II £3 BULLETIN OF THE CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME COMMISSION No. 1 San Francisco August 15, 1911 CONTENTS Page Statement by Commissioners _. 1 Bird Investigation ... 13 Salmon investigation 4 Game Farm Notes 14 The Salmon Propagation of 1910 9 Mountain Lion Bounty 16 Trout Egg Collection and Distribution^ 10 The Work of the Patrol Force 17 Trout Distribution 11 Arrests, Convictions and Fines is Crab Investigation 11 Receipts and Disbursements 20 STATEMENT BY COMMISSIONERS. In issuing this, the first of a series of bulletins which we, as members of the State Board of Fish and Game Commissioners, propose to publish from time to time, that the people and the press of the State may be informed of the scope and character of our work, we believe it fitting and proper that we should here outline the policies we have adopted. We recognize that we are administering a public trust, that to us has been assigned the duty of protecting and conserving the fish and game interests of the State for the benefit of all the people, and that to be successful we must have their active cooperation. We believe we can gain their confidence and support by keeping the people fully informed of the nature and scope of our work. We will give publicity to what we are doing and trying to do to foster and conserve the fish and game which nature has so lavishly bestowed upon the State, while disclosing the source and amount of our revenues and the nature of our expendi- tures, so segregated as to show the cost of each branch of our work and the bookkeeping methods employed. We shall attempt to do this by issuing bulletins from time to time, as well as by complying with that provision of the law which specifically requires this Board to biennially submit to the Governor a full report. We aim to work on broad, practical and economical lines, and to make the Commission something more than a police force. We shall endeavor to enforce the laws for the preservation of fish and game, and to stock the public waters of the State with food and game fishes best suited to them. By economic and scientific investigations we hope to disclose the life, habits, and abundance of our fish and game, and the conditions most favorable to conserve and, if possible, increase the supply. We appreciate to the fullest extent the necessity of enforcing all the laws of the State; that we are an executive branch of the state govern- ment and not the legislative branch. We recognize, also, as the Legisla- I CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME COMMISSION ture has recognized, that in order to give effectiveness to the laws for the preservation and restoration of fish and game, there must be a specially constituted service designed to enforce them. In consequence, we aim to maintain throughout the State a patrol force of honest, alert, active and intelligent men, who shall devote their entire time to the service. In selecting these assistants, we shall be guided by their apparent qualifica- tions and fitness for the work and not because of their political affilia- tions or support. We shall maintain the State Game-Farm in an effort to introduce non- indigenous game-birds of known value, and to promote the domestication of pheasants to supply the markets of the State, in accordance with the act passed at the last session of the Legislature. We shall continue to operate the fish hatcheries to their full capacity, and to distribute the output in suitable public waters in every section of the State. We will not stock private waters. We shall give to the distribution of the fish produced in the fish hatcheries the greatest care, endeavoring not only to see that the young fish are intelligently liber- ated where they may best thrive, but by close observation to ascertain the success of such methods, and to ascertain further if additional and more effective measures can be found. It should, we think, be gen- erally understood that the success of hatchery propagation depends largely upon the care given to the planting of the fish produced; that it is not so much a question of liberating excessive numbers in our streams, as it is to insure each individual fish finding suitable waters and food. As much care should be exercised to prevent waters being excessively stocked with young fry as to insure that they are ade- quately stocked. By giving careful attention to this branch of the work, we believe that we can produce great results. It has already been demonstrated that the operations of the hatcheries and the stocking of streams in the State with native and non-indigenous fish have produced great results. No other state has reaped as great reward from the moneys so expended. We believe that, notwithstanding the notable success that has already followed the introduction and the acclimatization of new food and game fishes in the waters of this State, as well as the propagation of our native fishes, much can yet be accomplished; that our waters may be made to produce even more abundantly; for, notwithstanding that this Com- mission has been in existence for forty years and has accomplished greater results than any similar commission in the United States, very little attention has been directed to a study of the life and habits of any of our food-fishes. To intelligently conserve and increase our aquatic food supply it is essential to be conversant with the life, habits, food, abundance and the principal enemies. Until we know the time and place where our food-fishes propagate, the waters frequented by their young, and the conditions essential for successful development, we can not proceed intelligently. And, we regret to say that at the present time, the Commission is not in possession of positive information of this character. To obtain such knowledge, we have during the past six months begun a systematic and scientific investigation of the life of our salmon, trout, crabs and clams. For this work we have been enabled to enlist the services of some of the well known scientific men from our two great universities. O (X^ BULLETIN 3 iT^ Dr. Charles H. Gilbert, head of the Zoological Department of Stan- ford University, .the highest