California. Dept. of Fish and Game. Biennial Report 1950-1952. (bound volume) c.2 DATE DUE (bound volume) c„z n-c^ California. Dept. of Fish and Game. Biennial Report 1950-1952. California Resources Agency Library 1416 9th Street, Room 117 Sacramento, California 95814 ornia STATE OF^CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND GAME Z i se * cr UJ S 5 * ; so z !° 5 » ^ <»> 5 O i ^ o o 0T UJ to z o o ft: Q £ CL Uj k 1 ' Z a to kj i fe<0 > -1 * 0 Q o to * 3- kj ^ * fc Z tS I | m u O t- to z > K z lO o to o to UJ < r K -j <0 VENT A USINE FICE; OURE - 3 /VfSS a bl x C "> * * ^ => ^ ^_ O ■> <0 < Ui > /v/sr to z < or S/577 CENT ZATI z o k. 2 ^ o > ^ P= kj * s * * ° Q W0£S S SRVISES DIES ttl^ik a. m <* V) V) 1 I o t- < I in kl 'O O to M ^ ft: 3g u. 1 ki ^ Q < UJ * 2 * CD Z UJ (9 V) z UJ o Z UJ k. ■J * kj <* z 2 < V) kj *?,s < 2 u_" q y> * 5! c^ ct Z X s k. ft. ft. s o 1 kj t> r # o to 1 < or m (A UJ or UJ X CO to to vj kj 5 ki to kj * vi ^ kj <* K UJ I to Q z < -J z V) 51 k. Q 1 - ta ^ to * * * £ o ^ $> Q: -J 3 ft. ft. 5 Q ** e Z '■•> or CI ft z I or CJ O o O UI a: < 1 ct kj ft. o z UI 5 -I z 4 ss ^ UI Q ly > 1- > to a: /Sf S REG SS OFFIC E OPERA *!? z ^ a to UPERV USINE ICENS < wi ■ " d« /tot/ _l i w 1 ^_ h- Z UJ V] S m is S^ 2 <" 5 p < > S -> Z ,i w * S« cr to UJ I to to 5 u. l UJ % Z a o ui o kj *x ft: k. z > < o: tfc . UJ 3 Z « ft. * to «o 1 Organizational Chart of the Department of Fish and Game FORTY-SECOND BIENNIAL REPORT 13 Harry R. Anderson, seasoned Department of Finance employee, be- came administrative deputy, in charge of finances, personnel, licenses, office administration, engineering and construction, and other "house- keeping" duties. At the close of the hiennium, plans had been worked out with the Personnel Board and the Department of Finance for filling other posi- tions brought about by the Reorganization Act, including regional man- agers, and regional fisheries management, game management, and busi- ness management supervisors. As in prior periods, the Department of Natural Resources continued to handle, on a contractural basis, the department's accounting and personnel services. Some time during the next fiscal year these services will be taken over by the Department of Fish and Game. There were indications that the department would be operating through five integrated regional units b.y December, 1952. Because of a shortage of suitable office space in Sacramento, the mov- ing of Departmental headquarters from San Francisco to the Capitol City, as requested in a 1951 Legislative resolution, had not yet been accomplished at the end of the biennium. RESERVE FUNDS SHRINKING The means taken by employees of the Department of Fish and Game, to keep pace with the needs of an estimated 2,000,000 California sports- men, are recorded elsewhere in this report under the individual bureau functions. They have done a creditable job, and are fast securing recog- nition for the department as one of the Nation's finest groups of con- servation workers. But the vast program of fish and game administration in California from July 1, 1950, to June 30, 1952, also includes the cooperation of many related agencies, organizations, landowners, and many other in- dividuals. Statements of revenues, expenditures, and fund sources will be found in Appendix " A. " A review thereof will indicate the trend of income and expenditures, and the effect on the fund balance. Dollar- wise our revenues have increased because more Calif ornians are hunting and fishing, but due to inflation and greatly expanded op- erations our revenues are not keeping pace with the expenditures. The department's dollars, just like those of individuals, simply do not buy the same services, equipment, and supplies they did a few years ago. The drain on our accumulated reserves is reflected in a decreasing balance. During the Fiscal Year 1951-52, expenditures exceeded income by $246,355. Although this is the first year this has occurred in recent times, it appears to be the beginning of a trend where expenditures will ma- terially exceed revenues, especially if the present and projected expan- sion programs of the department are continued, unless additional revenue is made available. Conservatively estimating, and assuming we will not be confronted by further inflation, it now appears that by June 30, 1955, the accumulated reserve will be used up. Then, unless the de- partment's income is increased in a material way, a curtailment of activities must be effected. 14 DEPARTMENT OE FIST! AND GAME COMPARATIVE STATEMENT OF REVENUES, EXPENDITURES AND FUND RESOURCES 1950-51 1951-52 Fisoal Year Fiscal Year Accumulated surplus, July $5,737,501 $5,978,444 Revenues 5,418,152 5,792,033 Expenditures 5,177,209 6,038,388 Revenue in excess of expenditures +$240,943 Accumulated surplus June 30 $5,978,444 —$246,355 $5,732,089 1,100,000- 900,000- 700,000- 500,000- 300,000- 100,000- 1940 390,342 1941 460,715 1942 433,431 1943 447,352 1944 436,940 1945 557,536 1946 768,816 1947 884,772 1948 960,146 1949 991,903 1950 983,019 1951 1,015,469 1952 (est.) 1,066,242 600,000 500,000 400,000- 300,000- 200,000 NUMBER OF HUNTING LICENSES SOLD Year Number 1939-40 270,095 1940-41 291,507 1941-42 331,878 1942-43 268,128 1943-44 284,370 1944-45 318,910 1945-46 393,282 1946-47 487,307 1947-48 507,068 1948-49 504.021 1949-50 496,975 1950-51 491,424 1951-52 534.684 FORTY-SECOND BIENNIAL REPORT 15 THE FISH AND GAME COMMISSION Without question the boldest forward step taken by the five-man Fish and Game Commission during the biennium was the implementa- tion of a new deer management policy adopted at the close of the pre- ceding biennium. Since inauguration of the buck law in 1907, Califor- nia's deer herds have increased to the point where the annual surplus is not being properly harvested. The waste of this resource, when hunters report taking around 5 percent of the population of a million-plus deer, while other western states crop 20, 25 and as high as 33 percent an- nually, can be imagined. Simply, the 14-point policy aims to eliminate waste in the manage- ment of California 's deer herds by bringing deer numbers into balance with the carrying capacity of their ranges, to the advantage of the hunters as well as the neighboring ranchers. The first antlerless deer hunting season on the California mainland was declared by the commission in 1950. Under a lottery permit system, hunters removed surplus deer which had overbrowsed their range. Sub- sequent special hunting seasons, complying with the basic deer manage- ment provisions, met with varying public reaction. It became evident that an intensive educational program is needed to show the need for immediate inauguration of deer management practices comparable to those long applied by ranchers engaged in the successful production of domestic livestock. Another much-needed action was taken by the commission in 1951 with the definition of an inland fisheries management policy. This master plan for better fishing was drafted under the guidance of Alan C. Taft, former chief of the Bureau of Fish Conservation, who retired toward the close of the biennium. Both the deer and inland fisheries management policies appear in Appendix F. In 1950, sportsmen and residents along the Southern California coast became aroused over the loss of fish caused by offshore blasting in the underwater search for oil deposits. There seemed reason to believe that the seismic charges were injurious to fish life, and the commission with- held all further seismic permits. Following tests made by the Scripps Institution of Oceangraphy, ex- perimental permits were issued in order to test the effects of black powder, instead of dynamite, charges. Results showed the new technique harmless to fish life, and limited permits were again issued. The crisis in the sardine industry was something the commission and its employees had warned of as early as 1939. The inability of various factions of the industry to get together caused the commission to appoint the director of the department as chairman of a representative com- mittee with the primary assignment of recommending legislation to aid the sardine fishery. At the end of the biennium the differences had not 3^et been resolved. In postwar years, enlightened sportsmen had been following more closely the expenditure of their license dollars for widespread planting of game birds. With the mounting cost of feed, the cost of raising and releasing each pheasant, for example, totaled as much as two or three dollars. Adding the expected field loss, the protection of hens and other 16 DEPARTMENT OP PISH AND GAME factors, the total cost of each cock in the hunter's bag- was considerably higher. Commissioners adopted a far-reaching plan which eventually will cut by 50 percent the State 's former game farm output of more than 100,000 young birds a year. Hereafter adult birds only will be planted in suit- able habitat, and where the wild breeding stock is below capacity. Much like the deer management j)lan, the bold, unprecedented steps appear drastic, but they can only result in better hunting and a better account- ing of the sportsman's license dollar. Among the many actions taken by the commission during the bien- nium, two others must be mentioned. Commissioners went on record in opposition to the reduction of anchovies into commercial oils and meals, and set up a new policy governing the harvest of kelp off the Southern California coast which protects both fish life and the kelp beds. At the start of this biennium, the members of the California Fish and Game Commission were : Harvey E. Hastain, President-. Brawley Lee F. Payne Los Angeles Paul Denny Etna Edwin L. Cartv Oxnard William J. Silva_. .-Modesto Following the resignation of Edwin L. Carty on September 6, 1950, the Governor appointed Carl F. Wente of San Francisco to fill the vacancy. At the close of the biennium, the membership of the commission was as follows : Paul Denny, President; Lee F. Payne, Harvey E. Hastain, William J. Silva, Carl F. Wente. E. L. Macaulay served as executive officer of the commission until September 22, 1951, when the Charles Brown Reorganization Act became effective. At that time, he returned to his permanent civil service posi- tion as Chief of the Bureau of Patrol and Law Enforcement. William J. Harp left his post as Assistant Chief of Patrol and Law Enforcement in May, 1952, to accept the appointment as assistant to the commission, an exempt position. 1HE CALIFORNIA LEGISLATURE Perhaps in no other legislative session during the last 75 years have so many significant bills affecting California fish and game and its administration been passed as in 1951. Legislators made notable progress in the fields of sportsman conduct and safety, protection of the rights and property of landowners, administrative operation of the outmoded Division of Fish and Game, and the controversial licensed game bird club laws. The late Lester T. Davis, Assemblyman from the Second District, con- tributed much toward safer hunting in California and improved rela- tions with ranchers by his successful sponsorship of bills to punish offenders for carrying of loaded guns in vehicles, hunting while intoxi- cated, causing property damage while hunting or fishing, shooting FORTY-SECOND BIENNIAL REPORT 17 within 150 yards of dwellings and outbuilding's, and the wounding or killing of another person while hunting. The concrete expressions of good will toward landowners and the new code of hunter conduct puts California abreast of other progressive states in legislation of this type. The law prohibiting the sale of deer hides, which was temporarily lifted during the last war to permit the manufacture of warm gloves for airmen and troops engaged in combat in the colder regions, was permanently removed inasmuch as there is no longer sufficient profit in the traffic of deer hides to induce hunters to devote the time and effort necessary to collect marketable quantities. Laws governing the former misnamed game management areas, sub- ject to much debate among operator and sportsman partisans, were more closely defined in the 1951 legislative session, to the apparent satisfac- tion of all parties. The areas will be known in the future as private licensed game bird clubs. A great new fishing industry was born when the Legislature passed a law making it possible for the first time to net prawns and shrimp in quantity in ocean waters. Initial reports from the new fishery are encouraging. It is still too early to evaluate fully bills affecting ocean angling licenses and further restricting inland commercial fishing. Bitter oppo- sition from commercial fishing people, accompanied by jubilation from sports fishing segments, marked the new law which removed gill nets from the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta. The first reaction from the public to the new law which allows free ocean angling from all public piers might be compared to the effect of finding an imaginary $3 bill on the sidewalk. Many informed sportsmen, in reconsidering the free pier fishing law have come to believe that there was a dangerous hook in this legislative generosity, because a reduced income in the marine fisheries field means reduced services. In view of the present heavy pressure on California's ocean fisheries, an extension of free fishing privileges is an invitation to disaster. In other actions, the Legislature continued for two years the regu- latory powers of the Fish and Game Commission; made it illegal to possess striped bass in bait shops, markets and restaurants; adopted a strong law against artificial barriers or log jams in north coastal streams ; and vastly improved the law with reference to the installation and main- tenance of fish screens in the smaller water diversions. Outstanding among the progressive actions of the 1951 session was the adoption of the Senator Charles Brown Reorganization Act, which removed the Division of Fish and Game from the Department of Natural Resources and made it an independent department. CONSERVATION EDUCATION AND PUBLIC INFORMATION All activities of the public information section were stepped up during the biennium to meet the demands of license buyers, the press, sports- men's groups and the public for information concerning the activities and policies of the Department of Fish and Game, Fish and Game Com- mission, AVildlife Conservation Board and related groups. 18 DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND GAME In June, 1051, an editorial assistant was employed on a permanent basis. He was assigned to primary public information duties concerning the marine fisheries field and as an aide in all other fields. This section is concerned primarily with the mass media, such as newspapers, radio, exhibits, and pamphlets. In all such fields, except radio and television, the section's output was considerably increased. In October, 1951, the section took on the added duty of editing and issuing the department's Monthly Progress Report. This new version of the old monthly report is mailed to registered sportsmen's clubs, depart- ment personnel, interested individuals, and representatives of the press. Information media representatives receiving Outdoor California, the press release issued each week, were placed on a first-class mailing list, while others remained on the second-class mailing list. A series of cartoon-type mats, describing phases of conservation, was requested by more than 300 California publications. The mats, issued monthly, are available in two- and three-column sizes. Exhibit material capable of transportation in the standard passenger car was designed and offered by the information section to sportsmen's groups and department personnel for standardized official exhibits in local shows and fairs. For the first time since 1947, the department was represented in the State Fair in 1951, as the result of a legislative budget addition. 7HE WILDLIFE CONSERVATION BOARD The far-sighted Wildlife Conservation Act of 1947, by which the Legislature created the Wildlife Conservation Board to direct the ex- penditure of $9,000,000 worth of state pari-mutuel proceeds for capital construction projects, was again given a boost by legislators in 1951. When it became obvious that the original $3,000,000-a-year-for-three- years financial basis was inadequate for the tremendous task of keeping ahead of the State's growing need for conservation projects, an addi- tional $3,000,000 was allocated in 1951, at the rate of $1,000,000 annually. When the board's consultant, Seth Gordon, became the first director of the new Department of Fish and Game, Everett E. Horn was named as wildlife projects coordinator. Horn had served as one of the board's special consultants in 1949, and was nationally recognized as an out- standing administrator in the conservation field. During the biennium, 17 new projects were approved by the board; 18 projects were completed ; and 13 projects were canceled as not feasible because of physical or biological difficulties. As of June 30, 1952, more than $9,525,000 had been allocated to 78 projects: Fish hatchery and stocking projects (16) $4,118,023 Warm-water and other fish projects (9) 134,500 Flow maintenance and stream improvements projects (17) 404,953 Screen and ladder projects (13) _. 404,603 State game farm projects (4) 105,644 Other upland game projects (4) 441,077 Waterfowl management projects (11) 3,806,310 General projects (4) 110,040 Total (78 projects) $9,525,150 FORTY-SECOND BIENNIAL REPORT 19 In addition to the specific allocations above, the following reserves were established: (1) Mendocino National Forest Stream Improvement and Flow Maintenance Program — $15,000, and (2) Colorado River Rec- reational Development — $50,000. Completed Projects Black Rock Rearing Ponds: Inyo County. Completed January, 1951; cost: $.30,000. Experimental Pond Construction; state-wide. Experimental ponds for test purposes costing $12,000. Completed June, 1951. Fish Springs Rearing Ponds; Inyo County. $400,000 plant completed April. 1952. Kern River Hatchery; Kern County. $48,000 plant completed May, 1952. Mt. Shasta Hatchery ; Siskiyou County. $251,250 plant completed June, 1952. Flow Maintenance and Stream Improvement Projects Crystal Lake Level Maintain nee; Los Angeles County. Completed November, 1950; cost: $12,700. Fish Screen and Ladder Projects Burnt Ranch Fulls Fish Ladder; Trinity County. Completed October, 1950; cost: $4,326. Canyon Creek Fish Ladder: Trinity County. Dam removed October, 1951, with con- sent of owners, eliminating need for new ladder. Unexpended balance of $10,000 allocation to be recovered. Central Headquarters for Stream Improvement; Sacramento County. Completed October. 1950; cost : $10,114. Daguerre Point Fish Ladders: Yuba County. Completed September, l'.)."il ; cost: $64,640. Satoyer's Bar Auxiliary Dam: Siskiyou County. Improvements to existing ladder eliminated need for auxiliary dam. Completed September, 1951 ; cost: $373. Balance of $3,500 allocation recovered. Sutter-Butte Fishicay ; Butte County. Completed November, 1951; cost: $55,000. Other Upland Game Projects Boyle Winter Range; Lassen County. Additional $2,000 allocated June (i, 1951 (total $14,250). Completed December, 1951. Waterfowl Projects lionet/ Lake Waterfowl Management Area: Lassen County. Completed June, 1951 ; cost: $21,463. Imperial Valley Waterfowl Management Area: Imperial County. Completed June. 1951. $20,000 allocated; $1,762 recovered June 6, 1951. Additional balance to be recovered. Madeline Plains Waterfowl Management Area; Lassen County. Completed June, 1951 ; cost: $30,868. General Projects Airplane Hangar; Sacramento County. Completed April, 1951 : cost: $25,000. Delta Fish and Game Operations Base; Contra Costa County. Completed November. 1951; cost: $27,000. 20 DKI'ARTMENT OF FISH AND GAME PERSONNEL CHANGES Deaths Samuel Et. Gilloon, assistant chief of patrol (retired)-. . October 2G, 1950 Charles W. Ledshaw, hunter and trapper December 24, 1950 Herbert F. Jordan, senior account clerk February 18, 1!).">1 Peder Stockland, netnian and boatswain May 22, 1951 Donald D. White, fish hatchery assistant June 17, 1951 Paul Bonnot, associate marine biologist : August 1, 1951 William Hoppe, warden (retired I September 22, 1951 Nelson Poole, warden November 28, 1951 O. R. Shaw, supervising hunter and trapper April 11, 1952 Retirements Bessie W. Kibbe, senior librarian July 1, 1950 Thomas J. Smith, warden July 1, 1950 George II. Ilaminack, hunter and trapper July 28, 1950 Alice Rankin, senior account clerk September 1, 1950 Ross McCloud, fish hatchery foreman October 1, 1950 John R. Wallace, supervisor of predatory animal control January 1, 1951 Theodore Jolley, warden April 1, 1951 Harry E. Cole, fish hatchery foreman May 1, 1951 Tate Miller, captain of patrol June 1, 1951 John Harbuck, warden July 1, 1951 LaRueF. Chapped, chief, bureau of patrol October 1, 1951 Alan C. Taft, chief, bureau offish conservation May 1, 1952 Russell L. Reedy, assistant same manager June 1, 1952 BUREAU OF FISH CONSERVATION Charged with the management of the State's inland waters, the Bu- reau of Fish Conservation continues to carry on a fisheries management program based on sound biological investigations, research and fact finding. With additional water required each year for the needs of irriga- tion, hydroelectric power development, industrial and domestic nse due to a population increase of nearly 1,000 persons per day and already having a population of 11,000,000 and boasting of over one million li- censed anglers, the managing of California's approximately 5,000 lakes and 25,000 miles of fresh-water streams in order to provide satisfactory fishing is indeed a very complex problem. In carrying on a long-range program of fisheries management the Bureau of Fish Conservation is faced with the continuously increasing task of a program of fisheries in- vestigations, propagation, pollution control, fish screens, fish rescue, flow maintenance and stream improvement. A summary of each of these activities follows. HATCHERY OPERATIONS The ever-increasing demand for catch able fish to satisfy a greater number of anglers each year has been partly met by bringing into pro- duction one new hatchery and by remodeling and enlarging several of our older units in order to better adapt them to the rearing of larger fish. Trout and salmon produced by hatcheries during the period covered by this report amounted to 1,109.01)5 pounds as compared to 952,768 pounds during the previous biennium. This increase was made possible by bringing into operation our new Fisli Springs Hatchery, Inyo County, and by improvements at Mt. Shasta and Crystal Lake Hatch- eries. While fingerling trout are required for airplane stocking of re- motely located lakes where fishing pressure is comparatively light, the trend toward planting larger fish continues and each year finds our hatcheries producing less fingei-lings while increasing the number of catchable sized fish. Unprecedented storms ranging throughout Northern California and extending as far south as the Tehachapis during November, 1950, caused stream flows to reach flood stage and considerable flood damage was experienced at Prairie Creek, Mt. Tallac, Kern River, Kaweah and Yuba River Hatcheries. At the latter two locations, damage was so extensive that repairs could not be made, and since both of these locations were outmoded installations and suitable for rearing fingerlings only, they were permanently closed and all reclaimable material salvaged. Fish hatchery construction projects, some of which have been planned since 1940, did not get under way as rapidly as expected during the fore- part of this biennium. This was mostly due to slowdowns occasioned by unsettled world conditions brought about by the Korean situation involv- ing our national defense program. Many materials used in normal con- struction work were brought under government control and materials (21) ^tfya^-ii .1 I; ■lymw. ■ ;^w»--** Rehabilitation of the Mt. Shasta Hatchery, in continuous operation since 1888 and California's oldest fish-rearing station, was completed early in 1952. Modernization of this old hatchery to fit it into a new hatchery expansion program was made possible through allocation of $240,000 from the Wildlife Conservation Board. Improvements include 16 new earth-fill raceway ponds with concrete dividing dams, the new 124-trough hatchery building (left) and a new food preparation building. This is a fine example of modernization of an old unit to fit a new program. such as steel and copper were not available in amounts great enough to permit undertaking any sizable projects. Routine procedures were time- consuming and resulted in considerable delays. Furthermore, all con- struction projects financed with funds made available by the Wildlife Conservation Board came to an abrupt halt in February, 1951, when the legality of the Wildlife Conservation Board was questioned, and a favor- able court decision in this matter was not handed down until May of that year. It is encouraging to report that at the close of this biennium, contracts for a considerable amount of new hatchery construction were let, par- ticularly at Darrah Springs, Crystal Lake and Mojave River Hatch- eries. Even though these projects consisted mostly of earth moving such as roughing in ponds and placing roadways, where only a minimum amount of critical materials is required, completion of these projects will be speeded up since they can be completed in a short time when necessary materials become available. Airplane fish planting, using the department's twin-engined airplane in stocking high mountain lakes, has become a regular part of our fish planting program. During the 1951 planting season alone, 2,556,000 i M. antto Hatchery Building. The construction is all metal. The building is of steel 24 DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND GAM K fingerlings were dropped into 610 lakes. Very gratifying reports are be- ing received from anglers fishing these lakes and from our field personnel working in the areas planted. Tables showing the number of fish and varieties reared and rescued during the fiscal year periods July 1, 1950, through June 30, 1951, and July 1, 1951, through June 30, 1952, will be found in Appendix B. Fish hatcheries operated during the period covered by. this report are as follows : El Dorado County Mt. Talkie Hatchery near Camp Richardson. .".2 troughs, 18 tanks, 4' x 16' x 30". (.Seasonal.) Fresno County Huntington Lake Hatchery near Lakeshore last operated 19.">0. (Permanently closed.) Kings River Hatchery, 56 miles east of Fresno, between Trimmer and Balch Camp. 100 troughs. No tanks or ponds. Humboldt County Prairie Creek Hat< hery on Highway 101, 4 miles north of Orick. 80 troughs, live red- wood tanks, 4' x 16' x 30". Inyo County Mt. Whitney Hatchery near Independence. 120 troughs. Nine rearing ponds, used largely for spring-spawning rainbow brood stock. Two concrete brood fish tanks. Black Rock Springs Rearing Ponds, approximately 10 miles north of Independence. Three large rearing ponds and two raceways. Fish Springs Hatchery on Highway No. 395, 6 miles south of Rigpine. Six large earth-fill rearing ponds. Hatchery completed and dedicated June 27, 1952. b^p > View showing a portion of the pond system at the new Fish Springs Hatchery located near Bigpine, Inyo County. Two parallel series of ponds are employed, each series a little over 1,700 feet long. The ponds have a total capacity of nearly 1,000,000 catchable trout annually. The Fish Springs Hatchery is ideally situated to serve an area of extremely heavy fishing pressure. FORTY-SECOND BIENNIAL REPORT 25 Kern County Kern River Hatchery, 6 miles north of Kernville, 20 troughs, six redwood tanks 14' in diameter, 30" deep. Eight concrete ponds 80' x 12' x 36". 13 earth raceways. Length of each raceway about 300', average width about 6', depth of water 14". Lassen County Lake Almanor Hatchery near Westwood. 96 troughs, eight redwood tanks, 4' x 16' x 30", located in hatchery building, and three cement ponds approximately 8' x 30' x 30". Los Angeles County Whittier Hatchery. Last operated 1951. (Permanently closed.) Madera County Madera Hatchery near Bass Lake. Four troughs, 10 tanks, 16' x 4' x 30". (Seasonal.) Mariposa County Yosemite Hatchery at Happy Isles, Yosemite National Park. 52 troughs, six round concrete tanks, one aquarium room and one display pond. Mono County Hot Creek Hatchery on Highway 395, 35 miles north of Bishop. 64 troughs, 39 rear- ing ponds, 3 brood fish ponds, 12 concrete tanks. Napa County East Side Reservoir, water capacity 9,000,000 gallons, within the city limits of Napa. Placer County Tahoe Hatchery near Tahoe City. 64 troughs, one pond. Plumas County Feather River Hatchery near Clio. 60 troughs, 4 circular ponds, 20' in diameter, concrete construction. (Seasonal). The food preparation building, Fish Springs Hatchery. With a refrigerated storage capacity of 100,000 pounds of frozen food and utilizing the latest ice-making and food-processing equip- ment, this building will go a long way in reducing the manpower requirements at this installa- tion. A building of similar style houses an office for the foreman, the shop and repair depart- ment, vehicle storage and public rest rooms. The hatchery represents an investment of nearly $400,000 of Wildlife Conservation Board funds. 26 DEPARTMENT OE FISH AND CAME Sacramento County Central Valleys Hatchery near Elk Grove. 19 rearing ponds, 19 daphnia tanks. This hatchery devoted mainly to the propagation of warm-water fish and fish rescue activities; trout are reared only during the winter months. Son Bernard/no County Mojave River Hatchery near Victorville. 20 ponds. 20 additional ponds and other facilities are presently under construction at this location. Santa Cruz County Brookdale Hatchery near Brookdale. 40 troughs, six circular concrete ponds 16' in diameter. One rectangular pond, concrete construction, approximately 35' long, 12' wide. Shasta County Crystal Lake Hatchery near Cassel. 24 rearing ponds. Darrah Springs Hatchery, 27 miles east of lied Bluff, near Manton. Five brood ponds. Sierra County Yuba River Hatchery. Last operated November, 1950. (Permanently closed). Siskiyou County Mt. Shasta Hatchery, one mile west of Alt. Shasta City. 372 troughs, 16 earth-fill rearing ponds, 8 concrete tanks, and one brood fish pond. Completely remodeled during 1950-52 biennium. Tulare County Kaweah Hatchery, near Three Rivers. Last operated November, 1050. (Permanently closed) . Moorehouse Spring Hatchery on Highway No. 190 between Springville and Camp Nelson. Six redwood tanks 14' in diameter, IS raceway ponds, naturally formed of lime deposits. Sequoia Hatchery near Visalia. Ten redwood tanks 14' in diameter, one raceway pond, 200' long by 6' wide. « Tuolumne County Basin Creek Hatchery near Tuolumne. Eighty troughs, nine tanks 16'x4'x30". Ventura County Fillmore Hatchery near Fillmore. Twenty-four troughs, eight circular tanks, 30 rearing ponds. Two of the six pumice-block dwellings at the new Fish Springs Hatchery. It is necessary for the department to provide living quarters at remote stations. FORTY-SECOND BIENNIAL REPORT 27 ACTIVITIES OF THE BIOLOGICAL STAFF Despite the continuing removal of fishing' waters and the ever heavier pressure on existing- waters, the state-wide angling picture during the bienniuni provided grounds for optimism. The catches of fresh-water and anadromous fishes made in 1951 and those made in 1949, calculated on the basis of statistically tested postal card surveys, are shown in Table 1. Catehable sized hatchery reared trout play an important role in pro- viding angling in heavily fished waters near large population centers and popular recreational areas, and fingerling hatchery trout contribute significantly toward the maintenance of angling in many lighter fished lakes in which natural reproduction is inadequate. Nevertheless, the great majority of trout and salmon caught by California anglers, and practically all of the other sport fishes, are the product of natural repro- duction. The above facts point up the tremendous need of maintaining suitable habitat conditions in the State's waters. This task has been one of the principal objectives of the biological staff of the Bureau of Fish Con- servation. Its members have attempted to fulfill this objective by means of a comprehensive program of investigation leading to recommendations for the protection, preservation, and improvement of the inland fisheries and an applied fisheries management program consisting of fish rescue, habitat improvement, and screening of water diversions. During the 1950-52 Biennium tbe Bureau of Fish Conservation con- tinued its operations through a central staff and eight administrative districts, with a biologist in charge of all fresh-water fisheries investiga- tions and an assistant hatchery supervisor in charge of all hatchery activities in each district. TABLE 1. CATCHES OF LEADING INLAND SPORT FISHES IN 1949 AND 1951 Trout. . Striped bass Black bass_. Crappie Sunfish Catfish Salmon 1951 Total 18,600,000 1,490,000 1,280,000 2,380,000 4,800,000 4,710,000 564,000 Mean catch per angler 43.3 10.4 11.9 31.3 47.1 27.5 7.2 1949 Total 10,700,000 1,750,000 1,160,000 2,430,000 4,020,000 3,930,000 298,000 Mean catch per angler 38.7 10.6 10.0 23.1 35.3 24.4 4.4 As in the past, heavy reliance was necessarily placed on temporary employees, consisting of Fish and Game Seasonal Aids, and Student Biologists, to assist the permanent staff members in various phases of both the investigative and applied phases of fisheries management. Permanent employees from the hatchery staff were also assigned as needed to carry out mainly such fact-finding work as counting spawning runs of salmon and steelhead and such applied management work as fish rescue, stream and lake improvement, and screening of diversions. 28 DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND GAME STREAM AND LAKE SURVEYS Biological surveys are the building blocks on which all sound manage- ment programs are based. As rapidly as other duties permit, initial sur- veys are being made of all the streams and lakes in California. In addi- tion, rechecks are being made on waters of particular concern for man- agement purposes. The following list shows the principal initial surveys carried out during the biennium in each district. Many rechecks and partial observa- tions were also made, and several aerial reconnaissance surveys were conducted. Shasta District. Seventy-four lakes in Trinity County were surveyed for inclusion in the "Anglers' Guide" series. Lassen District. During the summer of 1951 surveys were completed of 15 lakes, including 13 in the Thousand Lake Primitive Area in Shasta County. In Plumas County, 16 lakes in the Gold Lake area were surveyed during the summer of 1950 and nine in the Spring Valley Lake area in 1951. Twenty-two lakes were surveyed in Lassen County. Tahoe District. Surveys were made of 209 lakes and 33 streams in Alpine, Amador, El Dorado, Nevada, Placer, Sierra, and Tuolumne counties. Coast District. During the biennium 166 streams and 9 lakes were surveyed. San Joaquin District. Survey work was highlighted by the inclusion of 82 waters in the Humphreys Basin and French Canyon drainages. In all, 106 lakes and 27 streams were surveyed. Mt. Whitney District. During the biennium 142 lakes and 26 streams in Mono, Inyo, Madera, Fresno, and Tulare counties were surveyed. Southern District. Approximately 40 streams and 15 reservoirs were surveyed. STUDIES ON SPECIAL WATERS In addition to the foregoing surveys to provide general basic informa- tion, special studies were carried out on the following waters, exclusive of Wildlife Conservation Board Projects, which are discussed in a separate section of this report : Castle Lake, Siskiyou County. A complete census of all angler catches has been maintained since 1941 to determine the relative effectiveness and costs of planting such mountain lakes with various species and sizes of trout. During the biennium eastern brook trout (Salvelinus fontinalis) were tested and hatchery plants yielded high survivals to the creel. Sacramento River Test Stream, Siskiyou County. The survivals of catchable and fingerling rainbow trout [Salmo gairdn-eri) planted in the South and Middle Forks of the Sacramento River are being compared with the catches of native trout. Klamath River Investigation, Siskiyou County. This program consists of a long- range study of the factors affecting the survival of salmonids in the Klamath River system. One year is being devoted to the study of each principal supposed factor. Fall Creek Salmon Study, Siskiyou County. Different numbers of king salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) are being permitted to spawn in this stream each year, in order to determine the number of adults which will produce the highest spawning efficiency. In 1950-51, 7 percent of the eggs of 750 females produced fingerlings and in 1951-52. 10 percent of the eggs of 500 females produced finger- lings. Eagle Lake, Lassen County. This study is designed to find waysi to prevent the extinction of the unique Eagle Lake trout (Salmo gairdneri aquilarum) and to restore trout fishing. Migrants to and from the lake were counted at a weir near the mouth of its tributary. Pine Creek. Lake Almanor, Plumas County. The study of the yield to anglers of hatchery finger- lings planted in the lake was concluded in 1951. The second phase will not be started until catchable trout for planting in the lake are available in large numbers. FORTY-SECOND BIENNIAL REPORT 29 Echo Lake, El Dorado County. Studies to determine the reasons for the poor angling success in this lake continued during the biennium, with emphasis placed on ascer- taining the extent of game fish exodus from the lake through the outlet stream and the diversion canal. This was accomplished through the annual planting of 25,000 trout marked for future identification and trapping of downstream migrants. The fish trap on the outlet stream was operated continuously except for short periods during flood stages, and fyke netting operations were conducted on the diversion canal during the diversion period of 1951. These studies showed that there is a negligible loss of game fish from the lake through the outlet stream and diversion canal. Donner Lake, Nevada County. Observations were conducted on the spawning runs of kokanee red salmon (Oncorhynchus nerka kennerlyi) in 1950 and 1951 and studies made of scales and other data in connection with the management of the fishery. Lake Tahoe, El Dorado-Placer Counties. Studies were concentrated on the intro- duction of kokanee salmon to this lake. Potential lake shore and tributary stream spawning areas were located and plotted. Allotments of salmon were carefully planned for the various available spawning areas to take advantage of any possible homing instinct on the part of the salmon. Field checks failed to confirm authentic catches of kokanee during the biennium. Halt Springs Valley Reservoir, Calaveras County. In the fall of 1951, a population study of the fish in this lake was made, using the Schnabel mark and recapture method. Results will be published in California Fish and Game. Lake Merced, San Francisco County. Evaluation of the results of catchable trout stocking in this lake was carried on throughout the biennium. Clear Lake, Lake County. Standard test seine hauls for checking fish of the year were made annually at five stations. No significant increase or decrease was noted in any of the important game species, although forage species continued to be scarce. A continuing check on forage minnow spawning was maintained on the tributaries; the 1952 spawning run of hitch (Lavinia exilicauda) was the largest noted for many years. Upper Blue Lake, Lake County. A study of this lake was begun in 1952 to de- termine which species are best fitted for it and to learn what management tech- niques might be applied to increase its productivity. A temporary barrier to rough fish was installed at the outlet in 1952. Mad River, Humboldt County. A controlled program to study the economics of planting king salmon, silver salmon (0. kisutch) , and steelhead trout (Salmo g. gairdneri) artificially reared to varying ages was started. Marked fingerlings are re- leased in the stream and examined as returning adults at the Sweasey Dam count- ing station and in the sport catch. Approximately 10 percent of all salmon taken in the California commercial catch are being examined for marks by the Bureau of Marine Fisheries, so that the contribution of the Mad River salmon to the com- mercial fishery will be included in the study. A biological survey of the entire river system is also being made as part of the study. Millerton Lake, Fresno-Madera Counties. An intensive study of the Millerton Lake warm-water fishery, as a typical example of the large fluctuating reservoirs along the west slope of the Sierra Nevada, was started in 1949. Since 1951 em- phasis has been placed on environmental and fish population studies. Intermediate levels in the normal food chains are weak and it is possible that introduction of forage fish, which will be carried out at an early date, may help to' fill the gaps. Considerable time was devoted to preparing material from the earlier work for publication. Rush Creek Test Stream, Mono County. Operation of the project during the trout fishing season was continued through the biennium. Results confirmed earlier indications of returns of 70 percent or more to the angler from in-season plants of catchable rainbow trout in streams. Minor stream improvement work in the nature of additional pool construction appeared to benefit the stream during the 1951 summer, when the flow was extremely low. San Vicente Reservoir, San Diego County. A largemouth blackbass-bluegill ( Micropterns salmoides-Lepomis macrochirus) tagging study was completed. Vail Reservoir, Riverside County. A fish population study was conducted, a man- agement plan prepared, and a catch record system established. 