one most often finds them.

The Seattle wren is more retiring in its habits, and its nest is gen-
erally found in among the trees in shady places. Catering to this
preference we made ten wren houses out of three-pound tin cans, with
inset covers. With a can opener I cut a hole in the center of the cover,
and drove a nail through the back of the can into a small board. We
then put these houses up on the trunks of trees along the hedgerow,
and down in the pasture. Every house was subsequently occupied and
all went well for a few seasons until one day a group of small boys
tore down all these improvised houses. Fortunately there were no
small birds in the nests at the time. Since then all bird houses have
been put in the yard where I could protect them. When the cans were
occupied, it was a simple matter to remove the cover and examine the
nests without disturbing the birds to any extent. These tin can houses
were satisfactory, for the}' were put up in very shady places, but when-
ever possible, it is better to use wooden structures. I have often found
These Seattle wrens nesting in empty cans that have been left in the barn,
between sticks of wood piled in the pasture, in holes in the ash trees
down in the swale, or in piles of brush on the hillside near the fir
woods. While this bird does use a bird house, it is not essentially a
door-yard bird as is the house wren. It is most often found near the
woods.

While the birds I have mentioned are all attractive in their different
ways it is the swallows that are the distinctive feature of my colony
of house nesting birds. One of the most de\'oted, attractive and by far
the noisiest bird around a bird house is the male tree swallow. He
talks to his mate and peeks in the door to see her many times through
every hour of the day. He begins his chatter at the first sign of dawn
and with four and sometimes more of these birds nesting near the
house the A'ard is a noisy place on summer mornings. We have never
banded any of the birds but who could doubt that it was one of our
old birds that had returned when one March first on hearing the
familiar chatter I saw a tree swallow high in the air, then thrilled to
see that this first migrant was headed straight for the 3'ard and then —
best of all — it flew directly to the very house that a pair of tree swal-
lows had occupied the previous summer.

It is fortunate for us tiiat our farm is off the main highway, for
otherwise we would be bothered by many curious people who would be
attracted by the numerous bird houses and the swarms of birds circling
over head. In the yard there is a high aerial, 120 feet long, of four
wires, s^^■ung between two masts, one of which is 101 feet high and the
other 60 feet. These long, high wires and the gm' wires furnish rest-
ing places for the swallows, and they are often weighted down with the
young tree, violet-green and cliff swallows that nest on the barn. Some
seasons there are as many as twenty pairs of violet-green swallows
nesting on the two acres near the house. They are not at all particular

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME. 133

as to the site or size of the house for their nest. They even use the
tin can wren houses or little nooks around the buildings, or nest under
shingles, or other sheltered places. They seem to want the company
of others of their species. The swallows are attractive for their beauty
and they are a great economic asset on a farm in controlling the files
and other insects.

The house that we have adopted as being both practical and good
looking is of one compartment, ten by eight inches, with gable roof
eight inches to the peak, with the entrance, one and one-half inches in
diameter, near the top. The ends are made of inch lumber and the
rest of the house of one-quarter inch lumber. Most of the houses are
nailed to boards and these boards nailed to fence posts, thus raising the
bird houses about eight feet from the ground. The cats never bother a
house put up in this way.

An Englishman, who claimed that the English sparrow is a beneficial
bird and wanted to see the ban lifted from this foreign invader, wrote
tQ me and asked if I had not observed these birds eating aphides on rose
bushes. I could verify this all right, but wrote him that we immedi-
ately shot every English sparrow that appeared in the yard, for I
have studied their behavior on the neighboring farms. One old orchard,
that once boasted a large colony of native birds, now has nothing but
these sparrows, for they were permitted to usurp all the nesting places.
It has never been necessary to shoot more than two or three English
sparrows any year, for every bird in the yard bands together to fight
them if they dare to try and enter any of the numerous houses.

184

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME

A publication devoted to the conserva-
tion of wild life and published quarterly
by the California State Fish and Game
Commission.

Sent free to citizens of the State of
California. Offered in exchange for
ornithological, mammalogical and similar
periodicals.

The articles published in Cai^ifornia
Fish and Game are not copyrighted and
may be reproduced in other periodicals,
provided due credit is given the California
Fish and Game Commission. Editors
of newspapers and periodicals are invited
to make use of pertinent material.

All material for publication should be
sent to H. C. Bryant, Museum of Verte-
brate Zoology, Berkeley, Cal.

September 1, 1926.

"The nation, and Indeed the world,
have need for a thorough appraisal and
understanding of natural resources, both
in wild life and in the riches of the earth."
— Calvin Coolidge.

AN IMPORTANT COURT DECISION.

On :\ray 17 the District Court of
Appeal, First Appellate District of San
Francisco, decided in favor of the Fish
and Game Commission an original writ
of liahcas corpus brought by one James
A. Makings in an attempt to declare
unconstitutional that portion of the Penal
Code which prohibits the exportation of
crabs from Humboldt County. The mat-
ter was argued freely and in the opinion
delivered by the appellate court this sec-
tion of the law was declared constitu-
tional and the court handed down the
general doctrine that the legislature has
the right to enact special legislation for
individual fish and game districts. This
is a most important decision outlining
the way for future legislation.

N. B. SCOFIELD ATTENDS MEETING
OF INTERNATIONAL FISHERIES
COMMISSION.

On June 21, 22, 23, N. B. Scofield
attended the first formal meeting of the
International Fisheries Commission —
United States and Mexico. The meeting
was held in Los Angeles and the four
members were present. It was decided to
secure offices for the commission head-
quarters at San Pedro, and the Mexican
and American members each chose a sec-
retary to carry on the detail work of the
commi.ssion at these offices. Miss Ger-
aldine Conner, secretary of the Depart-
ment of Commercial Fisheries, California
Fish and Game Commission, was chosen
as secretary by the American members.

The Fisheries treaty i)rovides that fish-
ing boats oix-raling ofl' the coast of Cali-
fornia or the coast of Lower California
nuist conform to the laws of tlie countries
adjoining these waters, .-ind also to the
regulations which might subse(iuently b(>
a(loi)teil. l<'roni e\-ery Ion of fisii caught
by Aniei'ican iioals in .Mexican waters,
the Mexican government now derives a
%'.M) lisli tax. At the request of the
American members, the commission has
recommended tiiat the Mexican govern-
ment reduce this tax from .$.'^0 to .$20
per ton. and there is every assurance
that this will be done by the end of
August.

The treaty further |)r<>\ides that cor-
rect data on tlie "catch" of American
boats in ^Mexican waters be furnlsiied
the California authorities. This Is es-
sential for conservation purposes.

The canners, fish dealers and fisher-
men of southern California will welcome
a commission of this kind, for It offers
an adequate channel for dealings with tlie
Mexican government.

The United States government has
appropriated .$80,000 for the work of
the commission for the 192G-192T fiscal
year, while the Mexican government has
made an appropriation of 158,000 pesos.
Under the terms of the treaty, this
money will be largel.v used to facilitate
the conservation work of the respective
fishing authorities.

The commission recognizes the value of
the fisheries program being carried on by
the California Fish and Game Commis-
sion, and desires to cooperate with it and
gain its full support. It also desii-es
that its research workers use, as far as
is practicable, the State Laboratory as
their headquarters. This cooperation
will extend the work of the California
Commission to species in inmiediate need
of investigation, which have thus far been
neglected owing to lack of funds. Among
these are : spiny lobster, barracuda, sea
bass, and California halibut.

GRUNION NEEDS PROTECTION.

Those who have read the two fish bul-
letins which deal with the life history of
the grunion or "little smelt" will need no
additional stimulus to stir their interest
in this remarkable small food fish of the
southern California coast. Thousands of
residents in southern counties know of
this small fish that is found on the
beaches in the wash of the waves during
the periods just after the full of the
moon and the dark of the moon In the

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

135

spring, and many make monthly pilgrim-
ages to tlie beaches to collect the fish for
food. Whether additional publicity given
this interesting fish, due to the discovery
of its extraordinary spawning habits,
has increased the number of persons vis-
iting the beaches, we do not know. How-
ever, those who have been making a
study of the fish find either it or its eggs
inci-easingly difficult to secure during the
regular spawning seasons. This has been
particularly noticeable this spring and
conservationists are becoming worried as
to the future of the grunion. One of the
fundamental laws of conservation Is that
breeding animals shall be left undisturbed.
The fact that people gather by the thou-
sands at Long Beach and other beaches
and collect the small spawning grunion
as they run onto the beach to lay their
eggs means that the breeding grounds are
being continuously raided. Evidence is
at hand that depletion is taking place and
that protection during part of the spawn-
ing period is necessai'y in order to allow
the fish a chance to reproduce itself.
From the standpoint of a zoological curi-
osity alone a fish that has tide controlled
spawning habits, and a marine fish that
deposits its eggs on the land rather than
the sea, is worth conserving. As a sec-
ondai'y reason, it is highly prized as a
food fish. The problem is made the more
difficult because of the rapidly increas-
ing population of southern California.
These same beaches that once supported
enormous numbers of clams have been
denuded of shell fish and it appears that
the next natural resource to go will be
the grunion unless protection is rortlicom-
ing.

TWO NEW FISH HATCHERIES.

I'lans have been made for the construc-
tion of two new fish hatcheries to be con-
structed by the Pacific Gas and Electric
Company under direction of the Califor-
nia Fish and Game Commission. A party
of commission officials joined those of the
public utilities corporation during the
latter part of May in a trip to Pit River,
Fall River and Hat Creek sections of
Shasta County for the purpose of locating
sites for the hatcheries. The more
important of these hatcheries will bo
built upon a bench, five acres in extent,
bordering Lake Britton and a sliort dis-
tance below Burney Palls. This site lies
about six miles from the village of Bur-
ney, one-half mile from Burney Creek
State Par^ and about the same distance

from the main highway leading to the
head of Lake B^ritton. where is located
the intake of Pit River Power Plant No.
3 of the Pacific Gas and Electric Com-
pany. The hatchery will contain TOO
troughs and be as large as most of the
units in the standard hatcheries of the
state. For the present this hatchery will
be used solely for the propagation of
trout.

The second site selectetl is at Hagan's
Flats, near where the proposed Pit River
Project No. 4 will stand when constructed.
This hatchery will be a temporary struc-
ture designed to serve until after erec-
tion of the new No. 4 Power House.
Between 50 and GO troughs will be estab-
lished in it and only chinook salmon will
be propagated. Following completion of
the new power house and the road lead-
ing thereto, the temporary hatciiery will
be converted into an egg-taking station
for salmon, and the hatching will be done
in greatly enlarged quarters at the Lake
Britton site.

^Ir. Downing agreed, upon the part of
the Pacific Gas and Electric Company,
to begin construction of the necessary
hatchery buildings and cottages for com-
mission employees in time for the annual
take of chinook salmon eggs this fall.
Proper racks and traps necessary to the
es;g take will be installed and everything
made ready against the coming of the
spawning season.

These hatcheries are required by law
due to the erection of obstructions pre-
venting the passage of chinoolc salmon
and other fish peculiar to the waters of
Pit River, Hat Creek, Fall River and
their tributaries from the lower reaches
to the old-time spawning beds, above the
dams. These include the rainbow trout,
chinook salmon, suckers, riffle pike, and
several other sjiecies which belong to
the minnow family.

Salmon, upon being hatched, will be
released only in those reaches of the
river below the power sites, to permit the
young fish going to sea. The various
forms of other fish taken and hatched
will be released in water deemed most
suitable therefor.

ECONOMIC VALUE OF THE MEXICAN
FREE-TAILED BAT.

In California the Mexican free-tailed
bat {Tadarida incxicana) occurs abund-
antly throughout the Upper and T^ower
Sonoran zones, from the southern Ijoi'der
of the state northward at least to Marys-
ville Buttes, Sutter County. Recentlv

136

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

four publications* have appeared deal-
ing; with the economic status of this bat.
Mr. Campbell's book is in part devoted
to an attempt to show that the species
is effective in controlling malaria by
destroying Anopheles, the mosquito which
other than man is the only host of the
malaria parasite. The book also adduces
evidence to show that bats can oe suc-
cessfully attracted to artificial roosts,
thereby controlling malaria in a given
region and at the same time producing a
valuable return in guano, which is in
demand as fertilizer. The sweeping
assertions, the unscientific method of
employing the facts and the inconsisten-
cies within the book itself are seemingly
sufficient to convince a trained biologist
that the work is not to be relied upon ;
indeed statements in absolute contradic-
tion of established facts rrequently
appear. The bats may eat mosquitoes,
but numerous examinations of the feces
from Dr. Campbell's bat roost by trained
entomologists (see Storer) fail to reveal
ani/ mosquito remains. This proves that,
at the time, mosquitoes were not a part of
the food of the bats whose feces were
examined, and to quote Mr. Goldman
"* * * suggest that he (Dr. Campbell)
may be mistaken in regard to the extent
to which Tadarida feeds upon Anopheles,
and in the general role of this bat in
malaria control." Mr. Goldman also
says, "While many bats may be useful
insectivorous animals, the conclusions
reached in regard to their value in the
control of malaria based on such evidence
are very unconvincing to those informed.
The author has demonstrated that a bat
roost with commercial possibilities as a
fertilizer producer may be constructed
under especially favorable conditions,
but there can be no justification for his
assumption that what has been done at
Mitchell Lake can be done anywhere in
the world, ignoring the distribution of
species and environmental conditions in
general. The public should be warned

*CamDbell, Charles A. R.

1925. Bats, mosquitoes and dollars.
The Stratford Company, Boston, Mass.
pn. i-vlii, 1-262, with unnumbered
plates.

Goldman, E. A.

1926. Review of Campbell, Charles A.
R. bats, mosquitoes and dollars. Jour-
nal of Mammalogy, 7 (2) pp. 136-13S.

Nelson, Edward W.

192 6. Bats in relation to the produc-
tion of guano and the destruction of
insects. United States Department of
Agriculture, Department Bulletin No.
1395, pp. 1-11, figs. 1-4.

Storer. Tracy I.

1926. Bats, bat towers and mosqui-
toes. Journal Mammalogy, 7 (2) pp.
S5-90, 1 plate.

that the construction of expensive bat
roosts even for guano production, should
be undertaken only on the basis of expert
knowledge of bats in their relation to
local conditions. The unqualified rec-
ommendation (pp. 157-158) that every
community, large and small, should have
one or more of these bat roosts, which
may cost from $2,500 to $3,500, would,
if followed, mean in most cases a useless
expenditure of funds and certain disap-
pointment.

"The novelty and plausibility of the bat
roost idea as presented are calculated to
appeal to the imagination. Unfortu-
nately, the book may be accepted at its
face value by many who are unramiliar
with the fundamental biological princi-
ples involved and who can ill afford the
loss of money invested in bat roosts, most
of which, except in localities in certain
regions only that are favorable for guano
production, are sure to remain perma-
nently empty."

If sufficient is learned of the habits
of the bat and the conditions necessary
for its existence to insure its colonizing
in artificial roosts, such roosts should be
of interest to citizens within certain local
areas in California.

One of Dr. Campbell's bat roosts is
apparently a paying proposition. How-
ever, according to Dr. Nelson, not one
of the other seven bat roosts, distributed
from Florida to Texas, have been taken
up as an abode by bats. In short,
although bats are eminently useful in
controlling the numbers of many, mainly
night flying, insects, and do provide an
income in guano where they collect in
large numbers, they have not as yet been
proven to be an effective agent in control
of malaria and have not been inauced to
enter man-made structures designed for
them to an extent that warrants the
erection of such structures, for the pur-
pose of collecting guano.

In addition to the Mexican free-tailed
bat there are no less than thirty other
kinds of bats in California. In the
warmer parts of the state it is believed
by naturalists who have studied the
problem that the number of bats is equal
to the number of insectivorous birds.
Despite their large numbers, bats are not
well known to the average person ; this
is largely due to their crepuscula habits.
All the bats in California are wholly
insectivorous. As pointed out by Grin-
nell (Teacher's Bulletin, California Fish
and Game Commission, No. 6, April
1916) :

"Enough is known to make it certain
that vast quantities of night-flying insects

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

137

are destroyed by the bats every twenty-
four hours. It is further obvious that
the kinds of insects thus affected by the
bats are not at all the same as those com-
bated by the diurnal birds. Thus it can
be said that the role played by bats in
their relation to insect repression is com-
plementary to that played by birds in
the daytime.

"By the farmer of intelligence bats
should be looked upon not as ugly 'ver-
min,' but as desirable citizens. They do
not harbor bed-bugs, but make way with
destructive insect pests. They work the
night shift."— B. R. Hall.

CONDITIONS AFFECTING MIGRATING
WILD FOWL.

There are apparently two great adverse
factors directly menacing the perpetuation
of our migratory wild fowl, and these
overshadow all others. One is the drain-
age of water areas by man, and the other
is a succession of years of scanty rain-
fall, and its effect on a great area in
the West, as indicated by the disappear-
ance there of many ponds and small
lakes.

In efforts to conserve the big-game
animals of the country it has been found
that man has occupied most of their
former wintering grounds, and the great
conservation problem has been one of suf-
ficient winter forage, the summer forage
being usually abundant. In the case of
migratory wild fowl, there is arising a
like problem — that of maintaining suffi-
cient water areas where the birds may
feed during their migration and in winter,
but there must be retained undisturbed
sufficient breeding grounds, the basis of
all wild-fowl production.

The danger to the perpetuation of the
stock of wild fowl is so great and so
imminent from the causes mentioned that
there is the most vital need for all con-
servationists and lovers of wild life to
sink petty differences of opinion as to
details and to unite in constructive work
to insure the future of our migratory
game birds. — Migratory Wild Fowl and
Present Conditions Affecting Their
Abundance, by Edward W. Nelson, Spe-
cial Rpt. United States Dept. of Agricul-
ture. Bureau of Biological Survey, Mar.,
1926.

DESTRUCTION OF PREDATORY
BIRDS.

A number of prominent ornithologists
the country over are becoming greatly dis-
turbed at the continued slaugnter of
predatory birds. The list of nearly a
dozen names includes that of Witmer

Stone, director of the Philadelphia
Academy of Natural Sciences ; W. DeW.
Miller, associate curator of birds, Ameri-
can Museum of Natural History ; Louis
A. Fuertes, artist and ornithologist ;
Ernest Thompson Seton, artist and nat-
uralist, and Gerald Thayer, artist and
ornithologist. Included in this group are
also the names of several nature writers,
as, for instance, Samuel Scoville, Jr., and
Thornton W. Burgess. This camppaigu
for education is also being promoted by
the National Audubon Societies.

These men have issued an interesting,
illustrated bulletin, entitled "Save These
Birds." The men concerned have doubt-
less been driven to their present stand as
a result of a notable decrease in various
species. The leaflet has sufficient bear-
ing on this much discussed problem to
warrant its publication here. In order
that every Californian may understand
the present conditions in this state, it
should be noted that the species of non-
game birds, which have been most notably
decreased in the past ten years, are
white-tailed kite, osprey, prairie falcon,
and red-bellied hawk — every one of them
a so-called predatory bird. These same
birds have long been protected by law.
so the decrease is not due to a lack of
legal protection but to the reputation
given these birds by the gunner and the
subsequent disregard of the law. The
duck hawk, Cooiier hawk, sharp-shinned
hawk and horned owl are blacklisted by
state law.

Contents of this bulletin follow :

SAVE THESE BIRDS.

By early writers the birds or prey were
considered the highest type of bird life.
Their strength and speed, their splendid
flight and majestic mien go far toward
justifying this opinion.

The eagle has been from time im-
memorial the symbol of power and might,
and "the way of an eagle in the air" is
still one of the unsolved mysteries. Even
our familiar hawks, as the red-tail, are
masters of the air, and John Burroughs,
in one of his essays, has eulogized their
aerial prowess.

The red-shouldered hawk, soaring and
screaming over the winter meadows is.
says C. C. Abbot, one of the few bits of
primitive wildness left us.

The well known naturalist, W. H. Hud-
son, writes thus of the peregrine falcon
or duck hawk : "This famed bira Is of a
handsome appearance, not swallow-like as
is the kite, nor so massive as the eagle ;
but nature in fashioning it has observed
the golden mean, and the result is a being
so well-balanced in all its parts and so
admirably adapted for speed, strength,
and endurance, that to many minds it

138

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

has seemed the most perrect among
winged creatures."

The owl, Minerva's bird, has for cen-
turies been the symbol of wisdom. The
barred owl is strangely human in voice
and aspect, and the hooting of the great
horned owl is one of the most solemn
and impressive of all wild sounds.

These splendid birds have Indeed fallen
on evil days. They are now regarded as
"vermin." Sportsmen demand their exter-
mination.

The bald eagle, the emblem of our
country, has a price on his head. The
noble peregrine, which in the palmy days
of falconry could be possessed by no one
of lower rank than an earl, is now legiti-
mate prey for anyone with a gun.

Other birds, too, the herons, the King-
fisher and even the redheaded woodpecker,
have come under the ban. Their beauty
of form and color count for nothing. We
have no more picturesque bird than the
great blue heron. Either in flight or at
rest its presence adds immeasurably to
the scenic value of a lake or marsh, yet
because he takes a small pay for his
services he must be destroyed !

The damage done by crows has been
greatly exaggerated and used as an excuse
for their wholesale slaughter. One man
reports the capture ana killing or ovei-
500 at one time by a new method of
trapping. The crow is a conspicuous and
attractive element in the landscape, par-
ticularly in the dreary months of winter.
Who would not miss the sight or "the
black'ning trains of crows to their
repose?"

Is it not high time that the nature
lovers of this country asserted their right
to a share in its wild life? Are we not
justified in demanding that our rights,
and those of our successors, to the enjoy-
ment of these marvelous creatures be rec-
ognized?

Many of these species are already seri-
ously diminished in numbers. Of late
years the killing of hawks with guns and
traps has been carried on in a wholesale
manner. Hundreds of migrating hawks
are killed in a single day ; for example,
900 on one September day in southern
New Jersey. Men who have been killing
migrating hawks in the northeastern
states for years past admit that for the
last three or four seasons the flights have
been conspicuously smaller than in former
years.

About game farms constant warfare is
waged on all species. Hundreds of traps
are set in all directions for as mucn as
two miles from the farm. The cruel and
indiscriminate pole trap captures not only
all kinds of hawks and owls, most of
them useful species, but also many song-
liirds. Farmers are making a regular
practice of trapping hawks during the
winter, and nearly all of those captured
are red-tails, red-shoulders, and rough-
less, all beneficial species. State game
officials who ought to know better shut
their eyes to the true nature of these

birds, and the old excuse that "a hawk is
a hawk" serves to condemn them all.

As sportsmen increase in numbers, and
sporting journals multiply, the propa-
ganda against the birds of prey grows
rapidly. New methods of slaughter are
devised and advertised, while prizes and
bounties stimulate destruction.

Fortunately we do not have to resi our
case entirely on the scientific and esthetic
value of these birds, weighty as these
reasons are for the lover of nature.

The majority of the 50 species of hawks
and owls of this country have been proven
by the United States government to be
mainly or wholly beneficial. Some 2700
individuals were examined by the Bio-
logical Survey, and the chief food of most
species was found to be injurious rodents
and insects.

More than half of the 41 species exam-
ined are so nearly guiltless that, of 1293
individuals belonging to 24 species, only
four contained poultry and but three had
eaten game birds.

The periodic plagues of mice in Great
Britain are a matter of history. In the
year 1580 and again at intervals during
the next three centuries hordes of mice
appeared in one or another part of Eng-
land. They were invariably followed by
great flights of owls, which entirely
destroyed them. In 1892 great damage
was done by a similar outbreak in the
south of Scotland and the preponderance
of opinion among the farmers, as quoted
in an official report, traced the scourge
to the scarcity of hawks, owls, weasels
and similar rodent destroyers.

Most of us have no objection to legiti-
mate hunting when game is abundant and
the supply is not depleted. But the pres-
ent practice of sportsmen who seek to
remedy scarcity of game, brought about
through excessive hunting, by endeavor-
ing to exterminate scores of beautiful and
valuable species is indefensible.

In Great Britain, as a result of the
"pheasant worship" so deplored by Hud-
son, most of the native hawks have been
nearly or quite extirpated. Our graceful
marsh hawk, our soaring buzzard hawks,
our splendid duck hawk or peregrine, wi'l
be but memories if the slaughter goes on
unchecked. The bald eagle is already
so rare that the sight of one is an event.
The innocent long-eared owl and the val-
uable rough-legged hawk are but a rem-
nant of their former numbers.

The more useful species of hawks and
owls are legally protected in certain
states, but it is to be feared that tne pro-
tection is largely nominal. In other states
even these beneficial species, and the
great blue heron also, are outlawed.

Unfortunately no raptorial birds are
protected by the federal law, althovigh
certain species are both more migratory
and more insectivorous than many of the
species covered bv this statute, and their
value should be legally recognized.

Let our bird protection be sane and
reasonable. Even tliose species of hawks

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

139

and owls that kill many small birds are
not enemies of the song birds, but on
the contrary are of benefit to the species,
killing as they do, mainly the weaklings.
The number of the smaller species can
not possibly increase beyond certain lim-
its, and only the surplus is taken by
predatory animals. Our abuse of these
interesting wild creatures as "murderers"
and "convicted felons" is creditable
neither to our intelligence nor to our love
of nature.

The obvious duty of societies organized
for the protection of birds Is to work for
the preservation of those species that are
in special need of defense.

The fight for our song birds has been
fought and won. Gulls and terns, once
nearly exterminated for millinery pur-
poses, are once more abundant. Sanctu-
aries for herons, egrets, and ibises in the
south are saving these birds from exter-
mination.

It is now the hawks, the owls, tiie great
blue heron, and other birds against which
campaigns are being waged, that must be
the object of active protective work.

Bird-protection organizations, sup-
ported by the nature-loving public, are
the logical force to combat the wide-
spread ignorance and prejudice regard-
ing the birds of prey.

The economic importance of most of
our commoner species of hawks and owls
is shown by the following records. All
except the "pellet" statistics are from
Fisher's "Hawks and Owls of the United
States in Their Relation to Agriculture."

Broad-winged hawk, 65 specimens. Not
one contained poultry or game; only two
had small birds. The rest contained mice
and other small mammals, reptiles,
batrachians, insects and other inverte-
brates.

Red-shouldered hawk, 32 0 specimens.
Two contained poultry and one had game.
The rest held mice, reptiles, t)atrachlan»,
insects, etc.

Rough-legged hawk, 49 specimens.
Forty held mice, most of them having
from three to eight mice apiece. Not one
contained birds or game of any kind.

Sparrow hawks, 320 specimens. One
had a game bird, none poultry; 215
held insects; 101 mice and other small
mammals. (29 empty.)

Barn owl, 39 individuals. One held a
pigeon, none had game ; 24 contained rats,
mice or other small mammals. a large
lot of cast "pellets" of this owl collected
at Washington, D. C, contained 3100
skulls, of which 3004 were mammals
(1987 field mice. GSR house mice, and
210 brown rats).

Long-eared owl, 107 individuals. One
contained a game bird; 84 held mice (15
empty). The contents of a number of
lots of long-eared owl "pellets- gathered
in various parts of northern New Jersey
was as follows: Mice and rats, 9852;
other small mammals, 697 ; birds. 296.
Among the mammals there was but one
cottontail rabbit, a young individual, and

not a single gray squirrel. There were
no game birds, and no poultry, the great
majority of the birds being small spar-
rows of various kinds.

Short-eared owl, 101 individuals. None
contained poultry or game : 77 held mice.

Screech owl, 255 individuals. One had
eaten a pigeon ; none contained game.
About 100 had small mammals, chiefly
mice, and 100 held insects.

GOLDEN EAGLE EXTERMINATION IN
ENGLAND.

In the British Isles the control of cer-
tain predatory animals has reached, and
in the case of several species has exceeded,
the states of "control" reached in west-
ern North America. From the Thirty-
fifth Annual Report of the Royal Society
for the I'rotection of Birds we iearn that
within the last few years the white-tailed
eagle has entirely disappeared through-
out many regions. Likewise, the osprey
has gone. Now, due largely to poisons
put out by game keepers, tlie golden eagle
is threatened and its numbers nave been
so far reduced that its survival Is doubt-
ful. In fact this species has been extir-
pated in England and Ireland and remains
only in certain small portions of the
British Isles.

It is on account of just such results as
these in other areas that the California
Fish and Game Commission has tem-
porarily refused to issue permits for the
use of poison in game refuges, other than
for the useful methods of control of ground
squirrels, until the results of an investi-
gation to be undertaken soon by Mr.
Joseph Dixon in the interests of both
the tl. S. Biological Survey and the
National Fur Association are available.
This investigation is expected to deter-
mine, among other things, the effects of
poisons on wild life other than that for
which the poisons were intended, par-
ticularly the effects on fur-bearing mam-
mals.—E. R. H.

RUFFED GROUSE DISEASE.

For several years past the sportsmen
of the eastern United States have wo.r-
ried over the decrease in ruffed grouse
and the evidences of disease which have
been found. During the past year a com-
mittee, appointed to investigate the
disease, has employed Doctor Alfred O.
(iross of the Roosevelt "Wild Life Experi-
ment Station of the New York State Col-
lege of Forestry at Syracuse, and his
preliminary report has recently been pul)-
lished. An examination of numerous
specimens has shown the occurrence of
three hitherto unreported diseases of
ruffed grouse in the wild state, namely,

140

CALIFORNIA PISH AND GAME.

tuberculosis, pulmonary mycosis, and a
third disease as yet not identified. Here-
tofore, it has been thought that a certain
stomach worm infesting grouse was
largely responsible for the fluctuation or
periodical decrease in the numt)ers of
birds. It now appears that the new-
found diseases may play a more important
role than was at first suspected and thus
complicate the problem. Of 17 speci-
mens of diseased grouse examined, six
were infested Avith the stomacn worm,
three gave positive evidence of tubercu-
losis, two of pulmonary mycosis. As a
result of his studies, the author draws
attention to the surprising number of
diseases in the small number of speci-
mens examined and' emphasizes the
importance of making autopsies of the
entire bird. Examinations of large num-
bers of specimens extending over a period
of several .vears must be completed before
generalizations securing conservation of
the rufifed grouse can be made.

SAN BENITO COUNTY RECEIVES
MEXICAN BOB WHITE QUAIL.

Fifty-two Mexican bob white quail,
purchased from breeders in Mississippi by
the San Benito County Fish and Game
Protective Association, arrived Febru-
ary 28 with loss of twelve birds. They
were held until acclimated and then
released along the San B'enito River,
near Hollister. Ranchers have prom-
ised to assist in protecting them. Thirty
were released on the Carr Ranch, and ten
on Santa Ana Creek. A second ship-
ment of seventeen to replace the dead
liirds of the first shipment arrived later,
and after being held two weeks were
liberated on the Carr Ranch.

Later news is to the effect that several
pairs mated and are nesting. As evi-
dence, eggs from a deserted nest were
sent to the Fish and Game Commission
in San Francisco.

COMMITTEE TO STUDY
CONDITIONS.

GAME

A study committee has been formed by
the Conservation Department of the Cali-
fornia Development Association to make
a survey of the fish and game problems
of the state. Members of this committee
are :

Chairman. Albert Lindley, Stockton :
vice chairmen. Earl R. Kauffman and
Henry "W. Keller : secretary, Charles G.
Dunwoody: A. E. Dalton^ Dr. E. F.
Auble. Henry Garrison, James N. Proc-
tor. Y. A. Hart. S. N. Barnhart. Harry
Ridgway. Thomas J. West, Sherwood
Green, Manly Harris, J. Sub Johnson.

Judge L. C. McCloud, Dr. Barton W.
Evermann.

This committee will be assisted, when
necessary, by an advisory committee of
other members, and the results of these
investigations will be used to guide the
future policy as regards fish and game
resources.

EXCEEDING BAG LIMITS.

A listening ear among sportsmen
groups in California will quickly pick up
an undercurrent of criticism against
activities on gun club grounds. At first
one might think that these criticisms
were the result of jealousies and came
entirely from outsiders who were affected
by the poorer shooting afforded on open
grounds. However, analysis will show
that in reality many members of gun
clubs deplore the fact that bag limits
are exceeded frequently and tnat the
policy of piecing out bag limits by the work
of the "keeper" is a common one. Mem-
bers of gun clubs usually set themselves
up as being the best type of sporrsman
in the state, and we wonder whether
they ever think of the example taey set
to the would-be sportsman by allowing
violations of the gun laws on their club
grounds.

Another common undercurrent o" feel-
ing is the unfounded rumor that game
wardens carefully avoid convictions on
club grounds and spend their time
patrolling roadways surrounding the
grounds purposely to stand in with the
gun club members. Of course when
attempts are made to get proof on any
such statement, it is not forthcoming.

Unfortunately, such accusations as
stated above only apply in a few
instances for more and more on club
grounds the members are held to strict
rules, and furthermore as a rule, there
are only two hunting days a week against
the seven days that are often utilized by
the free hunter. Nevertheless, there
should be less basis for such criticism
and every club should have rules which
come definitely within the law and should
see that they are enforced by their own
officers without securing the help of the
nearest game warden.

HUMANE CAPTURE OF FUR-
BEARERS.

A new organization, sponsored by the
American Humane Association, is plan-
ning a nation-wide campaign to bring
about more humane methods in the cap-
ture of fur-bearing animals. The head-
quarters of the new organization will
probably be in the national capital, and

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

141

the movement is designed to bring about
reforms in the present methods of taking
furs, and in educating the public along
constructive and economic lines.

COMMON SENSE VS. SENTIMENTAL-
ISM IN RELATION TO SPORTS.

Dreamers are beginning to envision a
new golden age when firearms and fishing
tackle will be known only as relics of
barbarism, and when the perfected
superman shall have abolished the
struggle for existence, and all organisms
from the microbe to mammal may be
indefinitely sustained on a synthetic
elixir of life.

No doubt, by that time the superman
can solve the problem of the congestion
of living things that will then exist in a
better way than that chosen by the
Creator.

Humanity has been crawfishing towards
a higher state of civilization with amaz-
ing rapidity these thousands of years,
but the goal of an ideal and consistent
existence is a long, long way up the
road yet. At the present time our striv-
ings for an Utopian condition of society
are filled with contradictious and incon-
sistencies. Perhaps this but emphasizes
the fact that we are on our way. How-
ever, it might be just as well to stilve
for consistency in our progress and move
forward with understanding and with
some degree of recognition of the .stage
we have reached in our long journey.

The sensibilities of some persons seem
periodically to undergo a severe trial. At
one season the anglers are found over the
country lugging around their allegedly
torturous paraphernalia ; at another sea-
son the hunters roam the fields and hills
with their guns, also allegedly torturous.
And at such times there is always some-
one lamenting the cruelty of hunting and
fishing.

The animals of the wild places appeal
to the sentiment of people. And it is
right that they should. However, senti-
mentality is entirely a diiferent matter.

Many wax indignant over the killing of
wild life by the hunter or fisherman, yet
the processes of our slaughter nouses
and our own back-yard butcherings do
not trouble them in the least. When it
comes time to kill Johnny's pet rabbit
for the Sunday dinner it is only a matter
to be handled with diplomacy and with
as much dispatch as possible. Of course,
Johnny may think it cruel, and, strange
as it may seem to those who pretend to
see cruelty in the shooting of a wild rab-
bit, the sportsman himself is likely to
agree with Johnny. The true sports-

man can not help but feel that the animal
is being betrayed ; it has learned to trust
its human friends, only to meet death at
the hands that have caressed it. Yet
those who condemn hunting and fishing
condone this betrayal as being the God-
given right of mankind.

While we may betray trusting domestic
animals without protest, we can not pur-
sue the wild birds of the air or the beasts
of the fields or the fish of the streams
where the animals pursued have a chance
to outwit or escape the pursuer without
bringing down upon our heads a shower
of protests that the killing is cruel. The
killing that is done by the hunter or
fisherman is the most merciful of all,
and the fairest of all.

A sportsman may be cruel, Dut most
sportsmen are not, and certainly all
deserving the name are not.

To the wild animal whose life is one
long struggle against its enemies, and
whose life almost without exception comes
to a violent end in the course of nature,
the pursuit by the hunter is but an inci-
dent of its existence. In facing this
danger the animal maintains what free-
dom it possesses or can possess. The
domestic animal has no freedom and
finds its death not at the hands of an
enemy who may be escaped but at the
hands of a friend who can not be escaped.

Does it render a humane service to
the deer to allow it to run unmolested by
rifle ball only to fall a prey to the moun-
tain lion — which also, under the plan of
the hyper-idealist, would be permitted to
multiply? If the deer could choose,
would it accept death from fang and
claw, an always present danger, in prefer-
ence to death by the swifter and more
merciful bullet during a few days In the
year?

Wild life always has existed under the
law of the survival of the fittest, and it
will continue to do so for a long time to
come. And man will continue to eat
meat. These facts will remain facts for
many a generation. Why not admit it
and act accordingly?

This is not a plea for the pensioning of
domestic animals, but rather for a sensi-
ble view of hunting and fishing, and for
a realization that it is not cruelty to
perpetuate hunting and fishing as sports.
The sport is not in the killing — all sports-
men will agree to that. The killing is
incidental and serves exactly the same
purpose as the killing of domestic animals
— the providing of food.

Hunting and fishing form the more
humane method of obtaining meat for tne
tabic, although the demands of mankind

142

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

for animal food makes the slaugliter
house and the back-yard butcherings nec-
. essary. It is more sportsman-like and
more humane to take the gun or fishing
rod and go out into the open in pursuit
of game than to take the ax or cudgel
and go out to the poultry yard or rabbit
hutches.

More attention should be given to the
l>ropagation of wild life and its conser-
vation, if for no other reason than that
for which domestic animals are propa-
gated and maintained — the stocking of the
larder. The wild game would make it
possible occasionally to supply the fam-
ily with delicacies witliout paying high
tril)ute to the butcher, whicli would be a
genuine satisfaction.

But a more important reason for the
maintenance of wild life lies in the bene-
fits that come as by-products of the hunt
and the fishing trip. There Is more
blessing for the human being in bringing
down a wily old mallard with a gun
that must be handled with skill to turn
the trick, and all that such a performanc*'
implies and demands than in decapitating
a pet chicken with an ax. And the bird
would prefer the former death to the latter.

Long life to hunting and fishing I —
Forest and (^trraw. September. 1925.

RECREATIONAL LAND5.

Dr. J. X. T.owe. in an article entitled
"Land Utilization" in the 3Iarch number
of Devplopment Bureau yews, Upper
Peninsula, Michigan, presents much food
for thought in his discussion of the rela-
tive amount of land that should be set
aside for recreational purposes. This
includes game refuges. The amount is
tentatively set at 7 per cent of a given
area, in this case, Michigan. The fol-
lowing quotation indicates that California
stands second in relative amount of land
set aside for such puriDcses :

"California comes second with 1.900,-
000. or 1.9 per cent, without the federal
reserves, but if these are included, 3 per
cent of its lands are in game refuges.
Wisconsin has 19.33.0 acres, or about .19
per cent, and Pennsylvania has 76,317
acres or .26 per cent."

State.

Minnesota

California

Acres in
Game Refuges.

2,843,000

1,900.000

P.t.

.-,.04
1 90

Michigan

Pennsylvania
Wisconsin __
Vermont

272.5o9.53

76.317.70

69.33.-,

lO.SSS

.74
.26
.19
.IS

NEW BOTANICAL GARDEN.

Mrs. Dorinda Blaksly-Bliss has donated

fifteen acres of land in Mission Canyon,
Santa Barbara, for the establishment of
the Blaksly Botanical Garden, It is a
wonderful thing to have on display plants
and trees from the world over. Like-
wise it is a wonderful thing when, through
the establishment of a zoological park,
people are able to study live animals
rather than stuffed specimens in a
museum. Fortunately, in spite of the
fact that there is only one outstanding
zoological garden, that at San Diego,
there is an increasing interest In animal
life in California. An incipient zoo is
to be found in Oakland's new park in
Redwood Canyon.

BOY SCOUTS MAKE GAME CASE.

On .July 9, 1924. the following boy
scouts: C. A. Lamb, scout master from
Orange County ; Leon Atwood, Jr., of
San Bernardino ; Waybum Wolff of Red-
lands. Wiley Searing of Redlands, Henry
Cross of Redlands and Roy Cross of Red-
lands were camping at Dollar Lake.
While they were scouting aroujid they
found three fresh deer hides. Noting
the tracks of some pack animals that
had left the spot, they followed the
tracks over the trail from Dollar Lake to
Barton Flats, where the pack animals
took . the old cattle thieves' trail, not
shown on the government map. They
then went to the forest ranger and
reported their find to him. He got in
touch with the proprietor of Seven Oaks
Resort, who in turn telephoned Mr. W.
C. Malone. Deputy Fish and Game Com-
missioner, at 1 p.m. Mr. Malone imme-
diately went to the ranger's station,
viewed the hides and had a conversation
with the scout master and a number of
the boys. The boys were all worked up
about this flagrant violation of the game
law, as they had a right to be, since it
was out of season and in the heart of
Fish and Game Refuge No. 4-A.

