GAPS IN FEDERAL FISHERY RESEARCH

The foregoing account of current fishery research activities might seem without further explanation to cover the field rather fully. The fact remains, however, that

1. In Alaska, where we have a great responsibility, only two of the five species of salmon, and the herring, are studied, leaving the important sablefish, clam, crab, and the minor fisheries untouched.

2. On Federal lands, like the national parks, national forests and Indian lands, waters under Federal jurisdiction have received very little attention, although many are subject to intensive angling.

3. Many important commercial and marine sport fisheries-the menhaden, the striped bass, lobsters, clams, sponges, for example-are receiving only token attention, if any, from fishery researchers.

4. The Gulf of Mexico fisheries, other than shrimp, subject as they are to recurrent "red tides" which kill millions, and to other influences of unknown origin, are little known with regard to their extent, abundance, or potential productivity.

DIVISION OF COMMERCIAL FISHERIES

The Division of Commercial Fisheries is concerned with the welfare of the commercial fisheries of the United States and its Territories. The facilities of this Division furnish the primary Federal source of industrial research and services to an industry producing more than 4,000,000,000 pounds of protein products annually and employing with its allied activities more than 500,000 people. These facilities include a limited number of laboratories and field offices in the most important fishery areas of the United States and its Territories and the trained personnel to staff them.

Our activities are of a wide variety, dealing with fisheries technology, marketing, statistics, economics, and education. Technological research and services are performed in the field of bacteriology, resulting in a more nutritious and wholesome product for the general public. Work in the refrigeration field provides for longer storage of fishery products, more efficient packages, and the increased use of fishery products in cold storage lockers. Research on the utilization of fishery wastes has demonstrated to the industry the profits available through the production of fishery byproducts. This research has also been directed toward the recovery of pharmaceuticals and chemicals from products normally discarded in industrial processes. In the field of fishery statistics, our data have assisted the industry in its development and in the orderly marketing of its fishery products for nearly seventy years. Although the functions of the Division in regard to fishery economics are quite limited, this work has been of major importance and benefit to the industry in providing much of the basic economic data needed in the drafting of international trade agreements and the establishment of tariff rates on fishery products.

In addition to the fishing industry, no less than 16 Federal agencies other than the Fish and Wildlife Service, as well as many State and municipal governments, find these data essential in their proper operation.

Although our activities have been somewhat curtailed during the current year as compared with previous years because of limited funds, our work still has covered a number of fields, as summarized in the following discussion. Technological research and services

In view of the critical world food situation, research on the nutritive values of fishery products for human and animal feeding has been emphasized, and the results made available to the industry to show how these values are best conserved in processing, storage, and cooking. This information provides a basis for making up balanced, economical diets for people and for animal feeding. The results are passed on to the housewife, home economist, dietitian, and grower of livestock and poultry. A greater appreciation of the value of fishery products in the human diet has been of particular advantage to the dietitian and housewife. From the industrial_standpoint, work done on the nutritive value of fishery products has shown fish meal and scrap to be highly nutritious feedstuffs rather than just fertilizer, and fish oils now are valuable dietary supplements in addition to being industrial raw materials. As a result of this knowledge, the livestock and poultry industries are using more than half of the weight of the fish caught in this country.

The development and testing of packages and packaging materials most suitable for refrigerated storage, shipment, and sale of fishery products constitutes one of our major technological research activities. The frozen storage characteristics of various varieties of fish and shellfish have been determined as a result of refrigeration studies, thus aiding the commercial freezer as well as the locker operator and home freezer in predicting the storage life of frozen fishery products. This enables the marketing of fishery products while still at their peak of quality.

Preliminary tests have shown that toughening and adverse flavor changes in frozen crabmeat can be retarded by proper preparation and packaging technique prior to freezing. Treatment of shucked oysters before packaging and freezing has been found to affect the amount of free liquor that forms in the oysters upon thawing. Frozen storage tests have been undertaken to determine the effect on quality of (1) immediate freezing, (2) freezing after several days of storage in ice, and (3) freezing, thawing, and refreezing of fillets.

Better holding and packaging of fishery products make possible the delivery of better products, which in turn will encourage wider consumer acceptance and command premium prices. Freezing permits storage during times of plenty for use in times of scarcity. Proper refrigeration and packaging permit much more extensive marketing of fresh and frozen fish in areas where these products previously were little used. Investigations dealing with the development of new wrapping and preservative materials are bringing an opportunity for betterment of refrigeration practices.

Research has been applied to the problem of adapting and modifying fish body oils so that they can be more widely used in paints, varnishes, linoleum, printing inks, plastics, waterproof finishes, and wherever the higher priced drying oils are now used. The value of fish oils used for such purposes can reasonably be expected to increase to a point more nearly in line with the price of linseed oil. When used as a drying oil, fish oil is no longer in competition with nondrying oils, such as cottonseed oil, coconut oil, and animal fats.