30 DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND GAME Lake Wohlford, Sun Diego Count//. A catch record system was devised, records analyzed annually, and management recommendations submitted. Big Bear Lake,'San Bernardino County. The values of a warm-water fishery vs. a trout fishery were studied, management recommendations prepared, and a catch record system outlined. Los Angeles City Park Lakes, Los Angeles County. Population composition and age-growth studies were carried out and management recommendations sub- mitted. Crystal Lake, Los Angeles County. A study was made of trout removal rates. Colorado Hirer Studies. Creel checks were operated periodically at strategic points along the river. In addition, at Lake Havasu age and growth, food, and population studies were carried out. The following action was taken regarding the bait minnow problem: decision on acceptable species; preparation of regulations; registration of dealers; periodic inspection of dealers; aid in providing desirable species for propagation, especially golden shiners (Notemigonus crysoleucas) and fathead minnows (Pimephales promelas) . A study of possible forage fish species for intro- duction was also made. Projects of the Bureau of Reclamation were investigated and reports prepared on the Needles-Topock and Cibola Valley areas. Salton Sea, Imperial County. The introduction of marine game and forage fishes was continued. Several thousand fishes obtained from the Gulf of California at San Felipe, Mexico, in the course of three trips were planted in the sea. At least one species, a croaker (Bairdiella icistia) , has survived and reproduced in numbers. Tests of tolerances of various fishes to' Saltou Sea water were arranged coopera- tively with the Scripps Institution of Oceanography. STATE-WIDE ANGLING SURVEY An intensive analysis of state-wide sport catch and angling trends in 1951 was made on the basis of a postal card survey carried out in the manner of previous surveys. Trout and striped bass angling had not changed appreciably since 1949. Catches of black bass and other warm-water fishes declined, pre- sumably because of drought conditions in Southern California. Catfish angling took a slight upward trend. The salmon catch showed a very large increase. CREEL CENSUSES Creel censuses are a recognized method of finding out the results being obtained from stocking, of measuring the trends in the quality of angling in a given water, and of obtaining similar information of use in fish man- agement. During the biennium. principal creel censuses were carried out on the following waters : Name of water County Name of water County Klamath River Siskiyou County Salt Springs Valley Reservoir Shasta River Siskiyou County Calaveras County Shovel Creek Siskiyou County Stevens Creek Reservoir Shasta Lake Shasta County Santa Clara County Lake Almanor Plumas County Klamath River (mouth) Bucks Lake Plumas County Del Norte County Truckee River -Nevada County Eel River Humboldt County Upper Truckee River Clear Lake Lake County El Dorado County Lake Hennessey Napa County Donner Lake Nevada County Milliken Reservoir.. __Napa County Boca Reservoir Nevada County Sequoia Lake Fresno County Silver Fork American River Hume Lake Fresno County El Dorado County Millerton Lake Lake Merced San Francisco County Fresno and Madera Counties FORTY-SECOND BIENNIAL REPORT 31 Name of water Count ij Crowley Lake— __Mono County June Lake Mono County San Luis Rey River. San Diego County Lake Wohlford— _San Diego County Deep Creek _. San Bernardino County Santa Ana River San Bernardino County Big Bear Lake _ San Bernardino County Jenks Lake San Bernardino County Bear Creek San Bernardino County Name of water Count y Lake Havasu San Bernardino County Holy Jim Creek Orange County Crystal Lake Los Angeles County Fulmor Lake Riverside County Coldwater Creek Riverside County Vail Reservoir Riverside County Ramer Lake . Imperial County Colorado River Imperial and Riverside Counties Creel checks have accuratey measured angler success at Fulmor Lake, Riverside County. This lake, which does not exceed seven surface acres, provides immense recreational value in South- ern California. Here we see a student biologist recording the catch of two anglers at the lake. TEST WATERS Several years ago Castle Lake in Siskiyou County, Rush Creek in Mono Comity, and the upper Sacramento River in Siskiyou County were established as "test" waters on which to try out and check on the results of different types of stocking. Complete records are kept of the catches made at these waters. A sum- mary of results obtained at Castle Lake and at other lakes in California was published in the April, 1951, issue of California Fish and Game. 32 DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND GAME This is a perforated plate fish screen with gear drive. The perforated plate has been inserted into the downstream end of a form originally built for a revolving drum screen. Young trout and salmon descend the irrigation ditch as far as the screen, then are diverted back to the parent stream through the bypass channel directly in front of Fish Hatchery Foreman E. W. Murphey, the inventor of the perforated plate screen. Siskiyou County, 1951. STREAM AND LAKE IMPROVEMENT Fish Screens For many years California laws required owners of water diversions to install and maintain fish screens as required by the State. The results were not satisfactory. It was difficult and expensive for each owner to have his screen made to order, and many times the device was of poor quality. In 1952 the State Legislature amended the fish screen laws to provide that the Department of Fish and Game will install, maintain, repair, and replace screens in nonpower ditches under 250 second-feet in capacity. Fish screen construction, installation, and maintenance by the Bureau of Fish Conservation was again centered at its stream improvement headquarters at Yreka, Siskiyou County, and at its smaller shop at Weaverville, Trinity County. Two successful modifications of the per- forated plate screen were developed at these shops during the biennium. The "submerged plate" type is particularly successful in stopping very small steelhead fingerlings, while the "diagonal plate" type permits a large capacity screen to be constructed in a narrow ditch. Five new perforated plate screens were installed in Trinity County and eight in Siskiyou County. FORTY-SECOND BIENNIAL REPORT 33 Fish and Game crews building the largest screen yet constructed in the Klamath drainage. It is of the latest design, incorporating a 5/32-inch perforated steel plate 36' x 6' set at an incline across the canal and cleaned by wiper bars moved up and down over the face of the plate by paddle wheels. Fishways Personnel from the Yreka stream improvement headquarters con- structed three fishways over dams on the Salmon River, Siskiyou County. The same personnel blasted several pools in bedrock to form a fislrway at Burnt Ranch Falls on the Trinity River, Trinity County (Wildlife Conservation Board Project 44-2). In Mono County, flood damage to the embankments around the fishway at Lower Twin Lake was repaired. Barrier Removal The removal of abandoned dams to permit salmon and steelhead to reach important spawning areas continued very satisfactorily in the Klamath River drainage, with five dams in Trinity County removed during the biennium. In addition, six log jam barriers were removed from tributary streams. The general stream clearance program in the Coast District, started in 1950, also showed good progress. In the entire State, seven dams were removed, six barriers were reduced, and 11 log jams were removed during the biennium. In addition, channel clearance and brush and debris removal was carried out in a number of streams, principally to facilitate the upstream passage of spawning fish. 2—70679 Rock masonry check dams in Coldwater Canyon Creek, Riverside County, stream improvement program. Eight such dams were constructed with county fine money, under supervision of the fisheries biologists in the stream improvement program. Average cost per dam, including labor and materials, was $119.18. These are now providing adequate pool areas where catchable rainbow trout have been planted. Prior to this time, suitable trout habitat was lacking. Improvement Devices Again several counties appropriated funds from their share of fish and game fine moneys for stream improvement. Some of these funds were used to construct small loose rock and masonry dams in Southern Cali- fornia streams, principally to create pool areas. Our personnel cooper- ated with local interests in the design and construction of these dams. Rock masonry projects consisted of 35 dams on Holy Jim and Trabuco Creeks, Orange County, and eight dams on Coldwater Creek, River- side County. Loose rock dams were built as follows : Holy Jim Creek, Orange County, 40-50 dams ; Cucamonga Creek, West Fork, San Ber- nardino County, 45 ; Silverado Creek, Orange County, 50 ; Soldier Creek, Los Angeles County, 30 ; Coldwater Creek, Riverside County, 30 ; Santa Ana River, South Fork, San Bernardino County, 40. Aquatic Weed Control Although aquatic weeds do not form a problem in the great majority of California fishing waters, members of the biological staff were called upon for advice and assistance in several troublesome instances. At Chubb Lake, Nevada County, personnel of District 3 successfully re- duced heavy growth of aquatic plants by treatment with sodium arsenite during June, 1952. On November 5-9, 1951, Lower, Middle, and Upper At Twin Lakes (Mammoth), Mono County, dense growths of aquatic plants choked the waters. Here we see Middle Twin Lake being sprayed with sodium arsenite solution to destroy the excessive plant growth. Twin Lakes near Mammoth, Mono County, were treated with a total of 900 gallons of sodium arsenite to control excessive growths of aquatic plants. Wildlife Conservation Board Stream and Lake Improvement Projects In addition to the work described above, considerable stream and lake improvement was carried out with funds allocated by the Wildlife Con- servation Board, including construction of seven flow maintenance dams at the outlets of lakes. These rock and masonry dams were constructed by a Department of Fish and Game five-man construction crew. Informa- tion on this construction work is tabulated below. For further detail, refer to the section on Wildlife Conservation Board Projects. Date Name completed Middle Velma Lake__ 8- 8-50 Lois Lake 9-20-50 Schmidell Lake __. 9-20-50 High Emigrant Lake 8-24-51 Middle Emigrant Lake__ 8-24-51 Susie Lake __. 9- 5-51 Heather Lake _ 9-24-51 Gold Lake* - 10-16-51 * Bureau of Fish Conservation financed project. Miles of < 'on II 1 1/ Water Total stream of storage in cosi directly location acre feet of dam benefited El Dorado 148.4 $2,514.82 ) El Dorado 85.4 523.92 I 49 El Dorado 203.6 2,357.64 J Tuolumne 67.0 2.283.09 3i Tuolumne 79.0 1.713.60 2 El Dorado 99.0 561.84 51 El Dorado 141.7 2.398.40 5f Sierra 1,447.0 2,316.93 6i 2,271.1 $14,670.24 72 36 DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND GAME CHEMICAL TREATMENT AND REHABILITATION OF LAKES The chemical treatment of lakes and reservoirs to rid them of rough fish which have so overrun these waters that sport fishing is virtually eliminated forms an important phase in the management of California's inland waters. Incomplete kills have been obtained in some instances and further knowledge is needed to insure total elimination of undesirable fishes. Such incomplete kills and the reintroduction of rough fish by thought- less anglers who use them illegally as bait means that many waters will have to be re-treated periodically. Approximately 943 acres of lake area were chemically treated and subsequently restocked with game fish during the biennium. Some of the waters were reservoirs which had been drawn down considerably be- low their normal levels, so that in effect a much greater amount of fish- ing water was rehabilitated than is shown in the following tabulation : Name of water County Surface area in acres Date Abbott Lakes, Upper and Lower- Lower Twin Lake* - Monterey Mono Alpine __ . . 18 375 15 300 15 50 4 21 20 100 25 Aug. 1-2, 1950 Sept. 7-8, 1950 Lower Sunset Lake Sept. 28, 1950 Rainbow Lake (Messelbach Dam) Water Supply Reservoir, City of Mariposa . . Shasta ._ _ — Mariposa Oct. 17, 1950 April 12, 1951 Hughes Lake__ Los Angeles. May, 1951 July 10, 1951 Aug. 27, 1951 Starkweather Lake .. - Spring Valley Lake - Madera Plumas Nevada. . Los Angeles . Chubb Lake Puddingstone Reservoir Sept. 16, 1951 Oct. 1, 1951 Silver Lake -- - Shasta .. Oct. 27, 1951 943 * Two and one-half miles of Robinson Creek were also treated on December 1, 1950. Repairs were made to the Miller Lake (Placer County) barrier dam, which was damaged by the 1950 floods. FISH RESCUE The rescue of game fish from drying waters and their transfer to safe waters is carried on as needed throughout the State. Unusual or isolated cases are assigned to crews recruited from hatcheries or are cared for by state wardens or sportsmen in cooperation with the Bureau of Fish Conservation. In certain areas, however, extensive fish rescue is re- quired each year and forms a regular part of the Bureau's program. This holds true in some of the steelhead and salmon waters, and here this work has been placed under the supervision of the biological staff. The fish rescued are tabulated in Appendix 3. FISH INTRODUCTIONS The temptation to introduce some exotic species into a body of water which is not producing angling up to expectations is alluring and great. Indiscriminate introductions are fraught with danger, however, for the FORTY-SECOND BIENNIAL REPORT 37 introduced species may prove to be more of a detriment than an asset through competition with or predation on existing game fish. The wise course is first to seek other means of producing satisfactory angling and to introduce a new kind of fish only if the facts indicate that it will fit positively into the economy of the water. In several instances available evidence has indicated that addition of new species would improve angling and during the biennium the following important introductions were made : Golden shiners (Notemigonus crysoleucas) were introduced into several central and northern California reservoirs in order to provide a more suitable forage fish, especially for black bass. During the biennium 100,000 were planted in Clear Lake, Lake County. In 1950 golden shiners were also stocked in Salt Springs Valley Reservoir, Calaveras County ; in 1951 in Shasta Lake, Shasta County ; Coyote Reservoir, Santa Clara County ; East Park Reservoir, Colusa County ; in 1952 in Turlock Reservoir, Stanislaus County. Smallmouth black bass (Micropterus dolomieu) were planted in the following waters : North Fork of Feather River, Plumas County ; Antelope Creek, Tehama County ; North Fork of American River, Placer County ; Upper Blue Lake, Lake County ; Arroyo Seco Creek, Monterey County ; Colorado River, Riverside and San Bernardino counties. The purpose of these introductions was to provide a good game species in waters of doubtful ability to produce trout fishing. Kokanee red salmon ( ' Oncorhynchus nerka kennerlyi) were introduced into Lake Almanor, Plumas County, and Eagle Lake, Lassen County, to serve both as a forage and a game species in problem waters. The planting of kokanee in Lake Tahoe, Placer and El Dorado counties, started in 1949 to provide forage for the lake trout (mackinaw), was continued. Beginning in 1951 kokanee were also planted in Shasta Lake, Shasta County, by local sportsmen with the aid of the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service and the Department of Fish and Game to provide forage for the recently introduced Kamloops rainbow trout. White crappie (Pomoxis annularis), brought from southern California, were stocked in East Park Reservoir, Colusa County, and Coyote Reservoir, Santa Clara County. It is hoped that they will occupy a niche unfulfilled by the black crappie (Pomoxis nigromaculatus ) . WATER USE PROJECTS During the last two years the Department of Fish and Game has realized that the problem of water has become of major importance in the management of fish and game in California. The current competition for water by all groups interested in economic development is causing our streams and waterfowl habitat to disappear at a very rapid rate and we know that once water is appropriated for another use there is very little hope that it can ever be regained for fish and game. The Department of Fish and Game is handicapped because water for fish and game has been assigned an extremely low priority in comparison with the other legally recognized "beneficial" uses. During the last two years an unprecedented number of irrigation and hydroelectric projects has been proposed for practically every stream in California, both by private interests and agencies of the Federal Govern- ment. As these projects are constructed the amount of water available in the streams for recreation and fish and game will be reduced. In the past we have been most concerned with utilizing the available waters to the fullest extent and until recently there have always been relatively untouched rivers and lands available to make up for the losses resulting from any one power or irrigation project. Within the last few 38 DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND GAME years, however, we have realized that there are no more streams that are not already being extensively used by anglers. Even under natural conditions in California, the critical period for fish and game occurs during the long season of no rainfall, when stream flows are at a minimum. This dry season is also critical to our present economy and it is necessary to build dams to store winter runoff in order to have water for irrigation and power during summer and fall. The demands for water will become increasingly acute as our popula- tion continues to increase. It is now7 estimated that California's popula- tion will double in the next 20 years. The rate of water project construc- tion will have to keep pace with the population increase. At the present time 30 major wrater projects are under active study by the Department of Fish and Game and new dams are constantly being proposed. In addition to planning for these major projects, the Department of Fish and Game has been called upon to review a great number of the other proposed land and water use programs that will affect our fish and wTildlif e resources. The U. S. Department of Agriculture, for example, has been studying various watersheds in California with a view towards broad soil and water conservation programs. On the Santa Ana and San Gabriel watersheds in Southern California, for example, an exten- sive cover improvement, fire prevention, and stock watering program has been proposed. The Department of Fish and Game is also entering more and more into the preconstruction planning of water projects and has embarked upon an aggressive program to have the protection and wherever possible the development of fish and wildlife included as an integral part of planning. During the last two years considerable time was spent in preparing recommendations to be submitted to the State Division of Water Ke- sources for inclusion in the forthcoming California Water Plan, which will be the ultimate water use plan for the State. If the water needs of fish and wildlife are not recognized in this plan it will probably not be possible to secure additional water in the future. The Department of Fish and Game has made recommendations for the minimum flows to be maintained on every major stream in California for the preservation of our fisheries resources. The following are some of the major developments which are under active study by the department. Many of these streams contain salmon and steelhead that will be cut off from spawning areas by dam construc- tion. The biggest problem in all cases is to keep some water flowing in the stream, rather than in irrigation or power conduits. Klamath River, Siskiyou County. The Department of Fish and Game initiated legal action against the California-Oregon Power Company to reduce the fluctua- tion of the river level and the resulting stranding of salmon and steelhead and hazards to fishermen along the river. This action is based on a study that has been made by Bureau of Fish Conservation biologists over the past four years. Trinity River, Trinity County. The U. S. Bureau of Reclamation proposes two large dams to divert flows of the Trinity River into the Sacramento River in Shasta County. The Department of Fish and Game is concerned with ways of preserving the present salmon and steelhead runs of the Trinity River, since a large portion of the spawning area of the Trinity River will be cut off by con- struction of the dams. FORTY-SECOND BIENNIAL REPORT 39 McGloud River and Squaw Creek, Shasta and Siskiyou Counties. Both the Cali- fornia-Oregon Power Company and the Pacific Gas and Electric Company are interested in constructing large hydroelectric projects on the McCloud River and Squaw Creek. Four or five dams and powerhouses are planned and would have far-reaching effects upon these outstanding trout streams. Pit River, Shasta County. The Pacific Gas and Electric Company is undertaking the construction of the Pit 4 and Pit 6 developments. The Pit 4 project in particu- lar will adversely affect a section of the Pit River which is going to be extensively developed by the U. S. Forest Service for recreational use. The utility of the river for recreation and fishing will be lost unless adequate flow releases can be secured. Feather River, North Fork, Plumas County. Tlie Pacific Gas and Electric Com pany is undertaking the construction of the Butte Valley-Caribou No. 2 project immediately and the Belden and Poe projects in the near future. The Department of Fish and Game is currently involved in negotiations in order to secure ade- quate flow releases in the diverted sections of the river. Feather River, South Fork, and Slate Creek, Butte, Plumas, and Yuba Counties. During 1951 a study was made of the proposed Oroville-Wyandotte Irrigation District multiple power and irrigation development and an agreement which pro- vides for release of water for fish into the streams to be affected by the proposed dams was negotiated. Sacramento River Canals, Tehama. Butte, Glenn, and Colusa Counties. The U. S. Bureau of Reclamation has proposed canals along the east and west sides of the Sacramento Valley, with the Red Bank Diversion Dam near Red Bluff. It is necessary that screen and fishway facilities be provided, as well as an adequate flow release to maintain the downstream spawning beds. Fishing possibilities in the 120 miles of canals have been studied. Silver Creek, El Dorado County. The Bureau of Reclamation has proposed several dams and powerhouses, as a part of its Union Valley Project, which will adversely affect Silver Creek and the flows of other streams in the South Fork of American River drainage. American River, El Dorado County. The Sacramento Municipal Utility District lias recently filed application with the Federal Power Commission for a power project in the upper headwaters of the Rubicon and American Rivers, an area that has been used almost exclusively for recreational fishing in the past. Sly Park Creek. El Dorado County. The Bureau of Reclamation has started con- struction of the Sly Park Dam. as well as diversion dams on other streams in upper El Dorado County. The Department of Fish and Game has recommended that minimum flows be maintained for fish life in all streams that will be diverted. American River, South Fork, El Dorado County. The Pacific Gas and Electric Company is rebuilding the Chute Camp Dam and the Department of Fish and Game is recommending that a permanent flow be maintained in the South Fork of the American River below the dam. This portion of the river has been dried up during the summer since the dam was built 30 years ago. American River, Sacramento County. The Folsom Project, which is being built by the Corps of Engineers and the Bureau of Reclamation, has been one of the major water planning activities of the Department of Fish and Game for the past year. The construction of Nimbus Dam will eliminate about 70 percent of the salmon and steelhead spawning area in the American River and an extensive program has been undertaken to conserve these runs. The program consists of securing water releases and improving downstream riffles plus a hatchery installation. Putah Creek, Solano County. Although no anadromous fishes will be affected by the construction of Monticello Dam. a Bureau of Reclamation project, the Depart- ment of Fish and Game is preparing plans for the management of the reservoir. Stanislaus River, Middle Fork, Tuolumne County. The South San Joaquin and Oakdale Irrigation Districts are undertaking the construction of three dams and powerhouses on this river. The Beardsley and Donnels Dams will store and divert most of the water in the upper portion of the stream and the Tulloch Dam farther downstream will have an adverse effect upon the salmon run of the Stanislaus River, particularly if sufficient water is not released during the spawning season. 40 DEPAKTMENT OF FISH AND GAME Stanislaus River, North Fork, Tuolumne County. The Department of Fish and Game has completed its investigations and submitted recommendations to the Federal Power Commission regarding the relicensing of the existing dams at Alpine, Utica, and Hunter Reservoirs. Truckee River, Nevada County. The State of Nevada is extremely anxious to develop additional water on this drainage and at least three plans for dam con- struction have been proposed. The Department of Fish and Game believes that the present summer flows of the river are inadequate to develop the fishing potential of this stream and is attempting to secure additional water. East Carson River, Alpine County. The Bureau of Reclamation has proposed a large storage reservoir in Hope Valley and a powerhouse at Woodfords. The Department of Fish and Game has submitted recommendations to maintain the stream through the lower Hope Valley recreational area adjoining Highway 88. Tuolumne River, Tuolumne County. The expansion of the Hetch Hetchy Project proposes additional storage and the diversion of Cherry and Eleanor creeks in this drainage. The Department of Fish and Game has submitted recommendations for flows to be maintained in the streams to be affected. Middle Fork of Eel River, Mendocino County. The Mendocino County Water Con- servation District has proposed a diversion of 350 cubic feet per second and 715,000 acre-feet per annum from the Middle Fork of Eel River and 30,000 acre-feet per annum from its tributary Short Creek. The Department of Fish and Game sub- mitted recommendations for the protection of fish life. Mono Creek, Fresno County. The Southern California Edison Company is pro- posing to build a dam in Vermilion Valley which would flood out one of the finest trout streams in the State. The Department of Fish and Game is attempting to secure compensation for this loss by securing an increased flow release through the recreational area along the South Fork of San Joaquin River below Florence Lake Dam. San Joaquin River, Fresno/Madera Counties. The Southern California Edison Company has completed its San Joaquin No. 4 and No. 7 projects below and now proposes to construct the Mammoth Pool Dam. In all of these instances, the De- partment of Fish and Game has conducted investigations and negotiations in order to secure flow releases. Kings River, Fresno County. The U. S. Corps of Engineers is now building Pine Flat Dam, principally for flood control, which will directly affect the lower portion of the Kings River. Upstream hydroelectric projects will be possible after this dam is completed and the entire drainage may be developed with adverse effects insofar as fish and game are concerned. The Department of Fish and Game has recommended that a permanent recreational pool be created behind Pine Flat Dam, but has not been able to secure a firm right to water. Kings River, North Fork, Fresno County. The Pacific Gas and Electric Company, U. S. Bureau of Reclamation, and Fresno Irrigation District have all applied for licenses to construct hydroelectric projects in this drainage. The entire North Fork of Kings River would be greatly affected by these developments. Kings River, Middle and South Forks, Fresno County. Both the City of Los Angeles and the U. S. Bureau of Reclamation are interested in building dams and powerhouses in these drainages. This is the one case where the Fish and Game Commission has gone on record as opposing any dam construction because of the tremendous loss of recreational area that will result if the reservoirs are built. The available sites are in the meadows of Kings Canyon National Park and at Cedar Grove and in Tehipite Valley. Although the total area is relatively small, it comprises almost all the available recreational space in the region. Kaweah River, Tulare County. The U. S. Corps of Engineers is preparing plans for the Terminus flood control and irrigation project on the lower portion of this river. Tule River, Tulare County. The U. S. Corps of Engineers is also preparing plans for the Success flood control and irrigation project on this river, which would greatly affect the flows of this stream. Kern River, Kern County. The U. S. Corps of Engineers is building the Isabella Dam on this stream, for flood control and irrigation. The Department of Fish and Game has made recommendations for a permanent recreational pool to be main- tained in the reservoir, but has not yet obtained a firm guarantee of water. FORTY-SECOND BIENNIAL REPORT 41 Owens River, Inyo and Mono Counties. The City of Los Angeles has completed the so-called Gorge Power Project and the famed section of the Owens River through the Gorge will be greatly affected by the reduced flows when the project is put into full operation. Santa Ynez River, Santa Barbara County. The construction of Cachuma Dam by the Bureau of Reclamation creates a barrier across this steelhead stream and the storage of all the available water will prevent these fish from utilizing the lower portions of the stream in most years. We are working out fish and game manage- ment plans for the reservoir. Santa Maria River, Santa Barbara County. The construction of the Vaquero Dam by the Bureau of Reclamation will also cut off the steelhead spawning areas of this stream and in compensation the Department of Fish and Game is attempting to secure a minimum recreational pool, as well as other wildlife benefits. Of smaller individual proportions than the above major projects, but in the aggregate of considerable importance to fish life, are the numer- ous small diversions from our streams and rivers. All new applications to appropriate water are filed with the State Division of Water Resources and are reviewed by the Department of Fish and Game. In cases in which there is definite threat of injury to fish, the Department of Fish and Game enters a protest, with a statement of the conditions under which the protest may be dismissed. In most instances these conditions consist of the release of a certain flow of water to the stream below the diversion for the preservation of fish life. The disposition of protests made by the Department of Fish and Game during the biennium and during the preceding biennium is shown in Table 2. TABLE 2. DISPOSITION OF PROTESTS BY CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND GAME AGAINST APPLICATIONS TO APPROPRIATE WATER IN 1948-50 AND 1950-52 Total number of applications to appropriate water Number of applications protested by Department of Fish and Game Disposition of protested applications: Protests upheld Applications canceled Protests withdrawn after further investigation Informal hearings — settlement by agreement Informal hearings — action pending Formal hearings — •■om promised 1948-50 1,248 71 1950-52 1,116 80 58 65 6 7 3 3 3 4 0 1 1 0 POLLUTION CONTROL The water problems of the Department of Fish and Game apply to the quality as well as to the quantity of our waters. The increasing pop- ulation and industrialization of California have resulted in polluted waters that are as useless to fish life as dry streams. It is essential that these polluted waters be restored and that all sewage and industrial wastes be adequately treated before discharge. In 1949 the State Legislature established the State Water Pollution Control Board and nine regional boards for the purpose of coordinating all pollution control activities. It is now mandatory that any person desiring to discharge sewage or industrial waste file a report of proposed waste discharge with a regional board. The board then establishes water quality requirements that must be maintained in the receiving waters 42 DEPARTMENT OF PISH AND GAME by the operator of the disposal system. The various agencies concerned with water pollution submit their recommendations to the pollution control boards before these requirements are set. The Department of Fish and Game has the responsibility of furnishing any technical in- formation on the fish and wildlife aspects of any waste discharge re- quested by the regional boards and within the last two years submitted over 700 recommendations. In addition, the creation of the pollution control boards imposed a new function upon the Department of Fish and Game, one of conducting extensive biological pollution investigations at the request of the boards. During the last two years we were asked to undertake 21 biological pol- lution surveys, mostly in wTaters in which quality improvement seems to be indicated. In many of these areas, especially bays and harbors, similar work had never before been undertaken. For example, surveys were completed of San Diego, Newport, and Los Angeles Harbors in Southern California, as well as of San Francisco Bay and other areas where fish and wildlife is jeopardized by inadequate waste treatment. These studies dealt with unhealthy environments, in contrast with the usual post-mortem investi- gations of fish mortalities. This program is the most extensive ever under- taken by a state agency and nationwide interest has resulted. Because the necessary technical assistance was not available from the regular staff of the Department of Fish and Game, it was decided wherever possible to carry out these biological pollution investigations under contract with academic personnel. The University of California, University of Southern California, and University of San Francisco have participated in this work, with extremely satisfactory results. Costs were kept at a minimum and we have been able to develop an apprecia- tion of the importance of fish and game in the water pollution control program in many agencies, schools, and industry groups. In addition, the universities are beginning to develop the pool of trained personnel necessary for any long-range program of water pollution abatement. This shift of emphasis from purely enforcement type activities to planning before the pollution occurs reflects the increasing responsibility of the Department of Fish and Game in virtually all of our major activi- ties and the emphasis that must be placed upon public relations and education. There still exist many pollution problems of concern to the Depart- ment of Fish and Game, particularly in the Central Valley salmon rivers, such as the Tuolumne, the Mokelumne, and the San Joaquin. However, partial treatment facilities and careful control made it possible to avoid fish mortalities during the past two years. Additional treatment facilities are still badly needed to completely protect the fisheries resources, particularly at Modesto, Stockton, and Sacramento. The increasing industrialization in the Martinez-Antioch area is also creating an increasingly serious pollution threat to the Cen- tral Valley salmon and striped bass. The Regional Water Pollution Control Boards have recognized the fisheries resources as the primary use to be protected in all areas where these resources are jeopardized. The Department of Fish and Game has also intensified its independent pollution control program, including both law enforcement and technical investigation. FORTY-SECOND BIENNIAL REPORT 43 One example of our long-range survey program is on the Tuolumne River, where the Department of Fish and Game has undertaken a biologi- cal study of the effects of the Modesto pollution on the Tuolumne River. The objective of this study is to secure a sound basis of information on which to evaluate the damage being done to this river and others of its type by domestic and cannery pollution. The physical, chemical, and biological characteristics of a 15-mile stretch of river above Modesto (TOP) Pacific lamprey, nine inches long, trapped in Fall Creek as it was descending to the Klamath River, Siskiyou County. This is the so-called fresh water parasitic stage of this lamprey. It is assumed that after the young lampreys emerge from the mud of the stream bed they undergo a metamorphosis and enter the stage shown in this photo. They then attach themselves to almost any fish that they can find and feed upon them until ready to go to the ocean. In the ocean they continue to feed on marine fishes until ready to return to the streams to spawn and die. In the Klamath River these lampreys are very serious predators on many species of fish, being particu- larly noticeable on the king salmon. (BOTTOM) This nine-inch eastern brook trout was attacked and killed when placed in a large experimental aquarium with several 10-inch lampreys. Note the three holes rasped in its side. 44 DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND GAME are being compared with these same characteristics of a 15-mile stretch below the source of pollution. It is planned to carry on this study through all seasons for a period of about three years, so that reliable information on both seasonal and annual variations will be available. Another example of the continuing pollution control program is fur- nished by the copper pollution situation on the upper Sacramento River. Several tributaries of Shasta Lake and the upper Sacramento River are badly polluted by the drainage from abandoned copper mines and slag deposits. Within the last year, investigations have been started to de- termine the exact sources of this pollution and to find out to just what extent they affect the Sacramento River. In addition, an experimental program of abandoned mine sealing and waste treatment has been initi- ated, to reduce the amount of copper entering the river if at all possible. It is believed that these discharges are not endangering the Sacramento River salmon and steelhead runs with the present flows, but serious problems could result if the flow were reduced during a period when there was considerable discharge from Spring Creek in Shasta County. FISH DISEASE AND NUTRITION STUDIES During the biennium 116 cases of diseased fish were investigated, either during field trips or by examination of specimens submitted to the laboratory. In the majority of cases specific treatments were recom- mended for control of the diseases following diagnosis. The diseases diagnosed are placed into five groups as follows: Protozoan 28 Helminths 34 Bacterial 23 Nutritional 18 Miscellaneous 13 Total 116 The miscellaneous category includes tumors, cancer, copepods, lam- prey parasitism, poisoning, and salpingitis. Of the 116 fish disease cases investigated, 51 were from State fish hatcheries, 24 were from commercial fish hatcheries, and 41 involved wild fish. In addition to the diagnostic work, research projects involving disease and nutrition were carried on as follows : 1. Screening of drugs and chemicals for fish disease control. Work under this project has resulted in the screening and standardization of the dosage of Phenothiazine used in controlling intestinal protozoan infections. Continued drug screening involves Chloromycetin and various sulfa drugs. 2. A continued study of Cryptooia sp., a blood and tissue protozoan parasite of fishes. The investigation includes a study of its life history, cytology, and histo- pathology. 3. Development of hatchery food diets. Accompanying the expanding trout pro- duction is the problem of obtaining hatchery fish foods. Several new diets using vegetable and meat meals in pellet form have been formulated and are in use at most of the State hatcheries. Field trials are being carried on with the objectives of attaining lower costs and dietetically improved formulae. FORTY-SECOND BIENNIAL REPORT 45 INTERSTATE WATERS Lake Talioe and the Colorado River and its impoundments are the principal waters in connection with which cooperative interstate action has been taken. A Tri-State Fisheries Group, composed of representatives from Arizona, Nevada, and California was formed and held meetings at irregular intervals to formulate solutions for common problems. Also, a California representative served as chairman of the Fisheries Task Group of the Great Basin Subcommittee. This group conducted joint field surveys and compiled a report on fisheries problems of the lower Colorado River. WILDLIFE CONSERVATION BOARD PROJECTS Under the Wildlife Conservation Act of 1947 the State Legislature has appropriated considerable sums from horse racing operations to the Wildlife Restoration Fund, administered by the Wildlife Con- servation Board. This fund is available for capital expenditures. The Wildlife Conservation Board receives proposals for projects from sportsmen's and other conservation groups, federal and state agencies, and individuals and passes on their worth. Approved projects are allocated funds which are then transferred to the Department of Fish and Game for actual construction. Maintenance is carried on either by the Department or by local interests, depending largely upon the type of project. As projects involving inland sports fisheries, other than hatchery proj- ects, have been submitted the members of the biological staff have con- ducted field investigations, planning, and preparation of reports and recommendations. The following is a report of the progress that has been made on the various nonhatchery wildlife conservation projects during the biennium. Project 7. El Dorado Flow Maintenance Dams Surveys and plans for all of the feasible flow maintenance clam sites in the El Dorado National Forest were completed during the biennium. In addition, check dams were completed at Lois, Schmidell, Middle Velma, Susie, and Heather Lakes during 1950 and 1951. Project 2. Deep Creek Stream Improvement Engineering surveys failed to disclose a suitable site for the proposed Holcomb Creek flow maintenance dam. Subsequently the Wildlife Conservation Board canceled the project and recovered the unexpended funds. The Little Bear Creek Access Trail was constructed as a part of the comprehensive program undertaken jointly by the State Division of Beaches and Parks and the U. S. Forest Service. The Wildlife Con- servation Board provided $250 to construct this trail. The Mojave Camp Ground Trail was dropped as impractical because no pack stock was available for stocking. Project 4. Pine Creek Stream Improvement Counts and studies of migrating fish were carried out during 1950 and 1951. In 1952 the Department of Fish and Game carried out the necessary engineering surveys, prepared plans, and let a contract for the construction of a diversion channel which will bring overflow waters of Pine Creek into its natural channel. Project 7. Grizzly Creek Dam The Wildlife Conservation Board allocated $5,000 in June, 1952 to initiate con- struction. Construction depends upon a lease which must be negotiated between the Pacific Gas and Electric Company and the U. S. Forest Service. ;; A stream flow maintenance dam. This dam is at the outlet of Stony Ridge Lake, El Dorado County. The impounded water is released during summer and fall months to maintain good stream flows in six miles of Meeks Creek, a tributary to Lake Tahoe. Projeci 12. Mendocino Forest Stream Improvement The experimental streamside planting and investigations which were undertaken by the University of California have been completed, and the final report on the project is expected shortly. Project 16. Emigrant Basin Flow Maintenance Dams One dam at High Emigrant Lake and two dams at Middle Emigrant Lake were completed in 1951. Surveys and plans at the other sites have been completed and construction will be carried out during succeeding years. Project 47-?. Granite Creek Flow Maintenance Dams These dams are to be constructed by the U. S. Forest Service. The lowest bid received, however, exceeded the funds which are available for this work. Plans and specifications have been drawn up and it is hoped that this work may be undertaken directly, rather than under contract. Project 41-2. Marsh Lake Level Maintenance This project was found to be infeasible and was then canceled by the Wildlife Conservation Board. Project 44-2. Burnt Ranch Falls Fish Ladder This project consisted of the creation of a fishing ladder by blasting pools out of bedrock. The project was completed on October 6, 1950. Project 44-3. Bennett Smith Fish Ladder This dam was washed out in the October, 1950, flood and the fishway was no longer needed. The Wildlife Conservation Board subsequently canceled the project. FORTY-SECOND BIENNIAL REPORT 47 Project 49. Tahoe Forest Flow Maintenance Dams Plans and specifications have been prepared for the flow maintenance dams pro- posed for this forest. The construction program was initiated in 1952 and the dam on Big Downey Lake was finished. Project 51. Sequoia National Forest Flow Maintenance Program The Department of Fish and Game turned over $39,900 to the U. S. Forest Service for construction. Dams are planned at the Indian Basin and Millwood sites. At the end of the biennium surveys of the dam sites were just being completed. Project 57. San Diego River Flow Maintenance and Development Program Test borings indicated that foundation conditions were unsatisfactory for the development of warm-water fish ponds. The Wildlife Conservation Board canceled the project in June, 1952. Project 58. San Diego County Flow Maintenance Program Surveys failed to disclose any suitable dam sites and the project was canceled and the funds recovered in June, 1951. Project 61. Shasta River Fish Counting Dam The Division of Architecture estimates were well over the amount allocated by the Wildlife Conservation Board and possibilities of reducing construction costs are being explored. Project 62. Canyon Creek Fish Ladder The owners agreed to the removal of the dam, thus eliminating the need for a fish ladder. The project was completed in October, 1951, when the dam was removed by the Department of Fish and Game. Project 63. Sawyer's Bar Auxiliary Dam The Department of Fish and Game made improvements to the existing ladder which were satisfactory to serve the project. This project was completed in September, 1951. Project 67. Sacramento River Weir (Rough Fish Control Barrier) Additional studies showed that this project was infeasible and the project was cancelled in June, 1951. Project 72. Ramer Lake This project is being constructed under the supervision of the Bureau of Game Conservation. Roads are now being built and water controls installed. Project 73. Crystal Lake Level Maintenance This project was completed in November, 1950. Project 74. Coachella Valley Public Fishing Areas Preliminary plans and estimates for the construction of two lakes indicated that the cost would be excessively high. Alternate sites are now being studied, with attention being given to Five Finger Lake, where a lease has been negotiated with the Indian Service. Project 77. Lindo Lake Public Fishing Area The final contracts for the completion of this project were let in June, 1952 by the County of San Diego. Project 81. San Bernardino National Forest Stream Improvement Test dams which were constructed during the dry years stood up very well during the heavy run off of 1951. Plans are now under way to employ a stream improvement crew to carry out the program. Project 82. Dry Lake Level Maintenance The U. S. Forest Service has packed in the necessary material and construction will be undertaken during the summer of 1952. 