Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1919-11-08
|SHAD IN DELAWARE
DIE, EXPERT SAYS
Polluted Waters Make 1t Impos-
sibIe for Eggs to Be
Hatched
REASON FOR BIG SCARCITY

Photographs illustrating this article np.
\ pear on the back page
Waters of the Delaware river have
become SO polluted that it is impossible
20 hatch shad eggs IN them. and ehnd
are becoming scarccr every year IN this
section.
Next year. for. the first time. the
state fish hatchery at Torrcsdalr. the
only hatchery in the state that handles
shad, will obtain its suppl! of eggs
from the Norris river.
j. X. Berkhous. superintendent Of
the TOrresdale state hatchery. OK
planned the situation:
The entire. northeastern par Of the
state is drained into the Delaware
river he said. "Aud besides that,
there is the sulphur water from the
hard coal mines and the dye and oil
from factories and boats on the river.
IAN OF these things are poisonous.
TO flsh. They are particularly dctri-
mental to the raising Of shad. which
cannot live as long a> in pure water
and 1t has grown difficult to obtain
eggs from the Delaware river fish.
When we do get the eggs. we have to-
use we'll or spring water to hatch
them in. as the river water is too
polluted.
Explains Fish Raising
Walking through the hatchery. Mr..
Berkhous explained the process of rails -
ing fish.
= - 'Shad. for many years. have been
most popular of edible fish in Penn
vania, he said. ''uud for fifteen
N'rs the Torresdalc hatchery hu- made
Especially of them, because il wns
'@on a tidewater stream.
Early in tn" spring each year the
4 eggs are taken from the roe Shad by
fishermen on the Delaware. between
Philadelphia and Trenton. Some of the
fish are caught in gill nets and some
in shore seincs.
1.-THE gill net fishermen have been
educated in the handling OF the eggs.
SO they take them from the roc Shad
before or soon after the fish * dead,
then fertilizc them till the eggs can be
turned over to the hatchery.
"The state has shore seine men
placed to look after the fish caught in
the seines So the eggs can bp taken as
soon as the fish are brought to shore.
After the eggs are taken from the
roe shad they are fcrtilizcd with melt,
and then they are put through the
process of hardening in frequently
snged water. Then they are held in
9 till they. can be placed in the
Ning jars.
Ar Berkhous pointed to long rows
,ss jars through which trickled
water automatically pumped from II
deep well. "These are the Matching
jars, he said.
The Matching Process
THE incubation Of the shad depends
entirely on the temperature Of the
water 1t may take twenty four hours
to three days for the fish to hatch. As
they hatch they are carried out of the
Jar in the overflow water. on into the
fry tanks. There they remain for seven
to ten days while they absorb their food
sacks. After that they are ready to
be put in the shapping cans and planted
in the upper waters of the Delaware.
''In the old days when the fish were
I'm inch or SO long they We're placed in
the streams to be stocked. Now we give
them their start in life ut the hatchery
and don't place them in the river till
they are a good size. II gives them Il
better chance to live. and the sports
/ man doesn't have to wait 50 long before
The can take them with hook and rod.
"There arc dozens Of ponds on the
hatchery grounds where the fish spend
their 'childhood.' Last year we planted
about a million and II half shad. That
is small number compared to ten or
twelve years ago. when We annually
planted about - 900 900.
Other Varieties Raised
Though shad are most popular, other
varieties of fish are raised at the Tor
resdale hatchery. Susquehanna salmon.
yellow perch and catfish are hatched by
the same process as Shad. Yet the find
ing of the eggs and the nature of the
fish all vary Mr.. Berkhous knows their
natures as a mother knows the eCccn
tricities of her children.
His four year old daughter, Donna
Berkhous. is far more interested in the
development of the goldfish and frogs
She haunts the tadpole pond each day
ard when visitors come she pulls fat
tadDoles from their haunts and explains
in baby voice all about how the tails
disappear and the legs grow As Mr.,
Frogs voice develops.
.'Can you imagine having 100000
frogs in your back yard in Springtime?'
asked Berhous with II smile. They
beat any orchestra. Last year we placed
about 10000 bullfros in rivers. They
were the big. edible kind. The goldfish
we raise mostly for schools and public
institutions. Our total output OF fish
last year was l31 .623 $50. "