After securing a search warrant the
atithorities followed the trail of the pack
animals to the Mountain Home Resort
Lodge, where Charlie Martin, owner of
the ranch and former chief of police of
San Bernardino, was placed under arrest.
He afterwards pleaded guilty to "viola-
tion of the game law — venison in posses-
sion out of season in the game refuge,"
and was fined.

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

143

NEW TEACHERS' BULLETIN ON FISH
AND GAME LAWS.

liryant, Harold C. Fish and Game
Laws and the Reasons for Them. Stale
of California, Fish and (jamo (Jommis-
sion. Teachers' Bulletin, No. 8, pp. 1-7,
April 24, 1926.

In preparing this bulletin Dr. Bryant
has supplied to teachers a much needed
resume of the tish and game laws of the
State of California. Indeed, tne need of
a concise authoritative statement of this
kind to place in the hands of students
has of late repeatedly been expressed
by teachers. Although designed for pur-
poses of elementary education, adults,
interested in laws designed to conserve
wild life, will find much that is helpful
in it.

The subject is dealt with under the
following heads : History of Fish and

(jame legislation, I'eualties, Law Enforce-
ment, California Laws, Seasons, Open
and Closed, B^ag Limits, Size Limits,
Methods, Nonsale, rollutlon, Game
Ilefuges. (Jame Farming, Federal Migra-
tory Bird Treaty Act and Game Law
Abstracts.

In the questionnaire at the end are
sixteen questions which bring the more
imi)ortant provisions and principles
underlying them, into relief. This bulle-
tin will, it is believed, be extremely help-
ful to any teacher directing a course of
study in natural history or general
biology.

Copies of this bulletin may be ontained
free of charge from the Bureau of Educa-
tion and Research, California Fish and
Game Commission, Museum of Vertebrate
/oology, Berkeley, California. — E. Ray-
mond Hall.

144 CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

FACTS OF CURRENT INTEREST.

At the end of May the Department of Fishculture of the California
Fish and Game Commission had over thirty-two and one-half million
small trout and eggs on hand.

During the year ending December 31, 1925, 224,085 California
angling licenses were issued. During the past year 226,421 hunting
licenses were sold.

The influx of tourists to Yosemite this year is greater than ever
before. The instruction given in natural history and conservation,
by means of lectures, field trips, and motion pictures meets with the
most hearty response. Similar opportunities are now being offered
at California State Redwood Park.

The approaching dry season is one in which the moisture content
of the duff on the forest floor is low and danger of forest fires is
increased. Forest fires destroy game; they destroy the beauty and
value of the region ; they destroy seeds, seedlings and plant life ; kill
enormous quantities of growing timber; consume the leaf litter and
humus on the forest floor ; make deserts of thousands of acres of land ;
kill live stock, and destroy fences, buildings, crops and valuable
property ; sometimes they take human lives ; they despoil your hunt-
ing grounds.

In addition to the $2,484,706 that California secures from the post
office appropriation bill of February, 1925, for the construction of
roads, the United States Forest Service has received $1,089,386 for
the fiscal year beginning July 1, 1926. Of the latter amount $681,222
will be expended in the construction of major forest highways and
$408,164 on minor roads and trails.

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

145

COMMISSION ACTIVITIES.

CABINET MEETINGS IMPROVE
COOPERATION.

Various heads of departments have met
regularly at cabinet meetings and a num-
ber of definite rules have been approved
which will greatly improve the coopera-
tion between various departments, and
in some instances will prevent duplica-
tion of work. Through these meetings
dei)artment heads will be able to make the
work under their supervision fit in with
tlie general policy of the commission.

COMMISSION IN TOUCH WITH CON-
SERVATION CLUBS.

The commissioners and employees have
continued to keep in touch with the
numerous fish and game protective asso-
ciations which are springing up in all
parts of the state. On June 9 the com-
mission was represented at an important
meeting at Visalia of various conserva-
tion clubs of the south end of San Joa-
quin Valley. All of the associations are
strongly in favor of real conservation
and are looking with favor upon tne pres-
ent program of the Fish and Game Com-
mission.

Department of Fishcultiire.

NEW POLICY OF FISH PLANTING.

The California Fish and Game Commis-
sion has placed itself on record as scrap-
ping its former haphazard policy of fish
planting. Beginning next year, the com-
mission will plant trout only after a
thorough survey has been made to deter-
mine the species best suited to particular
waters, and the numbers required. The
planting will then be done by reliable
sportsmen's organizations, or sportsmen
residing in the vicinity, with the assist-
ance, and under the supervision, of an
employee of the commission, trained in
the art of fish planting.

The commission's decision is based
n|ion an exhaustive report recently pre-
l)ared by B. D. Marx Greene, executive
oHicer. following an extended conference
with W. H. Shebley, chief of the Fish-
culture Department. Mr. Greene declares
that while many of the volunteer plant-
ing crews in California are doing their
work in a splendid manner, the whole

principle of the present planting system
is wrong, and that it is as much the
duty of the commission to properly plant
streams and lakes as to rear healthy fish.
His report commends many California
sportsmen's clubs and individjiials for
splendid, though thankless, work in the
past. The main reasons for, and some
discussions of, this new policy are to
be found in Mr. Greene's article, page
128 of this number.

This entire program has been adopted
by the commission, and while it is too
late to initiate it for this season's plant-
ing, the survey will begin at once with a
view to putting it into effect next season.

NEW HATCHERIES PLANNED.

On May 21, Commissioner Zellerbach
and other officials chose a site for the
new trout hatchery on Burney Creek to
be constructed by the Pacific Gas and
Electric Company. A tentative agree-
ment as to the details of construction is
given on page 135 of this number.

Plans are being prepared for the new
trout hatchery to be erected at Yosemite.
Aquaria for exhibiting game fish will be
one of the features of the new hatchery.

HATCHERY NOTES.

Extensive repairs and improvements
have been underway at the Mount
Shasta Hatchery. Several ponds have
been relined with planking and new set-
tling tanks installed.

The take of rainbow eggs at the Klam-
ath auxiliary stations was not as large
as in former years owing to the water
being too cold and too low, so that the
spawning fish did not enter the tributary
streams. Many fish spawned in the river
rather than in the tributary streams.
Snowfall and rainfall have been below
normal in the Klamath region.

Last season one million steelhead trout
eggs were collected from June Lake,
Mono County. The spawning fish were
seined from shallow water. This is a new
source of supply.

The total distribution of salmon from
the Fort Seward Hatchery for the past
season was 1,908,000. The grand total
of eggs handled at the Mount Shasta
Hatchery during the month of April was
20,748,000.

146

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

Department of Coinmercial
Fisheries.

SALMON AND STRIPED BASS INVES-
TIGATIONS.

Dr. .1. U. Su.vili'i', who has been direct-
iiiu Ihese investigatious, left during June
to take charge of the marine biological
laboratory of the IT. JS. Bureau of Fish-
eries at Woods Hole, Massachusetts. He
will return in September to assist in the
registration of zoology students at Stan-
ford and then take active charge of the
salmon and trout investigations on Klam-
ath liiver. The university has given him
leave of absence during the fall quarter
for this work. As Dr. Sn.yder is acting
head of the Department of Zoology at the
iini\ersity, we should consider ourselves
fortunate to get so much of his time. As
an illustration of the imixtrtance with
which this w'ork of Dr. Snyder's is
regarded, the president of the university
in his last annual report mentions the
fishery work of Dr. Sn.yder and his field
assistant, E. C. Scotield, for the Fish
and Game Commission, as one of the
])l'incipal research activities of the Depart-
ment of Zoolog.v. During Dr. Snyder's
absence, the field work will be carried
on by E. C. Scofield with G. H. Clark
assisting.

The striped bass investigations being
carried on by E. C. Scofield have
progressed ver.v satisfactorily. Due to
the strike of river fishermen during the
spawning run of bass, it was impossible
to get the desired data on the age and
size at w'hich striped bass mature, but
enough data was gathered through the
efforts of Charles Bouton, captain of our
patrol boat "Quinnat," and by hiring
special fishemen, to make it reasonably
certain that at least a majority of the
bass mature in their fourth year and at
a size w'hich escapes through the nets of
minimum sized mesh of five and one-half
inches.

The work of tagging troll-caught sal-
mon continued to be a disappointment in
June due to the failure of commercial
trollers to catch the fish in sufficient
numbers. This work is being carried on
by I'aul Boiinot and one assistant at
Eureka, where the best catches of salmon
have been made.

A number of complaints and two peti-
tions have been received by the Commer-
cial Fisheries Department telling of the
depredations of seals and sea lions in
southern California. They ask that the

protection given these inanunals in south-
ern California be withdrawn so that they
may be killed. I'art of the present agi-
tation was started as a result of propa-
uanda by a man formerly empIo.yed in
sea linn killing by the state of Oregon.
More information as to the food of sea
lions is needed, and the Commercial Fish-
eries Department plans to detail a man
to gather additional facts as to the
abundance, distril)ution and food of these
animals.

The Special Libraries Association of
Southern California held its March meet-
ing in the library of the California State
Fisheries Laboratory. After the busi-
ness had been disposed of. Mr. W. L.
Scofield, now in charge of the laboratory,
gave a resume of the scientific work
being done by the California Fish and
(Jame Commission, in which the librari-
ans expressed considerable interest. Their
organization is composed of university,
medical, business, and museum librarians,
many of whom have an opportunity to
spread conservation propaganda among
the sections of the reading public which
they serve. — R. M. Thompson.

During June the tuna season began in
southern California, and data will be
collected on albacore during the next
three months by Mr. Van Deventer under
the direction of the Fisheries Laboratory,
in connection with the albacore conser-
vation program which has now been car-
ried on for several years.

[kireaii of Screens and Ladders.

A new Bureau of Screens and Ladders
has been created with Mr. John Spencer
in charge. For the past six years. Mr.
Spencer has been with the California *
Railroad Commission in the hydraulic
division. Mr. Spencer was first lieuten-
ant in the Engineering Corps of the army
during the war and for nine years iirevi-
ous to that time was superintendent of
engineering on irrigation and domestic
water systems, and in particular had
charge of the water division of the Pacific
Gas and Electric Company centering out
of Auburn. Mr. Spencer brings to the
commission a vast experience and a most;
pleasing personality. Work is already
under way and much is to be hoped from
this department in the near future.

A joint investigation, covering a period
of thirty days, will be made by a commit-
tee consisting of representatives of the

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

147

U. S. Bureau of Fisheries, of a power
company, Associated Sportsmen's Clubs,
and of the Fish and Game Commission
to detei-mine whether trout of a non-
migratory type are drawn into the tur-
bines of a power plant. Racks and traps
will be installed below the power plant
at Hat River No. 1 and a watch kept for
trout that might pass through the con-
duit. This investigation should give data
as to the necessity of screening the inlets
to the turbines of power plants.

Bureau of Pollution.

To clean up the many instances of pol-
lution in streams and coastal waters
seemed an insurmountable task until
undertaken systematically by a separate
bureau. A better understanding of the
magnitude of the work is in evidence
when the various sources of pollution are
named : distilleries, gas plants, lumber
mills, mines, oil refineries, slaughter
houses, and tanneries. However, sys-
tematic endeavor is bringing worth while
results, for every monthly report shows
numerous inspections made and many
actual clean-ups reported. Those cases
which needed action have received quick
trial and speedy settlement. In most
instances, however, corporations have
been found ready to cooperate with the
commission in what they understand is
necessary for the welfare of fish and
fisheries in the state.

Companies in the Ventura oil field
have agreed to place new flumes and
pipe lines together with new sumps to
prevent further pollution of the Ventura
River.

Bureau of Finance and Accounts

A heavy sale of angling licenses was
reported for May by the Bureau of
Finance and Accounts. The total angling
license sales for the year ending Decem-
ber 31, 1925, was $232,501. Of this
amount $218,224 accrued from licenses
sold to citizens of California, $4,221 from
licenses sold to nonresidents, and $10,05G
from licenses to .aliens. One hundred and
two licenses were issued to veterans of
the Civil War.

Bureau of Education and
Research.

at the Yosemite National Park this year.
His lectures have been well attended.
In fact, he and his assistants have all
the work that they can handle.

Classes are taken to the various points
of interest and are shown the local fauna
and flora. The interest shown by all is
very gratifying.

Bureau of Publicity.

The Bureau of Publicity is issuing
regularly to all important newspapers In
the state, stories which tend to inform
the public of the activities of tne com-
mission and teach respect for fish and
game laws. Newspapers are using the
news items without cutting.

Bureau of Game Farms.

Dr. H. C. Bryant reports large crowds

Weather conditions at the Game Farm
during the month of June were ideal for
bird propagation. The growth and
development of birds was normal in every
way. As it was found impossible to
cultivate the ground and seed it, dry
pens were resorted to. It was necessary
to purchase lettuce in large quantities to
feed both young and old birds. In
another year, the grain feed for the birds
will be produced in the pens. The domes-
tic hens utilized in hatching the eggs
will be held over and will furnish the
eggs necessary for food. Besides kale
and rape as green feed and cover, buck-
wheat will be planted in the pens next
year. Experiments will also be made
with proso, a feed said to furnish the
main diet of game birds in Russia and
said to be ideal for use at game farms.

During the early fall breeding birds
will l)e chosen and the surplus stock
planted on ground that has first been
inspected and found suitable.

The breeding stock at the Yountville
Game Farm has been producing eggs in
the expected number. By the first or
June 5500 pheasant eggs had been laid.
1809 birds hatched and placed in rearing
pens, while 2081 eggs were still Incubat-
ing. A number of eggs were infertile
and some young birds were lost as a
result of the large hens necessarily used
in hatching. Later incubatoi-s were used
with good success, since the loss from
being "killed in the nest" was much less
among the newly hatched birds.

A splendid stock of Mongolian pheas-
ants, furnished by the state of Washing-
ton, has furnished sufficient eggs To bring
the stock up to 300.

148

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

Quail have done exceptionally well.
I\V the first of September the young birds
reared will be mature.

Little was expected from the two pairs
of Hungarian partridges, yet the one
mated female laid seventeen eggs and a
few birds were hatched.

birds
ago.

imported from China three years
It is therefore pure stock.

Department of Patrol.

Following the civil service examinations
given this past spring, an eligible list has

Fig. 2S. Superintendent Bade, State Game Farm, Tountville, California,
placing ring-necked pheasant eggs in nest for hatching by hens.

Several varieties of pheasants are now
on display at the Game Farm. Included
are ring-necked, Mongolian, golden, sil-
ver, Reeves and Lade Amherst. Young
of both the golden and silver have been
hatched.

The stock of ring-necked pheasants
given by the state of Oregon is that of

now been established from which appoint-
ments can be made. What little reor-
ganization that was necessary has been
accomplished with little or no disturb-
ance of the actual patrol work.

J. H. Sanders, a thoroughly competent
officer, who for a number of years has
been in the employ of the commission,
has been appointed captain of the district

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

140

comprising Lassen, Plumas, Sierra, upper
Nevada, Placer and El Dorado counties.
Chief of patrol, J. S. Hunter, traveled
nearly 3000 miles in organizing and
supervising the work of deputies during
the month of May.

COMMISSION EMPLOYEES SAVE
TROUT.

Numerous storms in San B'ernardino
County caused Big Bear Lake to rise
rapidly the past spring. The traps were
all in place and good takes of fish were
resulting when this high water imperiled
the fish in the traps as well as the 4,000,-
000 eggs incubated in the North Creek
Hatchery. Deputies Ed Ricketts and
R. J. Little worked with the superintend-
ent of the hatchery for four days and
nights in rain, snow, and sleet and
finally saved most of the fish and all of
the eggs. The traps had to be relogged
higher up, and when the water went down
in the tributary streams, thousands of
fish were left stranded and had to be
rescued. The run of fish Into the
streams during this high water was
unusually large, as was also the average
size of the fish — four pounds. Had it
not been for the faithful service of these
employees, a heavy loss would have
resulted.

During June, 62 arrests were made and
fines totalling $3,610 were collected.
Deputy Johnson, of Napa, arrested a
spotlight deer shooter and the defendant
spent several weeks prior to his trial in
the Napa County jail in default of $500
cash bail.

Included in the June seizures were :
50 pounds venison, 279 trout, 300 pounds
barracuda, 144 dozen crabs, 86 abalones,
and 0 cottontails.

State Lion Hunter.

During the first six months of this year,
Jay Bruce, state lion hunter, killed 12
lions. Sick dogs have handicapped him
for several weeks, but by the end of the
year he expects to kill suflScient lions to
bring his average up to the usual number
of 32 or 33. Mr. Manly Harris of the
Motor Body Corporation is much inter-
ested in Bruce's work and has very gen-
erously presented him with a new ma-
chine. It has a special built camping
body and is equipped with a Ford motor,
and gears which will enable it to go any-
where in the mountainous districts of the
state.

COMMERCIAL FISHERY NOTES.

N. B. ScoFiELD, Editor.

It is the opinion of William F. Her-
rington, assistant fisheries biologist of
the State Fish and Game Commission,
that the valuable Pismo clam fishery of
San Luis Obispo County, instead of being
in a very prosperous condition, as is the
belief of most of the people in the Pismo
beach region, is, in fact, well on the road
to extermination. The article in this
number of California Fish and Game
by Mr. Herrington describes now for
years a census of the clam population on
the San Luis Obispo beaches has been
taken by members of the stail of the
California State Fisheries Laboratory at
San Pedro. These studies have dis-
closed the fact that the year 1919 was
an extraordinarily successful spawning
year for the clams. The clams of that
year class made up 90 per cent of all
the clams found on the beach up until the
year 1923, when they constituted 82 per
cent of the total population. In 1924
this percentage dropped to 58 per cent
and in 1925 dropped to 7 per cent. In
other words, the 1919 year class has

passed out with no other abundant year
class to take its place. The year class
of 1924, or those hatched in 1924, are
only one-tenth as abundant as were the
clams of the 1919 year class. As this
1924 crop will not reach the legal size
for two or three more years and will
then be relatively small in number, the
Pismo clam fisheries face extermination
unless drastic action is taken.

Herrington shows that the decrease
in the number of clams on the beaches is
not due to the activity of the commer-
cial diggers, who can market only legal
sized clams, but is almost entirely due to
the activity of tourists and amateur dig-
gers. During the three years 1923-1925
the census shows that the number of
clams in one mile of beach was reduced
by over 4,500,000 clams while during the
same period the commercial diggers took
less than 550,000 clams from all the
beaches.

As the legal sized clams have about
disappeared tourists and amateurs will
be more inclined to take the clams which

V^.-iAJAi V-'AVX^ X-T. !■ Xt^J.± ^\±^ LJ VJ-1*V11:j,

have not yet reached the spawuinjr aw.
and unless some better method of pro-
tecting the immature chims can be devised
than has been possible in the past, the
clams of San Luis Obispo County will,
indeed, be virtually exterminated as were
the clams on Lons Beach, Anaheim
Beach and other beaches where they
were once abundant.

A QUESTIONNAIRE ON SALMON.

The following: is an example of some
of the questions that are received by our
Commercial Fisheries Department for
their attention. These questions are on
salmon, of which there are five si)ecies
found on the Pacific coast, and of these
only two are common in California, the
kinjr salmon, variously known as the
Chinook, quinnat, or spring salmon ; and
the silver salmon, known also as coho
and hookbill. The female silver salmon
in the Eel River has sometimes been
erroneously called blueback. This latter
name is commonly applied to the sock-
eye, a red salmon of the north.

Thinking the answers to these ques-
tions may be of some interest we are
printing them below :

1. How long do king salmon remain in
fresh water after they are hatched, and
on what do they feed?

The young of the king salmon migrate
to the sea during the spring, shortly aftrr
they are hatched. A number of them
remain over until the next winter before
migrating, feeding on insects which drop
in and float on the surface.

2. What are the enemies of salmon?
The enemies of the young in fresh

water are numerous. Trout and other
predaceous fishes ; birds, like the heron
and water ousel ; snakes, etc., are some
of them. The adults while they are in
fresh water have few enemies other than
man. Bears sometimes catch salmon as
they pass over shallow riffles in their
spawning migration. The enemies of
salmon in the sea are thought to be the
sea lions and birds like the murre and
shag, but there is little evidence on the
subject.

3. "What causes the salmon to rerurn
to fresh water?

It is believed that salmon return and
spawn in fresh water to get the young
away from the more numerous enemies in
the sea. It may be that salmon were
originally strictly fresh water fish that
have learned to extend their feeding
grounds by going out into tlie sea. The
fact that salmon eggs are killed by sea
water might be used as an argument
that the latter has happened. The sal-
mon are giiided by an instinct to enter

or to leave the fresh water. The salmon,
it has been pretty well proven, most all
return to the parent sti'eam.

4. What is the value of the Pacific
coast salmon caught in one year?

The value, to the fishermen, of the sal-
mon cauglit eacli year in California. Ore-
gon, and AVasliington is al)out Jp-i.OtWXXI.
The California catch is about one-fifth
of that.

."). How high a waterfall will a salmon
dim])?

A king salmon, if it has a deep pool to
leap from, can make a clear jump of from
12 to 1~) feet in height. After making a
good jump it may enter the fall several
feet below its crest and be able to swim
on up.

6. Do salmon alwaj's descend a ri\cr
tail first?

They supposedly keep their heads to
the current.

7. Do all salmon die soon after spawn-
ing?

It is believed they do.

8. When salmon are caught on a hook
in the river, do they strike the hook in
the spirit of combat?

Yes.

9. How can you tell the age of a fish?
By size of rings of growth on scales

when viewed under a microscope.

10. What advantage is there to the
salmon to spawn far up the river?

The advantage in spawning far up a
river is to get the eggs and young aT)ovo
flood conditions and to give the young a
longer time in the stream before they
are washed out into the ocean. The
eggs, if deposited in the gravel too far
down stream, may be washed out or
covered and killed by flood conditions.
The young are not so apt to be washed
down stream and the water will not be
so muddy, thus enabling the fish to see
their food. ^luddy water causes them to
drift with the current.

CASTING NETS.

Inquiries concerning casting nets are
not infrequently received. From the
questions asked it is inferred that little
is known of the construction nr operntion
of these nets.

A casting net is seldom used in Califor-
nia and never as a commercial proposi-
tion. It is used in the Hawaiian Islands
and tlie well known photograidi of a
HaAvaiian fisjierman shows him aliout to
make a throw with the net. It taRes a
good deal of skill to cast one of these
small nets which is apparently more of a
sporting proposition than anything else.
The editor does not remember having

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

151

seen more than three of the nets. One
was being used by a Japanese wlio was
casting from a boat in the shallow water
of the lower San Joaquin River Lor split-
tails and carp. One of the Duarte broth-
ers at Monterey had one of these nets
hung on his ceiling as an ornament, and
an old German shoemaker of San Fran-
cjgco had one which he desired to use in
CHear Lake for carp.

One of the publications of the Bureau
of Fisheries has an excellent description
of how the net is operated, but it is diffi-
cult to explain to a person who Uas not
seen the net. The net is shaped some-
thing like a parachute, the edge is
weighted with small weights and from
the edge of the net there are small ropes

attached, each one of them so arranged
thiit it will purse or draw up a part of
the circumference of the net. These
ropes then pass up through a small I'ing
at the center of the net just as you might
take the ropes on a parachute and pass
them up through a hole in the top. The
ropes practically fill the opening so that
fish can not pass out. The net is cast
with a circular motion so that It spreads
out and lauds like a blanket on the
water. The weighted edges fall to the
bottom first, then when the small ropes
are pulled through the opening at the top
of the net by one central line held in the
hand, the edge of the net is pursed and
pulled toward the center thus impound-
ing the fish.

LIFE HISTORY NOTES.

BARBED WIRE FENCE CAUSES
DEATH OF DEER.

Mr. William I^iiipiucott, deputy fish
and game warden, who secured and sent
in the photograph reproduced here, writes
that the deer is a four-point buck which

According to Mr. Lippincott, this is a
common occurrence and causes the death
of many deer in his region. The writ-
er's own observations of mule deer on the
Kaibab Flateati of Arizona indicate that,
of the several ways in which deer are

Fig. 29. Four-point buck, Rocky Mountain mule deer, being removed from
barbed wire fence in which it is caught, Yegg, Siskiyou County, California.
March 28, 1926. Photograph by M. A. Rapalli.

lived only one or two days after being
taken from the fence. He states that the
antlers were knocked off in the deer's
struggle to free itself and that in the
photograph they can be seen lying on the
ground.

injured and killed by accident, being
caught in wire fences is a common one.
The writer remembers particularly one
doe, caught in the same manner as the
buck shown in the accompanying photo-
graph, that had evidently died from loss

152

CALIFORNIA PISH AND GAME,

of blood. This resulted from the numer-
ous cuts on vai'ious parts of the body
sustaiued iu her attempts to get free
Ironi the barbed wire. In anotner
instance a fawn, only a few weeks old,
was found dead, hanging by one leg tnat
was caught between two parallel limbs
over which it, apparently, had tried to
jump. The bounding gait and habit of
jumping over, rather than going around,
objects in its path would seemingly render
this animal more subject to accidents of
this kind than are other mammals. How-
ever, at least the mule deer, as deter-
mined from observation, especially when
not frightened, goes under or through
rather than over barbed wire fences. — E.
Raymond Hall.

FORAGE HABITS OF POCKET
GOPHER.

Near noon of June G, 1926, after sit-.
t:ing motionless for a time in a shady
spot in the Berkeley Hills, my attention
was caught by a slight rustling in the
grass near at hand. Turning, I was
barely in time to see a California pocket
gopher {Thomomys hottae hottae) retreat,
backward, down a new burrow he had
just broken through to the surface. Soon
he reappeared, this time shoving a load
of dirt ahead of him. After pushing out
the thii'd and last load he paused and cut,
with his sharp incisors, one of the green,
seed-bearing grass stems that grew to a
hi'ight of seven or eight inches about the
hole he had just made. While on his trip
l)elow ground with this grass stem 1
squirmed forward until my eyes were
less than twenty -four inches from him
when he next came to the mouth of the
burrow. While I lay watching he made
seven more trips to the surface. Each
time he took one and only one stem of
the grass. He secured each by turning
his head a little to one side and cutting
the stem, at a single bite, about one-half
inch above the ground. Retreating back-
ward, a short distance down the hole, he
would drag a stem after him. One could
then hear from four to eight clicks of his
teeth as he, presumably, cut the plant
into lengths appropriate for his use.
Whether he stored these pieces in his
(tlieek pouches as he cut them or left them
in the burrow I could not tell. In each
case it was only an instant after the
clicks of his teeth ceased until he was
back at the surface. Although he never
came entirely out of the sloping burrow,
he reached out on three sides of the open-
ing to secure the grass stems, and in so
doing sometimes exposed more than half
the length of his body. Several times he

looked directly at me, but failed to rec-
ognize me as a possible danger at which
to take alarm, although he did appear to
be on the watch for enemies.

On the eighth trip to the surface, just
after he had cut off another grass stem,
the breeze shifted and blew directly
toward him from me. The gopher at
once became suspicious. Turning ,in
my direction he wiggled his nose pad to
test the breeze and, deciding that it was
unsafe to longer expose himself, hastily
retreated below ground. Thus it would
appear that the gopher's sense of smell is
of no little aid to him in avoiding certain
enemies. Certainly, in the case cited
above, it was of more use than his sense
of sight.

In less than a minute after his final
disappearance he returned along tne bur-
row pushing a load of loose dirt in front
of him. This only partly filled tbe mouth
of the hole. A second load completely
closed the opening and a thira made it
fairly solid. Several minutes later I
dug out the rather firmly packed soil he
had placed in the hole and found that it
extended six or seven inches down the
burrow. Thus, I inferred that, in all.
he had used more than three loads to
construct his barricade.

In addition to the method of foraging
describe<l above, at least two other gen-
eral methods of feeding on plants without
the gopher exposing himself above ground
are resorted to. One is, of course, eating,
;,/( situ, the tubers, roots, and parts of
plants that normally grow underground.
The third method, as observed in Shaw's
pocket gopher {Geomys bursarius) by
some students is that of tunneling beneath
a plant, then pulling on the roots and
dragging the whole below grouna. — E.
Raymond Hall.

RETURN ON BANDED GOOSE.

Through inquiry of Mr. George Thomp-
son we learn that a cackling goose bear-
ing band Xo. 3020C7 was killed by George
Kluber on the Browning Ranch six miles
west of Biggs. Butte County, California,
October 25. 1924. The goose was baYided
.luly 31, 1924, less than three months
before, at Kashunuk, Alaska, by Mr. O.
,1. Mui'ie of the United States Bureau of
Biological Survey.

BEAVER IN MODOC COUNTY.

The only representatives of the Rocky
Mountain type of beaver found in the
state are in Modoc County. There are
some five different localities near the
head of Pit River where beaver are still
to be found. Should protection be removed

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

153

from these animals California would
seen lose a few examples of the famous
northern beaver of which she sliould be
proud.

DESTRUCTION OF GOLDEN EAGLE
IN CALIFORNIA.

The alarming decrease in numbers of
the golden eagle, Aquila chrysaetos, in
southern California is being noticed even
by casual observers.

We have seen our California condor
almost exterminated and at the pres-
ent rate of destruction our golden
eagle will be as scarce in a few years. I
saw more California condoi's during a
single day of the year 1913 in Santa
Barbara County, than I have of the
golden eagle in southern California dur-

ing the first three months of the present
year. During this first quarter of the
year I have not only visited seven former
nesting sites (only one being use<l), but
liave been in close proximity to others,
and in country where they should be,
and were formerly, numerous.

My opinion, based ou evidence I have
seen and on hearsay, is that most of the
birds are accidentally caught in traps set
for fox, etc. A few are shot by hunters.

Study should be made or trapping
methods with a view of finding some
methods which can be used without tak-
ing toll on cur golden eagle. Publicity
should be given to the matter and we
should do all possible to see that our fast-
vanishing golden eagle is protected. —
Wilson C. Hanna, Colton, Cal.

CONSERVATION IN OTHER STATES.

ARKANSAS STILL HAS NO PROTEC-
TION ON FISH.

In the April number of the Arkansas
Conservationist several interesting obser-
vations are presented regarding the effects
of lack of fish legislation in that state.
Only a few years ago this state was
far famed throughout the middle west
for its excellent fishing. Now most of
the streams are depleted. In an article
by the editor of the magazine. Dr. H. S.
Davis of the TJ. S. Bureau of Fisheries
is tjuoted as follows:

"How can the people of Arkansas
expect game fish to flourish in their
streams when there are practically no
restrictions on fishing, and any man can
catch as many fish as he is able, at any
time of the year, and in any manner he
may choose to employ?

"It is true there is a law against dyna-
miting, but it appears that a limited
force of game wardens makes enforce-
ment impossible. This is the only restric-
tion on fishing which the state has at-
tempted. The people should realize that
no matter how favorable the conditions,
no species of fish can maintain itself
imless sufficient numbers survive to per-
petuate the species. Under present con-
ditions in Arkansas, it is a very excep-
tional and lucky fish which is able to
survive and propagate its kind. With all
sorts of methods being used to capture
fish, both large and small, the chance of
any game fish reaching maturity is slight
indeed."

In this same number we learn also that
granting of police power to a warden rests
entirely with the county sheriff of which

county the game warden is a resident.
In some counties, due to the hostile atti-
tude of the sheriffs, game wardens actu-
ally are without police power.

By reason of the large amount of
rugged mountainous territory in Arkan-
sas that is not adapted to agriculture,
game, as well as fish, is more plentiful
than in most of the adjoining states.
With the construction of good roads,
si)ortsmen, and more particularly anglers,
invade it from all sides. Under the
present lack of restriction, depletion is
progressing at a rapid rate. Arkansas,
like many of the western states, also has
its problems, resulting from reclamation
projects. Large numbers of water fowl
winter there, and at the present rate that
artificial drainage is being carried on
will soon be forced out with consequent
overcrowding in other places, resulting
as Dr. E, W. NeLson has recently sliown,
in death from disease. Their problems
thus are of interstate nature and the
Arkansas Game and Fish Commission
and the few earnest individuals m that
state who are actually working for bet-
ter conditions there obviously have a
hard row to hoe. — E. R. H.

MISSOURI INTRODUCES GAME.

From Missouri Game and Fish News
(Vol. 1, No. 2, p. 7) we learn that:

"The department is pleased to report
to the sportsmen of Missouri that 50 Vir-
ginia (white tail) deer have been im-
ported to this state from Michigan at a
cost of $2,500 and have been released in
game refuges located in the Ellington
State Park in Reynolds County and in

154

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

the Salem refuge in Dent County. The
deer were brought here at a cost of $40
each plus transpDrtntion cost <>{' $10 each,
a total of .$.jt) per deer.

■'With a view to better [iropagation
the tU'parlmeul purchased the deer ou a
basis of one buck to two does. At the
present time there are eight bucks and
seventeen does at tlie Salem park and
eight bucks and seventeen does at Elling-
ton. All of the animals arrived at the
parks in excellent condition."

On page 10 of the same publication we
learn that native stock in some parts of
tlie state is suthciently abundant to be
introduced into other parts of the state.
Missouri has a closed season on deer
until V.):iO. This fact together with —
what is more important — the increasing
number of game preserves throughout the
state may be expected to cause an
increase in the number of white-tailed
deer of the area where early settlers
found the animals in countless numbers.

NEW METHOD OF PREDATORY
MAMMAL CONTROL.

What appears to be an innovation in
pi'edatory mammal control has been
adopted by the Missouri Game and Fish
Commission. From the June number of
Missouri Game and Fish News we learn
that complaint has been made against
the presence of foxes in game preserves,
and that it has been deemed proper to
remove these mammals from said pre-
serves. However, by reason of tne targe
number of devotees that fox hunting, as
a sport, has in Missouri, it has been
decided that the foxes shall not be killed
but shall be captured alive and removed
to other areas. Since the preserves in
question are said to be surrounded by a
single strand of wire we are led to won-
der how the foxes will be l-ept out. The
fact, known to biological scientists, that
a given area, of limited size, adapted to
the needs of a particular species Is soon
restocked by that species after Its sud-
den depletion, other conditions remain-
ing the same, indicates what may be
expected to happen with respect to the
foxes. However questionable control
measures of this kind are. they are cer-
tainly not the potential danger to the
public welfare that promiscuous lethal
measures are. — E. R. H.

STEELHEAD IS GAME FISH IN
WASHINGTON.

The steelhead is a game fish when
found above the mouth of any river flow-
ing into salt water in the state of Wash-
ington, according to the opinion of Assist-

ant Attorney General E. W. Anderson
of that state. Some point on each river

will lie dcsiimali'd ;|s lllc nuinlli nf tlir

stream.

This law i)assi'd al tin- recent special
session of the Washington state legis-
latuic will make it necessary that fisher-
men catching these fish above the river
mouth must have a game fish license an<l
must observe the bag limits provided for
game fish. — 'I'lif Orciian Sjiortxynan.

OIL POLLUTION.

From the thirty-fifth annual report of
the Koyal Society for the Protection of
Birds, we learn that the society has
taken active steps to do away with oil
pollution of certain waters in the British
Isles. We also learn that a motion was
made during one of their meetings to
arouse, if possible, public opinion in
America on this question as they believe
that "there was not really any lack of
good will: for there (in America) they
cared very much more about the subject. "'

California can well be congratulated
upon its early activities in this matter
since the newly organized Bureau of
Pollution of the California Fish and
Game Commission is designed to handle
cases of this kind. Many cases have
already been investigated by this bureau
and often satisfactory arrangements have
been made without taking the cases into
court. Although cases handled -in this
way gain but slight recognition, their
number is one measure of the bureau's
success, for the expense saved the com-
mission in not having to invoke the law,
and the injury to aquatic life that is
forestalled by immediate action, is great.
— E. R. H.

NEVADA GAME REFUGE.

The governor of Nevada has recently
proclaimed the establishment of a game
refuge, 12 by 14 miles in extent, along
the Idaho-Nevada state line, to be known
as the Elko County Goose Creek State
Recreation Ground and Game Refuge.
This joins the Minidoka National Forest
in Idaho, in that portion of which hunt-
ing is forbidden. — The Oregon imports-
man.

BIRD PROTECTION
LAND

IN SWITZER-

From the summary published in the
March (1926) number of To.s Oi-seauic.
the organ of the Swiss Society for the
Study and Protection of Birds, it appears
that the new Federal Bird Protection Act
of 192.J divides wild birds into two
classes, (a) those which may be killed

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

155

in the open season by persons having per-
mits, and (&) those which are to be pro-
tected all the year.

By virtue of these two articles in the
law, remarks Nos Oiseatia;, "all the lit-
tle insectivorous and granivorous birds
are protected, except the thrush, the
fieldfare, and the sparrow," clause (h)
comprising all species not mentioned in
the first clause, whether resident, breed-
ing, birds of passage, winter visitors, or
casual visitors. The list of those only
partially protected and regarded as
"game," includes, not only such birds as
pheasants, partridges, grouse, quail, etc.,
but also wild pigeons (except turtledove)
and wild ducks, wild geese, woodcock,
snipe, divers, grebes, rails, coot, moorhen,
cormorant, golden eagle, goshawk, pere-
grine falcon, sparrowhawk, hobby, crow,
hooded crow, rook, raven, magpie, jay,
nuthatch (cassenoix), sparrow, thrush,
and fieldfare.

All owls, buzzards, bitterns, and herons
are among the protected, and also all the
waders (except those specified), includ-
ing redshank, sandpipers and plovers.

Although the golden eagle may be killed
in the shooting season, it is rigidly pro-
tected at its eyrie, and any person taking
or acquiring or selling the eggs or young
birds is subject to a heavy fine.

The confederation encourage by subsi-
dies measures taken by the cantons for
creating reserves, protecting woods and
reed beds, provision of nesting boxes and
food, etc. ; and in concert with the for-
estry administration will facilitate the
nesting of protected birds and the con-
servation of the trees they favor. The
cantons have liberty to extend the meas-
ures of the law in various ways, sucb as
lengthening the close time ; forbidding
battues, the use of motor boats for taking
water birds, and Sunday and night shoot-
ing ; adding to the list of fully protected
species, etc. ; information to be given to
the federal council when such measures
are adopted.

School children are to be taught to dis-
tinguish the protected birds, to know their
utility and the duty of noninterference
with them. — Bird Notes and Neios, Vol.
32, No. 1, p. 6.

REPORTS.

GAME CASES.
January-February-March, 1926.

Number
.Irrests

Fines
Imposed

Jail

Sentences
(days)

Violations of Hunting License Act

Violations of Fur Trapping Regulations

Deer: hunting, killing, possession; closed season

Deer: killing, possession; does, fawns, spike bucks

Deer: skins, evidence of sex removed —

Ducks: over bag limit

Ducks : killing, possession ; closed season

Mudhens: killing, possession; closed season. _

Geese: over bag limit

Geese: killing, possession; closed season

Swans: killing, possession.

Shorebirds: killing, possession

Quail: killing, possession; closed season

Pheasants: killing, possession

Nongame birds: killing, possession .

Rabbits: cottontail-brush; killing, possession, closed season

Squirrels: (tree) killing, possession..

Shooting from automobile — power boat

Night hunting..

Totals

24
5

21
1
1
2
8
6
2
2
4
1
3
7

17

15
2

8
19

S340 00

80 00

1,405 00

50 00

25 00

90 00

250 00

100 00

75 00

50 00

115 00

125 00
525 00
620 00
600 00
175 00
165 00
325 00

148

$5,115 00

75

25
20

120

156

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

FISH CASES.
January-February-March, 1926.

Number
Arrests

Fines
Imposed

Jail

Sentences
(days)

Violations of Angling License Act . - -

Violations of Commercial Fishing License Act

Trout: closed season

Trout : illegal spearing

Crappie: closed season :

Striped bass: undersized; over bag limit

Striped bass: shipment out of state

Crabs: transporting out of district 1}4

Clams: undersized; over bag limit.