18 DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND GAME Project 83. Bixby Slough Public Fishing Area The tentative allocation of funds for this project was withdrawn by the Wildlife Conservation Board, but surveys to determine the feasibility of the project are still under way. Land acquisition depends upon the results of current bond issues. Project 86. San Antonio Creek Public Fishing Area The reactivation of Camp Cooke made this site unavailable and funds were re- allocated in June, 1951. Project 87. Snake Lake A cooperative agreement with the U. S. Forest Service for the construction of this project has been drawn up and funds transferred so that the Forest Service may carry out this construction in the near future. Project 88. Charlton Flats Public Fishing Area Engineering surveys and other studies have been carried out by the Division of Water Resources and its report with plans and specifications is being awaited. Project 89. Chilao Campground Public Fishing Area The Division of Water Resources is preparing plans and specifications for this project. Project 91. Elizabeth Lake Canyon Creek The Division of Water Resources has conducted engineering surveys and is now preparing plans and specifications for this project. Project 92. Biscar Reservoir Level Maintenance Funds have been made available for engineering surveys by the Division of Water Resources and its report is being awaited. Project 94. Jurlock Reservoir The cost estimates for this project exceeded $100,000. Other possibilities are being studied, since this amount is believed to be excessive. Project 97. Sautter Lake Preliminary engineering surveys have been made by the Division of Water Resources, and it is now preparing its report. Project 98. Sand Creek Preliminary engineering surveys have been made by the Division of Water Resources, which is now preparing its report. Project 99. Chiquito Lake Preliminary engineering surveys have been made by the Division of Water Resources, which is now preparing its report. Project 100. Hume Lake Dam Funds have been made available to the Forest Service to carry out engineering surveys to determine the feasibility of repairing this dam. Project 1010. Delta Fish and Game Operations Base The much needed operational base at the south end of the Antioch Bridge was completed in November, 1951 and is serving as a field headquarters for fisheries and patrol activities in the Delta. STEELHEAD AND SALMON One of the main goals of the Bureau of Fish Conservation has been to acquire as rapidly as possible the essential facts necessary for the preservation and management of our steelhead and salmon sport fisheries in an expanding and changing economy. These fisheries represent a tremendous resource under constant threat from large-scale water use projects. FORTY-SECOND BIENNIAL REPORT 49 The present applied steelhead and salmon management program of the bureau includes removal of log jams, abandoned dams, and other obstructions ; rescue of fish from drying streams ; construction of fish- ways; and stocking with hatchery fish. The activities of the biological staff in connection with these phases of the program are described elsewhere in the report. Some of the more important special fact-finding investigations carried on during the biennium are summarized herewith. For some years the Bureau of Fish Conservation has carried out counts of spawning runs of steelhead and salmon at various stations. Such counts provide a basis for legislative and management programs and for recommendations in connection with proposed large dams. The fol- lowing stations were operated during the past biennium : Station Stream County River system Klamathon Racks Klamath River Siskiyou Klamath River Fall Creek Fall Creek Siskiyou Klamath River Shasta Racks_. ...Shasta River Siskiyou Klamath River Sweasey Dam Mad River Humboldt Mad River Benbow Dam Eel River, South Fork Humboldt Eel River A graduate college student employed as a student biologist completed a study of the efficiency of natural propagation of steelhead and king and silver salmon and the factors affecting it. This study was carried out in the Prairie Creek drainage, Humboldt County. Another study which in part complements the above was started at Fall Creek, Siskiyou County, in 1949 and continued during the biennium. In this study different numbers of king salmon are allowed to enter and spawn in Fall Creek each year. The resulting offspring are then counted on their downstream migration to the Klamath River. From known numbers of parents and known numbers of offspring we hope to deter- mine the most effective number of king salmon for a spawning tributary such as Fall Creek. INLAND TROUT Although the great majority of the trout caught by anglers in Cali- fornia as a whole still result from natural propagation, the hatcheries of the State play a very important role in supplying fish to a number of waters incapable of producing satisfactory angling through natural propagation. In this program it is one of the principal functions of the biological staff to make the necessary initial surveys of waters and then to check them as necessary in order to keep stocking and other management practices in tune with existing conditions. The records and policies for each managed water are kept current by means of a state-wide system of "hatchery management binders". These are permanent records in loose-leaf binder form kept at each hatchery, with duplicate copies at the district office, which show the essential survey data for the managed water, a summary record of past stocking, and the basic stocking and other management policies as determined in conference between the district biological and hatchery staffs. Special investigations dealing with the inland trout fisheries carried on by the biological staff include studies of hatchery diets and fish diseases, test water programs, and studies of important individual bodies of water. These are described elsewhere in this report. Fish rescue trap designed by G. R. Holman. The whole flow of a small tributary stream which has dried up in its lower portion is diverted into a mesh box placed at the terminal end of the flow. The down- stream migrating fingerlings are trapped and removed each morning. Fish rescue is an incidental pro- gram of the crew working in the North Coast area. During May and June, 1952, a total of 19,400 steelhead and 3,998 silver salmon was rescued. WARM-WATER FISHES The reproductive potential of the warm- water fishes (principally the black basses, sunfishes, and catfishes) is generally recognized to be so great that stocking for maintenance is unnecessary, and may actually be harmful. The warm-water fisheries program of the Bureau of Fish Conservation is consequently directed toward finding ways of increasing production in existing waters and creating new fisheries. Yorba Linda Reservoir, Orange County, is owned by the Anaheim Union Water Company, which allows no public fishing, but permits the Department of Fish and Game to operate the reservoir as a brood pond. In this photograph warm-water game fishes are being seined for use in restocking Puddingstone Reservoir, Los Angeles County. Puddingstone had previously been treated chemically to rid it of rough fish by department personnel. Intensive studies were made on several selected waters, especially Clear Lake in Lake County, Millerton Lake in Fresno and Madera Counties, and waters in the Colorado River Basin. These were supplemented by widespread sampling of the populations of young fish in a large series of reservoirs throughout the State. Results generally indicated adequate largemouth black bass reproduction but inadequate forage for the bass of the year's hatch, resulting in low survival of bass fingerlings. To correct this situation, forage fishes, principally golden shiners, were introduced into a number of waters, as listed in the section on "Fish Introductions. " It is too early to evaluate the effects of these introduc- tions. Meanwhile, studies of other species of forage fishes have been made. At present, the threadfin shad (Signalosa) and fathead minnow (Pime- phales promelas) appear to hold considerable promise. In addition, inves- tigations have been conducted of the suitability of white bass (Morone chrysops) and other predator species for introduction into California waters, especially our large fluctuating reservoirs. Other work in con- nection with the warm-water fisheries is described elsewhere in this report. 52 DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND GAME STRIPED BASS The complex problems ordinarily involved in the management of a large fishery are being aggravated, in the case of striped bass (Roccus saxatilis), by the rapid industrialization of the San Francisco Bay area. The Fish and Game boat Striper (1) is used for tagging striped bass. The gill net in which the fish are caught is rolling out over the stern in (2). In (3) the catch is being brought in and in (4) the fish are being removed from the net. A bass is being tagged in (5), and (6) shows the fish prior to release. FORTY-SECOND BIENNIAL REPORT 53 This fishery is entering a critical phase. The great influx of newcomers into California during and after the war is being reflected in sharp increases in fishing pressure, industrial pollution, and water diversions from nursery grounds. Striped bass activities during the biennium centered principally around these three threats to the future welfare of California striped bass. The increase in bass anglers raises questions about the adequacy of present regulations, such as length of season, bag limit, and minimum size. These questions cannot be answered without knowing roughly how many of the available fish are being caught each year. The striped bass tagging program, aimed at estimating this, was continued actively, with more than 3,000 fish over 12 inches long being tagged during the biennium. Special field and aquarium studies to improve tagging methods were continued, since it became obvious early in this program that tags which had been used in previous studies were unsatisfactory. Pollution work included a detailed study of striped bass waters from Richmond to Antioch, aimed at evaluating the effects of waste discharges upon the small food animals present. The field phase of this project was completed during the biennium. The results will enable us to tell how much harm the industrial plants are now doing. They will also provide a valuable record of present conditions for future comparisons. Water diversions from the Sacramento-San Joaquin nursery grounds have presented the greatest immediate challenge. A successful quantita- tive survey was made in 1951 to estimate the actual number of bass fry during July and to determine their distribution in relation to the Tracy Pumping Plant of the U. S. Bureau of Reclamation and the Contra Costa and Pittsburg Steam Plants of the Pacific Gas and Electric Company. This was done in cooperation with the Bureau of Reclamation and the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Simultaneously, our staff worked closely with the P. G. and E. Company in solving the difficult fish salvage prob- lems at the Contra Costa Steam Plant, and remarkable success was attained. In conjunction with the above activities, the catch record program has been maintained, providing a continuous, up-to-date index of what is occurring in the fishery. FARM PONDS During the biennium 521 applications for stocking of private ponds were processed, 175 ponds were visited, and 439 ponds were stocked with fish. During the preceding biennium, 467 applications were processed, 222 ponds were visited, and 325 ponds were stocked. It is the policy of the Department of Fish and Game to supply an initial stock of warm-water fishes to private ponds too small to support public fishing and which meet certain other requirements. Trout for such ponds must be purchased from a licensed domestic fish breeder. The usual warm-water species stocked consist of largemouth black bass, bluegill, and brown bullhead (Ameiurus nehulosus) . Several other kinds have been tried on an experimental basis. 54 DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND GAME The biologists process applications for fish and inspect a pond if there is doubt as to its qualifications or there is possibility of escape of undesir- able warm-water species into trout waters. Fairly frequently they are also called upon to assist a pond owner with various problems, such as an overgrowth of aquatic plants or dying fish. LEGISLATION AND REGULATIONS Recommendations for changes in fishing laws and regulations, based on survey data and on their general knowledge, were submitted by members of the biological staff as occasion required. PUBLIC INFORMATION Members of the biological staff participated extensively in the public information program. About 250 talks were given before sportsmen's clubs and other conservation groups, and at least 10 radio and three tele- vision appearances were made. Conservation motion pictures were shown many times at these meetings. Exhibits were prepared for fairs and other public gatherings. The printed material consisted of published articles, which are listed in the following section, mimeographed information leaflets, press re- leases, and fishing maps. The latter, issued as folders with the map on one side and informational material on the other, have continued to be very popular. The "Anglers' Guide to the Lakes and Streams of the Marble Moun- tains Wilderness Area ' ' was first published during the biennium ; revised editions of the "Striped Bass Fishing Map" and the "Anglers' Guide to the Lakes and Streams of the Trinity Divide" were issued; maps of the Colorado River area and of black bass fishing waters will be issued shortly. PUBLICATIONS AND ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS A list of publications by staff members is included in Appendix H. Titles and abstracts of unpublished administrative reports appear in Appendix I. BUREAU OF MARINE FISHERIES Responsible for the conservation and administration of ocean fisheries, the Bureau of Marine Fisheries conducts research on the sport and com- mercial fishing industries and recommends laws and regulations for maintaining maximum sustained production. Most important of the bureau 's investigations concern salmon, bottom fish, sardine, tuna, mackerel, kelp bass, abalone, and crab. The bureau maintains biological and statistical staffs to gather and analyze data upon which recommendations for conservation measures are based. The bureau has laboratories at Terminal Island, Stanford University, Pacific Grove, and Eureka. A stream improvement headquarters is located at Elk Grove. Three research vessels and one small boat are operated, and another vessel is used jointly with the Bureau of Fish Conservation. In the last six months of the biennium federal aid funds became avail- able for cooperative studies of sport fisheries. Two projects concerned with marine problems were established. These are discussed in the section on Federal Aid in Fish Restoration. Highlights of the bureau 's work are to be found in the following pages. Details are given in the various publications listed in Appendix H. SALMON After the peak years of 1945-1946, the California commercial salmon catch dropped to about the average of the annual landings since 1916. The 1949 catch was the lowest of the postwar period. The most important occurrence in the California salmon fishery during the biennium was the closure of much of the Sacramento-San Joaquin River gill net fishery by the State Legislature. This law did not go into effect until shortly before the end of the 1951 season, but its full impact will be felt in 1952. The net fishery is now confined to the area between the Carquinez Bridge and a line drawn from Stake Point to Chipps Island, near Pittsburg. Since 1948, cooperative salmon tagging operations have been conducted in the ocean off the coasts of California, Oregon, and Washington as part of a program intended to determine enough about the habits of these fish to make better management a possibility. The Tri-State tagging operation was drawing to a close in 1951, but some additional tagging has been done in California. Salmon Tagging and Tag Development In 1951 some ocean salmon tagging was done aboard a chartered com- mercial trolling boat ; the remainder was on sportfishing boats during two "tag" days — one in February and one in November. The Golden Gate Sportfishers, a group of sportfishing skippers in the San Francisco Bay area, offered to the department free use of a boat each week day during the 1952 season for salmon tagging off the Golden (55) 56 DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND GAME Part of the coastwise salmon migration study — seining young silver salmon for marking. A — A one-man seine as used in small pockets under banks, etc. B — A two-man seine in operation. The men had little trouble herding silver salmon across large pools with nets which seemed much too small for the job. C— Beaching a two-man seine. A second seine crew has just ap- peared, and on this occasion the two groups will combine forces to transport their catches to the hatchery for marking. D— Sorting the catch. In this stream only silver salmon and trout were present. E— Pouring a bucket of fish into the live box. F— Loading fish onto the trailer for trans- portation to the hatchery. The gasoline-powered aerator pump can be seen at the forward end of the trailer. FORTY-SECOND BIENNIAL REPORT 57 CN Z I o o o in >- —i z> — > >- UJ > o u UJ Oi Q z < o z o o < I— z o —J < CO z < LU u o CO < w t-i ts a > o O W rt K > Total recoveries ■* co ■-I CO ■-I oo O iH Tf H lO 00 OS IO Total river recoveries CO CO CO CO CO OS IO — i OS CO CO rt Columbia River System CN CO >ft ■* Oregon coastal streams CO 1 ** rt Smith River, Calif. t-i OS o Klamath River System C4 OS Tf CN Eel River System CO 00 -t 1H Sacramento-San Joaquin River System oo o — i CO CO 00 W Tf CM CO DO H E > O o w •< H O O 1 Total ocean recoveries oo co i-i CD CO i-H •* W. Coast Vancouver Island rt r-l rt Puget Sound ^ " Washington Coast o •# *tf CO Oregon Coast CD OS iO o Calif, north of Pt. Arena CN Tf —I CO CD 00 CN CN Calif, south of Pt. Arena 00 CD ■* CN KHH -f< I-H T-I t^ CN CN a) 13 ^ OS S3 M *2 o cc m as co oo oo co" U5 O CN i-h CO t3 tC CO •2 s> e CO CO 3 tC CO S fe <= o o cn-g a £ ,a ■3 O H J3 O m OS ^H j>> 1-5 "3 -ts O ef a CB f-i < '3 2 Ah rt as X! C -+o 13 3 *rs O 02 o o +^> u ft -o as M 50 +3 c o "3 02 fcyO c 3 o OS to ^ A3 CJ 1 3 . =0 -SJ • CO •S ! CO ' f- 2 o 13 CO m S h o< II 3 Ah 11 t2 ££ 02 03 0 OS a 'o - — 3 : 02 "3 •+J O H 58 DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND GAME Gate, five days a week all season. A mutually acceptable arrangement was made whereby the department furnished a man to do the tagging and paid part of the expenses, while each participating skipper furnished his boat, time and gear, and organized the fishermen who were to catch the fish for tagging. Many salmon were tagged, and the favorable public relations and good will generated by this program made it highly successful from the viewpoint of both the department and the sportfishers. The fishermen thoroughly enjoyed the free trips even when their "big one" was thrown back with a tag on its back. This voluntary tagging program stimulated efforts to develop a new, more satisfactory salmon tag. To realize the most benefit from a tagging program, a tag must be found that : can be put on small salmon and yet not be adversely affected by their rapid growth ; is not affected by sea water, the fish 's body tissues, or by electrolysis ; is not toxic to the fish ; does not handicap a tagged fish as compared to an untagged one, or make it more easily caught, as, for example, in the gill net fishery ; is readily seen by the fishermen and has adequate instructions for its return ; can be applied with practical uniformity and ease by taggers of varying degrees of experience and aptitude. No such tag exists. In an effort to develop a tag closer to the ideal, a new design was tried out in early 1952. Results to date indicate that it is neither better nor worse than the disk tag that has been used in the past ; however, results will not be conclusive until after the close of the 1953 season. In essence, the new tag is a sealed tube of plastic that passes through the base of the dorsal fin and forms a loop when the ends are fastened together with a stainless steel clamp. The tag number and return informa- tion is sealed inside the transparent tube. TABLE 2. KING SALMON TAGGED IN THE SACRAMENTO- SAN JOAQUIN RIVER DELTA Time tagged Number tagged Number recovered July 1 1950, to Dec. 31, 1950 473 242 722 49 68 King Salmon tagged in the Sacramento River near Knights Landing July 1, 1950, to Dec. 31, 1950 _ 39 Jan. 1, 1951, to Dec. 31, 1951 Jan. 1, 1952, to June 30, 1952 .. 159 1 Steelhead tagged in the Sacramento River near Knights Landing July 1, 1950, to Dec. 31, 1950 ._ 1,013 3 428 0 199 0 Jan. 1, 1951, to Dec. 31, 1951 ... _- 116 Jan. 1, 1952, to June 30, 1952 . _ _ .__ 0 431 116 To test the relative value of the new tag as compared to the more standard Peterson disk, fish were tagged in the following sequence : first fish — disk tag ; second fish — tube tag ; third fish — both tags. Single- tagged-fish returns give a direct comparison of " returnability " of each tag — that is, these returns indicate the rate of recovery and whether or not a tag is seen and sent in to the department. Supplemental to the FORTY-SECOND BIENNIAL REPORT 59 CM u-> O LU Z o lO o >- < Z> a: Q LU < z o < O z LU o z < 3 n LU -J CO < 55 -g oo CO "* CD CM CO CO O OO CD 0 -^ CO CO ^ CO CM a s •O ia cm" o -V in oT of oT co" 2 . CD Os 0 os iC CM CM »o -p 00 CM !>• 0 00 _Q JU r- O CO CO r^ »o rp CM ■* tp tt- S "£ i^ OO . t-T oZ CD CO CM CD CM io 3 03 CO CO CO t^ CD CM O O O OS 1! B CM CM lO CM CM 00 1 , CO CO , 1 a 03 c3 03 ai «- i- "5 t- -4-3 a ^J C H 0 C 03 CD CD CD HI > o > > CD > > CD CO 0 & > CD > bD 13 B CD b£ ^2 'E *9 'C o3 co *c fS , — 1 -a -d rt -c HO 13 T3 T3 a a -a a c 0 p. a o3 T3 "g 03 CD o3 CD 03 03 CD o3 CD 03 C3 CO CO to CO CQ ccj c3 > O 0 03 0 0 O CO CO *ca -^ P. CO Oh a P, O o CD -5 ^3 0 T3 -3 'B Q a ■< lJ <3 < Q < <3 < ■+j a o >> -4^> ^ c ^ i_ >> 03 o3 CD 2 -0 03 ccj o3 o3 a '« CO e3 *o 0 a & CD fci -a CO Fh CD CD 'o o CD J3 a s CO "0 £ s i CD > O CD 03 3 3 0 c3 t_. ,_l £ -4-3 s -M w w CD c3 CD i-i c3 g C2 03 CD > CD S 5 0 -D |3 a CO • as O CD CD CO t- CD CD CD *- e CJ o .2 | CQ CD si o bfiO sa rt CO CO CO •30 rt to CD CD •SO CO CO •- a 0 0 PQ "3 bo C4 -a Is t- b£i CD 13 «pq -0 0 03 —■ o3 CQ s s Q Q s S s >. ; >> >> >> [ (-< >> (- Ci t-' CD CD CD CO CD >> CD T3 ,J3 _C -C ~ JH »- ^= CD a o CD CD CO CJ CD CD -+J -*-s 0 -4-3 a 03 03 03 0 o3 o3 o .2 W X W w w 03 w a Clj 03 ^j ^d ^ _M 03 mW W _w CD -*n CD CD CD CO CD QJ CD 72 CO CD CD Urn CD CO CO CD 03 +3 CD J5 C a a O O 0 a O CO 03 O P o3 a co 03 a CD CD CD (-1 CD 03 s CO 00 J3 CO CD o C8 03 o3 03 "3 '3 "c3 o H L« t-, Lh (- O o Ph PL, Cm Ph 0 Ph s Ph -a a >> >. -*-3 +3 a =3 _-, co S3 CD ■*3 ^ a w c- 00 b4 CO be s Jd cd 03 -0 T3 J»J > g CD CD c a CD O a [m o O CD 1- CD cu 03 CO 03 ro CD ft-t £ £ J a CO fcpQ O 3 o ■*-* -4-3 CQ > 2 e > « a 03 O CD CD 0 S ■so CD CD 0 s -30 0 ■5^4 03 0-1 its +J -in a £ 03 CJ CO > £ c3 02 s S a O s a S la OS OS as O ai ceo rt ** ■* -r "5 -1* >o »C W3 »o >o OS O Oi Oi C3S C35 OS Oa OS OS | | i ; __^ J_ [ | ! : ■a ^a -o >> >> >> >> >> >> >> CD t-i i-. ■_• t- h Lh i-> CO CO CD OJ 3 3 CD CO CO CD CD 9 J3 ^ ja J3 ja ja J3 co CD o Ot 0. 03 0 O 0 CO 0 P. -*j -t-3 -t^ 03 0 ■+J 4^ -fj -4-3 CD cQ 03 c3 03 03 03 03 o3 Mi CD -C ^ ^ ^. ^ -fi -d CQ bE hO bfl bC CO CO bn 60 bD hD d a > > 3 M Q W CO CO 3 « M s CD CO CO I i CM 1 - CM i 1 ca 1—1 00 CM CM CM CO CM ' — 1 CD C3 >! ci _>. >j (-1 1 CM >> CO a 1- S i 03 3 *3 "3 b! o3 3 'o CO s 1 1-s -4. <3 ■ 3 CD -4-3 o ImI ■^ ^- < »-* »-H 1—1 OS rt ^3 >! _>> >> >> t-> >, CD Q o3 o3 03 03 o3 < 03 a c£ S S "3 •-5 § s S § 3 •-5 -a T3 *- CD _ CD C3 _a T3 to _ i~ C ■- >H =3 03 J> S £ o CO O ^_I ^ ^] Oi as OS OS OS OS OS 60 DEPARTMENT OF PISH AND GAME above comparison are the double-tagged-fish returns which show when a fish has retained one tag and lost the other. A great stimulus to the return of salmon tags has been the ' ' bonus ' ' awards of from five to one hundred dollars offered by the San Francisco Tyee Club for the return of certain "lucky-numbered" salmon tags. During the biennium the top reward was increased from $50 to $100. Tagging in inland waters has been conducted in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta and in the Sacramento River itself. This work was done to obtain data on the movements of salmon through the delta and popula- tion estimates in the upper river. The delta tagging was done with gill nets from the Fish and Game research boat Striper. In the Sacramento River the salmon were caught by the use of gill nets and large fyke nets. These fyke nets are a chicken-wire-covered cylindrical trap 10 feet in diameter and 18 feet long. "When properly placed in the river, they prove highly effective in catching salmon and steelhead trout. The steelheacl were taken incidentally but were also tagged and released. To obtain quantitative information on the movements of king and silver salmon and to determine the quantities of fish contributed to the ocean fisheries by various important river systems, the Pacific Marine Fisheries Commission recommended a large scale marking experiment as a supplement to the tagging experiment. This work was started in the previous biennium, but Table 3 gives a summary of all the marking done in California from the inception of this experiment. Comparable numbers of king salmon have been marked in Oregon and Washington, and the silver salmon marked in the two northern states have far ex- ceeded those marked in California. (Silver salmon are relatively unim- portant in California.) The hatchery fish marked at Coleman Station have in each instance been provided by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, but the marking was done by the California Department of Fish and Game. The wild fish marked at Coleman Station were captured by fish and game employees in fyke nets in the Sacramento River. They were transported to the hatchery, marked, and returned to the river after marking. The king salmon marked at Prairie Creek Hatchery and released in Big River were from eggs taken from Mad River fish. It was the original intention to return the marked fish to Mad River, but the Bureau of Fish Conservation was previously committed to planting king salmon in Big River and the number of eggs obtained was so low as to make it impractical to plant in both places; hence the entire release was made in Big River. Wild silver salmon marked in Prairie Creek Hatchery were taken from the streams of Del Norte and Humboldt Counties by seining crews. The crew would send one man to scout streams until he found a suitable source of silver salmon, whereupon a three- to four-man crew would rapidly progress from pool to pool making innumerable hauls with small seines. The silver salmon were separated from other species of fish and held in live boxes until near the end of the day's work, at which time they would be transferred to milk cans and taken to Prairie Creek Hatchery for marking. After marking they were usually returned to the stream from which they were taken. If there were any likelihood of the stream drying up, all salmon and trout captured would be taken Clipping a ventral fin from a wild silver salmon fingerling. Note the bobbinet glove covering the thumb and two fingers of the marker. to the hatchery and after the salmon had been marked, they would be released in some stream with an adequate flow of water. The recoveries of marked salmon which were from the 1949 brood year kings should reach their peak in 1953. However, there were a few returns of two-year-olds in 1951, and large quantities of returns of three- year-olds in 1952. It should be possible to make a fairly comprehensive analysis of the mark returns of 1949 brood year salmon after the 1952 season. Additional analyses of this brood year will be required for the 1953 and 1954 returns. In order to obtain reliable figures of the proportion of marked fish in the ocean catch, the Department of Fish and Game has had samplers examining the salmon catch in key fishing ports from Crescent City to Monterey, and in the Sacramento-San Joaquin River fisheries. These men keep records of the numbers of unmarked fish seen, and the numbers of fish with each different mark seen. Scales are taken from all marked fish recovered, and each such fish is measured. The number and weight of fish landed is determined for as many boat landings as is feasible. Length frequency samples are taken at frequent intervals. Scale samples are taken for an age analysis of the salmon. Floods and Droughts A great deal of damage was done to the Central Valley salmon runs by the floods of November, 1950. Many rivers were swollen torrents dur- ing the peak of the salmon spawning season. The fish spawned near the edges of these streams in order to avoid the excessively fast and deep water near midstream. When the floods receded, tens of thousands of <;•_» DEPARTMENT OP FISH AND GAME salmon nests were left high and dry. This should have a very serious effect on the spawning run of 1954. The most damage was in the Tuol- umne River. North of the Feather River there was high water but little or no real damage. The main Sacramento River run was not affected. A drought in early 1948 was so serious that almost the entire flow of the Tuolumne River at Don Pedro was stored for future irrigation needs. The flow below the La Grange Dam was so low that almost all the previous fall's salmon nests were dry at hatching time. As a result the 1951 spawn- ing run in the Tuolumne River was a complete failure. This means that for two successive years the best salmon stream in the San Joaquin Valley has had its salmon run almost wiped out. The handicap will be very difficult to overcome. BOTTOM FISHERIES Increased catches characterized the bottomnsh industry of the State during this biennium. The increment was due to the continued expanding utilization of dover sole. This species now constitutes the backbone of the sole fillet production in the State, with the port of Eureka supplying by far the greatest amount of packaged fillets. Out of the northern region of the State, a fleet of 37 to 50 trawlers fished each month and from the Monterey and Santa Barbara regions, an average of about seven or eight. A sizable industry is supported by the activity of these boats, their landings of fish adding greatly to the wealth of the communities from which they operate. The bulk of the catch landed by the trawl fleet is clover sole, with English sole and petrale sole following in importance (Microstomus pacificus, Parophrys vetulus and Eopsetta jordani). The ^*"**l^5fe., The boat Hornet off Morro Bay bringing up the shrimp beam trawl used in the fishery off that port, June, 1952. This is a new fishery made possible by the department's discovery of pre- viously unknown shrimp beds. FORTY-SECOND BIENNIAL REl'OKT 63 species making up the majority of the otter trawl bottomhsh catch can be taken successfully only by the trawl fishery. No other means of fishing can economically capture these bottomfish. This fishery takes some species that are not at present utilized by the industry. These include skates, rays, and unwanted varieties of soles, hake, etc. This nonutilization is a result of lack of cultivation of taste and development of new markets and products by the industry. Our fisheries' selective utilization can be contrasted to the situation in Europe where close to 100 percent of the catch is utilized. However, irrespective of the effect of market conditions on the demand for certain species, it should be emphasized that there would be no sole taken, a very small percentage of the rockfish catch, and an almost com- plete waste of the bottomfish population without the efforts of the trawl fishermen. A fishery that has yielded over 25 million pounds of fish annually is an important segment of our marine resources and State's wealth, and the interests of this industry should be guarded judiciously. Further returns from the tagging program on the bottomfish yielded additional information on the migratory habits of some of the bottom- fish. Of the English sole tagged in the Eureka region, 25 fish moved an average distance of 95 miles south, and 26 fish moved an average distance of 25 miles north, with 15 fish remaining close to the area of tagging. Of A bag load of shrimp being landed aboard the shrimp trawler Grace H out of Morro Bay. There are about 800 pounds, almost 100 percent shrimp, in this bag. 64 DEPARTMENT OF PISH AND GAME the English tagged in the San Francisco region, 11 moved an average distance of 54 miles north, 17 stayed within 12 miles of tagging, and one moved 25 miles northwest. Dover sole tagged off Eureka showed 16 fish moving about 30 miles north, with 39 fish staying within 10 miles of tagging. Six petrale sole moved 35 miles north from the point of tagging in the Eureka region, and 19 stayed within 10 miles of release. The general pattern of migration indicates that the majority of the soles are nonmigrants. Only a small interchange of English sole between the Eureka and San Francisco region occurs with a slight northward migratory trend in both regions for dover and petrale sole. The study of trawler boat logs was continued by the Bureau of Marine Fisheries to follow changing trends in species caught, fishing localities, depths, and fishery progress from year to year. The logs indicate that many boats are now fishing in waters of depths of 300 fathoms and over with good success. The general trend of the fishing effort is toward the offshore deeper water. A new industry is born. Processing and picking shrimp at the American Refrigeration Company in San Luis Obispo, California, June, 1952. FORTY-SECOND BIENNIAL REPORT 65 Of the research work done on the bottom fisheries, the exploratory work on the N. B. Scofield during this biennium has yielded results of considerable importance to the State of California. The exploratory work was directed towards the discovery and determining the extent of the latent shrimp and prawn (genus Pandalus) resource off the Cali- fornia coast. Several exploratory and census trips were made on the N. B. Scofield, and portions of the waters from the Santa Barbara Channel to the Oregon border were explored. Beds of shrimp off Pt. Buchon, Bodega Bay, Shelter Cove, and Pt. St. George, comprised about 200 square miles upon which shrimp were known to exist. Much of the area off the coast still remains to be explored, as only the most promising regions were worked on the previous surveys. Legislation sponsored by the Department of Fish and Game fostered the development of a new industry in this field where formerly none had existed. Regulatory measures to insure the perpetuation of the fishery were established, and the industry was born under modest circumstances. The fishing gear used by the industry was patterned after that developed by the department personnel in the exploratory work. Two boats were at work on the beds off Pt. Buchon at the close of the biennium, and were averaging better than 500 pounds per hour of trawling. Introductory attempts were being made on the Bodega and Pt. St. George areas. The industry has established itself in Morro Bay and San Luis Obispo where about 75 people are engaged in the pro- duction of the finished product. Through the exploratory work of the department, a new industry and new wealth has been added to the State's resources. The catch as of June 30, 1952, only three months after opening of the season, has amounted to over 89,000 pounds. SARDINES At the close of the last biennium (1949-50) the sardine (Sardinops caerulea) industry was experiencing a slight recovery from the poor fishing of 1947-48 and 1948-49. This recovery continued through the next season, 1950-51, but in 1951-52 the catch again dropped to the level of 1947-48 and at the close of the present biennium the outlook for this fishery is poor indeed. Investigations of the sardine population are being continued by the California Cooperative Sardine Research Program which represents the joint efforts of California Department of Fish and Game, California Academy of Sciences, Hopkins Marine Station, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, and U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service. In the cooperative program our department made assessments of the abundance of sardines by age groups during the fall of 1950 and 1951 in the waters off Cali- fornia and Baja California. These indicated a scarcity of sardines resulting from spawnings in 1949, 1950 and 1951, which accounts, in a large measure, for the renewed decline of the catch in 1951-52. The results of these measures of abundance were published in Fish Bulletin No. 87. In addition to these surveys of population abundance, the routine studies of size of sardines in the catch and average monthly catch of the fishermen have been continued. In cooperation with the U. S. Fish and 3—70679 66 DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND GAME 1 3r JLj. mmm IF 13 -xmjwftwr- c ■ ' h\ The M. V. Yellowfm is used chiefly for assessing abundance of sardines. She carries a wide variety of specialized equipment, including sonar (bottom left) as an aid in locating fish schools and such standard aids in navigation as radar (bottom right). Wildlife Service, the age composition and numbers of fish in each season's tonnage have been ascertained. During the present bienninm the fishery relied, in a large measure, on sardines spawned in 1946, 1947, and 1948. These year classes were fished intensively when two and three years old and seriously reduced in numbers before they had grown to the larger sizes which reach the more northern fishing grounds. As a result,- there was no sardine fishing in the Pacific Northwest, practically none off FORTY-SECOND BIENNIAL REPORT 67 San Francisco and very little off Monterey. In 1951-52 the entire Cali- fornia fishing fleet moved to Southern California waters. The catch from this area was largely processed by the southern plants although small tonnages were trucked to San Francisco and considerable amounts to Monterey. The numbers of sardines taken by locality and age group were com- piled for the 1950-51 and 1951-52 seasons and published in the July, 1951 and July, 1952 issues of California Fish and Game. TUNA The industry faced a period of general uncertainty during the bien- nium. The increasing competition of canned tuna from foreign sources and increasing domestic production drove processors' inventories to high levels at times, and forced processors to reduce the rate of delivery of raw fish by the fishing fleet. The situation was further complicated by the processors' purchase of raw fish from foreign sources. Seriously concerned, all components of the industry united in an effort to effect the increase of the tariff on canned tuna in brine and to impose an import duty on raw fish. Price at the end of the biennium was $350 per ton for albacore, $320 per ton for yellowfin tuna and $260 per ton for skipjack. The tuna fleet, especially the larger vessels, expanded southward in the latter part of 1951 to new fishing grounds off the coast of Ecuador. Further expansion southward was blocked by the policy of the Govern- ment of Peru which does not permit American vessels to fish in Peruvian waters. The research program was revised and augmented during the period. During the earlier part of the biennium, new publications presented further evidence that the yellowfin tuna populations of the Eastern Pacific and the Central Pacific are separate nonintermingling stocks, and that the Australian, California and New England bluefin tuna are probably separate species. In the latter part of the biennium, programs were inaugurated to determine : a. The age and rate of growth of Eastern Pacific yellowfin tuna, skip- jack, and albacore (Neothun»us macropterus, Katsutvonus pelamis, Thunnus germo). b. The age composition of the commercial catch of yellowfin tuna, skipjack, and albacore. c. Study of the migration pattern, if any, of yellowfin tuna, skipjack, and albacore by means of marking. d. Proper level for exploitation of yellowfin tuna by analysis of the catch-effort relationship. It appears, from recoveries of tagged yellowfin tuna, that a successful tag for the tunas has been developed, and the investigation is undergoing the transition from experimental tagging to a large-scale effort to deter- mine migration by means of tags. The tag is a piece of vinylite plastic, about the diameter of a piece of spaghetti, attached to the fish by a loop through the tissue of the back, just posterior to the second dorsal fin. 68 DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND GAME A major accomplishment during the biennium was the development of a very promising tuna tag. The tag is made of plastic tubing. Top, applying the tag. Bottom, the tag in place. PACIFIC MACKEREL The catch of Pacific mackerel (Pneumatophorus diego) dropped, dur- ing the biennium, to the lowest level in 19 years. Age work on the Pacific mackerel was completed for the 12-season period 1939-40 through 1950-51 and the results of this study were pub- lished (Fish Bulletin 83). This study showed that old fish comprising reserve spawning stock are so reduced in numbers that the present-day fishery, in order to maintain itself, depends upon each year's hatch. As FORTY-SECOND BIENNIAL REPORT 69 there has not been a really good hatch since 1947, the catch has dropped to its present low of slightly more than one-fifth the peak 1935-36 season. Also completed and published during the biennium was a study of the races or populations of Pacific mackerel (Fish Bulletin 84) . This included detailed comparisons of fish taken between British Columbia and the Gulf of California. Statistical analysis of the data revealed the proba- bility of two distinct populations within this range with the California fishery drawing upon the mackerel population from Canada to central Baja California. Routine sampling of the commercial catch continued without interrup- tion. Most of the basic information for the numerous biological studies is acquired from this sampling. The Pacific mackerel once supported a lucrative fishery but catches in recent years have declined seriously. JACK MACKEREL The jack mackerel catch in the Los Angeles region was considerably higher during this biennium than the last. Slightly more than 100 million pounds were landed here during the 1950-51 season and nearly 69 mil- lion pounds during 1951-52. Monterey reported the second highest catch, but only in September, 1950, when some 27 million pounds were taken, did monthly landings exceed five million pounds at that port. Biological work which originally consisted of routine sampling and age analysis was expanded during the biennium to include studies of maturity and egg production, food habits, and a racial or population investigation. In conjunction with the food analysis work, two short trips were made on the department's research boat, Yellowpin. These trips were nec- essary in order to obtain stomachs from daytime-caught mackerel to compare the contents with food organisms from stomachs of jack mack- erel caught at night. Studies of fishing methods included rides in a plane, which was used by the fishermen during the spring of 1952 to locate schools of jack mackerel during daylight hours. Much useful information was obtained on methods for identification of schools of sardines, anchovies, and jack mackerel. 