Evening star., 1919-08-01
UNTOWARD RESULTS
Of FISH PLANTING
Wrong Species Often Put in
Waters Where Hostility
May Ensue.

high cost of living is not. the federal
government, as we'll as the states, Is
turning to fish cultivation as a food
source" says bulletin from the Ma
tional Geographic Society.
"'Be careful where you plant fish,
is. in effect, a warning sounded by
Hugh M. Smith. an eminent authority.
who points out that the fish Of the
deep are as predatory as the birds Of
| the air, and just as jealous of their
normal habitats.
There are tares and weeds among
fish. he indicates, which make their
lpromiscuous sowing danger to the
| usual fish crop"
The bulletin quotes from a commu-
nication to the society by Mr. Smith,
as follows:
"The seemingly benign and benefi-
cent work of transplanting water ami
mails is not wholly free from possibly
harmful results. analogous to those
that have attended the transplantinG
of land animals, of which the rabbit
in Australia, the mongoose in Jamaica,
and the English sparrow and Norway
rat in America are well known ex-
amples.
Possibility for Bad Results.
"Even when such transplanting is
done advisedly and with circumspec-
tion, there is possibility of untoward
results that will offset any benefits
that may accrue. Injury may arise
from a general disturbance OF the
balance of nature by the introduc-
ton of new factors into given waters,
or from the supplanting OF one KIND
of animal by another less desirable
The ignorance or indiscretion of pri-
vate persons who undertake to intro
duce new creatures into waters IN
which they are interested may pro
duce most disastrous effects. while IN
a few instances carelessness or mere
accident has had a far-reaching er-
feet.
"Great care has been exercised by
the federal fishery bureau In making
plants of non-indigenous nshes, anu
Injurious results chargeable to 1t
have been extremely rare; but eternal
vigilance is necessary, and many ap,
plicants for fish become disgruntled
because they are not permitted TO
have their own way. Fine trout
through the planting therein of bass,
or lakes stocked with some defense
| less valuable food fish may be de-
pleted by the thoughtless planting OF
some comparatively unimportant ra-
pactous species.
Demand for Black Bass.
Some of the states have been quick
! to recognize the necessity Tor re-
stricting the planting OF non-native
fishes, and have enacted laws prohib-
iting the introduction of any fish not
approved by the state authorities.
One Of the most persistent demands
on the United States bureau of fish
cries is for black bass to stock
$hof o1
an abundance of trout or salmon
Such practice is little short of crimi-
nal, and in all such cases where there
is reason to fear that valuable trout
waters may be ruined the bureau
takes the precaution to defer to the
Judgment Of the state fishery officers.
"One Of the most unfortunate In
stances Of the destruction of one spe-
cies by another is that of the gray
ling, superb food and game fish. of
vived some cosmic cataclysm and had
become established in regions as tso-
lated as Alaska, Montana and Mich
igan. In the 1ast-named state trout
were recklessly planted In some OF
the few streams inhabited by the
grayling has been completely exter-
minated therein. It is only in Tenny-
sons Brook" that
"TIere and there lusty trout
And here and there a grayling,'
live in harmony together.
Another untoward aspect Of the
acclimatizing of native fishes is the
annoyance or confusion which may
come to future students of geograph-
ical distribution and variation. A
phase of this work is seen in the
long-continued and wholesale plant
ing of shad from the Potomac, Sus-
quehanna and Delaware rivers in
practically every other stream on the
Atlantic coast. with the result that
whatever local varieties or races OF
shad may once have existed are now
no longer Recognizable"