authority on salmon and trout on the Pacific coast, has been engaged to conduct an inquiry into the life- history of our salmon and trout. Under a separate heading we give a brief review of Dr. Gilbert's notes on the work already accomplished. The study of the life, abundance and the conditions most favorable to Lhe maintenance of our edible crab (Cancer magistt r) was begun under the auspices of the Board last October. The work is in the hands of F. W. Weymouth of Stanford University, who is a recognized authority. At this time nothing is known as to where or when these crabs propa- gate, or the life of their young. Investigation has proven to us that vast numbers of young crabs have, for the last thirty years, been reg- ularly destroyed in San Francisco Bay. through the agency of Chinese shrimp- or bag-nets. Immature edible crabs in almost incredible num- bers were always to be found in the nets and upon the drying beds of the Chinese shrimp fishermen. We believe, however, that the passage by the late Legislature of the law prohibiting the use of such nets has ' made the ultimate crab supply reasonably secure. Professor Harold Heath .of Stanford University, at our direction, began in December last a research intended to disclose the life and range of our edible clams. Very little or nothing is known of the life of these valuable mollusks. There appears, however, to be a limited area in this State which affords opportunity for their existence, and, -in con- sequence, we believe that there is great danger that, with the increasing demand and the present unrestricted methods of digging them, the clam beds in the State may be speedily exhausted. We hope, through the efforts and studies of Professor Heath and his assistants, to be able to lay sufficient facts before the Legislature to warrant the adoption of measures that will insure the future supply. Arrangements have been made with Dr. William E, Ritter, of the Marine Biological Station at San Diego, to undertake an inquiry into the life, propagation and range of our spiney lobster. Dr. Ritter will, we hope, be induced to undertake a study of. the abalone in connection with the work upon the lobster. In addition to the investigation that we have begun into the life history of our principal food and game fishes, we have also instituted an investigation of the relations of certain birds to the agricultural interests of the State. Harold C. Bryant, of the State University at Berkeley, has been engaged to conduct the inquiry. We hope to show in what manner each doubtful species of bird affects the farmer and the fruit grow T er, and what measures are to be taken to encourage the beneficial birds and to exterminate the injurious ones. We have engaged in this work because we receive many complaints and many commendations of such birds as the meadow-lark, robin and blackbird. To assist Mr. Bryant in his efforts to ascertain the food and habits throughout the year of these and other birds in the State, we have one assistant in each county who regularly, every two weeks, collects six specimens of each bird. Each specimen is carefully tagged with a label giving the locality, date, hour of day, and place where taken, i. e., in orchard, vineyard, grainfield or garden ; they are then placed in formalin, and are regularly forwarded to the laboratory at East Hall, University of California. On being examined, the contents of the 4 CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME COMMISSION stomach and of the intestines of each bird is carefully noted, showing the kind and character of the seeds and insects upon which the bird lives. This information will be carefully compiled and tabulated, in order that the exact nature and amount of food taken by each of these species shall be plainly disclosed month by month throughout the year. We submit for the information of the bird lovers of the State, that the work of collecting specimens for the scientific inquiry as to the food of the doubtful species of birds has the hearty approval of the scientific authorities of our two great universities and of the Audubon Society. Dr. David Starr Jordan, who is the president of that society, as well as an ex-member of this Commission, endorses the methods adopted in collecting the birds. Believing that great good will come from the proper education of our children as to the value of the wild birds and animals to the farming interests of the State, and not alone to the sportsmen and the lovers of nature, we have engaged the services of Gretchen L. Libby, late secre- tary and lecturer for the Audubon Society of California, to conduct a campaign throughout the public schools of the State. Miss Libby began lecturing in the public schools last April. Her talks to the children are carefully prepared and consume about thirty minutes in each classroom. From reports made to us by the super- intendents and teachers in the public schools, she has interested the scholars greatly. In addition to her work in the schools, whenever opportunity offers, Miss Libby gives evening lectures upon bird pro- tection, before school and lyceum societies, illustrating with lantern slides. From April 11th to June 10th, she delivered 149 addresses in schools, to 10,480 pupils, and spoke six times in the evening, to 779 persons. Through her efforts we hope to interest all the children in the public schools. Miss Libby will resume her work at the beginning of the fall term of school and in time will speak in every public school of the State. Respectfully submitted. STATE BOARD OF FISH AND GAME COMMISSIONERS. F. G. SANBORN. President. M. J. CONNELL. F. M. NEWBERT. JOHN P. BABCOCK. Chief Deputy. Office of the Board. Balboa Building', San Francisco, August 13, 1911. SALMON INVESTIGATION. Notwithstanding it has been fully demonstrated that, owing to hatch- ery propagation, the quantities of salmon annually taken from the waters of the State have been largely increased during the past twelve years, it appears from a comparison of the record of the number of fish caught in the Sacramento River, with that of the annual output of young salmon from the hatcheries, that the number of adult salmon taken annually