Maine Fish and Wildlife Magazine, Summer 1975

MAINE Governor James B. Longley

FISH AND WILDI_.. IFE

Department of Inland Fisheries and Game Commissioner

Maynard F. Marsh J. William Peppard

De1mty Commissioner

ST ATE OF MAINE

Kenn eth H. Anderson Director, Planning and Co-ordination

Supt. of Hatcheries

Stanley P. Linscott Charles S. Allen

Chief Warden

Lyndon H. Bond

Chief, Fishery Division Business Manager

Ralph C. Will Robert W. Boettg·er

Chief, Game Division

William C. Mincher

Directo1·, Information and Education

Clayton G. Grant

Chief, Engineering Division

Richard B. Parks

Chief, Realty Division

Lorenzo J. Gaudreau

Director, Safety and Snowmobile Registration

Robert H. Johnson

Director, Watercraft Registration and Sa/ ety

Alfred L. Meister

Chief Biologist, Atlantic Salmon Commission

Advisory Council Dr. Alonzo H. Garcelon, Chairman Augusta, Maine

Summer, 1975

Vol. XVII, No. 3

Fish Culture in Maine

3

September 27, 1975 National Hunting and Fish ing Day 11 What's the Latest on Browns? 12

Kid-Bits

16

Those Blooming Algae 18 What to do about Unwelcome Wildlife 23

Asa 0. Holmes Belfast

Maine Rivers: The Union 25

Robert D. Steele Scarborough

Burleigh Richards, Jr. Buxton

Letters, Notes, Comment 30

Ralph L. Noel Auburn

Rodney W. R oss Brownville

W. Thomas Shoener, Managing Editor Thomas J. Chamberlain, Features Editor William W. Cross, Photo Editor Thomas L. Carbone, P hotographer

© Maine Dept. of Inland Fisheries and Game, 1975. Written permission must be secured from the Department before reproducing any part of this copyrighted material.

Subscription rates : $2.00 for one year, $3.50 f or two years, $4.75 for t hree years. No stamps, please. Second class postage paid at A ugusta, Maine 04333.

Maine F ish a nd Wildlife - Summer 1975

Urban D. Pierce, Jr.

Ecologogriph 15

Glenn H. Manuel Littleton

Maine Fish a nd Wildli fe is published quarterly by the Maine Dept. of Inland Fisheries and Game, 284 State St., Augusta, Maine 04333, under appropriation 4550. No advertising accepted.

William C. Mincher, Editor

Stanley P. Linscott and David 0. Locke

J effr ey Dennis Francis J. Gramlich J. Dennis McNeish

Ecologogriph Answer 31 THE COVERS Front: You've probably seen a fish stocking operation before but not from the "business end" of the tube when the fish are being sluiced into the water. Photographer Tom Carbone caught (with his camera) these brook trout as they were being stocked in Puffers Pond in Dexter. The scene makes a fitting introduction to a feature article in this issue on fish culture in Maine.

Inside Front : Pursued bobcats, like their domesticated cousins, often take refuge in a tree, which is where Photographer Bill Cross found this bobcat kitten.

Inside Back: This still life of some of the elements of a successful river fishing trip for landlocked salmon was composed by Photographer Bill Cross.

Back: One of a bear's favorite activities is tearing apart an old stump or a rotten Jog in search of insects to eat. So engrossed was this bruin that he paid scant attention to Photographer Tom Carbone's presence.

1

Maine Fish and Wildlife -

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Summer 1975

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FISH CULTURE IN MAINE

By Stanley P. Linscott and David 0. Locke the artificial breeding and rearing of fish. Eggs are taken from adult fish and hatched in cold, pure running water. The small fish are fed and cared for until they reach a size suitable for release in our lakes and streams.

Earliest attempts at fish culture are credited to the ancient Chinese, but modern fish culture began in 1852 with the establishment of the first fish hatchery in the world at Huningue, France.

The first hatchery in the United States was built in 1864 at Mumford, New York.

