OFFSHORE FISHING IN BRISTOL BAY AND BERING SEA Marine Biological Laboratory DEC 19 1952 WOODS HOLE, MASS. SPECIAL SCIENTIFIC REPORT: FISHERIES No. 89 UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR FISH AND WILDLIFE SERVICE OFFSHORE FISHING IN BRISTOL BAY AND BERING SEA Marine Biological Laboratory DEC 19 1952 WOODS HOLE, MASS. SPECIAL SCIENTIFIC REPORT: FISHERIES No. 89 UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF THE INTERIOR FISH AND WILDLIFE SERVICE Explanatory Note The series embodies results of investigations, usually of restricted scope, intended to aid or direct nanagement or utilizatiai practices and as guides for administrative or legislative actiono It is issued in limited quantities for the official use of Federal, State or cooperating agencies and in processed form for economy and to avoid dealy in publication. Washington, D. C. October, 19^2 United States Department of the Interior, Oscar L. Chapman, Secretary- Fish and Wildlife Service, Albert M. Day, Director 0FF3HCRE FISHING M BRISTOL BAY AND BERING SEA By Joseph T. Bamaby Fishery Biologist CONTENTS Page Introduction , 1 Life history of salmon = . 1 Alaska salmon fishery 2 Regulations governing the fishery 3 Experimental offshore fishing 5 Operations in 1939 6 Summary of 1939 operations , 13 Operations in 19U0 lU Summary of 19U0 operations. . 20 Opera ti ons in 19 Ul 21 Summary of 19U1 operations 28 Conclusions 28 Appendix 30 Special Scientifc Report! Fisheries No. 89 INTRODUCTION Japanese interests, in 1930, extended their offshore fishing opera- tions for bottom fish and shellfish to the eastern, or Alaskan, side of the Bering Sea v^here the extension of the continental shelf provides con- ditions suitable for the growth and development of large populations of crabs and bottom fisho The edge of the continental shelf extends north- westerly from Unimak Pass, in the Aleutian Islands, nearly to the Siberian coast (see figure I). All the waters east and north of this "line" are less than 100 fathoms in depth whereas those west and south of the line^ except in the proximity of the islands of the Aleutian chain^ the Koman- dorski Islands and the Siberian coast, are quite deep, ranging up to 2200 fathoms. Thus practically one-half of Bering Sea - comprising an area of one-quarter of a million square miles - is part of the continental shelf. The area extending from the Pribilof Islands eastward to and including Bristol Bay and from the Alaska Peninsula northward to Nunivak and 3t, Matthew Islands is especially productive of bottom life such as crabs^ codfish, and flounders. At first, Japanese interests confined their activities to the taking of crabs, with a small operation for bottom fisho However, it was appar- ent by 1937 that they intended to extend their activities to include the taking of salmon. Positive eiddence was obtained by officials of the Fish and Wildlife Service and by members of the Bristol Bay salmon industry that Japanese vessels were engaged in salmon fishing. This discovery aroused such a storm of protest from the Pacific Northwest th5.t the Uo 3. Department of State protested to the Japanese Government. In addition, funds were made available to conduct a series of investigations on the sub- ject of offshore fishing in these waters. These investigations covered a variety of related subjects such as the migration routes of salmon as determined by tagging experiments, type of food organisms utilized by salmon, the currents, temperature, and chemical composition of the waters of eastern Bering Sea, etc. This paper deals vdth the life history of the salmon, the salmon fishery as carried on by United States nationals, the regulations imposed on the fisheries of Alaska by the United States Government, and the re- sults of the experimental offshore fishing carried on by the Fish and Wildlife Service during the years 1939, 19U0, and 19)41. LIFE HISTORY OF SALMON There are five species of salmon on the Pacific Coast of North America, all belongLng to the genus Oncorhynchus . In the order of their commercial value (in Alaska) they are as follows: red or sockeye, 0. nerkai pink, 0. gorbuscha; coho or silver, 0. kisutch; chum, 0. keta; and king or Chinook, 0. ts chawvts cha . 