Abalones: closed season

Abalones: undersized

Lobsters: undersized

Salmon: over bag limit

Smelt: young of

Illegal fishing: 250 feet of a fishway;

150 feet of a dam

lUegal fishing: fish reservation

Nets: illegal possession or use

Totals.-

11

2

11

2

1

16

2

1

24

21

24

7

1

1

2

4

14

$225 DO

20 00

415 00

50 00

800 00

25 00

40 00

475 00

580 00

610 00

245 00

50 00

20 00

20 00

170 00

1,850 00

144

$5,595 00

20
15
"20

50

SEIZURES OF FISH AND GAME.
January-February-March, 1926.

GAME

Quail ,4

Pheasant 2

Nongame birds 19

Deer meat, poimds 690J^

Rabbits 31

Ducks 439

Geese 45

Robins 11

Deer hides 1

Mud hens 3

Sea gulls 2

Swan 3

Gray fox skin 1

Squirrel 2

Coyote furs 10

Skunk furs 1

Pigeons 2

Shore birds 4

Mountain sheep head. 1

FISH

Trout 102

Striped bass 433

Pismo clams.. 85

Crabs. 1,004

Crab meat, pounds 2

Abalone 493

Salmon, pounds 280

Lobsters 224

Nets 1

Smelt, pounds 35

Sliced abalone, pounds 85

Shiners. 2

Flounders 20

Crappie 1

Pike 13

Sandabs, pounds 4

Mackerel, pounds 5

Cans of trout 1

STATEMENT OF INCOME.

For the period January 1, 1926 to March 31, 1926.

License sales: Detail Total

Angling $34,896 00

Hunting 58,846 00

Market fishermen's 4,220 00

Trapping 607 00 .

Wholesale fish packers' and shell fish dealers' 45 00

Game breeders' 265 00

Fish breeders' 60 00

Kelp 10 00

Total license sales - - - $98,949 00

Other income:

Court fines $10,060 00

Fish packers' tax 18,219 20

Kelp tax -- 60

Fish tag sales 1,177 90

Game tag sales 1 92

Sale of beaver hides

Sale of nets, hne and other equipment 180 00

Abalone inspection 6 28

Interest on bank deposits 499 22

Total other income - 30,145 12

Total income '. — - -— $129,094 12

CALIFORNIA PISH AND GAME.

157

STATEMENT OF EXPENDITURES.
For the Period January 1, 1926 to March 31, 1926 of the Seventy-seventh Fiscal Year.

Function

Materials

and
Supplies

Salaries

and
Wages

Service

and
Expense

Property

and
Equipment

Total

Administration:
Commissioners

$171 06
343 23
786 52

3,049 46

$67 45

3 14

486 44

$238 51

Executive and legal - _ _

$27 70
337 74

$1,665 81
5,098 38

2,039 88

Clerical and office

6,709 08

Rent - - --

3,049 46

Printing

277 65

277 65

936 31

277 32

884 54

21 95

936 31

Freight cartage and express

277 32

884 54

Automobiles

21 19

1,651 89

1,695 03

Total administration

$664 28

$13 08

13 40

4 40

$6,764 19

$275 00
1,374 37

$6,470 39

$121 84
172 61

$2,208 92

$5 70
4 75

$18 107 78

Publicity and research:

Director of education and research _

Director of publicity and pollution

$415 62
1,565 13

Printing

4 40

Total publicity and research

$30 88

$1,649 37

$1,123 26

32,035 06

310 00

1,090 00

$294 45

$149 92

21,959 23

92 81

5 00

163 60

110 90

44 72
2,140 00

$10 45

$1,985 15

Conservation and protection:

(Patrol and law enforcement)
Chief and assistant - -

$1,273 18

Captains and deputies

$54 80

160 89

49 90

54,049 09

Patrol launches _ .

$116 50

680 20

Clerical and office.

1,144 90

Rent

163 60

Automobiles.

87 76

17 05

215 71

(Protection)
Lion hunter

375 00

419 72

2,140 00

Total conservation and protection

Commercial fisheries:
Chief and assistants

$353 35

$78 83

38 16

53 12

6 32

694 91

$34,933 32

$1,573 32

7,450 06

4,605 00

1,000 00

660 00

$24,666 18

$116 36

1,357 33

330 39

45 01

216 27

1 00

$133 55

$2 97

66

151 65

99

$60,086 40
$1,771 48

8 846 21

Laboratory research ..

5,140 16

Statistical

Patrol launches

1,052 32
1 571 18

Salmon tagging . .

1 00

Total commercial fisheries

$871 34
$1,305 24

$15,288 38
$1,205 81

$2,066 36
$684 56

$156 27

$1,234 76
18,742 31

$18,382 35

$4,430 37
18,742 31

Game propagation:

Game farm maintenance and operation.

Additions and betterments - .

Total game propagation. .

$1,305 24

$1,205 81

$933 32
2,090 65
1,175 00

$684 56

$63 80

313 63

13 10

$19,977 07

$23,172 68
S997 12

Fish ciilture:
Chief of division. ..

Special field investigation. . . ..

$111 35

31 87

88 95

6,994 51

304 62

$27 85

2 543 48

Clerical and office _ .

1 219 97

Printing .

88 95

Hatcheries ..

15,443 61

1,546 33
173 21
212 40

435 73
959 50

24 420 18

Automobiles.

1,437 33
212 40

Rent

Total fish culture

$7,531 30

$19,642 58

$2,322 47
$11,261 60

$1,423 08

$30,919 43

License commissions..

$11,261 60

Total expenditures

$10,756 39

$79,483 65

$47,766 01

$23,909 34

$161,915 39

158

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

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■liE

Total Mexican
brought into
California

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via San Diego...

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California Fish and Game

"CONSERVATION OF WILD LIFE THROUGH EDUCATION"

Volume 12 SACRAMENTO, OCTOBER, 1926 Number 4

CONTENTS.

Page

CONSERVATION OP THE GRUNION Frances N. Clark 161

A NEW FISHERY IN MEXICO J- ^- Craig 165

NO MORE WASTE LAND A. Butledge 169

LIFE HISTORY AND HABITS OF THE WESTERN MOURNING DOVE

Harold C. Bryant 175

EDITORIALS ^^^

PACTS OF CURRENT INTEREST 198

COMMISSION ACTIVITIES 199

LIFE HISTORY NOTES 204

CONSERVATION IN OTHER STATES 206

reports-
Violations OP Fish and Game Laws 211

Financial, Report 212

Fishery Products, April to June, 1926 214

INDEX TO VOLUME TWELVE 217

THE CONSERVATION OF THE GRUNION *

By Frances N. Clark.

During the spring months of each year, a popular pastime for people
who have ready access to the beaches of southern California, is grunion
fishing. The lure of the beaches on moonlight nights and the novelty
of picking up from the sand these very lively fish, cause vast crowds to
gather when an abundant grunion run is expected. The beach towns
appreciate the economic value of the large groups of people thus
attracted to the beach and, to encourage their coming, local newspapers
carry notices of the time of expected runs. The importance of grunion,
therefore, is twofold : they benefit the coastal towns of southern Call- .

♦Contribution No. 63 from the California State Fisheries Laboratory. August, 1926.
47365

162

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

t'ornia by I'liriiisliiug ouo more iiidiicement to bring people to the beach,
and also the people, both by furnishing a tasty addition to the beach
supper or next morning's breakfast, and by supplying a novel form of
recreation. For these reasons, the question of tlie conservation of this
uiii(iue lish is of interest to all.

What etfect the taking of these fish in such large numbers has had
on the ultimate supply and what can be done to assure a continuance
of the grunion runs must be considered. For a clear understanding
of this problem it is necessary to know something about when the
grunion can be expected to appear, and why they are to be found only
on nights immediately following the high series of tides. From the
work of Thompson ^ and Clark - the following facts are cited to explain
when and why the fish make their appearance.

The grunion belongs to the family of fishes known scientifically as
Atherinidae, and popularly as silver-side, or, erroneously, smelt. The
fish appear on the beaches from March to August, although the largest
runs occur with the favorable tides during April, May and June. The
fish are to be found in the surf and on the beach for three or four
nights following the full and dark of the moon. Since the heights of

Fig. 30. The grunion, Leuresthes tenuis.

the tide fluctuate in two- week as well as daily cycles, series of maximum
tides, termed spring tides, occur with the full and dark of the moon
(see graiDh). It is with these maximum, fortnightly tides that the
grunion runs are associated. Grunion may be taken in the surf shortly
before the turn of the tide, but they do not appear on the beachas until
after the tide has begun to recede. The run on any one night lasts about
an hour. Popular belief is that the fish appear on the second, third
and fourth nights after the full and dark of the moon, but while this
holds true roughly, no hard and fast rule can be laid down as to the
particular night on which a grunion run can be expected to begin.

The runs occur approximately every two weeks on each series of high
tides, but as the season advances, the lag between the night on which
the highest tide occurs and that on which a grunion run begins, becomes
increasingly greater. Clark (Inc. cit.) calculated that an approximate
fifteen-day interval elapsed between the beginning of any two suc-
cessive runs. Observations made during 1026 have helped to show
that this usually holds true. The accompanying table and graph give
the dates on which runs Avere seen in 1926, and illustrate the relation
between spring tides and grunion runs. Tlic first run observed for the

^ Thomp-son, "Will F., assisted by Julia Bell Thomp.'^on. The spawning of the grunion
(Leuresthes tenuis). Calif. Fish and Game Comm. Fish Bull. No. 3, 1919.

-Clark, Frances N. The life-history of Leuresthes tenuis, an atherine fish with tide
controlled spawning habits. Calif. Fish and Game Comm. Fish Bull. No. 10, 1925.

CALIFORNIA PISH AND GAME. 163

Dates of Maximum Tides and Dates on Which Grunion Runs Were Observed

at Long Beach in 1926.

Dates of Dates of

highest tides observed runs

March 30 March 30

March 31 March 31

April 1 April 1

April 12 April 13

April IJf*

April 15

April 10

April 28 April 29

April 29 April 30

May 1

May 10 May l-'t

May 11 May 15

May 27 Mmj 29

May 28

June 8
June 9

June 25
June 2G

July 7 July 12

July S July 13

*Dates in italics are the calculated dates for the beginning of a grunion run on the
basis of a fifteen-day interval between the beginning of successive runs.

season was on the night of jMarch 30. On a basis of fifteen days between
the beginning of any two successive runs, the dates on which subsequent
runs were expected to commence have been calculated, and are indi-
cated in the second column of the table by italics. On April 13, a very
small run was observed, while according to estimate the run would not
have begun until April 14. On April 29, May 14 and May 29, the runs
began on the calculated dates. Unfortunately, no observations were
made in June. The next run observed was July 12, again one day
])efore the calculated date. AVhile it is not always possible to predict
the exact date on which a grunion run will l)egin, the assumption of an
approximate fifteen-day interval between spawnings is reliable in most
instances. The table and chart also show that as the season advanced,
the discrepancy between the date on which the tide was highest and the
date of the beginning of a run of grunion became increasingly greater.
In March the fish ran on nights when the tide was at its maximum, in
April they averaged one day later, in May approximately two days, and
in July four days.

To those who are primarly interested in obtaining a good catch of
fish, the above facts are of chief importance. By the use of a reliable
tide table, anyone can predict witli fair certainty the date and time of
appearance of the grunion. For those who are also interested in the
maintenance of these runs, further facts are necessary.

That the grunion come up onto the sand in order to spawn, probably
occurs to but few of the vast crowd of people who line tlie beaches
waiting for a chance to catch the fish as soon as a wave recedes. The
grunion collect in the surf for about an hour before high tide, and when

164

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

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CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME, 165

the tide begins to ebb, wash up onto the sand with the highest waves.
When a wave recedes, the fish are left on the sand, the female digs into
the sand tail foremost and deposits her eggs as the male fertilizes them
while lying arched around her. If the fish succeed in eluding capture,
they flop back to the water or are washed back by the next wave. The
eggs lie buried in the sand for two weeks until the next series of high
tides digs them out. At this time the fish hatch and are washed out to
sea. The individual fish spawn more than once during a season, return-
ing to spawn on each series of high tides. The fish mature at the end
of their first year and spawn for two or three years, but, as far as
known, no fisli has been found that has completed its fourth year. Most
of the fish taken at the present time are spawning for their first season,
having just completed their first year.

In 1919, when Thompson made observations on the runs, the grunion
were found at Long Beach in great numbers. No difficulty was expe-
rienced in obtaining a good catch. Since that time the number of
people coming to the beaches has increased tremendously, and the num-
ber of fish captured on each spawning run has been augmented in pro-
])ortion. Observations made by members of the staff of the California
State Fisheries Laboratory have indicated a steady decline in the size
of the grunion runs at Long Beach until at the present time only a
few fish are found where thousands once were seen.

It is not coneeival)le tliat any species could withstand the strain to
which the grunion has been subjected during the past few years. At
the present time, the number of people taking grunion is so great that
depletion M'ould undoubtedly have occurred even if each individual had
been conscientious and taken only as many fish as he could actually use,
and confined himself to picking up the fish on the beach. Unfortu-
nately, people are carried away by the excitement of capturing the fish
and go home with many more than can be utilized, with the usual result,
the surplus find their way to the garl)age can. Grunion fishermen have
also discovered the fish can be caught more readily in the surf by the
use of nets or screened frames than by the more sporting method of
picking the fish up from the beach. That this is illegal, few people
realize. The combination of these three factors — the rapid increase
in the number of people coming to the beaches, the taking of more fish
than can be used by the fishermen, and the illegal capture of the fish
by nets, screens and other mechanical devices — has resulted in a danger-
ous depletion of the stock of grunion. The last two factors can be
eliminated by a conscientious effort on the part of the people catching
the fish, but this is not true of the first. The number of people coming
to the beaches will undoubtedly continue to increase and, if the grunion
runs are to continue as a valued attraction, some protective measure
must be adopted.

A closed season during the first half of the spawning period is there-
fore suggested with the hope that it will afford some protection and
possibly aid in building up the run. Such a season should extend from
March 1 to May 31. This w^ould allow four or five unmolested spawning
runs, and fish hatched from these eggs would mature and spawn the
following spring. Since the fish spawn more than once during the
season, the individuals protected early in the season would return to the
beaches during the open season, but would have had opportunity to

166 CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

spawn at least once or twice before possible capture. The people in
tlieir turn would liave tlie pleasure of frruuion fisliiufr during: June, July
and possibly August. Froui a biological viewpoint, to allow the extermi-
nation of the grunion is nothing short of criminal, since this fish is
apparently unique in its spawning habits. From an economical stand-
point, conservation is equally important. Protection now should mean
a continuation of grunion runs, thus assuring recreation and pleasure
for people in the future as well as at present. Such conservation
measures, however, are possible only through the efforts of every
citizen, both in bringing about the passage of protective laws and in
loj'ally sujDporting these measures after their enactment.

A NEW FISHERY IN MEXICO.*

By J. A. Craig.

Within tile last three years an unusual and interesting phase of our
fishery relations witli ^Mexico has developed. In 1923 the natives
around Point San Felipe, on the northwestern coast of the Gulf of
California, started to catch the large croakers, locally called "totuava, "
for their swim bladders.

This fish is the largest member of the family Sciaenidae and belongs
to the subgenus Cynoscion. The species is CUjnoscion macdonaldi.
They often reach a weight of 170 pounds and superficially resemble
our white sea bass, Cynoscion iiohilis. At some seasons, espe-.
cially in the spring, they are very numerous in the shallow water at the
mouth of the Colorado Eiver, and even enter the lower portion of the
river itself.

The product secured from the swim l)ladder is called "buche" and
is made by simply removing the bladder and as much of the peritoneum
as possible, and drying it in the sun. Sometimes as much as three
pounds of this dried material is secured from one fish. It is sold at a
price of from $1.50 to $2 a pound to the Chinese, Avho consider it a
great delicacy, and iLse it in chop suey and other dishes.

In this early period of the fishery, a small portion of the fish caught
was filleted in large slabs and dried by the simple method of dipping
the meat in a strong salt solution and hanging it in the sun to dry. By
far the greater portion of the fish, however, was merely thrown away
and allowed to decompose. The dried fish was used only locally by the
natives. A small part of the catch is still dried and used in this way.

A fishing camp consisting of tents and brush huts sprang up where
the fishing was conducted, and is now called San Felipe. It still exists
in its first primitive condition with no permanent structures, and in the
winter, when the "buche" season is at its height, contains about two
liundred fishermen.

In 1924 men with trucks started going down and buying the fish and
bringing them back to Calexico, Avhere some were sold locally and the
rest iced and trucked to the markets at San Diego. A market was
found for the fish at Los Angeles also, and so they were soon being
trucked to both places. From Calexico to San Felipe, it is 185 miles
over the plains bordering the Colorado River. Most of the road is level

*Contribution No. 60 from the California State Fisheries Laboratory. June, 1926.

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME. 167

but very roiigli, and in some places it follows the course laid out by the
pioneer who first drove his burros down there. Besides the rough-
ness of the route, the road is sometimes covered with overflow water
from the Colorado River when it is in flood, with the result that trucks
are occasionally marooned until the water goes down. This all makes
a long, hard haul for the trucks of about twelve hours or more from
San Felipe to Calexieo.

At Calexieo tlie fish are iced and transferred to trucks with trailers,
each truck with its trailer hauling about three tons of fish. The trucks
then take the fish to tlie markets at Los Angeles or San Diego over
paved highways. Most of the fish during 1925 and the spring of 1926
were sold in Los Angeles. The trucks go down and get loads as often
as the market can absorb the fish. IMost of the "totuava" is filleted
and all of it is sold in the fresh fish markets. The flesh is of a fine
flavor and firm, with good shipping qualities, but rather coarse.

As soon as a market was secured for the fish, other species were
caught for exportinsr, as the waters ad.jacent to San Felipe are literally
teeming with fish life.

Of the fish' secured at San Felipe, the next in importance to the
''totuava" is the "eorbina," Cynoscion xanthuhis, a member of the
same family and subgenus. It is a much smaller fish than the "totuava, "
weighing from two to five pounds on the average. Like the "totuava, "
it is an excellent fish for shipping and has a fine flavor, and flesh of a
much more delicate texture. These are the only two fish shipped in any
quantities to Los Angeles.

Several other small fish are brought up to Calexieo and sold to local
trade, and at times a few are sent to San Diego. Mullet of fine size and
quality are very abundant at San Felipe, as are also pompano and a
fish locallv called "cabrilla." One specimen of the latter identified
was Paralahrax maciilatofasciattis, but in all probability the fishermen
and dealers also include under this name some larger and related species
such as Mycteroperca jordani.

Mexican sierra, Scomheromorus sierra, are very plentiful and easily
taken. They are beautiful fish, almost identical with the Spanish
mackerel of the east coast, and are a most excellent food fish, but do not
stand shipping as Avell as the "totuava" and "corbina," so consequently
have not been used except locally about Calexieo.

During the spring months there are numbers of large sea turtles
caught at San Felipe. ^Most of them are harpooned, although a few
are taken alive and shipped out to Los Angeles or San Diego. These
turtles are very rich in fat and the principal object of their capture is
to secure this oil. The turtles are cut up and the flesh and fat placed in
large pans filled with water. The fat is then boiled out and allowed to
separate from the water. After being cooled, it has about the consist-
ency of soft lard, and is light yellow in color. It is packed in five-gallon
oil cans and sold for a good price to druggists. The turtle meat remain-
ing is salted and dried in the sun and used for food.

Prawns can b.e taken in large quantities and there are practically
virgin beds of hard shell cockles, Gliione fructifraga, or a closely allied
species, near San Felipe.

The methods of catching the "eorbina" and "totuava" are exceed-
ingly simple and primitive. The fishermen fish from skiffs, there being
but two or three motor boats at San Felipe and these are seldom used.

168

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

The tackle consists of a very stout line with a single large hook. For
l)ait they use a small dead "corbiua" or a piece of any other fish that
is easily secured. The tish are so plentiful that they bite freely on this
rough gear even when it is very poorly baited with fragments of flesh
or skin of a fish. When a fish is secured it is hauled in by main
strength and dispatched as quickly as possible.

During the 1925-1926 season, there were at San Felipe three Japan-
ese who owned a round haul net. They did not take many "totuava"
Avith this gear because of the size of the fish and the fact that they often
got too many in one haul to get ashore or to use. Besides the fish are
so easy to capture with hand lines that it does not pay to use a net.

There is one Mexican fisherman with a small round haul net who

Fig. 32. Mexican turtle just landed from coaster at San
Diego. Photograph by E. Schaeffle.

keeps the Calexico market supplied with the smallei* fish such as mullet,
pompano and ''cabrilla." The sierra can be taken either in the net or
with hook and line.

The season for shipping fish out usually begins in October and lasts
all through the winter and sometimes until April. The "buche" season
is roughly of the same duration, as there is a closed season on the
"totuava" from April 1 to October 1. During the summer months
and the closed season, San Felipe is practically deserted, since there is
no permanent town or anything to keep the fishermen there when no
fishing operations are being conducted. Practically all of the fishermen
are Mexicans or Indians. A few, however, are Japanese.

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME. 169

In spite of the trucking out of quantities of fish, there are still many
fish left to rot after their swim bladders have been removed, as the
primary object of the fishery is still the manufacture of "buehe.''

The waters adjacent to San Felipe would indeed be the location of
a fine fishery if it were not so isolated from suitable markets, and if it
had adequate routes of communication with some large centers of popu-
lation. Also it w^ould be a paradise for sportsmen, for who would not
go many miles to battle, with light tackle, a 170-pound "totuava" or a
leaping sierra?

NO MORE WASTE LAND.*

By A. RUTLEDGB.

A sign of that nature I had never seen before, and there was some-
thing so whimsical about it that it seemed the work of a humorist
instead of the sage plea of a state game commission. Paraphrased
roughly, it read something like this :

"Mr. Farmer, don't keep your place too clean. Leave that forlorn
patch of scrub growing over yonder by the creek; leave that briered
fence row ; leave that bushy ditch bank just as it is. Your best friend
of the great bird kingdom, bobwhite, can't live with you if you take
away all his cover. Keep most fields clean, if you like, but leave some
places deliberately disheveled for the sake of those who will leave you
if you clean away their shelters. . . . "

This was a pertinent and a sensible request, put in a far more per-
suasive way than a cold announcement could have been put. And it
serves to introduce a much wider subject, and one full of fascination for
lovers of the outdoors and the creatures that, for ail our proud so-called
advancing civilization, remain distinctly Nature's children. Moreover,
because of that very advance in man's civilization, the question is a
vital one. It is this : What is the relation between our conquest of the
earth and the fate to which that conquest may subject the creatures of
the wild f Does the civilization of man mean the extinction of the beast ?
Well, it easily might.

Wild Life Back to the Land.

But there are two great saving elements in this difficult and danger-
ous situation. The first is that man stays his hand and opens his heart.
He protects ; he provides sanctuaries. Recognizing the beauty, the com-
panionship, the economic value of wild life, he forgoes the pleasure of
killing for the saner pleasure of keeping alive. The second saving factor-
is this : Wild creatures are singularly humble in their demands. They
will take what we reject. They will occupy what we abandon. They
will rejoice to inhabit our waste lands and our wildernesses. There is
no place so apparently impossible for the habitation of man but can be

*We have seen no better presentation of the outstanding need for that necessity of
every living species — food and cover — than that contained In the above article pub-
lished in the Saturdav Evening Post of July 31, 1926. It Is reprinted by special
permission from the Saturday Evening Post, copyright 1926 by the Curtis Publishing
Company. It will stand a second reading by those who have already seen it as origi-
nally published. — Editor.

170 CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

made into a lioiue for wild c-reatiires. It looks therefore as if, as civiliza-
tion advances, man will acquire and keep all the choice localities; and
at tirst by chance, and then deliberately, with mercy premeditated, he
will apportion the Avaste binds to the wild childi'cii of the woods and the
waters and the air.

For a great number of .vears I have been interested in the matter in
question, and have been enf]raged from time to time in projects of
restocking game preserves. If I can tell a few stories relative to this
subject, I shall perhaps be most simply accomplishing my object—
which is to show that, whether a man owns ten acres or ten thousand,
it is wise and just and economic to quarter a portion of his holdings to
the ancient inhabitants of the land, that will be glad enough to use
whatever is unsuitable for purposes of man. Strictly, there is no such
thing nowadays as waste land. A marsh becomes a mink and a muskrat
home; an old rice field becomes a duck preserve; the junglelike growth
that follows the felling of big timber becomes a sanctuary for deer and
for niffed grouse; the spouty patch in the cornfield's edge that can
never be cultivated will grow cat-tails and witch grass and big briers
that will protect the quail when the hunters and the red-tailed hawks
are on the scene.

During the hunting season of 1925 I frequently went to a valley in
southern Pennsylvania which well illustrates the principle that what-
ever man deserts Nature reclaims. In this valle.v, some eighteen miles
long and two miles wide, almost every foot, clear up to where the movin-
tain benches begin, used to be under cultivation. But one after one
the hillside farms and the creek-bottom pastures have been deserted.
People have moved to the nearl)y tOAvns. In the whole valley now there
are not more than eight or ten homes. And Nature, in her quiet, .joyous
way, has retaken what, centuries ago, in frontier days, was bitterly
wrested from her and from the Indians.

As I roamed the deserted valley and the slopes above it I was curi-
ously interested in the manner in which wild things were taking part in
the recapture of their ancient home. Here in a deserted orchard, where
a few gnarled apple trees still were bearing, deer had been munching
the fallen fruit. In this old upland field where some volunteer buck-
wheat had sprung up, wild turkeys had been foraging. Beside a path-
wa.y leading from a collapsed mountain home to its inevitable spring I
flushed two ruffed grouse. In the shellbark trees along the creek — trees
that the farm boys used to raid for nuts — gray squirrels were gathering
their winter supply of food. In the creek itself, where tame ducks were
wont to go vacuum-cleaning, I flushed a score of migrating mallards.

Man comes, it seems, as a destroyer, but no sooner is his power relaxed
than the timid legitimate dwellers in the land return to reclaim what
they had been obliged to leave. All they seem to want is a bare chance.
They can not occupy and increase in the face of high-power rifles, traps
and shotguns ; neither could man. But they are swift and valiant to
return when the chance of getting killed is even slightly diminished.

My experience in this wild appealing valley, and experiences else-
where of a similar nature, have led me to believe that there should be
no such thing as waste land. "Whatever situations man is too proud or
lazy to occupy, wild creatures will huml)ly rejoice in.

Some places, indeed, are the better for game after man's invasion.

CALIFORNIA PISH AND GAME. 171

For example, the holder of a huge tract of yellow pine in the south
told me this :

"Formerly," he said, "when all the big timber was standing, we had
not a great many deer on the place. I think the woods were too open ;
practically the only cover was the broom grass. But eight years ago
we cut about a thousand acres of pine. On that land a regular jungle
grew up — myrtle, bays, huckleberries, gall berries, sparkleberries, and
other brush of many kinds, much of it overrun with smilax and jasmine
vines. As a result, there was ideal cover and to it the deer thronged.
However, I noticed that the wild turkeys kept to the big timber. They
do not like thickets, for in such places the wildcat and the fox have the
l)est chance to operate against them. Deer will come to cut-over land,
but turkeys will leave it until the second growth is fairly well
developed. "

It frequently happens that a situation that is attractive to wildlife
can be made positively irresistible merely by a little intelligent adjust-
ment by the owner of the land.

I shall never forget with what amazement I looked upon a duck
preserve near Oakley, South Carolina, some thirty miles up the Cooper
Kiver. Adjacent to the river were waste rice fields, long since aban-
doned, over which the tides of a generation had ebbed and flowed.
Despite, however, these periodic inundations the general layout of the
fields remained unchanged. There were the remnants of the ancient
banks, the integrity of which had been partly maintained by the trees
and bushes growing along them; there were the ditches and canals, in
many cases widened and deepened by the dredging of the tides; there
were the expanses of the fields, now grown to marsh and duck oats
instead of to rice.

Such landscapes have been familiar to me since boyhood, but I was
not prepared for the gorgeous spectacle of the wild life that thronged
these fields. IMallards, green-winged and blue-winged teal, pintails,
widgeons, wood ducks, a few canvasbacks, and black ducks, in thou-
sands, were joyously feasting, preening themselves, tipping up in the
warm shallow water, hailing all passing flocks with the glad tidings
that the true paradise for wild fowl had at last been discovered. As I
walked down a green bank, to the top of which the limpid water almost
brimmed, I flushed a vast concourse. The whole field seemed to rise,
yet as quickly settled back again. Many of the ducks flew so lazily and
contentedly that I noticed they they hardly drew up their feet under
them. In these days of myriads of hunters and the last word in firearms
I was frankly amazed to see such a sight, and asked the owner of the
place, Avho was with me, to account for the wild-life vision that I was
seeing.

The Formula for Wild Ducks.

"Three things have done it," he said. "These fields, you see, were
worthless to me for planting purposes. But dvicks have always come
here. I decided first to post it carefully. Then, at a small outlay, I
mended the banks and the trunks so that tlie fields can be made to hold
water when once the water has flowed on them. A duck isn't going to
light on dry land — not if there's water within reach of his wings.
The third thing was the matter of feed. At some clubs rice and corn
are fed regularly, but I can't afford to give them the things that keep
me alive.

172 CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAfvIE,

I went lip to Wasliington and spent two or three days at the
Department of Agriculture finding ont jnst what wiki food would grow
here — things that the ducks like best. I had recommended to me duck
oats, water lilies — you know that the ducks eat the little potatolike
nodules on the roots — and the American lotus. This last is probably the
most successful food I have tried. The l)loom is like a big mallow, held
high above tlie water; tlien a seed-holding disk is formed, in a general
way like a sunflower ; then the seeds come, like hard black acorns. And
the ducks are crazy about them. Of course these seeds are shed into the
mud when frost comes, and the ducks dive and forage for them.

Yes, these old fields were worthless, but in these days there is no such
thing as waste land if a man will turn over to wild things those parts
of his property which he can't use himself. And if he will encourage
the wild life .just a little he will have it coming in abundance. There are
fields, just below me here on the river, of the very same character as
mine, and they have comparatively few ducks visiting them. Reasonable
quiet and protection, water, food — get those three conditions in this
part of the country and you will have all the ducks you want."

This setting aside of sanctuaries, whether done as a private enterprise
in conservation or whether done designedly by a state as a public duty,
always has the same effect — the immediate and gratifying increase in
wild life. But the effect is much more far-reaching than might be
imagined. I know huge tracts of wild country, in Pennsylvania, in
Virginia, in IMaryland and in the Carolinas, which ten years ago were
practically dead as far as game birds and animals are concerned. Now
they are alive again, and the magic of this resurrection has been accom-
plished solely by the system of public sanctuaries or by the big preserves
of private clubs.

Fortunately, game does not appear to distinguish between public and
private preserves and sanctuaries ; it will come to one as cpiickly as to
another, and will also leave. The deer and the turkeys and the grouse
that wander from the' protected areas slowly repopulate the desolate
hinterlands, and they also afford the humble average hunter with a
little sport and with no end of exercise full of exciting promise. I know
of a hunting club which, ostensibly organized to kill game, has yet been
the greatest game preserver of the region where it exists.

On the southern coast the club has an ownership of perhaps sixty
thousand acres. The place is unfeneed; and though it is rigorously
protected, no attempt is made to segregate the game within its ample
borders. As a result, particularly in the summer when the cover is
dense and when the woods are free from hunters, deer and turkeys in
great numbers wander far beyond the boundaries of the club lands.
The hinterlands, which had been combed of all their game, are once
more replenished. The natives, who at first resented the coming of the
great club and its exclusive ways, have now learned that a wild turkey
for Christmas or for Thanksgiving and a pretty plentiful supply of
venison all through the winter are due directly to the club's existence.

Gun Clubs as Game Protectors.

A fraternal feeling has come to prevail between the members of the
club and their less fortunate neighbors ; and it is a feeling which,
rightly understood, is a promise of a new day in American sportsman-
ship. It is the feeling born of the conviction that game protection by

CALIFORNIA PISH AND GAME, 173

one man or one organization is game increase for other men and other
organizations. This club did a rather unique thing for the sake of game
preservation, and a sensible thing it was, too. On a deserted plantation
that was bought to be added to the club preserve were some eight or ten
negro families who were occupying the old slave quarters in the very
heart of the deer country of the plantation. The club bought up some
good property in a neighboring negro settlement safely outside the
preserve, built there the required number of simple homes and moved
the negroes there. They w^ere only too glad to go, for the negro who is
not gregarious does not exist.

Some twenty miles west of Gettysburg, on the Lincoln Highway,
there is an inn. Within sight of the windows of the inn are the borders
of a virgin forest fastness — one of the great game sanctuaries that the
state of Pennsylvania has set aside for the use of wild creatures, and
indirectly, of course, for the benefit of the hunters of the state. From
that beautiful forest one can see trooping, especially in the late after-
noon, small herds of whitetail deer, perhaps the most widely distributed
of all American big-game animals and, in a way, the most characteristic
wild creature of our countr}^ It is heartening, in these days of swift
transportation and deadly guns and rifles, while one is at dinner within
a stone 's throw of the Lincoln Highway, down which heavy traffic roars
all the day long, to see genuinely wild creatures timidly stealing out of
their coverts to nibble at a farmer's wheat or to browse on the tender
green of his choice apple trees. The emotion with which I view such a
sight is probably radically different from the farmer 's.

Nevertheless, the presence of deer in a civilized community represents
a definite triumph. Nor are these creatures pets. They are the real
thing.

I remember seeing a huge old stag, the hero of many a thrilling
escape on the nearby mountains, calmly munching apples within rifle
shot of the hotel! Many of these deer — particularly the old bucks —
seem to know quite well when the hunting season begins, and at that
time they manifest a decided partiality for the sanctuary itself. Game
recognizes a protected area; and though there is some straying and
straggling, the sanctuary idea is wholly effective. It is not a bad thing
for the sanctuary, for the adjoining orchardists and for the herds
themselves for some deer to be killed each season.

Some twenty-five miles southwest of that inn is the Orquic Valley
Sanctuary, a place in which I have spent much time. It is in much
wilder country, though a good road runs through it. I knew it years
ago, long before the state set it apart as a preserve. Then it was any-
body's land, overrun by hunters, often burned out — a desolate wilder-
ness. Now it is beautiful with heavy timber, with a lush undergrowth,
musical with a fine trout stream roaring through its dewy coverts, pro-
tected from all marauders.

For several years, by some calculations which I believe to be
accurate, I have ascertained that, but for this sanctuary, all the deer
and turkeys of that region of the Tuscaroras w^ould have disappeared.
They have increased ; and the increase, indeed the survival, the sanc-
tuary made possible. On its borders now, every season, hunters have
genuine sport ; and if what escapes them gets into the preserve they feel
that it is just as well. I think that there is a growing sentiment among

174 CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

all hunters that all game should have at least one inviolate place into
which it can not be pursued. A game sanctuary is not only a temporary
life preserver, it is a guaranty of the survival of a race.

By all odds the niost interesting game sanctuary I know is Bull's
Island, one of the barrier group of the Carolina seaboard. Separated
from the mainland by many deep salt waterways that wind through a
vast sea marsh, it is effectively isolated. Nine miles long, three miles
wide at its widest point, heavily wooded, rich in semitropical jungles,
and having an abundant supply of fresh water, it is most fortunately
appointed by Nature as a home for wild life. I believe that there is
more game on this island than there is on any area of similar size in
America, perhaps in the world ; and its presence there is to be accounted
for by methods of intelligent protection and sensible encouragement.

I remember walking one afternoon down through the lustrous thickets
of this magic isle, and hardly for a moment was wild life out of sight or
sound. I saw five flocks of wild turkeys — there are no foxes on the
island — raccoons pacing sedately down the dim pathways aglow with
the ruby lights of sunset, flocks of wild ducks speeding toward the
reedy flows, and perhaps fifty deer. At one time I had twenty-six in
sight, coming out of their daytime coverts to browse on the marsh edges
and to roam securely the solitary country of the night. I walked up
close to a stag that stood motionless in reeds as tall as his back. His
massive neck and his regal head were all of him that showed. As I
got too near he crouched slightly, hoping, I think, to be passed by ; but
then he changed his mind and went bounding off, his great flag erect
and jerking from side to side.

Usually, after a day of travel through the wilds a man will have one
or two vivid scenes of wild life to recall. On Bull's Island such scenes
are bewildering in their number and variety.

Sane Control a Necessity.

Yet twenty years ago there were no turkeys on this preserve. There
were few deer. The duck ponds were grown shut with choking aquatic
plants. But a little ditching and draining deepened the ponds, so that
now, on a midwinter's morning, mallards and black ducks pour into the
idyllic lagoons that lie shielded by the virgin pine forests. Protection
was all that the deer needed. I suppose there is no animal in the world
that, considering its size and importance, responds more certainly to
man's encouragement than does the whitetail deer. A barren doe is a
rarity, and a great many have twin fawns.

Experts in permutations and combinations have estimated that a buck
and a doe will, through their offspring, in fifty years produce thousands
of descendants; and this will happen if the hand of man against them
is stayed.

There are so many deer on this island now, and so frequent and fierce
are the encounters of the bucks in the mating season, that it is neces-
sary to kill oft' a certain number of stags every year. The oldest are
killed so that the vigor of those in their prime will establish the stamina
of the succeeding herds.

The case of the wild turkey is different and it is, I think, an interest-
ing story. The owner of the island l)rought from the adjacent mainland

CALIFORNIA PISH AND GAME. 175

three wild-turkey eggs, and these were hatched under a hen and raised
by her. Fortunately there were one gobbler and two hens. From such
a start have come the splendid flocks now on the island. In this con-
nection I do not see why it would not be possible to repopulate with
wild turkeys many of those areas which in colonial days had an abund-
ance of these magnificent birds. They have been brought back to
Pennsylvania; in some regions in almost incredible numbers — I lay on
my ground behind an old chestnut log last autumn in the mountains of
Franklin County and carefully counted a flock of forty-three of these
great birds. The Adirondacks should have as many turkeys as deer,
and intelligent stocking would bring them back. It is not, of course,
necessary to start with purely wald stock. A wild gobbler turned loose
with six bronze hens will soon populate a wild tract with America's
supreme game bird. Not long ago I was talking with an old
mountaineer who complained that every spring his turkey hens
wandered off into the hills where the wild gobblers were ; and it is a
common experience of turkey hunters to kill birds that have markings
that unmistakably indicate their relationship to the tame variety.

I have spoken of Bull's Island as an extraordinary sanctuary for
wild life ; yet, for all its languorous beauty and exotic charm, it is not
a good place for human habitation, except perhaps for a few winter
months. In the old days it was pirate haunted, and now it has all the
drawbacks of a tropical isle. In the sense that it is not a place where
men would gladly live it is waste land, yet a veritable paradise for wild
life it has become. Practically the same thing holds true for many of
the great sanctuaries set aside on the Gulf Coast, the principle of the
whole thing apparently being this : Whatever is rejected by man is, or
may become, acceptable to wdld things.

The earth was anciently theirs ; they were here, it seems, before man ;
and they may survive when he is gone. They are in many ways better
ecpiipped for the adventure of living than men are. I sometimes think
they are more gallant. Certainly they surpass us in the keenness of
every one of their senses. Yet their fate is in our hands.

The idea of always associating the forward march of man with the
destruction of all lesser forms of life appears to be giving way now
to the saner and kindlier idea of preservation. Absurdly simple is the
requirement for having beautiful wild life on your place: Don't kill
it and don't clean away with Dutch immaculacy every vestige of that
wild home that Nature provides. These wild things live humbly, draw-
ing sustenance from Nature 's own ample bosom. We must not rob them
of their homes.

Let us have no more waste lands, but turn these, great and small, into
sanctuaries for our wild things of woods and waters, fields and sky,

LIFE HISTORY AND HABITS OF THE WESTERN MOURNING

DOVE.

r.y Harold C. Bryant.

Among the game l)irds of California there is scarcely one so well
known as the western mourning dove. It is distinctly a bird of the
open country. During the summer season it is found throughout the

176

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

Fig. 33. The mourning dove. Courtesy National Association of Audubon Societies,

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME. 177

lowlands of the state, and a few birds are known to inhabit the pine
belt of mountain slopes. The low, rolling foothills of the Sierra attract
a vast number of these birds, and nowhere are they more abundant.
In the vicinity of Folsom, Snelling and Chinese Camp the dove is the
bird most frequently seen from the homestead or the highway. In the
winter doves are scarcer, and in certain localities they may disappear
entirely. They migrate south to warmer climes, and spend the winter
along the coast of Mexico and Southern California, below the latitude
of Santa Barbara, and on the adjacent islands. A few winter in the
Sacramento and San Joaquin valleys. The bulk of the evidence
indicates that this migration occurs in September, but a few birds linger
until late in October.

