CONSERVATION OF WILDLIFE FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 17, 1944 HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES, Washington, D. C. (The committee met at 10 a. m., in room 448, House Office Building, Representative A. Willis Robertson (chairman) presiding. The CHAIRMAN. The committee will come to order. We are glad to welcome again the Director of the Fish and Wildlife Service, who will give us a report on the work of his Service for the past year and indicate his plans for a post-war program that I feel is going to mean much to the ten or eleven million men who we hope will soon be back from the business of winning a great victory for us on foreign battlefields and who are richly entitled, not only to our thanks but to our best efforts in getting them reestablished in a happy civilian status. All members of this committee know the truth of the biblical statement that man doth not live by bread alone. We have been working for months on the problem of post-war jobs for those in the military service. Those of us who love the out-of-doors and who know from personal experience the peace of mind that comes from a communion with Nature in her various forms realize that the best contribution that we can make to many men who have passed through terrible experiences will be opportunities to get into the open, to find there an abundance of all types of wildlife, and to engage, if you please, in their favorite sport, whether it be hunting or fishing or merely photographing unusual specimens of wildlife. Before I ask Dr. Gabrielson to commence his testimony, I want to thank him on behalf of this committee for the splendid job that he has done ever since he has headed up this important service of the Government and to let him know that this committee is behind him 100 percent in his efforts to repair the waste of the past in the matter of renewable natural resources, and to make of this great country of ours a cleaner, greener land. Dr. Gabrielson has prepared a formal statement of considerable length covering in detail the operations of his service, and I will ask him to present to us, first, that detailed statement, and then in view of the fact that it covers so many things that we cannot readily follow and remember, I will ask him to follow that detailed statement with a summary in his own words of what he considers to be the outstanding features of his report. When Dr. Gabrielson has completed his statement and his summary of that statement, I will be glad if the members of the committee will ask him such questions as they wish concerning the phases of the work in which they may be particularly interested. 1 STATEMENT OF DR. IRA N. GABRIELSON, DIRECTOR, FISH AND WILDLIFE SERVICE, ACCOMPANIED BY FREDERICK C. LINCOLN, IN CHARGE OF MIGRATORY BIRD INVESTIGATIONS, DIVISION OF WILDLIFE RESEARCH, AND DR. H. J. DEASON, SPECIAL ASSISTANT TO THE DIRECTOR, FISH AND WILDLIFE SERVICE Dr. GABRIELSON. Mr. Chairman, I offer the formal statement for your consideration at this time. (The statement referred to is as follows:) THE FISH AND WILDLIFE SERVICE The Nation's wildlife resources-from deer to rabbits and from whales to sardines are helping to win the war by furnishing food, furs, feathers, vitamins, essential industrial oils, and glycerin, as well as providing relaxing recreation for war workers. When war broke out the Fish and Wildlife Service realined its work program so as to stress activities which were capable of making direct contributions to the national war program. Some of these, for example, are Service personnel, utilizing their technical skills and specialized knowledge, instructed the military services in methods of controlling destructive and disease-carrying rodents in Army encampments; provided information of strategic importance about certain remote outposts little known except for the explorations of Service naturalists; made studies of furs and fur fibers for war use; and evaluated and surveyed lands to be purchased for war purposes by the Navy Department. Of outstanding importance again during the past fiscal year was the effort to make the Nation's fisheries available in the most effective way possible for meeting domestic needs and at the same time permitting exports to our allies. FISHERY ACTIVITIES War gave new twists to fishery activities. It created a multitude of new problems, and increasing dependence was placed by the fishing industry upon data collected by the Service for their solution. The technical, economic, and statistical aid rendered by the Fish and Wildlife Service to the country's fishery industries in order to assist them in meeting their war problems and food quotas required was, primarily, a continued expansion of peacetime duties and the concentration of personnel and existing facilities. These additional technological investigations, economic studies, and statistical surveys have frequently resulted in achievements and accumulation of data which give much promise for the welfare of the post-war fishery industries through improved products, better marketing methods, and increased knowledge of current industry activities. A survey of the financial condition of fishery cooperatives was made during the past year for a report to the Ways and Means Committee of the House of Representatives on a bill which provides for the exemption of cooperatives from certain taxes. The material collected will be the basis for future studies on