ISH CULTURE IS

F

The authors are, respectively, superintendent and assistant superintendent of the Maine fish hatchery system.

Maine Fish and Wildlife -

Early fish culturists were very enthusiastic and predicted that they could repopulate the waters of the world. But there is no greater fallacy than the belief, still held by some people, that to produce better fishing, it is only necessary to stock more fish.

Today, the hatchery is recognized as a very important part of fishery management but not as an end in itself.

The first state-owned fish hatchery in Maine was built at Caribou in Aroostook County in 1895. Following the successful operation of this hatchery, others were built in succeeding years at Monmouth, Auburn, and Raymond.

Summer 1975

The hatchery system grew through the years in Maine until 1949, when 44 stations were in operation. Since then, the Fish and Game Department has combined many of the smaller stations into larger and more efficient units, taking advantage of the excellent and abundant water supplies available at some of our better lakes. Today, your Fish and Game Department operates 10 modern hatcheries and rearing stations with a staff of 31 trained fish culturists.

The Hatchery Division produces about 600,000 landlocked salmon, 1,000,000 brook trout, 400,000 lake trout or togue, 50,000 rainbow trout, and 200,000 3

sperm from male fish. Female fish are grasped by the tail, and the eggs are extruded into a damp pan by gentle hand pressure, moving from the middle of the stomach toward the tail. The milt is added to the eggs by stripping male fish in the same manner.

Eggs and milt are stirred occasionally to distribute the sperm evenly. The contents of the pan are then turned into a pail of water to complete fertilization.

Fish sperm are active in the presence of water for only 20 or 30 seconds, so fertilization of the eggs is almost instantaneous. The eggs remain untouched in the pail for a period ranging from a few minutes up to an hour until they become water-hardened.

Water hardening is a process whereby water flows through the porous outer shell until the egg becomes rigid. The eggs are then washed to remove excess milt and other foreign matter.

HA CHER/ES AND REARING STA IONS

e Enfield , Cobb Hatch e Embden, Ela Rearing Station, Rte. 16, N. Anson e Phillips Hatchery, Rte. 4

INCUBATION OF FISH EGGS

brown trout each year. These fish are placed in Maine's lakes, rivers, and streams following a stocking policy prepared by fishery scientists to provide the best possible returns to fishermen.

stock reared at New Gloucester and Embden respectively. Most of our lake trout eggs are taken from wild fish from some of our better lake trout lakes here in Maine. All of our landlocked salmon eggs are obtained from native, wild salmon.

SOURCES OF FISH EGGS Virus-free brook trout eggs are obtained from brood stock reared at the Phillips hatchery.

The primary function of this hatchery is to provide trout eggs for' our other hatcheries. Virusfree eggs are also taken from brown and rainbow trout brood 4

EGG TAKING Brood fish which supply the eggs are confined until they are ripe, or ready to be stripped.

Stripping consists of removing the eggs from female fish and fertilizing them with milt, or

Recently spawned or green eggs can be handled without harm only during the first 24 hours after stripping. Within this time, they are transferred to the hatchery and placed on trays in troughs of running water. Each wire tray holds 4,00iO to 6,000 salmon, brown trout, or togue eggs, or 6,000 to 8,000 brook trout eggs.

Green eggs are very fragile after the first day of incubation and cannot be handled.

Unfertilized and abnormal eggs turn white and die as they do in nature. They are removed every few days to prevent contamination of healthy eggs. Chemical treatments reduce losses from fungus and disease.

When the eyes of the embryo become dark colored, the egg has reached the eyed stage. Now the eggs are shocked by dropping them a foot or two into a tub of water. The shells of poorly de-

Maine Fish and Wildlife -

Summer 1975

veloped eggs rupture. These eggs turn white and are easily recognized for removal. This is an artificial method of removing infertile eggs. The fertilized eggs are returned to the trays to hatch. Losses are usually small after the eyed stage up to the feeding stage.

