THE SALMON BREEDING PONDS AT STORMONTFIELD.

Otago Witness, Issue 847, 22 February 1868, Page 5

THE SALMON BREEDING PONDS AT STORMONTFIELD.

:/_'-, ; (From! the. Farmer.-) ••■•>. ; Having, eighteen' months ago; ,'gratified' our classical and'^piscicullufar'tastes^'by ; f vifiiting Lake FuEaro, ' ion of virgil^ now' 'tr^sfprmedjintp ' ii§ racene of" 1 a singmar .. } by3ter-bre'edmg o "iii^ :'<diwtry, we gladly "availed^ puraelyea -pf . a Jiecent ,iqpportujuty^!oj r Ven'e.wipg, QW^ack s[U&intance witlr^gcbttisk enterprise' of ';jrliioh.. > 'tlie • woridt/Jhaal JteardHSntiolxij -.arid' ' ;%hioh : - deserves .'toobe^et^moxe^ widely „vfciowa ■ and imitate&^we'f'aUtfde^o ; tlie Viuftifioial rearing- '61 ValMßi^aV ; Stbrmont-' v .t-jUtr? J*.~j*>™ &-*;>* at- tVf. tdms*o£.Vhe Wiish. pAisaOciation, imßibe'df WW^'iK^cipce ,'as, capable^of vkc^j/'fsigi'aajv.^aa' a | r 4ue ; j, share;. of' J^tEe^ y^qrg4ture 'comforts, on us b"f.^iKe ,Wpj£ab'le i cii'izenS[ |,o!;l>undee, ive .w^e atcaKisa t caKis pnftu/deoi'de |# t |(s^hicn of ■yie, 7 e.^9nrsi6ns l is]ioiild'irel^f&tjbr.inind'. anfti[b:o'dy)ii .Batiated r irwitb T Mi'Mlbsoptyv andfidce'asting.pr'JWet'-fised^on' pJja^tolPerth, SfobhaUpScdne^P^lace'fand i^naohtfield; '.^iniU&nl ,ta«)fijx!y«nc 'nti for .xisfoat^t'drmWtfi^ldipon'ds; assa#6und seyefeo'fl'thl^rurcipal^rb- 1 ' MetprV of-Ztie-.^ay^fiW^alo^ig %m pho^elklmovm *. cols|ry|tp;i '^'ttEeJTay, , M£p''B!qfeert Buißt^^n^Jmr j^o^a^'^h^se Pexcelleut^little Book'on < salmon-f earing x at |St6rmontfield de^e^earthe^aijteELtionpf , all !|imd -the rssultr '^.ter.estipg ' and

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important" experiment in fishVculture. v As, a sp'epirh'en of -Mr'Br'Pwn's Vsuccess as,' ap, experimeritarnaiuralikt, we may inention'exhibited' a hybrid betwen 'a'seatro'jdt' and 'a is^alinon^-' of 'which, he kindly offered' jus 1 Hying' specimens. ' Among' the' tfdtables^" especial mention must be' made ..of "'Peteivof the" Pools," otherwise Peter Mlapkeiazie',! • wfiose , practical/acquaintance" with 'the ' ; ways fishj 'jand whose assiduous /attention to the ,' swarming 'myriads of yodrig salmon in tKe L . ponds ?and. breeding I ; b'ox~es, have largely contributed, to the success of, the operations , at Stormpntfield. ' ' : Peter/ is >an ' excellent, specimen'of ,a Scottish river fisherman ; a kihd.of man' rather apt' to be, over fond of 'whisky ; but marvellously enthusiastic often as an; angler, and so thoro.ugh.ly acquainted T?ith the river that he knows all the resting-places of the salmon—so much so. thai he will at once conduct a stranger to one of them, with the remark "There," "nbo,'if ye dinna see a least there- ye'lT no se'e'Mm the'day.";;.', v - i> ■ )_ ,