New sources of vitamin A liver oils are being sought. Information on the effects of processing, handling, and storage on the vitamin A content of fish livers and fish-liver oils is being obtained. Methods for insuring complete extraction of the vitamin are being devised. Standard analytical procedures are being developed so that sales, production, and dosage can be placed on a more exact basis.

As a result of such investigations, more economical use of our limited supplies of vitamin A is made possible and wastage is avoided in extraction and handling. With improved analytical methods, larger amounts of the livers containing low potency oils will be able to be marketed and consumers will have more sources of vitamin A for nutrition uses. The work on fish oils is being carried out in close cooperation with oil processors and use is already being made of the preliminary findings.

There has been a shortage of fish oil and meal since before the war.

Research is under way to obtain data which will be of value in helping to produce a greater yield and better quality of fish meal and oil from certain species of fish and from processing wastes, and for utilization of materials that are now being wasted. The rapidly growing demand by agriculture and industry for oil and fish meal causes such investigations to assume greater importance. Waste utilization produces much needed protein material. New engineering developments provide opportunities for improving the manufacturing methods which conserve the natural nutritional values which make these products so valuable. We are showing where the raw materials are located and how they should be treated for maximum utilization.

The improvement of sanitation is an important problem in all the fishery industries. Research has been accomplished on improved techniques for determining bacterial contaminatlon of fishery products, making possible more rapid methods for detecting the presence of certain types of bacteria. New applications of the science of bacteriology are being investigated and developed for use in the fisheries. Studies are being made of clam toxin, its distribution within the clam as well as in certain producing areas where the toxin is prevalent.

Improved fishery sanitation brings the consumer tastier and more wholesome products. Improved testing methods result in more accurate determinations of wholesomeness, which aids in safeguarding the public health.

Under contract sponsorship of the Industrial Research and Development Division, Office of Technical Services, Department of Commerce, research has been carried out in Fish and Wildlife Service laboratories on the possibility of utilizing to better advantage the Alaskan salmon cannery waste. It is estimated

that well in excess of 100,000,000 pounds of such waste is discarded annually, representing a huge loss in potentially valuable products. Our technologists have performed research on the processing of salmon waste for vitamin A oils, and have tested the feeding of salmon cannery waste to fish in fish hatcheries. Investigation regarding the production of isolated substances to be used in the pharmaceutical and chemical industries has been undertaken. Such products as amino acids, protein hydrolysates, fats, lipids, cholesterol, hormones, enzymes, and miscellaneous organic compounds are under consideration in this research. Work so far completed indicates that salmon waste when utilized to its fullest extent can be converted into several valuable products worth a considerable amount to the producer.

Statistical research and services

Our statistical research makes available information on the yield of the fisheries, employment in the industry, the quantity of gear operated, and the production of manufactured fishery commodities. This aid has been of great value to the industry in the development of our fisheries and has been of benefit in the orderly marketing of fishery products. The data currently compiled form a continuation of almost 70 years' statistical research by this Service and its predecessor organizations. In addition to its guidance to the industry, it has provided local, State, and Federal conservation agencies with basic information on which to promulgate regulations designed to protect and preserve our fishery resources.

A statistical continuity of more than 50 years has been maintained in the issuance of monthly reports on the activities of the fishing fleets operating from the principal New England ports. These data have provided industry with information on the rate of landings, catch on individual fishing banks, price fluctuations, etc., which have assisted in the production and marketing of fishery products. The statistics also have been the basis for important biological studies designed to conserve our important New England fisheries, which supply over 40 percent of the Nation's fresh and frozen fish. These data represent one of the most complete and continuous sets of fisheries records in the world.

To assist the Bureau of the Census in collecting data on the production and stocks of fish oils, we obtain current data from producers of fish and marine animal oils. The information is collected monthly by our Service and published by the Bureau of the Census for the guidance of producers, dealers, refiners, and consumers of oils.

Prior to 1943 the collection and tabulation of the cold-storage data was handled by the Department of Agriculture, and the data published by our Service. In that year, responsibility for the collection and tabulation of fishery cold-storage information was transferred to the Fish and Wildlife Service, permitting this activity to be conducted by trained fisheries personnel. The results of the collection and tabulation of the cold-storage data by our Service are released promptly in a cold-storage report on the 15th of each month. This bulletin is one of the best barometers of the condition of the fishery trade, and is used widely by both industry and Government for marketing guidance.