About the first week in May the mourning dove returns to central
California. At least observers report that doves become noticeably
more abundant at this time. During spring and summer, mourning
doves are nearly always found in pairs, but later on in the fall young
birds as well as old congregate in flocks. Among all birds there are
few that are so constantly seen in pairs. A scattered flock of doves will
invariably resolve itself into pairs of birds.

There is little danger that any one will need to depend upon a written
description of the mourning dove in order to make its acquaintance ;
but for the benefit of the few who are unfamiliar with it a brief
description will not be out of place. The mourning dove is pigeon-
like in most respects, except for its smaller size and long pointed tail,
which is margined with white. The general tone of coloration is olive
brown. The rapid whistling flight and the mournful coo of the male
can more often be depended upon to identify this bird than a close
view of its form and coloration.

The mourning dove has one of the longest breeding seasons of any
native bird. Definite records are at hand that prove beyond a doubt
that it nests as early as February and as late as the first part of
December. The height of the nesting season covers the months of
March to September. A minimum of two broods is reared, and in all
probability three or four nestings are not uncommon. The nest is
occasionally placed on the ground, but more often on a limb of a
shrub or tree, from four to eight feet above the ground. Cases are
known, however, where nests have been built at a height of forty
feet. The nest itself is a crude structure, built of small sticks laid
loosely together. In it two glossy white eggs are laid. The young are
fed on "pigeon milk," by a process technically known as regurgita-
tion. They grow rapidly and are soon ready for flight. Soon they are
foraging widely for weedseeds, and taking daily flights with the adults
to water.

The female mourning dove shows the greatest solicitude for her home.
She is the most adept of birds at the ruse of the broken wing. When
her nest is menaced she limps and flutters along the ground until the
intruder is convinced that the bird is so badly injured that she may
readily be caught. The deception is apparent only when the intruder
finds himself led well away from the nest, and the bird takes flight in
a normal manner. This habit appears to be largely limited to ground
nesting species, and it is otherwise unusual to see a bird come flutter-

178 CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME,

ing to the ground from a nest above. This particular instance is
worthy of further study. AVJiy this clever trick should be so markedly
developed in some birds and entirely lacking in others has long
puzzled scientists.

The coo of the male is a common sound early in the morning during
the nesting season. Although made up of a succession of beautiful
soft tones, yet the ensemble is so mournful that many people are dis-
turbed b}^ it.

Doves are dependent upon a good supply of water, and in the course
of a day they will make several trips of many miles to drink. Because
of this habit and because these birds fly out to the open fields for food
there is usually a distinct "fly line" just at dusk when the birds are
returning from feeding and watering. This gives the dove hunter an
opportunity for wing shooting, and in southei*n California this sport
is especially popular. During the open season certain foothill districts
in Los Angeles County are so populated with hunters that unhampered
open places are difficult to find. The gunner w^ho desires to test his
marksmanship on doves is assured of a savory reward if he proves his
skill, for the young birds are tender and delicious.

Unless favorably located near a watering place, one bird in three or
four shots makes a good average for all but the most experienced
hunter. The small size and great speed make the bird a difficult target.
The variety of shots possible is almost endless. Quartering and side
shots are most difficult because of the speed of the birds in flight. Then
come shots at towering or descending birds, often dependent on whether
they are coming or going. The easier straight-away shots are to be
expected less often in dove shooting than in quail shooting.

Thus it will be seen that dove hunting gives the best of practice to
the lover of wing shooting. No finer test of skill is afforded unless it
be in snipe shooting.

In defence of this sport the hunter rightly argues that doves are
abundant, very prolific and capable of rapid recuperation; that rapid
flight and a quick response to danger sufficiently protect them. Despite
this argument there has been a growing sentiment of late that this
bird should be taken from the list of game birds and protected through-
out the year. Although of excellent flavor, the mourning dove can
hardly be considered a desirable game bird because of its small size.
When its esthetic value and its service to the agriculturist is taken into
consideration the plea for total protection is justified.

Apart from man the dove has other enemies. The duck hawk is swift
enough to overtake the dove, and this bird is probably the dove's most
dreaded avain foe. Other predatory species take a toll during the nest-
ing season. Its rapid flight frequently brings the dove in violent
contact with telephone wires, and many birds die annually from this
cause. Rodent poisoning operations have in recent years been respon-
sible for the death of many doves ; for, unlike the quail, the mourning
dove and the band-tailed pigeon are both susceptible to strychnine, and,
although the loss from this cause may not be great, it is unfortunate
that it exists at all.

The mourning dove is to be numbered among those birds against
which practically no complaint is made regarding depredations upon

CALIFORNIA PISH AND GA.ME.

179

crops. The small amount of grain taken in California is negligible
and is so considered by ranchers. On the other hand, its value as a
destroyer of the seeds of noxious weeds is unequaled by any other bird
in the state.

Some idea of the enormous quantities of weed seeds consumed by
doves can be obtained from the results of the examination of a dove's
stomach and crop made by the United States Biological Survey :

8eed,<t

Slender paspahiiii {Pu'spalum setaceum) 2,000

Orange liawkweed (Ilieracium auranticmn) 4,820

Hoary vervain {Verhena stricta) 950

('aroliua cranesbill (Geranium carolinianum) 120

Yellow wood sorrell (O-vaUs stricta) 50

Panic grass {I'anicum sp.) 620

Other weeds of various kinds 40

Total ^ 8,600

F'iG. 34. Captive mourning doves foraging at the old Hayward Game Farm.

Photograph by H. C. Bryant.

The examination of the crops and stomachs of doves taken in California has
substantiated this evidence. The crop, and even the gullet, has been found filled
to its utmost capacity with weed seeds. The stomach and crop of a dove taken at
Lakeside, San Diego County, contained more than 100 seeds of the coyote vine or
mock orange {Cucurhita foetidissima) . Hundreds of seeds of filaree, mustard,
turkey mullein and tumble weed have been taken from other stomachs. Examina-
tions of nestling birds have shown that they are fed entirely on weed seeds. Since
the seeds destroyed are those of some of the worst weed pests in the state, and
since they are destroyed in such very large numbers, the western mourning dove
must be considered a valuable bird from the economic standpoint.

The mourning dove makes a satisfactory aviary bird. Mr. L. W.
Hammond of Fillmore, California, breeding from a single pair of doves,
had a flock of over forty in the space of three years. Each female
nested twice and reared two young each time. The nesting season of
these captive birds began in IMarch and continued through August.
Aviculturists throughout the state have found the bird easily tamed
and very prolific.

The game laws regarding open seasons on doves have been severely
criticised, and correctly so, for they have allowed the killing of these

180 CALIFORNIA PISH AND GAME.

birds during the nesting season. Mourning doves often nest as late as
September, and an open season beginning before the fifteenth of this
month is to be deprecated, for it allows the killing of nesting birds. A
list of sixty-six nesting records given in "The Game Birds of Cali-
fornia" (Grinnell, Bryant and Storer, 1918, University Press, Berke-
ley) shows that nests have been found in every month of the year with
the exception of October, November and January, and additional data
would probably show records for these months also. The earliest record
is for February 9, and the latest for December 5, both from Los Angeles
County. The height of the nesting season is sliown to be in June and
July.

In the case of no other game bird in California has the general
conservation principle of safety during the breeding season been so
continuously violated. For many years, beginning in 1880, the dove
season opened on Jul.y 1 and closed on January 1, an open season of
six months. Since that time many changes have been made, but in
deference to the sportsmen, who claimed that the doves leave the great
valleys before September 1. the opening date was invariably set back to
July 1. Even as late as 1907 the season opened on July 15. Since 1911
the dove season has opened on September 1. A reduction to three
months and then to one month in northern California, and to two
months in southern California has had beneficial results.

Owing partially to the popularity of dove hunting and also to the
destruction of the l)irds during their nesting season, the dove is becom-
ing much less numerous in many parts of the state. In many places
where thousands were to be found ten or twenty years ago, the birds
appearing each summer are now to be iiumbered in tens. This observa-
tion should be instrumental in bringing about laws which will give the
proper protection to this bird. Judging from the sentiment in favor of
giving the dove complete protection as a valuable friend of the agricul-
turist— a sentiment which is strong even among sportsmen — California
may eventually take a stand with eastern states, and see that the dove
is entirely protected. We take every precaution to prevent the loss of
our personal possessions, but take little heed how we are robbed of the
natural resources that we inherit .jointly with our fellows. California
may well show her appreciation of faithful service rendered, by better
protecting her most valuable weed-seed destroyer, the mourning dove.

BIBLIOGRAPHY.

Bailey, F. M.

1916, Handbook of birds of the western United States. Houghton Mifflin Co.,
Boston and Now York.
Beal, F. E. L.

1904, Some common l)irds in their rehition to agriculture. Revised edition, U. S.
Dept. of Agriculture, Farmer's bulletin No. 54. 4S pp. 22 figs, in text.
Dawson, W. L.

1923, Birds of California. The South Moulton Co., Los Angeles, California.
4 vols. 2121 pp. profusely illustrated.

Grinnell, J., Bryant, H. C, and Storer', T. I.

1918, The game birds of California. University Press, Berkeley, California.
642 pp. 16 pis., 94 figs, in te.\t.
Grinnell, J., and Storer, T. I.

1924, Animal life in the Yosemite. University Press, Berkeley, California.
752 pp. 60 pis., 2 maps.

Hammond, L. W.

1916, Mourning doves bred in captivity. California Fish and Game, vol. 2,
p. 163.

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

181

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME

A publication devoted to the conserva-
tion of wild life and published quarterly
by the California State Fish and Game
Commission.

Sent free to citizens of the State of
California. Offered in exchange for
ornithological, mammalogical and similar
periodicals.

The articles published In California
Fish and Game are not copyrighted and
may be reproduced in other periodicals,
provided due credit Is given the Cali-
fornia Fish and Game Commission. Edi-
tors of newspapers and periodicals are
Invited to make use of pertinent material.

All material for publication should be
sent to H. C. Bryant, Museum of Verte-
brate Zoology, Berkeley, Cal.

November 23, 1926.

"Bringing an appreciation of the im-
portance of conservation to tiie back-
ground of human consciousness is a work
which can not be done by one man or one
organization in one year, or by many men
and many organizations In many years."

NEW MOTION PICTURE FILMS
OBTAINED.

Purchase of motion picture film from
two well known photographers of wild
life, Donald Dickey and E. S. Cheney,
together with additional film secured by
the Bureau of Education and Research,
has made possible some new reels with the
following titles :

CALIFORNIA SONG BIRDS: Their home
life. (Western Mockingbird, California
Bush-tit, Western House Wren, Plain
Titmouse, Russet-backed Thrusli and
Blaclt-crowned Niglit Heron. Anna
Hummingbird, Steller Jay.)

BIRDS OP PREY: Common hawks and
owls. (Bald Eagle, Golden Eagle, Pacific
Horned Owl, Turkey Buzzard.)

GAME MAMMALS OF CALIFORNIA
(Mule Deer, Black-tailed Deer, Valley
Elk, Black Bear).

UPLAND GAME BIRDS (Sierra Grouse,
Band-tailed Pigeon, A Valley Quail
Hunt).

CALIFORNIA "WILD-FOWL (Ducks and
Geese in Flight, Whistling Swan, Mal-
lard, Coot, Ducks on Lake Merritt Game
Refuge).

The above films have been assembled
and titled and are now available. These
films are loaned without charge to respon-
sible organizations. A regular booking
loan system is maintained. It is desirable
whenever possible to arrange for several
showings in the same general locality to
justify the express charges. Many depu-

ties have made arrangements with local
theater's for the showing of the commis-
sion's educational films and have arranged
a circuit so that the films are shown on
several successive days in various nearby
cities. In displaying these films at schools
it is particularly desirable to have a lec-
ture accompany them. A lecturer will be
furnished when a number of showings are
to be made in the same vicinity, but it is
expected that a suitable hall, lantern and
competent operator will be provided.

STATE GAME FARM DEDICATED.

A formal dedication of the Yountville
Game Farm took place on Sunday,
August 22. The principal speaker of the
day was Senator Herbert Slater, member
and former chairman of the Fish and
Game Committee of the State Senate, who
appeared as the personal representative
of Governor Friend Wm. Richardson.
The acceptance was made by District
Attorney Thomas C. Anglim of Napa
County, an ardent sportsman and leading
member of the Napa Sportsmen's Club.
Dr. Robert Crees, president of the Napa
Sportsmen's Club, presided. Superin-
tendent August Bade pointed out that
from the standpoint of soil, drainage and
climate the game farm is wisely located.
Other speakers on the program were :
Hon. Frank L. Coombs, assemblyman
from Napa County ; Hon. Robert
McPherson, assemblyman from Solano
County ; B. D. Marx Greene, executive
officer California Fish and Game Com-
mission, and Major Rolin G. Watkins,
publicity director'. A large crowd
attended the ceremonies and it was after-
wards shown about the game farm. All
expressed their appreciation of the splen-
did progress and achievements at the
farm.

YOSEMITE FISH HATCHERY
DEDICATED.

August 1 was an important day in
Yosemite National Park, for in addition
to the celebration connected with the
opening of the new state year-around
highway, there were three dedication
ceremonies. Of outstanding interest was
the dedication of the Yosemite Hatchery.
A large crowd gathered at the site near
Happy Isles at 9.30 in the morning.
Acting superintendent of Yosemite Na-
tional Park presided. The first speaker
was the Hon. Stephen T. Mather, director
of the National Park Service, who spoke
feelingly of the long years of endeavor in
getting "a hatchery for Yosemite and the
splendid cooperation now existing between
California and federal departments. The
second speaker was Dr. Harold C. Bryant,

182

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

I'pprcsGiitalivc of the Fish and Game
Commission, who spoke briefly on tho
subject, "Past and Present in Fishcul-
tnro." descr'ibins: the growth of fishcul-
tiiral work and onipliasizing the present
policy of many local hatcheries. The last
speaker of the day was Governor Friend
\Vm. Richardson, who described the reor-
ganization of the Fish and Game Com-
mission on the present efficient basis.
In conclusion, he mentioned the impor-
tance of state and national cooperation
and the friendly relations now existing.
His suggested need for' better financial
support of conservation activities drew a
hearty response from the audience.

violators. Every party searched treated
them with courtesy save in one instance,
where the party was composed of a police-
man, a deputy sheriff and a dollai--a-year
warden. Strange to say, these were the
men who were impertinent and it was the
volunteer guardian of California's wild
life who asserted he needed no license to
hunt. As soon as the matter was
reported to the commission, this warden
was promptly discharged and court pro-
cedure may he instituted against him.

LICENSE NUMBERS OF GAME VIOLA-
TORS' CARS NEEDED.

A number of noteworthy cases have

Fig. 35. Governor Friend Wm. Richardson speaking at the dedication of the Yosemlte

Hatchery. Lloyd pliotograph.

WARDENS HAVE NO SPECIAL
PRIVILEGES.

No complimentary hunting licenses are
issued in the State of California. Neither
the Governor of the state nor the Fish
and Game Commissioners receive com-
plimentary hunting or fishing licenses. It
was surprising, therefore, that one of the
new dollar'-a-year wardens, sponsored by
a midland county sportsmen's club, was
found with a hunting party on the open-
ing day of the deer season without a
license. A group of dollar-a-year war-
dens from the bay district working with
Deputy C. L. Bundock were after law

recently been made by deputies as a result
of knowledge as to the license number of
the automobile. Sometimes the most
helpful thing an interested person can
do is to secure several witnesses to a
violation and then note the automobile
license number. When evidence of this
kind is reported to a deputy, he can
proceed swiftly to the prosecution of the
law violator.

ALKALI POISONING OF DUCKS.

As happened so often in dry years,
large numbers of ducks died in various
parts of the state last fall. This death of

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

183

ducks is not au entirely new thing, for
evidence of it was reported from the
region surrounding the Great Salt Lake
at least twenty-five years ago. Serious
inroads of the disease in 1910 brought
about an investigation and in 1914 an
explanation of the cause of the disease
was given. In spite of additional knowl-
edge as to causes and effect, no feasible
remedy has been suggested. When the
sick birds can be gathered and placed
upon fresh water, they usually recover ;
likewise, when heavy rains come, the
disease suddenly disappears. On the other,
hand, early rains which 1311 up dried alkali
ponds and make attractive feeding places
for wild fowl, usually cause an outbreak
of the disease.

During early August reports of ducks
dying at Tule Lake, in Modoc County,
were brought to the attention of the Fish
and Game Commission. Messrs. Roy
Ludlum and Robert Irvine were imme-
diately dispatched to investigate. As
Mr. Ludlum is conversant with former
outbreaks and Mr. Irvine is a chemist,
they made a good team. The area was
covered thoroughly for several days and
a careful study of conditions made. Only
a few ducks were found dead, and these
were secured for post mortem examina-
tion. Several sick birds were brought
back and used experimentally. No evi-
dence of other disease has been secured as
yet and apparently the cause of death
was to be attributed, as in the past, to
what has been called alkali poisoning.

DUCK DISEASE TO BE STUDIED.

Full facilities of the George William
Hooper Foundation for Medical Research,
together with the use of its auxiliary
department for the study of game dis-
eases which may occur, has been proffered
the California Fish and Game Commis-
sion by Dr. K. F. Meyer, in charge of
the foundation work in San Francisco.

Help is to be given in the study of the
duck disease which appears so often
around alkali lakes in California. Speci
mens recently obtained at Tule Lake are
in the hands of experts of the foundation
and bacterial and other tests are being
made, looking toward better knowledge of
means of control. Plans are also being
made to utilize the same facilities in the
study of deer diseases.

As one of the foremost students of the
diseases of animals, both wild and domes-
ticated, Dr. Meyer bi-ings to investigations
now under way facilities which would be
wholly out of reach of the commission
under ordinary circumstances.

STATE FAIR EXHIBIT.

The exhibit made by the Fish and
Game Commission at the State Fair last
September was divided into two sections.
Near the main entrance a number of
pens were erected and here there were
displayed some of the birds from the State
Game Farm. Six varieties of pheasants.
Hungarian partridge and valley quaii
were on exhibition. This part of the
exhibit was greatly appreciated by every-
one. Crowds were often so great that it
was almost impossible to approach the
pens close enough to see the birds. Post-
ers directed visitors to the main exhibit at
the north end of the Horticultural Build-
ing, which as usual was planned and
splendidly executed by W. H. Shebley,
in charge Department of Fish Culture.
The panorama used in former years
was remodeled to represent Lake T'ahoe
and vicinity. The realistic painting and
lighting effects Were again the work of
William G. Dobelstein, San Francisco
artist. As in former years, the electrical
display attracted much attention in that
a very realistic storm effect was produced.
The usual display of various kinds of
trout and of methods in trout culture
were utilized. The deputies in charge of
the exhibit were in uniforms, giving visi-
tors a chance to locate the men who
might answer questions. Attendance was
larger than ever before. It was estimated
that 35,000 saw the exhibit on Admission
Day and that the total attendance reached
the quarter' million mark. Visitors to the
fair have found it to their advantage to
visit the spectacular exhibits which have
been arranged by the commission, and
few there are who fail to view the
panorama and the live trout.

NEW DOLLAR-A-YEAR WARDENS
HELP LAW ENFORCEMENT.

Consensus of opinion is that the
enforcement of the fish and game laws is
becoming easier because of the help of
dollar-a-year wardens and their deterrent
effect on the violator. The violator, upon
hearing that there are more than 10<^
under-cover men who may be encountered
at any time, at any place, perhaps along-
side him as he fishes a stream, is more
careful, and there is a decreasing number
of law violations. A number of cases have
been made by these new men, and by their
enthusiasm they are proving that this
method of more effectively protecting fish
and game is having satisfactory results.

PRESIDENT ZELLERBACH RECEIVES
GOLD MEDAL.

Outdoor Life awards a gold medal to
the man whose contribution to wild life

184

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

conservation is considered greatest. The
past year this award came to the presi-
dent of the Califoitiia Fish and GamtJ
Commission, Mr. I. Zellerbach. Mr.
Zellerbach's reorganization of the com-
mission with resultant accomplishment
brought to him this signal honor. A
brief outline of accomplishments that may
be attributed to him follows :

1. Installation of a business manage-
ment of the commission's affairs with a
business man in full charge as executive
officer.

2. Incorporation of all expenditures of
the commission under a strict budget.

3. Launching of a game farm — perhaps
the largest in the world — near Yountville,

and fish ladder laws, and the enlistment
of the best civil engineers in the employ
of the public utilities corporations of the
state in the task of devising a standaid
fish screen.

10. Inauguration of a cooperative, con-
structive fish and game policy for' the
benefit of all of the people of the state.

DUCK SEASON SHORTENED.

A change in the season for duck shoot-
ing, as promulgated by the Secretary of
Agriculture earlier in the year, shortened
the California season by fifteen days,
opening under federal law on October 16
and closing under provisions of the state
law on January 15. Under the laws

Fig. 36. Panorama of Tahoe region which attracted much favorable comment at
the Fish and Game Commission's exhibit at the State Fair, September, 1926.

where game birds are being pi-opagated
for liberation in California valleys and
mountains.

4. Establishment of 15 holding ponds
where fish fry will be permitted to grow
to from 3i to 5 inches in length.

5. Bringing of all wardens under strict
civil service rules and requirements.

6. Calling of the first convention ever
held of California fish and game wardens.

7. Strict enforcement, for the first
time, of the law relating to reduction of
fish, by fish packers, into fertilizers and
poultry foods.

8. Strict enforcement, for the first
time, of the laws relating to pollution of
state waters.

9. Strict enforcement of the fish screen

existing prior to the new order issued by
the United States Department of Agri-
culture, the season extended from Octo-
ber 1 to January 15, or three and one-
half months in all. The California Fish
and Game Commission immediately went
on record as being in favor of a law to
be submitted to the coming session of the
California legislature adding fifteen days
to the present existing season, making the
closing date January 31 instead of Janu-
ary 15. This resolution was unanimously
passed by the commission at its regular
meeting on May 20, 1926. Pending a
change by the state legislature, all depu-
ties have been instructed to enforce to the
letter the federal law.

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

185

WHAT WOULD YOU DO?

If you had gone to a sporting goods
store and bought everything to go hunting,
including in the outfit a perfectly good
pair of binoculars. And if you had gone
to the best deer' country you knew ths
day before the season opened and had
fixed up your camp to a queen's tasie
with high hopes of the morrow. And if
when the morrow arrived you had swal-
lowed your last bite of bacon and eggs
and washed it down with a big draught
of black coffee long before the break of
day so you would be on the ground in
time. And if after you had spent all
morning in search of a buck and on your
return to camp you had spied a whale of
a buck and to make doubly sure had taken
a look through your perfectly new binoc-
ulars and assured yourself it was a buck.
Then if after looking with the glasses
you were sure it was a buck and you had
taken perfect aim, fired and killed it and
had run over' to where it fell with great
anticipation. And if vou found you harl
killed a doe, WHAT WOULD YOU DO?

Or, if you lived in or near Los Angeles
and had traveled to the northeast part
of Mendocino County, some four hundred
miles, with great anticipation of the deer
country and the opening of the season.
And if you had wended your way out
through the rough rugged rocky roads,
that are not more than trails, to some
secluded spot. And if you and your
companion had just left camp on the
morning of the opening day and your
companion had sighted a buck and after
looking at him with his glasses had said
he was "an old whale and a three-
pointer." And if he had told you to shoot
while he watched and you had shot and
scored a bull's eye, then found you had
killed a spike buck, WHAT WOULD
YOU DO?

Two men had exactly these experiences
this fall. The first immediately went
before the nearest judge and voluntarily
paid a $50 fine. The second man took
the deer to the nearest ranger station and
was sent to the nearest justice of the
peace. Not finding him home, he took
the deer to Judge Whitney at Ukiah. As
a result, no charges were made and the
deer was sent to the county farm.

Do you not agree that both men were
real sportsmen?

What would you have done? — John K.
Hellard, Willits, Cal.

FEDERAL POWER AND DUCK BAG
LIMITS.

In order to clear up some prevalent
misconceptions, the National Association

of Audubon Societies has made a study
of "Federal Power and Duck Bag Lim-
its" (Bulletin No. 6). A few of the
most interesting facts brought out by this
investigation are presented below :

It is untrue that 25 ducks per day may
be killed every day throughout the federal
season. Provided that ducks could be
shot every day throughout the federai
season, the average limit in the United
States, as restricted by state laws, is
approximately 15 a day.

But all states, except six, exercisin'--
their powers under the Enabling Act
giving effect to the Migratory Bird
Treaty, have laws further restricting the
killing, either by reducing seasons, ex-
cluding Sundays, or by reducing daily,
weekly, or seasonal limits, or by setting
aside rest days on which ducks can not
legally be shot.

State laws that result in reducing
federal limits govern the lepal limits.

Ducks are not native to any one state,
but to the whole of the United States.

Those of California, Oregon and Wash-
ington are one great flock. How many
ducks can be legally killed fi-om this fiock?
Not the number permitted by law in any
one of the states, but the average number
legally permitted by this aroup of states
as a unit, including adjacent states occu-
pied by the same fiock of ducks. The
same holds true throughout the United
States.

In law ducks are game birds. As such
they are preserved for sport and foorl.
Their economic value to the nation is
high. It includes, besides food, employ-
ment and the whole train of industrial
activities included in their chase.

Their unmeasurable value for recrea-
tion, including health-giving activities, is
probably of still greater benefit to our
people. The interest and unceasing work
of .sportsmen have been the forces Which
have so acted on public opinion as to
bring about laws and methods to preserve
the ducks. Nobody familiar with the
history of game conservation could deny
this fact.

A proportion of the people want wild
fowl ni-eserved. not for sport or food, but
because of their enjoyment of wild life
and of the beautiful in nature — a feeling
shared also by sportsmen.

It is clear, however, that preserved up
to their maximum numbers adjusted to the
limits of their food supply, ducks will
always provide a field of opportunity for
nature lovers as great as that for sports-
men.

At present, ducks are probably at or
beyond their food supply. Progressive
drainage of marsh areas throughout the
country and the lowering of the water
level in some states have restricted their
fall and winter habitats. They have been
forced to concentrate in other areas and
reduce their valuable food. These causes
have led to disease and to the dangers of
starvation : in some cases, to forced
change of feeding habits, which have
become a menace to crops.

186

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

Oil polluted and alkali waters annually
destroy srreat numbers. Disease has been
increasing. Adverse conditions on their
breedinjj ;jrounds have been destructive
to ducks. How much "e do not know.
and can not know, until the breedinsr
srrounds shall be visited at the breeding:
time. Destruction of the food supply and
methods of preservinjr and of increasin-r
it. Droughts. An international treat.\
with Mexico. More systematic study of
natural enemies. There are other serious
factors.

This is the field that needs concentra-
tion and attention. In it. ba? limits are
insisnificant factors. The agitation about
them onl.v diverts attention and work
from being directed toward the vital
problems.

AUDUBON SOCIETY HEAD LAUDS
SPORTSMEN'S ORGANIZATIONS.

Here and there sportsmen's organiza-
tions of high type men have been formed.
These groups as a rule pledge to observe
the laws most carefully and it is to them
that we are indebted for most of the wise,
constructive legislation for protecting
game in this country. Also they have
collected and expended hundreds of thou-
sands of dollars to secure prosecutions, to
maintain game breeding farms, and to
restock with game covers that have been
depleted. They maintain a number of
widely read magazines with militant edi-
torial policies directed to the strengthen-
ing of conservation ideals.

Although enjoying the sport and the
healthful exercise acquired by going afield
with dog and gun, their killing is moderate
and they constitute the largest effective
force for the preservation of the game in
the country. It is to be lamented that
there are not more such organizations.
Mr. John B. Burnham, president of the
American Game Protective Association,
advises me that the total organized sports-
men of the United States do not exceed
500.000, while the government reports
that not less than 6,000,000 men go afield
annually for the purpose of shooting. In
a general way, I should divide the hunters
of America into two groups, sportsmen
and killers. The former should have our
cooperative support, the latter need our
earnest attention.

There is vast need for education along
sane conservation lines in this country if
the nation is to reap the greatest benefit
from its natural supply of wild game
birds. — T. Gilbert Pearson.

TRUE SPORTSMEN.

The way of the game warden would be
made much easier if every hunter were
as true a sportsman as are five guides of
Monterey County. All parties engaging

these men are informed that should any
of the employers violate in any way the
bag limits or other game laws, the guides
would immediately desert them and leave
them to find their own way out of the
Santa Lucia or Gabilan ranges.

RAREST OF BIRD'S EGGS DIS-
COVERED IN ALASKA.

Bird egg collectors have found and
placed in museums specimens of the eggs
of practically every known species of
bird. A few species only have eluded thi^
prowess of the egg collector. It remained
for two scientists from the University of
California, Museum of Vertebrate Zo-
ology. Mr. Joseph Dixon and Mr. George
Wright, to uncover the secret so long
held by the surf bird Aphriza virgaia.
A well known winter migrant along the
California coast, the surf bird nests in
the far north and an expedition to the
interior of Alaska was necessary, fol-
lowed by long days of searching before
the prize was obtained. The nest was
found on the bai'e tundra high up on a
mountain 1000 feet above timberline.
The eggs, reported as buff.v-brown in
ground color with chocolate-brown and
violet markings, were being incubated by
the male bird, a common habit among
shore bii'ds. A full account of the dis-
covery will appear in the January number
of The Condor, a magazine of western
or'nithology.

BUFFALO ONCE NATIVE OF CALI-
FORNIA.

In 1022. Dr. C. Hart Merriam called
attention to the fact that prior to 1850
the buffalo ranged as far west as the
area termed "Eastern California," which
usually meant eastern Utah or western
Wyoming, and that there was no definite
record for any locality west of eastern
Oregon. In the Journal of Mammalogy.
Vol. 7. pp. 211-214, he discusses further
the western range of the buffalo and
points out that inquiry has shown that
the Pit River and northern Piute Indians
knew the animal well and have much to
say of its former range in their country.
Dr. Merriam sums up the matter as fol-
lows: (1) The buffalo did not push west-
erly around the south end of Great Salt
Lake: (2) there is no record of its
occurrence on the west side of Salt Lake,
or' in the valley of Humboldt River, or
anywhere in the vast desert region
between Great Salt Lake and California ;
(3) it entered California — and probably
also a narrow strip along the extreme
western border of northern Xevada — not

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

187

from the east but from the north, cominj
south from Oregon.

"With these facts iu mind, tlie exten-
sion of the buffalo into the open valleys
of northeastern California, carrying its
range at least 250 miles southwest of
Peter Ogden's record, marks another step
in the knowledge of the distribution of
this great animal — an animal that stands
alone, whether viewed from the standpoint
of food, clothing and shelter' it afforded
the original inhabitants, or from its influ-
ence in developing the traits of courage,
alertness and skill for which our plains
tribes were famous."

As a consequence, California must add
this well known big game mammal to her
list of extinct species.

BEAVER DISAPPEARING IN SAN
JOAQUIN VALLEY.

Deputy George Smalley reports that
no beaver sign is now to be found along
the lower reaches of the Merced and San
Joaquin rivers in Merced County. Since
protection was removed from beavers at
the last session of the legislature, nearly
750 beavers have been killed for their
pelts in this region. It is estimated that
between 275 and 300 were trapped near
Mendota and fully 300 along the Merced
River near Snelling. The pelts brought
an average of $15 apiece. Total protec-
tion brought beaver up in numbers to the
poiut where they caused property damage.
We are now noting the result of non-
protection.

DUCKS SUCCESSFULLY REARED.

One of the finest collections of live
ducks in the state is owned by J. V.
De Laveaga of San Mateo. His collec-
tion now numbers 62 distinct species of
ducks and 17 species of geese. He has
varied, fulvous, white-faced, red-billed,
gray-bi'easted, wood and spoon-bill ducks,
European widgeon, rosy-billed pochard
and Chilean pintail. Perhaps the most
interesting bird that he has raised is a
male white-eyed pochard. As far as is
known, this is the only one of its kind in
the United States.

CHEMICAL COMPOSITION OF FISH
CHANGES WITH AGE.

Mr. A. S. Pearse of the Zoological
Laboratory of the University of Wiscon-
sin has written a vei'y interesting article
on "The Chemical Composition of Cer-
tain Fresh-water Fishes," the conclusion
of which is reprinted here :

The observations described in this
paoer give a general idea of the gross
chemical changes that take place in trout
and perch during development and adult

life. After' the eggs are laid, they absorb
water'. During the growth dependent on
the utilization of stores of nourishment
in the eggs, fat and nitrogen are used up,
ash remains fairly constant, and the pro-
portion of water increases. After a youno:
fish begins to feed, its nitrogen increases
somewhat, then remains more or' less
constant through adolescence and adult
life. Fat also increases for a time but
after the first year undergoes periodic
seasonal fluctuations. As fat increases
water decreases and vice versa. The
increase in fat takes place during the
summer, when water is war'm and less
dense, and when food is most abundant.
In winter, when the water is cold and
dense, and food is less abundant, fat
decreases. Taylor (1922) has suggested
that fat may serve a hydrostatic function
in fishes — making them lighter by increas-
ing when water is less dense and heavier
by decreasing when water is denser — and
the writer's observations on the seasonal
fluctuations in fat _ support his view.
However, no correlation between vertical
distribution and amount of fat was found.
This may be because other hydrostatic
mechanisms, such as the swim-bladder,
are more important in making adjust-
ments to pressures caused by differences
in depth.

Moulton (1923) maintains that the
composition of animals should be com-
pared on a fat-free basis and that, if
this is done, "mammals show a rapid
decrease in relative water content and
increase in protein (nitrogen) and ash
content from earliest life until the time
of chemical maturity is reached. At this
time the change becomes rather suddenlv
less, and nearly constant composition is
shown."

In another paper (Pearse, 1924) an
estimate has been made of the amount ami
variety of food used by cei-tain fishes. It
seems reasonable to assume that a fish
consumes an amount equal to about 53
per cent of its own weight per dav.
Judging by consumption of certain foods
that were analvzed bv Birge and Juday
(1922) and also fed to fishes by the
writer, the caloric value of foods com-
monly consumed by fishes is considerablv
greater than their own. Until the basal
metabolism of a fish has been determined
at different temperatures it will not be
possible to estimate the daily and_ annual
caloric requirements of fishes with any
accuracy. In summer a fish appears to
eat enough to supply calories equal to
about 15 per cent of the caloric value
of its own body daily. If all the food is
digested and its full caloric value utilized,
which is unlikely, a fish has a high rate
of "overturn" f-^- its bodv substances.

There are various factors which limit
the number of fishes that may exist in
anv body of water. The amount and
qualitv of available food is important ;
also the average rate of overturn (ra:e
of reproduction and length of life) of
living food resources. Another impor-
tant requisite is the ability and oppor-
tunity of the fishes to reproduce. The

188

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

number of adult perch in Lake Mendota,
which contains 478,370.000 cubic meters
of water, must be several millions (Pearse
and Achtenbur?. 1920, pp. 313. 314. 332).
If these could find food and produce off-
spring without check the lake would soon
be filled with perch. In April, 1921, the
writer caught ten female perch and esti-
mated the number of eggs. The average
was nearl.y 10,000 for eadi. It is evident
that there must be enormous losses
betM'een the laying of the eggs and the
attainment of maturity. When scientists
are able to make out actuarial tables
for peich, rates of insurance will undoubt-
edly have to be high. The problems for
those who wish to increase the yield of
fish from aquatic habitats are evident :
(1) Search for means to increase th^
amount, quality, and availability of food
resources, and (2) discover how to make
it possible for more fishes to survive to
maturity and find favorable conditions for
growth.

AREA ADDED TO SEQUOIA NATIONAL
PARK.

The Barbour Bill has added 352 square
miles to the Sequoia National Park, which
now includes Mount Whitney, the stu-
pendous canyon of the Kern, the Kaweah
Peaks and the imposing mass of the Great
Western Divide. In addition the adjoin-
ing Mineral King District has been
created a game preserve.

What this will mean to the wolverine
only time can tell. The wolverine, or
"glutton," the largest of the weasel fam-
ily, is now making its last stand in the
southern Sierra. If there is a sufiicient
breeding stock left, it will find a neces-
sary breeding ground in the added Kern-
Kaweah watershed, where it will receive
complete protection. It is significant that
within this general region only eight
wolverines have been trapped within the
past few years.

It is also expected that mountain sheep.
now practically confined to the main
Sierra range on the Inyo side, will grad-
ually return to their' old range on thi
Kaweahs and Great Western Divide. It
is hoped that hikers to Alta and Silliman
may within a few years be afforded a
sight of these now rare animals. The
experience of park protection at Grant
Canyon National Park makes it certain
that the larger mammals will multiply in
the added park area.

It has been suggested that the dry
seasons are responsible for the marked
increase among the wild life of the
Sequoia National Park. The fawn crop
at Giant Forest is above normal. Many
does with twins have been feeding about
the public camps. The does and bucks are
so tame that they will eat from one's

hand. Grapes and melons seem to be the
favorite food.

Bear are also numerous despite the
fact that many must have drifted to
slaughter outside the park last fall.
Twenty-two bear, including six cubs, have
been counted at the garbage incinerator.

KAIBAB FOREST TO BE OPENED TO
DEER HUNTERS DURING OCTOBER.

Deer hunting on the Grand Canyon
National Game Preserve in the Kaibab
National Forest, Arizona, will be per-
mitted during the period October 1 to 31,
according to advice received by the Cali-
fornia district headquarters of the United
States Forest Service in San Francisco.
Each person will be allowed one male
deer, and hunters must have a govern-
ment agreement and a state license before
going to a hunting camp. Government
agreements cost $2.50 each, resident state
licenses $1.25 each and nonresident
licenses $20 each. Two checking sta-
tions, where agreements and licenses may
be purchased, have been established at
Ryan on the west side of the forest and
at Kane on the east side.

The Kaibab National Forest was made
a game preserve by President Roosevelt
in 1906 and the game was protected from
hunting, and an active campaign against
their natural enemies, lions and wolves,
was conducted by the Biological Survey.
Under this protection the deer grew from
a small herd of a few thousand very
rapidly until in 1925 it was estimated
that it contained between thirty and fifty
thousand deer.

The opening of the forest for hunting
was first made in 1924 and has been
continued each year' since. This has been
done in an effort to reduce the herd, which
was increasing so rapidly that the avail-
able forage w'as becoming exceedingly
short and there was much danger that
the herd would be exterminated by starva-
tion. Furthermore, the foresters found
that a great deal of damage was being
done to reproduction and timber by the
deer.

Those desiring further information
regarding hunting on the Kaibab Forest
should correspond directly with the Forest
Supervisor. Kaibab National Forest,
Kanab, Utah ; the District Forester,
Ogden, Utah, or' the Arizona State Game
Department at Phoenix, Arizona.

DR. JORDAN DISCUSSES FISH AND
GAME CONSERVATION.

On the evening of Monday, July 26.
Dr. David Starr Jordan addressed an
enthusiastic audience at Monterey upon

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

189

the subject of "Preservation of Our Nat-
ural Resources." The address was illus-
trated by motion pictures, loaned for the
occasion by Californians, Inc., and the
Fish and Game Commission. Dr. Jordan,
who is reputed to know more about fish
than any other man in the world, warned
the fishermen or "sportsmen" in his
audience that the brook trout or "steel-
head" (he asserts they are one and the
same) in this locality are not nearly as
numerous as they formerly were, and that
overfishing may practically exterminate
them in time, just as the passenger
pigeons, once so prolific in the forests of
the east and middle west, are now com-
pletely gone. The last one died last year.
Chinook or King salmon, which abounds

The crude oil from tankers. Dr. Jordan
asserted, is the curse of the Pacific coast.
A national law should be passed to end
this oil-dripping that annually kills untold
thousands of sea birds, fish, clams — all
manner of sea creatures and water birds;
as well as enormous quantities of plank-
ton, the more or less invisible creatures
at the surface, on which many young
fishes feed. Birds are destroj'ed mainly
because their wings become saturated with
oil.

Speaking of fishermen and hunters. Dr.
Jordan divided them into two classes,
"killers or hogs" and "sportsmen." The
former are the ones who are a menace to
the future of our natural resources.

Speaking briefly of the conservation of

Pig. 37. Black bears in Yosemite.

in Monterey Bay at certain times of the
year, many of them going north to the
Klamath or other colder waters to spawn,
is the finest of all salmon. In the fourth
year it reaches about 18 pounds weight.
Then they spawn and die. All the five
species of Pacific salmon, male or female,
die after once spawning. A certain num-
ber may live to 6 or 7 years before spawn-
ing, these steadily growing, reaching in
Alaska a weight of 60 to 80 pounds. As
we have a greater number of species of
fishes right here in Monterey Bay than
occur on any other northern coast, we
should take better care of them and see
that conditions are in every way most
favorable for their perpetuity.

deer, mountain goats, large birds such as
the blue heron, that feeds on plant-
destroying gophers, some owls, that eat
grain-destroying field mice, and of ducks — -
the preservation of which is most diflacult
because of conflicting state rights as well
as of misunderstandings of the work of
the Biological Survey of the Department
of Agriculture — Dr. Jordan ended his
address with a plea for special protection
of the little song birds, which devour
yearly millions of mischievous insects.