70 DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND GAME A short paper detailing the differences between jack mackerel (T ra- diums symnit tricus) and Mexican scad (Decapterus hypodus) was pub- lished in 1952. This paper was needed to relieve the confusion among fishery workers on the status of these two genera in California and to clear the way for future population studies. Fecundity and food analysis studies on the jack mackerel require many long and tedious hours at the microscope. OCEAN SPORTFISHERY Creel census work which commenced in 1947 was completed in the latter part of 1951. The catches of 11,175 fishermen on 588 boats were checked. The records as rendered by these boats were determined to be within 4 percent of the actual number of fish counted on the checks. The more important species of game fish were generally listed on the catch records in numbers much closer to the actual than were the less desirable fish such as mackerel and kingfish. The average throughout the five years that the creel census work was carried on has indicated that bag limits imposed on ocean sportfishing must be related to the area where the catches are made. Bag limits in Southern California should, and do, vary from the limits that are imposed in Central and Northern California. Creel census work has been the basis of the liberalization of the Southern California catch limits. Ocean sportfishing still continues to rise in popularity. Boat records indicate that during 1948-1950 an average of 525,000 fishermen per year were carried on sport boats operating for hire, not including San Fran- cisco Bay striped bass boats. During 1950-1952, the state-wide average increased to 577,000 fishermen passengers. FORTY-SECOND BIENNIAL REPORT 71 Iii Southern California, catches of kelp bass (Paralabrax clathratus) , a very popular and relatively abundant fish, gave some indication that overexploitation was taking place in specified areas. A tagging program was started in 1950, lagged during 1951, but was renewed in 1952. A total of 4,000 kelp bass has been marked, mostly in Southern California, although more than 400 bass have been released in Mexican waters. At the present time, evidence shows that kelp bass grow slowly, are not inclined to move to a great extent and are, of course, subject to high fishing pressure in localized areas. The sportfishing industry in Southern California has already responded to this information, as some fishermen and boatmen are now releasing small bass. On the other hand, some "meat fishermen" are proclaiming that a mess of bass six to eight inches in length makes the finest eating to be found. An education program will undoubtedly follow the conclusion of the tagging program. 'H " ■ ^ The life of the biologist cannot all be spent in the field. This man is keeping books on the number of fish taken by marine sport fishermen. LIVE BAII FISHERY The live bait fishery studies are designed to procure records of the bait catch with respect to species, area, and effort involved. The records are made out on the boat and do not come to the attention of an official weigh- master as do the regular commercial fish catches; therefore, their accuracy is dependent upon the cooperation of the fisherman. This neces- sitates that good relationships be maintained. To do this, a member of the laboratory staff attempts to accompany as many of the live bait boats as feasible during the fishing season. On such trips, several scoops of bait are weighed to determine a factor for converting scoops of bait to pounds. All records are submitted in scoops ; the conversion to pounds is made by the Department of Fish and Game. The survey of the State's abalone resources is carried on by clivers working on the bottom of the sea. Actual diving is done from the boat Mollusk which is shown returning from a survey (Anacapa Island in background). The first abalone divers along the California coast were the Japanese and this ex- tremely maneuverable boat is copied after their design. One of the most interesting features of the live bait fishery is the record of occurrence of young sardines or "firecrackers," as they are known more commonly. "Firecrackers" are recorded in number of scoops by these boats, which operate from San Diego to Port Hueneme. This is the first visible indication of the spawning success of sardines in local waters. During this biennium ' ' firecrackers ' ' have been rare. The past two years have brought an increased demand for live bait to meet the needs of the expanding ocean sport -fishing industry of Southern California. This need has been met through greater efficiency of gear. The number of boats and fishermen engaged in the fishery has remained relatively stable. The two main species comprising the live bait catch are the sardine and the anchovy (Engraulis mordax). During the biennium the anchovy and sardine catches have shown an increase of more than 35 percent over the previous two-year period. ABALONES The catch of abalones for commercial use has increased since the previous biennium. This can be attributed to the taking of a previously unutilized species (the black abalone, Haliotis cracherodi) in the Santa Barbara and Los Angeles areas and to a period of exceptionally good weather in the Morro Bay region. The sports fishery also harvested a great number of abalone. Until 1951, the extent of this sport fishery was largely speculative. All concerned seemed to agree that the abalone were not to be found on the beaches in the quantities previously noted and the question arose, ' ' Where have the abalone gone ? ' ' Placing the helmet on the diver. Note the weights on the diver's chest and back. The large black hose carries both the diver's air supply and his telephone line. Diver is in communication with the surface at all times via the two-way telephone. Photo by Gene Tupper, Palo Alto Times. A survey recently conducted by the Department of Fish and Game has revealed some interesting information which throws a little light on this problem. Briefly, the results are as follows : In 1951, approximately 4 percent of the 1,015,000 sport-fishing license buyers fished for abalone; they averaged between 12 and 13 abalone per fisherman or approximately 513,000 abalone. No single year's total commercial catch from 1938 through 1946 exceeded this figure. Furthermore, this sport catch is equal to more than half the commercial catch for 1951. When the limited area fished by the sportsmen is considered, the question becomes, not where have the abalone gone, but how have they managed to last as long as they have. Because of the interest in the abalone, both by the commercial and sports interests, the Department of Fish and Game intensified its abalone program and obtained two vessels, complete with crew, to expedite the project. The untimely death of Paul Bonnot, the biologist originally assigned to the project, delayed this expansion. A new biologist was appointed who had to learn the skills of deep-sea commercial abalone diving so that he could observe the abalone in their natural habitat. This man has developed underwater diving techniques and has spent consid- erable time on the bottom of the sea making observations and surveying much of the coastal area previously unexplored for abalones. 74 DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND GAME A private citizen and a warden cooperate with Marine Fisheries personnel in measuring and Sagging abalone which have been sent to the surface by the diver. After the abalone have been tagged and their measurements recorded, they are returned to the diver who replaces them back on the rocks. By far the greatest single problem is to determine how the population of the beach is replenished. The first approach to this has been to tag a number of abalone and release them in various depths. When sufficient returns have been received, it should be possible to determine from which depths the intertidal populations of abalone are derived. Some people have contended that the offshore commercial fishery tends to take abalone which would normally move onto the beaches and thus contributes to the decline of the sport fishery. "When all facts are assembled, it should be possible to assess the effect of commercial fishing and its relation to the sport catch. Other valuable biological information will be revealed by tagging, such as growth, rate and extent of migrations along shore and into deeper waters, population pressures in the various depths, rate of survival, rate of exploitation, both commercial and sport fishing, and many other factors necessary to understand the dynamics of this important resource. Even though the deep-sea aspect of the project has been in operation only a few months, it is apparent that there are abalone in untold numbers in the offshore waters. In suitable unexploited habitats, the abalone population is so dense that the available bottom is literally covered by these animals, and competition for living room is severe. However, in the areas where they have been fished commercially, the supply of legal size abalone is almost exhausted. FORTY-SECOND BIENNIAL REPORT 75 In the north coastal region, where no commercial diving is permitted, several spot dives were made. Abalone in great nnmbers were found in the reefs offshore from San Francisco to Fort Bragg, especially in the Fort Bragg area. Additional survey work in this area will be conducted as soon as weather permits. Extended tagging experiments will be carried on also. Some difficulty has developed with the pins used in tagging ; electrolysis has been observed on pins as was noted on those used on salmon and striped bass, and some of the tags have undoubtedly been lost. However, this is a minor technical problem which should be soon solved. The greatest limiting factor on the investigation is the weather. The sea must be calm for safe diving operations. Since favorable weather conditions are encountered along the Northern California coast only during the summer months, operations in this area are limited to only a few months of each year. CRABS Present crabbing methods are so efficient and fishing activity is so great, that each season the percentage of crabs (Cancer magister) taken during the first few months has been increasing. More than 80 percent of the crabs landed at San Francisco in the 1950-1951 season were landed H A raking dredge with a fine meshed collecting net as used for catching very young crabs. Although the crab resource is apparently holding up well under extremely heavy fishing pressure, it is necessary to watch it carefully to observe any sign of possible overfishing. This eight-foot beam trawl is used in crab sampling operations. during the first three months of the season. In Eureka the trend is in the same direction, being nearly 60 percent in the 1950-1951 season, as compared to about 35 percent in the 1948-1949 season. Through biological research, the rate of growth and sizes at sexual maturity in bay and ocean waters are being obtained. Investigations are also under way to determine the biological interrelationships that have bearing on the industry as a whole. Savings gear experiments are being conducted to secure information for bases of recommendations which will materially increase the take per unit of effort as well as give added protection to the small crabs now trapped in the gear commonly used throughout the State. Specially designed traps are being tested. These traps have escape openings to allow undersized male crabs and females to leave traps and thus escape injury from large crabs in traps and from necessary handling by fishermen. Such a trap has been on public display in Steinhart Aquar- ium, San Francisco, for several months and has clearly demonstrated that it serves the purpose for which designed. With the securing of the Broadbill, a state research vessel of a size compatible to shellfish investigations in shallow waters near shore, the research staff has for the first time been able to sample market crabs with gear specially designed for that purpose. In preliminary work off FORTY-SECOND BIENNIAL REPORT 77 Central California, it became evident that very small crabs less than one year of age were abundant on the sandy bottoms off Marin County. This is good news for it is this population of young that will supply in a few years the replacements to the size groups harvested so thoroughly by the intense fishing effort and efficient crab traps used by the San Fran- cisco crab fishing fleet. An experimental crab trap with openings to allow escapement of crabs under legal size. The small crabs have a much better chance to survive if they can escape while still on the bottom instead of being hauled to the surface and thrown overboard. OYSTERS Kenewed interest and activity in oyster culture has resulted in a 1 ' rebirth ' ' of the industry which has scarcely held its own in recent years. The effort is directed primarily for the production of marketable Pacific giant oysters grown in California bays from plantings of very young "seed" oysters imported from Japan. There are now 12 allotments of water bottoms for the purpose of oyster culture in bays where previous to 1948 there were but five. California bays have been demonstrated to be very satisfactory for growing these oysters which normally require four years to attain marketable size in Japan. The general practice is to harvest only 18 to 24 months after planting in California waters. Morro Bay has very recently received plantings of Pacific seed in quantity far greater than ever before. Harvestings from this area were restarted this year, and barring natural phenomena resulting in excessively high mor- tality, California should enjoy landings of these oysters far in excess of any heretofore received. 78 DEPARTMENT OP FISH AND GAME Importations of the seed oysters from Japan and full grown oysters from the Atlantic Coast being from areas infested with oyster-drilling snails, it has become necessary for the State to inspect such shipments for the pests. In past years when there were but a few oyster growers, the inspections and procedures for proper issuance and improvements of oyster allotments was a small part of the oyster program. It has become necessary, however, since the industry has expanded, to develop a policy SEED 6 MONTHS 18 MONTHS 2 IN. 30 MONTHS Pacific giant oysters cultured in Tomales Bay, California. The growth of these oysters is truly phenomenal. Because they do not reproduce in California waters, the industry depends upon imports of spat from Japan. Phofo by Berfon Crandall, Palo Alio. FORTY-SECOND BIENNIAL REPORT 79 to insure complete understanding- among the departmental staff and representatives of the industry. It is believed that with a firm, workable policy, we can better obtain full utilization of our natural resources which are so favorable to oyster production. Through biological investigations, the research staff is determining growth rates of oysters under various conditions, testing different methods of oyster culture, and advising oyster growers of cultural practices and methods of pest control. CLAMS During the biennium many photographs and large quantities of infor- mation on habits and habitats of our most common edible clams, mussels, and scallops were amassed for use in a proposed fish bulletin. In conjunc- tion with this project several short trips to various clamming localities and a longer trip to the Humboldt Bay area were made from the Terminal Island laboratory. Pismo clam censuses were conducted at both Pismo Beach and Morro Bay during November in 1950 and 1951. These censuses indicate a shortage of young clams at both localities. This lack of young clams is apparently the result of very poor sets during the past several seasons. The department has conducted regular surveys of the Pismo clam resource off the Pismo Beach area since 1925. Here clams are being measured and aged, after which they are replanted. 80 DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND GAME RESEARCH VESSELS Broadbill With the acceleration of the abalone program, it was necessary to obtain a boat to be used exclusively for diving operations. The Bureau of Patrol's 36-ft, 15-ton vessel, the Broadbill, which had proved unsatis- factory for patrol work, was acquired by Marine Fisheries for use in the abalone investigation. An air compressor was installed, several minor changes made, and diving operations were attempted. Subsequent trials indicated that the Broadbill is not entirely satisfactory as a diving boat. It lacks the maneuverability essential for close inshore operations where the greater portion of the diving must be done. Another boat, the Mol- lusk, was obtained from which the actual diving is being done, and the Broadbill is now principally used as a mother ship and to tow the diving boat to the scene of operation. The Broadbill came from Patrol equipped with a Hudson Invader engine, which although supplying the necessary power to drive the heavy steel hull, unfortunately consumed a great amount of fuel, thus making any long runs impractical. The Hudson motor was replaced with a Chrysler Crown, 104 h. p., with reduction gear, which supplies sufficient power and cuts gasoline consumption to less than half. Sea trials of the new motor revealed that several alterations were necessary on the external hull — namely, a larger rudder and a new skeg to support it had to be constructed and installed. Because of the reduced horsepower of the new motor, it was found advisable to change the pitch of the existing propeller ; this resulted in an increase in motor revolutions with a subsequent increase in speed. It was found that with some adaptations the Broadbell could be utilized for several types of marine research. A hydraulic system was installed to drive auxiliary equipment which would operate gear to be used in various investigations. The vessel has now a hydraulic winch which is used by the crab and dragging investigators, hydraulically driven salmon gurdies, and a hydraulic air compressor which can be used by the diver when conditions are satisfactory for diving from it. Since the boat was originally designed for operations in the Delta region, it was thought advisable to add several navigational aids that would be of value if the boat were to operate safely in the coastal waters. A radio trans- mitter and receiver, an automatic radio direction finder, an automatic pilot, and a Bendix recording fathometer were installed. The interior of the cabin was altered, additional bunks were installed, and the living accommodations in general were improved by the addition of shelves and lockers. The Broadbill now carries in reasonable comfort a crew of three and a biologist, and enough provisions, water, etc., for approxi- mately a week at sea. The Broadbill has been used by the crab investigation, working the waters off Bolinas Bay area and in San Francisco Bay. It has recently completed a trip to the North Coast region as far as Fort Bragg, where it was used in the abalone investigation as a mother ship for living quar- ters and to tow the smaller diving boat. The department's newest research vessel, M. V. Broadbill. The Broadbill is 36 feet long, 15 tons net weight, powered by a Chrysler Crown 106 horsepower engine and has a cruising speed of approxi- mately eight knots. The boat can be controlled from the topside (note wheel in crewman's hand) or from inside the cabin. Salmon gurdies and pulleys are visible at the stern. The Broadbill is used in the abalone, crab and salmon studies. N. B. Scofield The work at sea of the research vessel N. B. Scofield during the bien- nium carried the vessel from the northern border of California southward along the coast to the Equator and offshore halfway to the Hawaiian Islands. The basic versatility of the vessel suited her for use by many investiga- tions, as follows : Dates Operating Area Purpose of Cruise May 15-July 20, 1950 Central California Salmon tagging, trawl exploration Aug. 23-Sept. 12, 1950 Southern and Baja Calif Albaeore exploration Sept. 28-Oct. 26, 1950 Central California Trawl exploration Nov. 3-Nov. 20, 1950 Central California Trawl exploration Jan. 15-Jan. 30, 1951 Offshore, Southern Calif Oceanographie survey Feb. 13-Feb. 26, 1951 Southern California Trawling exploration March 2-March 11, 1951 Central California Trawling exploration April 5-April 18, 1951 Southern California Roekfish investigation April 19-May 16, 1951 Central and Northern Calif. Salmon tagging May 21-May 29, 1951 Southern California Bass tagging June 11-July 9, 1951 Northern California Trawl exploration Aug. 20-Sept. 19, 1951 Baja California Tuna exploration Oct. 9-Dec. 3, 1951 Central America Tuna exploration Jan. 18-Jan. 31, 1951 Baja California Yellowtail tagging Feb. 15-March 13, 1952 Mexico Tuna tagging April 7-May 7, 1952 Mexico Tuna tagging May 22-June 15, 1952 Baja California Yellowtail tagging 82 DEPARTMENT OP FISH AND GAME Yellowfm The work of the M. V. Yellowpin was devoted chiefly to the sardine investigations. She took part in some of the routine oceanographic cruises of the California Cooperative Sardine Research Program when detailed physical, chemical, and biological oceanographic data were collected. The remainder of her time was used in assessing the abundance of fish populations, chiefly sardine, off the coast of California and Baja Cali- fornia and in measuring environmental conditions where fish are found. Cruises made during the biennium were : Date Locality Investigation 50-Y-7 July 18-Aug. 4, 1950 Central Baja California Assess sardine abundance 50-Y-8 Aug. 14-24, 1950— ..Northern Baja California.. Same as 50-Y-7 50-Y-9 Sept. 5-22, 1950- ..Southern California-- —Same as 50-Y-7 50-Y-10 Oct. 2-9, 1950- —Central California.. ..Same as 50-Y-7 50-Y-ll Nov. 8-22, 1950— —Southern California- ..Measure environmental condi- tions where sardines were found ; food studies of jack mackerel and tag kelp and sand bass 50-Y-12 Dec. 1-15, 1950— —Central California- ..Measure abundance of sardine population and environmental conditions and food studies of sardine and jack mackerel 51-Y-l Jan. 9-19, 1951_. —Southern California _. Same as 50-Y-12 51-Y-2 Jan. 29-Feb. 10, 1951— Southern California- -Same as 50-Y-12 51-Y-3 Fob. 26-Mar. 9, 1951— Southern California.. Same as 50-Y-12 51-Y-4 Mar. 26-Apr. 13, 1951_Baja California.. _ Same as 50-Y-12 51-Y-5 Apr. 29-May 13, 1951 Baja California.- Sardine fecundity studies and collect oceanographic data on inshore waters not covered by routine cruises 51-Y-6 May 25-June 11, 1951 Southern California and northern Baja California Occupy stations in routine ocean- ographic cruise 51-Y-7 Aug. 7-13, 1951 Southern California.- Measure environmental condi- tions and sardine and jack mackerel food studies 51-Y-8 Aug. 20-Sept. 12, 1951_Central Baja California — Assess sardine abundance 51-Y-9 Sept. 23-Oct. 12, 1951 Northern Baja California and Southern California Same as 51-Y-8 51-Y-10 Oct. 19-Nov. 8, 1951__.Southern and Central California Same as 51-Y-S FORTY-SECOND BIENNIAL REPORT 83 Bate Locality Investigation 51-Y-ll Nov. 18-Dec. 6, 1951— Southern and Central California _ .Occupy stations iu routine ocean- ographic cruise 52-Y-l Jan. 7-2S, 19.~>2 Southern California- - Conduct special oceanographic tests for measuring ocean cur- rents 52-Y-2 Feb. 11-Mar. 5, 1952 Southern California— ..Survey abalone beds and make jack mackerel fecundity studies 52-Y-3 Mar. 19-Apr. 7, 1952__Baja California.- .-Assess abundance of sardine and other fishes and measure en- vironmental conditions 52-Y-4 Apr. 15-27, 1952_. .JBaja California -Same as 52-Y-3 52-Y-5 May 12-23, 1952__ Southern California ..Assess abundance of sardine and jack mackerel and survey clam beds on the Channel Islands 52-Y-6 June 1-14, 1952 Northern Baja California and Southern California Occupy stations in routine ocean- ographic cruise FISHERIES STATISTICS The work of the statistical unit of the Bureau of Marine Fisheries has continued without interruption or radical change. In this interval the volume of catch and production have remained relatively constant, but the complexity of the work has greatly increased. Statistics on the com- mercial fisheries are shown in Appendix C. To handle the increased volume of work the organization of the statis- tical unit has been extensively modified. Routines adopted in earlier years, adapted to those times, have been surveyed and where necessary, changed to conform to present and anticipated future conditions. Thus the system of compiling the voluminous sport catch records has been completely re- vised. An entirely new inventory system was instituted to maintain a detailed record of available and outstanding fish receipt books and their contained receipts. Likewise a fourth copy was added to each set of re- ceipts so that dealers could keep a duplicate record of their fish purchases for branch-office accounting. The routine procedure followed in compiling and reporting the production of the processing plants was thoroughly reviewed and revised in the interest of accuracy and efficiency. Many of the forms in use have been changed and simplified. Early in 1952 an entire routine was developed for the management of the incipient ocean shrimp fishery which was opened for the first time on April 1st. Provision was made to compile at two-weekly intervals the current catch in each region and transmit this data on prepared forms, with the individual receipts and accompanying logs, to the San Francisco office where the state-wide catch is kept up to date, so that the season could be promptly closed when the catch limit had been reached. A new field office was opened at Eureka to meet the urgent need of closer contact with and better coverage of the important fisheries of the To keep an accurate account of the State's fisheries is an extremely complex job requiring the services of a trained staff. This is the machine room of the statistical unit. The tabulating machine is in the fore- ground, with the sorter, key-punch and verifying machines against the walls. Phofo by Herb Phillips, San Pedro. north. The office selected was large enough to provide a local headquarters for other bureaus of the Department, with the result that there has been a unification of the activities of all concerned, to the benefit of all. This reorganization of the work has entailed only a nominal increase in the staff. In the biennium two clerical positions and one supervisory position have been established and the total staff in the statistical unit now numbers 23. "We have not had the full benefit of this number, how- ever, because of an appreciable turn-over in help and the difficulty of securing competent, permanent employees. The supervisory position was requested in order to centralize responsibility for the machine operations. A single major change in equipment has sufficed to accomodate the work. Both tabulating machines have been increased in capacity by the addition of 15 numeric type bars, 24 additional counters and a subtrac- tion unit which gives us greater flexibility in the resulting reports. A major improvement concerns the coordination of the statistical routines with the field offices, the field biologists and the patrol force. At a number of conferences statistical problems have been presented and discussed with patrol, laboratory and office personnel and their interest and cooperation elicited. As a consequence there is now better integration of the work and the resulting record has improved con- siderably. FORTY-SECOND BIENNIAL REPORT 85 In the biennium three publications were issued by the statistical unit. Circulars number 25 and 26 present the annual statistics of fresh and canned fishery products, while Fish Bulletin No. 80 presents the com- plete commercial fish catch for the years 1948 and 1949. A historical record and a complete description of current statistical routine is in process of compilation and will be published in a forthcoming bulletin. In the preparation of the Fisheries Treaty with Japan this unit supplied an analysis for the yellowfin tuna and skipjack fishery for the guidance of the U. S. representatives. Likewise during the recent tariff hearings concerning the importation of canned and frozen tuna, the statistical unit compiled and supplied the most authoritative statistics on the domestic catch and the importations of tuna into California. These changes in equipment, routine and organization within the statistical unit have adequately adapted it to the work of the immediate future. Present policies, with slight additonal reorganization, will continue. An increase in the staff assigned to the analysis of the catch records would increase greatly the value of the statistics. While it will remain the primary function of the unit to make available to the separate biological investigations an analysis of the catch records of these species, no additional work of this nature can be undertaken until projects now in progress have been completed. Current problems requiring immediate action have delayed the analytical work, and prevented us from main- taining a more complete current analysis of the commercial species. SCREENS AND LADDERS The fish screen and ladder program has been expanding steadily. Two panel trucks equipped as mobile repair shops are working out of the stream improvement headquarters at Elk Grove. All necessary power equipment to do wood or metal work is available at this shop. At present, the most successful type of screen appears to be a series of vertical perforated plates set in the stream channel at an angle above the canal heading. These plates are cleaned by parallel vertical bars which move back and forth along the face of the screen. As the water flow passes the face of the screen at an angle, debris dislodged by the wipers passes on down the stream. In the past, much friction with the water diverters existed due to the necessity of operating a bypass to permit fish to get from the ditch back to the stream. Wherever we can eliminate the need for a bypass, better relations with the water users are possible. These new screens are prefabricated as far as practicable at the shop, which reduces the amount of field work necessary. This style of screen was developed by Mr. E. Murphey of the department's shop at Yreka. Experimentation is now going on to develop a hydraulic system powered with a water wheel to operate the cleaning mechanism for this type of screen. Construction of a large steam-powered electrical generating plant at Antioch by the Pacific Gas and Electric Company brought up a serious problem. The flow of cooling water for this plant was found to be diverting large numbers of small fish out of the river. However, an immediate attack was made on the problem by the Bechtel Corporation acting for the Pacific Gas and Electric Company. A test flume was set up where experiments were run on the small fish of several species. These tests - J& '• t Mu,*^ : ■ '■ . : ■ ': : k ' *:>* determined the maximum velocity at which small fish could keep clear of a screen and also their ability to recover after being caught against a wire mesh by fast flowing water. At the same time various bypass arrangements were tried to recover the fish from the intake wells leading to the power plant. A new type of trash pump built by the Fairbanks Morse Company was found to pass most fish up to 12 inches long without harming them. These experiments carried on at Antioch advanced tremendously the basic knowledge necessary for large fish screen con- struction. The experiments were conducted jointly by personnel of the Bechtel Corporation and the bureaus of fish conservation and marine fisheries. Two new fish ladders were completed on the Daguerre Point Dam on the Yuba River which is located about 10 miles above Marysville. These fishways are being used by numbers of migrating fish to gain access to about 15 miles of largely barren spawning area. A new fish ladder on the Sutter Butte Dam which is about 10 miles below Oroville was completed. Many salmon were observed using this fishway within a few hours of its completion. Funds were provided by the Wildlife Conservation Board both for this project and the Daguerre Point ladders. Engineering surveys and plans have been made for fish ladders on Upper Deer Creek Falls and the McCormick-Saeltzer Dam on Clear Creek. Funds have been allocated for these projects by the Wildlife Conservation Board, but construction permission has not been cleared by all parties concerned. It is expected this work will be completed during the next season. The Daguerre Point Dam blocked the salmon from 15 miles of spawning beds on the Yuba River until twin fish ladders were built with Wildlife Conservation Board funds. With ladders at both ends, the fish have no difficulty negotiating this barrier at any water stage. Sometimes a straight line fishway is effective, as at left; in other cases, the fish must follow a winding course. The crews working out of the shop at Elk Grove have repaired several old or inefficient fish ladders. This work has been materially speeded up by the recent acquisition of trailer-mounted cement mixer, electric welder, and air compressor. These light but mobile units greatly facilitate the work on out-of-the-way jobs. 88 DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND GAME UNDERSEA OIL EXPLORATION By mid-July, 1949, the commission had terminated, until 1952, the permits for the use of explosives in marine underwater oil explorations, due to fish kill. As a result the oil companies sought for new methods which would permit continued exploration without killing fish. In March, 1951, the commission granted a permit to the Union Oil Company to conduct experiments with various explosives. These experiments were directed by Scripps Institution of Oceanography with a representative from the Bureau of Marine Fisheries present at all times. Former ex- plorations had been made with dynamite and further experiments with this explosive did not result in decreased fish kill. Further experiments showed that black powder, however, killed practically no fish and gave satisfactory seismic records for the oil companies. Consequently, in September, 1951, the commission again issued permits for oil exploration with black powder and the work has continued with almost no kill of fish. In June, 1952, our diver biologist conducted under- water observations before and after test shots were fired. He found that the explosions did not harm numerous rockfish in the immediate vicinity of the shots. It thus appears that two of California's major industries, oil and fishing, can be carried on side by side without injuring or hamper- ing either activity. A representative of the Bureau of Marine Fisheries continues to observe all oil explorations work with the oil companies re- funding to the Fish and Game Preservation Fund the cost of such observations. MARINE RESEARCH COMMITTEE This committee was created by the California Legislature in 1947 and administers funds collected through a special tax. Until July, 1952, this tax comprised 50 cents per ton on all sardines landed in California. Since the latter date the special tax has been one dollar a ton on sardines, anchovy, Pacific mackerel, and jack mackerel due to action of the 1952 legislative session. Five members of the committee represent the fish processors, one the public at large, and the remaining three members are the President of the Fish and Game Commission, the Director of the Department, and the Chief of the Bureau of Marine Fisheries. The committee helps to coordinate the work of the organizations carry- ing on sardine investigations and expends its funds to supplement their budgets. Until 1951 four agencies, California Academy of Sciences, California Department of Fish and Game, Scripps Institution of Ocean- ography, and United States Fish and Wildlife Service were engaged in the studies of the sardine and the oceanic waters where this fish occurs. Early in 1951 the Hopkins Marine Station of Stanford University joined in the investigations and is concentrating its work in Monterey Bay. During the 1950-51 Fiscal Year the committee budgeted $129,550 to these agencies and in 1951-52, $138,000. A progress report of the research work was published in December, 1950, and a second report, covering the findings in 1951 and the first six months of 1952, was prepared and sent to press at the close of the biennium. In the past three years the cooperative sardine investigations have accumulated much valuable data on physical, chemical and biological FORTY-SECOND BIENNIAL REPORT 89 conditions in the oceanic waters off the California coast. These data are being related to all phases of the life of the sardine and to all aspects of the fishery. In addition much information relative to other marine fishes is being obtained and similarly used. PACIFIC MARINE FISHERIES COMMISSION The Pacific Marine Fisheries Commission has continued to lead the way to the better conservation of Pacific Coast fisheries resources. The commission was formed in 1947 as the result of an interstate compact entered into by California, Oregon and Washington. The objectives of the compact are to promote the better use of fisheries which are of mutual concern to the three states and to develop a joint conservation program. The fisheries research agencies of the three states act together as the commission's staff. Although membership in the commission is limited to California, Oregon and Washington, the fisheries departments of Alaska and Canada, as well as the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, participate in all meetings and their research programs are integrated into those of the member states. The commission met three times during the biennium : at Bellingham, Washington, in July, 1950 ; San Francisco, California, in December, 1950; and Portland, Oregon, in October, 1951. In addition, the Research Committee held several meetings to plan the investigations sponsored by the commission and to formulate recommendations on regulations. As a result of commission recommendations, the salmon troll fishery regulations have been coordinated the length of the Pacific Coast, not only in the three states but in Alaska and Canada also. As the biennium ended, the staff had under its consideration improved regulations for the trawl fishery and sablefish and further changes in the salmon laws, all on a coast-wide basis. Commission-sponsored research programs include intensified investi- gations of the sablefish and trawl fisheries which are producing valuable results. Most sensational of the programs, both in scope and results, is the tagging and marking of salmon to determine the river sources of the coastal salmon supply. Thousands of adult salmon have been tagged from Monterey to Alaska and the recoveries have shown that the salmon move freely all along the coast. At the same time, millions of small salmon have been liberated in their native streams after being marked by fin clipping. The first year of expected recovery at sea was 1952, and already numerous marked fish have been observed by sampling crews at the various ports. The migration studies on salmon have shown that fish from the Sacra- mento River enter into the catches of Canadian and Washington fisher- men, and Columbia River fish move into many fishing areas. This proves that any water or hydroelectric projects on any important salmon rivers affect fishermen along all the coast. Hence the Pacific Marine Fisheries Commission has played an active role in insisting that the preservation of fishery resources be taken into account in project planning. A repre- sentative was sent to Washington, D. C, to testify before the Federal Power Commission in protest against a clam that would destroy the salmon 90 DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND GAME runs in the Cowlitz River, Washington. A representative also testified at a hearing concerning a proposed clam on the Deschutes River, Oregon, in accordance with a resolution opposing the dam. The Federal Security Agency granted the commission funds to conduct a study of the effect of pulp and paper mill pollution on young salmon and the organisms on which they feed. A representative of the commission was a member of the United States delegation that negotiated the North Pacific Fisheries Treaty with Can- ada and Japan in Tokyo during November and December, 1951. Most important contribution of the Pacific Marine Fisheries Com- mission has been to bring together the fisheries administrators, research workers and fishing industry advisers to discuss and solve their mutual problems. Although much has been accomplished in the first few years of operation, a great deal remains, but we are confident that improved interstate and international relations have resulted alreadj^. And all can agree that the conservation of Pacific Coast fisheries is making progress. FEDERAL AID IN FISH RESTORATION (DINGELL-JOHNSON) In telling you the story of our Dingell- Johnson program we are going to describe a group of seemingly unrelated and diverse fisheries. How- ever, in California fishing is diversified. One can fish for golden trout in lakes 12,000 feet high ; or for channel catfish in the Imperial Valley at 200 feet below sea level. On our northern streams the steelhead angler wades the broad riffles or dunks his bait in a likely hole. In Southern California, yellowtail fishermen jostle for space at the rails of the ocean party boats, while the solitary surf fisherman may cast his line almost anywhere along a thousand miles of coast. Here is a state famed for its recreational resources, and still regarded —even by most of its native sons — as a bountiful land where every fisherman should be able to tap this resource and get his limit. Actually, we are a state where the population has doubled in two decades, where the angling pressure has skyrocketed, and where our fishing waters are fast being decreased through the economic encroachment of industry, pollution, hydroelectric plants, and irrigation diversions. What, then, should such a state do when new federal aid funds suddenly become available ? Such funds did become available to us in 1951 as a result of the Fed- eral Aid in Fish Restoration Act which had been passed by Congress in August, 1950. Better known as ' ' Dingell- Johnson, ' ' this act was designed to finance cooperative programs with the states to investigate and man- age their sport fisheries. The funds are derived from a 10 percent excise tax on fishing tackle : rods, reels, flies, lures, baits and creels. The moneys are then allotted to the states in direct proportion to their size and the number of fishing licenses they sell. By a state enabling act (Ch. 1173, Stats. 