0) to ClJ -p C 0) c •H -P C o o (t x: +> CO •H Cfl 0) Sh CO X) a> a (X en o o o •H •H O Pi x: ■p o CO 0) CO c 0) D3 •H All of these salmon are anadromous . The eggs, which are deposited in the gravels of fresh v;ater streams and lakes during the summer and fallj hatch during the winter and following spring and the young fish - after a varying period of time depending on the species and locality - migrate to the ocean - After they have attained their full growth, thqy return to fresh -water to spawn. , It has been quite definitely demonstrated that the adult salmon return to spawn in the same stream from which they migrated as young fisho While there are some exceptions, there is no question of the fundamental fact that the majority of the salmon return to their "home stream". If a spawning area be depopulated - whether by overfishing or other causes - that area will remain depopulated until it has been restocked by the planting of eggs, fry, or spawning fish, an expensive undertaking that would have no assurance of siiccess. ALASKA SAU.TON FISHERY The salmon fishery of Alaska had its inception in I878 when a small pack of canned salmon was produced at Klawock on the west coast of Prince of Wales Island o The fishery expanded rapidly to all areas of Alaska and since the beginning of the century has been the chief industry of the Territory. Host of the fish are canned although some are frozen, salted, pickled, or delivered fresh to the consumer. The annual packs of canned salmon and their vfholesale values are presented in table 1, The wholesale values reflect only to a minor degree the intrinsic worth of the resource for canned salmon is an important source of highly nutritious, vitamin rich, protein in the nation's food economy. Salmon are caught by means of gill nets, beach seines, purse seines, and traps. All of these forms of gear are operated close to shore, the "fixed" gill nets, beach seines and traps usually having one end of the gear anchored on the beach. "Drift" gill nets and purse seines usually are operated in the estuaries of rivers or in bays. Regulations governing the fishery Owing to the rapid expansicn of the salmon fishery after its in- ception in 18783 fears were expressed by certain far-sighted individuals that unless the fishery were regi.ilated, the populations of salmon would be decimated and the resource destroyed by overexploitation. As a result, legistation regulating the fishery 'was passed by the Congress in I889 and subsequaitly numerous other acts refulating the fishery have been approved o In addition to specific regulations enacted by the Congress, Tabl« 1. Paok of Canned Salmon In Alaska from 1878 to 1943, by speoies* (in oases of 48 one-pound oans) Year Keds Kinga Cohos Pinks Chums Total Cases Value 1878 8,159 1879 12,530 1880 6,539 1881 8,977 1882 21,745 1883 48,337 1884 64,886 1885 83,415 1886 142,065 1887 206,677 1888 412,115 1889 719,196 1890 682,519 1891 801.400 1892 474,717 1893 643.654 1894 686.440 139S 626.530 1896 966,707 1897 909,078 1898 782,941 12,862 54,711 109,399 5,184 965,097 1899 864,254 23,400 39,402 149,159 1,931 1.078.146 1900 1,197,406 37,715 50,984 232,022 30,012 1.548,139 1901 1,319,335 43,069 65,509 541,427 47,464 2,016,804 1902 1,685,546 59,104 82,723 549, 602 159.849 2,536,824 1903 1,687,244 47,609 120,506 355,799 35.052 2,246,210 1904 1,505,548 41,956 85,741 299,333 21.178 1.953,756 1905 1,574,428 42,125 67,394 168,597 41,972 1,894,516 « 6,304,671 1906 1,475,961 30,834 109,141 348,297 254,812 2,219,044 7,896,392 1907 1,295,113 43,424 85,190 561,973 184,173 2,169,873 8,781,366 1908 1,651,770 23,730 68,827 644,133 218,513 2,606,973 10,185,783 1909 1,705,302 48,034 56,556 464,873 120.712 2,305,477 9,438,152 1910 1,450,267 40,221 114,026 554,322 254.218 2,413,054 11,086,322 1911 1,320,705 45,378 120,704 1,021,356 303.823 2,820,966 16,198,833 1912 1,904,258 