ADVERSE FACTORS MENACING WILD
FOWL.

In the July number of The Oregon
Sportsman appears an interesting article

190

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

Fig. 38. Mountain lion treed and photographed by J. R. Hill of Covelo, Mendo-
cino County.

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

191

by Edward W. Nelson, chief of the
Bureau of Biological Survey, on "Our
Migratory Wild Fowl," excerpts of which
article are reproduced here :

There are apparently two great advei'se
factors directly menacing the perpetuation
of our migratory wild fowl and these
overshadow all others. One is the drain-
age of water areas by man, and the other
is a succession of year's of scanty rain-
fall, and its effect on a great area in the
west, as indicated by the disappearance
there of many nonds and small lakes.

In efforts to conserve the big game
animals of the country it has been found
that man has occonied most of their
former wintering grounds, and the great
conservation problem has been one of
sufficient winter forage, the summer
forage being usually abundant. In the
case of migratorv wild fowl, there is
arising a like problem — that of maintain-
ing sufficient water areas where the bii-ds
may feed during their migration and in
winter, but there must be retained undis-
turbed breeding" grounds, the basis of all
wild fowl production.

The danger to the perpetuation of the
stock of wild fowl is so great and so
imminent from the causes mentioned that
there is the most vital need for all con-
servationists and lovers of wild life to
sink petty differences of oninion as to
details and to unite in constructive work
to insui'e the future of our migratory
game birds.

Seventy-five years ago Califortiia had
many hundreds of thousands of acres of
lakes, marshes and grassy plains, where
untold millions of ducks, geese and other
migratory wild fowl found a winter para-
dise. With the increasing population of
that state, the occupation and drainage
of these areas has steadily progressed,
until the great Tulare and Buena Vista
lake basins and marshes in the San
Joaquin Valley have become absolutely
dry. Practically all the many ponds and
lagoons which once occupied the coastal
plains of southern California have been
drained or filled and have disappeared
forever.

Tule Lake, once a large shallow body
of water, near the northern border of
California, was formerly the winter home
(f myriads of ducks and geese, while many
stayed there to breed. Forming as it does
a part of a developing irrigation district,
within the past few years it has been
drained until now only an insignificant
water area remains, forming a sink in the
bottom of the old lake bed. The drainaae
of Tule Lake has been accompanied by
some drainage of the neighboring Clear
Lake, a federal bird reservation and still
a great breeding ground for wild fowl.

The last great marsh area left in Cali-
fornia is in the Sacramento Valley, but
the water that hitherto has been used for
flooding gi-eat marsh and rice-field areas
in this valley must now be permitted to
flow down the channel in order to main-

tain a navigable depth in the Sacramento
River. This is a serious menace to this
great area formerly available for migra-
tory birds, and may be the culmination of
adverse changes that have progressively
destroyed one after another the homes of
wild fowl in that state.

NEW TUNA BOAT TO BE CORK
LINED.

Several years ago the Commercial Fish-
eries Department prophesied that attempts
would soon be made to equip boats with
refri.gerating apparatus in o'-der that fish
might be landed in the best condition.
At least three boats fully ei"'nned are
now transporting fish from Mexico to
southern California ports. Within the
last year, several boats have been espe-
cially built to facilitate icing the fish, but
lacking refrigerating plants. Last fall a
cork insulated boat was built at San
Pedro and now M. O. Modena and J. A.
Soares have ordered a similar cork insu-
lated boat, according to the Pacific Fish-
erman (August 2G, 1926). At first it
was planned to equip this boat with an
ice plant, but afterwards decision was
made to use cork insulation. This boat,
110 feet long, will be one of the largest
of the tuna fishing boats and will be
manned by eight officers and men. Two-
inch sheets of cork and asphaltum are
utilized in the insulation. This cork
insulation has bees proved far superior
to other insulation materials that have
been tried out in past years.

THE ELIMINATION OF "HAFF SICK-
NESS."

Discovery of the cause of the mysteri-
ous "Haff sickness" which was proving
ruinous to a large part of the German
Baltic fisheries industry, together with
the elimination of the disease virtually by
government fiat, is announced at Berlin
by officials. It is one of the very few
cases on record where an edict had
power to end an epidemic, or at least
what looked like one.

A little over two years ago, fishermen
in the stretch of shallow water along the
southern end of the Baltic between Koe-
nigsberg and Danzig, known locally as
"the Haff," began to develop a very pain-
ful and in some cases fatal disease. Its
symptoms were extreme pain and a kind
of paralysis of some of the leg muscles,
together with certain physiological dis-
turbances. It always attacked its vic-
tims while they were out in their boats,
and generally in the early morning while
the mists still hung over the water. A
few days on shore usually resulted in
complete recovery, but a return to fishing
might bring on repetitions of the malady.

192

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

In a short time the HafE fisheries were
badly demoralized.

The theory that it might be an epi-
demic of a germ disease quickly went by
the board. The "ITaff sickuoss" had none
of the earmarks of an ordinary epidemic.
Likewise the theory that it might be
caused by the eating of spoiled fish or
eels had to be abandoned, because many
of the victims did not eat fish, and fish-
eaters on shore never suffered from the
disease.

The investigators finally came to the
conclusion that there must be something
in the water that rose into the morning
mists and caused the disease by poisoning
the air. Research along this line soon
showed that they were right. The disease
was really a kind of arsenic poisoning,
caused by the discharge into the water of
great quantities of factory wastes from
cities on shore. These wastes contained
arsenic compounds, which were altered
into gaseous form by small organisms
living in the water, and thus released into
the air to plague the luckless fishermen.
The arsenic was present in the factory
materials only as an impurity, so that it
was no hardship to the industries when
the government ordered them to change
to the use of other materials with a lower
percentage or arsenic. Within a few
months the "Haff sickness"' had virtually
vanished. — t^cicnce, July 30, 1926.

H. P. SHELDON APPOINTED CHIEF
U. S. GAME WARDEN.

Harold P. Sheldon, fish and game com-
missioner of Vermont, has been appointed
by Secretary of Agriculture Jardine w
be chief United States game warden of
the Bureau of Biological Survey. He
will fill the vacancy caused by the resig-
nation of G. A. Lawyer, and will assume
his new duties early in July.

The experience gained by Mr. Sheldon
as state game commissioner' of Vermont
during the past five years well qualifies
him for his new duties. He has been
responsible for the administration of the
fish and game laws of Vermont, also of
the State Fish Hatcheries, the State Game
Farm, and the Migratory Bird Sanctuary
at Milton, Vermont. His name stood first
on the eligible register, resulting from the
civil service examination for the position.

As chief United States game warden,
Mr. Sheldon will be in charge of the
enforcement of two federal game laws, the
Migratory Bird Treaty Act and regula-
tions protecting birds migrating between
the United States and Canada, and the
Lacey Act regulating interstate commerc^^
in game.

Mr'. Sheldon is a native of Vermont,
and before his appointment as state game
commissioner was an assistant editor in
the Office of Information of the Depart-
ment of Agriculture at Washington.
While in Washington after the war, he
studied law and took special courses at
both Georgetown and George Washington
universities. He is author of many arti-
cles relating to fishing and shooting and
the conservation of wild life. During the
World War he served in France as first
lieutenant in the 102d Machine Gun
Battalion, and was later made captain.
His services at the front were ended by
a serious wound received in action, from
which, however, he has fully recovered.

CHIEF U. S. GAME WARDEN SHEL-
DON SAYS CONSERVATIONISTS ARE
WINNING.

H. P. Sheldon, who recently assumed
his duties as chief United States game
warden of the Biological Survey, holds
that the American sportsman is winning
in his fight to conserve and perpetuate
the wild game of the United States. As
state game and fish commissioner of Ver-
mont during the past five years, Mr.
Sheldon has been in close touch with the
activities of the many agencies cooperat-
ing in the work of game conservation, and
speaks with a knowledge born of expe-
rience.

"A study of the present game situation
in the United States," be says, "does not
seem to warrant the pessimistic declara-
tions we commonly hear. The melancholy
atmosphere that some adoi)t when speak-
ing of game conservation is an inheritance
from the dark period in American game
history when destruction was the rule,
and when the scattered, unorganized
sportsmen had not yet found the weapons
with which to check it. That distressing
period is definitely concluded and I siu-
cerel.y believe that we are well forward
in a new advance, which will be marked
by constant increase in the numbers of
our valuable species of fish, birds and
animals."

The year I960 will not offer to the
individual the abundance of game that
was available to the sportsman of 1860,
but the future, he prophesies, will cer-
tainly provide a reasonable abundance of
game to a greater number of sportsmen,
if present policies and projects are cou-
sisteutly adhered to.

"Never before have the sportsmen and
conservationists of America been so
strongly and effectively organized ; never
before have the oflicial agencies of con-
servation found such large sums of money
at their disposal fOr advancing their work,
and never before have we seen same and
fish laws and regulations more generall.y
supported by public approval than at the

CALIFORNIA PISH AND GAME.

193

present time. A slance at the eame
resisters proves that thi^ destruction of
game that went on throo^liont the centurv
jnst past has now been solidly checked,
and that most species, particularly the
migratory biids. are actually increasing.
We are now able to count a profit where
heretofore we have had to realize an
annual loss. Slight though these gains
may be, they represent the wide differ-
ence between victory and defeat. These
gains indicate also that the policies and
systems of game conservation, the legis-
lative structures, and the educational and
enforcement agencies that have been
formulated after a century of conflicting
opinion, narrow prejudice, apathy and
ignorance, are right in their main princi-
ples and that we may safely exjjand them
to increase future effectiveness.

I do not wish to assert that all obsta-
cles are safely past. There are many to
which the sportsman and his agents must
appl.v the most iwwerfiil solvent that
money, interest and cooperative eft'ort and
thought can distil. There is pressing
nee(l for antipollution laws, the training
and employment of an adecpiate force of
game protectors, provision for exi)anding
the areas needed for the care and feeding
of our increasing stock of game, the reduc-
tion of vermin, the study and control of
disease, and the troublesome problem of
harmonizing the rights of the landowner
with the recreations of the sportsman who
owns no shooting or fishing preserve.

These, and many other recniii'enients,
seen and unseen, must be met, but I
believe that past accomplishments war-
rant us in regarding the future with con-
fidence. We shall overcome our' difficul-
ties because we are at last beginning to
comprehend the sense of the biblical in-
struction that 'a house divided against
itself can not stand.' and that a safe, con-
sistent, effective game conservation policy
for America depends upon the submerg-
ence of personal discord. We reciuir<
complete cooperation between the legisla-
tion of conservation and the science of
conservation ; between the state depart-
ments and commissions and the Federal
Bureau of Biological Survey ; between
state and state, farmer and sportsman,
and sportsman and warden."

Mr. Sheldon believes that the American
sportsman, whose interest and support
has made this progress possible, is enti-
tled to the stimulation of quiet optimism
as he prepares for the continuation of his
effort to preserve and perpetuate our wild
life.

PLOVER SEASON CLOSED BY
FEDERAL REGULATION.

A continuous closed season has been
prescribed throughout the United States
on black-bellied and golden plovers, accord-
ing to the Biological Surve,y of the UnittMl
States Department of Agriculture, which
is charged with the enforcement of the

3 — 47365

Migratory Bird Treaty Act. Hunters are
reminded by the bureau that persons kill-
ing these birds are subject to prosecution
in federal court. Greater and lesser
yellowlegs, however, may still be hunted
legally during certain open seasons, which
are as follows :

In Maine, New Hampshire, Massa-
chusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New
York, New .Jersey, Delaware, Maryland
and Virginia from August IG to Novem-
ber 30:

In the District of Columbia, North
Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee,
Arkansas, Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico,
Arizona, California and Alaska from
September 1 to December 15 ;

In Vermont, Pennsylvania, Ohio, West
Virginia, Kentucky. Indiana, Michigan,
Wisconsin, Illinois, Missouri, Iowa, Min-
nesota, North Dakota, South Dakota,
Nebraska, Kansas, Colorado, Wyoming,
Montana, Nevada and that portion of
Washington lying east of the summit of
the Cascade Mountains from Septem-
ber 1() to December 81 ;

In Utah, Oregon, Idaho, and that por-
tion of Washington lying west of the
summit of the Cascade Mountains from
October 1 to January 15 ; and

In Georgia, Florida, Alabama, Missis-
sippi and Louisiana from November 1 to
January 31.

NTERNATIONAL CONGRESS HELD IN
COPENHAGEN.

The Sixth International Ornithological
Congress was held May 124-20. V.)2C,. in
the Danish Parliament Building in Copen-
hagen. Here were gathered ornithologists
of many nations, scientists, explorers, big
game hunters, and skin and egg collectors
in great number.

The committee appointed to consider
the protection of ducks reported, through
Mr. Schioler. that they recommended a
conf(>rence of nations immediately con-
cerned, and that the governments should
appoint delegates to draw up a report
dealing with the conditions in their own
countries. The committee considered it
advisable that comjdete protection shouM
be given during the period of pairing and
migration, as well as during the actual
nesting period.

It was firmly decided that bird protec-
tion must be international as well as
national. — Bird Notcfi and Netcs, Vol. 12,
No. 2.

ECONOMIZE ON PINK SALMON.

A recent publication of the U. S.
P.ureau of Fisheries (Economic Circular
No. 48) discusses red as against pink and

194

CALIFORNIA PISH AND GAME.

c-hiini salmon. l<'or a ureal many years
only red mealed kinds of salmon were
canned, so that the pnblic came to asso-
ciate the color with the product. As a
result, pink or pale-flleshed fish have been
regarded with disfavor or suspision.
Even lisht-nif^ited ehincxdv salmon have
not found a ready market. Ilowever,

rial. 'riu\\- .■ire low pi'ieed because of
their abundance and the use of labor-
savin.i? machinery in handling- and can-
ning them. Their high protein content
and lower color render them more eco-
nomic than most animal foods in common
use.

Tlie same liullelin calls attention to the

Fig. 39. Learning to be a sportsman. Bruce F'lecken-
stein with honker goose and .410 shotgun. Photographed
by C. I. Fleckenstein.

color is a matter of appearance only.
Pink and chum salmon may be equally
wholesome and mean certainly more
economy. "Pink and chum" usually con-
tain less fat but are equal to the red
varieties in protein — tissue building mate-

fact that iodine is contained in canned
salmon, and that foods rich in iodine have
been found to be very efficient in the pre-
vention and treatment of goiter'.

Forty-four recipes for using pink and
chum salmon are included in the bulletin.

CALIFORNIA PISH AND GAME.

195

CHEMICAL COMPOSITION OF PACIFIC
COAST CRABS.

' A bulletio by C. R. Fellows and C. T.
Parks ( Univ. of Wash. Publ. in Fisheries,
1, pp. 139-156) reports on the biochemi-
cal properties of the Pacific coast and
Japanese crabs. The summary follows :
The proximate composition of raw and
canned Pacific coast crab (Cancer magis-
ter) is reported for the first time. Analy-
ses are also reported for' the Japanese
crab (P ar a I it ho d e s camtschatica) .
Though totally unlike, these two species
are remarkably similar in composition and
food value. Very little variation in com-
position was found within the same
species, except in fat content, which con-
stituent increases during the winter and
earlv spring until the spawning and
moulting season occurs. At this time the
crabs become thin and watery and of less
value as food.

The Japanese and Pacific coast crabs
contained respectively 362 and 102 parts
per billion of iodin — a very high figure.

The in-eseuce of struvite crystals (Mg
NH4 POi' 6H2O) was demonstrated in
the canned flesh of both of the species
studied. This substance has been mis-
taken for glass by the public.

Fresh crab meat contains the active
oxidizing enzym tyrosinase which rapidly
changes the color of the raw meat first
to a dirty gray then to a deep brown
color.

The blue discoloration often observed
at the joints of the leg sections and at the
nuisele ends is not iron or copi^er sulfid.
but probably results from a modified
biuret reaction, resulting from the inter-
action of biuret (urea — NH.) and copper,
both from the blood of the crustacean, in
the presence of ammonia.

The black discoloration in canned crab
is iron sulfid due to the reaction of sulfur
compounds from the flesh with iron from
the container. A discussion of the dis-
coloration reaction is given, together with
suggestions for its suppression or retard-
ation.

Tlie use of (luantitative indol, ammonia
or bacteriological tests to detect spoilage
in crab meat are unsatisfactory because
such degradation changes as occur for
many hours after death are en-tirely auto-
lytic in character. So active in this auto-
lysis, that crabs dead only ten hours show
visible evidences of muscle disintegration
accompanied by marked physical changes
which make the flesh unsuitable for food.
At a temperature of 65° F. crabs are
suitable for food up to about six hours
onl.v.

Hydrogen sulfid in raw crab meat in-
creases in amount only after about ten
hours from death. There is a regular
increase with time after ten hours at 65°
F. and the presence of over two parts per
million of hydrogen sulfid indicates
decomposition has occurred.

The bacterial flora of raw crabs con-
sists largely of cocci and members of the

colon-aerogenes group. Micro-organisms
do not ordinarly penetrate into the flesh
of crabs for from 20 to 36 hours after
death. The body meat is infected first,
the infection coming largely from the
mouth and surrounding parts and the
gills.

MARKED FISH RETURN.

An extraordinarily heavy return

of

marked salmon is astonishing all elements
of the Columbia River fishing industry
and is attracting the attention of fish
scientists throughout the Pacific north-
west.

The pi'esent catch of blueback salmon
is featured by an unusual number of
marked fish with the adipose and left
central fins clipped. These fish are part
of the 100,000 bluebacks marked at the
Enterprise Hatchery and released in the
spring of 1924, when they were already
IS months old.

Harlan B. Holmes, fish scientist with
the federal bureau of fisheries, had col-
lected the marks from more than 200 fish,
Tuesday, and large numbers of the marked
fish are still coming into the river. In
some cases more than half of the blue-
backs delivered to Astoria canneries bear
the marks.

This is said to be by far the most nota-
ble return of mark(Ml fish resulting from
any fish branding experiment ever under-
taken in Oregon. It provt^s the efficacy
of artificial propagation and the value of
holding the young fish until they are a
year and a half old before they are
released. — The Oregon Sportsman, July,
1920, page 24.

SALMON MARKING EXPERIMENTS IN
OREGON.

A series of salmon marking experi-
ments, which have been conducted for a
number of years on the Columbia River
by the bureau in cooperation with the
Oregon Fish Commission, yielded valu-
able information during the 1925 season.
Approximately 100 adult chinook and 50
sockeye salmon, which had been marked
by removing certain of their fins when
they were liberated from the hatcheries,
were recovered as they returned to the
Columbia River to spawn. The sockeyes
represent the first returns from 100,000
yearlings that were marked and liberated
during February, 1924. The recovery of
so large a number of three-year-olds gives
promise of exceptionally good returns
from the experiment. The fish in another
sockeye experiment, in which the young
fish were liberated during the fall of their
first year, should have been five years old
in 1925, but no returns were received.

196

CALIFORNIA I'ISII AXO (iAME.

This cxiJcriiiiiMit soems to havo boon ;i
total failuii', as no throo- or four-year-
olds \v('n> rt'i-ovored. These results agree
with those from former exjjerimeuts in
showing that when it is not i)ossible to
liberate sockeyes in a lake in which they
can remain until the spring of their
second year (whicli is their natural timo
of migration), they should be held in
rearing ponds until that time.

.Vbout r>0 of the marked chinooks recov-
ered were three-year-olds that had been
marked at the liig White SaluKui River
Hatchery during May and June. 1023.
when they were about live months old.
llei'i>. also, the recovery of a large num-
ber of three-.vear-olds gave promise of
good returns as four- and five-year-olds.
This one year's returns from this experi-
ment nearly equal the total returns from
two former experiments, which differed
from this one mainly in that the finger-
lings were retained for about three months
longer before being liberated. The greater
returns from this experiment would indi-
cate that the best time to liberate the
chinooks that spawn in the Little White
Salmon and Tiig White Salmon rivers is
during the spring of their first year. This
is to be expected, for a study of the scales
of the fish that spawn in those tributaries
has shown that normally they migrate to
the ocean within a short time after
hatching.

In order to determine the best time to
liberate fingerlings of the spring run of
Chinook salmon, a series of marking ex-
periments was undertaken in 102.1 at the
McKenzie Kiver Hatchery. This series
consisted of five markings with libera-
tions ranging from May of the first year
to March of the second.

In addition to conducting the marking
experiments on the Columbia Kiver, II. B.
Holmes has been making a study of the
blueback salmon of the Columbia, Rep-
resentative samples of scales and measure-
ments were collected from the commercial
catch at intervals throughout the season,
and ob.sei-vations were made of the sea-
ward migrants and the spawning adults
in the Okanogan River spawning district.
— Bureau of Fifihrricfi Docuiueiit Xo.
1003, by Willis II. Rich.

CORRECTION.

In the July, 102.">, issue of California
Fish and Came, page 147 shows l()<>.27r)
pounds of bluefin tuna brought into Cali-
fornia from Mexico via San Pedro. This
should have been reported as yellowfin
tuna, and added to the amount of yellow-
fin tuna brought into California from
^lexico.

In the Octol)(>r, l!>2r), issue of Cali-
I'OuxiA I'isii ano (tAME. page 193 shows
3.'!,4fM; iKiunds of bluefin tuna as brought
into California fi-om Mexico \ia San I'edro.
This should have been reported as yellow-
fin tuna, and added to the amount of
yellowfin tuna brought into California
from ^fexico via San I'edro.

In the April, 11)2(;, issue of California
Fish and (Jame, page 115, there is
shown S225 pounds of bluefin tuna
brought into California from Mexico via
San I'edro. This amount should have
been reported as yellowfin tuna and
should be added to the amount of yellow-
fin tuna brought into California from
Mexico via San Pedro.

NEW BULLETIN ISSUED ON GAME
LAWS.

"Game Laws for the Season 192(5-27,"
the twenty-seventh annual summary of
federal, state and provincial statutes
relating to game, has been compiled by
Talbott Denmead and Frank L. Earti-
shaw, of the Biological Survey, and pub-
lished as Farmers' Bulletin No. 1505-F
by the United States Department of Agri-
culture. The outstanding information
presented is the summary of laws relating
to seasons, licenses, limits, possession,
interstate transportation, and sale, for
each state and province, in the form of
detailed hut concise synopses, which should
be highly useful to thousands of sports-
men hunting in their' own and other
states.

Federal seasons on migratory game
birds were changed during the year l)y
amendments to the regulations respecting
waterfowl and shorebirds, as follows :
The open season on waterfowl, coots,
gallinules and Wilson snipe was changed
from the i)eriod September 1(5 to Decem-
ber 31 in Illinois, Indiana, Washington
east of the Cascades, and Massachusetts
in Nantucket and Dukes counties to the
Ijeriod October 1 to January 15, and in
Kentucky to the period November 1 to
January 31 ; in New Mexico and Cali-
fornia the season was changed from the
period October 1 to January 15 to Octo-
ber IC to January 31. The season on
doves was changed from the period Sep-
tember 1 to December 15 in South Caro-
lina to October IG to January 31. The
open season on black-bellied and golden
l)lov(u's was closed for an indefinite period.

Only eleven states have held legislative
sessions since the bulletin on the game
laws for the season 1925^2(5 was issued —
Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Massa-
chusetts, ^Mississippi. New Jersey, New
York, Rhode Island, South Carolina,

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

197

Virginia and AVashinston. The authors
of the bulletin state that most of the
clianges during the year in the laws
relating to game have been of minor im-
portance except in Louisiana, Mississippi,
Virginia and Washington, and that the
most significant feature in connection
with state legislation on game this year is
the absence of provisions setting aside
refuges for game animals or' birds.

The game law bulletin is now being
distributed to law-enforcement officials,
conservationists, sportsmen and others as

an aid in the administration by the
Biological Survey of laws protecting
migratory birds and regulating interstate
commerce in game. Copies of the bulletin
can be had, as long as the supply lasts,
on application to the United States
Department of Agriculture, Washington,
D, C. Hunters are urged to procure also
copies of state game laws from their
respective state game and conservation
officials, a list of whom is given in the
new bulletin.

198 CALIFORNIA PISII AND GAME.

FACTS OF CURRENT INTEREST.

The Sardine Bulletin, Fish Bulletin No. 11. which gives the result of
years of investig'ation, is in press and will soon be ready for dis-
tribution.

Many of the state hatcheries have undergone extensive repairs
during- the summer and are in much better condition for fishcultural
operations. The Mt. Shasta Hatchery, the larg'est of California's
hatcheries, has received some m.uch needed repairs and a number of
new installations which will improve the output of this hatchery.

Nearly 4000 feet of new motion picture film has been purchased and
assembled. The new reels are now available.

The eg'g's of the surf bird, one of the state's migTator}'^ shore birds,
were discovered for the first time during the iDast summer in central
Alaska by a party from the University of California.

Golden trout are again being reared in the Mt, Whitney Hatchery,
eggs having been secured from the Cottonwood Lakes Station.

Owing to a change in the federal regulations the season on ducks
will not open until October 16. State law closes the season on January
15, thns reducing the season from three and one-half to three m-onths.

During the month of August the formal dedication of the State
Game Farm and of the site of the new Yosemite Hatchery took place.

Large numbers of pheasants, raised at the State Game Farm, have
been liberated in suitable locations during the past few weeks.

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

199

COMMISSION ACTIVITIES.

Department of Patrol.

Game Warden George Johnson, of
Napa, recently took four residents of that
section red-handed in the slajdng of a
spiked buck. Two of the party pleaded
guiltj' to the charge before Justice Charles
Snow and paid fines of $150 each, and
were sentenced to two years probation
with the provision that they get rid of
their dogs and discontinue hunting deer
in this manner. A third member of the
party was given a two-year probatioji
sentence with a warning against use of
dogs. The fourth, being under legal age,
was given probation with the understand-
ing that he hunt no more until the end of
his term and get rid of his dogs imme-
diately.

A few nights later, while driving along
one of the Napa Valley roads, together
with a "dollar-a-year" warden, Johnson
saw still another alleged sportsman of
that region shoot a deer focused in the
glare of a spotlight. .Johnson immediately
put the gunner under arrest. He pleaded
not guilty when arraigned before Justice
Snow, and was placed in the county jail
in default of $50 bail.

Game Warden Jack Burke, of San
Mateo County, recently undertook a
stringent campaign against rabbit shoot-
ers in his district, one of the first fruits
of which was the taking of an Italian
resident of San Francisco. This party
was seated on the fender of his automo-
bile, shooting with a .410-gauge shotgun.
When taken before Justice Griffin, of
Redwood City, the hunter pleaded guilty
and was fined $50 for shooting from an
auto. $25 for having no license and $25
for shooting rabbits.

A gunny sack and suit case containing
thirty packages of "jerky" marked at
$1.25 per package proved the undoing of
Henry Bristol and Evans McDonald, of
Areata, when they were apprehended
recently by Game Patrolman McPherson
Lough. Taken before Justice of the
Peace Adams, at Areata, Bristol entered
a plea of guilty and was fined in the sum
of $100. McDonald, who is but 17 years
of age, entered a plea of not guilty and
his case was certified to the juvenile
court of Humboldt County. The pair
were traveling along a county road when
overhauled by Patrolman Lough. The
charge was a dual one of taking deer out

of season and of possession of deer meat
in a closed season.

Bristol elected to spend 100 days in
jail in lieu of the fine. McDonald was
remanded into the custody of Sheriff
Arthur A. Ross pending his trial.

An ultimatum in no uncertain terms
was handed out to "game hogs" when
Justice W. Hunt, of Mount Shasta,
assessed fines totaling $225 and suspended
sentences of thirty days upon five parties
charged with taking an over limit of
trout. The arrests in these cases were
made by Game Warden S. R. Gilloon, of
Mount Shasta, who was patrolling the
north fork of the Sacramento River in
the vicinity of Weed and happened upon
the five men, each claiming the legal catch
of fish. Gilloon dropped down the road
a few miles and paid the same party
another call, this time finding them with
thirty-five fish over the limit.

The entire party was conveyed into
Mount Shasta, where they entered pleas
of guilty to the charges against them and
asked for a certain period of time to raise
the money to pay their fines, wdiicli was
granted.

An tone J. Anderson, of Crockett, Cali-
fornia, entered pleas of guilty to two
charges of illegal netting lodged against
him in the court of Justice Ray Griffin,
of Redwood City. He was assessed fines
of $100 each on the two counts and for-
feited to our fish and game deputies two
fine nets, each more than one mile in
length and valued at about $1,000.

One case has been pending against
Anderson in the Redwood City court for
more than a year past, or since Patrol
Captain M. S. Clark, of San Francisco
Bay District, and Patrolman Jack Burke,
of San ]Mateo, charged him with use of
an illegal net and of using it in an
illegal manner. He was tried and the
jury disagreed, but the game patrolmen
only redoubled their efforts to catch him.

At 4 o'clock on the morning of April 28,
1&26, after a vigil of more than twenty-
six hour's. Patrolman Burke and his son,
George Burke, San Mateo high school
student, caught Anderson a second time,
again using an illegal net fastened to the
shore in violation of the law.

Anderson at first elected to fight the
second case, but later decided that Deputy
Burke's evidence was too strong, and
pleaded guilty.

200

CALIFUKXIA FlSll AM) GAME.

Wnnlcn S. F. Cilloon. of Mount Shasta,
arn'stod four .Iai)aiU'S(' in the act of kill-
iim ilovos and robins out of season. .Tiiilue
II. I. Williani.s. of Cassel, assessed a -I^IOO
tine against eaeh man.

('ni)tain William T-ippincott arrested a
man with live (luailj taken out of season.
Jud;;e .\. F. Ross fined the man $100.
Numerous other arrests have been made,
and the dei)uties have received wonderful
support from the local judges.

On the al'icruoon of August 10, Deputy
('. L. Ituiiildck. accomi)anied by Joe
Mauhert. llii'k Pratt and Phil Ilobson,
three dollar-a-ye.ir deputies, came upon

should have l)(>en made to pay for such
a gross \iolation of the law.

Dci^artnient of Fish Culttire.

A sum of money for the rehabilitation
and enlargement of the famous Mount
Shasta Hatchery, which has furnished
California si)ortsmen with many millions
of trout, has recently been allotted by the
California Fish and Game Commission.
The princiiial innovations will be: new
hatchery buildings, a new and improved
food-grinding and food-cooking plant,
refrigeration plant, power plant, new
walls for all the ponds, new screens and
fishways.

'■ssTi-'-'sewitv'*^ ; -z

'■•JsaaKMKT— v-

Fig. 40. Deputies of the Fish and Game Commission visit tlie .State Game Farm
on Marcla 7, 1926, and are introduced to tlie science of game propa.gation. Photo-
graph t)y H. C. Bryant.

three men with 103 striped bass in their
possession. The largest of these fish was
nine inches in length, which is three
inches below th(> legal limit.

The mi'U were taken before Judge
Wade Moore, of I'ittsburg, who served a
twenty-day susjiended sentence upon
th?m. on the plea that they were too poor
to pay the fine. Two of tlie men were
c.irpentei's and thi' third a truck driver.

Such ii'regular iirocediu-e is neither' fair
t(, the sportsmen nor to the deputies, for
it is undoubtedly most discouraging to
work hard on a case and at the last
moment to nave it waived a.side as a
matter of no consequence. These men

When till' large force of workmen now-
employed at the Mount Sliasta Hatchery
has finished its labors, the enlarged plant
will be capable of increases of from 5 to
2."> per cent in capacity. This season the
plant is handling 21)0,0(10 brood fish, and
will turn over to the fish planters some-
thing in the neighborhood of 14,000,000
fry this fall.

P'our principal varieties of trout are
j)roi)agated at Mount Shasta, the Locii
Leven and German brown for the lower
altitudes and warmer waters, and the
famed California rainbow and eastern
brook varieties for the higher altitudes
and cold streams. Steelhead trout and

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

201

ehiiiook salmon aro likewise propagate.!
here, and the resultant fry permitted to
run to sea from the hatchery itself.

While the brood tish have larsely been
Loeh Leven, German brown and eastern
brook trout in the past, a considerable stock
of rainbow brood fish is being collected
at Shasta Hatchery under the direction
of Captain G. H. Lambson. Captain
Lambson has been in charge of the hatch-
ery since 1010, prior to which time he
was for many years in the employ of the
Federal Bureau of Fisheries, as pilot of
a fish distriluition car, and still hiter in
charge of the government hatchery at
Baird, California. He is personally over-
seeing the improvements now under way,
bringing to the project the results of hi-s
many years of training and study.

From a very small plant of seven ponds
and one building, Mount Shasta Hatchery
has developed to such an extent that it
now ciunprises 52 ponds, 15 hatcher.s'
buildings, cottages for the superintendent
and the permanent emplo.vees. a hydro-
electric plant, a water plant and other
appliances necessary for the propagation
of young fish, especially constructed fish
cars and tin cans used for disti'ibuting fr,\
to the various ])lanting centers.

With the increased facilities at its com-
mand, Mount Shasta Hatchery should, in
the year 1027, be cajiable of handling
about 2.~(),(Hl(t brood fish, and producing
at least 17,r)UO,()0<) fry.

A total of l,(l()(>,(>i)0 fingerlings, the
product of the Bear Creek Hatcherv,
have been planted in the streams of San
Bernardino County. A number of im-
provements, including a fish jioud, have
been added to the above hatchery.

A holding pond that will care for 100,-
OUO fish has been built at the Fort Seward
Hatchery, about 300 feet below the hatch-
ery building. The fish in this pond will
be held until late in the fall before thi-y
are planted.

About KHMKIO trout are being held
until fall in ponds at the Brookdale
Hatchery. Another inO,(M)0 will be
placed in the ponds as soon as the fish
are sufficiently mature.

During the month of June, the Mount
Whitney Hatchery received r)( 10.0(10 golden
trout eggs from Cottonwood Lakes. This
is about the normal take. The Rae Lakes
station pi'oduced only ].10,0t)0 rainbow
egis. a total far sliort of that of former
years.

Two hatcheries and three egg-collecting
stations were operated in IMumas County.
Low water was responsible for a less thaa

normal take of eggs. The take was
smaller by G13,0()0 than that of last year.

The new plan of fisli planting is now
beginning to bear fruit. All sportsmen's
organizations so far approached have
endorsed the plan and there is not a single
dissenting voice. In every possible in-
stance captains of patrol have met the
fish car and aided local sportsmen in
their plantings. The result has been that
there is less loss of fish this year than in
Ijrevious years.

The experience with holding ponds
maintained by sportsmen has not been
encouraging. Even though funds were at
hand for feeding and caring for the fish,
this necessary duty was too often
entrusted to untrained men with disas-
trous results. It is becoming more appar-
ent that a holding pond can only function
properl.v undei' the care of a trained fisli-
culturist. If this be true, holding ponds
.should ho located at or near liatcheries
so that careful suiiervision will be possible.

Department of Commercial
Fisheries.

The albaeore season was ahnost a
failure. In order to secure fish, canners
offered .$210 a ton, but with poor success,
Albaeore were occasionall.v seen but could
not be induced to take the hook, tlie onl.>-
known practical manner of catching them.
As a consequence, it is not to be inferred
that the supjdy is depleted but that
abnormal conditions existed which ]ire-
vented the normal catch.

The catch of blue-finned tuna, however,
was the best of any year with the excep-
tion of the year lOlS. Skii)jack were
plentiful. Canners conseijuently utilized
these fish instead of albaeore.

Likewise the salmon trolling season has
b(^en poor. Many fishermen having
depleted their financial resources in
unsuccessful search for fish, have had to
secure loans and are deeply in debt.
Owing to the small catches, the tagging
work has been a great disappointment.
It was lioped that a sufficient number of
troll caught salmon could be tagged to
assure evidence as to where these sea
caught salmon go to sjjawn. So few hav!>
been tagged, however, that worthwhile
results can hardly be exiiected.

The I'ismo clam situation has claimed
the attention of the department the past

202

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

summer. Local residents, noting doplo-
tion, aro dcniandina: proliibition of com-
mcM'oial diijgitig hut continuance of sale in
local restaurants. If the commercial dig-
ger is responsible, the effective method is
to stop all sale. However, there is much
evidence to show that it is the tourist
digger of clams who takes the largest toll.
Past shipments and even past sales of
Pismo clams have formed but a small
portion of the total catch. IVrhaps the
most feasible method of giving this shell-
fish better protection would be the crea-
tion of a closed area to be set aside as a
spawning refuge. If propei-ly chosen,
such an area would assure a breeding
stock.

Plans are being matured for the gath-
ering of statistics relative to the rock cod
fishery at San Pedro, which plays an
important part in supplying the market
with fresh fish. The statistics will cover
size, percentage abundance of each prin-
cipal species in the catch, locality, gear
and methods. Although the sardine work
is engaging the attention of the laboratory
staff, yet investigations of this kind cai--
ried along with the other work are insur-
ance for the future.

Bureau of Education and
Research.

During the past summer more than
50,000 persons heard wild life and con-
servation lectures in Yosemite National
Park. Field trips gave intimate contact
with vacationists and a chance to stir
their interest in conservation. A wide
variety of trips was offered by the nature
guides, ranging from short two-hour trips
to whole-day trips. Weekly trips to the
back country constituted a real trail
school.

Extension of summer resort educational
work to California State Redwood Park
marked another advance in the program.
Attendance at the 24 lectures amounted
to 1G,800 and 1712 persons followed
nature guides on the 65 field trips offered
during the month of July.

Bureau of Pollution.

The director of the Bureau of River
and Harbor Pollution reports that condi-
tions as regards the pollution of rivers
and harbors of California have improved
materially in the past three months. The
bureau, created since the reorganizatioa

of the commission shortly after the first
of the current year, has taken particular
cognizance of cases of pollution by gas
houses, oil wells, refineries and dis-
tilleries. Reports which have come in
from virtually every section of the state
have been investigated and remedial
action demanded. In most cases this was
forthcoming without the necessity for
court action. In others it became neces-
sary to file proceedings at law to force
action.

Robert J. Irvine, a graduate chemist
and bacteriologist, has been added to the
staff of the pollution bureau. AVith his
assistance a comprehensive analysis of
all polluted waters is prepared for presen-
tation to the proper authorities, upon
which to base prosecution under section
G3o of the Penal Code.

While conditions have greatly improved
in recent months, there are numerous
other cases and conditions in various
communities that must be cleaned up
before California waters can be said to
be wholly safe for fish, plant and bird
life. Those responsible for pollution are
always given an oijportunity to rectify
conditions first. Failing in this the pollu-
tion bureau does not hesitate to take
action.

Pollution of the waters of Hopper Can-
yon, in Ventura County, is to be stopped
immediately, and every effort will be made
to prevent a recurrence of conditions,
according to a letter received by the
Bureau of River and Harbor Pollution,
from Hugh Grant, of the Julian Petro-
leum Company, Los Angeles. The Julian
Company has large oil properties in the
Hopper Canyon region, and conditions
there were recently described as the most
serious in the state.

All other sections of Ventura County
having been freed of oil pollution, oflicials
of the commission placed the Hopper
Canyon matter before Mr, Grant in the
light of a requisite of true sportsmanship,
it being shown that fish were unable to
live in the waters of the canyon belo^v
the properties of his company. In bis
letter Mr. Grant says : "I want you to
know that I will give you my hearty
cooperation along these lines, and I
realize as a sportsman the value of the
work you are doing."

P^'rom one of the worst polluted counties
of the state, Ventura has risen to one of
the cleanest.

Officials of the pollution bureau an-
nounce that this is generally true and
they state that in the event of an acci-
dent, and the inadvertent dumping of

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

203

quantities of oil into California waters,
officials of the offending comiiany use
every effort to clean up conditions as
rapidly as possible.

Investigations at the "Bully Hill" Mine
at WinthrOp, California, operated by the
California Zinc Company, showed that
the plant was using an oil flotation
method and cyanide in small quantities,
the polluted mass of water and silt being
allowed to run first into a settling basin,
from which the water and oil were dis-
charged into Squaw Creek. When con-
ditions were called to the attention of
Superintendent James J. Dugan and
Foreman J. F. McDonald, these officials
at once agreed to construct a new flume
to carry all tailings from the mill across
a considerable area and into a natural
reservoir ha^'ing no outlet into the creek.