from that river is averaging less than one per cent of the hatchery output, Not being satisfied with such a showing as this, and in the hope of uncovering much that would prove of value in this great work, the Commission, in January last, determined upon an investiga- tion that would disclose, as far as possible, the conditions confronting the young salmon during the seaward migration. The work already BULLETIN ) gives promise of gratifying results. Briefly stated, it lias been shown That, in the headwaters of the Sacramento River and its tributaries, where the greatest number of the young salmon have been liberated, the trout prey upon them during February, March, and April, entailing great loss; that the loss through trout was very light during the last of April, and amounted to little in May and June, notwithstanding that the streams were still full of young salmon and that large numbers were still being planted. It has also been found that in passing down-stream there is. during high water, a pronounced movement from the main channels of the Sacramento into the Sutter and Yolo basins, and that ihc yoiiii- tish passing into these basins find there rich feeding grounds. and grow rapidly, and that they appear to make little or no effort to pass from the basin back into the main channel; so that, as the waters recede and become warmer, they perish. The loss from this source appears to be enormous. By the use of small mesh nets, it has been demonstrated that there were young salmon in Suisun Bay. Carquinez Straits, San Pablo and San Francisco Nays during the months of April and .May. and that young salmon less than one and three-quarters inches in length were taken near Lime Point, at the entrance to San Francisco Bay. in order to demonstrate, if possible, the effect of the river trip upon the seaward migration of the young salmon, fifty thousand salmon fry were marked by removing the dorsal fin, and after having fully recovered from the effects of being marked, they were liberated in the head tribu- taries of the Sacramento River. An additional fifty thousand were marked by removing both the dorsal and adipose fins; after recovery, these were transported to Benicia and liberated in Carquinez Straits. In a report upon this work Dr. Gilbert wrote on May 24th as follows: "On the morning of May 20th, the Commission ear delivered at Benicia 50,000 Chinook salmon fry, which had been marked at Sisson for the purposes of the experiment, and also 3 cans containing other fry of different ages, for a second experiment which will be presently described. The marking experiments which we have undertaken are planned to serve more than one purpose. (1) They should make it possible to secure valuable data containing the movements of fish of knoivn age, in the river, the bay and the ocean. (2) They should give a much needed opportunity to check up the work of the Commission in salmon propa- gation, and furnish a basis for computing what proportion of the salmon run is dependent on artificial and what proportion on natural spawning. (3) They may furnish also evidence as to the relative advantage of lib- crating salmon fry at the headwaters of the Sacramento, near Sisson, and on the lower river, in the vicinity of San Francisco Bay. In all, 100,000 fry have been marked, the first 50,000 by completely lemoving the dorsal fin, the second 50,000 by removing the dorsal fin and in addition the adipose dorsal. The first 50,000 were planted about April 1st, in Cold Creek, about half a mile below the hatchery, at the same point and under the same conditions characterizing the majority of the other plants from the Sisson Hatchery this year. They should, therefore, share the same fate of the common run of planted fish, exposed to such dangers as accompany the long river trip and with equal chances of surviving and returning from the sea at maturity. 6 CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME COMMISSION The second lot of 50,000, with both dorsal fins removed, was the one handled by ns at Benicia on May 20th. All possible precautions had been taken to equalize the conditions of the two lots in all respects, save method of marking and place where planted. Both had developed from eggs secured from the Baird Hatchery, and were of equal age. Further, the up-river planting was at such a date as would permit the fish (on the basis of our present knowledge) to reach the lower river at the time the second lot was planted. If the two lots develop differently and return to the river in strikingly different proportions, it would seem fair to conclude that the river trip was responsible for the difference It is a pleasure to report that the planting on May 20th was an entire success. The cans were promptly loaded on a tug kindly furnished for the purpose by Mr. P. E. Booth, taken to the middle of the river and the plant made where conditions were most favorable. While most of the young fish promptly disappeared in the turbid water, a small pro- portion remained for a time at the surface and were very conspicuous because of their dark coloration. Careful observation failed to indicate the presence of any enemy. On the completion of this work at 11 : 30 a. m., the Commission party, consisting of Deputies F. A. Shebley, A. D. Ferguson and myself, boarded the Commission launch, which was in charge of Mr. Nidever, and proceeded with the second experiment. This was to test the effect, on Chinook fry, of fairly rapid transference from the fresh river water through the brackish water of varying salinity found in the bay and thence outside in the open sea. It was planned to reproduce, as nearly as was feasible, the natural conditions encountered by salmon fry when passing out to sea. But it is to be noted that in the experiment the transition was much more rapid and abrupt than it would be in nature, where the young fish could drift back and forth on the tides for an unknown period. If. therefore, the experiment should fail, it would not necessarily demonstrate that the young fish could not pass out safely when employing the more gradual natural method. But should it suc- ceed, it would seem to indicate that even with young fry there need