52,594 170,384 1,303,365 638.528 4,060,129 16,890,229 1913 1,964,379 34,167 77,377 1,402,916 267.654 3,746,493 13,859,478 1914 2,201,574 48,165 157,792 997,823 662,478 4,067,832 19,719.942 1915 1,922,296 85,694 126,570 1,870,373 484,408 4,489,341 19.930.010 1916 2,119,442 66,179 265,184 1,753,546 715,238 4,919,589 23,823,428 1917 2,484,881 67,552 193,708 2.298,466 877,713 5,922,320 51.850,017 1918 2,618,559 57,367 216,572 2,418,212 ••1,366,859 6,677,569 52,877.823 1919 1,265,543 90,533 230,229 1,657,434 1,348,462 4,592,201 45,552,714 1920 1,500,000 ♦»110,0O3 192,085 1,593,120 1,033,517 4,395,937 37,050,212 1921 1,758,794 48,319 109,783 440,471 247,606 2,604,973 20.470.043 1922 2,075,397 31,604 174,312 1,657.556 662,496 4,501.428 31.006.027 1923 1,878,330 38,977 163,752 2,455,136 527,145 5,063,340 33,909,428 1924 1,449,724 33,741 182,207 2,613,068 1,027,183 5,305,923 34.581.689 1925 1,065,290 50,774 164,199 2,105,240 1,065,395 4,450,898 33.802,839 1926 2,157,087 52,476 202,527 3,338,349 902,443 6,652,882 46,080,004 1927 1,320,563 70,483 252,629 1,414,756 507,641 3,566,072 31,441,534 1928 1,944,061 51,195 297,886 2,785,464 991,504 6,070,110 45,624,968 1929 1,693,050 73,740 172,070 2,570,506 860,876 5,370,242 41.672.456 1930 848,787 63,560 329.988 3,150,652 596,000 4,988,987 29,884,813 1931 1,695,782 51,124 170,208 2,978,512 536,909 5,432,535 29,696,636 1932 2,104,727 68,709 149,351 2,116,573 821,128 5.260,488 20,449,405 1933 2,182,371 41,006 161,633 2,183,443 658,245 5,226,698 29,406,294 1934 ••2,626,002 51,367 235,560 3,822,602 735,055 7,470.586 37,040,830 1935 823,175 36,475 188,918 3,254,528 852,730 5.155,826 26,009.934 1936 2,482,555 57,908 218,232 4,589,270 1,106,983 ••8,454.948 44,078,213 1937 2,101,154 69,394 135,078 3,619,298 729,114 6,654,038 45,028,418 1938 2,523,123 42,726 216,732 3,222.104 786,859 6.791,544 36.547.250 1939 1,971,338 28,786 103,156 2.509,519 626,412 5,239,211 35,110,571 1940 953,381 22,303 284,130 2.908.025 860,539 5.028,378 31,828,451 1941 1,164,888 38,246 356,213 ••4.636,649 710,507 6 , 906 , 503 57,466,702 1942 912,006 43,127 »*372,537 2,818,650 942,789 5,089,109 48,677.509 1943 1,982,175 50,965 158,734 2,322,057 882,578 5,396,509 58,579,194 • Data from Paolfio Fisherman Yearbook •• Year of largest paok the Secretary of the Interior^/ was authorized by an act passed in 192l|.j to promulgate such additional regulations as in his opinion might from time to time be necessary. Under this authority^ numerous regulations have been imposed en the fishery to keep the populations of salmon at a high level of abundance with the ultimate objective of keeping the indus- try at its optimum level of "production c The Federal Government, through the Fish and Wildlife SerArice, also carries on extensive scientific studies of the salmon populations of Alaska to obtain infornation en the life his- tory of the species and to ascertain the causes of the fluctuations in abundance from year to year, and strictly enforces the regulations govern- ing the fishery. All this has been done with the sole intent of permitting the fishery to take the greatest number of salmon each year that is con- sistent v^ith the principles of sound conservationo The policy has met with some success as is evidenced by the fact that after some 50 years of inten- sive exploitation the populations, as a whole, are still at a high level of abundanceo In fact, the commercial pack of salmon in the Bristol Bay area in 1938 was the greatest in the history of the fishery <, The present healthy state of the fishery is not due to the presence of an undiminishable number of salmon but to constant vigilance and gen- erally wise management of the resourceo Examples of sudden declines in abundance of certain populations as a result of localized overexploitation have occurred in the past and should serve as a stern warning that should adequate control of the fishery be lost, disaster - in the form of irrepar- able depletion - is bound to follow. EXPERIMENTAL OFFSHORE FISHING On July 1, 1938, funds were made available to