The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1890-12-04
A FLOCK OF CHINESE
Pheasants Imported by a VAN
couver Game Association.
RETURN OF SALMON TO THE SEA.
After Spawning They Move Swiftly Down
to the Ocean. and Few Are Taken
by Fishermen.

80 tective Association
AS@ came to hand by the
WV Parthia q few days
" ago. writes Charles. z. Tisdale. of
n Vancouver, B. c.. TO Forest and
~ Stream We have sent them TO
No Magee'e farm, about five miles
N distance from the city. They VIII
~ be kept in pen for few days TO
" recover from the voyage, and then
turned loose. They arrived in
splendid condition. and while November
may not seem the best month to turn them
down. we had to take them when we could
get them. The weather is fine, and We have
had no frost yet, so they will have good
chance of looking around their new home
before winter sets in. There will be large
lot on the Batavia in fortnight's time,
and these will be turned out on different
parts of the mainland.
The following interesting and important
letter Of Mr.. Thomas Mowat, dated New
Westminster, B. c., September 6, lf9o, was
addressed to Jud ge James g. swan, III reply
to an inquiry concerning the return oil
Pacific salmon to sea after spawning.
Judge swan forwarded the letter to Colonel
Marshall Mcdonald. United States COM
missioner Of fish and fsheries, to whom
Forest and Stream. is indebted lor the oppor-
tunity of reproducing it:
have much pleasure in informing you that
have proof without doubt tina the 0acorhyn-
ehus or Pacific salmon, do in many cases return
to fresh wat IN ualiy, fr the purpose OF re-
producing their sp cies. have prolf Of this
I'm the Case OF the quinnat lOncorhyachns
chouichoJ and socseyc 20 nerka), and am~cen.
fidenf, from observations that / have made,
that the coho,s tOncorhynchus hsutchi do return
in larger numbers than Inse first mentioned
During the seasons of 1884, 1885 and 1886 made
use of the leather or harnessmakers punch TO
mark the quinnat salmon after they had been
partial stripped of their eggs, and were
obliged to be returned to the pens. The ma K
inR was done by pu ching one or more holes
through the adipose dor.al fin and then passing
piece of colored cloth or Irvine through the
hole, so as to distinguish them from the
fish that had not been handled Some
times we cut portion or the whole
of this fin OF, ana these fish were returned to
the water after We had finished stripping them.
Two successive years later few OF the FISH so
marked passed through our hands and were
recognized, and learned that some had been
taken by the meters 1t must be understood
thst the strings were not left on the hsn. The
fin was found to be withered somewhat, with
OF 1887 we have been operating on the sockeye,
and, as / have already described. some of these
were marked in SIMILAR way; bat owing TO
having 90 many in the pens we had to keep
different marks on them, 50 that the tails OF
some were bent or doubled up and a v-shaped
mannsr were taken by meters this season and
sent to me One so marked was shown to the
editor Of the Columbian at my Office, hence the
report
My contention has always BEEN that at least
four species Of our salmon return 70 the rivers
to reproduce, the fourth, including those
alluded to, 10 the steelhead. Of which none die
except by accident. Ny opinion 10 that rs per
cent. of the quinnat salmon survive that ascend
from seventy eve 70 100 miles inland; those that
ascend from 100 to 1000 miles, or reach
the summit of the Rocky mountains are re-
auced from vari Us causes down TO from to IS
per cent. The percentage OF the sockeyes that
survive is slightly under that OF the quinnat,
while that OF the cohoes is very large, as they
do not ascend so far inland and have better
chance TO return. The qualla and humpbacks
die In large numbers, as they are more pugns.
cious, spawn in shallow water and are more liza
BILE TO disease.
quite agree with you - to the views held in
reference to the salmon returning; they no
doubt descend very rapidly and either in the
deep water in the center of the streams or along
contact with nets have on several occasions
noticed the spent sockeye salmon swimming
down this river (Frszer) toward the gulf, and
have been informed by the meters that they
have taken them; but of course therefs not the
same chance of capturing them on their return
70 the ocean. THOMAS MowAT.
The qualla referred to in the above COM
munication Forest aud Stream supposes
must be the dog salmon tOaooyhy,chus
Eetal, and the humpback is the D. goytuscha
The sieelhead salmon. of course, is really
not a species of OncOyhyIschuS, but belongs
10 the geus Saline. and has very different
habits from the species of Oncorhynchps
Ii spawns in the spring, and l. found IN
the rivers spent before the Orsc0rhynchi are
ready TO spawn. The question OF The re-
turn of the Pacific salmon to the sea after
spawning is very important one. and
worthy OF much more extensive investiga.
ton than ii has yet received. We have
never quite believed that the quinnat and
red salmon (Oncoyhynchus choticAa and O.
nerkdl all die alter spawning, as stated by
some very good authorities, and vet this is
merely a matter Of belief, and NAV not be
warranted by the facts in the case. We
have seen the mending dog salmon 90
kesa) in fresh water near the sea: we have
also observed the apparently complete an
Inhalation of the humpbacks after spawn.
ing. although not more than few Yards
from salt water. What Is needed in the
case OF the quinnat, red salmon and silver
salmon is observation of the streams which
they ascend for the purpose of spawning
continued until the FISH descend to the
sea. In this way only can the problem be
soived.l