„ ' In the Rev. Dr Esdaile's " Contributions to. Natural- History" it is -stated, "the ova of 'fish. ; are exceedingly hard and toughj aiidlgo" elastic as to rebound from the floor, like' an india-rubber ball — a beautiful' provision .of 'nature to prevent .them " being crushed or injured by, the , stones, amongst~which they "are' deposited., j 'Tlus i(i , elastic '. 'toughness facilitates ' the transport of fish ova' for the purposes, of pisciculture. ; aridLexperience lias demonstrated that they can be v safely ■ transported, hundreds of miles, 1 eith/er by land orVater/if. carefully, packed in. layers, of moist moss, or of rough sponge, the size of a' o wa]i.iit; and well cleaned. ' The boxes .of, ova sent- to London from the famous, fish-rearing' .establishment ( of^lluningue ; .usually r occupy 'from two to four "days in ■the transit, "which is' Safely effected, inconsequence of the French pisciculturists, insisting the 'observation of this simple .rule :, never attempt the removal of ova till the eyes of the fish are plainly seen in" the egg., The ( expense \of collecting ( and removing ova is trifling.'' : Superintendent of Messrs , Ashwo'rfh's v Irish" fishings collecj«d,and, (removed. 770,000 sahnah. ,ova in ( the' streams ' r of Lough Mask',- besides convoy in gf 'alive ' 40 ' adult ,. salmon, a distance, of -SSJmneiriri 'a large tub, of "water.' , The | cost of 'this' very laborious-looking operation" was ' only L 18 ;' in addition to the' jweekly- ( vages ,o, of '[ water-bailiff ( and 'w r ofkmen t " r ,,' i '-] V - ( '' The,^reeding; toxes, ; which "'• fortunately "are inexpensiye*'alsb.,' 'afe-'Jpf these, dimensions,* ihsicte'meas'u'rement— sftiO£in long, -l^ft broad, and lfV deep, 'and are /formed of <2iri wo,od. }'?' ' ' „ ' '/, ' ' r _ „ There^are^.l2 boxes in each row 'and 30 "rows iii allied that; there', 'are, 36o 'bpxes,' filled with gravel an'd|sina'll stones to ,the depth of . 6 . inches,' among which the ova 'are deposited. "' Yivification is effected in from, 90 to, 120 day's, according to thetem■perature^pf, the" water- and the season. ' In. the. artificial breeding ponds of France the oya"^com_e>into life in ,60 daysj : whereas. in/ • the earliest' have not" appeared, till- 120 days; i ''J& "J \ ;' "•*■;.' /' •, , -.; ' At' Stormohtfield the boxes', are placed in ' double I 'rowS] with I ' 'a .18^ inches wide," between'. each 1 double row. '-'The wafer.,, passes' ;_ through? '-each ■ row ' of frohi'the" canal stretohing along the upper end/of, the pond' by gravitation, this .canal being fed with 1 water from the filteringcbed— a important part of" the -, arraAgements— indispensable, in fact, in' order to'prev'ent the introduction of. trout ova^irijurious insects, and plants,' which 'are apt;to choke tip the boxes, with fungus growths'^very pernicious to, the 'ova:- 1 '- 11 -,--" . "' . .'' , ' ' r ' '', The '.boxes are 1 laid ( with a fall of -two inches on each box, or 2ft. on the'row of 12 boxes, and the' water 'passes from box to 'box by openings or notches 4in. by 2in., ] in '^the/, middle .of the. divisions between the boxes, „-c !/' (r( r "r," r , '\'".\" ' '»„ '//,'•. I-'. ;As'-a'guide"'Wthose I; meditating pisciculture, 10 the" 'following j table-: of . dimensions : will be' useful :— , *'], ,:.' y ;,{,.■, v, .«j \ ' ",!''"' i ;" )) f < , ■• "S" , m.i -Acres ilmp.. ' -& ."Area of 'filtering pond ,\ .....: .042 „ t: !l Breeding/boxes.; ' '.'„/,'. 118 . ".'/ Old feeding pond ".'....'. .'.'.371.',' '■' = 5i1 ;" Few; feeding pond 1 ...']..'.. L .1./.7. J .s(&> : ' c- 1 ' "Often .canals K::'K..!: '.'.'. :..;.?; 023 ' '.' -^ r^. :••.<> . j ; , 7 ,-. ' „?., -', ( r i > ■■ > -.-f; ■ ,//'" '•' r> : , Total area'under' water... l._li9 „-.<"• 111 Eyeryihi^ is : suitable -excep^'tne'sciile' " f on;w,h;ch pperatiohs/ are-carried r ph/ With -the^designti of '^adding "greatly 1 to ""the salmon produce' of the most suitable river in the-'kingdom,' 1 it' is absuf'd'to 'devote 'tb subh'a purpose little more jhan'an acre' of : water, and to be satisfied with tearing some -300,000 young salriion'every'year. ; As"only :abPut^h'e''h"afi ithjßse'ras'sume the'. 1 smolt aspect, tb'' the s^a at,.the"end '"of^twelve littd^ths'j 1 whence 1 they^ begin to return 'aftpr^ix weeks as grflses^the effect .iippnjthe '"entire 'jp'fbduce of" the river 'is Comparatively [trifling. ii: " And' yet,' y 66m-.blned,-no dotibfc| J -with 6'tKe'r favoring ,cir4 cumstances',w the 1 result, ' jn'''a" pecuniary view, ; -ia ; aaton ishin'g.'"' ; The shortening of -fishing,' season, "and' the,'.' commence 1 anenirofathe- Storinbntfisld ' ope'ratibris^' .qccurred'ih 1853.* year the'tevenue