the Fish and Wildlife Service to carry on investigations relating to the migration routes' and availability of salmon in western Alaska and particularly the salmon of the Bristol Bay Region o Through the cooperation of the U. S. Coast Guard, the U. S. 3. Redwing was outfitted to carry en oceanographic and related studies in v/estern Alaska (eastern Bering Sea) and investigations were conducted in 1938, 1939, 1 / As used herein the term "Secretary of the Interior" refers to the Secretary of Commerce prior to July 1, 1939 and the Secretary of the Interior from that date. The Fish and Wildlife Service vtas originally es- tablished on February 9, I87I, as the Commission of Fish and Fisheries, an independent agencyj it was redesignated the Bureau of Fisheries on July 1, 1903 J when it was by law included in the newly created Department of Commerce and Labor. On July 1, 1939, the Bureau was transferred to the Departmient of the Interior, and on June 30, 19U0, it was merged with the Bureau of Biological Survey and bfecame the Fish and Wildlife Service. and 19hO and for a very short period in 19U1- In the fall of 1938 and the spring of 1939, plans were made for a program of experimental fishing to study the availability of salmon in the offshore waters of Bristol Bay and the Alaska Peninsula. liVhen inaugurating the stuc^^ of the availability of the Bristol Bay salmon in the offshore vraters, numerous questions arose in connection v/ith the first season's field v/ork, the most vital being as f ollovirs : V/here would be the most logical place to start operations? What type of gear could be used most effectively to catch the fish? What type of fishing vessels would be needed? It was decided to start the fishing operations as far from the rivers in Bristol Bay as possible and yet intercept a portion of the salmon run. While no definite information was available as to vihere such a locality might be, it was finally decided to carry on operations betv/een Cape Seni- avin (a point on the northern shore of the Alaska Peninsula about thirty miles northeast of Port Moller) and Cape Newenham (a point on the nothern shore of Bristol Bay vfhere the shore line turns abruptly northward) » The distance between these tvro points is approximately 1^0 nautical miles and a line between these two points roughly represents the western boundary of B.ristol Bay. The nearest Bristol Bay river to this section line is the Ugashik, which is sons 100 miles distant, while the KvichakjNaknek, and Nushagak rivers are some 1^0 miles distant (see figure h) • Because fishing operations for salmon had never been carried on by American nationals so far from shore as was planned, no data were avail- able as to the tj'pe of gear that would be most efficient and practical. It was considered that the gear should be of sufficient magnitude to insure the capture of salmon, if any were pres'-nt, and capable of being taken aboard the fishing vessel in a relatively short time in case of a sudden storm. Operations in 1939 Two purse seine vessels of the type used in the Pacific Coast pilchard fishery were employed in the fishing operations during 1939. These vessels the Anna A of 89 gross tons, 69.2 feet registered lengthy 20. U feet breadth and 9-9 feet depth,' and the Western Flyer (see figure 2)of 93 gross tons, 71.0 feet registered length, 19«3 feet breadth and 8.9 feet depth were of sturdy ccnstruction, very good sea boats, had a long cruising radius and were equipped with radio telephone. One vessel was equipped to operate a large salmon purse seine. This seine was 300 fathoms long and approximately 19 fathoms deep. The other vessel carried a combination lead and gill net. The lead was 900 fathoms long and 300 meshes deep - when in use, this net hung ap- CO • » 0) JZ +i >> X) M c •H x: OT ■H tw r-{ ai -p c a> s •H f^ OJ a, X • 0) o -cr c CT\ •H rH T3 Xl 0) to § 3 0\ to n-\ CTI Os 5 i-t rH oc 0) c « •H M 0) ^ > X) to a> •H o e-^ u Q) • CO U 0) 0) >.