The Idaho Republican. [volume] (Blackfoot, Idaho) 1904-1932, 1923-07-12

get thinned out at best, for every
fisherman is ambitious to catch the
big fish, and it is only the adult
trout that spawn. Rainbow trout do
their first spawning at the ages of
three, four and five years. About
half of them breed at the age of
the third season, seventy-five per
cent of them breed at four years of
age, and most of the bachelors and
spinisters join the benedicts by the
fifth year.
Mr.. Isaac says they have about
fifteen thousand dollars worth of
breeding stock at the Ashton hatch
, cry, and tourists and others keep
coming to look and trying to buy
or in some way become the possess
ors of a large fish now and again.
They offer various inducements to
get big trout, not realizing that dis
posing of the large parent stock
would be a great loss to the state
because of the vast number of eggs
layed by the old ones. The big par
ent fish are the working capital of
the department, and requests for
favors have to be turned down with
out consideration If the hatchery is
to succeed
In earlier years, shipments of min
nows were sometimes taken to a
town on request, and on arrival with
them, they would find that nobody
was there to take them out to the
streams to plant them. Sometimes
the men in charge of the shipment
would have to work for hours to
keep them alive while local men
inn Nv - IL
In some instances they have been
taken out and poured into insult
able places where the water was
warm or muddy at times, and few
of them lived The commissioner
has learned that minnows are too
precious to be handled in such man
ner, and before shipments are made,
he must have assurance that pro-
per place has been selected in which
to plant them, and that when the
train arrives at the station, there
will be local committee on hand
to work fast in making delivery.
The Blackfoot sportsmen have de-
cided to concentrate their efforts on
Brush creek because of its size, it's
cold water and the natural fish food
along its course. They have to show
to show the state
what they have done with their min
nows, and IL In three or four years
they cannot show good fishing
grounds with schools of fish of uni
'orm size, in healthy condition the
ocality is discredited. and does not
get the chance to misplace more
ninnows. The locality that shows
interest and that shows results thru
,ut the years is the locality that is
most likely to get minnows
The Firth Commercial club has y
been active in these matters and
ent men out to study the streams
n the adjacent mountains and report
lpon them. Blackfoot and Firth
re talking of combining their eff
Orts in these matters to make fine
shing on all the streams that are
uitable in the tributaries of the
'lackfoot, and may not confine their
forts to individuals going out look
1g, but organize large parties to
o out and study these resources
nd plan the roads with a view of
mailing people to reach the great
leasure grounds that are being de-
eloped now and which may be de-
eloped in future years by the plant
lg of fish. MinnOws can be planted
lis year where roads may not be
uilt for several years to come, but
the meantime, the trout can grow,
ndisturbed, and to have these things
omlng along in their logical order
the work of empire builders-the
embers of the commercial clubs
ID sportsmen's associations.