1951) the State of Cali- fornia assented to the provisions of the federal act, and the Fish and Game Commission was authorized to conduct cooperative fish restoration projects. The Federal Government pays 75 percent of the project costs ; the State 25 percent. Our actual apportionment for the first fiscal year (1951-52) was not known until October 9, 1951. We then received $128,745.53 to which the State added $42,915.17, giving us a total of $171,660.70 for the first year of operations. The funds were allocated to our two fisheries bureaus : Fish Conservation and Marine Fisheries. An over-all coordination was established. The Department of Fish and Game had started its D-J program. Our first question was, ' ' How can we best use these funds ? ' ' Should we utilize the moneys for routine surveys or for over-all evaluations of fisheries problems — as some states have done? We thought not. Most aspects of such work had been well under way for some years. While valuable, this would merely be more of the same. Should we quickly dissipate our funds by the construction of a few artificial lakes or some ( 91 ) 92 DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND GAME similar investments? Again, we thought not. Unlike most states, Cali- fornia has had available to it for some years several millions of dollars, derived from pari-mutuel or racetrack funds, for use in capital invest- ment projects for fish and game. With these funds (and in addition to their use for game projects) the State Wildlife Conservation Board is constructing hatcheries, fishways, flow maintenance dams, and artificial lakes. The addition of D-J funds for such purposes would be insignificant. We decided therefore to complement — rather than supplement — our existing program by concentrating on certain research and develop- mental projects which would fill in some major gaps. These are jobs which we had needed to do for some time, and the contribution of federal aid would now enable us to do them. The oldest D-J project is only six months old ; the youngest only three months. Obviously we do not have a long list of accomplishments. We shall simply describe the background of each current project and then explain what we are doing and intend to do. Two years from now we shall be able to give you a much fuller report on what has been accom- plished. THE PROJECTS Project F-l-R— Study of the Yellowtail Fishery This is one of the few D-J projects in the Nation devoted to the betterment of an ocean fishery, and it is certainly one of the most extensive ones. The yellowtail (Seriola dorsal-is) is the largest carangid or jack found in California, and is one of our most prized sport fishes. While generally less than 15 pounds in weight it has been known to reach 80 pounds, and anglers will travel hundreds of miles to fish for One of the most important features of the yellowtail study (Dingell-Johnson Project F-l-R) is the tagging program which is designed to give information on the migrations of these fish. Here a specimen is being marked aboard the department's research vessel N. B. Scofield. FORTY-SECOND BIENNIAL REPORT 93 it. Once plentiful along the entire Southern California coast, it is now seldom taken except in the San Diego area. Since it is a commercial as well as sport fish, our Bureau of Marine Fisheries has made some catch analyses. These, as long ago as 1933, have indicated a decline. More recent studies of the sport catch have also shown a downward trend. Following the first analyses the State began to restrict the commercial catch by regulating seasons, gear, size, and quantity of catch. Despite these restrictions the downward trend has persisted ; apparently they have failed. These regulations are actually based on a very meager knowledge. We do not know if they are really compatible with the biology of the species or if they are well designed to give us the highest sustained yield. We must first work out the life history of the yellowtail. For example, we need to know whether we are entirely dependent upon resi- dent fish or whether they move from areas of abundance to our own heavily fished grounds. Their size at maturity, spawning season, and fecundity should be determined, and their spawning and nursery grounds should be discovered. Their age and rate of growth should be known. The relationship between oceanographic conditions and their abundance is important. Towards such ends does the project move. We plan to tag at least 10,000 fish, and as preliminary work are devising suitable tags and tech- niques. The Fish and Wildlife Service in cooperation with the University of Washington has tested the staying qualities of various tags in their Avater tunnel. Other tests are being run in aquaria at the Scripps Insti- tution of Oceanography. Three sea voyages have already been made to Baja California to tag yellowtail under field conditions. Project F-2-R— A Study of the Catfish Fishery of California Catfish were introduced into California in 1874. Through successive transplants and other introductions we now have five species established : three bullheads (Ameiurus) , the channel catfish (Ictalurus punctatus) , and the white catfish (7. catus), which is probably the most abundant of all. As early as 1880 the State decided that they were so numerous and so well distributed that the Fish Commission should turn its attention to some "other equally valuable fish." At the same time, however, there were frequent criticisms of these newcomers by an articulate public which claimed that the "hated catfish" would destroy our native fish and which even disallowed the edibility of these "old toughs." The early antipathy has been softened by passing years and few today would term them "hated." In fact, the sport fishery is now one of the most important in California. In 1948, for example, it is estimated that more than a quarter million anglers fished almost two million days for catfish and caught more than five and a half million. Sport fishing is concentrated in three areas: the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta (where about 50 percent of the catch is made), in Clear Lake, and along the Colorado River. However, there is hardly a county in the State where catfish are not to be found. 94 DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND GAME Tagging catfish was one of the first steps in Dingell-Johnson Project F-2-R. It is being done to determine migrations, to estimate fishing pressure and to obtain information about growth rates. A commercial fishery, primarily for white catfish and using fyke nets, is also centered in the delta region. In recent years there have been de- cided increases in the size and number of nets used and in the number of fishermen. The landings have fluctuated quite widely, being around 400,000 pounds in 1951. There is now evidence of a general sort that the fishery has declined. A real possibility exists that the species are being overfished by the com- bined commercial and sport fishery, but adequate data are not at hand either to substantiate or refute this hypothesis. Various forms of re- strictive regulations (such as setting of size limits, seasons, and control of gear) are continually being proposed. Again, we simply do not have enough factual information to evaluate either the need for, nor the use- fulness of, these or other measures. In addition to the need for adequate information on possible deple- tion, and life history information which can be used for management, we need to evaluate the effect of environmental changes caused by eco- nomic encroachment. These include pollution and the effect of stream diversion and impoundment. Our D-J project is now concentrating on the collection of such infor- mation. We have started a tagging program intended to tag about 10,000 fish over a three-year period in order to determine movements, estimate fishing pressure, and obtain information on growth rates. During the first six months we tagged 3,466 catfish in the delta and had 73 tags returned. An over-all history of the fishery and past regulatory practices is being compiled. Life history material is being collected. Catch records are being studied, and experiments on the effect of commercial gear will soon begin. Water samples are taken from a high mountain lake by a back-country survey crew. Second Dinkey Lake, Fresno County. Project F-3-R— Experimental Back-country Fish Management Unless one has flown over the Sierra Nevada ranges, or has spent months back-packing or traveling by pack train, it is impossible to realize that California contains several thousand high-country lakes. Usually clustered in groups, their average size is small ; less than 10 acres in the southern Sierra, for example. They all lie at high altitudes, and most of them are accessible only by trail. Primarily of glacial origin, most of them were originally barren of trout because of their origin and because of waterfalls in their outlets, which prevented the natural ascent of fishes. However, the majority have now been stocked with trout : especially eastern brook and rainbow, with lesser numbers of golden, brown, and cutthroat. The early planting was started by stockmen and has been car- ried on by sportsmen, wardens, and finally today by our hatchery crews. The early workers expected natural reproduction to replace the stock and usually transplanted only a few individual trout. Later it was found that many of the lakes lacked suitable spawning grounds. This resulted in a rather heavy stocking program of fingerlings, but for many years it was a hit or miss program. Some waters were stocked too frequently ; others went unstocked for years even after the population had died out. In 1934 our first modern lake surveys were conducted by several parties of the then U. S. Bureau of Fisheries, and since that time routine initial surveys have been made of some hundreds of lakes by our own staff. In 1945 we started the California management binder system. One of the major features of this system was to set up a "basic management policy" for each lake. The policy stated whether or not the lake was to be stocked and, if so, specified the species, number, size, frequency, and time of year. It also specified other measures, such as special regulations and the type of improvement work to be done. 96 DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND GAME Inlet to a high Sierra lake, Rose Lake, Fresno County. The improve- ment of such streams is a function of our experimental back-country fish management crew working on Dingell-Johnson Project F-3-R. However, even in the case of waters for which we had good initial data on which to base a policy, we soon found that initial surveys were not enough for continuous management. Ten years after a survey had been made, some factor such as fishing intensity may have changed so much that the original yearly stocking allotment no longer provided good fish- ing. Or, our original choice of species or estimate of the number of trout to be planted may have been faulty and should have been changed. But, and this is one of our basic problems, we usually didn't know that the policy should be changed, simply because we hadn 't visited the lake again and because no one had told us that the lake needed attention. Now, if you have only a few lakes to manage you can check them fre- quently and adjust your management to changing conditions. But our problem lies in trying to manage hundreds of waters without having FORTY-SECOND BIENNIAL REPORT 97 adequate sources of continually incoming information, and without ade- quate proof that the management measures which we are taking are actually successful. At one time we at least had the help of observant fish planters who went in with packstock and often had time enough to collect information. But the airplane is now replacing the packtrain and we are thus losing one of our best sources of information. We have worried with this problem for years, and have at last decided that the only way we can keep up with these changes — and vary our man- agement program accordingly- — is to have our own traveling crews make repeated appraisals of the waters and their populations. We can never begin to approach 100 percent efficiency ; there are simply too many lakes and too little time. On the other hand a good many lakes will go along pretty well for many years simply by continuing our present manage- ment. Such lakes need be visited at only infrequent intervals and we can concentrate on the others. Furthermore, very rapid inspections will often suffice and a man may have to spend only a few days in any one lake basin. The establishment of a closer liaison with packers, certain key sportsmen, and our own wardens can also give us a great deal of infor- mation. Our F-3-R project is designed as a pilot project to evaluate the success of current management and to work out systems for the rapid evaluation of ' ' how a lake is doing. ' ' At the same time — since the men are on the spot — we intend to carry out minor stream and lake improvement, mostly of the sort for which only hand tools need be used. As methods are developed, we plan to place our original men in other areas to act as instructors. Eventually, the entire work should be turned over to the local regions and it will become management in a true sense. Many of these areas already receive comparatively heavy use. Fur- thermore, the economic development of the State is quickly lessening the value of or destroying our more accessible waters. These back- country lakes and streams may well constitute the bulk of California's trout fishing waters in the future. As the biennium closed this project had been in existence for only three months. The crew was busy checking lakes on the east slope of the Sierra. Project F-4-D— North-Coastal Stream Restoration and Improvement The north-coastal streams of California support runs of several species of anadromous salmonids : primarily king and silver salmon, and steel- head and cutthroat trout. Artificial propagation is considered to be of little value in supporting these runs. If sufficient escapement from fishermen is provided (through regulation), the habitat kept intact or restored, and free access to and from the spawning grounds assured— the runs should be self-sustaining. These are the primary bases upon which our anadromous fish program is established. Unfortunately, both natural and man-made barriers (such as dams) block or impede migration. Recent activities of man, especially lumbering, have created log or debris jams which block the streams and do not allow full utilization by spawners, and have caused abnormal 4—70679 Poor logging practices leave a stream in the condition shown at the top. Blocked by logs and debris, it is impossible for salmon and steelhead to ascend. This is Bear Creek, Mendocino County, in April, 1952. Below is same area in June, 1952, after the channel had been bulldozed clear of debris. Such work forms part of Dingell-Johnson Project F-4-D, North-Coastal Stream Restoration. FORTY-SECOND BIENNIAL REPORT 99 erosion which fills in pools, spoils spawning grounds, and hastens the closure of stream mouths during low water. Some stream beds have been widened excessively through floods or channel shifts. Water tempera- tures have increased. Insufficient flows have impeded migration and caused fish losses in clried-up or cut-off pools. In order to remedy the situation, we have started a developmental project with the following objectives: (1) to remove barriers; (2) to improve flows; (3) to improve habitat and spawning areas; (4) to salvage stranded fingerlings and return them to safe waters. At the present time we believe that the removal of natural barriers such as waterfalls may be the most profitable. Some of these have always blocked the runs of fish ; others are the result of fairly recent landslides. One such barrier which we intend to remove will open up 84 miles of new stream on the Mad River. A rather difficult part of the work will be the removal of heavy log. jams. Some of these are a thousand feet long and contain logs up to eight feet in diameter. Bulldozers, high lines, dynamite, and possibly fire will be used. A new California law (Sec. 482.5 of the Fish and Game Code) passed in 195] requires removal of log jams and other types of obstructions by the persons causing them. We plan to remove only those barriers the responsibility for which cannot be fixed. For example, some log jams are known to have been in existence for 40 years and it would be difficult to find the "owners." During the four months that this project has been in operation, sur- veys have been made of numerous streams reported to need barrier removal. A log jam on Larabee Creek, Humboldt County, was blasted out. Logs and debris on McDonald Creek, the stream tributary to Stone Lagoon, were removed. Most notable was the removal of the main log barrier in the North Fork of the Mad River block, assuring access to 16 additional miles of spawning stream. Flows can be improved by narrowing and deepening of channels and by the consolidation of tributaries and distributaries. Such work is planned for the Eel River in late summer. By the end of June, 1952, the D-J crew had already rescued over 40,000 steelhead and silver salmon. Fish rescue or salvage work by netting is a well-established practice in California. A new wrinkle this year was the experimental use of fish traps for the same purpose. The area intended for development extends from the Oregon border to well south of the Golden Gate, but most work will be concentrated in the northernmost area. Preliminary estimates indicate that it may take about ten years to accomplish the major restoration. Project F-5-R— Surf Fishing Investigation Surf fishing is readity available to the masses of people living along the coast, especially in Southern California, and is an increasingly popular low cost sport. Anglers claim that as their numbers increase, their catches are decreasing. However, surf fishing is a very personalized sport, The fishermen tend to be individualized, are often rather solitary, 100 DEPARTMENT OP FISH AND GAME Fish for tagging and for laboratory study are caught in beach seines by the staff of the Surf Fishing Investigation, Dingell-Johnson Project F-5-R. Unwanted specimens are returned to the water alive. A tagging table stands in the left foreground. and their comings and goings make it difficult to collect catch statistics or to follow the progress of the fishery. As was pointed ont before, they may be scattered along a thousand miles of coast which adds to the difficulties of an inventory. We know very little about the quality or quantity of the catch. We know very little about the biology of the major surf species. Until we gain a better knowledge of these and the influence of environmental conditions on the catch, we are in no position to evaluate the fishery or to recommend measures for improvement. The principal species sought include: California corbina (Menh- cirrhus undulatus), yellowfin croaker (TJmbrina roncador), spotfm croaker (Roncador stearnsi), opaleye (Girella nigricans), and barred perch (Amphistichus argenteus). The project plans to study the life histories of these and other species and to determine their abundance. Catch statistics will be obtained and fluctuations in fishing success will be measured. Of necessity, such statistics will have to be obtained largely through voluntary returns from individual fishermen and clubs, and so far the response has been excellent. Several hundred record books have been distributed and good returns are coming in. Through such studies as these and an attempted correlation with en- vironmental conditions, we may be able to provide answers to the problem. FORTY-SECOND BIENNIAL REPORT 101 A yellowfin croaker recaptured after two months, T/2 miles from the place it was released. The fisherman sent in not only the fish but also the hook that caught it. (The ruler is marked in cen- timeters.) The tag consists of two plastic disks held by two nylon lines. This species is tagged through the top of the head where a bony ridge holds the nylon line firmly in place. THE FUTURE One of the most important projects to get under way during the next biennium will be a detailed study of the effect of water diversions on salmon and steelhead trout in the Central Valley. Other projects have been proposed. Some are very worthwhile and will become realities as soon as moneys become available. They, too, will fill further gaps in our knowledge, and help develop California's fisheries program. BUREAU OF GAME CONSERVATION During the biennium the Bureau of Game Conservation carried on the usual routine matters of maintenance of waterfowl refuges, investiga- tion and control of game depredations, trapping and transplanting beaver, game range examinations, maintenance of winter deer ranges, raising and stocking of game birds, and conducting of field trials. The more important developments such as operation of waterfowl manage- ment areas, cooperative hunting areas, Wildlife Conservation Board projects, Pittman-Robertson projects, and the conducting of special hunt- ing seasons are given more in detail further along in this report. Other happenings of note included the severe winter of 1951-52 in the Sierra mountains and the northeastern part of the State. Heavy losses of deer occurred in some sections, but in general these losses were in areas where large surpluses of deer existed, and the number of animals was out of balance with the carrying capacity of the winter range. Management of waterfowl in the Pacific Flyway was helped by the organization of the Pacific Waterfowl Flyway Council. This group made up of representatives of the western states will work with the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service in setting hunting seasons and solving the various waterfowl problems in the flyway. Publications by staff members are included in Appendix H. COOPERATIVE HUNTING AREAS The cooperative hunting area program which was initiated in 1918 was greatly expanded during the past biennmm. This program was under- taken to furnish California's unattached hunter with lands upon which to hunt pheasants. An experimental pheasant study area, the Sartain ranch, organized by bureau game biologists, was instrumental in the de- velopment of regulated hunting on private lands in California. Hunting on this ranch was successfully controlled in 1947 and 1948 by the bureau in cooperation with the landowner. The experience gained during these two years led to the development of a cooperative hunting plan in 1949. During that year Senate Bill No. 667 establishing cooperative hunting was passed by the State Legislature and was included in the Fish and Game Code as Section 1159. Rules and regulations for the management and control of these areas were then drawn up by bureau employees and adopted by the Fish and Game Commission. In order to minimize the problem of supervision and control, and at the same time to accommodate a large number of hunters, it was required that on any prospective area a minimum of 5,000 acres in a continuous tract be open to public hunting. A provision was made to allow the land- owner to collect a daily fee not to exceed $2 per hunter if he so desired, with the stipulation that 25 percent of the total collected was to be used for wildlife maintenance and habitat improvement. Three types of zones were provided for in 1949 : closed zones (for protection of crops, build- ings and livestock) on which no hunting was permitted ; restricted zones, on which permission to hunt was granted solely by landowners ; and open ( 102 ) FORTY-SECOND BIENNIAL REPORT 103 zones, which were open to public hunting by permit. Restricted zones were limited in size to 20 percent of the total area ; open zones had to be either a 5,000-acre tract or 50 percent of the entire cooperative hunting area, whichever was larger. The maximum number of hunters allowed at any one time was one per five acres of open land, with the stipulation that the number of hunters could be decreased as conditions warranted. I . These hunters, ready to make use of a cooperative hunting area, are being briefed by a check- ing station attendant, who shows them an area map and the signs designating various zones. During the 1949 pheasant hunting season, six cooperative hunting areas were established by the bureau. By maintaining checking stations on each area, bureau personnel were able to control hunting, issue permits, and gather pertinent information regarding the pheasant kill. These six areas provided 58,450 acres open to hunting and accommodated 41,166 hunters. By 1951 the program had been expanded to 11 areas with 115,835 acres and 54,701 hunters accommodated. This type of hunting has found favor not only with the hunters, but the landowners have also indicated satis- faction with the plan. Further expansion of the cooperative hunting area program is contemplated. Table 1, Appendix D, lists the areas with the amount of land open to hunting, and it shows the number of hunters using these areas and their hunting success. WATERFOWL MANAGEMENT AREAS The program to furnish the unattached hunter with a place to shoot, and to provide waterfowl with areas where they could feed and rest was considerably expanded during the biennium. The number of acres open Hunters being registered at a checking station prior to shooting on a waterfowl management area. The state waterfowl areas supply hunting opportunities to the unattached sportsmen. to hunting was increased from 10,105 in 1949 to 15,939 in 1951. During the same period the number of hunters accommodated on these areas increased from 2,834 to 21,708. Most of the expansion in this program can be attributed to the addition of three new areas, which include Grizzly- Island, Colusa and Merced. Grizzly Island, an 8,600-acre area purchased with Wildlife Conservation Board funds, is the most recently acquired FORTY-SECOND BIENNIAL REPORT 105 state-owned area. The Colusa and Merced areas are Federal Lea Act lands under state control for hunting purposes. Development of the state-owned areas is carried on by bureau per- sonnel and includes construction of roads, dams, levees, ponds and canals. Water control structures have to be installed ; wells drilled where needed ; and some land has to be leveled. Management practices on the areas vary with the locality, but all are carried on to attract waterfowl. Regardless of where the area is located, its crops and physical features will resemble that of the adjacent crop lands. All of these crop lands will draw in waterfowl, but the management area with its absence of revolving lights, grenades and gun fire, offers an invitation that is readily accepted by the birds. Portions of each of these areas are open to hunting. Hunters are offered their choice of two types of shooting grounds as follows : 1. Fully developed areas with blinds for a fee of $5 per shooter. 2. Partially developed or natural areas with no blinds and no fee. Hunting success varies with weather conditions and the waterfowl migration, but on the whole hunters expressed satisfaction with the plan. The waterfowl management areas and the extent of their use by hunters are listed in Table 2, Appendix D. WILDLIFE CONSERVATION BOARD PROJECTS The Wildlife Conservation Act authorized by the 1947 State Legis- lature provided for a recreation program, and for the acquisition of lands and construction of facilities for the propagation and conserva- tion of wildlife. The Legislature also provided for the creation of the Wildlife Conservation Board to formulate a conservation program. Once the plans for state-wide projects had been drafted, it became the responsibility of the Department of Fish and Game to put the program into effect by constructing, operating, managing and maintaining the projects. All projects that entail game conservation activities are ad- ministered by the Bureau of Game Conservation. Originally the Wildlife Conservation Board was to operate for a period of three years, but operations have been extended so as to com- plete the program. Listed below with their current status are the projects being managed by the bureau. Game Farm Projects Project No. Name, location Status 519-7 Chico Game Farm Project completed. Accounts closed with end (Butte County) of 1949-1950 Fiscal Tear. 519-S Marysville Game Farm Project completed. Accounts closed with end (Yuba County) of 1949-1950 Fiscal Year. 519-9 Porterville Game Farm Project completed. Accounts closed with end (Tulare County) of 1949-1950 Fiscal Year. 519-10 Brawley Game Farm Project completed. Accounts closed with end (Imperial County) of 1949-1950 Fiscal Year. ■\n To provide water for quail in otherwise suitable country, the department has built numerous "gallina- ceous guzzlers." The apron collects rain water for storage in an underground tank at lower right. Quail obtaining water at mouth of the guzzler tank. No quail hunting was available in this area before the installation of this device. FORTY-SECOND BIENNIAL REPORT 107 Other Upla Project No. Name, location 549 Coast Counties Quail Habitat Improvement (Central Coast Counties) Desert Quail Development (Desert region of South- ern California) Owens Valley Pheasant and Quail Development Areas (Inyo County) 503 521 554 Quail Habitat Develop- ment (all of California south of U. S. Highway 40, with major emphasis south of the Tehachapi) 515 Project 507 550 523 536 548 506 522 532 551 72 Doyle Winter Range (Lassen County) Wate No. Name, location Butte Sink Waterfowl Management Area (Co- lusa County) Delta Waterfowl Manage- ment Area (Solano County) Honey Lake Waterfowl Management Area (Las- sen County) Imperial Waterfowl Man- agement Area (Imperial County) Lower Butte Creek Water- fowl Management Area (Butte County) Lower San Joaquin Water- fowl Management Area (Merced County) Madeline Plains Waterfowl Management Area (Las- sen County) Madera Waterfowl Man- agement Area (Madera County) Upper San Joaquin Water- fowl Management Area (Kern County) Ramer Lake Public Fish- ing Area (Imperial County) nd Game Projects Status Project completed. Merged with No. 554. Project completed. Merged with No. 554. This project has been canceled due to oppo- sition by lessees on City of Los Angeles lands. Project funds of approximately $45,- 000 have been restored to working balance of WCB. Equipment, materials and supplies for this project are purchased by WCB. Salaries, travel and vehicle mileage are paid from federal aid in wildlife restoration funds. As of June 30, 1952, 1744 "guzzlers" were completed, numerous brush piles were con- structed and springs developed for quail use. Project completed. rfowl Projects Status Area not yet acquired. Acquisition in hands of Public Works Board. Land purchased March 30, 1950. Equipment ordered. Supervisory personnel hired. Fed- eral aid development project California 40D approved effective July 1, 1950. Project completed. Further developments cur- rently being made with federal aid funds. (California FA 3S-D-2.) Project completed. Further developments cur- rently being made with federal aid funds. (California FA 36-D.) Area not yet acquired. Area not yet acquired. Project completed. Further development with federal aid funds. Area not yet acquired. Area not yet acquired. Development of warm-water fishing lake by construction of proper dikes and deepening to provide approximately a 275-acre lake. The boat landing ramp and anchors are completed. Roads and dikes are under con- struction and water controls being installed. Since this project is on the State-owned Imperial Waterfowl Refuge, it is being administered by the Bureau of Game Con: servation. 108 DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND GAME To provide ponds for waterfowl often requires construction of levees on management areas. Such work requires the use of heavy equipment. GAME INVENTORY POLLS The same procedure that was used in 1948 to determine the state-wide game kill was used again during the past biennium. This process, as recom- mended by the Opinion Research Center of the University of Denver, consists of taking a 2 percent random sample of hunting license buyers and mailing each hunter selected a double post card questionnaire. The number of cards returned from this sample are divided into the number of hunting licenses sold to obtain the correction factor that is used to determine the state-wide kill figures. Listed below for comparison are the state-wide game kill figures for the years 1948-1950. 1948 1949 1950 Pheasants 586,100 388,700 398,100 Ducks 3,077,000 2,282,800 1,966,300 Geese 356,000 254,900 229,400 Quail 1,714,391 1,132,800 1,129,100 Doves 2,572,400 1,886,300 1,756,200 Band-tailed pigeons 314,800 88,300 178,400 ' Bears 2,112 2,950 5,700 Cottontail and brush rabbits 597,300 357,900 304,400 Jackrabbits 875,400 573,900 683,200 Tree squirrels 74,200 21,100 45,000 It will be noted that for most species the 1950 kill figures approximate those for 1949. Field reports indicated a better population of pheasants in 1950 than in 1949, but the kill was nearly the same for the two years, reflecting the unfavorable weather conditions that were experienced dur- ing the 1950 hunting season. The 1950 kill of band-tailed pigeons was double the 1949 kill, and reflects the larger pigeon flight that was noted in 1950. However, both the 1950 pigeon flight and resulting kill did not approach that experienced in 1948. Data on California's deer kill are obtained from the deer tag report cards which are mailed in by successful hunters. The annual deer kill is shown in Table 4, Appendix D. As a check on the validity of the post FORTY-SECOND BIENNIAL REPORT 109 card survey each hunter sampled was asked to indicate if he purchased a deer tag. The actual sale of 1950-51 deer tags was 312,652 while the survey indicated a sale of 308,500 deer tags for the same period — a close correlation. Further checks with known data are being incorporated into future surveys. LICENSED GAME BIRD CLUBS Up until this biennium licensed game bird clubs were known as game management areas. This change in name, along with modifications in the length of the hunting season, license fees, and size of the areas was brought about by the State Legislature in 1951. Originally the plan for these areas was adopted by the 1939 State Leg- islature to stimulate the landowners' interest in the game crop. Through this plan it was intended to foster and increase the supply of upland game through land management and stocking of game farm birds. Back- ers of the plan believed that the income derived from the game crop would provide an incentive to the landowner to manage his land for game production. Since these areas were to be open to any licensed hunter, the income from the game produced was to be obtained by charging hunters up to a designated maximum fee for shooting privileges. Actu- ally the income received from the game crop could not compete with the high prices being paid for farm crops which these areas could produce. The landowners also found it too difficult to control the public on these areas. In 1947 the State Legislature modified the plan to allow for noncom- mercial areas where the public was excluded. These private areas are now supported by season memberships, or by a share-the-cost arrangement with the operator. Most operators are now satisfied with the plan. There are now 63 operators who control 53,403 acres of land. During 1951 they liberated 32,127 pheasants and killed 19,855 in 9,069 man-days of hunting. GAME MANAGEMENT During the biennium the bureau's state-wide game management activ- ities were conducted through the seven districts shown in the accom- panying figure. It is the responsibility of the game manager in each district to supervise habitat development, control game populations, ad- minister bureau installations within the district, and investigate game problems in general and apply corrective measures. A supervising game manager coordinates the efforts of the district managers into a common program. These districts will be merged under the new regional plan of administration. California Fish and Game Lands Other Than Game Farms Tehama Winter Deer Range with 42,896.90 acres was purchased from 1943 to 1950, inclusive, to protect winter range from natural food deple- tion by heavy stock grazing. Doyle Winter Deer Range with 13,503 acres was purchased from 1948 to 1951, inclusive, to protect winter range from natural food depletion. 110 DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND GAME DISTRICTS A Northeast B North Coast C Sacramento D San Joaquin E Inyo F South Coast G Southeast Desert JULY 1952 CALIFORNIA GAME MANAGER DISTRICTS (Will be consolidated in 1953.) Honey Lake Waterfowl Management Area with 5,473 acres was pur- chased from 1942 to 1951, inclusive. Imperial Waterfowl Management Area with 535.24 acres was pur- chased in 1948. Madeline Plains Waterfowl Management Area with 5,816 acres was purchased from 1945 to 1951, inclusive. Gray Lodge Waterfowl Refuge with 2,541.51 acres was purchased in 1931-32. Additional acreage being purchased. Imperial Waterfowl Refuge with 2,064.43 acres was purchased in 1931-32. Los Banos Waterfowl Refuge with 3,000 acres was purchased in 1929. Additional acreage being purchased. Suisun Waterfowl Refuge with 1,887 acres was purchased in 1932. FORTY-SECOND BIENNIAL REPORT 111 FEDERAL AID IN WILDLIFE RESTORATION (Pittman-Robertson) During the past biennium the Pittman-Robertson program in Califor- nia continued to operate at near the maximum apportionment that is allotted to any one state. For the fiscal year 1950-51 California received $399,138.03, and for the fiscal year 1951-52, $785,791.52 was received. California 's contribution, as required by the act, brought the total avail- able for expenditure during the biennium to $1,579,906.07. A total of 22 projects was in operation during all or part of the bien- nium. Of these, nine were of the surveys and investigations category, seven were development projects, four provided for the acquisition of lands, one was a maintenance project, and one a coordination project which directed and supervised the other projects. Following is an account of the various projects. Surveys and Investigations Project 22-R. The Life History and Management of the Ring-neeked Pheasant in California. This project is evaluating the effects of agricultural practices on pheasant populations, especially in the Butte Sink area. Also, the survival of released game farm pheasants raised from wild stock is being compared with pheasant releases made from regular game farm stock. Management practices being tested include food and cover plantings, water development, and trapping wild pheasants in heavily populated areas for restocking depleted areas. Hunters are checked during the pheasant hunting season to determine hunting pressure, the pheasant kill, crippling loss, and the sur- vival of released and wild birds. At the same time hunting season controls as they apply to hunters and land uses are being studied to facilitate farmer-sportsmen rela- tionships. Chester M. Hart is the leader of this project. . Boxes like this provide nesting sites for wood ducks in areas that have a scarcity of natural cgvities in trees. Sportsmen have indicated interest in the construction and installation of these boxes as conservation projects. 112 DEPARTMENT OF PISH AND GAME Project 25-R. A Study of the Food Habits of California Game Birds and Mammals and Species Affecting Their Welfare. As an integral part of wildlife management studies now in progress in California, it is necessary to obtain information as to the food preferences of game and predatory species. C. M. Ferrel is leader of this project. Project 30-R. A Study of Production, Migration and Wintering Areas of Water- fowl in California. An evaluation is being made of the production and wintering grounds of the principal waterfowl areas of the State, which includes Suisun Marsh and the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, the Inyo-Mono and Owens Valley area, and the northeastern section of California. These studies include large scale trapping and band- ing operations of resident and migratory waterfowl. Also, an investigation is being conducted on the effects of reclamation projects and land uses on waterfowl popula- tions. A. W. Miller is the leader of this project. Trapping and banding waterfowl not only provides information on migration, but also shows rates of harvest for various species. Project 31-R. A Study of the Effects of Brush Removal on Game Ranges in Cali- fornia, will determine sound methods for management of brush areas for wildlife habitat improvement. The project is under service agreement with the University of California, with Dr. H. A. Biswell as leader. Project 33-R. An Evaluation of Quail Development and Management Practices in California. Studies are being conducted to determine the effects of cover planting and water development on quail populations. Types of construction and the value of arti- ficial roosts are being tested. Also, the effects of cover removal, grazing, cultivation, controlled burning, rodent control, predator control, and hunting pressure on quail populations are being investigated. This project is under the leadership of Wallace G. Macgregor. Project 35-R. A Study of Diseases of Wildlife Species in California, is concerned especially with those diseases which are of definite known importance in respect to wildlife, and which appear to offer possibilities of being controlled by management practices. Merton Rosen is leader of this project. FORTY-SECOND BIENNIAL REPORT 113 Project 41-R. California Deer Herd Studies. This project conducts studies of deer populations in specific areas throughout the State, and includes appraisals of management problems, particularly range conditions, deer numbers, and agricultural and livestock conflicts. William P. Dasmann is leader of this project. Project 42-R. The Life History and Management of the Band-tailed Pigeon in California. A detailed state-wide study of the life history and habits of the band- tailed pigeon is being made with special emphasis on season setting, bag limits and agricultural depredations. This project is under the leadership of Walton A. Smith. Project 44-R. Chukar Survey. This project is conducting a state-wide survey to determine distribution, numbers, habitat requirements and possible management prac- tices for chukar partridges in California. Donald D. McLean is leader of this project. This mobile laboratory, built on a one-ton panel truck, enables technicians to diagnose wildlife diseases rapidly in the field. Development Projects Project 9-D. Suisun Waterfowl Refuge, involves 1,887 acres of land to provide waterfowl feeding and resting areas by construction of levees, ditches and tide gates. Project 13-D. Gray Lodge Waterfowl Refuge, involves 2,542 acres of land to pro- vide waterfowl feeding and resting areas by construction of levees, ditches, roads and buildings. Project 26-D. The Restoration of Valley Quail, Gambel Quail and Mountain Quail in California. This project represents the major effort in habitat development for California quail, and includes plantings for food and cover improvement, the erecting of artificial quail roosts, and the construction of "gallinaceous guzzlers" or rain catch- ment basins for providing quail with water. Through this habitat development pro- gram, many areas that were formerly unsuitable as quail range are now producing quail for California's hunters. The program has received help through financial aid from county fine moneys, and physical labor from sportsmen and other interested groups. 