cooperatives, a type of fishermen's association which will be of increasing importance in the post-war period. Total production by all fisheries in 1943 was 4,048,294,000 pounds, for which fishermen received an estimated $180,000,000. The collection and publication of information relating to the quantity and value of the commercial catch of fishery products in the United States, the employment of fishermen, shore workers, fishing craft and gear in the industry, and the production of manufactured fishery products was continued during the year although somewhat curtailed because of the shortage of personnel. In cooperation with the Service's Division of Fishery Biology and the Massachusetts Division of Marine Fisheries, the collection of current statistics on landings by fishing craft at New Bedford was begun. Records were obtained on landings for both 1942 and 1943, and the data were tabulated and published in monthly and annual bulletins. Data on current landings are now being collected and published each month. The collection and publication of data on landings of fishery products at New Jersey ports was undertaken during the year and arrangements were made to obtain and release similar information on landings at ports on Long Island, N. Y. A cooperative plan was entered into with the Maryland Department of Tidewater Fisheries and the Department of Research and Education for the collection and tabulation of individual catch records on the fish and shellfish taken by certain types of inshore fishing gear. The Fishery Market News Service, which assists the orderly marketing of fresh, frozen, and cured fishery products by disseminating to fishermen, shippers, wholesalers, buyers, and consumers, current information on production, shipments, prices, supply, and demand, issued daily and monthly reports during the entire fiscal year. Field offices were maintained at New York, Boston, Chicago, Seattle, and New Orleans. In addition to the supply and demand data in the daily reports and monthly summaries, the market reports reprinted, in full or in condensed form, all Federal orders which affected fishery production, marketing, or supply. The inclusion of these regulations, immediately upon issuance, provided the only current source of such information to the fishery industries. Fishery Market News, a monthly review, also carried special articles of interest to the industry, more complete texts and interpretations of Federal orders, and a monthly index of Federal regulations. In the Service's fishery technological laboratories, maintained at Seattle, Wash.; College Park, Md.; Ketchikan, Alaska; and Mayaguez, P. R., wartime research was continued, aimed at relieving difficulties caused by shortages of materials and manpower which have handicapped the fishery industries. Specially prepared packs of all types of fish and shellfish, both fresh and processed, were subjected to storage and shipping tests to determine the most practical solution to the critical tin shortage. Recommendations were made for the most effective use of available fibers for cordage and nets, based on many field and laboratory tests. Chemical and bacteriological studies resulted in improved methods for extracting agar and related seaweed gums. To increase the Nation's food supply, fishery technologists developed new canned fish products and demonstrated the utility of numerous fish and shellfish formerly discarded. In order to increase the utilization of fish as food, improved handling and processing methods and new recipes were evolved. In the field of fishery research it has been necessary to assign a number of the Service's fishery biologists to assist in the war work handled by the Office of Fishery Coordination. The intimacy with the industry which these men have enjoyed in their regularly assigned duties is serving them in these wartime assignments to a degree where a gratifying show of confidence in their work is reflected. A greater feeling of understanding between the industry and the Service has developed because of the day-by-day assistance that has been given to the industry. Biological studies of the commercial fisheries have been further and more sharply curtailed and investigations of game fishing were again retarded. Care has been taken, however, to continue the element of necessary observation so that gaps in essential data will not occur. An increased amount of attention was given to the Chesapeake Bay area. Chief among the studies was a newly organized oyster survey carried on in anticipation of State action to insure increased production of oysters from depleted natural bottoms. Study of the shad and crab fisheries continued in this area and in addition shad studies were materially extended in Delaware Bay. The recovery of the shad fishery in the Hudson River has caught the imagination of State administrators and greater application of conservation principles in other areas is hoped for. Work has continued on pollution studies as personnel and opportunities permitted. The rapid development of war industries in the past few years has introduced new pollution but has afforded opportunity for observation and study of the problem by which more precise information can be made available for the peacetime correction of these unnecessary and wasteful practices. The salmon protection programs of the Columbia River and Sacramento River were continued but their success is now definitely endangered by threats of