be no fear of fatal results in effecting the transition from fresh to salt water. Wherefore, it would be entirely safe, if for any reason it were desirable, to plant young fry in the vicinity of the bay. Fry of three different ages were used in the experiment ; the youngest, just beginning to feed after the absorption of the yolk-sac; the oldest, fish of the Baird lot. like those used in the marking experiment, and some Mill ( 'reek fish of intermediate age. While passing down the river, the water in the cans was constantly changed by dipping from the river, and remained — as we ascertained by testing— similar to the river water in temperature and density. No trace of salt was detected until we reached the vicinity of San Pablo Point, as the tide was changing to flood. The salinity then increased so rapidly that we tied up for two hours at the San Pablo wharf, in order not unduly to hasten the process. In a little over an hour, the water became as salt as Ave afterwards found it on the bar outside the heads, but the fry showed no distress or uneasi- ness, and fed voraciously when given a meal of ground meat. The suc- cess of the experiment here, as elsewhere, was greatly furthered by the presence of Superintendent Shebley. whose care for the young fish was incessant, and whose experience with salmon fry would have enabled BULLETIN < him to detect at once any abnormal behavior, should the salt water occasion distress or discomfort. From San Pablo Point, we proceeded to Sausalito, where we spent the night. We found the water varying in density with the stage of the tide. The salinity increased until it registered 10° on a saturation scale, but even the youngest fry were not disturbed, and possessed sharp appetites in the morning. Making use of the early morning ebb, we passed out of the harbor and across the liar to the buoy marking the entrance to the middle channel. As tie- salinity had not at all increased while running out. it was evidenl the water of the bay and the river was spread, fan-like, over ;i wide area, in which the fry could continue indefinitely. About one mile outside the buoy, the salmon were planted. They were in excellent condition and disappeared promptly from the surface, seemingly more vigorous and active than when taken from the car the preceding temperature and other conditions which eventually prove fatal to the young salmon. Such knowledge will prove highly useful later in t he season, at the period when the overflow waters are most concentrated. A- soon as the field party has completed its examination of the Tis- dale Weir district, it is probable the Wood's Break will have ceased to Bow. and will leave for investigation a most important series of holes and ponds. And. in succession, other overflow regions will become avail- able and should be at once investigated. Finally, the residual lakes in all the basins will remain for a most thorough study." Under date of June 20, 1911, Dr. Gilbert states: "I am leaving to-morrow for Pacific Grove, where I expect to make soul observations on the food of the salmon and the character of the run. if indeed enough are being captured to admit of observation. I wish also to inspect the catch of the sardine fishermen, to ascertain a possible relation with the salmon industry. This is in pursuance of our general plan to determine all the causes which prevent a greater return of mature salmon to the Sacramento River, in proportion to the number of fry there liberated. Losses by predatory fish in the streams and by stranding in the overflow basins are now determined, though the serious- ness of the loss thus effected is still to be fixed. The loss in the sea we believe to be very great, but have no knowledge as yet what are the effective causes, or whether any part of it can be prevented. We antici- pate, however, the possibility of ascertaining what forms prey upon salmon during their entire residence in the sea, and also whether cur- rent methods of fishing are unduly destructive. ' ' THE SALMON PROPAGATION OF 1910. In 1910, during the months of October, November, and December, the Fish and Game Commission received as usual from the U. S. Bureau of Fisheries, a grant of 24,126,000 salmon eggs which had been spawned at the Federal hatcheries at Baird, Battle Creek, and Mill Creek. These 10 CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME COMMISSION eggs were received and eared for at the State hatcheries at' Sisson. Eel River, and Brookdale. Those hatched at Sisson were liberated in the tributaries of the Sacra- mento, near the hatchery, with the exception of 2.215.000 which were taken down to Redding and liberated in the Sacramento. Those hatched at the Eel River Hatchery were liberated in that stream within a few miles of the sea, and those hatched at Brookdale were planted in Scott Creek and the San Lorenzo River. In addition to the above grant, 2,109,000 of silver salmon eggs were obtained through the joint operations of the Commission and the Bureau of Fisheries, on Klamath River, near Klamathon. The eggs of the silver salmon were shipped to Sisson and hatched there, with the result that 700,000 young silver salmon were planted in Klamath River and 719,000 in the Sacramento River. This is the first effort made in this State to increase the runs of the silver salmon; heretofore, hatchery propagation has been confined to the Quinnat, or Sacramento salmon. The silver salmon, commonly called "Coho" in the north, apparently does not enter either the Sacramento or the San Joaquin rivers. There is no known reason why the fish should not enter these streams ; they run abundantly in the Klamath and the Smith rivers, in Del Norte County ; they are taken in considerable numbers in Eel River, in the fall : and they frequent many other of the coast streams, as far south as Monterey Bay . Strange as it may appear, the presence of the silver salmon in the waters of this State remained unnoticed, until Dr. Gilbert, Professor of Zoology, at Stanford University, a few seasons ago called attention to them. Heretofore, all the salmon taken in our rivers have been com- mercially classed as Quinnat. The silver salmon — though a true Pacific salmon — is not considered as valuable a fish as the Quinnat ; they are smaller, run late in the fall, and are lacking in color and in oil. Never- theless they are an excellent food fish when taken as they enter the rivers from the sea. Though the silver salmon run neither into the Sacramento nor the San Joaquin rivers, as an experiment the Commission planted 719,000 in the Sacramento, at Redding, with the hope of establishing a run in that river of these desirable fish. The outcome of the experiment will be watched with interest. TROUT EGG COLLECTION AND DISTRIBUTION. During the last few months the Commission has taken from the stock fish in the breeding ponds at the Sisson Hatchery, the following numbers of trout eggs : Loch Leven trout 1,200,000 Rainbow trout 1,100,000 Eastern Brook trout 750.000 3,050.000 In addition to the eggs collected from the stock ponds at Sisson. two spawming stations were operated on the Klamath River, for the collection of wild rainbow trout eggs ; these stations obtained 2,500,000 eggs, which were eyed and shipped to the Sisson Hatchery. A station for the collect- ing of steelhead trout spawn was also operated at the Snow Mountain Power Company's dam, in Eel River, and 1,900,000 eggs were collected there, 300,000 of which were paid to the California Trout Farm Com- BULLETIN 11 paiiy. who holds the leases for operating a1 that dam. 300,000 of the eggs taken at the latter place wen- shipped to the State hatchery at Grizzly Bluff, on Eel River, in Humboldt County, where they were hatched. The fry from this lot will he distributed in that county. 700,000 of the eggs were shipped to the I'kiah Hatchery, which the Com- mission holds under lease. This lot will supply fish for Mendocino, Sonoma, Marin, and Lake comities. The balance of the eggs was shipped to Sisson. where they were hatched and are awaiting ship menl to public waters. The Commission also operated the Scott ( 'reek spawn- ing station, owned by the county of Santa Cruz, upon a lease, under the terms of which the County hatchery at Brookdale was furnished 500,000 eyed steelhead trout eggs, from a total of 1 ,300,01 mi steelhead eggs taken at this station, 600,000 of them being shipped to Sisson, to be used in stocking public streams. Owing to unfavorable weather conditions, only 130,000 steelhead trout eggs were collected at Grizzly Bluff, Humboldl County, but the output of that hatchery was increased by the shipment already men- tioned. In all. 5,800,000 steelhead trout eggs were collected during the season. The season at Tahoe was much later than usual, owing to the excessive snow fall of last wilder. Operations were begun there in May and 3,000,000 Tahoe trout eggs were collected, which will he hatched at the Tahoe and Talkie hatcheries and planted in the lakes in the immediate vicinity. The hatchery at Wawona. Vosemite National Park, is being operated as usual, with e<^'s shipped from Lake Tahoe. The total number of trout eggs collected this year amounts to Ll,980,000. TROUT DISTRIBUTION. In .June the distribution of trout from the Sisson hatcheries began, and the Commission will endeavor to make plants in public waters in every section of the State. Many applications have been received from all over the State, and interested persons desiring the streams of their section stocked should file applications without delay. The fish distribution car of the State was thoroughly overhauled in May, at the Southern Pacific railway shops at Sacramento. Its carry- ing capacity has been increased by the installation of an additional line of air-pipes. Every endeavor will be made and the greatest care *>iven to the proper distribution of the fish from the hatcheries. CRAB INVESTIGATION. Excerpt from a report made to the Fish and Game Commission by P. W. Weymouth, in charge of the Crab Investigation. ''The edible crab of the Pacific coast, known to scientists as Cancer magister, is not only an animal of consiclerahle commercial value, form- ing a respectable item in the three million dollar yearly yield of Cali- fornia's fishing industry, hut one quite as interesting as the salmon or any of our game birds. Though both valuable and interesting, there exists hardly a reference to its habits or life-history, either in scientific or popular literature, although other crustaceans, notably the lobster of our eastern coast and 12 CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME COMMISSION the edible crab of Europe, have been the subject's of careful studies, undertaken to determine efficient means of protection and feasible methods of propagation. The present Commissioners plan to remedy this state of affairs, and the purpose of this account is to give some idea of the little we do know and more of the lot we do not know, but might easily find out, about this interesting animal. In as brief a treatment as this, many points must necessarily be omitted, but perhaps some con- ception may be given of the scope and methods of the present investiga- tion, if we state our present knowledge of the life-history of the young crab. By a wise law the taking of female crabs is prohibited at all times ; but if one were to examine some of those which the fishermen return to the ocean during the fall or winter, many would be found with great masses of eggs, often equalling in bulk a fourth or fifth of the body, securely attached to the abdominal legs. The individual eggs are very small. If the fact is grasped that a single egg measures only about one- sixtieth of an inch in diameter and that about fifty thousand may be held in an ordinary teaspoon, it will not be thought surprising that a single, rather small female was found to be carrying 750,000 eggs. Just how long the eggs are carried in this fashion and what is the usual date of egg-laying we do not yet know, but this may easily be found out when a complete series of specimens collected at all seasons of the year is available for study. Such a production of eggs would seem a sufficient provision for the maintenance of the supply of crabs. An illustration may perhaps make this clearer. If there were present in the waters about Eureka, alone, a number of females equal to the number of males