About thirty days will be required to
complete the new tailings disposal plant,
following which the waters of Squaw
Creek, from the mine to the junction of
Pit River, will again become a splendid
fishing stream.

Bureau of Screens and Ladders.

The Bureau of Screens and Ladders is
installing a large map which will show
the location of every screen and ladder' in
the state. A card index will record all
of the details. Other pertinent data will
be indicated on the map. As a result,
there will be no recurrence of the former
inadequate knowledge of the condition and
location of screens and ladders.

During July, 45 screens and 15 ladders
were inspected. In most instances thf
complete cooperation of owners has been
secured.

Fish heretofore blocked from the upper
part of the south fork of the Trinity
River were offered a new, free passage
this summer after' dynamite had blown
out a passageway through an old dam.

One of the first problems to confront
the newly created Bureau of Screens and
Ladders was an obstruction in the south
fork of the Trinity River. The Little
Klondike Hydraulic Mining Company has
erected an artificial barrier', 30 feet in
height and 100 feet long, thus closing th?
river completely to the annual run of
steelhcad trout and salmon, as well as to
the rainbow trout, a fish which is a native
to these waters. '

After a series of conferences with offi-

cials of the company, and an appeal to
their sense of true sportsmanship, they
willingly agreed to open the obstruction,
thus permitting the usual run of fish.
This was occomplished on July 10, with-
out recourse to law, and much to the
delight of the sportsmen's associations
and fishermen from all over California
who frequent the Trinity River country
in search of their favorite sport.

Another' instance of the activity of the
bureau is cited. In the Eel River, near
Grizzly Butte in Humboldt County, a
jetty w^as built some years ago to prevent
erosion of the right bank. Unfortunately
this interfered with the annual run of
salmon and steelhead trout. Inasmuch
as the jetty seemed now to be serving no
purpose, Mr. Spencer, with the assistance
of the Patrol Department, caused to be
removed two large slabs of concrete,'
thereby clearing the hitherto obstructed
stream.

Bureau of Game Farms.

Superintendent Bade, in addition to
caring for the hatching and rearing of the
many young pheasants, has been busy
selecting suitable places to plant the out-
put of the Yountville Game Farm. Sev-
eral locations in the Sacramento and San
Joaquin valleys have been found satis-
factory, and young birds have been lib-
erated. Redding and Stockton have both
received shipments.

The birds at the farm have survived
the hot weather" (the temperature reached
109 degrees during the summer) because
provision was made for their comfort.
Oak brush was cut and placed in the
cages for shade and the sprinkler system
gave an effective means of reducing the
temperature within the pens.

The first planting of pheasants fi-om
the State Game Farm took place on
August 11 at Redding. A careful selec-
tion of a suitable locality had been made
and a considerable gathering of sports-
men were at the station to meet the birds.
A total of 231 birds, just ten weeks old,
were shipped under the supervision of
E. H. Lewis, assistant superintendent of
the State Game Farm. Three different
plantings were made in the bottom lands
along the Sacramento River near Red-
ding. Good food and splendid cover are
available for the birds. Those present at
the liberation were pleased to find that
the birds were really \\il(l bii'ds and not
domesticated ones. As soon as the ship-

204

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

I)luK l)oxos wore opeut'd. the birds imiiic-
diately flew to cover.

Gieat interest taken in lliis plant by
sportsmen of the vicinity insures rigid
enforcement of tlie closed season. Suc-
cessful results may only be expected under
these circumstances.

Later in the fall numerous other plant-
ings were mad(\ notably a large one near
Stockton. Although many of the birds
planted this fall have been able to care
for themselves, it is the plan to plant the
birds when only two weeks old. The
young pheasants are to be sent out with
the mother hens and cared for by inter-
ested sportsmen on the ground where they
are to be liberated. In this way, they
learn the territory when they are young
and quickly discover the food supply and
learn the places of safety. This method
will greatly facilitate the work of the
game farm and increase the production.
The Southern Pacific Company has very

generously offered to transport, without
charge, the j)heasants from the game farm
to the various ])oints of distribution.
Many birds. Iiowever, have been trucked
to their destination.

State Lion Hunter.

Mr. Jay C. Bruce, state lion hunter,
reports that eleven lions were killed dur-
ing the six weeks ending August 31.
During this time he has been hunting in
the El Dorado National Forest between
the north fork of the Mokelumne River
and the Rubicon. On one occasion some
of his dogs were badly mauled when a
lion turned at bay and gave fight. Mr.
Bruce"s next trip will be to the country
in the vicinity of the American River,
where four lions have recently been
reported.

LIFE HISTORY NOTES.

PREY OF THE VERSATILE RAINBOW.

Some years ago. while fishing in a small
mountain stream in IMumas County. I
landed an 11 -inch rainbow trout whose
greatly distended belly prompted an imme-
diate investigation with my pocketknife.
The operation disclosed a mouse-like crea-
ture which I first thought to be a shrew,
but upon examination its disproportion-
ately long hind legs and tail showed that
it was one of the jumping mice. Being
an adult specimen, it seemed rather large
game for a trout of this size.

Fpon another occa.sion I took from the
same stream a much smaller rainbow
whose stomach contained a ripe berry of
the Western mountain ash (Sorbus
sifchctifiis). The tree itself overhung the
stream at a point a little above where
the fish was lying, and there were many
birds feeding upon the berries and knock-
ing them from the branches. The fruit
of this tree is coral-red and about a third
of an inch in diameter, somewhat resem-
bling a magnified salmon egg. but in this
connection it is worthy of note that in
seventeen years I have never known or
a single case in which a salmon egg was
successfully used as bait for trout in this
particular stream.

Itecently I opened the stomach of a
rainbow trout thirteen inches in length
which I had taken from the murky water.s
of the McClond River, seven or eight
miles above Baird. and was greatly sur-
prised to find not only a 4i-inch sculpin

or '■i)u]lhe:Hr' {('oft IIS shrixfa) but also a
young bird in the pin-feather stage. I
was unable to identify the latter with
certainty, but in size and general charac-
teristics it resembled a young vireo. —
W. T. Follett, Oakland, California.

SHRIKE ATTACKS YOUNG QUAIL.

^Ir. James L. Ortega writes as follows :

"About S o'clock one morning while
working in a prune orchard, about a mile
and a quarter north of Yountville, Napa
County, California. I heard a chirping
noise very similar to the chirp of a young
chicken. I noticed two birds on the
ground some distance from me. The noise
was proceeding from their direction. I
noticed that one bird seemed to be larger
than the other. The larger was flying at
the smaller, which was dodging from side
to side and chirping. This was in the
orchard on bare ground and some dis-
tance from cover.

My curiosity was aroused, and I went
near to get a better view. Then I noticed
that the larger bird was a shrike, and th^
smaller a baby quail, scarcely able to fly.
The shrike became alarmed at my near
approach and flew up into a prune tree,
whereui)on the young valley quail started
to run away from the spot where the
shrike had attacked it. After running
for a short distance it took to the air,
rising to a height of a foot or so above
the ground. After flying for a hundred
feet or thereabouts it alighted and ran to
coTer, and so out of sight. I saw no

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

205

more of eitlier the youiiff quail or of the
shrike.

Once before, several years ago, in I'JIO
or 1!)20, I noticed a shrike (iu Merced
County, California) trying to catch a
very young chicken. The mother lieu
flew to and fro trying to drive the shrike
away. However, I believe this is the first
instance in my experience of a shrike
attacking young quail. I did not see the
beginning of this particular incident, so
I do not know how the shrike got the
little quail away from the cover of the
weeds, so far into the orchard.

I do not intend this to be a condemna-
tion of the shrike for I am fully aware of
the fact that this bird does do much good
in the way of catching insects ; and I
have even seen small mice and lizards
hanging up in some favorite spot of a
shrike. The lizard was of the fence lizard
type, and was presumably one of the bene-
ficial species.

The attack on the young quail was not
provoked by lack of insect food, for in the
adjoining field there were numerous
grasshoppers of sufficient size to attract
the attention of the shrikes."

With reference to the above observa-
tion, the following quotation will both
confirm this and show to what extent
this habit prevails. We quote from
"Birds of California in Relation to the
Fruit Industry," Bulletin No. 30, Biolog-
ical Survey, U. S. Dept. of Agriculture:

"In the investigation of the food of the
California shrike, 124 stomachs were ex-
amined. They were collected in every
month, but the greater number were
taken in the warmer months.

Vcfietahle food. Animal food of all
kinds amounts to r>7.r» ])er cent, or so
nearly the whole that it is fair to sup-
nose that the greater part of the 2.5 per
cent of vegetable matter present was
swallowed unintentionall.v — that is, when
sticking to something else. All of it was
contained in i) stomachs. Fruit appeared
in 2 stomachs, seeds in 2. and rubbish in
(). Of these probabl.v onl.y the fruit was
taken as food. One stomach was filled
with elderberries to the amount of 84 per
cent of the contents, the other with the
seeds of blackberries or raspberries to the
extent of IS per cent. I', thus appears
that the shrike sometimes eats fruit.

AniiiKil food. The animal portion of
the shrike's food may be divided into
three parts : Insects, 83 per cent ; spiders
and a few snails, etc., 2 per cent ; verte-
brates, 12 i)er cent.

Of insects eaten by the shrike, the
largest item is Orthoptera — that is, grass-
hoppers and crickets — which amount to
nearly 43 per cent of the whole food. They
are eaten in every month of the year,
and in August and September reach
nearly 70 per cent. These are the normal

grasshoi)i)ei- montlis, the ones in which
eastern l)irds enjoy their annual grass-
hopper feast. Ordinary grasshoi)pers
form the greater part of this item of
food, but a good many crickets are eaten,
especially the brown and strijjed so-called
wood crickets.

Vcriehyutcs. The vertebrate part of
the shrike's food amounts to a little more
than 12 per cent, and consists of the
remains of small nianunals, birds and
lizards. Mammals were found in 4 stom-
achs, birds in 2, and lizards in 12.
Neither of the birds could be identified
further than that both were snuill song
birds. Of the mammals, one was a pocket
mouse (I'erognathus), one a .young field
mouse ( Mii'rotus ) , and one a shrew
( Sorex ) . The fourth mammal could not
be identified, as there was little left excejit
hair. The lizards were not recognizable
either genericall.v or specificall.y, as the
remains consisted onl.v of bones and
scales. From an economic standiioint,
lizards are useful animals, as they sub-
sist on insects. The same is true of
birds, so that in destroying birds an^!
lizards the shrike is doing harm. Fortu-
nately, it does not eat many birds. The
destruction of the mammals is an un-
mixed blessing, except, perhaps, in the
case of the shrew (Sorex), which is
largely insectivorous. Even if all the
al)ove vertebrates were useful the score
against the shrike would not be a very
heavy one and would not outweigh the
yalue of its services in destroying grass-
ho])pers. In the writer's field ex])erience
with the shrike only on(> attempt to cajv
ture a vertebrate animal was observed.
In this case the shrike was seen to i)Iunge
into a thicket of weeds in pursuit of a
brood of tiny quail, but a few seconds
later it emerged in a great hurr.y, closel.y
followed by the irate cock quail. As a
matter of fact, the noxious mammals
eaten both by the eastern and western
shrikes far outnumber the birds, and
when to the former are added harmful
insects the balance is ver.v largely on the
credit side." — H. C. Codsil, Berkeley,
California.

GRAY SQUIRREL DISEASE STILL
EXISTS.

The serious epidemic of 1920-1921 so
effectively reduced the number of gray
squirrels that in the intervening years the
species has not had an opportunity to
recuperate. For instance, in Yosemite
Valley, where gray squirrels were once
very abundant, but two or' three have
been seen in tiie past two years. No
doubt the species will eventually return
to normal numbers, but continued pro-
tection is needed. One reason for the
slow increase in numbers may be found
in the fact that the disease is still preva-
lent in some places. A recent report
from Twain, Plumas County, made by
W. I. Follette, is to the effect that early

206

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

last svimnior a (load sray squirrel wa:^
discovered a few miles east of the
McCloud River in Shasta County. Its
head, particularly about the eyes ami
snout, was covered with scab and gave
every evidence of the same disease which
made such inroads a few years ago. —
IT. r. Krynnt. Tierkeley, Cal.

YOUNG ANTELOPE RESCUED.
One day last May a baby autelope

wandei'cd into tii(> (own of Mount Hebron
with his nose full of ijorcuplno quills.
Some men found him and succeeded in
ridding him of the (juills. In that the
animal was hardly capable of taking care
of himself, he was kept in captivity for
a time. The accompanying photograph
shows the animal while in captivity. — •
Wm. Lippincott, Yreka, California.

CONSERVATION IN OTHER STATES.

OREGON COMMISSION ABLE TO
CLOSE STREAMS.

The Oregon Fish and Game Commission
has plenary powers and consequently i.s

premises, the Oregon commission promptly
closes the area to all fishing and the
owners are also deprived of the privilege.
Soon there is a change of heart and a

Fig. 41. A young antelope, rescued near the town of
Mount Hebron, Siskiyou County, and reared for some time
in captivity. Pliotograph by Wm. Lippincott.

able to protect young fish in the streams.
After planting tributary streams, these
streams are closed to fishing until the
planted fish have attained proper size.
With the same authority the commission
is able to mark a portion of a lake with
buoys and make it a fish refuge. It is a
common thing in Oregon to find one part
of a lake open to fishermen and another
part closed. This assures a breeding
stock being left in the lake after the
angling season. When private land-
i'okters refuse to allow fishing on their

request for the opening of the area to
fishing. California needs similar discre-
tionary powers to adequately care for
natural resources.

STREAM POLLUTION IN OREGON.

In November, 192.j, the Oregon State
Game Commission initiated a movement
to prevent further pollution of the streams
of this state. Notice was served on all
the cities and towns discharging their raw
sewage into streams that they would be
expected to plan immediately for the

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

207

installation of sewage disposal plants.
Towns without present sewer systems
were advised that as they constructed
new sewers they would be expected to
comply with the law and provide adequate
sewage disposal plants.

In furtherance of this program there
was recently formed in Portland the Ore-
gon Anti-Stream Pollution Committee.
This is composed of representatives from
the State Board of Health, the State
Game Commission, the State Fish Com-
mission, the Salmon Protective Associa-
tion, the State Sportsmen's Association,
the Multnomah Hunters and Anglers
Club, the Association of Engineers of
Willamette Valley Cities and the United
States Bureau of Fisheries. This organ-
ization is now ac'tively engaged in backing
up the game commission in its efforts to
prevent the towns of Milwaukee and West
Linn from installing new sewer systems
which will discharge raw sewage directly
into the Willamette River. The Attorney
General has been asked to enjoin thes"
towns from proceeding with their' con-
struction work until their plans provide
for the proper treatment of their sewage.

It is thought by the members of this
state wide committee that it is illogical
to permit further pollution of the Willam-
ette Iliver at a time when the cities of
Eugene, Albany, Salem and Portland are
taking active steps to undo the harm that
has already been done. These cities are
all considering the installation of modem
sewage disposal systems just as rapidly
as their plans can be worked out and
finances become available.

I'ollowing out the recommendations if
H. B. Hombon, sanitary engineer in
charge of United States Public Health
Service at San Francisco, the State
Board of Health is conducting a series
of tests in the Willamette River from
above the city of Eugene to the city
limits of Portland. Similar' tests are
being conducted by Portland in the Wil-
lamette Rivei- within the city limits. The
Oregon Anti-Stream Pollution Committee
is cooperating with the State Board of
Health in this work. If the results of
these tests show that the health of the
citizens is being menaced by the pollution
of the river the work of changing the
sewer systems along this stream will be
greatly hastened. — The Oregon Sports-
man, .luly, 192G, page S.

MASSACHUSETTS GAME FARM
ADOPTS NEW SYSTEM.

Massachusetts has recently adopted the
method of pheasant propagation utilized
by the English breeders. Birds are con-

trolled by the use of the brail. The brail
is a Y-shaped piece of leather or rub-
beroid, and is riveted around one wing in
such a way as to prevent flight. Tlic
device will permit carrying large number's
of birds in open pens, whereas the work
heretofore has been confined to covered
pens. The result will be more economical
operation, and the production of a
stronger and better bird by reason of the
greater freedom and variety of food made
possible by the larger range. It has been
found that on removal of the brail the
bird has full use of its wings. The brail
is occasionally shifted from one wing to
the other. It has the advantage over the
method of clipping the flight feather's, in
that the bird is in condition for liberation
at any time should this become desirable.

OREGON SUCCEEDS WITH HUN-
GARIAN PARTRIDGES.

It has taken many years of experi-
mentation to attain success in propaga'^-
ing Hungarian partridges. Perhaps the
best results yet obtained may be credited
to the Eugene Game Farm in Oregon.
Six hundred birds were reared during the
past season. Success is credited to the
method of holding birds sufficiently long
to acclimate and domesticate them. Cali-
fornia has been promised some of the
breeding stock.

MONTANA REPORTS ACTIVITIES.

According to the l*Jl'o-24 report of the
Montana Fish and Game Commission,
this state is stocking its streams heavily
with the Loch Leven trout. Through an
exchange with the Oregon Fish and Game
Commission, Montana will secure 2,000,-
000 eggs, and 3,000,000 more are to be
secured from the LInited States Bureau
of Fisheries. One section of the Missouri
River is becoming a rival of the Madison
River as a Loch Leven and rainbow
stream.

Attention is called to the need for' pro-
tection for fur-bearing animals. Martens
I are nearly extinct and other species need
i better protection.

j The educational campaign is beginning
;to show results. Many people who were
living their lives without thought or inter-
est in the Montana Fish and Game
; Department except to secure the greatest
; possible returns for the money paid for
the hunting and fishing licenses, are now
giving time, constructive thought and
service to the sportsmen's program. An-
; other result is to be found in the desire'
■generally manifested to acquire a true
knowledge of all the facts pertinent to
efficient game management.

208

CALIFORNIA FISH AND (JAM 10.

CANADA TO PROTECT ANTELOPE.

Ill line Willi cllorts being- made in ilic
I uili'il S(a(('.s to sivc hotfpi- iirntcctiun *o
the in-ons-honicd antohiiic, ( "anadian
provint-es are iindci'takiu.;;- to save from
exteriiiiualion the antehjjje within their
.inrisdiction. The sa'"*' <-onnnissioner of
Saskatehi>\\an is .strivini;- to echicate and
interest the jieoph" of iliat province in
anteki]K> eonservation and is stressini;- law-
en forceinent.

MISSOURI PLANTS GRAIN IN STATE
REFUGES.

Crops of corn, clover, oats, cow peas,
millet. i-ntal)ajir.-i. alfalfa, snnflower and
soy beans have been planted in Mi.ssonri
jrame n^fnses to fnrnish food for wild
same. All tilhible hind in adjoining sanc-
tnaries is beins used. Althonsh a portion
of the grain will be harvested for nse in
winter feeding, yet most of it will be lefi
standing as a source of food supi)ly for
game within th(> refuges.

MONTANA PLANTS DUCK FOOD.
Indictment that state game authorities
devote their time and attention solely to
police work can not hold against the State
(iame and Fish Commission of Montana,
as that state is actively engaged in plant-
ing the marshes frequented by waterfowl
with all varieties of duck food plants.

At a recent meeting of the Western
^lontana Fish and (iame Association held
at Missoula, Chairman Thomas N. Mar-
lowe of the State Game and Fish Com-
mission told the sportsmen present what
had been done in this respect during the
recent months. lie stated that $2,700 had
been spent during May for duck food.;
which were being planted in the lakes and
reservoirs of the Flathead Valley along
the Flathead Lake and in the KalispelJ
district. This was to be followed by
plantings in all the lakes and ponds iii
other parts of the state where such plants
will thrive.

Experiments have been conducted dur-
ing the past year to show what plants are
l>est suited to different localities.

Montana has also made some large
importations of Hungarian partridge from
Europe which have been liberated in
various sections of the state during the
past spring. It is constructive work of
this character which brings results in
more sport and liettor shooting.

MISSOURI HAS UNIQUE LAW.

Protection for spawning fish in Mis-
souri depends upon a season from April
10 to June 1, when it is illegal to use arti-
ficial bait of any description. This law

was di'simicd as a protective measure for
stream fish during the spawning season.
Api)areutly the emphasis on artificial l)ait
does not preclude the use of natural bait,
which most anglers claim is the more
destructive of the two methods.

WISE INVESTMENT BY WISCONSIN.
The stale of Wisconsin, through its
conservation commission, has recently
made jjossible an emergency appropriation
of .fDO.iJOO for the ])urpose of developing
and iirotecting the natural fish spawniu;?
grounds of the Mississijij)! liiver.

The use of the commission's reserve
funds for specific conservation work has
been authorized by the emergency board,
consisting of the governor, secretary of
state and state treasurer. Much of the
amount is to be devoted to fish propaga-
tion activities.

Numerous desirable spawning grounds
along the Mississippi River have been
selected for the purpose of "developing
the greatest fish propagation ponds in
America," according to Conservation
Commissioner Hall, and $20,000 of the
emergency appropriation is to be used for
the acquisition of new hatcheries in that
territory.

The brook trout hatchery at Westfieid
is to be enlarged, and the emergency
appropriation also contemplates $25,000
for additional conservation warden servico
and $40,(HM) for ecpiipping additional for-
est fire districts.

The federal government is acquiring
bottom lands for the new Upper Missis-
sippi River Wild Life and Fish Refuge,
and it is the aim of the Wisconsin com-
mission to preserve suitable spawning
grounds for fish propagation by the state.
The sloughs and ponds along the upper
Mississippi are regarded as the liest bass
breeding grounds in America, and millions
of small fish have been rescued from the
shallow landlocked waters annually by
the United States Bureau of Fisheries
and the state departments of Wisconsin,
Iowa, Illinois and Minnesota for lestock-
ing lakes and streams.

MICHIGAN CLOSES GROUSE HUNTING
FOR YEAR.

Following closing of partridge shooting
in certain counties of Michigan last year,
the State Conservation Commission has
issued an order closing the entire state
this year. This action is in line with the
n'cnmmendation of the American (iame
I'rotective Association that during the
prevailing scarcity of ruffed grouse close
seasons be invoked to prevent destroying
all the brood stock.

CALIFORNIA PISH AND GAME.

209

The shortage of ruffed grouse in some
states is really alarming and great care
should be exercised to preserve what few
birds there are, otherwise their restoration
will be indefinitely delayed. The region
of the most serious losses from disease, or
whatever may have been the cause of the
sudden disappearance of the partridge,
seems to include Minnesota, Wisconsin
and Michigan. In the east the situation
is not so serious, as many localities report
an increasing number of birds. It is pos-
sible that New York, Pennsylvania and
New England may be recovering from the
grouse malady, while it appears to be at
its peak farther west.

The Grouse Investigation Committee is
carrying on its researches through the
work of Dr, Allen of Cornell University
and Dr. Gross of Bowdoin College and
other scientists, and important facts are
being brought to light. The committee
needs more financial support, however,
that its work may be carried to com-
pletion.

MISSOURI INCREASES HATCHERY
FACILITIES.

Upon the completion of the present pro-
gram, Missouri will have doubled the

number of her hatcheries. Five new
hatcheries are now in process of construc-
tion. These will augument the four
hatcheries now in operation. Missouri
boasts of the second largest pond culture
hatchery in the United States. As is so
often the case, great difficulty was expe-
i-ienced in securing suitable locations. A
location free from flood water, soil that
will hold water, and suitable drainage
conditions, in addition to an appropriate
and economic water supply, are essential
requirements. The new hatcheries will
be used for the propagation of bass, crap-
pie, goggle-eye and blue-gills.

MISSOURI INTRODUCES WHITE-
TAILED DEER.

A sum of $2,500 was recently appro-
priated by the Missouri Fish and Game
Commission to be invested in Virginia
deer for stocking game refuges. Fifty
deer were procured on the basis of one
buck to two does from a 13,000-acre pre-
serve on Grand Island in Lake Superior.
Fifteen additional animals are to be
secured for the Taney County game pre-
serve. Missouri, like Pennsylvania, sur-
rounds her refuges with a single strand
of smooth wire.

4— 47J65

CAIilFORNIA PISH AND GAME.

211

REPORTS.

Violations of Fish and Game Laws.

GAME CASES.
April-May-June, 1926.

Number
Arrests

Violations of Hunting License Act 4

Deer: hunting, killing, possession, closed season 10

Deer: killing, possession; does, fawns, spike bucks 3

Ducks: killing, possession, closed season 6

Geese: killing,- possession, closed season 2

Doves: killing, possession, closed season 4

Wild pigeons: killing, possession 4

Quail: killing, possession, closed season 7

Pheasants: killing, possession 1

Night hunting 1

Rabbits: cottontail-brush; killing, possession, closed

season 14

Squirrels: killing, possession 3

Shooting game from automobile 3

Non-game birds: killing, possession 2

Game Refuge: hunting, possession of firearms 1

Totals 65

Jail

Fines

Sentences

Imposed

(days)

$90

00

700

00

210

250

00

180

25

00

150

~85'

"oo

125

00

30

245

00

25

00

25

00

335

00

30

75

00

70

00

35

00

25

00

$2,110 00

600

FISH CASES.

April-May-June, 1926.

Number Fines

Arrests Imposed

Violations of Angling License Act 26 $550 00

Violations of Commercial Fishing License Act 3 60 00

Trout: closed season or closed district 28 1,140 00

Trout: over bag limit 15 350 00

Trout: taken other than with hook and line.- 8 150 00

Striped bass: overlimit, undersized 5 110 00

Striped bass: shipment out of state 2 200 00

Crabs: selling meat out of shell 8 125 00

Crabs: transporting from District IJ 6 850 00

Crabs: female, possession of 1

Clams: closed season 1

Clams: undersized, overlimit 1

Abalones: undersized, overlimit 56

Salt water perch: sale, closed season 1

Salt water eels: undersized 1

Barracuda: undersized . 2

Spotfin croaker: offering for sale 1

Black bass: closed season 4

Black bass: undersized 2

Sunfish: closed season 5

Shad: overlimit 3

Illegal night fishing 4

Game fish: taken other than with hook and line 5

Illegal fishing: 250 feet of fishway;

150 feet of lower side of dam 8

Nets, set lines: illegal possession or use 26

Pollution of streams 2

Totals 224 fS,870 00

25

00

50

00

1,565

00

25

00

25

00

45

00

25

00

100

00

45

00

60

00

00

00

100

01)

50

00

175

00

2,985

00

Jail

Sentences

(days)

40

50

30
'150

270

SEIZURES OF FISH AND GAME.
April-May-June, 1926.

Ducks 5

Doves 4

Wild pigeons 3

Quail 7

Non-game birds 1

Deer meat, pounds 50

Rabbits 37

Squirrels 3

Trout 767

Striped bass, pounds 1,166

Black bass 5

Sunfish 35

Catfish 3

Shad, pounds 340

Salmon, pounds 48

Barracuda, pounds 1,619

Spotfin croaker, pounds 132

Salt water perch, pounds 22

Pismo clams 35

Crabs 1,945

Crab meat, out of shell, pounds 10

Abalones 135

Nets 10

212 CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

STATEMENT OF INCOME.

For the period April 1, 1926, to June 30, 1926.

I.icense sales : Detail Total

Angling $87,256 00

Hunting 67,958 00

Market fishermen's 20.960 00

Trapping 497 00

Wholesale fish packers' and shell fish dealers' 100 00

Game breeders' 67 50

Fish breeders' 25 00

Total license sales $176,863 50

Other income:

Court fines .$10,436 75

Fish packers' tax 38,010 40

Fish tag sales 1,148 14

Game tag sales 7 18

Miscellaneous sales 25 00

Abalone inspection 88 65

Interest on bank deposits 567 53

Total other income 50,283 65

Total income $227,147 15

CALIFORNIA PISH AND GAME.

213

STATEMENT OF EXPENDITURES.
For the Period April 1, 1926, to June 30, 1926, of the Seventy-eighth Fiscal Year.

Function

Materials

and
supplies

Salaries

and

wages

Service

and
expense

Property

and
equipment

Total

Administration:
OninmisHinnprR

$3 37
56 79
26 59

$33 13

387 63

271 07

1,705 43

$12 60
346 36
689 85

$49 10

Executive and legal - . . _ . -

$2,126 16
5,182 16

2 916 94

Clerical and office ._. . . -.

6,169 67

Rent

1 705 43

Printing . . _ . . _.

2,267 85

2 267 85

Postage

547 62
407 21

1,177 62
59 55

3,101 75

547 62

Freight, cartage and express . . ._

407 21

Telephone and telegraph

1,177 62

Automobiles

172 75

123 99

356 29

Accident and death claims . . __

3,101 75

Total aHministratinn

S2,527 35

$50 16

6 79

2,631 50

$7,308 32

$1,381 45
1,061 88

$7,691 01

$192 10
99 71

$1,172 80
$903 50

$18,699 48

Publicity and research:
Director of education and research

$2,527 21

Director of publicity.

1,168 38

Printing

2,631 50

Total publicity and research

$2,688 45

$2,443 33

$1,849 98

32 298 99

310 00

1,770 00

$291 81

$177 38

25,749 38

306 75

$903 50

$6,327 09

Conservation and protection:

(Patrol and law enforcement)
Chief and assistant. . .

$2,027 36

Captains and deputies

$578 91

287 79

3 83

$480 00

59,107 28

Patrol launches. .

904 54

Clerical and office

1,773 83

Rent

80 64
83 81

275 96
1,550 00

80 64

Automobiles

269 74

375 00

353 55

(Protection)
Lion hunting .

650 96

Lion bounties

1,550 00

Total conservation and protection 1

Commercial fisheries:
Chief and assistants

$1,140 27

$58 01
18 98
641 30
405 70
422 30
800 00

$36,603 97

$1,830 00

3,312 00

4,662 72

1,110 00

442 26

$28,223 92

$360 27
808 41
965 05

18 41
155 56

72 65

$480 00

$66,448 16
$2,248 28

Deputies _ _

4,139 39

Laboratory research

$562 76

6,822 83

Statistical

1,534 11

Patrol launches .

5,838 46

6,858 58

Salmon tagging

872 65

Total commercial fisheries

$2,346 29
$2,093 67

$11,356 98
$1,656 08

$2,371 35

$1,034 37

$6,401 22

$1,701 75
9,959 03

$22,475 84

Game propagation:

Game farm maintenance and operation

Additions and betterments

$6,485 87
9,959 03

Total game propagation _

$2,093 67

$1,656 08

$950 00

2,400 00

915 00

23,113 30

$1,034 37

$75 28

699 49

6 80

2,562 07

$11,660 78

$16,444 90

Fish culture:
Chief of division

$1,025 28

Special field investigations

$122 18

43 52

17,741 42

$842 38

4,064 05

Clerical and office

965 32

Hatcheries maintenance and operation

Hatcheries addition^ and betterments

987 44
9,587 97
2,243 02

44,404 23
9,587 97

Automobiles

743 17

310 33
17 00

3,296 52

Rent _

17 00

Total fish culture .

$18,650 29

$27,378 30

$3,670 97
$15,588 10

$13,660 81

$63 360 37

License commissions

$15 588 10

Total expenditures _

$29,446 32

$86,746 98

$58,871 53

$34,279 11

$209,343 94

214

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

iij

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Total Mexican
brought into
California

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into California
via San Diego.-.

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via San Pedro...

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Total

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Los Angeles

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Ventura

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Species of Fish

£

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CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

215

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INDEX TO VOLUME 12.

Abalone, 51, 115, 149, 159, 215.

Abbot, C. C, 137.

Abbott, Fred, 90.

Abels, Henry J., 31.

Abrew, Tony A., 84.

Accidents, hunting, 1925, 83-86 ; hunting,
data, 1924-25, 87.

Adams, Wm. C, 33.

Alabama, introduces forestry into the pub-
lic schools, 46.

Albacore, 15, 45, 50, 105, 114, 158, 201, 214 ;
patrol boat gets new engine, 106.

Alcarez, Jose R., 81.

Alders, Ed., 22.

Alewife, 65.

Alkali poisoning, ducks die from, 32.

Allen, A. A., 41, 209.

American Forests and Forest Life, 46.

American Game Protective Association, 33,
41, 186, 208.

American Humane Association, 140.

American Reclamation Society, Inc., 41.

American Museum of Natural History, 137.

Anadromous, 59.

Anchovy, 20, 50, 114, 158, 214.

Anderson, Antone J., 199.

Anderson. E. W., 154.

Andrus, Wm., 85.

Angler, 67. 69, 70, 71, 72, 95, 141.

Anglim, Thomas C, 181.-

Animal, fur-bearing, 43, 109, 141, 207;
himiane capture of, 140-141.

Animals, wild, sanctuary proposed for in
Southern Africa, 42.

Annelid, 67.

Anopheles, 136.

Antelope, 35, 82 ; reports on, favorable,
108 ; voung. rescued, 206 ; Canada to
protect, 208.
Prong-horned, 208.

Aphriza virgata, 186.

Aqnila chrjisaetos. 153.

Arkansas Conservationist, 153.

Associated Sportsmen's Clubs of Califor-
nia, 33, 92. 99, 147.

Atherinidse, 162.

Atherton. G. H., 80.

Atwood. Leon, 142.

Auble, E. F., 140.

Audubon society head lauds sportsmen's
organizations, 186.

Aviary, 179.

Avocets, stilts and phalaropes, food of, 41.

B
Babisuri, 78.

Bade, August, 12, 31, 80, 103, 148, 181, 203.
Badger, 78.
Bag limit, the real sportsman and the, 39 ;

piecing out, 83; federal reduced, 98;

exceeding, 140 ; duck, federal power

and, 185.
Bailev. F. M., 180.
Bait, 71.
Barge fishing on the southern California

coast, 19, 20.
Barnhart, S. N., 140.
Barpholm, G., 85.
Barracuda, 17, 20, 45, 50, 114, 134, 149,

153, 214.
Bartels, R., 85.
Bass, 20, 43.

Black sea, 50, 114, 158, 214.

Rock. 50, 114, 158, 214.

Sea 56 134

Striped,' 51, 'lOl, 102, 115, 159, 200, 214;

in California, 55-74 ; number of, 79 ;

plan determination of age and rate of

growth, 79 ; trout tackle for, 79 ; and

salmon investigations, 146.

White sea, 17, 50, 105, 158, 166, 214.
Winter, 59.

Bassariscus astutus raptor, 77.

Bat, Mexican Free-tailed, economic value
of, 135-137.

Bauder, C. S., 101.

Beal, F. E. L,., 180.

Beall, Ernest, 85.

Bear, 91, 188.

Beaver, rapidly exterminated in Oregon,
93 ; in Modoc County, 152-153 ; dis-
appearing in San Joaquin Valley, 187.

Beetle, 39.

Bernstein, Carlos E., 81.

Bibliography, 74.

Bird, migratory, 191 ; economic value of,
1-8 ; California game, enjoy winter in
Alaska, 40-41 ; banding, real results
in, 90 ; study contest, Sonoma County
schools hold, 90-91 ; migratory insec-
tivorous, are the farmers' friends, 92 ;
black powder used to frighten, 97 ;
house colony, 130-133 ; predatory de-
struction of, 137-139 ; protection in
Switzerland, 154-155.

Bird Notes and News, 155, 193.

Bittern, 155.

Blackbird, Brewer, 6.

Blaksly-Bliss, Dorinda, 142.

Bloch, Emile, 85.

Bloodworm, 72.

Bluebird, 130. 131.

Bluefish, 50, 114, 158.

Blue-gill, 209.

Boat, new tuna, to be cork lined, 191.

Bobcat, 43.

Bobwhite, 12, 169 ; San Benito County
receives Mexican, quail, 140.

Boccaccio, 50, 114, 158.

Bonito. 20, 50, 114, 158, 214.

Bonnot, Paul, 146.

Booth, F. E., 16, 17.

Botanical garden, new, 142.

Bouton, Charles, 146.

Bowen, Ed., 66.

Bny Scout, 94.

Bragg, G. H., 80.

Brail, 207.

Brandenberg, Orayne, 85.

Brant, 98.

Breakenridge, Harold, 85.

Brewster Medal, 35.

Bristol, Bert, 89.

Bristol, Henry, 199.

British Columbia, tries acclimatization
experiments, 46.

Browning, 22.

Brownlow, O. P., mountain sheep taken
captive, 106-107.

Bruce, Jay C, 149, 204.

Bruere, Samuel, 84.

Bryant. Harold C, 55, 74. 104, 143, 147,
179. 180, 181; economic value of birds,
1-8 ; California's new state game
farm, 10-13 ; striped bass in Cali-
fornia, 55-74 ; investigations of deer
disease in Mendocino County, 107-108 ;
reports on antelope favorable, 108 ;
life history and habits of the west-
ern mourning dove, 175-180 ; gray
squirrel disease still exists, 205-206.

Buche, 166, 168, 169.

Buck. 36, 47. 125, 127, 151, 154, 173, 185,
188, 209.
Pacific, 127.
Spike, 185.

Buffalo. 35 ; once native of California,
186-187.

Bullard, F. A., a horned doe, 47.

Bullard. Rov, 47.

Bullhead, 73, 204.

Bundock, C. L., 182, 200.

218

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

Bureau of Education and Research, 30,
147. 202.

Finance and Accounts, 30, 147.

Game Farms, 31, 147-148, 203-204.

Publicitv, 30, 101, 147.

River and Harbor Pollution, 99, 103,
147, 154, 202-203.

Screens and Ladders, 146-147, 203.

Vital Statistics, 83.
Burgess, Thornton W., 137.
Burke, Jack, 104, 199.
Burnham, John B., 33, 186.
Burroughs. John, 137.
Buzzard, 155.

Cabinet meetings, improve cooperation,

145.
Cabrilla, 168.
Cacomixtle, 78.
Caliill, James, 64.

California Development Association, 140.
CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME, 14, 30,

100, 149, 196.
California-Oregon Power Company. 92.
California State Redwood Park, 144, 202.
Callander, W. C, 85.
Calvin. A. Raymond, 84.
Campbell, Charles A. R., 136.
Cancer magister, 195.
Canner, 134.
Canvasback, 171.
Carnegie Institution, 71.
Carp, 50, 59, 66, 67, 114, 158, 214.
Carpenter, Cecil, 85.
Carpenter, S. J., 101.
Casagrande. Louis, 85.
Cassenoix, 155.
Cat, Band-tailed, 78.
Coon, 78.
House. 78.

Ring-tailed, California, 77-78.
Catfish, 50, 67, 114, 158, 214.
Cavezas, Rigo, 85.
Chemical composition of fish changes with

age, 187-188.
Cheney, E. S., 181.
Chickadee, Oregon, 131.
Chicken. 205.

Chilipepper, 50, 114. 158, 212.
Cliione fnictifraga, 167.
Cholera, 32.
Civil Service, 79, 148.
Clam, 67, 72, 73. 135. 189.
Cockle, 51, 115. 159. 215.
Cockle hardshell. 167.
Mixed, 51, 115, 159, 215.
Pismo. 51, 115, 149, 159. 201, 202. 215;

depletion of, in California, 117-124.
Softshell. 51, 115, 159. 215.
Clark. Frances N.. 39, 40 ; conservation of

the grunion, 161-166.
Clark, G. A., 5 8. 61.
Clark, G. O., 5S.
Clark, G. H.. 146.
Clark. M. S.. 101. 104, 199.
Clarke. Frank. 107.

Clock. Ralph H.. 30 ; fish and game com-
missioner. 2 8.
Clubs, gun. as game protectors, 172.
Cod. Rock. 202.
Code, of an angler, 39.

Coleman, George A., 33, 74. 102 ; conditions
of existence of fish in Lake Tahoe and
tributarv streams, 23-27.
Combs. T\'. L.. 80.
Commercial Fisherv Notes, 45, 105-106,

149-151.
Commission, work reorganized, 29-30,
work praised. 31 ; Alaska game, 90 ;
in touch with conservation clubs. 145.
Commissioner, fish and game. 182 : game
and fish of Vermont, 192 : board of,
Pennsylvania. 109.
Committee, to investigate status of ruffed
grouse. 41 ; California man appointed
on advisory, 80—81,

Common sense vs. sentimentalism in rela-
tion to sports, 141-142.

Condor, California, 153.

Condor. The, 34, 186.

Congress, International, held in Copen-
hagen, 193.

ConnoU, M. J., 30.

Conner, Geraldine, 134.

Conservation, 13, 40, 82, 87, 97, 99, 101, 102,
137, 142, 144, 166, 185, 186, 193, 197 ;
fur essential, 35 ; of wild life presents
complex problems, 42-43 ; agencies
reorganized in Minnesota, 46 ; com-
mission in touch with, clubs, 145 ;
fish and game. Dr. Jordan discusses,
188-189.