The time required for young fi sh to hatch varies with the water temperature. Trout and salm-

on hatch in 50 days in water of 50 ° F. Hatching time is delayed five days for each degree below 50 ° F, and is shortened five days for each degree above 50 ° F. Fish hatching from the eggs swim or wriggle from the trays to the bottoms of the troughs.

Weak and deformed fish are carried by the current to the foot of the trough where they are removed.

Early stages of hatchery fish production include obtaining brood fish and stripping their· eggs and milt. Enlarged view of partially developed eggs shows dark eye of embryo. Newly hatched sac-fry have attached yolk sac which supplies food for several weeks.

Maine Fish and Wildlife -

Summer 1975

FOODS AND FEEDING

Newly hatched fish are called sac-fry because they still have a yolk sac attached. The yolk supplies food for the young fish for three to five weeks. When the yolk is nearly gone, the fry are fed two or three times per hour with a special starter diet of very fine granules. As the fry grow larger, they are fed less frequently, and the sizes of food particles are increased.

In the past, hatchery fish were fed diets that were composed primarily of beef liver. Dry, pellet diets have been developed that are satisfactory for all fish that are reared in our hatcheries.

There are several different formulations of pellet diets that are necessary for different kinds and Rizes of fish. Pellet sizes are increased as the fish grow larger.

F eeding charts developed by experienced fish culturists assist in producing strong, healthy fish.

These charts, based on the kind and size of fish, water temperatures, and other factors, indicate the correct amount of food the fish should eat.

Pellet diets are usually more efficient than most meat diets.

Most fish will convert two pounds of dry food to one pound of fish flesh, but it may require three to four pounds of meat to produce one pound of fish.

Maine hatchery-reared fish eat about 230,000 pounds of food each year at an average annual cost of $48,000.

Fish do not grow uniformly.

Hatchery personnel may grade trout about twice a year to separate the larger fish from the smaller ones. The bigger fish can then be fed larger pellets, and smaller fish grow more rapidly when they do not have to compete with the larger ones. Grading also reduces cannibalism, which is common when small fish are confined with larger ones.

5

SANITATION AND DISEASES

Fish reared in the crowded and unnatural environment of hatchery pools are usually more susceptible to diseases and parasites than wild fish. There are more than 100 diseases and parasites known to affect fish in the United States. Fortunately, parasites and diseases are less troublesome to fish grown in large volumes of excellent quality water such as found at our Maine hatcheries.

Most fish diseases can be prevented or controlled by providing plenty of space for the fish, and by keeping pools and implements clean. External parasites are usually controlled by adding chemicals to the water. Some¡ internal diseases can be controlled by feeding pellets containing drugs.

large enough to permit a safe landing, the pilot lands before releasing the fish. If the ponds are small, it may be necessary to drop the fish from a height of a few hundred feet. Experiments and observations prove that fish can be dropped without harm from an airplane flown at the proper speed and altitude.

The Fish and Game Department stocks only waters open to public fishing. Fish for private ponds can be obtained from commercial hatcheries within the state. A list of private hatcheries is available from the Hatchery Division, Department of Inland Fisheries and Game, Augusta, Maine 04333. Final approval of private stocking is made by the Commissioner of Inland Fisheries and Game.

IUNDS OF FISH RAISED DISTRIBUTION

Our hatcheries do not have enough pools to raise all of the fish they can hatch, so in early summer small fish must be hauled to the rearing stations where they grow large enough to stock.

Truck distribution units carry tanks with re-circulating water :s;ystems that remove harmful gases from the water and replace the oxygen used by the fish.

These tanks hold up to 1,000 gallons of water, and the numbers of fish carried will vary with the size and kinds of fish. We can transport 100,000 fry that may weigh 50 pounds or 1,000 trout that may weigh 1,000 pounds.

Maine has pioneered the use of aircraft to stock remote, inaccessible lakes. If the lakes are

To succesfully raise the different kinds of fish stocked in

Maine, it is important to have a thorough knowledge of their life histories. The habits and requirements of each species are different. Each kind of fish grows best at certain water temperatures, and handling and feeding techniques vary with the species. A good understanding of the life history of each kind of fish is also necessary for a good stocking policy.

