The daily morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven, Conn.) 1894-1907, 1902-11-15
A CURIOUS PROCESS.
STRIPPING SALMON OF THEIR
EGGS

At Fish Hateheries-After the OpeTa-
ion the Big Fish Are Placed
Back In ths Water None the Worse
For Their Experience Out of Their
Natural Element.
There are two methods which are
employed by fish culturists to propa-
gate food and game fish. One is to
catch the young fish, the fry, and
transport them to other waters where
it is desired to introduce them. The
other is to strip the female fish Of her
eggs and to impregnate them artifi-
cially.
All the attempts that have been
| made to propagate black bass by strip
ping the female Of their eggs have
been failures so far, and the only
method that can be applied to them is
to catch the fry and nurse them till
they are strong enough to be liberated.
Other fish, notably the shad and the
salmon, are readily stripped, and the
results are wonderful, as the percen-
tage of eggs that fail to hatch is ex-
ceedingly small.
Were either fry or eggs left to ma
ture only an excessively small proper
ton would grow into adult fishhood.
Apart from those which would die nat
urally tremendous quantity would
fal prey to the host of enenies-in-
sects, crustacea, fish, birds and man.
mals-that is waiting for the spawn or
the tiny fish.
Any one who has handled fish fresh
ly caught knows how relicate they APP
pear to be and how quickly they die af-
ter leaving the water. Yet the experts
in the service of the various state and
of the United States fish commissions
handle millions of the most sensitive
food and game fish every year, and few
of them die from the process.
The process of handling female
salmon that is heavy with spawn
which it is desired to take from her is
a decidedly interesting and extremely
simple one and may be explained SO as
to be readily understood. First the
fish are led to swim into a confined
| space where they can be reached with
the landing net. The manipulation OK
this dip not alone requires no mean
skill. 1t must not bruise the founder
ing fish and must lift the creature in
such a way that 1t does not scrape the
| scales from it's, sides as it struggles.
| Wherever a scale is torn from a fish,
particularly in fresh water, fungus Is
almost certain to form, and that is gen.
orally fatal.
After the fish is in the net the latter
| Is lifted carefully, and the operators
hand slides downward, gently but firm
ly, till it grasps the body Immediately
above the tail. Then he draws the fish
from the net and holds 1t head down
ward That serves to show at once
whether the fish is "ripe"-that Is,
| whether the eggs have reached that
stage of development which permits of
stripping. If the fish is perfectly ripe,
the eggs sink toward the head.
| If the fish is found satisfactory, the
operator places g. pan between his legs
and holds the fish firmly in his arm.
With the right hand he encircles the
| salmon Just back Of the gills and,
squeezing the fish gently, slides the
hand down toward the tail. when the
eggs spout into the pan. They are hard
then and rattle into the receptacle like
peas Later, after they have been in
the Matching frames for time, they
get larger and softer, having absorbed
much water.
After the eggs have been drawn from
the female fish she is placed back into
the water, none the worse for her trials.
Then the miTt from ripe male fish is
pressed into the pan in the same way,
and the impregnated eggs are ready to
| be Matched.
/ Under favorable conditions 80 days
| is the period of incubation for the
grand landlocked salmon. one of the
| finest game fishes in the world and
hardly inferior to any as good fish.
The first sign of life in the eggs Is the
formation Of little clot, generally red
or pink, which increases with remark
able rapidity, until in few days the
complete form of little fish Is plain
to the eye.
But it is rather hideous little mon
ster that wriggles out of the egg finally.
1t resembles a fish only because 1t
]
it looks more like fevered dream af-
ter too much broiled lobster or Welsh
rabbit 1t is a transparent body, with
a globular swelling wher its fine. fish
like lines ought to be, aud its eyes are
immense goggles Then the fish wise
men watch the things most care
fully.
This is critical period of the young
things growth, and fall or rise of a
degree in the temperature of the water
may mean death to millions of salmon.
Generally men remain on guard night
and day in the big hatcheries to watch
| their charges at this time. If they pull
| through, it is beautiful to see the sue
cessive changes as the tiny swimmers
cast off their hideous appendages and
| turn into dainty, slender, silvery crea-
lures that dart through the water like
bubbles of air and form in thick
swarms in the corners of the tanks,