taken at that port during 1910, and half of these were to produce eggs — both of these assumptions err on the side of caution — the total weight of the offspring produced in a single year, if all were to reach maturity, would amount to over 59,000,000 tons, or about eight and a half times the combined weights of the Pyramid of Cheops and the Washington Monument. It is obvious that they do not reach maturity, and here, as in the case of most animals, there must be an enormous mortality among the young. Let us consider some of the conditions that favor this. The egg hatches into a minute larva bearing little resemblance to the adult and called a zoea. The zoea of Cancer magister, as far as we have record, had not been obtained before the beginning of the present investigation, and most of our knowledge of this, as well as of the other larval stages, is drawn from the work on the European crab. The little crab comes to the surface of the water, where, in company with an immense variety of microscopic plants and animals, it forms what is known collectively as plankton. Now this plankton, though unnoticed by the casual observer, is the immediate source of food for countless animals of all sizes, from microscopic copepods to whales, and ultimately the source of the food of all marine animals, since those that do not feed upon it directly feed upon those that do. Thus, with many other tiny organisms the zoea and later larval stages are destroyed in countless numbers. The stomachs of salmon, for instance, have been found crammed with the larva? of this or closely related species. The larvae may be collected by towing a net of fine meshed cloth at bulletin- 1:; the surface of the water, and a beginning has been made a1 this work, which, if carried out systematically during all seasons of the year in various localities, will show at what time of year larvae are present. where They are found, how their distribution is affected by the tide.s and currents ;it whose mercy they float, what food is present, and perhaps some hint of the enemies thai destroy them. After a number of weeks or months— we have as yet no exact infor- mation on this point — the larvae assnme a form closely resembling the adnlt. and shortly afterward, to judge from the results of what dredg- ing lias been carried out, they seek the bottom, where they continue to Jive until adult, That they do not frequent the places where the adults are mosl numerous is indicated by the results of the present work, hut more exact information on this point will be necessary in order to deter- mine whether a correspondingly greal destruction occurs at this stage and if any of the loss is preventable. The important question of the time required for the crab to reach a marketable size offers many difficulties, since no large aquaria have been maintained in this State for the continuous study of such forms; hut some indirect evidence, based mi the rate of growth of the young, is already at hand, and promises valuable results. Now, before there is any alarming diminution in the supply, is the time to begin conservation, and an accurate knowledge of the life-history of the crab musl form the first step in any scheme for its protection." BIRD INVESTIGATION. written by II. C. Bryant, Assistant in charge of Bird Investigation, to the editor of the "San Bernardino Sun." "Dear Sir: I am in receipt of a clipping entitled 'Protests the Slaughter of Birds,' taken from your paper under date of May 30th. In order that the position of the Fish and Game Commission on this subject may be clearly understood by Mr. Herron and other readers of your paper, 1 take the liberty of writing you. The killing of birds at nesting time is certainly to be deplored and. unless a reasonable excuse for so doing can be advanced, the killing is indeed criminal and should be a subject of protest by all humane peo- ple. Mr. Herron 's description of the suffering young should work on i tie sympathies of even the most hard-hearted. Each year the protection and preservation of wild birds becomes more important. In some of the eastern states an especially appointed officer spends his time investigating the value of birds. In California the value of certain birds has been much discussed, as the records of the last two legislatures show. Opinion is divided on the question whether meadow- larks, blackbirds, robins and horned larks pay for the fruit and grain which they eat, by destroying injurious insects. The Fish and Game Commission, believing that a scientific investigation as to the value of these birds would settle the controversy, has begun such an investigation. The examination of the stomach-contents of the birds concerned being of greatest value in determining the food, it was decided to collect birds for such investigation. In an investigation of this kind it can readily be seen that birds taken only at the time of year when they are feeding on grain and fruit would furnish evidence against them. On the other hand, birds taken at some other time of year might furnish only evidence 14: CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME COMMISSION in their favor. Therefore, in order to be fair to the bird itself as well as to its friends and enemies, it was decided to take birds in every month of the year, and in sufficient quantity to make the result conclusive. It is a well known fact that many birds which feed almost altogether on vegetable food most of the year feed their young largely on insects. Thus it will be seen that the taking of birds during the nesting season is very important and absolutely necessary, even though it involves the destruction of a limited number of parent birds and their young. What the Commission desires, and what all interested in the matter in controversy desire, is that the birds under protest shall have a fair and just trial. The only fair test of the value of a bird to the people of California is a knowledge of the bird's feeding habits throughout the whole year. A discontinuance of the collection of birds at any time during the year, therefore, would make the result obtained of doubtful value. To most people the killing of several hundred birds appears an