Landlocked salmon were originally native to four widely separated lakes in Maine: West Grand Lake in Washington County; Green Lake in Hancock County; Sebec Lake in Piscataquis County; and Sebago Lake in Cumberland County. Landlocks stay in fresh water and do not usually grow as big as Atlantic salmon, but they are essentially the same fish as their sea-run relatives.

The first attempts at fish culture in Maine were made with landlocked salmon. Early records

Hatchery fish are fed pelleted foods of various sizes and formulations.

6

Maine Fish and Wildlife -

Summer 1975

Fi sh are counted and graded by size peri odicall y.

state that several thousand salmon eggs were collected in 1867 at Long Lake in Harrison in Cumberland County and incubated in a private spring at Manchester in Kennebec County.

Only one of these eggs survived.

The following year, more eggs were taken from Grand Lake Stream in Washington County and transferred as eyed eggs to Manchester where 3,000 salmon were hatched. Eight hundred of these fry were kept at a private hatchery in Alna, where they reached a length of five inches after nine months.

Since 1895, when the state hatchery program began, salmon have been introduced into more than 200 lakes and ponds in Maine. Maine salmon eggs have even been shipped to Australia, New Zealand, and many other countries.

Salmon spawn from mid-October to late-November. They enter tributary streams or lake outlets, seeking suitable gravel areas with a good flow of cool, clean water. The female digs egg pits by turning on her side and undulating her tail and body.

Male and female deposit milt and eggs in the pits, and the female covers the eggs with several inches of gravel. Several of these egg pits dug in an area may be called a redd.

Young salmon hatch in late May. These young salmon ordinarily spend their first summer or two in the stream where they are hatched, feeding on insects and other aquatic organisms.

When they migrate to the lake, forage fish or food fish such as Maine Fish and Wildlife -

smelts become their staple food.

Salmon grow more rapidly after they move to the lake and change from an insect diet to one of fish.

Most landlocks caught by fishermen in Maine are from three to six years old and average from about 15 inches in length at age three to more than 22 inches at age six. A 13-year-old landlocked salmon is the oldest salmon recorded in Maine. Salmon are usually ready to spawn at four years of age.

Adult salmon taken for stripping are netted from streams where they spawn. They are kept in holding pens until they are ripe. The fish are stripped, and the eggs are placed in the hatchery.

The best temperatures for growing salmon lie between 65 ° and 70 ° F. Increasing the flow of water through a raceway or pool may often increase the growth rate. Each of our modern installations requires about 3,000,000 gallons of water per day.

Maine salmon are stocked in lakes recommended by the Department's Fishery Research and Management Division. Salmon stocking is intended to supplement inadequate natural reproduction. It is considered where the physical, chemical, and bio-

Summer 1975

logical characteristics of a body of water permit management which will provide a salmon population capable of supporting a significant fishery.

Routine stocking occurs annually and involves three sizes (ages) of salmon: (1) fall fingerlings; (2) spring yearlings; and (3) fall yearlings. As a general rule, the larger fish are used where competition and/ or predation are more severe. The number of landlocked salmon stocked is determined by the surface acreage of the body of water.

Rates are as follows : for fall fingerlings, up to 10 per acre; for spring yearlings, up to 5 per acre; and for fall yearlings, up to 2.5 per acre.

Brook trout are native to Maine and are found nearly everywhere in the state. They are also called squaretails, red-spots, and brookies.

Brook trout usually spawn between mid-October and mid-November. They seek out gravel and rubble areas in cool tributary streams or in areas where springs occur along lake shores.

Brook trout dig nests and spawn in much the same way as salmon.

7

The eggs usually hatch in April. Some brook trout spend their entire lives in streams, and others spend a summer or two in streams before migrating to a lake or pond. Recent study indicates that many of the newly hatched fry move to the lake during periods of high water in the spring.