«H (H •H fc rH X) E rH •rH Q) S -P to •c 0} c S nJ • Xi CO to S fc •H 00 c •H u m a u 0) -p n « 43 0} c •si a o c c u 0) c •H O -P O e O +5 O J3 O ■P-=f •H O O 0) O en r>^ tlO •H c a> m (U •H -P •H rH Cd O o 0) -p o •H T3 C •H to -P o o -p X 0) +i (!) -p c •H Q) U CO d •H c 0) a, rt CO nl 0) (0 J2 -P ■P o X) Xl c 0) a) to 0) 0) CO JD bO UJ C - - 13U - 132 328* - 56 - 91 - 2U 3 231 1 68 - 90 - 77 - 3U 1 17 )4 32 h UU h 2 U9 *Due to stormy weather these saLaon were not segregated as to species, Table 8. Average catch per set made by gill nets betvireen Cape Mordvinof and the Pribilof Islands Miles from No. of Average catch per set Cape sets Mordvinof Reds Chums Kings Pinks Cohos Total 0- Uo • 6 3U.o-;i- 5U.7-=^ 0.3* 9.0* 0.7* 91.9 Ul- 80 2 26.5 27 „0 - 2.5 — 56.0 81-120 3 31.^ 15.7 — 1.3 — U8.7 121-160 3 U0.5 80.0 — 0.5 - 121o0 161-200 2 3S.^ 12.5 - - — U8.0 201-2UO U 15.3* 6^.7i^ — - - 1U2.8 ^Average of 3 sets only. This section line passed by St. George Island, the southernmost island of the Pribilof group, and extended to Northeast Point on St. Paul Island; four of the stations along the section line, i.e. No. 32,33,3U and 35, being betvreen these two islands. Salmoniiere taken at every station fished. It is of interest to note that the largest catch v/as nade at station 32, cne of the stations located between the islands. There are no salmon streams on any of the islands in the Pribilof group. The data on the catches made between the Pribilof Islands and Nunivak Island, are presented in tables 9 and 10. Table 9. Gill net catches made along the section line extending from the Pribilof Islands to Nunivak Island during 19U0. Date Station number Miles from Pribilof Islands Nui±)er of salmon caught Reds Chums Kings Pinks Total June 17 36 17 168 2U 18 37 57 Ikh 10 19 38 97 21 ■ 138 21 Uo 190 15 286 July 13 39 157 1 113 lU 38 97 2 lU 1 193 - 155 1 l6o :0 321 - llU 1 17 Table 10. Average catch per set made by gill nets between the Pribilof Islands and Nunivak Island. Miles from No. of sets Averagi 3 catch per set Pribilof Islands Reds Chums Kings Pinks Total 0- ho . 1 168.0 2U.0 _ 1.0 193.0 Ul- 80 1 lUU.O 10. C 1.0 - 155.0 81-120 2 11.5 76.0 - 1.0 88.5 121-160 1 1.0 113.0 - — iiU.o 161-200 1 15.0 286.0 — 20.0 321,0 The catch of red salmon dropped off markedly north of station 37 whereas the catch of chum salmon increased. Most of the red salmon found here are undoubtedly enroute to Bristol Bay watersheds and those populations may not frequent these northern waters to any great extent during their migra- tion. The chum salmcn, however, probably are part of the populations enroute to theKuskokwim and Yukon rivers as well as to some of the small streams on the mainland and en Nunivak Island. 17 On June 30, one of the vessels was detailed to operate betv/een Cape Seniavin and Cape Newenhani to repeat the operations made along that section Ijne in 1939. The data for these catches are presented in tables 11 and 12 The first set was made on July 2, but stormy weather interrupted the program and no further sets could be made until July lUo CHvjng to unfavorable weather^ there 'vvas not sufficient tine for an adequate coverage of this section. "Tiile the data confirm, in a measure, the results obtained in 1939, it is unfortunate that only a small number of sets were made and that the northern third of the section could not be fished at all. Table 11. Gill net catches made along the secticn line extending from Cape Seniavin to Cape Newenham during 19U0. laie s Date station number from Capf Number • of sal mon caught Reds Chums Kings Pinks Cohos Total Seniavin July 2 1 10 UU8 51 7 2 ^ 508 lU 2 20 27 20 — 16 - 63 17 10 9Q 15 i;2 1 . i+3 3 lOU 18 5 % 3U 15 1 36 — 86 19 2 20 7U 3^ - 12 3 121; 22 2 20 27 3 - h - 3U 23 6 60 9 23 1 12 3 U8 2U 11 100 10 12 2 6 37 67 25 6 60 7 8 - 15 3 33 26 3 30 16 3 - h U 27 Table 12. Average catch per set made by gill nets between Cape Seniavin and Cape Newenham during I9UO. Mies from No. of Average ca itch per set Cape Senia- vin sets Reds Chums Kings Pinks Cohos Total 0- 20 k 114+. 