unjustifiable slaughter, but our best ornithologists tell us that in the economy of nature there is food and protection in each locality for a certain bird population, and that if this number is decreased by epi- demic, lack of food, storm, or other means, the number of young, which live as a result of the diminished numbers, soon brings back the balance of nature. An instance in point is the linnet, or house-finch. This bird has been unprotected for a number of years, and the number of birds killed and the nests destroyed by fruit-growers and small boys mounts into the thousands and yet who will dare to say that this species has decreased in numbers. This does not mean that an indiscriminate slaughter of any species of bird would not have any effect on the num- bers, for we have only to point to the game-birds for instances of this. It does show, however, that the collection of non-game birds now being carried on is not so serious as might at first appear. The collection of birds for evidence now being conducted by the Fish and Game Commission has the approval of the Audubon Society of the State and the Agricultural Departments at the State University and at Stanford, and is being conducted strictly on well considered and scien- tific lines. Every bird taken is carefully preserved and the contents of its crop and intestines determined and tabulated. The birds taken will furnish evidence to establish whether they are friends or enemies of our great agricultural interests. If it be shown by the specimens taken that any one of the doubtful species of birds are friends, the loss of a num- ber of specimens taken to establish the fact becomes of no importance to the species." GAME FARM NOTES. The season at the State Game Farm has so far been most satisfactory. Fifty adult wild turkeys were carried over from last season. With few exceptions, all the original stock of wild turkeys brought from Mexico three years ago has been liberated, the present stock at the Farm con- sisting of birds raised from the original stock, and two gobblers and one hen from Virginia. The hens being young have laid a large number of eggs, from which were hatched 720 young turkeys. The loss up to the present time has been small, the wild turkey chicks appearing to be more hardy than the domestic birds. The young birds will be held until early fall and will then be liberated in the Sequoia and the General BUMiETIN 1"' Grant National parks, and in the forest reserves in southern California, in ;ill of which, plants have been made each season of the Inst two years. We are indebted to Major James B. Hughes, 1st Cavalry, Acting Superintendent of the Sequoia and the Genera] Grant National parks. in Tulare County, for the following interesting report upon the wild turkeys seen in the parks this season. Walter Fry. the Park Ranger, who collected the information for Major Hughes, is well known to the Commission as a painstaking and thoroughly reliable man. He per- sonally supervised tbe liberation of the turkeys shipped from the game- farm last year. "In compliance with your requesl calling for a report on the wild turkey in the Sequoia National Park, 1 have the honor to submit the following in this connection : — Birds were seen by the following individuals on the dates and at the places as given below: — Walter Fry, Fob. 20. 1911—8 adult birds; 1 aest with 1 I eggs, at Marble Turk. Walter Fry. .Mar. 20, 1911—12 adult birds; 9 young birds. a1 Turkey Flat. Walter Fry, June 0 365 1,000 100 500 250 425 400 10 205 20 80 150 125 !H) 25 510 (15 05 20 233 -I'M) 125 105 oo $5,813 30 .50 140 Note. — Fifty eases pending. Seizures of Nets, Fish, and Game fob the Year Ending June ."mi. L911. Seizures of fish and game were donated to charities, except where otherwise stated. •'!" set-nets. 3 Chinese shrimp-nets (seized as evidence). 1 salmon net used 1'or Saturday and Sunday fishing. 6 Chinese sturgeon-lines (53 sections, 12 anchors i. •"><»" pounds salmon. v <"» pounds striped bass. 18 black bass (destroyed). •"in pounds steelhead trout. 41s pounds trout. .".15 pounds catfish (300 pounds destroyed). 420 pounds miscellaneous fish (250 fish returned to water). 715 crabs (336 returned to water. 15 destroyed!. 8 abalones. 5. .",7(1 pounds dried shrimp or shrimp-shells (about 2,030 pounds young- fish at Sisson Hatchery). 2,961 ducks (75 destroyed; 415 returned to owner I. 37 geese (5 returned to owner). 2o doves. 268 quail (17 returned to owner I. 8 rail. 40 plover. 252 non-game birds. 4 sandhill crane. 1 mounted spotted fawn. 4 deer hides (returned to owner). 251 pounds venison and 3 whole carcasses. 2 jack-rabbits. 1 bear hide. 52 tree-squirrels. used for feeding 20 CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME COMMISSION STATEMENT OF RECEIPTS AND DISBURSEMENTS OF THE STATE FISH AND GAME COMMISSION FOR YEAR ENDING JUNE 30, 1911. The following statements disclose that the total hunting license collec- tions paid into the state treasury for the year amounted to $132,167.00 and that the total commercial fishery licenses amounted to $22,640.00. It should be noticed that the fishing license year extends from April 1st to March 31st of the following year and that the hunting license year runs from July 1st to June 30th following. During the fiscal year ending June 30th, the Board was given an appropriation by the Legislature of $20,000 for the support and main- tenance of the State Hatcheries. In consequence of the belief that the Commission is now amply pro- vided with means for its work, from the sale of licenses and from fines collected, the Board made no application at the last session of the Leg- islature for any appropriation, nor was any appropriation made. In its endeavor to conduct the work of the Commission without the aid of any appropriation, the Board does not contemplate lessening its usefulness in any manner. Owing to the abolishment of the use of the Chinese shrimp nets in San Francisco and San Pablo bays, the expense of patrolling those waters is greatly lessened, and by close attention to expenditure the Board anticipates no difficulty in making its patrol work fully as effective as at any previous period and by its scientific Avork to add materially to its usefulness. STATEMENT OF RECEIPTS FOR THE YEAR ENDING JUNE 30. 