Brook trout feed mainly upon insects, but large trout often feed on small fish such as sticklebacks, minnows, and smelts.

Most brook trout caught by Maine fishermen are from one to three years of age, although an occasional oldtimer of six may be taken. Growth rates vary greatly from one body of water to another, depending on the food available. Trout living in a rich pond will grow much faster than those in a cold, barren brook.

Female brookies mature at two to three years of age, and males at one to two years.

Brook trout eggs are cared for in the hatchery in much the same way as salmon eggs. They are usually incubated in spring water to allow them to develop more rapidly so that they can be placed in outdoor pools at an earlier date. Optimum temperatures for growing brook trout are between 55 ° and 60 ° F. At higher temperatures, the flow of water must be increased to reduce disease and parasite problems.

Brook trout are stocked in waters recommended by the regional fishery biologists. In what is called biological stocking, brookies are routinely planted in lakes and ponds which have suitable conditions for survival and growth, limited spawning area, and enough fishing pressure to justify the stocking program.

Brook trout are stocked as fry (about two inches long) or as fall fingerlings (about five inches long) . Fry are the most economical to stock where competition is low and high survival is attained.

8

Fall fingerlings are stocked in waters where conditions for fry survival and growth are reduced by competition or other factors.

Stocking rates are based upon the ability of a body of water to produce a good trout growth.

Because most food organisms are produced in shallow water, lakes and ponds having a high proportion of shallow waters are usually the most productive and are stocked at higher rates than deep lakes and ponds.

Fry stocking rates are based upon the number of acres of lake bottom falling within the contours: 0-10 feet, 10-20 feet, and 20 feet and more. Fry stocking

shall not exceed the following rates: 300 per acre for depths of 10 feet or less; plus 100 per acre for depths of 10 feet to 20 feet; plus 40 per acre for depth~ exceeding 20 feet.

Fall fingerlings rates are based upon the number of acres of lake bottom at various depths similar to those described above for fry.

Fall fingerling stocking shall not exceed the following rates: 150 per acre for depths of 10 feet or less; plus 50 per acre for depths of 10 feet to 20 feet; plus 20 per acre for depths exceeding 20 feet.

Hatchery production of brook trout over and above the requirements of biological stocking is Fish distribution methods include " scatter planting " by boat, plane stocking in remote waters, and truck stocking.

Sportsmen often help wardens and hatcherymen in stocking .

Maine Fish and Wildlife -

Summer 1975

available as legal-sized fish to be stocked for immediate fishing.

These trout are used in the larger streams and in lakes and ponds.

Lake trout are called togue in Maine, gray trout in Canada, and Mackinaw trout in the Great Lakes region. They are found in many deep cold-water ponds and lakes. The largest lake trout on record weighed 102 pounds. It was caught by commercial fishermen at Lake Athabaska, Saskatchewan, in 1961.

Togue spawn between midOctober and early-November, concentrating on rocky shoals along a windswept shore. They spawn at night following a period of windy weather. Males appear

Maine Fish and Wildlife -

on the spawning areas a few nights before the females and clean the silt from the rocky bottom with their tails. Lake trout do not construct nests like brook trout and almon, but depend on the crevices between the rocks to protect the fertilized eggs. Several males concentrate around one female, and eggs are extruded and fertilized a few at a time.

Togue eggs hatch about the middle of March. The fry remain in the vicinity of the spawning beds a short time, then move quickly into deep water.

Young togue eat insects and other aquatic organism , but as they become older and larger, they begin to eat fish. Smelts, suckers, cusk, white-fish, and freshwater sculpins are important forage fish.

Most togue reach a length of 14 inches or so in their fourth year. They frequently live to be 12 year or older in our Maine lakes and weigh up to 30 pounds.

Lake trout become sexually mature when five or six years old.

Fish for stripping are caught by nets and are retained in holding pen until they are ripe.