114 DEPARTMENT OF PISH AND GAME >'-•■- 0) VI u 0 0 0 o w M ■o 0) V ■*— □ 0) yi a 01 E W o *- u 4) a L. -C fl) -C * X i/> .5? 0 0) a: L. 0 _* i_ c o •~ s 1/1 L/l E o o •E E C a; +- —i v> si 3 C O" - o ri ° o is L. D)-= * 8 * «> ° (1) ■-S aj c u o o a- o a >~ o -a -c a o 3 ■a a> o 4) c o 4) E a> D) o c o E 7 o a> o %' * - Si ~° C O -o a> u_ Z o i— < «"> > c* 0£ ^~ LU ^ CO o LU CO Q. c LU D —> ^ -a ■^ CO >- X MM £ to G V — u. t/i X w LU LL. .^^ 0) ^2 k. o D TJ a C Z n < X LU X M- CO o u_ c u. o a) E ■»— 1— D Z CO LU -S 1- C£. < Q. LU Q •a c a> & X W -2 a S as u 3 .ft as 9 _ 3 =3 .-a ° a C"1 as c x as c W a* -t nt -, e- o3 -d m a 03 IO IN o ■*. Cm" IO 00 O o CO" ©" rH — i CM CO iO io_ CO CM CO CO o 00 CO CO CO oo OS CM CO CD 00 CM CO CO d r- o o" 1— 1 CO_ •o" 00 OS o •a o r- NCDOS n«o CO_ Tf io_ co" o" r-T •-1 CI co CO IO lO_ io" CO CM CO ONSSOho CM "O CM © CO CM IO CM CO OS i-l CO IO OS ^f tOOSfliflONO OS IO CO CO -* CO CO CM IO •-< OS CO IO CM CM «# o co -^ co 1—1 CO CO CM ■-I CO CM CO CM CO i-H •h N (N ■* -1 CD 00 IO o CM OS CO "J< 00 «* CO "* CO O IO rf ■* CM ■^1 CM CO ■* OS CO CO CO ■o CO O CM CO (^ O CM — i •-I iO OS ^i CO CO OS co ^rt^n 00 IO oo MCCNHrt lOCO 00 tJi Tf OS iO O OS CD i-H IO i-H OS CD CM IO CO NMiOiflHON t>- CO O CM 00 © CD IO © oo CM ■* -<}l (^ Tfl i-H © © CM CO CO O t^ IO i-l 00 CO CO IO •o IO p. a a O a -« a a .2 o * *- g a ri ^ a *x os a co 2 Sh _ O O as "^ O o a °'Ej3 as -a a <3 o 3 O o ft ft 3 03 as a a S, x M as c3 - § E as o3 .2 o H 3 0 •so J Ph «J o3 ■ | -S « as as -5 S o a 3 'CO as o3 o3 o Pnffl 3 as XI a 03 03 ft as > o 1* as os ftw 3 o ~ w t. a -3 — - o as ^ «| a 02 tf a o a 03 -fcS> O H o O as of S OS q,, ^ ft _. X n3 as a 03 ft 3 03 3 a as a x as a 2 1 ? 03 03 OS O O o as a .9 g-olO W h 3 03 02 FORTY-SECOND BIENNIAL REPORT 133 EXHIBIT C DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND GAME, WILDLIFE CONSERVATION BOARD, WILDLIFE RESTORATION FUND Statement of Expenditures, Fiscal Year Ended June 30, 1951 Support: Salaries and wages $8,770.60 Operating expenses 18,183. 19 Total— support $26,953 . 79 Contributions to retirement system 905.48 Capital outlay projects: Fish hatchery and stocking projects $1,250,783.28 Warmwater and other fish projects 1 1,390.00 Flow maintenance and stream improvement projects 130,467 .96 Fish screen and ladder projects 147,713.92 Game farm projects 105,641.32 Upland game projects for quail habitat and pheasant development 291,153 .25 Waterfowl projects for acquisition and improvement of feeding and shooting grounds 885,620.29 General projects of acquisition and construction 51,934.30 Totals— Capital outlay projects — All fiscal years $2,874,704.32 Less: Expenditures from appropriations, available prior to 1950-51 Fiscal Year —1,660,157.79 Expenditure from 1950-51 Fiscal Year appropriation 1,214,546.53 Total ex penditures $1 ,242,405 . 80 134 DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND GAME EXHIBIT D DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND GAME AND MARINE RESEARCH COMMITTEE FISH AND GAME PRESERVATION FUND Statement of Revenues, Fiscal Year Ended June 30, 1952 For the Department of Fish and Game License Sales Angling $3,217,002.90 Archery — hunting 3,966 . 00 Archery — deer tag 1,427.00 Commercial hunting club 525.00 Commercial hunting club operator '_- 145 00 Deer tags 348,749.50 Fish breeder and importer 1,225.00 Fish dealers and fish packers 2,890 . 00 Fish tags 22,556.87 Fish boat party permits 1,035.00 Salmon tags 45.17 Game breeders 5, 610. 00 Game management tags 718.05 Game management license 40. 00 Game tags 1,015.74 Hunting 1,551,990.00 Kelp 30.00 Market fishing 112,010.00 Trapping . 1,042.00 Deer meat agents — locker permits 12,219.50 Deer meat agents — wardens 1,827.00 Waterfowl shooting permits 20,020 . 00 Pheasant tags 188,771.00 Antelope permits 2, 912. 00 Game bird clubs 2,575.00 Special hunt permits 17,106.00 Totals, License Sales $5,517,453.73 Less: Commissions retained by agents for selling licenses — 266, 139 . 64 Net revenues from license sales $5,251,314.09 Other revenues Court fines $118,363.85 Oil royalties 7,728.53 Taxes Fish packers and fish dealers tax $183,936.80 Salmon tax 36,092.73 Kelp harvester tax 5,019.39 — 225,048.92 Interest on surplus money Investment fund 133, 951. 36 Miscellaneous Lease of kelp beds 6,947.74 Confiscated fish and nets 19,991.37 Miscellaneous revenue 28,686 . 87 55,625.98 540,718.64 Totals, Department of Fish and Game $5,792,032.73 For Marine Research Committee Fish packers and fish dealers tax 63,046.58 Total revenues, 1951-52 Fiscal Year $5,855,079.31 FORTY-SECOND BIENNIAL REPORT 135 Q Z r) u_ Z o I— < > LU to LU Q£ Q- LU < o x 2 li_ E"8 -i LU 8| t u ~o to Qi «J I < — X LU CD to LU Q£ . 3 LU .t Qi 0 < Q- ■< LU Q n Z ■4— < C CD LU £ % 0) < o o to Q Z < X to o I— z LU I— < Q- to O t^ O 10 r~ co cm t~ 0 0 h- r~ O 03 CS en CD t- t^ •-> 00 O 01 t^ CM tD •0 00m •0 05 -H t- CO 0 CO O 1-1 O Ol CO O -* t~ co 0 co co r- 00 0 O O C35 OJ CO CD m 0 00 CO CO CO t^ "3 "^ CM t~ CO i-4_ <~l ■* CO_ 1-1 CO_ 010 00 CO TJ4_ CO_ o_ +3 — co" cm" t-" >o" 1-4" CO" ^4* ■*" wo">o co" l>-" H4" cm" CM M< -HO t^ T44 CD CO CO CM CD CN -H CO T44 1— 1 1—4 CO O i-H -H a »o~ m 6© t» cd" CD" CD 6© e^ W CO CO O CO ' 00 "O C33 "S co H4 to ' « ' !>• 00 CD cd a d m 10 11 1 0 co ■O to CD 00 11 HiO -H CD to t^ O ' ' HIO IO CO u. 10" t~ CM , CO CO 3 H CN CM 1 i-h CO .a I— I ■* II -t< t» m t» '53 Pi CSNOOOrH-tO 01 O CO 0 10 t^ ^ b- co CO CD co cooocochho 0 10 iO O C35 ISO"* 10 t^ 0 o> CO -h 00 CM to CDNHCfltDiON 00 00 ifl M m CO tN 00 0 CO ^H O CO CO 00 CO t^ "*. * o?. ^ ^i *i "* 00 IO TJ4 -H -H -H4_ r«_ t^ 00_ Tot end eral CO i-t co" CO t> **" co" —T 0" C3> >o" -h co" t>-" t-" 00 -H ^ 00 CJ IO CO TJ4 r- cm 1-1 0 -h CO *HU)tBHHH co_ IO CO 03 p. « p. x o CD •» -h" -h" 1-4" 10" e© «© m T* IO CO f~ C6 CO CO 01 +3 a CO i-H 0 CO 0 00 10 OS ho*»n co t- T(4 OS CO CN i-4 ■* CD oiNCNCooraoo O d QJ OMOOOtO"'* CM V3 CO % c S oj "*. °. TO. *"i ■* °l "2 ira 0" cs" -^" ■*" 00" of TJ4- ■*" CD ft N CD© OCOCDN HH a x CO t(4 CM t)4 CO o_ O " «© CN 00O1CNCOC1NN 0 CO CO a 01 cm Tti m 00 0 0 10 fO-JOMt-cO 00 CD M ^MMiOMOH t^ •c S O rH CN t»_ CO_ CQ_ ** IC _o3 5 CS CO" -Hi' 00" CN i-H OO" cm" "3 T3 CO (3 OINNhMOiO — en ^4 to to °i 03 cm" ' t ' IhJhJ : 1 1 1 03 I c3 ] d I ! ! 1 ^i ! u d CD ' CD ' O CD 'CD ' w , d d . , CD CD 1 ; a a ; -*3 IH ' ft ' ] a_a [ CD ' ! d ! ! ! ! ! f* Jfe ! S ' 1 "3 '3 ' 0 l : 1 0 1 1 1 1 1 ! '-B 1 cp +? cd ; *c ; ; ! ! -d 2 -d CD 1 tjc ' 1 CD CD t-T 1 1 o3 1 1 CD 1 1 03 03 HH.< ■*> 1 J3 ; -0 -a CD : s : : : : : 1 (-. 1 1 1 1 1 1 O 1 1 1 1 1 1 **-» 1 1 .0 ' ! 1 I 1 S o*<<« ' ■?|1ug ! ! ! S3 O d ' 1 11 I-SIJI i ': i CO CD CO a d , 03 03 • CO CO 1 '"* t- 1 'S '3 1 1 ft ft 1 1 CD CD 1 "3 ! | CD 1 CO | ' S ! | CO HH 1 3 ! ! ! ! ! j 3 t 1 1 1 1 d CD ft lH >H | ' co co" 1 -»3 -*H 1 CM ' ! "? cd ; CN 10 1 p, 1 1 1 1 1 8 S S=ic§ £ X CD ' d d ' 1 CD CD ' "5 S ! So ; " cj« -H CD a O 1 ^ +» 1 1 1 1 1 d d . 1 . 1 1 03 CD , 1 1 1 '.88.!!! -^ 0 a § S3 ! jcc ; ; d S d 0 A ; g 0 I 1 m ■" »H t4 "S 1 -S d 1 d CD u u d : a a : 1 CD CD 1 , > > >> ' S 2 J ' & ft ■£ T-H co" CD 3 -♦H ■3 d CD X d -d CO E ' °3 0 ! ' e ' 13d ' c O , ' ■« " » 8 '-S ' d CD fe CD •£ f3 1 +? 0 *- 8 l « g '43 t3 T5 S3 2 O ft ft CO 1 Su i)4J o'5 I ^ f ' dfcdgdd i _ tS 0 ftgwcD^-^ ' <- W its g S d m -g -s ;^0 IS? d5do3dft'Od fjc CD I- CD ? 45 d " a -1 § .5 .5 0 •- d" d" "os .a 0.0 .-g d '43 "-+H ft O* 0 0 ccj >> CD d d CD " - ^ - , , •B -2 S CD -4H ^3 — d g « 8 « O " M CD _d O d CD a u c3 ■B 03 d id 2 § ' S -w.ScD^docDS Eh ft^oeHSfeOij cD^dddod^O T^ 03 fc = cSficDg.So'-a>3dj. -g I- §0 feo| a § b s?.s.s ^0 -S co m grtPnO 0 S 0 ^23 5 g -p d d 0 0 fc 0 0 r" — S 0 0 t-1 03 S1 (_ h .■SSoo 6 s§ -4H O 0) d CO 03 Q s 136 DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND GAME EXHIBIT F DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND GAME, WILDLIFE CONSERVATION BOARD, WILDLIFE RESTORATION FUND Statement of Expenditures, Fiscal Year Ended June 30, 1952 Expenditures — 1951-52 Fiscal Year Support Salaries and wages $19,884 . 00 Operating expenses 12,347 . 05 Equipment 143.88 $32,374 93 Claim of Secretary, Board of Control 2,995.14 Contributions to Retirement System 1,978.24 Total to Less prior Capital outlay projects date years Fish hatchery and stocking projects $2,329,181.39 $1,250,783.28 $1,078,398.11 Warm water and other fish projects 44,329.09 11,390.00 32,939.09 Flow maintenance and stream improvement projects 200,237.68 130,467.96 69,769.72 Fish screen and ladder projects 156,029.22 147,713.92 8,315.30 Game farm projects 105,644.49 105,641.32 3.17 Upland game projects for quail habitat and pheasant development 392,981.99 291,153.25 101,828.74 Waterfowl projects for acquisition and improve- ments of feeding and shooting grounds 2,936,436.18 885,620.29 2,050,815.89 General projects of acquisition and construction. 51,648.84 51,934.30 — 285 46 Totals, Capital Outlay Projects $6,216,488.88 $2,874,704.32 $3,341,784.56 Total Expenditures 1951-52 Fiscal Year . $3,379,132.87 With the advent of summer vacation time a young man's (and woman's) fancy turns to fishing. So, the County of Los Angeles staged this one-day "Huck Finn" event at Alondra Park Lake in 1948. The wire enclosure contained state-stocked fish. Young Tom Sawyers and Becky Thatchers worked in relays to remove the fish. FORTY-SECOND BIENNIAL REPORT 137 LLI U CO LU C£ Q Z CO <£ z o < £ 00 Q — z to U z ■"" c o o n u uj -J= Zu 3 UJ -, c ° I >-T3 3 2 -i O I o* A04 UJ >- I i- 0) 5 " — ' n X to x io CO < 436,147 71,998 346,881 213,705 5,040 483,938 1,365,911 1,035,026 15,120 689,255 596,274 260,518 15,145 455,409 162,790 618,078 64,396 778,322 119,300 41,811 1,941,601 39,806 61,009 724,425 3,500 c o g "3 c ce o i (D i i i ill... IIIII I CO ' ill 1 o" | | | IIIII IIIII IIIII III;; ,oi 1 ; ; , , , , , . , , , c 50,031 115,300 3 0 Eh H ^ 2 OJ O) CO i I I I iiiii iiiii iiiii iiiii •* 1 1 co" | t- — I ■ I I IIIII 1 1 1 1 I s o « 67,302 18,100 459,422 E -M a o 1 £ 134,662 20,000 15,000 4,001 450,532 165,262 83,055 73,000 164,091 24,240 707,898 308,450 T3 c3 CJ co 483,938 544,900 8,465 o '3 128,053 51,998 331,881 209,704 5,040 725,243 869,764 15,120 94,324 445,917 260,518 15,145 364,309 162,790 453,987 64,396 754,082 4,000 41,811 774,281 31,341 61,009 415,975 3,500 >> -^> a 3 o O Alpine ._ Amador .. . Butte Calaveras . Colusa ._ . . _ Del Norte _. El Dorado . . Fresno . .. _ . Glenn . .. . Humboldt. __ .. Inyo . _ ... ... . _ Kern .... Lake .. .. . . Lassen _ .. . _ Los Angeles . .. .... Madera. . .. .. . . Marin ... Mariposa.. ... _. ... Mendocino . _. Modoc Mono - ... . -. _ _ _. . ._ Monterey.. ... Napa_ _ . . Nevada. ... ... Orange _ IMS DEPARTMENT OF PISH AND GAME O 3 C C O u co u z — >. 8 3 CO uj z 13 O _2 o O -a J> CO CD MIOOh co to t- m r-" 0 o s -" OS cm" -d 03 as " in" co i-h OS *f CO CN 00 to CM ^ "tt< (» (O 00 OS 00 CN OS -h © ^i •* 00 CO MNC-) NN»H 31 00 ©_ 00_ >> 0 3 o O Placer.. . _ Plumas Riverside _ ._ ._ San Bernardino.. _. _. San Diego . . San Francisco _..._. ... San Luis Obispo . . . San Mateo. Santa Barbara Santa Clara _ .. . Santa Cruz . . Shasta . . . . . Sierra . . Siskiyou . _ ._ ... Solano . _. . . ._ Tehama . . .. Trinity Tulare. Tuolumne ._ . _. Ventura.. . .. ... Yuba _ . . . o -*^ C 03 u o FORTY-SECOND BIENNIAL REPORT 139 TABLE 2. HATCHERY REARED WARM-WATER FISHES-JULY 1, 1950 TO JUNE 30, 1951 (INCLUSIVE) Smallmouth black bass Largemouth black bass Sacramento perch Bluegill-- Total Number of fish 5,500 98,534 600 18,918 123,552 TABLE 3. FISH RESCUED AND TRANSPLANTED-JULY 1, 1950 TO JUNE 30, 1951 (INCLUSIVE) Trout Rainbow 3,399 Eastern brook 4,800 Steelhead 715,908 Brown 395 Cutthroat (Lahontan) 2,059 Total Salmon King Silver Total 268,259 726,561 241,989 26,270 Warm-water fishes Smallmouth black bass 39,299 Largemouth black bass 188,367 Warmouth 1,141 Green sunfish 11,484 Sacramento perch 900 Bluegill 303,809 White crappie 1,176 Black crappie 6,220 Striped bass 14 Bullhead 43,594 Golden shiner 143,632 Total 739,636 140 DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND GAME "3 2 -^ o: ,o en o £« io oi e o -i co a: r~ co co CO H CO© lO co co" ad ^T © ^1 O O O rA CO CN CO i-i occncaoi CO 00_ ■* co" 00 rt co" •^ o r~ o t~ t~- LO CO CD CD lO CO rt N iO iO CO CJ CO_ C0_ O C0_ CN ih o" o" oo" cd" CO CD CN t- tP CO —1 ^H ,-| O »0 O O LO i-i 00 CO ■* lO 00_ CO_ ©_ CN Tf_ co" o" o" Co" oo" -*< r- b- co lo co co HNOtDO CN rt CO CO t- CO_ CD_ CN C0_ i-H co" . < £ X UJ co < 3 O L. H O _g b c •£ o 3 c3 o m CD O -2 o eft t-l H CN O O CO CO O O -< CO O O O ■-1 o en oo oo_ co co"co" lO CO rt CN CO CO CO O LO o CO CO -h pH O t»<_ CN CO* O" ■-1 ^ 03 O a '3 - O O o co CO" CO CN o LO o co CO CN CD in CO CN co cn CD O i-i CO OIN 00 C» CO rt CO CO LO CN co" CO" CN O cn oo oo o i-< r-< i-I CN i-< .§•1 a LO CO CO o CO CN 00 CN HOCDCJ HCO lOM'f Tt< LO LO 00 CN CO CO O CO CN O O CO O lo CN LO CN O LO CDMOOii CN LO O LO O N CN CD HON 00 CD CN CD rt OliOrt rt co ■* co lo o o o n o CO CO CN ^ rt lO .-1 i-C rt t- CO rt 00 rt IO CN i-I LO CO CD O CN 00 00 rt CD 00 CO CN rt CN .LO 01 » o3 > cc d 9 i? B s "3 "o ~ o rt ^ „0 QHhOffi 3 a -9, p p v 3 m C oJ «**! . H rt CO CO C ' «j oj 03 O trt rt rt] hj t— J 03 O O 03 .5 _ 2 o o a> c .— -a o T3 s- l, £3 "C aj o3 o3 CD 0 - O rt J ^ w rt«Siil 2 FORTY-SECOND BIENNIAL REPORT 141 ■* O O -f o OOOHHTt m >-< co_ m_ cs oo" to" o" t^-" t~" lO CO lO tO - so of m" tjT to" to" Tl< CO CO TO CO OJ •*■*■* TO °. "I cv3. "*- ■* co" oo" i-T co" r-~ -nOOWNCS h IQIO m o CO TO t- CO 00 o CO O lO IN Oif ■* — i CO IO CO to o CO o O K5 oo fi ■* H O O CO CO o oo_ as o" co" co" CO -h ■* O O CO O O 04 IN W_ i-H oo" of to" CO o o o o — O IN o o m to m — 00 co -. 00 i — i -f ■* " CO ^ i — I O) to m t^ m co co m TO (N »— i to co "*i t^ m TO © lO TO - f^ l-~ r^ t-." to 04 IN -* m o ■r lO >o to IN r^ co CM ■* IN (N / 1 — 1 -T IN IN »-h co CO IN OM»iO IN O Ol — i TO t- co" oo" co" o" i-T H 00 d •* N ■-I us ■* m o co co t- co "2 ?* CD 03 ffl Q c e it* zr* '^2 c3 o3 Pi PU « CO 03 3 r 03 c - o3 o3 03 03 Xi O CO •+-> ■a 03 c c 03 03 03 03 J3 2 OO 03 03 ■a -f^> C B 03 03 03 03 -t^ 03 r*t J .si 03 03 03 03 2 S 0) . . "o _ 3 3 03 H H H E-i 9 31.H o3 j3 03 O B 03 o 142 DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND GAME TABLE 5. HATCHERY REARED WARM-WATER FISHES-JULY 1, 1951 TO JUNE 30, 1952 (INCLUSIVE) Smallmouth black bass Largemouth black bass Bluegill Crappie Golden shiner Total Number of fish 40,750 109,757 26,300 21,980 129,175 327,962 TABLE 6. FISH RESCUED AND TRANSPLANTED-JULY 1, 1951 TO JUNE 30, 1952 (INCLUSIVE) Trout Rainbow Eastern brook. - 2,908 1,000 664,797 540 14,272 Warm-water fishes Smallmouth black bass Largemouth black bass - Warmouth _ _ Green sunfish Bluegill. White crappie - Black crappie Striped bass . . _ _ 29,049 28,464 Steelhead - - Brown Cutthroat (Lahontan) 130 6,963 45,970 2.356 29,604 7,964 Total 683,517 34,973 207,096 Salmon King -_ __ Shad Catfish Bullhead.. Golden shiner 1,156 679 297,363 22,058 Silver . __ Greaser blackfish . - 152 Total Total 242,069 471,908 FORTY-SECOND BIENNIAL REPORT APPENDIX C MARINE FISHERIES STATISTICS TABLE 1. CALIFORNIA FISHERIES PRODUCTION 143 1950 1951 Total Total landings, pounds . _ 1,366,596,282 17,359,751 70,769 7,202,130 32,189 904,088,178 13,595,879 41,498 2,735,590 65,163 2,270,684,460 Cases of fish canned - . _ 30,955,630 Tons of fish meal produced 112,267 Gallons of fish oil produced . 9,937,720 Gallons of liver oil produced - 97,352 TABLE 2. POUNDS AND VALUE1 OF COMMERCIAL FISH .LANDINGS IN CALIFORNIA Species 1950 1951 Pounds Value Pounds Value Yellowfin tuna _ 190,446,000 128,041,000 66,124,000 714,522,000 7,759,000 133,256,000 11,723,000 23,893,000 32,650,000 8,116,000 2,847,000 2,230,000 3,532,000 1,533,000 3,955,000 2,258,000 5,995,000 1,920,000 1,093,000 1,915,000 258,000 4,879,000 296,000 28,000 696,000 717,000 591,000 913,000 14,406,000 $29,399,000 18,344,000 12,557,000 12,140,000 2,115,000 2,572,000 1,421,000 1,156,000 794,000 409,000 438,000 798,000 315,000 322,000 369,000 329,000 157,000 127,000 225,000 135,000 65,000 84,000 56,000 13,000 68,000 56,000 40,000 59,000 660,000 173,669,000 118,638,000 48,436,000 328,893,000 8,601,000 89,838.000 11,568,000 18,227,000 33,518,000 10,994,000 3,865,000 1,470,000 4,691,000 1,547,000 4,084,000 2,135,000 12,383,000 2,887,000 867,000 1,747,000 596,000 6,955,000 584,000 228,000 784,000 842,000 1,096,000 931,000 14,014,000 $26,834,000 Skipjack _ _. 16,942,000 Albacore. _ 7,680,000 Sardine. . Salmon . Jack mackerel _. .. . Crab.. 7.247,000 2,476,000 2,016,000 1,622,000 Sole ... Pacific mackerel. . . _ . Rockfish _ .. . 1,254,000 932,000 655,000 Bluefin tuna Spiny lobster 604,000 562,000 Yellowtail 445,000 White sea bass. ._ 367,000 Abalone . 365,000 Barracuda 361,000 Squid.. . 336,000 Sablefish _ _ 230,000 California halibut 198,000 Lingcod _ . 154,000 Pacific halibut 151,000 Anchovy . 144,000 Grouper . . . 117,000 Broadbill swordfish _. Bonito ... 100,000 75,000 Shark 70,000 Smelt Shrimp __ 69,000 64,000 All other _ _ 751,000 Totals 1,366,592,000 $85,223,000 904,088,000 $72,821,000 1 Value to the fishermen. 144 DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND GAME TABLE 3. TOTAL ANNUAL LANDINGS AND SHIPMENTS INTO CALIFORNIA OF COMMERCIAL FISH, MOLLUSKS AND CRUSTACEANS Includes Sardine Deliveries to Reduction Ships During 1930 Through 1938 Year Pounds Year Pounds 1916 1917 1918 1919 1920 1921 1922 1923 1924 1925 1926 1927 1928 1929 1930 1931 1932 1933 95,002,695 209,876,670 261,134,265 266,270,240 222,004,376 135,347,826 182,343,333 253,874,581 340,445,919 437,502,232 394,964,393 487,166,143 583,526,751 856,854,055 702,188,795 502,389,875 556,139,053 821,805,007 1934 1935 1936 1937 1938 1939 1940 1941 1942 1943 1944 1945 1946 1947 1948 1949 1950 1951 1,390, 1,448, 1,764, 1,362, 1,310, 1,486, 1,297, 1,529, 1,173, 1,234, 1,459 1,216, 919 795 900 1,135 1,366 904 798,650 016,584 900,136 983,717 595,651 534,906 517,441 147,645 414,078 049,119 445,859 467,433 850,476 498,998 540,206 325,345 ,596,282 088,178 TABLE 4. COMMERCIAL FISHING FLEET Home port 1950-1951 1951-1952 447 371 846 448 253 2,288 880 569 1 450 301 846 471 232 2,279 857 398 3 6,103 5,837 TABLE 5. RESIDENCE OF LICENSED COMMERCIAL FISHERMEN Region of residence Number of fishermen, 1950-1951 Number of fishermen, 1951-1952 826 577 1,448 1,383 555 5,388 3,174 1,206 43 836 497 1,401 1,182 485 4,809 2,977 Alaska, Washington and Oregon fishermen licensed in 929 77 Totals -- - 14,600 13,193 FORTY-SECOND BIENNIAL REPORT 145 >< Q- < CO I— co < i— CO LU < to Z o I— < BC LU Q- o or < o z I— z Z3 I < LU O- o o u CD < US OS M)OOS*'J'HOiOOi>* 0 -1- OS co ""jiiN^tDTiiraoraraN ■* os u OJ o c =1 d^ O >o CO NOHCOOMflOOS 1 OS u 3 OS cm nnioionniO'*^ 1 CO u -*- I— ' o> w o 3 os en ■* SHioaooo 1 1 co OS CM CO CO — CO © ' 1 ' ' 1 1 CO ~ +^ © 'MOhno; ONOtOO rf o 00 I^OlOWTf HH»"J00 00 pM 10 CM 'OOlNrtOONCIOSOOO t^ CO 2 CO >-i ,MK-j-. o ,0 0 n 0 pi 00 m 1 1 1 > > < 0) OS US OS CO CM -H CO ' 1 1 1 1 1 us p Tf< us — < co — us r» 1 1 1 1 "* 3 OS r-i i-i CM* cm co" cm" ', ', 1 ! co" 1-1 CO iiONOJiOO^OOiOO ,_, GO 1- H 00 lOO-HUlTfCJONNON 0 us CM_ 1 ^}>_ CO (-_ 00_ CM ■* iH t~ CM_ to t- OS co" ] ©" 0" 00" i-T ■*" us" co" Cm" t"" co" ^<" C ^ us 2 a) h « CO 'OTfCM'-HOSCOOOOOS 1 OS iijg 0 cm los^HonoHn^e > 00 LO CO_ 1 us_ ih ©_ ©_ o_ ■* to ©_ t> ' 00 2 "^ OS ■** ] ■*" Os" CO r-T Tf" tO" Cm" CM" CO" 1 r-" 3 SO 1< C C -~ *S 5 a i~- to to CM t~ 00 1 © OS -OC1WNH 1 1 1 . 1 1 © o Tt> r- os_ t~ os_ co_ us_ ■ 1 I-H . — >— < — — os 8 * © ©0©0©©00© ' 0 m & 0 O iO©©©u;©o©us 0 — ^ T3 O US © '©tO©US©US©CMCM l^ OS _2 t, US l00CO00--H©--»©CO'^ , 1^ 3 o ^H ~- ^- — CO 11 ! , © 0 © © 0 © 0 OQ m OS o©o©oo 0 ■* ©_ o_ ©_ o_ o_^ ©_ ©_ OS to" us" OS* to" to* co" us" --CM , t^- US '-H-tfCOOOOCMtDtOO© US bfi 1 — 1 Tt iNoo^raoOrtio^oci CO C us t^ 1 to_ tO_ CM_ U3_ CM_ ©_ US_ i-H t>._ t^_ CO "43 OS to cm" to" os" cm" -" 00" 00" to t~" us" US* **J ^H O © f -JMOSOONHTf CO ■*"' 0 CM it^OSUSOOCOOOOSUS 1 1 — ' c 10 00_ ' © OS_ to ^ CM — os_ o_ OS_ ' OJ CD OS to" 1 i> to 00" ©" 0" 0" 00" r>." to" \ "i" © O ; : CD bfi I 03 0 0 0 0 © 0 © Q? OS ooooo«: us S_ •* us_ O^ Os_ 00_ 00_ Tf ~t O OS S ! » 0 * b 1 * " e 2*}3 5So^'E S ^ 3« O-H =" 7S 0 H SE no w «5 ra cs. 0.0 >• is ■3*. O be ^ C e"S =3 o j~ o ta M J= £ 1 = E- js =a T= 53 3 a g*5- "S ° B-S »- C3 i s 3 C is cs at t. 3 E.i: 3 T3 c >> E-° 2-3 E g — - 146 DEPAETMENT OF PISH AND GAME CO Z o I- LU a. O < LU OC < 5 LU O < z < o < CD < cn i-i to oo io 6 * 1* t- o ro i-i >o i TO o U3 os 1— 1 i-H O •-< »"H 1 '~l |1 *- S-H HOIIM I 00 *6 OS OS 1— 1 CN CN i 1-1 +3 CM -H T* (- Tf O 00 o i-H © oo ■* t>- os co •o p4 lO oo ooh iisiooo 00 CO OS rH to" t~" CO t-T Jj 1-1 ^H TO O •i-H O NOfflMO i OS +3 o nw as* i © c3 >o CO o 00 ** i r- £ OS ■*" iH ■*" of ! cn" **- rH 0 O 00 — i i i i OS 05 ~H -H CO 1 1 1 oo p ■* UJBSH I I I T— 1 1 OS ■* io" lOHHlfOOOl oo CO ^H 00 -h rf (s. OS CN © t-> IO CN CD i-h lOtflN r- OS io" TO OS- CN c ^ CN 3 =3 t4 * TO TO OO ■* b- 1 TO 8 eo O M O H ID Tj 1 >o -2 -a iO iO O iO CD ' r^ 3 ad OS cn" i-T tp ih ] as" c _3 — i "to o3 3 -* oo io i i i ■* -*j OS O iO t> i i i TO o Tt< CN iO ill OO < OS CN CN O O O O iO o IO i-H 00 O O O CN CM CN IO t~ ■* CN t»_ t^ OS t^ 15 * os i-H ro" t-" 00" F-T rH n<" c >> CN ■* o £ 3 « « 2 © o o © >o i iO n ft o OOOON i CN ^ cs io OS iO_ «0_ ©_ 0_ TO_ i 00 .2 h 3 0) cd" cn" cd" t>." r-T j to" TO o o © ! ! ! O tfi m OS T* © © 1 1 1 Tfl ** ■*_ o_ CO i i i CN OS -h" CN ■*" | ] | oo" ^H III i-H OS o © © © o OS M ^H TO © © © © © TO 3 IO TO O 1< O O CN as OS 43 3 ■* TO CN Tf i-H i-H >o 3 O ■* © © 1^ O ' r^ "*"* o o © o as os i OS 3 IO °l °. "*. °°. °. ' CN a; a o OS I—* to" i-T cn" to" i-T ] CN CD M 03 OOH) i IO eg OS coiot- i i i o h ■* iO_ t~ t» i .— I o OS <) to" i-T ■*" ] ] ] o t— i i i ++ i i i e3 eg S- 1 | Cfl 1 1 i ! -^ fe ^ cc +- Cfl ni 0! , q, c 13 n 3 t, c o « -C "o « hKSooS "3 43 0 — c C3 "3 ,^ ° cd S «.s S eo o S 3 2 m o M S~ — as rt ^ — "3 2£ 3 - B! _ S ^ •a o «il s « £ = a M 5 .M — o 3 O — ' ^3 i- £ a> cj 3 i_ i a,-* 3 ° ^ 5 w cS III S£cs-, FORTY-SECOND BIENNIAL REPORT 147 to Z o to < u LU O- tO I to I— Z => X O a; I— Z o u CO < CO CO CO m . o CO CO CO CO CO £ « CO o CO o oo CO "^ iO CO CD CO CD CO CD CO CD CO CD « 2 CD ,Q ?2 3 b, 3 t- OS ~c ^ ~c Tl TI ■G CD ■" 03 ;=. -i O in OS "a S ° 10 „ 3 a> S? a £-a *CD 'CD _>* h u a COO p O "a o "a O >> a o « CD O to J E § CO g in O CO X E o E " o^ a s a CD CD X 3 CD a CD a CD a CD o o o * ' O — 3 a a a a a a a M — M .3 m — tx J2 CD 3 31 « ^ 3 +- fO' o o o O O O o _S jH ^3 .3 S J5.S j= a "H Baa c a c a ^ a u c c +-> +i ->- 0 'O '■5 *3 S* O 0 o CD O £ o CD O CD O CD 3 "C 3 "C 3 '> C 'r* co 3 c a o — 1- CD CO CO 'fl CD co CD CO CD CO CD CO CD ? 3 > 03 c3 03 c3 03 "O 03"U ccJTJ 0310 03T2 K a B w o CD CD CD 02 03 02 CD m CD 02 0) 02 CD 02 — o o CM o >o t^ 1^ o CD 00 'f OS t~ 00 "* 3 *** t- go? a; ° 3 OS 00 t^ t- t- CO m OS CO 1^ OS -* CO oo Ch 3 JS en o CM CM t^ OS o CO t^ t^ t~ Os iO 00 ■* 00 to o CO CM o f oo •* o t^ W >H CO oo o CD o3 -f CO CO CO CO CM »— I Tt< CO CO OJ '- ' IO C) C ^h" ,-H ^h" 0) O 03 H K 03 co — co o iO 00 IO CD 3 o <* CO 00 LO o >o t^ r~ '3 "3 CM CI —■_ CM — CO i— i 5 — " ■H ■-T O CD (m CD io CM CM t^ OS o co >-i CO 'CH OS o o OS CM 3 o CD CM o ~r 00 -T CO Tt> OS CO CD CO CI OS 3 CD -f CO CO CO CO CM N CO rH 1— 1 fc "3 e3 CO CM CM IQ o ■* - — »o tO f ■* CO < — 1 r^ ^ OJ t^ OS ■* oo I— 1 »o ^ S ^3 ■* -V ■* *# -r f ■-H t- 00 CO >o CI t- co d £ a; , [ ,__," , 1 M J) M z- O CO Li +3 o o O o o o iO tO O O OS o o oo CO ■*2 P CD o o o o o o t^ CM iO co o o iO i— t I-H W iO iO m IO U0 rH OS os o CO CO oo ■*. ^ , ' ^ ^ 2 £ S 3 a co *"s" CM CO Tt< ■o OS ^H CO OS 1 1 1 1 1 ] 1 ■^ *f ■* Tj* ^r IO ■^ ^ a _ O ° S o io in OS OS OS OS OS OS OS OS — iO iO in CD iO ' ' »n c3 Q » J, o "^ o 2 T co "^ X ^^ « I J O ^ H 1 I— ,__, »— 1 1 I— 1 52 —. OS ° =? oo o 6 p ^ co -1 o — co '-' " OS -h ob ,— ' w ,H CO CO CO CO CO CO CO CD I ; >> c o CD CD CD CD en CD CD 3 ^ CD S "t? m ."S a a O s >. ^i a 3 a a a a >> >J a a o O 03 s o 03 0 O 03 4J 5 o 03 O O 03 0 O 03 a a 0 0 < -3^ CO fl C O O § 3 o >i o O 03 o O CD O o a CD CO CO CO f» CO CO CO CO J 2 0,O a -a ■d 03 ee 03 03 03 03 o o D-. >. ■ |°5 a ol- os it— 3 03 0 cd cj j3 .a ^3 _3 J3 ^3 0 > ^H cd" 0 CO 03 0 0Q 3 02 a 3 02 3 3 a a O 03 CD a CD CD CD CD CD CD >, r«S 2 $Zi 13 3 ^ C, co d o J o r 03 u s & O § Q U CD CO CO CO CO CO CO CO CO' CO CO CO CO CD > CO CO S c 0) o> oo 3 ffl 03 r3 CO 03 o o3 h CD o T3 O T3 O T3 O T3 O -c o a o CD CO CO § § § s <5 CG 02 P T3 CD CD £ a 03 3 CD CD CD CD CD CD a a a a a a 0 o o o o o CD CD CD CD CD 3 3 3 a 3 a 0) CD 0) CD CD CD a> << CQ < CI © CD 00OO lO CO h ci 00 m M -1 ci w m 'O 00 ffi n « i-H CI CD rfi CI 00 ,-1 © .-1 --i CI -* — 1 rt IN 00_ Cl_ i-H ci" co" CD 00 -f CO 00 O CD ,-H OS O .-I CO CD X lO OS o CO CO a a © OS £? ►^ a 3 O P* co 1-1 r- os o •* 10 o" ><5 00 CD O CINrH N -* 00 lO CD O O OS lO ~? O ■* CI OS lO ci o co CD —1 lO H OS 00 CO CM IO O 00 CI CO OS O 1) CI O OS CI ON 00" CI 3 CO O OS o o 00 OS 10 Tfl 00" r-T o CO 00 CI CD OS lO CD CO l> "* ■* H C| CI O hio co CO 00 o o CITf OS ■* CD O o3 ~3 ^ 03 t, • • .Q 03 os as os as c ^ 1 1 ° S £ JS S rt' l*oC 1 1 £,'»*> S'S'Sais^o'SlsS'ssSS (»£ I CM co ! ! ! cm eo i-H -* ■* cc r- CO CD lO 10010 en co CD CM CD^hiO — >C CO CO ^ LO CO COCO ^ CO CO CO f CO CM ~ h ID CN N CM •o o CO 0) a 3 1-5 13 C o Ph c c U 5 < o Q z < X 00 CO li-l M LU IT) CD < ,0 ■* CO i-i CM CO CO'G H O a. lO CM US 00 lO CM Tf CO CM lO CM CD CO lO i-" i-i ■* — i-i i-i Tf HCC lO OS O CO 01 e 0 o © lO o Ph i-i CM i-l ■& iO CO co ■* CM CT> CO i— I OS HfOiONNHHiOOlO r-< lOTfCN OMHrH i-h CM ii -# — - cu £ 5 s g s ,. M ■ a ° " - 2* it-t-fe i g ' I i » i e S S S J '* » o ..-I j?p|js\i2g^ :siS-3§aidl-s.S o FORTY-SECOND BIENNIAL REPORT 159 APPENDIX F COMMISSION POLICY STATEMENTS DEER MANAGEMENT POLICY FOR CALIFORNIA 1. To produce and maintain a maximum breeding stock of deer on all wild lands of California, public and private, consistent with other uses of such lands, and to utilize, through public hunting, the available crop of deer produced annually by this breeding stock. 2. To maintain for deer the best possible range conditions in conformance with other interests and uses ; to expend funds for the improveemnt of deer ranges wherever such ranges are open to public hunting, and to aid and encourage private landowners to improve their deer ranges even though hunting is limited. 3. To keep deer populations in balance with local forage supplies and conflicting uses. 4. To assure a carryover of a maximum breeding stock of deer consistent with the forage available on each local unit of range. 5. To permit the harvest of all surplus animals, of either sex, over and beyond what the range can carry in healthy condition. 6. To limit the acquisition by the State of deer lands, access roads thereto or rights of way to those cases where unusual benefits will derive from the expenditure of moderate sums. 7. To control populations of deer that are rendering appreciable damage to valuable crops, orchards, vineyards, or gardens, by regulated public hunting where possible ; elsewhere permit shooting will be relied upon. 8. To work out with other interested parties an equitable allocation of forage for deer and livestock where conflict or competition exists, and thereafter to regulate the deer herd according to such agreements. 9. To give primary consideration to deer in allocation of forage where the demands of deer and other big game species, native or introduced, may conflict. 10. To manage deer herds on the basis of natural forage without recourse to arti- ficial feeding. 11. To reopen to deer hunting, following prescribed legal procedures, such existing refuges as are not actually needed to protect depleted herds, and when need for spe- cial local protection arises, to close such areas temporarily. 12. To hold local public hearings in any area where the commission intends to apply deer herd management regulations. Notice of such hearings will be given in papers of local distribution. The opinions of local groups of sportsmen, ranchers, and other interested parties will be heard and given consideration before final adoption of rules and regulations for any special hunt for deer. 13. To regulate the numbers of deer predators on the basis of local deer needs con- centrating control efforts on understocked ranges or ranges where hunters are fully harvesting an annual deer crop. 14. To make impartial objective surveys of the deer herds annually in order that the commission may be supplied with authentic information for its guidance in establishing hunting regulations and planning other aspects of deer management. 15. To inform the public concerning the mechanics of deer management and the requirements to maintain healthy and productive herds. Adopted June 27, 1950. INLAND WATER FISHERIES The basic objective shall be to supply the best possible fishing for the greatest num- ber of anglers with the minimum of restrictions and regulations necessary to insure a continued supply, fair distribution, and proper utilization. 1G0 DEPARTMENT OP FISH AND GAME The following are regarded as the principal and essential elements necessary to obtain this objective in view of present knowledge : A. MAINTENANCE OF WATERS FOR THE ANGLER AND FOR THE FISH 1. It will be the constant endeavor to keep as much water as possible open and accessible to the public for the purpose of fishing. 2. The primary objectives in habitat work will be the maintenance of natural con- ditions in natural waters, the adaption of impounded waters for fishery pur- poses, and the creation of new fishing waters. Stream and lake improvement which involves the building of artificial devices for the improvement of food or shelter is not economically feasible on a large scale and the benefits are ques- tionable on the basis of present knowledge. 3. The quantity and quality of waters will be maintained so as to produce maxi- mum numbers of fish. Other uses of water are recognized as necessary, but rec- reational use by one million anglers is also of prime importance. It will there- fore be the objective to obtain assignment and protection of water for fishery purposes on an equitable basis with other uses. No single use or combination of uses need exclude others under proper planning and management. As im- poundments and canals are created, every effort will be made to adapt or manage them for fishery purposes. 4. Waters may be extended or flows improved through use of storage, either con- structed solely for fishery purposes or for other uses. 5. Since the quality of waters will be subject to impairment as the State grows in- dustrially and in population, an aggressive program for the prevention and correction of pollution will be carried out. 6. Fish must be protected as fully as possible from the hazards created by the other uses of water. Fish ladders or other devices will be required to permit fish to reach spawning or feeding grounds, and screens will be required to pre- vent losses in diversions. Ladders shall be provided and maintained by the owners of the dams as required by law. Fish screens as specialized mechanical devices are more economically and efficiently constructed and kept in repair by a single agency of the State. Owners will be required to assist in operating the screens, and screens on power and large diversions shall be both installed and maintained by the owners, as now required by law. By-pass water to return fish to the stream below the diversion shall be provided by the owner of the diversion where necessary. The new Delta Field Base, on the San Joaquin River near the Antioch Bridge, was built during 1951 with Wildlife Conservation Board funds. The building contains adequate storage and working space for the various delta activities of the department, including berths for three boats, the Striper, Rainbow, and Minnow. FORTY-SECOND BIENNIAL REPORT 161 7. The movement of steelhead and salmon in streams is often obstructed by barriers resulting from logging, mining, and road building, and it is only proper that the owners or operators be required to prevent or remove such obstructions. S. Proper conditions for fish production can also be destroyed by the filling of lakes and streams with the products of erosion, and every assistance will be given to agencies directly concerned with the control of erosion and pollution. 9. Constant vigilance will be maintained to prevent the introduction, either offi- cially or unofficially, of plants, fishes, or other animals which might prove harmful to existing fishes, either directly or indirectly. At the same time, con- tinuing studies will be made to discover new introductions which could be made safely to improve the productivity of certain waters. California was naturally endowed with an excellent supply of trout and salmon in the cooler waters. Fishes suitable for warmer reservoirs, lakes and streams were few in number. A wide variety has been introduced by the Fish and Game Commission over the years. On the whole, these introductions were useful, but some mistakes were made. Introduction of other game and forage fishes may be desirable in the future but new fishes will not be brought in unless all available evidence indicates that the benefits will be substantial and the hazards few. Initial introductions would be made where spread to other waters in the State can be controlled. B. TROUT POLICY 1. Siuce the majority of trout caught are the result of natural propagation, every- thing possible will be done to aid and protect natural production. Assistance will in large part consist of the protection and improvement of habitat, but will also include protection from disease and predators. Research will be carried out as needed to solve management problems. 2. Artificial propagation is a useful and important part of trout management and will be used where necessary and helpful. It is not, however, a universal answer to all fishery problems and will be subject to constant checks to determine the results obtained. 3. Present evidence indicates that in heavily fished waters the planting of trout of catchable size increases the angler's take and resultant satisfaction, but is expensive. This type of planting will be developed only as rapidly as funds are available from those enjoying that type of trout angling. 4. Fingerling trout plants have but slight value in most streams already contain- ing trout. The major use of fingerlings will be in naturally barren waters, in those waters where the population has been destroyed, and in the small and lightly fished lakes. 5. The planting of catchable trout is most effective in easily accessible roadside waters, especially lakes, and they will therefore be given first priority. Due to the cost of catchable trout, they shall not be planted unless a large number, usually over 50 percent, will be taken by anglers. Waters only seasonably suit- able for trout shall not be planted except in those areas of the State where the potential fishing pressure is extremely high because of a lack of more suitable waters. Even there they should not be planted unless the fishing pressure is heavy enough to remove at least 50 percent while water conditions are favorable for trout. (5. In the setting of open seasons for trout and salmon special protection will be be given to spawning fish and the young of steelhead and salmon before migra- tion to the ocean. C. WARM-WATER FISHES 1. The great variation in the productiveness of our warmer waters indicates that additional knowledge as to the controlling factors is more likely to increase the production than is random planting. Management founded on basic facts will therefore be the method of attack. 2. Native warm-water game fishes were few in California waters, and of those introduced years ago, black bass, sunfish, and catfish have prospered in certain waters. They supply part of the angling for about 30 percent of California anglers. Where conditions were suitable production has been satisfactory with 6—70679 162 DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND GAME little subsequent plauting. Based on that evidence, and similar experience else- where in the United States, it is not deemed necessary nor worth while to pro- duce large numbers of the warm-water fishes for repeated plantings. After an initial plant, success is more dependent on food and water conditions. Even where conditions limit spawning success, the planting of a few thousand fry year after year can hardly be useful in view of the great number of small fish required for warm-water fish production. Successful warm-water fish produc- tion requires much greater numbers of young fish than can possibly be produced artificially. Hatchery production of warm-water fishes shall therefore be limited to the amount needed for stocking barren waters, above what can be obtained through rescue work. When these fish are established in suitable waters, no further stocking is necessary. It is not practical to rear bass or other warm- water fishes to catchable size for planting since they require large amounts of natural food. The only fish of that size available for stocking are those obtained in rescue work. 3. The principal losses of warm-water species, such as sunfishes, catfish, and rough fish, are in drying reservoirs and canals. These fishes are very prolific under favorable conditions, and the addition of rescued stock to well established popu- lations may do more harm than good, or at best, supply a temporary increase in food for existing fish. Rescue of warm-water fishes will therefore be carried on mainly to obtain stock to be used in establishing these fishes in waters in which they are absent. D. PRIVATE FISHING LAKES 1. California in comparison with other states has few farm ponds but all that we have should be utilized to their full capacity. The present policy of the com- mission, to supply an initial stocking of fish for most ponds under 25 acres with- out requiring that they be open to publish fishing, will be continued. Such small ponds can only supply a very limited amount of public fishing. However, use under angling license by the owner and his friends may relieve the burden on other waters. The productiveness of farm ponds in California is limited due to seasonal fluctuations, the frequent use of the water for irrigation, and often a reluctance on the part of the owner to manage them properly. Every effort will be made to develop the full productivity of farm ponds for fishery purposes. However, the amount of time and effort to be spent on farm pond work should be realistically proportionate to the results that can be expected. 2. Present regulations of the commission require that reservoirs over 25 acres in area and lakes and streams of all kinds be open to public fishing in whole or in part if they are to be managed or planted by the State. Planting of reservoirs over 25 acres or of streams and lakes, of which one-third is open to the public without charge by the owners is allowed under permit. These policies shall be continued since the fish naturally present in streams and lakes and in the larger reservoirs are the property of the people of the State, whose rights to use and enjoy them should be protected and extended, consistent with the proper pro- tection of the landowner in the use and enjoyment of his property. E. STEELHEAD AND SALMON 1. Evidence accumulated over the years in the Pacific states and Canada indicates that little or no benefit is derived by taking eggs for hatchery processing of steelhead and salmon from fish which would spawn naturally. Any benefits de- rived therefrom would be prohibitive in cost. Intensive hatchery work with these fishes shall be limited to areas where it is necessary to salvage the eggs of fish which no longer have adequate or suitable spawning areas. 2. The production of the two hactheries now existing in the coastal area will be used primarily for experimental work looking toward the development of better and cheaper methods for using hatcheries to supplement the natural production of steelhead and salmon and the rehabilitation of barren streams. 3. Steelhead and salmon management will therefore be concentrated on the main- tenance of an adequate breeding stock and on maintenance of suitable spawning and natural rearing of the young to migratory size. 4. Research to determine the factors limiting salmon and steelhead and methods of improving production will be vigorously prosecuted. 5. No stream can be expected to produce large numbers of young steelhead and salmon to migratory size and at the same time produce or support a crop of FORTY-SECOND BIENNIAL REPORT 163 resident fish. Evidence to date shows that it is futile to attempt to combine the two types of fishes. The greatest productivity of the coastal streams can be attained by using them as rearing areas for young fish which will migrate to sea, grow rapidly and return to the stream to supply greater sport as well as more pounds of fish. Resident fish will therefore not be planted or developed in steel- head and salmon streams. 6. The impermanency of many streams in California causes heavy losses of fish each year. All steelhead and salmon possible will be rescued, but it is recognized that salvage is difficult or impossible in many cases. F. STRIPED BASS 1. Striped bass are an outstanding example of the tremendous productive potential of fishes under favorable conditions. In spite of more and more anglers, the fishery is stabilized and in good shape. Management will therefore be directed towards maintaining continuing statistical measures of the status of the fishery, in order to assess the effects of impending changes in their habitat and increase in the number of anglers. So far as possible, the adverse effects of these changes will be anticipated and prevented. G. COMMERCIAL UTILIZATION OF FRESH-WATER FISHES 1. Salmon, shad, and catfish are still taken commercially from inland waters and carp and mullet are utilized under permit. The use of fishes for both food and recreation in combination is a higher use than for food alone. Where the supply is inadequate for both commercial and sports use in inland waters, the com- mercial use should be restricted or eliminated. However, full and proper utili- zation should be provided for. At present carp are not utilized by sportsmen as food, and therefore the increasing commercial use of this fish shall be encouraged and permitted. H. REVISION OF POLICIES 1. All management policies shall be based on collection of factual information and research, and shall be modified in accordance with the findings made. The fore- going policies will therefore be regarded as a guide to ever improving and expand- ing principles for the management of the inland water fisheries of California, based on new facts developed through research and experience. Adopted July 20, 1951. 