0 27o2 1,8 8.5 0.7 182 0 2 21- liO 1 16,0 3.0 - U.o h.o 27.0 111- 60 3 16 o7 15.3 0.7 21.0 2.0 55.7 61- 80 0 — — — 81-100 2 12.5 27.0 1,5 2U.5 20.0 85.5 The Bristol Bay salmon run is of very short duration, 90 percent of the annual Bristol Bay commercial catch being made in a three-week inter- val. Consequently, direct comparisons, for the puirpose of determining 18 relative abundance between the catches made along different section lines, are not justifiable unless the catches are made almost simultaneously. Since the great distances separating the sections precluded the possibility of simultaneous operations along all three sections, it is not considered advisable to draw other than general conclusions as to relative abundance. It is evident, however, that salmon are present in all the waters east of a line from the Islands of Four Mountains to Nunivak Island, via the Pribi- lofs, and it appears that salmon are more abundant in the waters on the continental shelf than they are in the waters beyond the edge of the shelf. It also appears that red salmon are as abundant, if not more so, around the Pribilof Islands as they are south of the Islands, but that their abundance decreases to the north of those is lands „ When taking the salmon out of the gear a record was kept, insofar as was possible, of the side of the net that the fish had entered. As the 'th-south direction, it is possible to ob- in Tifhich the fish were traveling when table 13, are grouped according to the from the Islands of Four Mountains to the Pribilof Islands, from Cape Mordvinof to the Pribilof Islands, from the Pribilof Islands to Nunivak Island, and from Cape Seniavin to Cape Newenham. gear was always set out in a norl tain some idea of the direction caught o The data, presented in four section lines fished, i.e. Table 13 » Percentage of fish traveling in an easterly direction when caught during I9U0, Area Reds Chums Pinks Cohos No. ex- Per- No. ex. Per- amined cent amined cent east east No. ex- Per- No. ex- Per- amined cent amined cent east east Four Moun- tains to Pribilofs 71 87.3 179 78.2 Cape Mord- vinof to Pribilofs 201 83 06 296 69.3 Pribilofs to Nunivak Island 255 96. U 380 U9.7 25.0 Cape Senia- vin to Cape Newenham 315 97 oU 253 85.0 112 93.7 51 98.0 19 It can be seen that in nearly every area and for nearly every species , a very high percentage of the fish were traveling in an easterly direcion. The two exceptions were the pink salmon and the chum salmon taken between the Pribilof Islands and Munivak Islando Very few pinks viere examined and the percentage figure probably is of little significanceo However, a fair sample of chum salmon was examined and it v;as found that about one-half the fish were traveling easterly and one-half westerlyo Stating the directicn of travel as easterly or westerly does not imply that the fish were traveling due east or due westo A fish traveling in a direction slightly east of north or east of south, that entered the net from the west side^ would be recorded as traveling easterly, whereas it should more properly be considered as traveling northerly or southerly. The same thing is true of a fish that entered the net from the east sidej i.e^j the fish vfould be recorded as traveling westerly, wherfeas it m:ght have been traveling southwesterly, westerly or northwesterly. Thus it is very probable that many of the shun salmon which were recorded as travelj-ng westerly (and also to some extent those which v/ere found to be traveling easterly) were actually traveling in a northerly di- rection enroute to the Yukon River or to other salmon streams to the north- wardo A part of the fish probably were not actively migrating and hence might have been moving at random in search of foodo Despite the apparent random movements of some of the fish, it is apparent that the general move- ment of the red salracrij in the areas fished, was in an easterly direction regardless of how far offshore the fish were taken . It has been commonly assumed that all of the Bristol Bay salmon mi- grate through Unimak Pass and spend the greater part of their ocean resi- dence in the Viraters