Togue stocking consists of two types, introducto1·y stocking and rnaintenance stocking. Togue introduction are made at two rates, depending upon expected fishing pressure and the number of acres of water where temperatures are 60 ° F. and colder all year. Introductory stocking rates are : (1) 25 spring yearlings per acre of water 60 ° F. and colder where fishing pressure is light to moderate; and (2) 40 spring yearling per acre of water 60 ° F. and colder where fishing pressure is heavy. Four or five annual plants are usually sufficient to establish this species. Followup studies to assess stocking results and the need for further stocking are undertaken by Fishery Division personnel.

Maintenance stocking is required when facilities for natural

Summer 1975

reproduction are poor. This type of tocking takes into account fishing pressure, the size of the existing lake trout population, and the number of acre of water where temperature are 60 ° F. and colder all year. Stocking rates are: (1) Five spring yearlings per acre of water 60 ° F. and colder where the existing togue population is fair and fishing pressure is light; (2) 10 spring yearlings per acre of water 60 ° F. and colder where the existing togue population is fair and fishing pressure is moderate; and 20 spring yearlings per acre of water 60 ° F. and colder where fishing pressure is moderate to heavy and the existing population is low.

Brown trout, a species introduced from Europe, have been distributed all over the world.

They are known by a variety of common names such as Scotch sea-trout, sea-run brown trout, Von Behr trout, Loch Leven trout, German trout, and Swiss lake trout. Brown trout were introduced in Maine as early as 1885.

Adult landlocked salmon and brown trout compete for the same pawning areas in tributary treams. Small salmon and brown trout live in identical areas of the stream and eat the same foods.

Similarly, the large browns and salmon in our lakes vie for space and food. Unfortunately, the brown trout usually win this , truggle and displace the native salmon . Introductions of new kinds of fish should be made with extreme care.

Brown trout are difficult for the average fisherman to catch.

They become quite large in some lakes and become more difficult to catch the older they grow. We stock browns only in waters where a good fishery cannot be maintained for the native salmon and brook trout. Care is taken not to stock browns where they

9

will compete with native trout and salmon or where they can migrate to good trout and salmon waters. Brown trout do provide a popular sport fishery in some waters where they are established.

Spawning habits of brown trout are similar to those of brook trout and salmon. As a rule, they spawn in streams during October and November. The young hatch the next spring and spend one or two years in the stream, where they feed mainly on insects. As the fish move into the lake and grow larger, they depend more and more upon forage fish.

Many browns caught in Maine lakes are from four to six years of age and average from about 15 inches at age three to 24 inches at age six. Occasionally, they live to be 10 or more years old and weigh up to 20 pounds.

Brown trout may be stocked on a maintenance basis in lakes and ponds with inadequate facilities for natural reproduction, which have suitable water quality, which have brown trout already present, and which offer little chance for successful management for salmon or brook trout.

The stocking rate is one to five

yearling brown trout per acre.

Several streams in southern and central areas of the state provide brown trout fishing through maintenance stocking programs.

Numbers stocked are based upon fish available, fishing pressure, and other factors determined by Department personnel.

Experimental introductions of rainbow trout were begun in 1968

in several ponds, lakes, and river drainages where the species is already present to provide information in the biological feasibility of rainbow trout management in Maine. Care is taken not to stock rainbows where they will compete with good existing trout and salmon populations. These introductions are under intensive study by Department biologists.

WARMWATER FISH STOCI{ING

The warmwater fishes of Maine include smallmouth bass, largemouth bass, chain pickerel, white perch, yellow perch, bullheads, and sunfish. These fish thrive in lakes that are ¡warm, shallow, and rich with food. Maine fishermen

spend many pleasureable and relaxing hours angling for them.

All of our warmwater fish spawn in the spring or early summer, and they all produce enormous numbers of young.

Some produce so many young that there is not enough food in the lake to allow them to grow to a good size and the result is a population of stunted fish. For these reasons, we do not need to stock warmwater game fish to maintain good fishing.