of.the-Tay ;was L 9269.- ,:"This~yeaa: it is ' nearly L' 18,000 .. '.'..'/.'.' '7 ' ' ;j ' „One,of the, diificulties^ experienced, at Sftprmontfield w.as, to di^epver a certain means of so marking .the, pond fish that they shall be recognised when caught. . In "Contributions'to Natural History," itis stated that " the first expedient, that of cutting , off the dead or second dorsal fin,, has. alone been, found satisfactory.; A ]?rench naturalist^haa hit on the ingenious expedient of introducing madder into the fpodpf salmon 'fry.i,. Their bones being colored by it, they are certainly recognised as artificially rearedfish." ' „ DrEsdaile here , alludes to M. Millet, who has devoted great attention to pisciculture, and ( whose researches, on, -the thermometricarconditions.of, water, .are of the .highest importance ,inthe rearing of fish. He conceived the ingenious • expedient of mixing powdered madder in the food of salmon fry.' '.This .substance. colouring their ' bones, yellowish/red, it .became easy to recognise the fish on which uhe had experimented. Without mutilating- the little fish, or encumbering them with rings of silver ,or copper wire, or ; guita r percha, as in 'this country, M.. Millet, has demonstrated that a ypung salmon", of -60 to ,80 , grammes, on , its descent to the sea, weighs severaL kilogrammes on its' t return to the fresh water ■withinia few months.';" ' '■ . If some one ,will suggest • other kinds of safe colouring matter, they may be used in feeding the salmon, fry of different rivers ; 'and thus we shall .be able to throw still more ) light on the migratory Kabits of salmon.. /As this suggestion opens up a wide,, field of interesting re'Bearch, we hope ;l it will, be adopted ; and ■we venture to' express the , expectation ■that thope adopting it will •be pleased to publish the result. It will be both curious and practically useful if we can thus indicate,' by the 'different colors of their bones, the various' river3, in which salmon have been Wed. ' To make them, self-registrars of their birthplace will also be agreeable to l those who eat them, because, if (►happening to" prefer. ( the^.,Tay "salmon -to, that of the Tweed, they may have a ' guarantee, better' than a/fishmonger's word, , that this ' preference has' been gratified., ,c, c Jp^tead' "of being dependent on.ielWtant'and, la^y fishermen .for information .regarding . ,the migrations of salmon, "every /grilse and salmon eat'en at our .tables may supply us with new facts iii the natural history of