Conservationist, 81, 92.

Convention of fish and game employees, 79.

Conzet, Grover M., 46.

Coolidge, Calvin, 81.

Coombs. Frank L., 181.

Coot, 98, 155, 196.

Corbina, 167, 168.

Cormorant, 34, 44, 88, 155.

Correction, 196.

Coudere. Leon, 104.

Court, decision, an important, 134.

Coyote, 43 ; Siskiyou County pays a
bountv on, 108.

Crab. 51, "62, 66, 67, 105, 115, 149, 159,
215.
Fiddler, 72.

Pacific Coast, chemical composition of,
195.

Craig. J. A., a new fisherv in Mexico, 166-
169.

Crappie. 209.

Crawfish. 76.

Crowlev, Charles, 85.

Crees. Robert, 73, 181.

Croaker, 166.

Cross, Henry, 142.

Cross, Rov, 142.

Crow, 5, 138. 155.
Hooded, 155.

Crustacean. 51. 64, 66, 67, 75. 76, 105, 115,
159, 215.

Cultus Cod, 50, 114, 158, 214.

Cuneo, Angelo P., 84.

Curtis Publishing Company, 169.

Cuttlefish, 51, 115, 159, 215.
Cijnoscion. 166.
macdonaldi. 166.
nobilus. 166.
xanthulus, 167.

Dailv, Clifford, 85.

Dalton. A. E.. 140.

Dam. Otay, 87.
Trancas, 65.

Davis, H. S., 153.

Dawson. 'W. L., ISO.

Decov. 97.

Deer. 32,35, 44,89, 91, 10(i, 141.142, 149. 154,
170. 173, 174, 185, 189; disease, inves-
tigations of. in Mendocino County,
107-108; Missouri closes season on,
109 ; suggested dates on open season
of, in California. 124-127 ; barbed
■wire fence causes deatli of. 151-152 :
hunters. Kaibab Forest to be opened
to. during October. 188.
Black-tailed. 125 ; successfully reared,

35-37.
Mule-tailed. 47. 127; annual kill of in

Modoc County, 33.
Rocky Mountain mule-tailed, 125, 126.
White-tailed, 153, 173; Missouri intro-
duces. 209.

DeLaveaga, J. V., 187.

Delta Farms Company. 80.

Denmead. Talbott. 196.

Dennis, W. H.. 80.

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

219

Department of Commercial Fisheries, 13,
14, 16, 28, 29, 30, 75, 79, 80, 81, 105,
106, 134, 146, 150, 201.
Fisliculture, 33, 101, 128, 144, 145, 183,

200-201 ; screens and ladders, 30.
Patrol, 30, 148-149, 199-200.
Depletion, 69 ; causes of fur, 38.
Deputy, 81, 101, 149, 182, 184.
Development Bui'eau News, 142.
Diatom, 71.
Dickey, Donald, 181.

Disease, 32, 183, 185, 186, 193 ; deer, inves-
tigation of, in Mendocino County,
107-108 ; duck, to be studied, 183 ;
gray squirrel, still exists, 205-206.
Diver, 155.

Dixon, Joseph, 103, 139, 186.
Dobbs, A. C, 66.
Dobelstein, William G., 183.
Doble, A. C, 64.

Doe, 125, 154, 174, 188, 209; a horned, 47.
Dog, 109, 149, 186.
Dolphin, 50, 114, 158.
Donaldson, H. J., 79.
Dove, 7, 196.

Mourning, 6 ; life history and habits of

western mourning, 175-180.
Turtle, 155.
Drainage, 137, 185, 191.

Duck, 20, 22, 40, 67, 73, 81, 83, 94, 95, 97, 98,
155, 170, 171, 174, 185, 190, 191, 193,
198 ; die from alkali poisoning, 32 ;
the formula for, 171 ; alkali poisoning
of, 182-183 ; disease to be studied,
183 ; season- shortened, 184 ; federal
power and, bag limits, 185 ; success-
fully reared, 187 ; food, Montana
plants, 208.
Black, 171, 174.
Eider, 98.
Fulvous, 187.
Gray-breasted, 187.
Red-billed, 187.
Spoon-bill, 187.
White-faced, 187.
Varied, 187.
Wood, 98, 171, 187.
Dugan, James J., 203.
Dunbar, H. R., 30.
Dunwoody, Charles G., 140.
Durbrow, William, 80.

Eagle, 137.
Bald, 138.

Golden, 155 ; extermination in England,
139 ; destruction of in California, 153.

Earn Shaw, Frank L.. 196.

Ecrevisse, 51. 115, 159.

EDITORIALS :

Ralph H. Clock, fish and game com-
missioner, 28; Fish and Game Com-
mission reorganized, 28; the new
executive officer, 28—29 ; commission's
work reorganized, 29-31 ; service bul-
letin will be issued, 31 ; commission's
work praised, 31 ; in memoriam,
Henry J. Abels, Bernard Luttrell, 31-
32 ; ducks die from alkali poisoning,

32 ; hatchery water supply, 32 ; game
laws become popular, 32 ; new plans
for game refuge bill, 32-33 ; the game
warden needs support, not criticism,

33 ; plan biological survey of Lake
Tahoe, 33 ; the annual kill of mule
deer in Modoc County, 33 ; the world's
record broad-billed swordflsh, 34 ; vio-
lator heavily fined, 34 ; are we com-
ing to closed seasons on trout, 34 ;
pelicans and fish, 34-35 ; California
leads in fisheries, 3 5 ; mountain sheep
introduced, 35 ; fishing at Catalina.
35 ; fur conservation essential, 35 ;
black-tailed deer successfully reared.
35-37 ; open seasons for fur bearers,

37-38 ; an anti-pollution platform,

38 ; causes of fur depletion, 38 ; Ari-
zona escapes game law muddle, 38-

39 ; the real sportsman and the bag
limit, 39 ; warden posts signs, 39 ;
life history of the grunion, 39—40 ;
California's game girds enjoy winter
in Alaska, 40; back to primitive
methods, 41 ; organization seeks lim-
itation of firearms, 41 ; food of phala-
ropes, avocets and stilts, 41 ; com-
mittee to investigate status of ruffed
grouse, 41-42 ; proposed sanctuary
for wild animals in South Africa, 42 ;
vireos deserve encouragement, 42 ;
conservation of wild life presents
complex problems, 42-43 ; a fisher-
man to his son, 43 ; striped bass num-
ber, 79 ; plan determination of age and
rate of growth of striped bass, 79 ;
trout tackle for sjriped bass, 79 ;
convention of fish ~and game em-
ployees, 79-80 ; brief reports on cur-
rent activities will appear under new
department heading, 80 ; screen and
ladder conference, 80 ; California man
appointed on advisory committee on
fisheries, 80-81 ; a new international
fisheries commission, 81 ; new Tosem-
ite hatchery, 81 ; violators take no-
tice, 81 ; new rearing ponds con-
structed, 82 ; our great task, 82-
83 ; piecing out the bag limit, 83 ;
hunting accidents, 1925, 83-86 ; hunt-
ing accident data 1924 and 1925, 87 ;
district attorney warns hunters, 87 ;
the issue of the range, 87 ; wild tur-
keys tried in San Diego County. 87 ;
water pollution, 87-8 8: best game
warden, 88 ; new pollution problem,

88 ; rare trout from lower California,

89 ; meager information on game vio-
lations leads to conviction, 89-90 ;
Alaska has game commission, 90;
real results in bird banding, 90 ; ef-
fect of oil pollution on marine and
wild life, 90 ; Sonoma County schools
hold bird study contest, 90-91 ; pro-
tective association formulates prin-
ciples, 91 ; lumbering town has many
hunters, 91; lower Klamath Lake
still a problem, 91-92 ; migratory
insectivorous birds are the farmers'
friends, 92 ; beavers rapidly exter-
minated in Oregon, 93 ; to a boy with
a gim, 93-95 ; six rules for sportsmen,
95 ; homing instinct in red salmon,
95 ; hunting licenses swell state reve-
nues, 95-96; use black powder to
frighten birds, 97 ; market growing
for game propagated in captivity,
97-98 ; federal bag limits reduced, 98 ;
an important court decision, 134 ; N.
B. Scofield attends meeting of Inter-
national Fisheries Commission, 134 ;
grunion needs protection, 134-135 ;
two new fish hatcheries, 135 : eco-
nomic value of the Mexican free-tailed
bat, 135-137; conditions affecting
migrating wild fowl. 137; destruc-
tion of predatory birds, 137-139;
golden eagle extermination in Eng-
land, 139: ruffed grouse disease. 139—
140 ; San Benito Countv receives Mex-
ican bobwhite quail. 140 : committee
to study game conditions. 140 ; exceed-
ing bag limits, 140: humane capture
of fur-bearers, 140-141; common
sense vs. sentimentalism in relation
to sports, 141-142 ; recreational lands,
142 ; new botanical garden, 142 ; bov
scouts make game case, 142 ; new
teachers' bulletin on fish and game
laws, 143 : new motion picture films
obtained, 181 ; state game farm dedi-

220

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

cated, ISl ; Yosemite fish hatchery
dedicated, 181-182 ; license numbers
of game violators' cars needed, 182 ;
alkali poisoning of ducks, 182-183 ;
duck disease to be studied, 183 ; state
fair exhibit, 183 ; new doUar-a-year
wardens help law enforcement, 183 ;
President Zellerbach receives gold
medal, 183-184 ; duck season short-
ened, 183-184 ; what would you do,
1S5; federal power and duck bag
limits, 185-186; Audubon Society
lauds sportsmen's organizations, 186 ;
true sportsmen, 186 ; rarest of bird's
eggs discovered in Alaska, 186; buf-
falo once native of California, 186-
187 ; beaver disappearing in San Joa-
quin Valley, 187 ; ducks successfully
reared, 187 ; chemical composition of
fish changes with age, 187-188 ; area
added to Sequoia National Park, 188 ;
Kaibab forest to be opened to deer
hunters during October, 188; Dr. Jor-
dan discusses fish and game conserva-
tion, 188-189; adverse factors menac-
ing- wild fowl, 189-191; new tuna
boat to be cork lined, 191 ; the elimina-
tion of "haff sickness", 191-192 ; H.
P. Sheldon appointed chief U. S. game
warden, 193 ; chief U. S. Game War-
den Sheldon says conservationists are
winning, 192-193; plover season
closed by federal regulation, 193 ;
international congress held in Copen-
hagen, 193 ; economize on pink sal-
mon, 193—194 ; chemical composition
of Pacific Coast crabs, 195 ; marked
fish return, 195 ; salmon marking
experiments in Oregon, 195-196 ; cor-
rection, 196 ; new bulletin issued on
game laws. 196-197.

Edwards, 122, 123.

Eel, 50, 114, 158, 214.

Eggs, rarest of. discovered in Alaska, 186.
Bass, striped, 60, 65.
Dove, 177.

Grunion, 39, 135, 165.
Perch, 187.
Pheasant, 99, 147.
Rainbow trout. 145.
Salmon, 103, 150.
Sturgeon, 108.
Surf bird, 186. 198.
Trout, 103. 187.

Elk, 35, 46. 82.

Engelke. "\;\^alter, 34.

Euthynus bonito, 105.

Evermann, B. W.. 74, 140.

Executive officer, the new. 28, 30.

Exhibit, state fair, 183, 184.

Facts of Current Interest, 44, 99, 144, 198.

Falcon, Peregrine, 155.
Prairie, 137.

Fawn, 35. 107, 152. 174, 188.

Federal Bird Protection Act, 154.

Fellows, C. R., 195.

Ferrante, Petro, 1'7.

Films, new motion picture, obtained, 181.

Fingerlings, Minnesota plans to plant. 46.

Firearm, organization seeks limitation of,
41.

Fish, pelicans and, 34-35 ; conditions of
existence in Lake Tahoe and tribu-
tary streams, 2 3-27; frozen, imported
from Japan, 45 ; planting, new method
adopted by Fish and Game Commis-
sion, 128-130; planting, new policy
of, 145 ; Arkansas still has no pro-
tection on, 153 ; chemical composition
of. changes wnth age, 187-188;
marked, return, 195.

Pish and Game Commission, Alaska, 40,
43.

Arizona, 38.
Arkansas, 153 ;
British Columbia, 46.

California, 10, 14, 23, 29, 30, 31, 34, 39,
45, 47, 56, 57, 58, 60, 63, 71, 75, 80,
81, 82, 88, 90, 99, 100, 104, 105, 118,
122, 129, 134, 135, 139, 140, 144, 145,
146, 147, 149, 154, 184, 189, 200; re-
organized, 28 ; adopts new policy of
fish planting, 128-130.
Illinois, 109.
Massachusetts, 41.
Minnesota, 4 6.
Missouri, 154, 209.
Montana, 207, 208.
Oregon, 12, 109, 195, 206, 207; able to

close streams, 206.
Pennsylvania, 79, 83.
Territorv of Hawaii, 58.
Utah, 32, 33.
Fish and Game Commissioners, Western

Association of, 32, 33.
Fish and game employees, convention of,

79.
Fish and Game Protective Association, 99,
103, 145.
San Benito County, 14 0.
San Diego, 87.
San Joaquin, 91, 124.
Fisher, C. O., meager information on game
violations leads to convicton, 89-90.
Fisherman, 68, 134, 141, 150, 203, 206 ; to

his son, 43.
Fishery, 147 ; California, leads in, 35 ;
statistics for 1925, 105 ; regulation,
new Mexican treatv includes, 106 ; a
new, in Mexico, 166-169.
Tuna, 19, 35, 105.
Fishing at Catalina, 35.
Fiske, Herbert, 85.
Flatfish, 105.
Fleckenstein, Bruce, 194.
Fleckenstein, C. I., 194.
Flicker, 92, 131, 132.
Red-shafted, 5, 7.
Flounder, 45, 50, 105, 114, 158, 214.
Flvcatcher, 3.

Follett, W. I., 2 04. 205 ; prey of the versa-
tile rainbow, 2 04.
Food, in rearing pen, 11.
Birds, 3, 189.
Blue heron, 7.
Crow, 5.
Deer, 37.
Dove, 6, 7, 179.
Fish, 33.

Flicker, Red-shafted, 5, 7.
Goldfinch, 7.
Grosbeak, 5.
Hawk, 139.
Meadow lark, 2, 5.
Nighthawk. 5.
Owl. 7, 139, 189.
Phalaropes, avocets, stilts, 41.
Rainbow Trout, 204.
Robin. 3, 4, 6.
Sea Lion. 146.
Shrike, 205.
Striped Bass, 66. 73.
Swallow, Cliff. 5.
Forbes, S. A., 6.
Forest and Stream, 39, 142.
Fox, 153, 174.

California Gray, 77.
Fox, H. K.. 80.
Franks, H. E.. 92.
French Academy of Science, 2.
French. Grace M., a bird house colony,

130-133.
Frink. Maurice M., a fisherman to his

son, 43.
Frog, 51, 77. 115, 159.
Frv. trout. 130.
Fry, "^^alter, California ring-tailed cat,

77-78.
Fuertes, Louis A., 137.

CALIFORNIA PISH AND GAME.

221

Fur, conservation essential, 35 ; causes of

depletion, 38 ; farm, 43.
Fur-bearer, 35, 38, 43 ; open seasons for,

37.

G

Galespie, F. A., 34.

Gallinule, 98, 196.

Game, 28, 35, 39, 144, 155, 170, 172, 173;
bird, California, enjoy winter in
Alaska, 40-41 ; market growing for,
propagated in captivity, 97-98 ; com-
mittee to study conditions, 140 ; boy
scouts make, cases, 142 ; Missouri
introduces, 153—154.

Game farm, 26, 86.

State, 9, 44, 80, 99, 103, 147, 148, 183,
184, 198, 203 ; California new state,
10-13; state, dedicated, 181; Massa-
chusetts adopts new system, 207.

Game laws, become popular, 32 ; repeal
bill, 38.

Game warden, the best, 88 ; needs sup-
port, not criticism, 33 ; H. P. Sheldon
appointed chief, 192 ; chief, U. S.,
Sheldon says conservationists are win-
ning, 192-193.

Game violator, license numbers of cars
needed, 182.

Oammarus, 67.

Garrison, Henry, 140.

Geomys hur sarins, 152.

Germond, Ramona, 85.

Gilbert, Charles H., 95.

Gilloon, S. R., 199, 200.

Gilmore, Charles, 2 8.

Glazier, G. O., 87, 88.

Glenn-Colusa Irrigation District, 80.

Glos, Ed, 73.

Glutton, 188.

Goat, Mountain, 189.
Rocky Mountain, 46.
Wild, 35.

frOrlf' SI] Okf^I* ^

Godsil, H. C., shrike attacks young quail,

204-205.
Goggle-eye, 209.
Goldfinch, 7.
Goldfish, 26.
Goldman, E. A., 136.

Goose, 20, 40, 97, 98, 191 ; return on,
banded, 152.
Cackling, 152.
Honker, 194.
Wild, 155.
Gopher, 7, 77, 78, 189 ; pocket, forage
habits of, 152.
Shaw's pocket, 152.
Goshawk, 155.
Grant, Hugh, 202.
Crayfish, 50, 114, 158, 214.
Grebe, 155.
Greco, John, 85.
Green, Sherwood, 140.

Green, W. J., 45 ; salmon favored by un-
usual conditions, 108; sturgeon on
increase, 108-109.
Greene, B. D. Marx, 28. 29, 30, 145, 181 ;
Fish and Game Commission adopts
new method of fish planting, 128-130.
Greenflsh, 50, 114, 158.
Grev, Zane, 31.
Griffin, Ray. 199.
Grimes, C. O., 129.
Grinnell. .Joseph, 107, 136, 180.
Grosbeak, 5.

Gross, A. O., 41, 139, 209.
Grouse, 155, 172; Michigan closes hunting
for year, 208-209.
Ruffed, 170, 209 ; committee to investi-
gate status, 41-42 ; di-sease, 139-140.
Grunion, conservation of the, 161-166 ;
life historv of, 39-40 ; needs protec-
tion, 134-135.
Guinea Fowl, 97.
Gull, 59, 139.

H

Haff sickness, the elimination of, 191-192.
Hake, 50, 114, 158, 214.
Halibut, 20, 50, 105, 114, 158, 214.
Bastard, 45.
California, 134.

Northern, closed season for, 45.
Hall, E. Raymond, 34 ; economic value of
Mexican free-tailed bat, 135-137;
golden eagle e.xtermination in Eng-
land, 139 ; new teachers' bulletin on
fish and game laws, 143 ; barbed wire
fence causes death of deer, 151-152 ;
forage liabits of pocket gopher, 152 ;
new metliod of predatory mammal
control, 154 ; oil pollution, 154.
Hammond, L. W., 180.
Hanna, Wilson C, destruction of the

golden eagle in California, 153.
Hanson, James, 85.
Hanson, Peter, 84.
Hardhead, 50, 66, 114, 158, 214.
Harris, Manly, 140, 149.
Hart, V. A., 140.

Hatchery, 26, 33, 60, 61, 62, 82, 99, 208;
water supply, 32 ; two new fish, 135 ;
new, planned, 145 ; Missouri increases
facilities, 209.
Bear Lake, 103.
Fall Creek, 103.
Fort Seward, 82, 103, 145.
Kaweah, 102.

Mount Shasta, 99, 145, 198, 200, 201.
Mount Whitney, 201.
Notes, 145.
North Creek, 149.

Rae Lakes, egg collecting station, 102.
Tahoe, 32.

Yosemite, 198; new Y o s e m i t e, 81;
Yosemite fish, dedicated, 181.
Hawk, 7, 39, 78.
Broad-winged, 139.
Buzzard, 138.
Cooper, 137.
Duck, 137, 178.
Marsh, 7, 13 8.
Red -bellied, 137.
Red-shouldered, 137, 138, 139.
Red-tailed, 138, 170.
Rough-legged, 138. 139.
Sharp-shinned, 137.
Sparrow, 131, 139, 155.
Hearst. W. R., 35.

Hellard, John K., what would you do, 185.
Hemphill. B., 84.
Heron, 150, 155.

Blue, 7, 138, 139. 189.
Herring, 50, 114, 158.

River, 65. ^.

Herrington, Wm. C, depletion of the Pismo

clam in California, 117-124.
Higgins, Elmer, 81.
Hill, J. R., 190.
Hinds, Archibald F., 84.
Hobbv, 155.
Hobson, Phil., 200.
Hohenshell, A. B., 19.
Hollingsworth, Douglas, 58. 61.
Holmes. Harlan B.. 195, 196.
Hombom. H. B., 207. ,, ,.

Hooper, George Wm.. Foundation for Medi-
cal Research, 183.
Hoover. Herbert, 80.
Horse, 22.
Huber, W. L.. 80.
Hudson, "W. H., 137.
Hughes. Charles B., 32.
Hulit. Leonard, 74.
Hummingbird, 3, 6.
Hunt, 199.

Hunter, 43, 44, 88, 94, 98, 141, 153, 170,
173, 174 ; district attorney warns, 87 ;
in lumbering town. 91.
Hunter, J. S., 28, 30, 31, 104, 149.

222

CALIFORNIA PISH AND GAME.

Hunting, with animal blinds in Merced

County, 20, 22.
Hunting club, Illinois licenses, 110.

I

Ibis, 139.

Imperatice, James, 84.

Insect. 3, 6, 7, 8, 11, 24, 77, 89, 92, 137,

150.
International Association of Game, Fish

and Conservation Commissioners, 33.
International Fisheries Commission, 81,

106, 134.
International Halibut Commission, 45.
Investigation, 32, 44, 14 6 ; food of birds,

3 ; of deer disease in Mendocino

County, 107-108; salmon and striped

bass, 146.
Irvine, R. J., 103, 183, 201.
Isopod, 67.

Issue of the range, 87.
Izaak Walton League, 33.

Jay, 155.

Stellar, 155.
Jeffers and Knight, 22.
Jerky, 199.
Johnson, 64.

Johnson, George S., 149, 199.
Johnson, Ellis C, 104.
Johnson, Hiram, 92.
Johnson, J. Sub., 140.
Jones, I. A., 47.
Jordan, D. S., 74 ; doctor, discusses fish

and game conservation, 188-189.
Jump, J. W., 35.

K

Kaibab forest to be opened to deer hunt-
ers during October, 188.

Kajoura, 45.

KaufCman, Earl R., 140.

Kelly, 64.

Killdeer, 92.

Kingbird, Western, 6.

Kingflsh, 50, 114, 158, 214.

Kingfisher, 138.

Kite. White-tailed, 137.

Klamath Lake Bird Reservation, 92.

Klamath Lake, Lower, still a problem.
91-92.

Kluber, George, 152.

Knapp, James, 22.

Knight and Jeffers, 22.
L

Laboratory, State Fisheries, 30, 39. 81,
102, 118, 134, 149. 165.

Lacey Act, 35, 192.

Lamb, C. A., 142.

Lamb, Chester C, 89.

Lambert, 22.

Lambson. G. H., 61, 201.

Lane, D. R., 31.

Lang, Ed. 22.

Latieze, Charles. 104.

Law, 22, 26, 28. 29, 32, 34, 38. 43, 46, S3,
91, 140, 179, 184, 186, 193; fur, 37;
game, Arizona escapes, muddle, 38 ;
game, become popular, 32 ; fish and
game, 79, 104, 143 ; protective, 166 ;
fish and game, new teachers' bulletin
on, 143 : enforcement, new dollar-a-
year wardens help, 183 ; new bulletin,
issued on game, 196-197; Missouri
has unique, 208.

Lawyer, G. A., 192.

Lecture, 44, 110, 144, 147 ; record of, 104.

Leurethes tenuis. 39, 40, 162.

Lewis, E. H., 203.

License, 110, 196.
Angling, 144, 147.

Hunter's, 96. 144, 182 ; swell state reve-
nues. 95-96. I

Ligitos, Mike, 92.

Luiiit. bag, 88, 143, 186.

.Size, GS, 69.
Limpet, 51, 115, 159.
i..uiuiey, Albert, 140.
Linnet, 73.

l^iun. Mountain, 43, 126, 188, 190.
Lippmcott, Wm., 101, 206; Siskiyou
County pays a bounty on coyotes, 108.
Little, R. J., 149.
Lizard, 77.
Lobster, Spiny, 51, 105, 115, 134, 159, 215 ;

a season at San JDiego, 75-7 6.
Lough, McPherson, 199.
Lowe, J. N., 142.
Ludlum, Roy, 107, 183.
Luttreil, Bernard, In Memoriam, 32, 84.
Lu.x, 22.
Lynx, 87.
Canada, 43.

M
Mace, B. H., 87.
Mack, Ernest, 85.
Mackerel, 17, 20, 50, 105, 114, 158, 214.

Spanish, 167.
Maadox, Coburn F., spiny lobster season

at San Diego, 75-76.
Madsen, D. H., 32, 33.
Magpie, 155.
Makings, James A., 134.
Mallard, 83, 170, 171, 174.
Mallen, Henry J., 34.
Malone, W. C, 142.
Mammals, fur-bearing, 38 ; predatory, new

method of control, 154.
Mann, Albert, 71.
Manning, Elisa, 22.
Marlin, 51, 114, 158, 214.
Marlowe, Thomas N., 208.
Marten, 207.
Martin, Benton, 106.
Martin, Charles, 142.
Mason, Jay R., 85.
Mather, Stephen T., 181.
Maubert. Joe. 200.
McAtee, W. L., 3, 97.
McCauley, Al, 84.
McCloud, L. C, 140.
McDonald, Evans, 199.
McDonald, J. F., 203.
McDowell. Perry, 22.
McGee, D. P., 84.
McPherson, Robei-t. 181.
Meadowlark, 5, 6, 92.

Western, 2.
Menhaden, 19, 71.
Merriam. C. Hart. 186.
Method, back to primitive, 41.
Microtus, 205.
Migration, 14, 26, 40, 59, 65, 70, 95, 105,

137, 150, 196.
Migratory Bird Treaty Act, 41, 98, 143,

192. 193.
Miller, 22.

Miller. W. de 'W., 137.
Mills, Walter, 85.
Milt. 61.

Minnow, 24. 67. 135.
Missouri Game and Fish Neios, 154.
Modena, M. O., 191.

Moffitt, James, suggested dates of open
season on deer in California, 124—127.
Moffitt, H. C, 126.
Mollusk, 51, 66, 90, 105, 115, 118, 159,

215.
Money, in the bank, 13-16.
Montana reports activities, 207.
Moore, Wade, 200.
Moorhen, 155.
Mosquito, 136.

Motion picture, film, 144, 198.
Mouse, 77, 78.

Field, 189.
Mullet, 50, 114, 158, 167, 168, 214.
Murie, O. J., 152.

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

223

Murphy, Warren, 85.

Murre, 150.

Museum of Vertebrate Zoology, 143, 1S6.

Muskrat, 38. 46.

Mussel, 51, 72, 115, 159, 215.

Mycteropcrca jordani, 167.

Mysis, 67.

N

National Association of Audubon Socie-
ties, 33, 185.
National forest, 87.

EI Dorado, 204.

Modoc, 33.

Minidoka, 154.
National Fur Association, 139.
National Park, Lassen, 33.

Sequoia, 78, 91 ; area added to, 188.

Yosemite, 81, 99, 147, 202.
National Park Service, 81, 99.
Neale, George, 28, 63, 72.
Nelson, E. W., 43, 136, 153, 191.
Nereis, 67.
Net, 64, 69, 70, 101, 102.

Casting, 150, 151.

Gill, 68.

Round haul, 168.
Nevis, Lloyd, 85.
Newbert, Frank M., 28.
Newsome, J. E., 101 ; hunting with ani-
mal blinds in Merced County, 20-22.
New York "Waterways Association, 38.
Nidever, H. B., purse sehiing in Southern

California, 45.
Nighthawk, 3, 5^
Nos Oiseaux. 154, 155.
Nuthatch, 155.

O'Hare, Roy, 84.

O'Malley, Henry, 81, 106.

Opossum, 38.

Oregon closes certain lakes. 109.

Oregon Sportsman. 154, 189, 195.

Ortega, James L., 204.

Osprey, 137.

Ostrich. 97.

Otter, 39.

Outdoor Life, 95.

Outlook. 38.

Ouzel, Water, 150.

Over-fishing, 71.

Owl, 7, 138, 155, 1S9. ■

Barn, 139.

Horned, 137.

Long-eared, 138, 139.

Screech, 139.

Short-eared, 139.
Oyster, 51, 62, 115, 159, 215.

Eastern, 51, 115, 159, 215.

Native, 51, 115, 159.

Pacific Fisherman. 106, 191.

Paciiic Gas and Electric Co., SO, 135, 145,

146.
Pnnulirus interruptus. 75.
Paralabrax maculatofasciatus. 167.
Paralithodes camtschatica, 195.
Parks, C. T., 195.
Partridge, 155, 208.

Hungarian, 12, 103, 148, 183, 208; Ore-
gon succeeds with, 207.
Peafowl, 97.
Pearson, A. G., 58.

Pearson, T. Gilbert, 3 3 ; Audubon Society
head lauds sportsmen's organizations,
186.
Peewee, 43.
Pelican, 6 ; and fish, 34-35.

Brown, 44.

White, 34, 44, 88.
Pelt, beaver, 187.

Pennsylvania issues educational bulletin,

109.
Perch, 50, 56, 114, 158, 188, 214.
Perognathus, 205.
Peterson, James, 22.

Phalarope, food of, avocets and stilts, 41.
Pheasant, 11, 12, 44, 97, 98, 129, 155, 183,
198, 203, 207.

Golden, 148.

Lady Amherst, 148.

Mongolian, 147, 148.

Reeves 14 8.

Ring-necked, 9, 10, 13, 103, 148.

Silver, 148.
Philadelphia Academy of Sciences, 137.
Pigeon, Band-tailed, 17J$.

Passenger, 97.

Wild, 155.
Pike, 50, 114, 158, 214.

Riffle, 135.
Pintail, 171.

Chilean, 187.
Plan biological survey of Lake Tahoe, 33.
Plankton, 24, 189.
Plover. 155.

Black-billed, 98, 196.

Golden, 98, 196.
Pochard, Rosy-billed, 187.
Poisoning, ducks die from alkali, 32.
Pollution, 39, 46, 71, 74, 90, 99, 103, 184,
186, 189, 202; anti, platform, 38;
water, 87-88 ; problem, a new, 88 ; oil,
effect of on marine and wild life, 90 ;
oil, 154; stream, in Oregon, 206-207.
Pompano, 50, 114, 158, 168, 214.
Pond, new rearing constructed, 82.
Porter, Jack, 89.
Powell, Tod, 31.
Prairie chicken, 97.
Pratt, Richard. 200.
Pratt, Samuel, 84.
Prawn, 167.
Preserve, 172 ; see refuge.

Duck, 170.

Game, 154. 188.

Public, 172.
Proctor, James N., 140.
Propagation. 10, 31, 33, 38, 91, 97, 98,

142, 147, 195, 207, 208, 209.
Proso, 147.

Protection, game, 172.

Protective Association, formulates prin-
ciples, 91.
Protozoa, 24.

Q

Quail, 10,20,83,95,97,129, 148, 155, 178,
200 ; bobwhite. San Benito Covmty re-
ceives Mexican, 140.

Chinese, 12.

Gambel, 12.

Mexican, 12.

Valley, 12, 103. 183, 204 ; .shrike attacks
young, 204-205.

Rabie-s, 43.

Rabbit, 95, 141, 142.
Cottontail, 149.

Raccoon, 38. 77, 78, 173.

Rack, 135. 147.

Rail, 98, 155.

Rampont, R. C. black-tailed deer success-
fully reared, 35-37.

Ramsev, Levi, 85.

Rapalli, M. A., 151.

Rat, 77, 78.

Raven, 155.

Redshank. 155.

Reed, Rolan, 84.

Reeves, John, 22.

Refuse. 43 ; Missouri increases system,
109.
Game, 26. 32, 33, 126, 139. 142, 143,
209; bill, new plan for, 32.

224

CALIFORNIA PISH AND GAME.

Nevada, 154 ; Missouri plants grain in

state, 208.

IM, 102.

4A, 142.
Reindeer, 35.

Report, 48, 111, 155, 210; brief, on cur-
rent activities will appear under new

department heading, 80.
Reservation, federal bird, 171 ; see refuge.
Rich, Willis H., 95, 196.
Richardson, Gov. Friend Wm., 28, 79, 181,

182.
Ricketts, Ed., 149.
Ridgeway, Harry, 140.
Roadrunner, 7.
Roberts, D. E., 101.
Robin, 3, 4, 6, 92, 93.
Koccos lineatus, 54, 56.
Rockflsh, 50, 114, 158, 214.
Rod and Gun Club, Westwood, 91.
Rodent. 43, 138.
Rook, 155.
Rooney, Tom, 22.
Roosevelt Wild Life Experiment Station,

139.
Ross, Arthur A., 199.
Ross, A. F., 200.
Roundtree, S. B., 22.
Royal Society for the Protection of Birds,

139, 154.
Rules, six, for sportsmen, 94.
Russell, George, 85.

Sablefish, 50, 114, 158, 214.
Baling, 22.
Salisbury, Lord, 42.
Salmo henshawi, 24, 34.
irideus, 105.
nelsonij 89.
Salmon, 23, 50, 61, 67, 68, 69, 72, 105, 114,
150, 158, 201, 203, 214 ; watch for
marked, 100 ; to be tagged on Califor-
nia coast, 105-106 ; favored by un-
usual conditions, 108 ; and striped bass
investigation, 146 ; a questionnaire
on, 150 ; economize on pink, 193-194 ;
marking experiments in Oregon, 195—
196.
Blue-backed, 150, 195, 196.
Chinook, 135, 150, 189, 194, 195, 201.
Chum, 194.
Coho. 150.
King, 150, 189.
Pacific, 189.
Quinnat, 150.

Red, homing instinct in, 95.
Silver, 150.
Sock-eye, 195.
Spring, 150.
Salmonida;, 23.
Salvini, Pete, 84.

Sanctuary, 171, 173, 175 ; proposed for
wild animals in South Africa, 42 ; see
refuge.
Game. 173.
Wild life, 169.
Sandab, 50, 105, 114, 156, 214.
Sanders, J. H., 148.
Sandpiper, 155.
San Joaquin Light and Power Company,

80.
Sanrirms sulcifrons, 39.

Sardine, 15. 19, 20, 29, 31, 45, 50, 67, 73,
105, 114, 158, 202, 214; California
purse seines for, 16-19 ; catch of, 102 ;
bulletin. 102.
Sat2ir(lay Evening Post, 169.
Schaeffle, E., 168.
Schmieden, E. G., 126.
Scisenididse, 166.
Science. 42, 192.
Seofield, E. C, 146.

Scofleld, N. B., 30, 74, 80, 81, 104, 106 ;
striped bass in California, 55-76 ;
attends meeting of International Fish-
eries Commission, 134 ; commercial
fishery notes, 45, 105-106, 149-151.

Seofield, W. L., 146 ; money in the bank,
13-16 ; purse seines for California
sardines, 16—19.

Scoinberomorus sierra, 167.

Scoville, Samuel, 137.

Screen and ladder conference. 80 : and
ladders, 101.
Law, 102, 184.

Sculpin, 50, 105, 114, 158, 204, 214.

Sea Lion, 14 6.

Searing, Wiley, 142.

Season, 69, 99, 185.

Closed, 68, 70, 98, 143, 165 ; are we com-
ing to, on trout, 34 ; for northern hali-
but, 45.
Open, 37, 98, 143, 180; for fur bearers,
3 7-38; suggested date on deer, in
California, 124-127.
Rutting, 125.

Sea Worm, 66, 67.

Seine, purse, for California sardines, 16-
19 ; in southern California, 45.

Sellmer, W. B., 39.

Selover, George H., 33.

Service Bulletin, 101 ; will be issued, 31.

Seton, Ernest Thompson, 137.

Sette, O. E., 81.

Shad, 50, 65, 68, 69, 105, 114, 158, 214.

Shag, 59, 150.

Shaw, Walter S., 86.

Shetaley, W. H., 30, 128, 145, 174, 183; our
great task, 82-83.

Shedder, 72.

Sheep, Mountain, 188 ; introduced, 35 ;
taken captive, 106-107.

Sheepshead, 50, 114, 158, 214.

Sheldon, H. P., appointed chief, U. S.
game warden, 192.

Shellfish, 76, 90, 135.

Shore bird, 41.

Shrader, Wm., 86.

Shrew, 204, 205.

Shrike, attacks young quail, 204-205.
California, 205.

Shrimp, 51, 64, 65, 66, 67, 73, 115, 189,
215.

Sierra, 168, 169.

Silverside, 162.

Simpson, Gene M., 10.

Skate, 50, 114. 158, 214.

Skipjack, 45, 51, 105, 115, 159, 201, 214.

Skogsberg, Tage, 18.

Skunk, 38, 7 8.

Slater, Herbert, 181.

Smalley, E. W., 101.

Smalley, Geo., 187.

Smelt, 51, 115, 159, 214.
Little, 39, 134, 162.

Smith, Chas., 2 0, 22.

Smith, Lillian, 22.

Smith, Hugh M., 56, 57, 74.

Smutz, E. W., 58.

Snail, 51, 115, 159.

Snake, 7, 78, 150.
Water, 39.

Snapper, 45.

Snipe, 41, 78, 155.
Jack. 98.
Wilson's, 98, 196.

Snow, Charles, 199.

Snvder, J. O., 34, 79, 89.

Soares, J. A., 191.

Solaro, Louis, 84.

Sole, 50. 105, 114, 158, 214.

Sora, 98.

Sorex, 205.

Southern California Edison Company, 80.

Southern San Joaquin Irrigation District,
80.

Southern Sierra Power Company, 80.

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

225

Sparrow, i 3, 155.
Chipping, 5.
English, 133. „ „^

Spawning, 14, 39, 40, 56, 58, 59, 60, 65,
69, <0, 73, 95, 106, 108, 135, 145, 150,
189.

Spencer, John, 146, 203.

Sperry, Geo. and Willis, 86.

Split-tail, 51, 66, 73, 115, 159. „ „„ „,

Sportsmen, 10, 13, 28, 40, 82, 90, 92, 94,
95, 99, 109, 138, 140, 145, 169, 185,
197 ; real, and the bag limit, 39 ; true,
186 ; Audubon Society lauds organi-
zation, 186.

Sprig, 83. ^^^

Squid, 51, 72, 115, 159, 215.

Squirrel, Gray, 170 ; disease still exists,
205-206.
Ground, 78, 139.
Red, 131.

Stag, 173, 174.

Stanford University, 79, 89.

Starlvs, E. C, 74.

State Department of Agriculture, 92.

Stilt, food of, phalarope, avocets, and, 41.

Stingaree, 51, 115, 159.

Stone, Livingston, 56.

Stone, Witmer, 137.

Storer, T. I., 136, 180.

Strychnine, 178.

Sturgeon, on increa.se, 108-109.

Sucker. 51, 64, 115, 135, 159, 215.

Surf bird, 186, 198.

Surf fish, 51, 115, 159. , _ ^

Survey, plan biological, of Lake Tanoe, 33.

Sutton, Geo. M., 109.

Swallow, 3, 131, 132.
Cliff, 5, 132.
Violet-green, 132.

Swan, 97, 98.

Swim bladder, 166, 169.

Swiss Society for the Study and Protec-
tion of Birds, 154.

Swordfl.sh, 31, 35, 51. 115, 159, 215.

Broadbill. 35 ; the world's record of, 34.
Marlin, 35.

Tadarida mexicana, 135.

Tintan, Wm., 86.

Task, our great, 82.

Taylor, Ray, 89.

Teachers' bulletin, new, on fish and game

laws, 143.
Teal, Blue-winged, 171.

Green-winged, 171.
Tern, 138.

Terrapin, 51, 115, 159.
Thayer, Gerald, 137.
Thomomys bottce bottce, 152.
Thompson, A. J., 86.
Thompson, Geo., 152.
Thompson, R. M., 146.
Thompson, W. F., 39, 81, 162, 165.
Throckmorton, S. R., 56.
Thrush, 155.
Tinamou, Rufous, 44.
To a boy with a gun, 93-95.
Tomcod, 51. 115, 159, 215.
Tonkin, Geo., 92, 93. 97.
Torgny, Bruce, 89.
Totuava, 166. 167, 168, 169.
Trap, 78, 135, 146. 153, 170.
Treaty, fisheries, 134 ; see migratory bird

treaty.
Trout, 23, 24, 31, 34, 35, 46, 51, 56, 61,

82. 115, 128, 144, 147, 157, 173, 183,

200, 213 ; are we coming to closed

seasons on, 34 ; tackle for striped bass.

