among the fishes. On September 10 all the fish that remained alive, except the carp and billfish, were liberated. The newly graded and seeded lawn, with three flower beds, added much to the attractive appearance of the station. The high water last spring washed out the sides of the earthen ponds. Repairs to this pond are now in progress. We are also making a cement flume for an outlet of all the water supply into the lake.Reported by Grant E. Winchester, Foreman, Bemus Point, N. Y. COLD SPRING HARBOR STATION Through the courtesy of Mr. George P. Slade, President of the Southside Sportsman's Club, of Long Island, we had the privilege of collecting brook trout eggs from the club ponds. From this source we obtained a fine lot. The green eggs were sent by rail to our hatchery and except for some damage done in transferring at railroad stations, they turned out very good. The expense of collecting these eggs was very small compared with the cost of similar eggs from commercial hatcheries. We had many more than were needed at this Station, and the surplus was sent to several hatcheries. We collected good brook trout eggs at our hatchery, but we are carrying very few stock brook trout. There was no trouble in our trout work this season, as the fish were clean and free from disease. The stock fish are in fine condition. We collected all the eggs of tomcod our jars would hold and stopped collecting before the spawning season closed. The returns from sales of tomcod sent to the city market carry many fishermen through the month of December when there is nothing else to be caught in the bays. We have single hatching tables only. These could be converted into batteries thereby doubling the number of jars and greatly increasing the output. Another very important fish which furnishes a great quantity of cheap food in the city markets is the winter flatfish. Large numbers are shipped from Montauk and other stations on Long Island. When properly cooked the flatfish is as good as the fluke. It is difficult to collect these eggs owing to the rough weather on the seacoast during March. The eggs are adhesive and must be stirred continually for a long time. They are very small and of a bright orange color. Vast quantities are hatched, but better work could be done if they were hatched near the spawning grounds. The fry are very small and difficult to hold in the tank. The smelt is ahead of all other fish for market value. Coming in the Lenten season, just before shad appear on the coast and before the trout season opens, Long Island smelt are in great demand and always bring a good price. We did not collect as many eggs as usual owing to the small size of the fish. The run was very large but the fish were small. The extensive handling of the eggs to separate them causes considerable loss, but still more serious loss is due to overloading the hatching jars. Pike perch eggs were obtained from the Oneida Hatchery. 2,000000 fry were produced for planting in Lake Ronkonkoma. The eggs arrived in fine condition, hatched well, and the results from stocking should be good. Ronkonkoma Lake is a beautiful sheet of water having an area of about 300 acres with a depth of nearly 70 feet. The work with sea bass should be greatly increased, and this could be done if we had a boat to go to the fishing grounds for eggs. Several men who fish for sea bass collect eggs, but in order to extend the work we must have a boat. The men who pen the fish for the late fall market do not want to have them handled as they are difficult to strip without more or less injury because of the hard spines. These fish are very valuable at certain seasons, and pens built of brass wire netting often contain several thousand dollars worth of fish. Had we the means of catching the fish we could build pens and hold the bass until they are ready for stripping. Small tanks or pens which would give us all the eggs we could handle should be built at the hatchery. The lobster is hatched at the Auxiliary Hatchery on Fort Pond Bay, Montauk. Owing to a long spell of foggy, bad weather the fishermen were unable to set their pots outside where they would catch egg bearing lobsters. Not being properly equipped for this work we were unable to make a good record. A motor boat is much needed, to go to the several fishing stations to collect eggs. We were limited to what came to Montauk Landing. Captain E. B. Tuthill and other fishermen did what they could to help us. One fisherman who sets pots around Block Island and in the race says that of ten bushels of lobsters caught in one night eight bushels were egg bearing. All of these go to Connecticut shores. If we had a proper boat we could collect all of these eggs. The eggs hatched perfectly. There was no loss except when we had trouble with the pumping plant and had to transfer eggs to floating boxes in the bay. Outside fishermen claim that this was the best season for lobster fishing they ever had. This is very encouraging news coming from that source. Nothing else among the marine animals is so eagerly sought after as the blue crab. Thousands of people go daily to the docks along the South Bay with a piece of meat tied on a string in one hand and a scoop net in the other fishing for crabs. Men who follow this fishery for a livelihood use trawl lines and dredges. Sometimes the crabs are caught in large numbers and the market price drops very low, but generally the price is fair. There has been quite a demand upon the Commission recently to stock certain waters on the north side. Through requests from applicants, Flushing Bay has been stocked with fry, eggs and adults. Persons having boats to hire this summer could not supply the demand. People came out from the city by trolley and train to go crabbing on the bay. Huntington Harbor and Cold Spring Harbor were also plentifully stocked last summer. The water supply was about the same as usual. No change is noticeable in the flow from the wells or springs. A small building containing a large ice chest has been erected to keep fish food. The ice house has been taken down and will be rebuilt, with the same lumber in time for the ice crop this winter. The grounds have been in fine condition, and have attracted numerous visitors. Reported by Charles H. Walters, Foreman, Cold Spring Harbor, N. Y. DELAWARE STATION The output for the year was not quite as large as in 1912, which is due to the loss in one lot of brook trout eggs after they were received at the hatchery in the eyed stage. I think they were injured in transportation, as some of the trays when unpacked were found to be bunched together badly. Owing to this there were more cripples and weak trout after hatching than usual. |