164 DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND GAME APPENDIX G REORGANIZATION PLAN FOR DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND GAME The reorganization plan which was prepared by the Department of Finance and submitted to the Legislature pursuant to Chapter 195, Statutes of 1951 (Senate Con- current Resolution No. 84) is reproduced below. This plan formed the basis for the reorganization which the Department of Fish and Game is now undergoing. The regional boundaries as suggested by the proposed plan were followed, as shown on the map accompanying the director's report. The organizational set-up differs only in minor respects from the following proposal, princi- pally in terminology of positions (see chart accompanying director's report). March 3, 1952 To: Honorable James S. Dean A. N. 475 Director of Finance Subject: Department of Fish and Game — Organization Study This report presents general findings and recommendations relating to the organiza- tion of the new Department of Fish and Game which came into existence September 22, 1951, under the Charles Brown Fish and Game Reorganization Act. The report is submitted in response to Chapter 195, Statutes of 1951 (Senate Con- current Resolution No. 84), -dated June 1, 1951, and to a request of the Director of Fish and Game, dated October 31, 1951. The Senate resolution directed the Department of Finance to assist the Director of Fish and Game in preparing a plan for the organiza- tion of the new department on a regional basis, to be presented to the Legislature at the 1952 Budget Session. General findings and recommendations relating to organization are presented here. More detailed recommendations may be presented later in discussion with the Director of Fish and Game. Under the form of organization prevailing in the superseded Division of Fish and Game, the division operated its several programs with insufficient organizational pro- vision for close coordination of game conservation, fish conservation, marine fisheries, and law enforcement at or near the local level. Field personnel assigned to a particular program often were insufficiently informed about other programs in their particular localities. While several bureaus within the division were organized by districts to which varying degrees of administrative authority had been given, the boundaries of these one-program districts did not coincide. Thus there was no one person in a particular area in charge of the operation of all fish and game programs with whom local sports- men and other citizens could deal effectively. To correct this condition, Chapter 195 directed that the administration of fish and game by the new department be organized on a regional basis. The current report's organization plan calls for decentralizing fish and game opera- tions to not to exceed five regions, each operating a composite fish and game program, and each under administrative control of a regional head. Yet the plan provides for sufficient central control to achieve reasonable uniformity and efficiency throughout the State. In addition, it concentrates administrative responsibility in the director and provides a clear line of authority throughout the department. SUMMARY OF RECOMMENDATIONS It is recommended that : 1. Administrative authority of the Department of Fish and Game be concentrated with the director as the law clearly intends. 2. Responsibility for general policies and regulations be concentrated with the Fish and Game Commission as the law clearly intends. 3. Actual line operations of fish and game programs be decentralized to not to exceed five regions to be administratively created. 4. The headquarters office of the department retain control over administrative poli- cies and exercise general direction over the regional operations to achieve uniform and efficient fish and game programs throughout the State. FORTY-SECOND BIENNIAL, REPORT 165 5. The over-all organization of the department be as described below. 6. The actual administration of marine law enforcement activities and personnel as indicated be transferred to the appropriate regions. REASONS FOR RECOMMENDATIONS 1. Functions of the Director The recommended organization plan calls for concentration of administrative au- thority in the director's hands. In the past, under the Division of Fish and Game, administrative direction of fish and game activities has fluctuated among the commission members themselves, the executive officer, and bureau chiefs, and sometimes a combination of all three. Naturally administrative difficulties resulted from such changing leadership. Without the co- ordinating influence of an authoritative single executive, the heads of individual fish and game programs naturally had difficulty in coordinating their operations into one unified fish and game program. Legislation creating the new department corrects this condition through concen- trating administrative responsibility in the director, appointed by the Governor. Use of such authority as contemplated will help develop the well planned, coordinated, and smoothly operating single fish and game program that is desired. 2. Functions of the Commission The legislation creating the department continues the power of the Fish and Game Commission to determine policies and to regulate the taking of fish and game. It also continues the requirement that the commission hear the recommendations and objec- tions of interested citizens and groups. Administrative responsibility is delegated to the director. This division of responsibilities between the commission and the director represents a substantial improvement over the previous administrative commission form of organi- zation. Administrative actions are better performed by one executive and, conversely, policy formulation and promulgation of regulations are often delegated to boards and commission. Concentration of the commission's attention upon policy formulation and regulations, and further development of a tradition of noninterference in adminis- trative actions will contribute substantially to successful functioning of the new department. To assist in its work the commission will have a new exempt position of secretary sub- ject to its appointment. When the commission is not meeting, day-to-day supervision of the secretary should be made a responsibility of the Director of Fish and Game. A summary of the secretary's proposed duties follows : Represent the commission at meetings of sportsmen's organizations, etc. Obtain for the commission facts on which decisions on matters relating to policies and regulations can be based. Supervise the commission's civil service secretarial position. Make decisions regarding replies to correspondence addressed to the commission which ordinarily can not be handled by the civil service secretary. Supervise the assemblying of material for the use of the civil service secretary in the preparation of the agenda for meetings of the commission. Assist the commission in the conducting of meetings, especially in presentation of items on the agenda. Confirm actions of the commission in writing to all parties affected. During legislative sessions, aid in keeping the commission and the director in- formed regarding action on fish and game bills, resolutions, etc. Investigate and report on complaints specifically addressed to the commission and relating to commission rules and regulations and policy matters. To promote coordi- nation, copies of his reports on such complaints should in all cases go to the director. (Complaints received by the director, including those forwarded by the Governor's office, should be handled by the department.) Every effort should be made to insure that the secretary's duties will be harmonious with the functions of the commission and with the activities for which the director must be primarily responsible. The department, rather than the commission secretary, should make administrative surveys and recommend improvements. This distinction 166 DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND GAME is necessary to avoid diffusion of administrative authority. It is important that the secretary's duties not conflict with the responsibilities of the director, not only now but even more so for the future, as it cannot be assumed that future directors and commission members will always have the same basic objectives and aims. 3. Decentralization This report recommends that actual line operations of fish and game programs be decentralized as much as possible to five regions. As later indicated, this will not radically change the marine fisheries work. Decentralization of operations is clearly needed in a state as large as California, with its extensive fish and game programs. Confusion has developed in the past because different fish and game programs and complements of personnel have been separately controlled by different officials in the headquarters office. Game conservation em- ployees, fish conservation and marine employees, and patrol employees in given geo- graphical areas have each reported separately to different officials in the headquarters office. No one key employee has been at or near the local level to coordinate all fish and game operations. Each group has operated in some ignorance of what the others were doing. Moreover, local sportsmen and other citizens had no one person at the regional level to whom they could go to discuss game, fish, and law enforcement problems. Often they were forced to negotiate with headquarters, which usually was too far away for early and satisfactory contacts. As a result, unnecessary misunder- standings frequently developed. To correct these conditions. Chapter 195 directed that the administration of fish and game operations be organized by the new department on a regional basis. Imple- menting that general plan, this report suggests decentralization of fish and game operations to the maximum extent practicable. In charge of each region will be one man with administrative responsibility for programs and personnel within the scope of established policies and programs. The fish and game public can deal with regional managers and obtain satisfaction without referring all matters to headquarters. This form of organization will give better service and assure better understanding by the people of the region. This report suggests that there be not more than five composite regions, with the exact boundaries to be developed by the department. This form of organization will give improved service and assure better understanding. At the present time, one bureau has five administrative districts ; another seven ; and a third eight. The Bureau of Marine Fisheries has operated on a coastwise and principal river system basis without defined districts. Study indicates that all factors considered, more than five composite regions are not needed. Five regions will bring fish and game administration close to the sportsmen and the general public. More than five regions would lead to substantially greater and continuing administrative expense. The specific boundaries of regions must be determined administratively so as to permit changes to be made quickly when indicated. As mentioned above, the organization plan contemplates that all functions and activities that can be handled advantageously by the regions should be given to them. More specifically it is suggested that, subject to central office control, the regions be responsible for supervision of operations such as the following : Fish management: Hatchery operations ; fish planting ; rough fish control ; fish allocation according to a state-wide plan ; construction and maintenance of fish screens and ladders ; lake and stream improvement ; assistance in fish surveys and inventories ; fish rescue operations. Game management: Operation of game farms; predator control, habitat develop- ment ; game inventories ; waterfowl areas ; public shooting areas ; cooperative hunt- ing areas ; management of game refuges. Wildlife protection: Land and marine law enforcement; reserve patrol; crop damage investigation and control. Conservation education : Information to the regional public on fish and game problems, policies, programs, laws, and regulations. Other: Business functions including regional record keeping ; licenses — direct sale over counter, distribution to agents, accountability for licenses distributed to agents. Operational phases of federal-aid fish and game programs, exclusive of research projects. FORTY-SECOND BIENNIAL REPORT 167 4. Central Office Functions and Activities This report recommends that the central office retain control over administrative policies and exercise general direction over regional operations so as to promote efficient and uniformity of fish and game programs throughout the State. While decentralization of operations to regions along lines described above should result in giving better fish and game service, care must be exercised to avoid creating five little "administrative kingdoms" with as many separate and varying fish and game programs. To avoid this possibility, the central office must establish administra- tive policies and exercise effective direction over operations of the regions. On the other hand, the central office must refrain from repressive tactics in dealing with field leaders. The concept of authority consistent with responsibility delegated should be observed. The central office should be responsible for the following functions and activities : a. Planning of fish and game programs, i.e., study of needs and the resources and facilities required to meet those needs ; b. Presentation of recommendations on program and policy matters such as seasons, bag limits, etc., for consideration by the Fish and Game Commission ; c. Inspection of field operations to assure compliance with policies and procedures and to ascertain means of improving operations ; d. State-wide, coastwise, or inter-region research in fish and game programs; correlation of the findings of research on fish and game management from field sources ; laboratory investigations ; statistical studies ; state-wide censuses of game, etc. ; e. State-wide coordination of conservation education and public information ; f. Federal-aid fish and game programs — liaison with federal agencies, planning, approval and inspection of projects ; g. Planning and general control of investigations of the effects on fish life of present and proposed water control projects (dams, etc.), with recommendations for changes to adjust to fish requirements ; h. Development of a state-wide plan for planting fish and game by the regions ; i. Procurement of fish food, fish eggs, game stocks, etc. ; j. Inspection and coordination of patrol boats assigned to individual regions ; k. Staff training programs ; I. License work — estimating requirements ; supervision of printing ; allocation to region for sale and distribution to agents; controlling- and auditing the distribution of licenses to agents ; m. Formulation of programs governing regional construction and maintenance and the necessary engineering supervision ; n. Direction of department's air service and communications system. Further study should be made of the respective roles of the central office and of the regions in connection with scientific studies of the fish and game biologists. Additional study also should be made of respective spheres of the central office and of the regions in construction and maintenance work. These subjects represent two of the more difficult problems in converting to the composite regional basis of operation. Careful advance planning in these areas will contribute substantially to the success of the regional form of operation, since they potentially contain seeds of jurisdictional mis- understanding. 5. Over-all Management This report recommends that the over-all organization of the Department of Fish and Game be as described immediately below. The proposed organization structure is designed to accomplish the objectives pre- viously described. That is, to concentrate program, policy, and regulatory authority upon the commission; to give full administrative authority to the director; to decen- tralize operations to the field ; and yet, to retain sufficient central control to bring about a high degree of uniformity and efficiency of regional operations. In the proposed organization there will be a direct line of command between the central office and the regions. This is in harmony with a basic principle of good organization — namely, that no individual should be responsible to more than one immediate superior. Failure to apply this principle in organizations is a frequent cause of misunderstanding, with resulting confusion and lowered work production. This is particularly important in an agency as geographically dispersed as the Department of Fish and Game, since distance complicates problems of resolving conflicting orders. KtS DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND GAME The proposed plan is a line-and-staif type of organization. Line officers include the director, the deputy director, and the five regional managers responsible for operations in their respective localities. Headquarters employees, who are primarily staff officers in relation to the regions, include the administrative officer, the conservation education officer, and four chief staff positions. As staff officers, headquarters employees will not issue direct orders to operations employees of the regions. To do so would result in multiple lines of command from the headquarters office to the regions. With respect to the regions, the headquarters staff officers will advise in their respec- tive areas of responsibility. They will give staff assistance in research, planning, inspecting, and training for their fields of responsibility — i.e., business affairs, con- servation education, marine fisheries, inland fisheries, game management, and wildlife protection (patrol and law enforcement). It will be their responsibility to direct state-wide research programs and to correlate the findings of research and manage- ment from field sources in order that suggestions for programs, policies, and regula- tions may be formulated for presentation to the director, and through him to the com- mission as required. They also should ascertain whether policies and programs are carried out in an effective and uniform manner by the regions, reporting their findings to their respective superiors. Position titles used in the following discussion of the organization are illustrative rather than official, since establishing classifications and titles is a Personnel Board function. Fish and Game Commission: Responsibility for determining fish and game policies and regulations will rest with the commission. Secretary to Commission: See above. Director: It is the director's responsibility to submit recommendations to the com- mission relative to fish and game policies and regulations. Responsibility for adminis- tration of the department, including development and application of administrative programs and policies, will rest with the director. Reporting to the director will be three employees : the deputy director, the adminis- trative officer, and the conservation education officer. Deputy Director: Reporting to the director will be the deputy director, an exempt position, in whom will be lodged direct responsibility for planning, coordinating, and directing the general operations of the department for the director. In the absence of the director, he will assume charge of the department. All key positions except the administrative officer and conservation education officer will report to the deputy director. These include four chief staff positions for special subject matter areas plus the proposed regional managers, which will mean that the total number reporting to him will not exceed nine. Administrative Officer: The former Division of Fish and Game has not maintained a complete "business administration" unit of its own since it became a part of the Department of Natural Resources more than 20 years ago. Most of the services normally performed by such a unit were handled by the latter department. Presently the Department of Natural Resources is continuing to handle, under contract, the fiscal and related work of the new Department of Fish and Game until the latter's own organization is perfected and equipped to take over such functions. Recently the director obtained the approval of both the Department of Finance and the State Personnel Board to establish a top administrative position under the title of "Administrative Officer," who will be in charge of planning and organizing the "housekeeping functions" of the new agency. He should be responsible for planning, organizing, and directing the central office administrative and business services of the department. These services include accounting, budgeting, personnel, auditing of fish processors books, license distribution, engineering, and possibly the radio systems work. In addition to directing these activities, the administrative officer will act as business adviser to the director and will have responsibility for directing organizational and procedural studies. The administrative officer will have a wide responsibility for business management activities both in headquarters office and in the field. His business management re- sponsibilities in the field should be carried out in the name of the director and through the regional managers in order to eliminate the possibility of dual supervision. There will be six persons reporting directly to the administrative officer : A new departmental accounting officer, a present position of senior accountant, a supervisor of fish and game licenses (now Chief, Bureau of Licenses), a personnel officer, an administrative assistant, and a senior engineer. In addition, there may later be an employee in charge of radio communications. FORTY-SECOND BIENNIAL REPORT 169 The departmental accounting officer, a new position, will be in immediate charge of accounting and budget work for the department. He will have a group of assistants, a number of whom will transfer from the Department of Natural Resources. The senior accountant now budgeted to the Bureau of Marine Fisheries, should be on the staff of the administrative officer, to handle auditing and related work in con- nection with tax returns of fish processors throughout the State. He is to report directly to the administrative officer. This placement is tentative subject to further considera- tion. Experience may indicate that the position should report to the departmental accounting officer or to the head of the license (revenue) section. A supervisor of fish and game licenses (now Chief, Bureau of Licenses) will be immediately responsible for the central office's license and permit activities. These activities include estimating license retirements, planning printing, allocating li- censes to regions for their direct sale and distribution to agents, and controlling and auditing the distribution and returns. A new position of personnel officer reporting to the administrative officer will be in immediate charge of developing and administering the department's personnel pro- gram. For some time to come there will be a large amount of personnel follow-up work in connection with the organization of the new department. In addition, there will be continuing departmental personnel work involving classification, recruitment, pay. counseling, and liaison with the Personnel Board. He also will participate in the de- partmental training program. To handle the clerical record keeping phases of personnel work he will have reporting to him an existing supervising clerk position. An existing administrative assistant position, which will report to the administra- tive officer, will have two primary responsibilities. Its incumbent will be the imme- diate supervisor of general office activities at headquarters, and conduct such adminis- trative studies as may be assigned. General office management activities at headquarters will include central stenographic service, files, mail, messenger, mimeographing, auto- motive control, etc. Administrative studies will include organizational and procedural work, time and cost studies, the preparation of manuals, etc. In a changing depart- ment, covering a wide geographical area, with diverse activities, there will be need for such work on a continuing basis. A senior civil engineer position, currently budgeted to administration, will be responsible for general engineering work for the department and for liaison with the Division of Architecture and other state agencies. It is practical and economical for the department to do much more of its construction work than has been the case in the past. Engineering positions currently budgeted under fish conservation and game con- servation should be transferred to the senior civil engineer. Study must be given to the problem of determining the sphere of the headquarters engineering office and its rela- tions to the respective regions in construction and in the pooling of heavy equipment. The administrative officer ultimately should be responsible for planning and follow through on radio systems activities of the department, including liaison with the Division of Communications, Department of Finance. For the time being, however, the Fish and Game Department desires to retain this function under the wildlife pro- tection activity. This appears to be a proper arrangement during the developmental period of the communications system. However, it is believed that in the long run the activity fits best with the administrative officer's responsibility for staff advice in business administration. There are two possible locations for placing responsibility for operations of the air service, and its four pilots and equipment: with the administrative officer, or with the chief wildlife protection officer. Further study is suggested for this problem. The administrative officer through his staff will be assigned responsibility for various office activities now being performed by headquarters employees of the present bureaus. Further study should be made to determine which clerical positions should be trans- ferred to the jurisdiction of the administrative officer to handle such work. A study also should be made to determine if headquarters' clerical positions could be transferred to the regions. Conservation Education Officer: This is a new civil service position to be in imme- diate charge of the central office's public information and conservation education activities. He is to report directly to the director because of the close relation of his work to the director's work — preparing manuscripts and reports, receiving visiting sportsmen and others, investigating complaints of service, etc. Reporting to the con- servation education officer will be currently budgeted positions of supervisor of conservation education, a public information officer, an editorial assistant, and the senior librarian, responsible for the department's general library. 170 DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND GAME Also reporting to the conservation education officer will be a training officer position immediately responsible for the department's employee training program, which should be broadened and deepened. While the training officer will not directly instruct in more than general phases of the training program, he will organize it and have many other training responsibilities. He will help draft a long-term training program, work out its details and timing, select suitable experts as part-time teachers, help such teachers prepare their lectures, assist in discovering and preparing written study ma- terials, schedule training sessions, arrange for meeting places and obtain secretarial coverage of such sessions. In summary, he will be the planner, organizer, expediter — the sparkplug — of the department's training program. The presently budgeted position of Assistant Chief, Fish and Game Patrol, which has been performing this function for the department should be used in conjunction with this activity. Four Chief Staff Officers: This report proposes that four present bureau chief posi- tions, with combined line and staff responsibilities, be changed to staff status. It is sug- gested that the titles of these positions be changed, subject to State Personnel Board approval : Present Proposed Chief, Bureau of Marine Fisheries Chief Staff Officer, Marine Fisheries Branch Chief, Bureau of Inland Fisheries Chief Staff Officer, Inland Fisheries Branch Chief, Bureau of Game Conservation Chief Staff Officer, Game Management Branch Chief, Bureau of Patrol and Law Chief Staff Officer, Enforcement Wildlife Protection Branch The chief staff officers will require staff assistants, the number needed depending upon the size of the particular job to be done. The bureau chiefs currently have technical assistants located at headquarters. Some of these subordinate positions will continue to be required at headquarters, but it is believed that several may be transferred to the regions for direct work there, in view of the transfer of responsibility for line operations to the regions. Through such transfers and other personal adjustments the number of new positions required to put the recommended plan into operation can be kept to a minimum. Of the four present bureau chiefs, the least change in actual working relations result- ing from change to the staff status will occur for the Chief of Marine Fisheries. This is because the function of marine fisheries has been predominantly research, statistical, and advisory in nature, and will continue on that basis. The marine fisheries organizational branch will operate its programs directly rather than through the regions. While the activities of the three other present bureaus can be divided advantageously between the central (staff) office and the regional (line) offices, this cannot be done effectively for the marine fisheries branch. This is because its work is predominantly research, fact-finding, and statistical in nature — staff work calling for centralized administration. Moreover, its operations are along the entire coast, from Crescent City to San Diego, rather than on land. Therefore, its operations should remain controlled or directly operated by headquarters. However, there is one important exception. Present marine fisheries activities and personnel dealing with stream improvement and fish screens and ladders on inland streams (notably of the central valley) should be transferred to the appropriate regions involved. On the other hand responsibility for handling such activities as maintenance of the marine fisheries installations at Terminal Island and at Monterey may advantageously be left with the branch, rather than be transferred to the regions. These supporting activities represent such a small part of its total work and yet can have such a direct effect upon the success of its work that it will prove advantageous to have the branch continue handling them, at least for some time to come. Regional Organisation Structure: A new position of regional fish and game manager will be in complete charge of operations and personnel in each region. The regional managers will play a most important role in the new department. Much of the department's success ■will depend upon their capacity and performance. Their task will be to weld separately operating fish and game programs — wildlife protection, game conservation, and fish conservation, and parts of these programs — into one FORTY-SECOND BIENNIAL REPORT 171 integrated program operated by a unified team in accordance with departmental poli- cies. They should have substantial capacity for leadership and administration. While primarily they should be men with general administrative ability, technical training and experience in one of more specialized fish and game subject matter areas would be desirable. Reporting to the regional manager in all regions will be four persons who will be immediately responsible for as many phases of the work : Game management, inland fisheries, wildlife protection (patrol and law enforcement), and office management. In two more populous regions there will be a fifth person to be responsible for conserva- tion education work. Later, a person for conservation education work might be added in one or more of the remaining regions, if the need is demonstrated. The plan proposes that new positions of supervising game manager and supervising fisheries manager be established to be in immediate charge of game and inland fisheries programs. These positions will have higher stature than the current positions of game manager, assistant supervisor of fish hatcheries, and district fisheries biologist in order to effectively supervise subordinate employees. It is suggested that in so far as possible the new positions be obtained through reclassification of lower positions, rather than through the budgeting of additional positions. Likewise, the new regional positions to be in charge of office management should, wherever possible, be obtained through trans- fer and reclassification rather than through the budgeting of additional positions. Informal proposals have been advanced by departmental officials fur establishing a public information position at the regional level. This report suggests that a conserva- tion education position be established in regional offices at San Francisco and Los An- geles as it is believed that conservation education employees assigned to those regions will contribute substantially to the success of fish and game programs through better public understanding. 6. Marine Patrol This report recommends that the regions along the coast assume direct responsibility for marine patrol operations. Under the present organization, the Bureau of Patrol and Law Enforcement operates both land and marine patrol and law enforcement units. Line control over both land and marine patrol units is maintained from the state headquarters office. Under the recom- mended organizational plan, actual operations of both land and marine patrol activities and forces will be taken over by the regions. The Marine Patrol enforces laws applying to marine, commercial, and sport fishing. Its staff consists of marine wardens along the coast who are land based and marine personnel who are assigned to law enforcement boats. It is suggested that marine patrol be handled as far as possible on a regional basis for several reasons. Since the department will be organized by regions, as many activi- ties as possible should be assigned to the regions to take full advantage of what this form of organization offers. By having marine wardens and land wardens under the control of the same regional manager, more flexibility will be obtained in the shifting of personnel during periods of increased hunting and fishing. Wardens will obtain broader experience, which will increase their usefulness to the State and also enhance their chances for promotion. Moreover, the recommended plan will bring land and marine patrol groups closer together, and result in a more integrated patrol force. If marine patrol were handled on a state-wide basis a wide cleavage might develop between marine and land patrol employees, which would have a detrimental effect on the depart- ment's work. Therefore, this report proposes that the regions along the coast assume responsibility for actual operation of the marine patrol. There probably will be three such regions — the southern, headquartered in Los Angeles, the coastal, headquartered in San Fran- cisco, and the northern, headquartered in Redding. If this assumption proves correct, it is probable that in the southern region, where marine patrol activity is heaviest, there will be two supervising wildlife protection officers (now assistant chiefs, patrol), one in charge of land law enforcement and the other in charge of marine law enforce- ment. It is suggested for the coastal region, headquartered in San Francisco, that reporting to the supervising wildlife protection officer, there should be both land and marine cap- tains stationed at strategic points to direct the activities of marine law enforcement personnel and boats. 172 DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND GAME It will be one of the most important responsibilities of the regional managers at Los Angeles and San Francisco, through their respective supervising wildlife protection officers to insure close coordination, and where desirable to interchange land patrol and marine patrol operations and staffs. It also will be important that certain statis- tical activities now conducted by marine patrol personnel in the field be maintained effectively, as the data furnished are of basic importance to scientific studies. There is need for a marine specialist in the Wildlife Protection Branch at head- quarters to furnish advice and technical guidance on marine enforcement activities and problems. Reviewed and Approved : T. H. Mugford, Chief Thomas E. Graham Division of Budgets and Accounts Associate Administrative Analyst Pierce H. Fazel Chief Administrative Analyst FORTY-SECOND BIENNIAL REPORT 173 APPENDIX H PUBLICATIONS BY STAFF MEMBERS Gordon, Seth 1950. What About the Future of Hunting and Fishing in North America? Intern. Assoc, of Game and Fish Cons. Comm., 40th meet., Proa, p. 33-44. 1950-51. The Incomplete Job. Central Calif. Sportsman, vol. 9, p. 241, 243-244, 246, December ; vol. 10, p. 11-12, January. 1951. The Future Prospects for Fish and Game in the West. Western Assoc, of State Game and Fish Comm., 31st meet., Proa, p. 5CK59. Reprinted in Wyo- ming Wild Life, vol. 15, p. 14-18, 34, July, 1951. Pts. 2 and 3 reprinted in the Central Calif. Sportsman, vol. 11, no. 3, p. 52, 54, March, 1952: vol. 11, no. 4, p. 64, 68, 72, 74, April, 1952. 1951. The Ideal Relationship Between Commissioners and Administrators. Intern. Assoc. Game, Fish and Cons. Comm., 41st meet., Proa, p. 48-51. 1951. Now Trout Fly, Too ! Sports Afield, vol. 126, p. 36-37, 83-84, August. 1951. Some Observations and Recommendations on Big Game Management and Hunting in California. Reprinted from California Fish and Game Program, a Report to the Wildlife Conservation Board, 1950. Sacramento, Calif. State Printer, 48 p. 1952. Fact-Fhiding and Policy -Making : Who Does What? Wisconsin Cons. Bull., vol. 17, no. 1, p. !>-14, January. 1952. A New Fish and Game Era. Calif. Fish and Game, vol. 38, no. 1, p. 5-6. Re- printed in West ('oast Sportsman, vol. 9, no. 2, p. 6. April. PUBLICATIONS BY STAFF MEMBERS OF THE BUREAU OF FISH CONSERVATION Calhoun, A. J. 1950. California Angling Catch Records From Postal Card Surveys : 1936-1948 ; With an Evaluation of Postal Card Nonresponse. Calif. Fish and Game, vol. 36, no. 3, p. 177-234. 1951. California State-Wide Angling Catch Estimates for 1949. Calif. Fish and 2. Water Pollution : A Factor in Modifying Fish Populations in Pacific Coast Streams. Scientific Monthly, vol. 74, no. 1, p. 14-17, January. Shapovalov, Leo 1951. A Remarkable Sea Journey by a Rainbow Trout (Salmo gairdnerii) of "Interior Stock." Calif. Fish and Game, vol. 37, no. 4, p. 489-490. Shapovalov, Leo, and William A. Dill 1950. A Check List of the Fresh-Water and Anadromous Fishes of California. Calif. Fish and Game, vol. 36, no. 4, p. 382-391. Smedley, S. C. 1952. Pink Salmon in Prairie Creek, California. Calif. Fish and Game, vol. 38, no. 2, p. 275. Vestal, Elden H. 1951. A New Chemical Treatment Apparatus. Prog. Fish. Cult., vol. 13, no. 4, p. 219-224. Wales, J. H. 1950. Introduction of Kamloops Rainbow Trout in California. Calif. Fish and Game, vol. 36, no. 4, p. 4.'>7. Wales, J. H., E. W. Murphey and John Handley 1950. Perforated Plate Fish Screens. Calif. Fish and Game, vol. 36, no. 4, p. 392-403. PUBLICATIONS BY STAFF MEMBERS OF THE BUREAU OF MARINE FISHERIES Circular No. 25. Statistical Report of Fresh and Canned Fishery Products, Year 1950. Circular No. 26. Statistical Report of Fresh and Canned Fishery Products, Year 1951. Fish Bulletin No. 77. A Comparison of the Bluefin Tunas, Genus Thunnus, from New England, Australia and California. By H. C. Godsil and Edwin K. Holmberg. 1950 ; 55 p. Fish Bulletin No. 78. The Life History of the Starry Flounder, Platichthys stellatus (Pallas) . By Harold G. Orcutt. 1950 ; 64 p. Fish Bulletin No. 79. A Key to Some Southern California Fishes Based on Vertebral Characters. By Charles R. Clothier. 1950 ; 83 p. Fish Bulletin No. 80. The Commercial Fish Catch of California for the Years 1948- 1949 with Yield per Area of the California Sardine Fishing Grounds 1937-1949. By the Staff of the Bureau of Marine Fisheries. 1951 ; S7 p. Fish Bulletin No. 81. Purse Seines and Other Roundhaul Nets in California. By W. L. Scofield. 1951 ; 83 p. Fish Bulletin No. 82. A Comparison of the Populations of Yellowfin Tuna, Neothnn- nus macropterus, from the Eastern and Central Pacific. Bv H. C. Godsil and E. C. Greenhood. 1951 ; 33 p. Fish Bulletin No. 83. Age Composition of the Southern California Catch of Pacific Mackerel 1939-40 through 1950-51. By John E. Fitch. 1951 ;.73 p. Fish Bulletin No. 84. A Racial Study of the Pacific Mackerel, Pneumatophorus diego, By Phil M. Roedel. 1952 ; 53 p. Fish Bulletin No. 85. The Biology of the Dover Sole, Microstomas pacificus (Lock- ington) . By Frederick B. Hagerman. 1952 ; 48 p. FORTY-SECOND BIENNIAL REPORT 175 Bartholomew, George A.,1 Robert D. Collyer and William R. Dawson1 1951. The Sea Lion Population of Santa Barbara Island, California, in the 1950 Breeding Season. Calif. Fish and Game, vol. 37, no. 1, p. 65-68. Bonnot, Paul 1951. The Fresh-Water Mussels of California. Calif. Fish and Game, vol. 37, no. 4, p. 485-488. 1951. The Sea Lions, Seals and Sea Otter of the California Coast. Calif. Fish and Game, vol. 37, no. 4, p. 371-3S9. Calhoun, A. J.,2 D. H. Fry, Jr., and E. P. Hughes 1951. Plastic Deterioration and Metal Corrosion in Peterson Disk Fish Tags. Calif. Fish and Game, vol. 37, no. 3, p. 301-314. Clark, Frances N., and Anita E. Daugherty 1952. Average Lunar Month Catch by California Sardine Fishermen, 1949-50 and 1950-51. Calif. Fish and Game, vol. 38, no. 1, p. 85-97. Clark, Frances N., and Julius B. Phillips 1952. The Northern Anchovy (Engraulis mordax mordax) in the California Fish- ery. Calif. Fish and Game, vol. 38, no. 2, p. 189-207. Coe, Wesley R.,3 and John E. Fitch 1950. Population Studies, Local Growth Rates and Reproduction of the Pismo Clam (Tivela stultorum) . Jour. Marine Res., vol. 9, no. 3, p. 188-210. Collyer, Robert D. 1951. Results of the Pismo Clam Censuses, 1948, 1949, and 1950. Calif. Fish and * tame, vol. 37, no. 3, p. 331-334. Collyer, Robert D., and John L. Baxter 1951. Observations on Pinnipeds of San Miguel Island. Calif. Fish and Game, vol. 37, no. 4, p. 511. Croker, Richard S. 1951. Japanese Fisheries Administration. Supreme Comm. Allied Powers, Japan, Nat. Res. Sec, Preliminary Study 46, 52 p. Daugherty, Anita E. 1952. Recent Changes in Purse Seine Gear in California. Calif. Fish and Game, vol. 38, no. 1, p. 125-131. Felin, Frances E.,4 Anita E. Daugherty and Leo Pinfeas 1950. Age and Length Composition of the Sardine Catch Off the Pacific Coast of the United States and Canada in 1949-50. Calif. Fish and Game, vol. 36, no. 3, p. 241-249. 1951. Age and Length Composition of the Sardine Catch Off the Pacific Coast of the United States and Canada in 1950-51. Calif. Fish and Game, vol. 37, no. 3, p. 339-349. Fitch, John E. 1950. The Pismo Clam. Calif. Fish and Game, vol. 36, no. 3, p. 285-312. 1951. Notes on the Squaretail, Tetragonurus cuvieri. Calif. Fish and Game, vol. 37, no. 1, p. 55-59. 1951. Studies and Notes on Some California Marine Fishes. Calif. Fish and Game, vol. 37, no. 2, p. 111-120. 1951. The Whale Shark. Rhineodon typus, Off Northern Baja California. Calif. Fish and Game, vol. 37, no. 3, p. 351. 1952. Toxicity and Taxonomic Notes on the Squaretail, Tetragonurus cuvieri. Calif. Fish and Game, vol. 38, no. 2, p. 251-252. Fry, Donald H., Jr., and Eldon P. Hughes 1951. The California Salmon Troll Fishery. Pacific Marine Fish. Comm., Bull. 2, p. 7-42. Godsil, H. C, and E. C. Greenhood 1952. Observations on the Occurrence of Tunas in the Eastern and Central Pacific. Calif. Fish and Game, vol. 38, no. 2, p. 239-249. 