Market News Service

The Fishery Market News Service was started in February 1938 when its first field office was opened in New York City. This Service has since been expanded to as many as eight market news offices located in important fish producing and consuming cities. Because of a reduction in funds, only six of these offices remained operative during the current fiscal year. From each of these field offices daily reports are issued which include pertinent fishery marketing data and are disseminated by mail, telegram, telephone, radio, and the daily press. The total number of reports sent to the industry annually has now reached over 21⁄2 million and they are received by fishermen, wholesale dealers, retailers, Federal Government agencies, and State conservation departments, as well as by many industries closely related to the fisheries.

The Service has been developed to a point where its daily reports now include a wide range of current data on production, shipment, prices, in and out movements and holdings in cold storage, imports, receipts, and the pack of canned fish. Market News Reports were one of the fundamental instruments used in wartime control of the fisheries. They have been equally or even more valuable in guiding industry in its readjustment to peacetime operation. They are no less valuable in effecting orderly marketing and economy of operation in the present competitive era of fishery marketing.

The monthly publication entitled “Commercial Fisheries Review" is prepared and released by the Washington office of the Market News Service. This includes

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An experiment in wintering trout in ponds used for bass and bluegill production during the summer, has been conducted during the past winter at the Arcadia, R. I., station. Because of the extremely cold winter, these ponds are still frozen over at the time of preparing this report; so the results are unknown.

Unfortunately, work in the field of fishery nutrition has not kept pace with similar studies for warm-blooded animals. Only a few colleges and universities have facilities for the work, and few States have been able to undertake such research. The Service, in cooperation with the State of New York and Cornell University, has for the past 15 years conducted studies on fishery nutrition at the Federal fish-cultural station at Cortland, N. Y. In addition to the fundamental studies on trout requirements for proteins, fats, carbohydrates, minerals, and vitamins, diets are designed for use in hatcheries to achieve more economical production and a superior quality of fish. In conjunction with this program, Service personnel conduct a training program, as a result of which the new methods of fish culture and fishery management are applied throughout the country. Annually three or four employees from Federal hatcheries are sent to Cortland to receive this training. The period of training generally covers about 1 year. In cooperation with the conservation departments of the States of Minnesota, Wisconsin, Iowa, Illinois, and Missouri, a fishery survey of the upper Mississippi River was started in 1946. During 1947 an analysis was made of the information collected during the previous year. Arrangements are now being made for the crew of biologists to continue the survey during 1948. From the information secured, management plans for sports and commercial fisheries will be made and uniform fishing regulations will be formulated for the portion of the river surveyed. There is a tremendous demand for technical information on the propagation of bait minnows. In cooperation with the conservation departments of Michigan, Minnesota, and Wisconsin, experiments are being conducted in the propagation of bait minnows. A bulletin is being issued on the information now available on this subject. The experiments will be continued, and revisions necessary as the result of additional information secured will be made in the bulletin as time goes on. A program for the propagation of mussels was undertaken during the latter part of the year. The outline of the work to be conducted is as follows: 1. Surveys of rivers to determine the present population of mussels. 2. Surveys of rivers to locate suitable species of mussels for spawning. 3. Surveys of rivers to locate suitable planting areas.

4. Inoculation of fish with mussels.

Owing to various difficulties encountered, this program has not progressed so rapidly as expected. Headquarters for the work have been established on the Craborchard National Wildlife Refuge in southern Illinois. Equipment is being assembled and personnel are being employed to carry on the program actively at an early date. The activities at first will be conducted largely in the States of Illinois, Indiana, Arkansas, and Tennessee.

The map shows the location of the Federal hatcheries in operation.

RIVER BASIN STUDIES ACTIVITIES, FISCAL YEAR 1948 To Date

Projects for the development of hydroelectric power, storage of water for irrigation and flood control, and the canalization and impoundment of rivers for navigation and other purposes, which are proposed or under construction by the Corps of Engineers, Department of the Army, or the Bureau of Reclamation, Department of the Interior, are located in almost every section of the United States. In addition, a large number of water-use projects are being sponsored by other Federal agencies, or by public or private interests. These developments will have important effects on the fish and wildlife resources of the Nation. The nature and extent of this influence will depend upon the degree of success of the programs of these agencies and upon the contributions made by the Fish and Wildlife Service and by the State conservation departments.

In the past, many reservoirs constructed destroyed useful and valuable wildlife habitat and cold-water fishing without creating compensating values. It is the opinion of the Fish and Wildlife Service that at least some of the losses heretofore sustained were unnecessary. This state of affairs has alarmed the public about the current extensive development plans of Federal engineering agencies. Largely because of this apprehension, the amended Coordination Act (Public Law 732, 79th Cong.) was passed.

Public Law 732 maks it mandatory for the Fish and Wildlife Service to investigate all Federal water-utilization projects, and those of public or private agencies under Federal permit, to determine sources of damage to fish and wildlife resources, and to determine all possible means of preventing such damage and of