Warmwater fish are not raised in any of our hatcheries or rearing stations. Smallmouth bass, largemouth bass, white perch, and pickerel are sometimes introduced into lakes where they are not already present and where biological surveys have shown that they will provide good fishing. This is accomplished by the transfer of wild adult fish from a nearby Jake in the springtime.

Sufficient numbers of young are usually produced the first year to establish the species. Great care is taken to select only fish that are free from diseases and parasites. Introductions should be attempted only under the direction of the regional fishery biologist. of fish culture in Maine has given you some insight into the role that artificial fish propagation plays in fishery management as well as an idea of the methods and problems involved. It's a big job and, we think you'll agree, an important one. •

W

E HOPE THIS REVIEW

Visitors are welcome at Maine fish cultural stations daily from 8:00 a.m. to 4.00 p.m.

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Maine Fish and Wildlife -

Summer 1975

Putan lndoorsman • 1n your slioes For purposes of this message, an indoorsman is anyone who is not an outdoorsman -not a hunter or fisherman, for example.

There are about 55 million outdoorsmen in the United States-but there are over 150 million indoorsmen. By sponsoring National Hunting and Fishing Day programs on September 27-and by making sure that there will be plenty of indoorsmen on hand to take part-you can make major strides in giving these people a better understanding of the sportsmen's involvement in conservation.

The results will be a brighter future not only for hunting and fishing , but for conservation as well.

Please use the order blank below to obtain information on how to organize a program in your community.

r--------------------~ TO: NHFDAY

1075 Post Road, Riverside, Conn. 06878

Please send _ _copies of the NHF Day Action Manual @ $2.00 per copy. _ _ NHF Day bumper stickers @ 5 for $1.00. _ _ NHF Day Aids Kits @ $3.00 per kit.

I enclose $_ _ to cover the cost of my order.

Organization, _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __ Address, _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __ City_ _ _ _ _ _ _ State_ _ Zip _ _

~---------------------

National Hunting & Fishing Day September 27, 1975 Maine Fish and Wildlife -

Summer 1975

11

What's the Latest

on Browns?

By Urban D. Pierce, Jr. Fishery Biologist

The author, right, and assistant, Richard Arsenault, check fish caught in study ponds. Am ong other thing s, they have found that so many of the smaller brown trout are caught that few fish remain to reach a larger size and provid e a qua lity fi shery.

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Maine Fish and Wildlife -

Summer 1975

studies are suggesting ways to better brown trout fishing 1971, the Fishery Division of the Maine Fish and Game Department undertook projects to determine the status of brown trout populations in several Maine lakes. Brown , first introduced in Maine in 1885, have been distributed over much of the southern and central portions of the state; but despite the fact that they have been in Maine for nearly one hundred years, very little intensive study has ever been done on this fi s h.

Brown trout have always been a rather controversial species in Maine. Many people have considered them very elusive and too hard to catch-thus being a poor investment of the sportsmen's dollar. Many of these controversies, however, emanated from a great deal of misinformation and a lack of understanding of the habits and life style of this creature. Recent studies, however, have enabled the development of better management programs, and fi shermen and biologists alike are finding the brown trout a more attractive sport fish.

One phase of the evaluati on program is taking place on two lakes in so uthern Maine. The c two tudy waters typify the average brown trout lake in Maine.

Specified numbers of trout have been stocked in them annuall y, and surveys have been run throughout the year to see how many of these trout survive from year to year and also how many are caught by fishermen.

One of the study ponds, Crystal Lake in Gray, has received annual stockings of fall y earlings, fish about 1% years old which have averaged from 8 to 10 inches in length when stocked. Most of the brown trout lakes in Maine receive annual stockings of this size fish.

The other study water is RayN

I

Main e Fish and Wild li fe -

mond Pond in Raymond . This pond has received annual stockings of fall finge1'lings, about 6 months old, which have averaged from 4 to 6 inche in length when stocked. Only a few Jakes in Maine are being stocked with this smaller ize fish at the present time.