1 With University of California, Los Angeles, Department of Zoology. 9 With Bureau of Fish Conservation. 3 With Scripps Institution of Oceanography. 4 With U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service 176 DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND GAME Greenhood, E. C. 1952. Results of the Examination of Four Small Yellowfin Tuna, Neothunnus macropterus. Calif. Fish and Game, vol. 38, no. 2, p. 157-161. Hagerman, Fred B. 1951. An Easy Method of Separating King and Silver Salmon. Calif. Fish and Game, vol. 37, no. 1, p. 53-54. Herald, Earl S.,5 and Wm. Ellis Ripley 1951. The Relative Abundance of Sharks and Bat Stingrays in San Francisco Bay. Calif. Fish and Game, vol. 37, no. 3, p. 315-329. McCorinick. Ralph B., and Wayne J. Baldwin 1952. Golden Dover Sole Taken at Eureka. Calif. Fish and Game, vol. 38, no. 1, p. 134. McHugh, J. L.,6 and John E. Fitch 1951. An Annotated List of the Clupeoid Fishes of the Pacific Coast, from Alaska to Cape San Lucas, Baja California. Calif. Fish and Game, vol. 37, no. 4, p. 491-495. Phillips, J. B. 1950. Pacific Cod Off Northern California. Calif. Fish and Game, vol. 36, no. 4, p. 439. 1951. Lampara Net-Pulling Gurdies. Calif. Fish and Game, vol. 37, no. 2, p. 121-123. 1951. Pacific Cod Off Central California. Calif. Fish and Game, vol. 37, no. 3, P. 351. 1951. Round Herring Off Central California. Calif. Fish and Game, vol. 37, no. 4, p. 512. Pinkas, Leo 1951. Yield per Area of the California Sardine Fishing Grounds 1937-1949. Calif. Fish and Game, Fish Bull. 80, p. 9-14. Ripley, Wm. Ellis 1951. Recoverv of a Tagged Soupfin Shark. Calif. Fish and Game, vol. 37, no. 4, p. 511-512. Roedel. Phil M. 1950. Notes on Two Species of Sharks from Baja California. Calif. Fish and Game. vol. 36, no. 3, p. 330-332. 1951. The Brown Shark, Apristurus brunneus, in California. Calif. Fish and Game, vol. 37, no. 1, p. 61-63. 1951. Noteworthy Southern California Records of Four Species of Marine Fishes. Calif. Fish" and Game, vol. 37, no. 4, p. 509-510. 1952. A Review of the Pacific Mackerel (Pneiimatophorus diego) Fishery of the Los Angeles Region with Special Reference to the Years 1939-1951. Calif. Fish and Game, vol. 38, no. 2, p. 253-273. Roedel, Phil M.. and John E. Fitch 1952. The Status of the Carangid Fishes Trachurus and Decapturus on the Pacific Coast of Canada and the United States. Copeia, no. 1, p. 4-6. Scofield, W. L. 1951. An Outline of California Fishing Gear. Calif. Fish and Game, vol. 37, no. 4, p. 361-370. 1952. Packaged "Silver Smelt." Calif. Fish and Game, vol. 38, no. 1, p. 134-135. Wilson, Robert C. 1951. The M. V. Yellowfin, an Addition to California's Marine Fisheries Investi- gations. Calif. Fish and Game, "vol. 37, no. 2, p. 133-139. Young, Parke H. 1950. Netting Bait and Cannery Fish with the Aid of Lights. Calif. Fish and Game, vol. 36, no. 4, p. 380-3S1. " With California Academy of Sciences. ,! With Scripps Institution of Oceanography. FORTY-SECOND BIENNIAL REPORT 177 PUBLICATIONS BY STAFF MEMBERS OF THE BUREAU OF GAME CONSERVATION Game Bulletin No. 4. The Jawbone Deer Herd. By A. S. Leopold, T. Riney, R. McCain and L. Tevis, Jr. 1951; 139 p. Game Bulletin No. 5. Crop Damage l>y Wildlife in California. By E. R. Biehn. 1951; 71 p. Game Bulletin No. 6. A Survey of California Deer Herds, Their Ranges and Manage- ment Problems. By W. M. Longhurst, A. S. Leopold and R. F. Dasmann. 1952 ; 136 p. Bryan, Homer F., and Walter I. Long. 1952. Results of the 1950 Special Deer Hunt on Mineral King National Game Refuge. Calif. Fish and Game, vol. 38, no. 2, p. 235-238. Chattin, John E., and Robert Lassen 1950. California Antelope Reproductive Potentials. Calif. Fish and Game, vol. 36, no. 3, p. 32S-3L".!. Dasmann, William P. 1950. Basic Deer Management. Calif. Fish and Game, vol. 36, no. 3, p. 251-284. 1950. Can We Hold the Western Range. Pacific Discovery, vol. 3, no. 4, p. 17-23. 1951. Some Deer Range Survey Methods. Calif. Fish and Game, vol. 37, no. 1, p. 43-52. Ferrel, Carol M.. and Howard R. Leach 1950. Food Habits of a California Deer Herd. Calif. Fish and Game, vol. 36, no. 3, p. 235-240. Glading, Ben 1950. Waterfowl Management from the Viewpoint of a State Game Administrator. Western Assoc, of State Game and Fish Comin., 30th Conf., Proc, p. 30-34. 1951. Insecure Tenure of Competent Wildlife Personnel. Internat. Assoc, of Game, Fish and Cons. Comm.. 41st. Conv. Proc, p. 62-68. 1951. What Is Wrong with Pittman-Robertson in the West? Western Assoc, of State Game and Fish Comm., 31st. Conf., Proc, p. 31-35. Hagen, Herbert L. 1951. Composition of Deer Milk. Calif. Fish and Game, vol. 37, no. 2, p. 217-218. Harper, Harold T., George Metcalfe and John F. Davis 1950. Upland Game Cooperative Hunting Areas. Calif. Fish and Game, vol. 36, no. 4, p. 404-432. Harper, Harold T., Chester M. Hart and Dale E. Shaffer 1951. Effects of Hunting Pressure and Game Farm Stocking on Pheasant Popu- lations in the Sacramento Valley, California. Calif. Fish and Game, vol. 37, no. 2, p. 141-176. Hart, Chester M., Fred L. Jones and Dale E. Shaffer 1951. Pheasant Cooperative Hunting Area Results, 1950. Calif. Fish and Game, vol. 37, no. 4, p. 395-437. Hjersman, Henry A. 1951. The 1948 Surveys of California's Hunting Take and Their Significance. Calif. Fish and Game, vol. 37, no. 1, p. 77-95. Hjersman, Henry A., and Frank M. Kozlik 19.11. Game Take Surveys in California. Western Association of State Game and Fish Comm., 31st. Conf., Proc, p. 15S-164. Interstate Deer Herd Committee 1951. The Devils Garden Deer Herd. Calif. Fish and Game, vol. 37, no. 3, p. 233-272. Jones, Fred L. 1950. Recent Records of the Wolverine in California. Calif. Fish and Game, vol. 36, no. 3, p. 320-322. Lassen, Robert W., Carol M. Ferrel and Howard Leach 1952. Food Habits, Productivity and Condition of the Doyle Mule Deer Herd. Calif. Fish and Game, vol. 38, no. 2, p. 211-224. ITS DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND GAME Macgregor, Wallace G. 1950. The Artificial Roost — A New Management Tool for California Quail. Calif. Fish and Came, vol. 36, no. 3, p. 316-319. Macgregor. Wallace G., and Manlay Inlay 1951. Observations on the Failure of Gambel Quail to Breed. Calif. Fish and Game, vol. 37, no. 2, p. 218-219. Metcalfe, George, and Harold T. Harper 1950. Cooperative Hunting Areas in California. Western Assoc, of State Game and Fish Coram., 30th Conf., Proc, p. 95-96. Miller, A. W., and Russell Henry 1952. Mechanical Aids for Bird Banding. Calif. Fish and Game, vol. 38, no. 1, p. 43-51. Rosen, Merton N. 1951. A Noticeable Absence of Bladder Worms in Catalina Deer. Calif. Fish and Game, vol. 37, no. 2, p. 217. Rosen, Merton N., and Arthur I. Bischoff 1950. The Epidemiology of Fowl Cholera as it Occurs in the Wild. 15th No. Amer. Wild. Conf., Trans., p. 147-lf>4. Rosen, Merton N., O. A. Brunetti, A. I. Bischoff and J. A. Azevedo, Jr. 1951. An Epizootic of Foot Rot in California Deer. 16th No. Amer. Wild. Conf., Trans., p. 164-179. Ross, Fred 1951. California's Quail Development Program. Western Assoc, of State Game and Fish Coram., 31st. Conf., Proc, p. 124-130. Sayama, Kenji 1952. Sarcoystis in Deer and Elk of California. Calif. Fish and Game, vol. 38, no. 1, p. 99-104. Stokes, James D. 1951. Waterfowl Management Program for California. Western Assoc, of State Game and Fish Comm., 31st Conf., Proc, p. 181-183. This Cessna model 170 airplane was purchased during the biennium for patrol and survey work, assigned to Southern California. It is radio equipped in order to provide continuous communi- cation with ground personnel. FORTY-SECOND BIENNIAL REPORT 179 APPENDIX I TITLES AND ABSTRACTS OF ADMINISTRATIVE REPORTS SUBMITTED BY THE BIOLOGICAL STAFF OF THE BUREAU OF FISH CONSERVATION July 1, 1950, to June 30, 1952 Abell, Dana L. A review and proposed revision of the investigational and management program for Millerton Lake, Fresno/Madera counties. Submitted November 28, 1951. 20 p., plus one figure. Abstract : A brief review of prevailing conditions of the fishing and limnology of Millei'ton Lake and a program of study and management for the next five years is given. The investigational part includes a series of cove and shoreline studies, a littoral transect, a general survey, continued creel census, and tagging. Emphasis in management is indefinite as yet, but will probably be directed at improving shelter and basic fertility, controlling wave erosion, and regulating mixed populations of fish and other organisms to benefit the fishing maximally. Public relations and re- ports will also receive emphasis with an eye toward describing the true value of this type of reservoir as a fishing lake. Beck, Ralph V. Preliminary report on the Owens River development project (Inyo County). Sub- mitted September 13, 1950. 19 p., including 1 table and 2 figures. Abstract : The section of the Owens River from Birchim Canyon to the Los An- geles aqueduct intake is about 150 miles long with an estimated average flow of about 400 c.f.s. Survey work has been carried on intermittently, including two canoe trips down parts of the river. This river section is comparatively lightly fished, chiefly by local anglers. Most of the fishing pressure is from "Five Bridges" upstream to Birchim Canyon. Dense streamside cover limits the "bank fishermen" and swift and turbulent currents limit boat fishermen. High summer temperatures and abund- ance of mosquitoes discourage fishing. However, temperatures at the river are sev- eral degrees cooler than in surrounding areas. Mosquito control measures may prove feasible. River characteristics are as follows: extremely meandering; cover dense with occasional open areas ; margins chiefly "cutbank" type with some swampy areas ; gradient even with few riffles or pool and no falls ; bottom composed of fine gravel, sand, mud, and silt ; moderately turbid ; temperatures vary from 42° F. in January to 67° F. in June (higher summer temperatures probably occur). Fishes known to be present include rainbow trout, brown trout, suckers, carp, chubs, and mosquito fish. Work remaining to be done is outlined and tentative recommenda- tions are made. Bell, Robert R. Creel check at Holy Jim Creek, Orange County, 1951. Submitted August 29, 1951. 9 p., including 3 tables. Abstract: Covers data, discussion and analysis of a creel check on a small trout stream. The stream offers only one mile of fishing water and is supported by hatchery plantings. Results : 1. Fifty percent of the planted fish were returned to the angler in three weeks, with the catch declining to less than 1 percent at the end of this period. 2. The wild trout take was less than 10 percent of the total catch, with no holdover of previous year's planting. Calhoun, A. J. Lake Merced (San Francisco County) catch records for 1950. Submitted March 30, 1951. 18 p., including 3 tables, 1 figure, 5 appendices. Abstract : 1950 catch records, weight-length data, and stocking records outlined. 40,000 angler days yielded an estimated 16,000 rainbow trout, average weight 21.4 ounces. The initial plant following chemical treatment averaging 3 ounces in Janu- ary 1950 when stocked attained an average weight of 2 pounds ten months later. Cost and recreational values are discussed. 180 DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND GAME Chandler, Harry P. Report on the lake and stream openings at Bucks Lake, Plumas County, Cali- fornia, 1950. Submitted January 12, 1951. 9 p. Abstract: An investigation was made to aid in settling a controversy as to whether or not Bucks Lake should be made another exception, like Lake Almanor and Butt Lake in Plumas County, and open at the same time as southern and valley counties, or whether it should open at the same time as the rest of Plumas County. The lake was visited on the two opening dates and a comparison made of road con- ditions ; fisherman use by locals, summer home owners, resort patrons, and campers ; fishing conditions ; fishing pressure ; and the biological effects on the fish. Chandler, Harry P., and Harry A. Hanson Equipment used for the chemical treatment of Blue Lake, Lassen County, Cali- fornia. Submitted January 12, 1951. 4 p., including 6 photos. Abstract : A brief illustrated description of the equipment used to chemically treat Blue Lake. An air cooled outboard motor was used for mixing. Mixing was done in a 150-gallon fish planting tank supported by two rubber rafts. Water was supplied by 1^ H.P. gasoline pump. Coots, Millard H. Creel census — April 28, 1951, Klamath River, Siskivou County. Submitted May 2, 1951. 3 p. Abstract : Inclement weather and roily water affected angling activity on the Klamath River on opening day. 138 anglers counted and 67 interviewed from Copco to the Scott River. Distance checked : 55 miles. Average catch : 3.8 trout/angler. Average catch per hour : 1.15. Estimated total catch : 524. Species : steelhead rainbow trout (mostly immature). Mean length : 6.73 inches. Pumpkinseed (Lepomis gibbosus) and largemouth black bass (Micropterus sal- moides) in the upper Klamath River. Submitted July 10, 1951. 2 p. Abstract : Notes on the above species and a list of other non-native fishes in the upper Klamath River, which are: brown trout (Salmo trutta) , brown bullhead (Ameiurus nebulosus), yellow perch {Perca flavescens) , green sunfish (Lepomis cyanellus) , and bluegill (Lepomis macrochirus) . Klamath River creel census, Siskiyou County, 1949-1950. Submitted November 26, 1951. 56 p., including 5 figures, 2 plates, 11 photos, and 6 tables. Abstract : A creel census was undertaken on the Klamath River in District No. 1 from September, 1949 through August, 1950. An estimated total of 20,933 angler days was spent on the river for this period, divided as follows : 7,853 days in the "summer trout" fishery, which consisted of angling principally for young steelhead rainbow trout, and 543 days of angling for adult salmon. The estimated catch was 48,952 trout, 11,378 adult steelhead, 204 adult king salmon, and 45 adult silver salmon. Fork length frequencies of fish measured, analysis of angling success, fish- ing tackle, anglers' residences, and physical conditions of the river are included in this report. Creel census — May 3, 1952, Klamath River, Siskiyou County. Submitted May 19, 1952. 4 p., including 2 tables. Abstract : The annual Klamath River creel census was taken from Copco to the mouth of the Scott River. 153 anglers were counted and 70 interviewed. The average catch per angler hour was 1.24 trout. The average catch per angler' was 5.9 trout. The estimated total catch in this section of the river for the day was 903 fish. The majority of the catch consisted of immature steelhead rainbow trout. Some adult steelhead, both spent and unspent, were caught. The mean length of the 101 trout measured was 6.88 inches. Creel census — Shovel Creek, Siskiyou County, May 30, 1952. Submitted June 26, 1952. 6 p., including 2 tables, plus one map and one photo. Abstract : The second annual creel census on lower Shovel Creek was taken on the opening day, May 30, 1952. The estimated number of anglers for the day was 90. Twenty-six who were interviewed had fished 93i hours and had caught 175 trout, including 165 rainbow and 10 brown. The estimated catch for the day was 653 trout. Only one ripe female rainbow was observed among the fish examined. FORTY-SECOND BIENNIAL. REPORT 181 Dill, William A. A preliminary report on the status of the golden trout fishery of California. Sub- mitted September 25, 1950. iii plus 28 p., including 2 figures. Abstract : Prepared for use as Appendix I in the California Fish and Game's "A report on the golden trout fishery of California" submitted to California Fish and Game Commission December 1, 1950. The most inclusive report yet prepared on golden trout (Salmo agua-tonita) . Covers systematic status, desirability of the spe- cies, natural range and its extension, hatchery program, abundance, factors affecting depletion, protective measures, recommendations. The bibliography contains the major references on the species. The Dingell-Johnson program in California. Submitted June 16, 1952. 8 p. Abstract : Describes five current projects together with their background. F-l-R, a study of the yellowtail fishery. F-2-R, a study of the catfish fishery of California. F-3-R, experimental backcountry fish management. F-4-D, north-coastal stream restoration. F-5-R, surf fishing investigation. Other prospective projects include a study of the effect of diversions on salmon and steelhead, and integrated studies of both trout and warm-water fisheries. Dill, William A. ; Elden H. Vestal ; and J. C. Fraser. A partial list of waters in California known or reported to contain golden trout. Submitted September 25, 1950. 6 p. Abstract : Prepared for use as Appendix IT in the California Division of Fish and Game's "A report on the golden trout fishery of California," submitted to the California Fish and Game Commission on December 1, 1950. The most complete list of this nature yet prepared. Records present distribution in California outside the National Parks (Yosemite. Sequoia, and Kings Canyon) insofar as can be de- termined from the easily available records. Douglas, Philip A. Lake Wohlford, San Diego County — catch record analysis 1947-48-49. Submitted April 24, 1951. 11 p., including 3 tables. Abstract : During the three-year period 1947-1948-1949 an average of about 15.8 percent of all the registered fishermen at Lake Wohlford were checked and daily catch records maintained. The lake was opened to fishing between April and September of each year. The average angling success was about 3.3 fish per angler per trip (a trip com- prised 3.76 hours of fishing). This is approximately 45 percent better than the re- turns on Norris Reservoir in 1940, and 23 percent poorer than the San Diego City Reservoirs indicated for the 20-year period, 1929-1948. The yield, measured in pounds per surface acre, was estimated to average about 200, which is more than twice the expectancy of production on lakes in the rest of the country. It is also on a par with the 200 pounds-per-acre-yield found in un- fertilized waters in Alabama. Catch composition varied somewhat during the three years of these records, but the average as shown in Table III would indicate that the catfish were doing better than the other game fish species in this water. Bluegill show a good average return, with crappie and bass giving the poorest results. Farm pond investigation — Southern District No. 8, report No. 2, June 1949. Submitted August 20, 1951. 11 p., plus 1 figure and 2 tables. Abstract: Covers data, discussion and analysis of a farm pond recheck in the Antelope Valley area, Los Angeles County. Five ponds were seined and partial chemical analyses made. It was found that heavy water fluctuations during the spring, a low poundage ratio (1:2) of predator to forage fish, a high average pH, and low fish removal by angling, provided poor fish production. Recommendations : 1. That small, less than i acre, fluctuating irrigation reservoirs not be stocked with bluegill-largemouth black bass combinations. 2. That a straight stocking of black bass be carried out on an experimental basis. 3. That a "use-education" program be inaugurated to utilize this fishery, and maintain sufficient water levels to provide suitable spawning conditions and normal habitat. 182 DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND GAME Evans, Willis A. A preliminary analysis of the fisheries value of the Santa Ana River drainage, California. Submitted November 15, 1950. 19 p., including 5 photos. Abstract : A comprehensive study is being made of the Santa Ana River drain- age in relation to existing water use problems by various state and federal agencies. This report by the Division of Fish and Game, as a cooperating agency, consists of an inventory of all waters of the drainage and their importance to fishing re- creation. The five lakes and 33 trout streams composing the drainage are described with information on relative size, flows, fish life present, and value for fishing. Fisher, Charles K. An evaluation of bluegill spawning subimpoundments in fluctuating reservoirs. With special reference to the 1949 operation of a pilot structure at Millerton Lake, Fresno/Madera counties. Submitted June 20, 1950. 9 p.. including 5 figures. Abstract : Since the success of bluegill spawning in Millerton Lake had de- clined considerably due to rapidly dropping water levels, it was reasoned that spawning ponds which woidd catch and retain lake water during midsummer high levels and in which bluegill fingerlings could be reared for planting in the lake might be constructed along the shoreline. Accordingly, a pilot dam was built in March, 1949, but due to an inadequate lake level, it was necessary to fill the sub- impoundment by pumping from the lake. By July 23, 1949, 75 adult bluegill had been placed in the pond. Only 9,000 small fry wTere harvested in September, 1949, and placed in the lake. This low production is believed to have resulted from the entry of about 300 carp fry with the pumped lake water. The carp grew to 8-inch length in two months, and greatly diminished food organism production by their muddying activity. Thus, it was found that such mud-bottomed subimpoundments are of little use in bluegill production in the presence of carp. Even though carp could probably be screened out of pumped lake water, a varying maximum lake level each year would demand that a number of dams be distributed vertically, so that some wyould be carp-free each year. The magnitude of such a program would be economically infeasible. Therefore, it is recommended that the building of such sub- impoundments under these circumstances be discouraged. Progress report No. 2 on the fishery of Millerton Lake, California. Submitted August 3, 1951. 42 p., plus 16 figures. Abstract : Millerton Lake is the fluctuating impoundment created by the con- struction of Friant Dam on the San Joaquin River. The river was first controlled in 1941, and in this year and the next the developing reservoir was planted to large- mouth black bass, bluegill, and green sunfish. Good fishing was obtained in the in- itial open season of 1945 and in 1946. As is generally true with this type of reser- voir, fishing quality soon dropped off. In 1949 bass fishing quality had declined to a little over half of its 1945 level, while the bluegill fishing decline was to a little less than half its 1945 level. An intensive study of the lake from 1949 to date attributes this decline to lowered fish populations resulting from the loss of nutrients in the lake. Causal factors have been fluctuation, wave action, and large discharge of river water through the lake. It is concluded that a shortage of sunfish and other forage fishes has in turn caused a decline in the bass population. Recommendation is there- fore made that effort now be directed toward the introduction of additional kinds of forage fishes for the bass which will not overly compete with the bluegill population. Annual Truckee River Sierra-Nevada Counties, creel census, May 26, 1951. Sub- mitted March 12, 1952. 8 p., including 3 tables. Abstract : The fifteenth annual opening day creel census on the Truckee River revealed that the 97 anglers interviewed caught 184 trout in 315 hours of fishing, for an average catch of 0.58 trout per angler hour. This rate of catch compares favorably with the over-all average of 0.50 trout per angler hour for previous years of census. Rainbow constituted 80.4 percent of the catch, with the remainder browns. This represents an upswing in a rather cyclic fluctuation of the two species toward each other. A breakdown of angler success by county reveals that the natives out- fish the travelers from a distance. Fraser, J. C. 1950 and 1951 Lake Tahoe party boat catch records (Placer and El Dorado counties) . Submitted December 7, 1951. 4 p., plus 5 tables. FORTY-SECOND BIENNIAL REPORT 183 Abstract : The 1950 and 1951 catch made by guide-operated fishing boats on Lake Tahoe are presented with a summary of the 1947 to 1949 data for comparison. Five operators reported in 1950 but only 3 reported in 1951, when reports were submitted voluntarily. 1950 1951 Average weight lake trout caught 3.5 3.5 Average catch per angler 1.7 1.3 Average catch per hour .40 .32 The annual Truckee River, Nevada County creel census, May 27, 1950. Sub- mitted March 12, 1952. 7 p., including 4 tables. Abstract : The annual opening day creel census resulted in 49 anglers being interviewed which was the lowest number for any of the censuses. Eighty-four trout were caught in 136 hours of fishing for an average catch per angler hour of 0.62 which is the highest rate of catch since 104.">. Seventy-five percent of the catch were rainbow and 25 percent were brown trout. Nevada residents comprised 59.2 percent of the anglers and caught 66.7 percent of the trout recorded. German, Eugene R. A preliminary report on a new surface sampler. Submitted January 29, 1951. 5 p., plus appendix including 6 figures. Abstract : Ideas are put forth on methods and equipment to sample the surface of a lake or reservoir. The construction of a sampler is described, and plans for further tests and use discussed. German, E. R. and J. H. Wales Castle Lake trout investigation 1950 season — second phase : eastern brook trout. Submitted January 29, 1951. 22 p., including 17 tables. Abstract : A report of the fourth year of the eastern brook trout phase. 5,255 trout taken in 1,358 angler days at an average of 3.9 per day and 1.36 per hour. Most angler days since census started in 1941, but lowest catch per day since start of eastern brook trout phase in 1947. Fish planted as yearlings have yielded 48 percent return. First fingerling plant (1947) has yielded 28 percent; indications are that second fingerling plant (194S) will exceed 30 percent return. This is a very high return for fingerling plants. Even though the population was smaller in 1950, the eastern brook trout failed to attain much size. Hanson, Harry A. and Robert R. Harry Report on experimental fish screen, Rock Creek, Plumas County. Submitted July 17, 1951. 4 p., including 2 figures and 1 table. Abstract : The purpose of the screen and trap on Rock Creek was to determine how many rainbow trout fingerlings could be salvaged from the stream as the stream dried up. The fingerlings were natural reproduction in the stream, progeny of a run of rainbow trout that migrates each spring upstream from Lake Almanor. About 6,000 were intercepted by the screen between July 27 and August 27, 1950. Johnson, William C. The reliability of the striped bass party boat catch records. Submitted January 9, 1951. 14 p., including 4 tables, 1 figure and 1 exhibit. Abstract : Striped bass party boats were observed during the months of August, September, and October 1950, the most important months for striped bass fishing. The number of passengers and the number of striped bass were counted on the individual boats and then these data were compared with the reports submitted by the party boat operators to determine the reliability of reporting. It was found at the completion of the survey that the party boat records that are kept by the permanent operators are reliable, and they are the operators who make up the backbone of the fishery. Analysis of 1950 striped bass party boat fishing effort. Submitted May 31, 1951. 8 p., plus appendix. Abstract : A routine report analyzing the fishing effort of the striped bass party boat operators during 1950. The analysis was made from the daily logs that the operators submitted and personal observations of the party boat fleet fishing. Kimsey, J. B. Notes on kokanee (Oncorhynchus nerka kennerlyi) spawning in Donner Lake, Nevada County, 1949. Submitted June 30, 1950. 18 p., including 6 figures. 184 DEPARTMENT OP PISH AND GAME Abstract: Spawning kokanee and their nests were observed periodically from November, 1949 to February, 1950. Drawdown of lake by power and irrigation companies exposed nests. Most of eggs were killed by prolonged freezing. Some eggs which were frozen for only short periods continued development as did eggs in seepage areas. It appears successful natural reproduction of kokanee in Donner Lake is possible, providing water levels can be manipulated reasonably. Discussion of possible remedies, including moving gravels into deeper water. Upper Truckee River creel census (El Dorado County), July 1, 1950. Submitted June 27, 1952. 8 p., including 4 tables. Abstract : The 1950 creel census was the seventh in a series started in 1939. The average catch per angler was lower than usual (.94 fish per angler) as was the average catch per angler hour (.5 fish). This was due primarily to the high water and it is believed by the author more amateurs were fishing than usual because of the excellent weather. The section from the bridge above Meyers through the camp- ground at the Luther Pass bridge was censused for the first time since 1943 and produced mostly eastern brook trout at a rate of 2.4 per angler and 1.4 per angler hour. Many rainbow spawners were still in the stream but few were taken. Loeber, Thomas S. (Student Biologist) A report of an investigation of the temperature and salinity relationships of striped bass and salmon in connection with the Reber Plan. Submitted July 2, 1951. 16 p., plus 25 tables and 2 figures. Abstract : Experiments were carried on at Steinhart Aquarium to evaluate the tolerance of juvenile striped bass and salmon to changes in temperature and salinity. The upper maximum temperature tolerated by fingerling striped bass was approx- imately 95 degrees, in salt water. Similar tests in fresh water failed because of the inability to hold these fish in the aquarium supply of fresh water at any tempera- ture. Fingerling and yearling bass were readily transferable from fresh to salt water direct, usually without any mortality. The change from salt to fresh water, even when made gradually, led to loss of appetite and heavy mortality, on the order of 75 percent. A condition of shock commonly followed this latter type of transfer. Experiments with salmon were hampered by disease. Small king salmon were readily changed over with 100 percent survival from fresh to salt water by keeping them for a few days in water of about 50 percent salinity. Meacham, Charles H. (Student Biologist) Power development of Kings River drainage, Fresno County, California. Report number 4: Headwater storage possibilities on the North Fork, Kings River. Sub- mitted July 20, 1951. 24 p., including 9 tables and 3 figures. Abstract : Gives brief description of drainage, briefly discusses proposed water development, lists data examined, encompasses four drainage basins with a total of 24 lakes. Each basin handled as a unit, hydrographic information bulk of report. 13,774 acre-feet of water made available by installation of drain pipes and dam construction, provides flow of 231 c.f.s. for 30 days or 58 c.f.s. for 120 days. Fish management information included. Murphy, Garth I. An analysis of the operation of Sweasey Dam fish ladder, Mad River, Humboldt County. Submitted May 9, 1951. 8 p., plus 3 appendices including 18 figures and 5 tables. Abstract : This report details the flow records and fish counts over the past 5 years. The material is arranged in the form of an operational analysis. All im- portant water stages are illustrated with photographs. The ladder was found to be satisfactory until the spring of 1951, at which time a large sand bar above the dam, which had formed the preceding winter, deflected water into the low water entrance so that fish could not enter it at flows above 1.5 feet (as opposed to 2.2 feet before the sand bar formed). Murphy, Garth I., and Herbert E. Pintler. The 1949 fishery of Conn Valley Reservoir, Napa County. Submitted July 12, 1950. 9 p., including 6 tables. Abstract : Conn Valley Reservoir, an artificial lake created in 1945, has a depth of 110 feet, a surface area of 790 acres and a volume of 31,000 acre-feet when full. Although rainbow trout and green sunfish continue to constitute the only "game" fish present, limnological data indicate that ecological conditions are barely tolerable for rainbow trout in summer and early fall. The rainbow trout catch per unit of effort in 1949 was practically identical with 1948, but was composed of about 33 FORTY-SECOND BIENNIAL REPORT 185 percent "wild" trout. Tims, although twice as many rainbow trout were planted in the spring of 1949 as compared with the previous spring, the return to the angler of hatchery rainbow trout was considerably less than the year before. A detailed record of the 1949 rainbow trout catch is given and factors influencing the catch are discussed and compared with surveys made in 1947 and 1948. Pelgen, David E. Folsom Reservoir project fisheries improvement devices. Submitted July 31, 1950. 10 p., including 5 figures and 2 tables. Abstract : An assessment of the value and possibility of the construction of fishery improvement devices such as brush shelters and a subimpoundment to Folsom Reservoir, which is under construction at this time. Soule, Scott M. Power development of Kings River drainage, Fresno County, California. Report number 3 : Junction development of the Kings River and its Middle and South Forks. Submitted March 31, 1951. vi plus 25 p., including 1 table, plus 3 figures. Abstract : Gives brief resume1 of proposed power development for Kings River drainage, describes Kings River and Middle and South Forks and excellent trout fishery of these waters, illustrates present recreational use by the 180,000 man-days use in 1950 at Cedar Grove area alone. Describes power development plans of City of Los Angeles, U. S. Bureau of Reclamation and F. N. Dlouhy. Discusses potential damage to recreational use of area — from 60 to 40 miles of stream plus important staging areas for recreational use are threatened. Concludes that the question whether or not power development should be permitted, should be decided by public airing ; and that if permitted, the fishery should be protected by minimum pools in reservoirs to be 1/10 maximum area of reservoir and stream releases to be mean minimum flows, and that roads and trails to permit recreational accessibility be replaced if damaged. Recommends action by Division of Fish and Game on above conclusions to safeguard fishery and recreational use. Vestal, Elden H. A new chemical treatment apparatus. Submitted November 20, 1950. 12 p., includ- ing 8 figures. Abstract : A new chemical treatment apparatus designed by the writer is de- scribed and figured. Apparatus consists of a tube, equipped with a V-hopper at the intake end and two air-cooled outboard motors mounted in tandem near the outlet end. The tube is suspended just beneath the water surface between pairs of plywood assault boats, pinned stern to stern at transom corners. A crew of 3 men is required for operation and the apparatus simultaneously mixes and distributes rotenone powder at an average rate of 50 pounds or more per minute. Estimated total cost is $223.28. Vestal, Elden H., and Robert R. Ehlers Improvement of debris jam at Gilman Lake, Mono County, California. Submitted November 6, 1950. 4 p., plus 2 figures and 3 photos. Abstract : A debris jam completely blocking the outlet stream of 16-acre Gilman Lake, Mono County, was improved with 75 pounds of high explosive. Technique is described. The only suitable spawning areas for the lake were located in the stream for 500 yards below the jam. Improvement of the inlet barrier at Cabin Lake, Madera County, California. Sub- mitted November 9, 1950. 3 p., plus 2 figures. Abstract : A rock ledge, 4A feet high and 25 feet long, preventing access to spawn- ing areas above the inlet by trout in 6-acre Cabin Lake, tributary to Shadow Creek, Madera County, was improved by bulldozing with 80 pounds of high explosive. Utilization of spawning areas now available in 350 yards of stream above the lake will obviate any further planting. Wales, J. H. Second report on the effect of the Klamath River water fluctuation upon the salmonid fishes. Submitted October 19, 1950. 4 p., 2 tables. Abstract : Prior to 1950 it was assumed that young salmonids were stranded in the section from Copco dam to a point 75 miles downstream. This assumption was strengthened by finding stranded steelhead fingerlings 96 miles below Copco. Two Fish and Game seasonal aids measured the exposed river bed in the 74-mile section at 1,064 points and computed that the average width on each side of the river was 10.1 feet. The number of "harmful" water drops made in a year was computed according to set specifications. Tables 1 and 2 set forth all pertinent data correlated with the above measurements. 186 DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND GAME Wales, J. H. Management of king salmon spawning in the Klamath River, Siskiyou County. Submitted November 10, 1950. 10 p., including 4 figures and 3 tables. Abstract : Discussion of the number and location of spawning king salmon in the upper Klamath River below Copco dam in 1950. Plans are submitted for future management of these spawners. List of king salmon spawning tributaries of Klamath is submitted, with possible spawning runs. Klamath River fish count, Klamathon racks, Siskiyou County. Submitted Decem- ber 14, 1950. 8 p., including 3 tables. Abstract : Tables show the daily counts of fish going through the Klamathon racks between August 27 and October 27, 1950. The dead fish drifting onto the racks were sexed and presence of eggs recorded. Comments are made on these counts of king and silver salmon and steelhead. The total king salmon count was 21,584, the second highest in 17 years. Recommendations for management of the Trinity River, Trinity County, Part 2. Recommended action. Submitted January 16, 1951. 8 p., including 2 tables. Abstract : Presents recommendations for course of action in connection with pro- posed water use projects of U. S. Bureau of Reclamation. The decline of the Shasta River king salmon run. Submitted April 10, 1951. 82 p., including 17 figures and 13 tables. Abstract : The several phases of the life cycle of the king salmon run in the Shasta River has been considered with respect to the factors which may have con- tributed to the decline of the run. It is presumed by the writer that the commercial and sport fishing has been the most important factor. The Copco power dams with their attendant river flow fluctuation, the irrigation use of the Shasta River water, and possible predation by lampreys are also considered to be major causes of the decline. Creel census, Shasta River, Siskiyou County. Submitted April 28, 1951. 2 p. Abstract : On the opening day, in the lower seven miles of the river 223 anglers count 0.65 fish per hour or 2.6 fish per day for a total of 580 steelhead, 10 percent one-year ; 80 percent two-year ; 10 percent three-year olds. Sacramento River experimental stream for 1950. Submitted May 30, 1951. 21 p., including 11 tables, plus 3 figures. Abstract : From returns to date it appears that the anglers will catch from 5-8 percent of the hatchery planted fingerlings in the South and Middle Forks. How- ever, these fish average less than 6 inches in length. There has been an 84 percent return of a plant of yearling rainbow trout. The trout population was determined by planting marked rainbow trout fingerlings one day and shocking representative sections the following day. In the Middle Fork it is estimated that per mile there were on August 20 the following : Wild rainbow trout — 1,658 fingerlings, 858 year- lings, 74 two-year olds, 16 three-year olds. Hatchery rainbow trout — 1,056 finger- lings, 74 yearlings. Total rainbow trout per mile — 3,736. Efficiency of king salmon spawning in Fall Creek, Siskiyou County. Submitted September 28, 1951. 54 p., including 13 figures and 10 tables. Abstract : 750 male and 750 female king salmon were allowed to spawn in Fall Creek in 1950. From computations of the total eggs contained and from the com- puted number of fingerlings migrating downstream into the Klamath River it was found that the spawning efficiency was 6.8 percent. 1951 Klamath River fish count — Klamathon racks, Siskiyou County. Submitted January 2, 1952. 9 p., including 3 tables. Abstract : The total number of king salmon counted through the Klamathon racks from August 10-October 29, 1951, was 17,857. Of this total 61 percent were females and 39 percent males. Of the latter 4 percent were grilse. This is the third largest run of kings recorded at this station since 1925. Of 213 dead king salmon females removed from the racks 49 percent had not spawned. Up to the time of the removal of the racks 331 silver salmon and 1,002 steelhead had also been counted. FORTY-SECOND BIENNIAL REPORT 187 Creel census, May 3, 1952 — Shasta River, Siskiyou County. Submitted May 5, 1952. 5 p., including 2 tables. Abstract : An estimated 300 anglers caught 1,815 one- to three-year old steelhead. Average 6.0 per day. Average length of fish 7.3 inches. Wales, J. H., and Harry A. Hanson The effect on the fishery of the North Fork of the Feather River, California, of proposed hydroelectric developments with special reference to Cresta and Rock Creek projects. (Second revision June 1952). Submitted June 1, 1952. 31 p., includ- ing 4 figures, 3 tables, 2 maps, and copies of 2 other reports on same subject (U. S. Department of the Interior on Fish and Wildlife Resources and report to Federal PoAver Commission on water application by Pacific Gas and Electric Company). Abstract : The two projects considered herein directly affect 16 miles of stream. This is a heavily used recreational area. In 1946 the angler days were estimated to. be 36,000 and the trout caught estimated at 10S,000. Eleven commercial resorts and 6 Forest Service camps will be affected. The mean river flow in this section was 2,710 c.f.s. Recommendations for water releases were recommended for these projects by the authors. A copy of the report to the Federal Power Commission, giving the final release requests, is attached to subject report. Wales, J. H. ; E. W. Murphey ; and John Handley. Perforated plate fish screens. Submitted October 4, 1950. 13 p., including 7 figures. Abstract : The general type of perforated plate fish screen and modifications of this type are described together with a comparison of its value with earlier types of screens. The capacity of perforated plate to pass water and the velocities of different volumes are described. The value of the bypass is emphasized. Possible uses of perforated plate screens are listed. Wohlschlag, Donald E. and Chester A. Woodhull The determination of fish populations in a medium-sized warm-water reservoir. Submitted April 29, 1952. 77 p., including IS figures. Abstract: A report of the fish population study of Salt Springs Valley Reservoir, Calaveras County, California, a pilot study of methods and application as a warm- water fisheries management tool. The report covers detailed discussions of the use of traps and seines for the "mark and recapture" method and application of the Schnabel type of fish population estimate. A method of determining recruitment, mortality and growth rates is discussed. Suggestions for the procedure of future fish population studies in warm-water fish lakes are included. Woodhull, Chester The white bass Lepibema chrysops (Rafinesque) : Its life history and some fac- tors influencing its possible introduction into California waters. Submitted July 12, 1951. 9 p. Abstract : Briefly reviews the life history, habitat, and habits of the white bass. Briefly discusses factors of food and possible reduction of striped bass population if planted in the Central Valleys waterways. Planting of white bass in California is not recommended at the present time. printed in California state printing office 70679 11-52 7,500