1911. 1910. Fish and Came Jnlv . Preservation Fund. Hatchery Fund. I ■ ■ 1 1 Hunting licenses $11,106 60 Fines (game) 1,082 88 Fines (fish) 274 75 By appropriation for year 1910-11 $20,000 00 Fishing licenses 602 50 $12,464 23 $20,602 50 $33,006 7:: August — Hunting licenses $5,650 SO Fines (game) 907 10 Fines (fish) — 30 00 Game farm earnings 30 19 Fishing licenses $950 00 $0,618 09 $950 00 $7,568 09 September — Hunting licenses $2,237 95 Fines (game) 1.060 03 Fines (fish) 463 30 Game farm earnings 25 00 Fishing licenses - $1,272 50 $3,786 28 $1,272 50 $5,058 7^ October — ■ Hunting licenses $56,565 60* Fines (game) 1.033 85 Fines (fish) 270 00 Game farm earnings 274 21 Fishing licenses $1,362 50 $58,143 66 $1,362 50 $59,506 16 County clerks made Quarterly returns. BULLETIN 21 Fish and Game November — Preservation Fund. Hatchery Fund. Total. Hunting licenses $19,919 30 Fines (same) SOT si' Fines (fish) 674 40 Came farm earnings 33 65 Fishing licenses $620 00 $21,435 IT $620 00 $22,055 IT I >ec< mber — Hunting licenses $6,885 15 Interest, bank balance 31 IT Fines (same) 1,336 13 Fines (fish) 1,207 65 me farm earnings 365 4u Fishing licenses $3,267 50 1911. $9,825 50 $3,267 50 $13,1 January — Hunting licenses $20,470 30 Fines (game) . 1.1 in 95 Fines (fish) 95 00 Game farm earnings 12 60 Fishing licenses $222 50 $22,018 85 $222 50 $22,241 35 ry — Hunting licenses $1,772 50 Fines (same) 744 83 Fines (fish) 994 50 Came farm earnings IT (0 Fishing licenses $307 50 29 53 $307 50 $3,837 03 March- Hunting licenses $3,810 85 Fines (game) 917 10 Finos (fish) 159 75 u earnings 8 50 Inspection of crawfish 100 00 Fishing licenses $7S0 00 $4,996 50 $7S0 00 $5,776 50 — Hunting licenses $5,324 95 Fims (game) 708 82 Fines (fish) 559 15 Game farm earnings II 95 Inspection of crawfish 100 00 Fishing licenses $6,117 50 Fishing licenses, 1010-11 T 50 $6,734 87 $6,125 00 $12,5 May — Hunting licenses $2,450 70 Fines (came) 328 68 Fims (fish) 399 55 Game farm earnings 12 15 Inspection of crawfish 100 00 Overpayment (M. Silva) 15 00 Fishing licenses $4,177 50 Fishing licenses, 1910-11 2 50 $3,306 OS $4,180 00 $7, 1 Juno — Hunting licenses $5,972 75 Fines (same) T4 75 Fines (fish) 349 75 Inspection of crawfish 100 00 Fishing licenses $2,950 00 ,497 25 $2,950 00 $9,447 25 $201,996 01 22 CALIFORNIA FISH AND GAME COMMISSION The disbursements of the Board for the year ending June 30. 1911, are set forth in the following tables. "Warrants to pay all claims are drawn upon the State Treasurer and are paid from the moneys in either the "Fish and Game Preservation Fund" or the "Support and Maintenance of Hatcheries Fund." after having been approved by the State Board of Control and the State Con- troller. Duplicate copies of all bills presented are retained in the office of the Board. The moneys in the "Fish and Game Preservation Fund" are derived from the sale of hunting licenses and the fines collected for violations of the fish and game laws. All the fines collected for violations of the commercial fishing laws are also paid into this fund. The moneys in the "Support and Maintenance of Hatcheries Fund," for the year end- ing June 30, 1911, consisted of $20,000 appropriated by the Legislature in 1909. together with all moneys derived from the sale of commercial fishing licenses. As the Board did not ask for nor receive any appro- priation from the last Legislature, the moneys in this fund will consist hereafter only of the amount derived from the sale of commercial fishing- licenses. STATEMENT OF DISBURSEMENTS FROM "SUPPORT AND MAINTE- NANCE OF HATCHERIES FUND," JULY 1, 1910, TO JUNE 30, 1911. Hatcheries : Sisson: Operating expenses — Tront S^.ri2s 86 Salmon 12.376 4S $17,905 34 Improvements S 90 Tuhoe and Tallac: Operating expenses (trout) 1,462 88 Wawona: Operating expenses (trout) 204 73 Improvements 105 70 Eel River, Grizzly Bluff: Operating expenses (salmon) 2.663 92 San Francisco Office: Chief Deputy 711 40 Clerks and assistant deputies in office 955 01 Office expenses 2.549 55 Los Angeles Office: Clerks and assistant deputies in office 75 00 Other office expenses 177 89 Fresno Office: Clerks and assistant deputies in office 300 00 Other office expenses 127 45 Fish Patrol (field deputies and launches) : San Francisco district 12.517 88 Los Angeles district 787 75 Fresno district 732 00 Cost of prosecutions 17 25 Fish distribution car 499 90 Field investigation relating to fish: Salmon 1.639 3S Crabs 28 30 Spawning Stations : Scott Creek: Operating expense 244 90 Snow Mountain Dam: Operating expense 249 87 $43,965 00 BULLETIN 23 STATEMENT OF DISBURSEMENTS FROM "FISH AND GAME PRESER- VATION FUND," JULY 1, 1910, TO JUNE 30, 1911. San Francisco Office: Chief Deputy $3,176 25 Clerks and assistant deputies in office 6,865 IT Rents, printing,* postage and other office expenses '.>,S49 65 Los I ngt /< s Ofjfict : Clerks and assistant deputies in office 1,178 00 Rent, postage, and other office expenses 1,946 24 Fn sno Office : Clerks and assistant: deputies in office 1,817 85 Rem. postage, and other office expenses 395 45 Fish and game patrol (field deputies): San Francisco district 61,893 82 Los Angeles district 1?>,030 27 Fresno district 10,773 10 Game Farm : Operating expenses (wild turkeys and pheasants) 6,503 37 Game purchased (Hungarian partridges) 3,653 08 Improvements 649 ID Bounties paid on mountain lions 5.420 00 Commissions on hunting licenses sold by county clerks 12,432 43 Refunds to county clerks for overpayment on hunting licenses 154 00 Cosl of fish and game prosecutions 7.4T."i 10 Field investigation relating to fish and game: Relation of birds to agriculture 929 05 Salmon 2,178 45 Crabs 245 38 Clams 319 95 Publicity 474 07 Spawning Stations : Si. ssi, 1 1 : Operating expenses (trout work) 5.645 57 Tahoe: Operating expenses (trout work) 1,814 47 Scott Creek: Operating expenses (trout work) 233 35 Bouldin Island Hatchery : Operating expenses (striped bass) 71 69 Fish distribution car 2,688 08 Other distributions (pack trains in Sierra Nevada Mountains) 1,614 63 Launches and fish patrol 293 14 $163,720 80 *Printing for all offices.