south of the Alaska Peninsula, and that on their spawning migrations they come in from the ocean to the spawning grounds via Unimak Pass, The catching of salmon between the Islands of Four Mountains and the Pribilofs indicates that some of the salmon undoubtedly enter Bering Sea through passes to the westward of Unimak. It likevfise seems probable that many of the Bristol Bay salmon never leave Bering Sea at all but remain north of the Alaska Peninsula throughout their ocean residence. Summary of 19hO operations lo During the course of the 19U0 operations salmon could be caught in all areas fished in Bering Seao 2o The most westerly section line fished vras between the Islands of Four Mountains and the Pribilof Islands, slightly over U50 miles from the nearest Bristol Bay river o 3o Three of the four localities fished between the Islands of Four Mountains and the Pribilofs were beyond the continental shelf, the depth of vrater ranging up to 1,600 fathomSo The salmon were caught, however, in 20 the upper six ikthoms of water as the gear cnly fished to that depth. Uc A very high percentage of the salmon caught were traveling in an easterly direction, regardless of wind or tide or distance off shore. 5. Salmon were as abundant, if not more so, in the vicinity of the Pribilof Islands as in any other locality along the Cape Kordvinof-Pribilof Islands -Nunivak Island section line. 6. It seems probable that some of the Bristol Bay salmon never mi- grate south of the Aleutian Islands but remain in Bering Sea during their entire ocean residence. 7. While many of the salmon that have migrated south of the Aleutians pass by the Shumagin Islands and Ikatan Bay on their return migration and go through Unimak Pass enroute to Bristol Bay rivers and other rivers enter- ing Bering Sea, it seems highly probable that many fish also enter Bering Sea through other passes to the westward such as Akatan, Umnak, Araukta,etc. 8. Most of the salmon caught in the offshore waters were actively feeding at the time of capture. (A report on the food habits of the salmon of this region has not yet been released, however the most common food found in the stomachs was euphasiids and small fish). Operations in 19Ul In I9UI, only one vessel was engaged in experimental offshore fishing; the American Star of 98 gross tons, 70.7 feet registered length, 20.5 feet breadth and 9»2 feet depth (see figure 6). The gear used en this vessel was as follows: 700 fathoms of linen gill net, 5 ply (2 green strans), 5-1/2 inches stretched measure, 91 meshes deep; 225 fathoms cotton gill net, 20/9 cable fine yarn, h inches stretched measure, 125 meshes deep;- and 125 fathoms cotton gill net, 20/6 cable fine yam, 2-1/2 inches stretched measure, 200 meshes deep, making one net 1175 fathoms long, 500 inches deep stretched measure. This net "hung" about six fathoms deep. The reason for using three sizes of gill nets was to determine if immature fish could be taken in the waters fished. Cotton webbing was used in the smaller sizes of webbing owing to certain difficulties in- volved in obtaining linen webbing of those sizes. The cotton webbing was treated with a copper preservative to dye the webbing green and to prolong its useful life. As fish had been caught in all areas fished in previous years it was decided to run a section as far viest of Bristol Bay as fish could be caught. Consequently, starting at Unimak Pass fishing operations were carried on 300, U95, 650^ 755 a^d 87O miles ^ est of the B,];:i;stol Bay rivers. I 21 CD bJ C ■^ to •H -P c c •H -a o 9 , rH w -=i tJ Os » r-{ fH tc 0) c W ■H CO ^ > TJ CO 03 •H O fi •H t 03 • CO tn cfl •H -P (U •H x: rH +^ tfl O c o •H rH 0) ^ -P 01 T) o (1) •H U T) U C Q) •H tH Q) tn !-, +J o to « U Qi X3 • E C 3 ctf C (U O c o o •rt o -P •H CO tfj •P •H to tj nJ Q) CL U CO x: -p tn ^ -P o o 2 T3 T) QJ s T3 •H m CO 0) 0/ J3 tn to Ul 0) c •H ^ Jh tiL Q) •H m &H •H 2U - 1- II* O ^ y . -p rH >< (fl (U -P ■p C 0) a> n £ •H -p -P C c O •H o O a' 4^ j:: -P •o (l> c h o r^ 0) CO C cd C 4> •rt CO ^ bo T) c •H T) u iH m rest of the Islands of Four Mountains o !;« In agreement with the data collected during previous years, most of the salmon taken were actively feeding at the time of capture. 