79 ; rare, from Lower California. 89 ;

Oregon has new bag limit on, 109.
Brown, 128, 200, 201.
Eastern Brook. 189, 200.
Golden, 198. 201.

5 — 47365

Loch Leven, 128, 200, 201, 207.

Mackinaw, 25.

Nelson's, 89.

Rainbow, 89, 129, 135, 200; prey of the

versatile, 204.
Sea, 50, 114, 158.
Silver, 25.

Steelhead. 33, 51, 72, 105, 115, 145, 159,
189, 200, 203; game fish in Washing-
ton, 154.
Tahoe 25.
Tuna, 18, 34. 35. 45. 51. 105. 115, 146,
159, 215 ; new, boat to be cork lined,
191 ; canning season, 99.
Bluefin, 51, 115, 159, 196. 201, 215.
Yellowfin, 51, 115, 159, 196, 215.
Tuna Club, 34. 35.
Turkey. 97, 172, 174.

Wild, 12, 170, 171, 174, 175; tried in
San Diego County, 87.
Turbot, 51, 115, 159, 215.
Turtle. 51. 115, 159.
Mexican, 168.
Sea, 167.

U

U. S. Bureau of Biological Survey, 3, 29,

31, 34, 40, 42, 43, 90, 96, 97, 98, 103,

107, 138, 139, 152, 188, 189, 192, 193,

196. 197.
U. S. Bureau of Fisheries, 23. 57, 60, 61,

63, 67, 68, 81, 90, 105, 106, 146, 147,

151, 153, 193, 201, 207, 208.
U. S. Bureau of Reclamation, 91.
U. S. Department of Agriculture, 3. 5. 35.

38. 41. 42. 43. 95, 96, 97, 184, 192,

196, 197, 205.
U. S. Fish Commission. 56.
U. S. Forest Service. 144.
University of California, 79.
Upper Mississippi Wild Life Fisli Refuge,

43, 208.

V

Van Deventer, Wm. C, 146 ; barge fishing
on the southern Californian coast,
19-20.
Venison, 44, 142, 149, 172.
Vermin, 138.
Violation, meager information on game,

leads to conviction, 89-90.
Violator, take notice, 81-82.
Vireo. deserve encouragement. 42.

Bell. 42.

Blue-headed. 42.

Hutton, 42.

Red-eyed, 5, 42.

Warbling, 42.

White-eyed, 42.

Yellow-throated, 42.

W

Warden. 32. 33, 43. 81, 104, 140. 151.
153, 184, 193 ; the game, needs sup-
port, not criticism, 33 ; posts signs,
39 ; have no special privileges, 182.
Dollar-a-year, 81, 101, 182. 199. 200;
new. help law enforcement. 183.

Waterfowl, 98, 153, 196.

Watkins, Rolin G., 30, 88, 103. 104. 181.

TVeasel, 138, 188.

West, Thomas J., 140.

West, W. P., 64, 65, 67, 73.

Western Association of State Game Com-
missioners, 33.

Westwood Rod and Gun Club, 91.

Weymouth, F. W., 118.

What would you do?, 185.

Whitebait, 51, 105, 115, 159, 215.

Whiteflsh, 25, 33, 51. 73, 115, 159, 215.

Whitney, Judge, 185.

Widgeon. 171.
European, 187.

226

CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME.

M'ildcat, lOS.

Wild fowl. 183; adverse factors menacing,

189-191.
Wild life, 26, 27, 40, 43, 82, 90, 141, 143.
171, 193.

Protection, 46.
Wildie, M. J., 86.
M'illiams, H. I.. 200.
Windle. Judge Ernest. 34.
Wise investment bv Wisconsin, 208.
Woehlke, Walter V., 31.
Wolf, 43. 188.
Wolff. ^Vavburn, 142.
"Wolverine, 188.
Woodbury, J. G., 56.

Woodchuck, Illinois exterminating, 109.
Woodcock, 155.
Woodpecker, 4.

Gairdner, 131.

Lewis, 131.

Red-headed, 138.

World's record broadbilled swordfish, 34.
Wren, 3.

House, 131.

Seattle, 132.
Wright, Edward .-\., S6.
Wright, Geo., 186.

Xiphias gladius, 34.

Yellowleg, Greater, 193.

Les-ser. 193.
Yellowtail, 17, 51, 105, 115, 159, 215.

ZsiV P6t6r 34

Zell'erbach', I.,' 30, 31, 104, 145: president,
receives gold medal, 183-184.

O

47365 10-26

^500

CAUFORNIA
FISH» GAME

hK

CONSERVATION OF WILD LIFE THROUGH EDUCATION

1^

46139

BOARD OF FISH AND GAME COMMISSIONERS.

SACRAMENTO, CALIFORITLL

Commissioners appointed by the Governor, by and with the consent of the Senate.
Term at pleasure of Governor. No Compensation.

I. ZELLERBACH, President San Francisco

M. J. CONNELL, Commissioner Los Angeles

RALPH H. CLOCK, Commissioner Long Beach

B, D. MARX GREENE, Executive Officer and Attorney San Francisco

J. S. HUNTER, Assistant Executive Officer and Chief of Patrol San Francisco

Postal Telegraph Building, San Francisco, Phone Sutter 6100

DEPARTMENT OF FISHCULTURE.

W. H. SHEBLEY, La Charge Fishculture Sacramento

E. W. HUNT, Field Superintendent Sacramento

A. B. DONEY, Fish Ladder Inspector Sacramento

A. B. CULVER. Screen Inspector Sacramento

G. H. LAMBSON, Superintendent Mount Shasta Hatchery and Klamath

River Stations Sisson

G. McCLOUD, Jb., Superintendent Mount Whitney Hatchery and Cottonwood

Lakes Station Independence

G. E. WEST, Foreman in Charge Tahoe and Mount Tallac Hatcheries Tallac

C. NIXON, Foreman Mount Shasta Hatchery Sisson

E. V. OASSELL, Foreman in Charge Fall Creek Hatchery Copco

L. J. STINNETT, Foreman in Charge Bogus Creek Station Copce

J. C. BRANDENBURG, Foreman in Charge Bear Lake and North Creek

Hatcheries San Bernardino

GUY TABLER, Foreman in Charge Wawona Hatchery Wawona

CHAS. L. FRAME, Foreman in Charge Brookdale Hatchery Brook dale

J. C. LEWIS, Foreman in Charge Fort Seward Hatchery Alderpoint

J. W. RICKER, Foreman in Charge Snow Mountain Station Potter Valley

J. SHEBLEY, Foreman in Charge Feather River Hatchery Clio

ED. CLESSENS, Foreman in Charge Kaweah Hatchery Hammond

L. PHILLIPS, Superintendent of Car No. 01 Sisson

ROSS McCLOUD, Superintendent of Car No. 02 Sisson

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCIAL FISHERIES.

N. B. SCOFIELD, In Charge San Francisco

H. B. NIDBVER, Assistant San Pedro

W. F. THOMPSON, Assistant San Pedro

6. H. DADO, Assistant San Francisco

PAUL BONNOT Monterey

COBURN F. MADDOX, Assistant San Diego

W. L. SCOFIELD, Assistant San Pedro

BUREAU OF FINANCE AND ACCOUNTS.
H. R. DUNBAR, Assistant Executive Officer and In Charge Sacramento

BUREAU OF EDUCATION AND RESEARCH.
DR. H. C. BRYANT, In Charge Berkeley

BUREAU OF PUBLICITY.
ROLIN G. WATKINS, In Charge San Francisco

BUREAU OF GAME FARMS.
AUGUST BADE, In Charge Yountville

STATE LION HUNTER.
JAY O. BRUCE San Lorenw)

PATROL SERVICE.

J. S. HUNTER, Assistant Executive Officer and Chief of Patrol.
S. R. BRIGGS, Assistant Chief of Patrol.

K. P. Allred San Francisco

W. H. Armstrong Vallejo

Earl P. Barnes Eureka

H. D. Beclier San Luis Obispo

Theo. M. Benson Fortuna

Silas Bivins Blythe

Weldon J. Black Isleton

Harry 8. Brittan Stonyford

O. P. Brownlow Porterville

F. A. Bullard Dunlap

J. L. Bundock Oakland

John Burke Daly City

S. J. Carpenter Maxwell

M. S. aark S. F. Office

Clifford S. Denham Riverside

J. D. Dondero Lakeport

Ray C. Ellis Fresno

Walter Emerick Ventura

0. O. Fisher Westwood

G. I. Fleckenstein Folsom

J. F. French Alturas

Samuel S. Gilloon Mt. Shasta

E. H. Glidden San Diego

Euell Gray Placerville

F. A. Greene Redding

W. J. Green Sacramento

J. H. Groves Cloverdale

J. H. Gyger Perris

J. H. Hellard Willits

J. H. Hill Watsonville

Ovid Holmes Fort Kra?g

George S. Johnson Napa

1. L. Koppel San Jose

L. S. Lancaster Watsonville

G. O. LawB Weaverville

Henry Lencioni Santa Rosa

Wm. Lippincott Treka

Robert J. Little Banning

L. W. Longeway Sonora

McPherson Lough Eureka

Roy Ludlum San Francisco

W. C. Malone San Bernardino

E. V. Moody Santa Crua

J. B. Newsome Newman

E. H. Ober Escondido

R. C. O'Connor Grass Valley

Nelson Poole Sacramento

H, S. Prescott Crescent City

H. I. Pritchard Atwater

Chas. E. Rakestraw Los Angeles

K. J. Ransdell Ukiah

E. D. Ricketts Los Angele*

D. E. Roberts Murphys

R. J. Sadler Los Angeles

J. H. Sanders Truckee

Carmi Savage Los Angeles

W. B. Sellmer Fairfax

L. B. Sherwood Monterey

Chas. Sibeck Gait

R. L, Sinkey Woodland

E. W. Smalley Hanford

Geo. R. Smalley Madera

A. J. Stanley Stirling City

W. S. Talbot Los Angeles

Geo, Thompson Gridley

Webb Toms San Diego

Albert Veil Los Angeles

Victor E. von Arx Cazadero

C. J. Walters Independence

A. H. Willard Rocklin

Stanley A. Wood Seiad Valley

LAUNCH PATROL.

Charles M. Bouton Launch "Quinnat," San Rafael, Stockton.

John O'Connell Launch "Quinnat," San RafaeL

1925 ABSTRACT CALIFORNIA FISH AND CAME LAWS 1926

WHITI tQUARI* INOICATI OPIN (CASON NUMBER* IN SQUARES ARE OPEN DAT!*

THIS ABSTRACT WILL BE VALID UNTIL 90 DAYS AFTER ADJOURNMENT OF THE 1927 LEGISLATIVE SESSION

I cu I »< I >f< I ■>. I mt I luiv I >u6. 1 iir I on I <ov I oic. I BAG AND POSSESSION UMITS, ETC

llMi

a-24-2i-2

DEER

RabbiU— Cottontail tnd Brush

Tree Squirrels

Elk, Antelope, Mountain Sheep,

S«« Otter, BMVtr*

Bear, For Animals

Ducks, GeeM, Jack Snipe, Mud Hens

RaU, Wood Duck, Wild Pigeon,
Shore Birds (Except Jack Snipel

Quail— Valley, Desert
and Mootttain

^ALL

EICETT IS

Sage Hen

IH

JUQLJElDSaBIBJnD

nnn0nnnf3[irrn

2-21-3

4-4*'

ALL

ALL

ALL

ALL

ALL

ALL

ALL

nciimnnnQLjaBan
rjnnnannrjDncLi
cnEiDDDnnnnnL.
GnnnDnnnanan
innnnnnaa

_jl_ii ! I _! ._Ji_Jl_JI

□nnaDDDcnDDu

1 ^1 I J_ji iLiJ^ J I II — li— J.

bnnhn-ir-jJBinnrjr^ 1

No Does, Fawns or Spike Bucks

Nor Forked Homed Muledeer in Dist. 1**

No sale of Venison or Deer Skins

Two Bucks per Season.

See Notes g-9-10-U-tS-16

15 per day. 30 per week
No limit in District 4

Qosed until September 1st, 1927
KiUin; of Hli or posMssion of EUi mesl a fdoay

tl.OOO fine for Sea Otter

See Notes 11-U

See Notes 4-14-15-16

Valley and Desert
15 per day. 30 per week

Mountain
10 per day. 20 per week

4 per day. 8 per week

LICENSE PROVISIONS

HUNTING UCENSE LicenM Tear 'July 1 l« Jan* M

RtMnU, tl.OO. Non.Boideob, 110.00 Oeclaram Alieni, $10.00. Other Alleni, pt.OO.

ANGLING LICENSE LiMnK Tear Janury 1 l« Dtctabtr U

BMidtaU. tl.OO. K«n-SeiidenU, (3.00. Alieol, (3.00.

He anfUaf bcenM raquind of those under 18 years of aft.

TRAPPING LICENSE LiMaie Tear Jily 1 to Jsm M

OiUsesJ, $1.00. Aliens, $3.00 Vadar 18 so Uotasa.

CALIFORNLA STATE PRINTING OFFICE

JOHN E. KING, State Printer

SACBAHENTO, 1920

CAUFORNIA
FISH -GAME

Volume 12

Sacramento, April, 1926

Number 2 I

-

r

1^

^

J

Ws^^

^!^

STRIPED BASS NUMBER

46140

BOARD OF FISH AND GAME COMMISSIONERS.

SACRAMENTO. CALIFORinA.

Commltalonera appointed by the Governor, by and with the conaent of the Senate.
Term at pleasure of Governor. No Compenaation.

I. ZELLERBACH, President San Francisco

M. J. CONNBLL, Commissioner Los Angeles

RALPH H. CLOCK, Commissioner Long Beach

B. D. MARX GREENE, Executive Officer and Attorney San Francisco

J. S. HUNTER, Assistant Executive Officer and Chief of Patrol San Francisco

Postal Telegraph Building, San Francisco, Phone Sutter 6100

DEPARTMENT OF FISHCULTURE.
W. H. SHEBLEY, In Charge Fishculture Sacramento

B. W. HUNT, Field Superintendent Sacramento

A. B. DONEY, Fish Ladder Inspector Sacramento

A. E. CULVER, Screen Inspector Sacramento

G. H. LAMBSON, Superintendent Mount Shasta Hatchery and Klamath

River Stations Sisson

G. McCLOUD, Jb., Superintendent Mount Whitney Hatchery and Cottonwood

Lakes Station Independence

G. E. WEST, Foreman in Charge Tahoe and Mount Tallac Hatcheries Tallac

C. NIXON, Foreman Mount Shasta Hatchery Sisson

E. V. CASSELL, Foreman in Charge Fall Creek Hatchery Copco

L. J. STINNETT, Foreman in Charge Bogus Creek Station Copoe

J. C. BRANDENBURG, Foreman in Charge Bear Lake and North Creek

Hatcheries San Bernardino

GUY TABLER, Foreman in Charge Wawona Hatchery Wawona

CHAS. L. FRAME, Foreman in Charge Brookdale Hatchery Brookdale

J. C. LEWIS, Foreman in Charge Fort Seward Hatchery Alderpoint

J. W. RICKER, Foreman in Charge Snow Mountain Station Potter Valley

J. SHEBLEY, Foreman in Charge Feather River Hatchery Clio

ED. CLE8SENS, Foreman in Charge Kaweah Hatchery Hammond

L. PHILLIPS, Superintendent of Car No. 01 Sisaon

ROSS McCLOUD, Superintendent of Car No. 02 Sisson

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCIAL FISHERIES.

N. B. SCOFIELD, In Charge San Francieco

H. B. NIDEVER, Assistant San Pedro

W. F. THOMPSON, Assistant- San Pedro

S. H. DADO, Assistant San Francisoo

PAUL BONNOT Monterey

COBURN F. MADDOX, Assistant San Diego

W. L. SCOFIELD, Assistant San Pedro

BUREAU OF FINANCE AND ACCOUNTS.
H. R. DUNBAR, Assistant Executive Officer and In Charge Sacramento

BUREAU OF EDUCATION AND RESEARCH.
DR. H. C. BRYANT, In Charge Berkeley

BUREAU OF PUBLICITY.
ROLIN G. WATKINS, In Charge San Francisco

BUREAU OF GAME FARMS.
AUGUST BADE, In Charge Yountville

STATE LION HUNTER.
JAY O. BRUCE San Lorenao

PATROL SERVICE.

J. S. HUNTER, Assistant Executive OflScer and Chief o£ PatroL
S. R. BRIGGS, Assistant Chief of PatroL

K. P. Allred San Francisco

W. H. Armstrong Vallejo

Earl P. Barnes Eureka

H. D. Beclier San Luis Obispo

Theo. M. Benson Fortuna

Silas Bivins Blythe

Weldon J. Black Isleton

Harry S. Brittan Stonyford

O. P. Brownlow Porterville

F. A. Bullard Dunlap

J. L. Bundock Oakland

John Burke Daly City

S. J. Carpenter Maxwell

M. S. Clark S. F. Office

Clifford S. Denham Riverside

J. D. Dondero Lakeport

Ray C. Ellis Fresno

Walter Emerick Ventura

0. O. Fisher Westwood

G. I. Fleckenstein Folsom

J. F. French Alturas

Samuel S. Gilloon Mt, Shasta

E. H. Glidden San Diego

Euell Gray Placerville

F. A. Greene Redding

W. J. Green Sacramento

J. H. Groves Cloverdale

J. H. Gyger Perris

J. H. Hellard Willits

J. H. Hill Watsonville

Ovid Holmes Fort Fragg

George S. Johnson Napa

1. L. Koppel San Jose

L. S. Lancaster Watsonville

G. O. Laws Weaverville

Henry Lencioni Santa Rosa

Wm. Lippincott Treka

Robert J. Little Banning

L. W. Longeway Sonom

McPherson Lough Eureka

Roy Ludlum San Francisco

W. C. Malone San Bernardino

E. V. Moody Santa Crui

J. E. Newsome Newman

E. H. Ober Escondido

R. C. O'Connor Grass Valley

Nelson Poole Sacramento

H. S. Prescott Crescent City

H. L Pritchard Atwater

Chas. E. Rakestraw Los Angeles

K. J. Ransdell Ukiah

E. D. Ricketts : Los Angeles

D. E. Roberts Murphyg

R. J. Sadler Los Angeles

J. H. Sanders Trucke*

Carmi Savage Los Angeles

W. B. Sellmer Fairfax

L. B. Sherwood Monterey

Chas. Sibeck Gait

R. L. Sinkey Woodland

E. W. Smalley Hanford

Geo. R. Smalley Madera

A. J. Stanley Stirling City

W. S. Talbot Los Angeles

Geo. Thompson Gridley

Webb Toms San Diego

Albert Veil Los Angeles

Victor E. von An - Cazadero

C. J. Walters Independence

A. H. Willard Rocklin

Stanley A. Wood Seiad Valley

LAUNCH PATROL.

Charles M. Bouton Launch "Quinnat," San Rafael, Stockton.

John O'Connell Launch "Quinnat," San Rafael.

1926 ABSTRACT CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME LAWS 1926

WHITI aQUARC* INOICATS OPItt aiAtON NUMBIR* IN tQUAKI* ARE OPIH OATC*
THIS AiaTRACT WILL BK VALID UNTIL VO DATS AFTtR ADJOURNMCNT OP THE I*t7 LECKLATIVE lEadON

MTWTI

«.. ...

■At. j VI T itr

WNI

i

■

•in.

•KT

■-

•ic 1 BAG AND POSSESSION UMITS, HC

l-IHt

ES-M-ZS-II

,

: .i

!' ■

;

1

"■|

WM No Does, Fawns or Spike Bucks

DEER

IK

^ .

i

— 1

■

1

i

i

1

E i

Nor Forked Homed Mulcdeer Ui Dist. IM

No sale of Venison or Deer Skint

Two Bucks per Season.

See Netcs 8-M0-U-1S-l«

2-21-3

■

-!

n

r-r

■

"Mi

4-4'-

■- 1

["

B

'HE

1

'

RibbiU— Cottontail Aod Bnuh

ALL

1

. J
1

■

■

"■■■ i; ■■; ■

'

m

15 per day. 30 per week
No limit in District 4

Tree Squirrels

ALL

■

.

■

i ^[~^

i

1

Qosed until September 1st, 1927

Elk, Antelop*, Mountiin Sheep,
S«« Otter, Betver*

ALL

:|

r

n^

■■■

Killing of fill or possession of Bk meit a fd«iy
$1,000 fitic for Sea Otter

Bear, For Animals

ALL

1

■

1
i
t

1

1

1

See Notes 11-12

Ducki, Geese, Jack Snipe, Mud Hens

ALL

■

H

n

See Notes 4-14-15-16

RaU, Wood Duck, Wild Pigeon,
Short Birds (Except Jack Snipe)

ALL

""1

r7~

■

■■

Quail— Valley, Desert

,ALL

acm IK

■

._..

■

■■

■

Valley and Deleft
15 per day. 30 per week

and Mountain

U

!

■

G:;/,Ij Q

■1

Mountain
10 per day. 20 per week

Sage Hen

AT.T,

:|

::

■■■■'iH

-"1

4 per day. 8 per week

Dove

"~'z:\2~ti:w~iizj

15 per day. 30 per week

M^M?'

r ■y-j_ ■{— rr ~ig

Grouse

ALL

■

m.

i

1

1

4 per day. 8 per week

Pheasant

4«

I

--

"

■

i

I

■

1

y

1

6 per season

l-IK-M

1

B«B limh for taldnf and
poMeMMD, 25 trout or 10
poundj and one trout or
one trout weighing 10
pound* or orer p«r day

2f

hH

t

for oUmt

restridiods

33-24-2S

r

1

S« Notes

Trout (F.XMpt Golden), WUtefiih

5«Nota
25-24

m

19-2«-24
3S-37-3J

It

WinlM

lJ

■

■

■

■

■

Bag Umil for taking and
poMeuion, S trout regard,
leu of weight per day

40-42

2J.I0

TM,W.M>

^

::' E ■ J

On Uiis
Cud

2-21-10

A

1 1 Bax limit for Ukinf and
1 1 potietuon. 1 treut per day ,

Golden Trout

AU

1

il»

1 I^I^H 2" P«' day- None under 5 inches

Black Baas, Sacramento Perch and
Grapple

SEE NOTE « FOR DISTIUCT <H

AT,T,

! ■

■■ 25 per day

No Black Bass under 7 ins.

Qtu likt
liUkt O.

Clear Lake
10 per day

No sale
Hook and line only

Sunfish

ALL

'^ ^L_J

25 per day. Book and hne only

Striped Bass, Shad

ALT,

See Note 23

Salmon

15

1

■1

■

1

See Note 27 for other districts, limit etc.

Crabs

ALL

J

«!

l»

See Note 28

Abalones

ALL

■m

Uti

_^

See Note 33

Pismo Clams

17

1

■

See Note 32

Spiny Lobster

ALL

^^^,

■

■

■

■

I'

BttVotiU

LICENSE PROVISIONS

HUNTING LICENSE Uctni* Tear 'My 1 to Job* M

Bwidenti, tl.OO Mon-KuidcnU, 110.00 Declarant AUena, 110.00. Otiur AUeni, I3S.00.

ANSLINS LICENSE Lioenia Tear Juoary I to I>e««mbar U

Beildeau. tl.OO. Non-SMidenU, UOO. Alleni, KM.

Ko anffUnf Ucenie required of tlioee nader 18 yean of ftf*.

TRAPPING LICENSE LtoeiM Ttar Jgly 1 to /us W

Ottisem, UOO. Aliess, tl.OO Under It so llceaw.

CALIFORNIA STATE PRINTING OFFICE

JOUN B. KINO, State IMuter

SACBAU£NTO. 1920

CAUFORNIA
nSH"»GAME

'conservation of wild life through education

•fl

46333

BOARD OF FISH AND GAME COMMISSIONERS.

SACRAMENTO, CALIFORNIA.

Commissioners appointed by the Governor, by and with the consent of the Senate.
Term at pleasure of Governor. No compensation.

I. ZBLLERRACH, President San Francisco

M. J. CONXELL, Commissioner Los Angeles

RALPH H. CLOCK, Commissioner Long Beach

B. D. MARX GREENE, Executive Officer and Attorney San Francisco

J. S. HUNTER, Assistant Executive Officer and Chief of Patrol San Francisco

Postal Telegraph Building, San Francisco, Phone Sutter 6100

DEPARTMENT OF FISHCULTURE.

W. H. SHEBLEY, In Charge Fishculture Sacramento

E. W. HUNT, Field Superintendent Sacramento

A. E. DONEY, Fish Ladder Inspector Sacramento

A. E. CULVER, Screen Inspector Sacramento

G. H. LAMBSON, Superintendent Mount Shasta Hatchery and Klamath

River Stations Sisson

G. McCLOUD, Jr., Superintendent Mount Whitney Hatchery and Cottomvood

Lakes Station Independence

G. E. WEST, Foreman in Charge Tahoe and Mount Tallac Hatcheries Tallac

C. NIXON, Foreman Mount Shasta Hatchery Sisson

E. V. CASSELL, Foreman in Charge Fall Creek Hatchery Copco

L. J. STINNETT, Foreman in Charge Bogus Creek Station Copco

J. C. BRANDENBURG, Foreman in Charge Bear Lake and North Creek

Hatcheries San Bernardino

GUY TABLER, Foreman in Charge Wawona Hatchery Wawona

CHAS. L. FRAME, Foreman in Charge Brookdale Hatchery Brookdale

J. C. LEWIS, Foreman in Charge Fort Seward Hatchery Alderpoint

J. W. RICKER, Foreman in Charge Snow Mountain Station Potter Valley

J. SHEBLEY, Foreman in Charge Feather River Hatchery Clio

ED. CLESSENS, Foreman in Charge Kaweah Hatchery Hammond

L. PHILLIPS, Superintendent of Car No. 01 Sisson

ROSS McCLOUD, Superintendent of Car No. 02 Sisson

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCIAL FISHERIES.

N. B. SCOFIELD, In Charge San Francisco

H. B. NIDEVER, Assistant San Pedro

W. F. THOMPSON, Assistant San Pedro

S. H. DADO, Assistant San Francisco

PAUL BONNOT, Assistant Monterey

COBURN F. MADDOX, Assistant San Diego

W. L. SCOFIELD, Assistant San Pedro

BUREAU OF FINANCE AND ACCOUNTS.

H. R. DUNBAR, Assistant Executive Officer and In Charge Sacramento

BUREAU OF EDUCATION AND RESEARCH.

DR. H. C. BRYANT, In Charge Berkeley

BUREAU OF PUBLICITY.

ROLIN G. WATKINS, In Charge San Francisco

BUREAU OF GAME FARMS.

AUGUST BADE, In Charge Yountville

BUREAU OF SCREENS AND LADDERS.

JOHN SPENCER, In Charge San Francisco

PATROL SERVICE.

J. S. HUNTER, Assistant Executive Officer and Chief of Patrol.
S. R. BRIGGS, Assistant Chief of Patrol.

K. P. Allred San Francisco

W. H. Armstrong Vallejo

Earl P. Barnes Eureka

*C. S. Bauder Los Angeles

H, D. Becker San Luis Obispo

Theo. M. Benson Fortuna

Silas Bivins Blythe

Weldon J. Black Isleton

Harry S. Brittan Red Bluff

0. P. Brownlow Porterville

F. A. Bullard Dunlap

J. L. Bundock Oakland

John Burke Daly City

*S. J. Carpenter Maxwell

*M. S. Clark S. F. Office

Clifford S. Denham Riverside

J. D. Dondero Lakeport

Ray C. Ellis Fresno

Walter Emerick Ventura

C. O. Fisher Westwood

G. L Fleckenstein Folsom

J. F. French Alturas

Samuel S. Gilloon Mt. Shasta

E. H. Glidden San Diego

Euell Gray Placerville

F. A. Greene Redding

W. J. Green Sacramento

J. H. Groves Cloverdale

J. H. Gyger Perris

J. H. Hellard Willits

.T, H. Hill Watsonville

Ovid Holmes Fort Bragg

George S. Johnson Napa

1. L. Koppel San Jose

G. O. Laws Weaverville

Henry Lencioni Santa Rosa

*Wm. Lippincott Yreka

Robert J. Little Banning

L. W. Longeway Sonora

McPherson Lough Eureka

Roy Ludlum San Francisco

W. C. Malone San Bernardino

E. V. Moody Santa Cruz

*J. E. Newsome Newman

E. H. Ober Escondido

R. C. O'Connor Grass Valley

Nelson Poole Sacramento

H. S. Prescott Crescent City

H. I. Pritchard Atwater

Chas. E. Rakestraw Los Angeles

K. J. Ransdell Ukiah

E. D. Ricketts Los Angeles

*D. E. Roberts Sacramento

R. J. Sadler Los Angeles

*J. H. Sanders Truckee

Carmi Savage Los Angeles

W. B. Sellmer Fairfax

Chas. Sibeck Gait

R. L. Sinkey Woodland

*E. W. Smalley Hanford

Geo. R. Smalley Madera

A. J. Stanley Sterling City

W. S. Talbot Los Angeles

Geo. Thompson Gridley

Webb Toms San Diego

Albert Veil Los Angeles

Victor E. von Arx Cazadero

C. J. Walters Independence

A. H. Willard Rocklin

Stanley A. Wood Seiad Valley

LAUNCH PATROL.

Charles M. Bouton Launch "Quinnat," San Rafael

John O'Connell Launch "Rainbow," Stockton

STATE LION HUNTER.
Jay C. Bruce San Lorenzo

♦Patrol Captains.

1925 ABSTRACT CALIFORNIA FISH AND CAME LAWS 1926

WHITI •QUARIt INDICATI OPIM tlAlON

THI* ABlTRikCT WILL ■■ VALID UNTIL 90 DAYS AFTER ADJOURN*

NUMBERS IN IQUARES ARE OPEN DATE*
ENT OF THE 1927 LEGISLATIVE SESSION

I ru 1... I .M I ■., I, U.I I pu. Intjsi" I OCT No. |mc.| BAG UiD POSSESSION UMm. CTC

DEER

Rabbits— Cottontail and Bnuh

Tree Squirrels

Elk, Antelope, Mountain Sheep,
Sea Otter, Beaver*

Bear, Fur Animals

I'l

2-2 t -3

4-4'.

ALL

ALL

ALL

ALL

innnnnnnacnu

I jDnnnncnnci
GnDDnnncnnn

No Does, Fawns or Spike Bucks

Nor Forked Homed Muledeer in Dist. IX

No sale of Venison or Deer Skins

Two Bucks per Season.

See Notes 8-9-10-14-15-16

15 per day. 30 per week
No limit in District 4

Closed until September 1st, 1927

^

Ducka, Geese, Jack Snipe, Mud Hens

Rail, Wood Duck, WUd Pigeon,
Shore Birds lEzcept Jack Snipe>

Quail— Valley, Desert
and Mountain

u____jGa

BaEunnnnnu

uDGnnnnnnn::

KiUinj of Eft or possession o( Elk meat a fdoi^
$1,000 noc fof Sti Otter

See Notes 11-12

See Notes 4-14-15-16

ALL

Excin i^ti

Sage Hen

ALL

ALL

Dove

Grouse

Pheasant

ii^UHDEIBGnDn

i^i :..o[E]c;sD[:]GBnnG

Valley and Deicrt
15 p«r day. 30 per we«k

Mountain
to p«r day. 20 per week

4 per day. 8 per week

MM'

23-24-25

Trout (Except Golden), Whitefish

ALL

15 per day. 30 per week

4 per day. 8 per week

4'»

6 per season

i-m-2-j

2^

Stt Notes
25-26

EEjLJUQ
JuDQCBB

innrmnoi

B^E 1*"^'* for *«lftwy ^ad
potietiieg, 25 trout or 10
potnMU and oa« troot or
one trout weighioK 10
pounds or vrtr p«r day

For lOta
reshictiMis
Set Nates
H-2N24
36-37-3*
49-42
Os Uiis
Card

LICENSE PROVISIONS

HUNTINQ UCENSE Ucnst TaarVolj 1 to Jua 30

BcsidenU, $1.00. Non-Se*ldCDU, $10.00 Declarant Alieoi, $10 OO. Other Alimt, $35.00.

ANGLING LICENSE License Tear Jannai; 1 to Decraber U

Eesidents. $1.00. Kon-R<«idtsU. $3.00. Aliens. $3.00.
No anfUn; license reqaired of thosa under 18 j«an of afe.

TRAPPING LICENSE License Tear July 1 to Jut SO

CttiMns, $1.00. Aliens, $3.00 Under 18 no Uc«bj«.

CALIFOBNIA STATE PBES'TING OFFICE

JOHN E. KING, State Printer

SACBAMENTO. 1926

CAUroRNIA
FISH- GAME

47305

BOARD OF FISH AND GAME COMMISSIONEBS.

SACRAMENTO, CALIFORNIA.

Commissioners appointed by the Governor, by and with the consent of the Senate.
Term at pleasure of Governor. No compensation.

I. ZBLLERBACH, President San Francisco

M. J. CONNELL, Commissioner Los Angeles

RALPH H. CLOCK, Commissioner Long Beach

B. D. MARX GREENE, Executive Officer and Attorney San Francisco

J. S. HUNTER, Assistant Executive Officer and Chief of Patrol San Francisco

RALPH W. SCOTT, Assistant Attorney San Francisco

Postal Telegraph Building, San Francisco, Phone Sutter 6100
DEPARTMENT OF FISHCULTURE.

W. H, SHEBLEY, In Charge Fishculture Sacramento

E. W. HUNT, Field Superintendent Sacramento

A. E. DONEY, Fish Ladder Inspector Sacramento

A. E. CULVER, Screen Inspector Sacramento

G. H. LAilBSON, Superintendent Mount Shasta Hatchery and Klamath

River Stations Sisson

G. McCLOUD, Jk., Superintendent Mount Whitney Hatchery and Cottonwood

Lakes Station Independence

G. E. WEST, Foreman in Charge Tahoe and Mount Tallac Hatcheries Tallac

C. NIXON, Foreman Mount Shasta Hatchery Sisson

E, V. CASSELL, Foreman in Charge Fall Creek Hatchery Copco

L, J. STINNETT. Foreman in Charge Bogus Creek Station Copco

J. C. BRANDENBURG, Foreman in Charge Bear Lake and North Creek

Hatcheries San Bernardino

GUY TABLER, Foreman in Charge Wawona Hatchery Wawona

CHAS. L. FRAME, Foreman in Charge Brookdale Hatchery Brookdale

J. C. LEWIS, Foreman in Charge Fort Seward Hatchery AJderpoint

J. W. RICKER, Foreman in Charge Ukiah Hatchery Ukiah

J. SHEBLEY, Foreman in Charge Feather River Hatchery Clio

ED. CLESSENS, Foreman in Charge Kaweah Hatchery Hammond

L. PHILLIPS, Superintendent of Car No. 01 Sisson

ROSS McCLOUD, Superintendent of Car No. 02 Sisson

DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCIAL FISHERIES.

N. B. SCOFIELD, In Charge San Francisco

H. B. NIDEVER, Assistant San Pedro

W. P. THOMPSON, Assistant San Pedro

S. H. DADO, Assistant San Francisco

R. L. CLASSIC, Assistant Monterey

COBURN F. MADDOX, Assistant San Diego

W. L. SCOFIELD, Assistant San Pedro

BUREAU OF FINANCE AND ACCOUNTS.

H. R. DUNBAR, Assistant Executive Officer and In Charge Sacramento

BUREAU OF EDUCATION AND RESEARCH.

DR. H. C. BRYANT, In Charge Berkeley

H. C. GODSIL Berkeley

BUREAU OF PUBLICITY.

ROLIN G. WATKINS, In Charge San Francisco

BUREAU OF GAME FARMS.

AUGUST BADE, In Charge Yountville

BUREAU OF SCREENS AND LADDERS.

JOHN SPENCER, lu Charge San Francisco

BUREAU OF RIVER AND HARBOR POLLUTION.

ROLIN G. WATKINS, In Charge San Francisco

ROBT. J. IRVINE, Chemist San Francisco

PATROL SERVICE.

J. S. HUNTER, Assistant Executive Officei' and Chief of Patrol.
S. R. BRIGGS, Assistant Chief of Patrol.
R. E. LUDLUM, Statistician.

M. S. CLARK San Francisco Office

C L. Bundock San Francisco Office

J. L. Bundock Oakland

C. M. Bouton San Rafael

Jack Burke Daly City

T. K. Duncan Concord

C. E. HoUaday Morgan Hill

I. L. Koppel San Jose

Bert F. Laws San Francisco

E. V. Moody Santa Cruz

J. P. Vissiere Watsonville

C. S. BAUDER Los Angeles Office

*E. H. Ober Escondido

*E. D. Ricketts Los Angeles Office

E. A. Chan Los Angeles Office

La Rue Chappell Los Angeles Office

R. J. Sadler Los Angeles Office

Carmi Savage Los Angeles Office

W. C. Talbot Los Angeles Office

C. J. Walters Independence

C. S. Donham Riverside

Walter Emerick Ventura

E. H. Glidden San Diego

J. H. Gyger Perris

R. J. Little Banning

W. C. Malone San Bernardino

Webb Toms San Diego

Albert Veil Los Angeles Office

D. E. ROBERTS Sacramento Office

W. J. Black Rio Vista

G. I, Fleckenstein Folsom

Euell Gray Placerville

W. J. Green Sacramento Office

Nelson Poole Sacramento Office

R, C, O'Connor Grass Valley

John O'Connell Stockton

Chas. Sibeck Gait

R. L. Sinkey Woodland

J. R. Stephens Murphys

K. P. ALLRED Eureka

Earl P. Barnes Eurfeka

T. ^l. Benson Fortuna

McPherson Lough Eureka

WM. LIPPINCOTT Yreka

J. F. French Alturas

S. R. Gilloon Mount Shasta

F. A. Greene Redding

Fred R. Starr Macdoel

T. I. Stevenson Hat Creek

Stanley A. Wood Seiad Valley

S. J. CARPENTER Maxwell

Harry N. Brittan Red Bluff

L. W. Dinsdale Woodland

B. L. Hammock Maxwell

R. C. Marshall Maxwell

Wm. C. Raffetto Maxwell

J. V. Shearin Stonyford

A. J. Stanley Stirling City

Geo. Thompson Gridley

HENRY LENCIONI Santa Rosa

J. H. Groves Cloverdale

Victor E. Von Arx Cazadero

JOS. H. SANDERS Truckee

C. O. Fisher Susanville

J. E. NEWSOME Newman

L. W. Longeway Sonora

Geo. Magladry Modesto

H. I. Pritchard Atwater

Geo. Smalley Madera

E. W. SMALLEY Hanford

O. P. Brownlow Porterville

F. A. Bullard Dunlap

Ray C. Ellis Fresno

C. B. Tibbetts Kernville

UNATTACHED.

Wm. H. Armstrong A^'allejo

H. E. Black San Luis Obispo

J. H. Hellard Willits

J. H. Hill Hollister

Ovid Holmes Fort Bragg

Geo. N. Johnson Napa

G. O. Laws Weaverville

Ralph Newsome King City

Fred H. Post Salinas

H. S. Prescott Crescent City

K. J. Ransdell Ukiah

W. B. Sellmer Fairfax

A. H. Willard Rocklin

LAUNCH PATROL.

Charles M. Bouton Launch "Quinnat," San Rafael

John O'Connell Launch "Rainbow," Stockton

STATE LION HUNTER.
Jay C. Bruce San Lorenzo

Captains indicated in capitals.
*Patrol Lieutenants.

1925 ABSTRACT CALIFORNIA FISH AND CAME LAWS 1926

WHITE (QUARKS INDICATE OPEN SEASON NUMBERS IN SQUARES ARE OPEN DATES

THIS ABSTRACT WILL BE VALID UNTIL 90 DAYS AFTER ADJOURNMENT OF THE 1927 LEGISLATIVE SESSION

LICENSE PROVISIONS

HUNTING LICENSE License Tur'jaljr 1 to Just 30

BeiideoU, tlOO. Non-Besidents, $10.00 Declarant Alieni, $10.00. Other Aliene, $25.00.

ANGLINO LICENSE Uceneo Tear January 1 to December 31

fteiidente, $1.00. Ken-Residente, $3.00. Aliens, $3.00.
No angling license repaired of those under 18 years ef age.

TRAPPING LICENSE

Oitixeni, $1.00. Aliene, $3.00 Under 18 no license.

License Year July 1 to Josf 30

CALIFORNIA STATE PBINTXNQ OFriCB

JOHN E. KING, State Printer

SACRAMENTO, 1926