new impoundments on both these rivers. The future of these salmon runs cannot be considered bright in the face of these impending construction programs. Some hope is seen, however, for these streams and others threatened by similar water development plans in the establishment of facilities for increased interdepartmental and interagency cooperation for assessing all values affected by stream development. In Alaska the Service continued its program of management of the fishery resources, including fur seals and other marine mammals, to carry out the conservation policies of Congress, as expressed in basic legislation. During 1943, fishery management personnel were able through careful observations of fishery runs and escapements throughout the Territory to recommend an aggregate of 119 days of extra fishing time for all districts, as well as a catch quota increase of 6,250,000 pounds of herring in the Kodiak region, with the assurance that the future supply of the resource was not endangered thereby. Fishery products amounting to 332,719,560 pounds with a value of $66,516,317, an increase of 8 percent in quantity and 18 percent in value over 1942, were produced during the year. Extensive vessel and small-boat patrol of the fishing grounds, supplemented by a limited amount of airplane patrol, was made by regular and seasonal employees of the Division of Alaska Fisheries, and by wildlife agents of the Alaska Game Commission deputized to assist in enforcement of fishery laws and regulations. Effectiveness of the patrol is indicated by the fact that 234 persons were arrested for violations during 1943, as a result of which $14,405.70 in fines were levied, confiscated fish were sold for the account of the Government for a total of $11,179.30, and 12 nets of illegal size were seized. Fur-seal operations at the Pribilof Islands were limited to about 5 months in 1943, during which time a special sealing party visited the islands, then under military jurisdiction, for the purpose of removing surplus male seals from the herd, investigating results of pup branding and tagging activities during 1940 and 1941, and producing oil and meal from as many carcasses as possible. During the course of operations 117,164 sealskins were taken in the largest number obtained under controlled conditions in any one season, and substantial quantities of oil and meal were produced. The annual census and computation of the fur seal herd showed an increase of 5.24 percent as of August 10, 1943, with a total of 2,720,780 animals in the herd as compared with 2,585,375 in 1942. The Service feels that conservation requirements of the fisheries in Alaska were met to the fullest extent possible under existing conditions in 1943. As Since the outbreak of hostilities, the general public has realized more than ever before the tremendous value of this country's fishery resources. Although the amount of nutritious food that can be produced ranks foremost in importance at the present time, psychologists have also recognized the recreational value of fishing in connection with the strain of war production and mental readjustment. In our war program of concentrating on producing the fishes that contribute most directly to the food supply, it has been necessary to make further curtailment in activities at certain hatcheries and shift experienced personnel and funds to other units. While the salmon hatcheries receive priority, all of the stations on a productive basis are contributing to the war program in some manner. stated in last year's report, those stations that provide fish for stocking remote recreational areas were closed. All of these units are still closed; in fact, there has been relatively little change in the actual hatchery line-up since the last report. The Cheraw, S. C., hatchery (on land formerly owned by the National Park Service) was transferred to the Fish and Wildlife Service during the early part of this year. A formal agreement was entered into between this Service and Orangeburg County, S. C., covering the operation of rearing ponds owned by the county. While the Service had been cooperating in handling these two fish-cultural units, the changes enumerated above made for more efficient operation of the stations. The production of these hatcheries and the Federal hatchery at Orangeburg will be sufficient to take care of the requirements for warm-water fishes to stock South Carolina waters. Activities at the St. Matthews, S. C., unit, therefore were discontinued. The output of fish and fish eggs from Federal hatcheries during the calendar year 1943 was 6,894,979,150. This represents a decrease of 11.8 percent from the production during 1942. The deficiency is largely attributed to the decline in the number of pollock eggs and flounder fry handled. In fact, the difference between the output of these two species in 1943, as compared with 1942, offsets the difference in the grand totals for the 2 years. There were increases in the output of lake trout, steelhead trout, Atlantic salmon, and landlocked salmon. Striped bass were again handled by the Weldon, N. C., unit in cooperation with the North Carolina Department of Conservation and Development. Because of inability to collect the eggs, no striped bass were propagated during the preceding year. Stocking of more isolated waters has been discontinued or reduced and emphasis has been placed on the rearing of legal-sized trout for stocking waters accessible |