The Louisiana Democrat. [volume] (Alexandria, La.) 1845-1918, 1895-08-07
BEARS THAT CATCH SALMON.
Easy Fishing and Good Fish In the TEEN.
ing Waters Of Alaska

Easy Fishing and Good Fish In the TEEN.
ing Waters Of Alaska
"Most bears catch fish if they
have a chance, " said DR.. Tarleton
Il. Bean, formerly icthyologist of
the United States fish commission
and now superintendent of the New
York aquarium, "but they don't all
have as easy fishing or us good fish
to eat as the bears in Alaska. There
the bears catch salmon. In the
spawning season tho fish are SO thick
in the streams that tho bear has sim
ply to stand on the bank and pick
out the fish he wants. The salmon
run up tho rivers from the ocean.
Some great streams they follow for
hundreds Of miles, seeking the head
waters. 1t is the common belief
that from these long journeys the
salmon never returns alive. Worn
and emaciated, often wounded by
contact with stones and roots in its
long and toilsome journey, it depos-
it's it's spawn and dies in its effort to
regain tho sea.
1.-THE salmon seek smaller streams
as we'll. On the island of Kadiak,
for instance, in the gulf of Alaska,
they run in great numbers up the
Karluk river, about 20 miles to its
source in Karluk lake, which is eight
miles long. three or four miles wide
and so deep that no line yet dropped
| in it has reached tho bottom. The
salmon spawn in the lake, in the
shallow places along the shore and
in the little streams tributary to it.
These little streams may be in some
places SO shallow rs to contain
scarcely enough water to float the
fish; it's back fin and the top of its
back may DO out of water. The
salmon Of the karluk river is the red
salmon, the great salmon of COM
mcrce. 1t attains longth of nearly
three feet and a weight of 10 to IL
pounds.
Various birds eat many of tho
smaller salmon, and small fishes of
other kinds eat many of the salmon
eggs. Tho bears eat the grown fish
as they pass up or down the stream
on the way to or from their spawn
ing places. The bear of Kadiak is
the grizzly. 1t may grow to weigh
1000 pounds or more, though that
would be one of unusual size. Four
hundred pounds would be. much
nearer the average weight. It is the
common habit of the bear in Alaska
to catch salmon. Every year when
tho salmon season begins, which is
in the summer, the bears 60 to the
streams to fish, and they fish all
through the season as long as the
fish continue to run.
1.-THE country around the Karluk
lake is wooded, the timber being
chiefly cottonwood. There are places
on tho river where there is tall grass,
perhaps six feet in height. 1t may
be that a grizzly will be seen coming
down out of the woods on all tours,
or you may see one, alarmed at
something while on its way to the
river, standing up in tho grass, its
head appearing above the top Of it.
1.-THE bear is good swimmer, but
he doesn't need to do any swimming
here. He stands with his hind feet
on tho bank and his fore feet in
shoal water and looks straight ahead.
The fish swim past in endless pro.
cession and close in to the banks,
looking for springs, little streams,
cool places where they like to de.
post their eggs. The bear looks
ahead intently. I have never stood
near enough to bear that was fish
ing to SEQ that he did so, but have
no doubt that he selects out of the
!. many constantly passing particu
, lar fish, one that pleases his fancy
He slaps the salmon out of the water
and UP on the bank and turns ant
eats it while it is still alive. Sh.
bears take their cubs to the rive
and feed them there on salmon ent
incidentally teach them to fish. -
) New York Sun.