5o Further evidence was obtained, in the catching of irauBture fish to justify the belief that some salmon never migrate south of the Alaska Peninsula but remain in Bering Sea throughout their ocean residence. CONCLUSIONS lo The salmon populations of Alaska are a self-perpetuating resource, and the present high level of baundance and productivity is the result of generally wise and sound conservation measures promulgated and enforced by the U. 3. Governraento These populations are being fished by American -nation- als as intensively as possible consistent with intelligent managerial proced- ure. The resource, however, is extremely vulnerable to overexploitation, and only through constant surveillance can the present level of productivity be maintained,. Unrestrained exploitation would most certainly result in depletion of the resource and finaicial loss to the industry. 2, Experimental fishing operations conducted, by the Uo 3. Fish and Wildlife Service have shewn that salmon can be taken at any locality on the continental shelf In eastern Bering Sea. 'SVhile the exploratory fishing was not designed for testing ful]ythe feasibility of commercial operations in these waters there is little doubt that such operations could be carried on^ if not at every locality on the shelf at least in many and especially in the offshore waters of Bristol Bay proper. Experimental fishing opei'a- 28 tions were not carried on closer tl-an a section line 100 miles from the nearest Bristol Bay- river „ However from that section line eastward the width of the Bay becomes progressively smaller, similarly the concentra- tion of salmon would become progre»sively greater, and consequently the salmon would become progressively easier to capture. 3. In addition to the salmon populations residing in or passing through the waters of eastern Bering Sea, there are large populations of bottom fishes and shellfishes residing on the continental shelf in this region,, ViThile United States nationals have not intensively engaged in fishing operations for such species, except for cod, it is only a matter of time before these rescurces on our continental shelf will be prosecuted. h' In addition to the problem of protecting the fishery resources of Alaska after the war, there will also be the problem of protecting the fur seals which breed on the Pribilof Islands. These seals were protected by a tr^ty betv/een Russia, Canada, the United States and Japan, under the terms of which the nationals of these states were prohibited, with certain minor exceptions, from engaging in pelagic sealingo Japan abrogated this treaty effective October 19Ul. 29 APPENDIX Table 19<. Latitude and Longitude of stations where experimental fishing was carried on during 1939, 19U0 and 19Ul'> (latitude north and longitude west, except as noted) Station Station number Latitude Long: Ltude number Latitude Longitude 1 56° 3U> 160° 15' 31 56° 58- 169° 32' 2 56 U3 160 23 32 56 hh 169 Uo 3 56 52 160 31 33 56 U2 169 U3 h 57 01 16 0 39 3U 56 ^2 169 53 5 57 10 160 U7 3^ 56 59 170 OU 6 57 19 160 ^^ 36 57 30 169 53 7 57 28 161 03 37 58 06 169 20 8 57 32 161 07 38 58 U2 168 li8 9 57 37 161 11 39 ^9 36 168 00 10 57 U6 161 19 Uo 60 00 167 18 11 57 "^S 161 27 Ui 5U U3 165 10 12 58 13 161 U3 U2 53 2U 169 03 13 58 26 161 ^^ U3 53 16 170 02 lU 53 25 169 U5 UU 52 55 170 28 15 5U 20 170 00 U5 52 U5 171 56 16 ^$ lU 170 lU 1;6 52 22 173 28 17 56 10 170 30 U7 52 26 17I1 11 18 5U 55 16U 31 U8 52 oU 176 57 19 55 00 165 16 1;9 52 09 179 63 East 20 55 11 165 16 50 S^ UU 16U 5U 21 ^^ 16 165 31 51 56 31 165 19 22 ^S 26 166 01 52 57 20 165 U6 23 ^^ 37 166 31 53 58 08 166 12 21; S^ U2 166 U6 5U 58 s^ 166 UO 2$ SS U7 167 01 55 60 35 168 13 26 $^ 57 167 31 56 60 29 169 63 27 56 02 167 U6 57 60 22 171 07 28 56 05 167 5U 58 S9 58 172 03 29 56 07 168 02 S9 59 18 170 U8 30 56 23 168 U8 60 58 3U 170 20 30 5 WHSE 01071