The stocking programs on these two ponds are being evaluated through annual trapnetting during the fall spawning period and through winter and s ummer creel census checks. Information on age, growth, and general condition of the fish c0mes from these s urvey . All fish caught in our traps during the fall are tagged with metal ring jaw tags which are serially numbered for positive identification. After being tagged, all fish are released back into the lake unharmed.

You might ask why we tag these fish. The tag is a useful tool for the biologi t to determine the growth rate during a given period. For example, if we tag a fish during October and he is caught during F ebruary or March, we can tell how much longer he grew during that period and how much weight he may have gained or los t. By trapping in various locations, we can also tell how much a fi sh moves around in a lake.

Probably the most important benefit of the tag, however, i in determining how many fish are in a given body of water. From the fi sh samples collected during the fishing easons and with the use of special mathematical formulas, it can be determined roughly whether a lake has several thousand or only a few hundred trout in it. This type of information gives us knowledge of how many fi sh su r vive from year to year from those that are s tocked each year.

All hatchery fish stocked at

S ummer 1975

Raymond and Crystal ponds have also been marked by removing certain fins just before stocking.

This enables us to determine accurately the correct age of all fish caught two or three years later in our trap nets or by fishermen. We can also tell how much natural reproduction there is in these Jakes by marking all hatchery fish.

As previously mentioned, Raymond Pond has been stocked with fall fingerling brown trout which have averaged between four and six inches in length . These fish have been stocked annually at Raymond since 1970. To date, we have not seen or heard of any fish being caught from the first stock.: ing of fingerlings in 1970. Apparently none of these fish survived.

The reasons for uch a Joss cannot be positively determined, but it is spec ulated that most or all of them were probably eaten by other fi sh in the lake.

For a while, we thought that we had also experienced a loss of the 1971 stocking. None of these fi sh were caught in any of our net sets or seen in any of the fi shermen's creels during the 1972 seasons .

However, during the winter of 1973, nearly a year and a half after being stocked as six-inch fish, they began to appear in the fishermen's catches. They averaged better than 15 inches long and were in excellent condition.

By the winter of 1974, they averaged about 21 inches in length and weighed abo ut 4 V:! pounds.

As 31/:! year old fi sh, they averaged between 5 and 6 pounds during the 1974 fall spawning nm.

The 1972 stocking of fingerlings in Raymond Pond are s howing patterns of vulnerability and growth similar to those observed on the 1971 year class of fi sh . No :fish have yet been sampled from the Ul73 year class .

The fall fingerling stocking program ha now been completed at Raymond Pond, and fall yearling brown trout are now being stocked so that a valid comparative analy13

sis can be made regarding the returns of these different size groups of fish.

RYSTAL POND has been stocked with 8 to 10 inch yearling trout since 1971, and we have realized returns from all stockings made at Crystal. Many more fish have been caught there than at Raymond Pond, but the fish at Crystal have been much smaller.

As we had expected, the larger yearling trout stocked each fall at Crystal have been caught at a high rate during the following winter and spring and made up the bulk of the fishermen's catches there. The average length of a brown caught at Crystal has been between 12 and 13 inches, whereas the average length fish caught at Raymond has been around 18 inches.

The information obtained so far from Crystal Pond, however, shows that nearly 40 per cent of

C

1-!

Jaw tags and clipped fins enable biologists to identify fish when they are later taken in nets or by fishermen.

the yearling fish stocked each fall are caught by fishermen during the first two years after stocking.

This is a much greater return than the 6 to 10 per cent we are getting back from the fingerling fish being stocked at Raymond Pond. However, in terms of a quality fishery, the fingerling program appears to be more attractive than the yearling program.

It is too soon to evaluate fully either the fingerling or the yearling programs. The final stocking of yearlings at Crystal was made during the fall of 1974, which completed the first phase of the project there. The next phase at Crystal will begin with the fingerling program in 1975. At the completion of the fingerling stocking phase at Crystal Pond and the yearling stocking phase at Ray-

mond Pond, we will have a much better idea of the survival and returns of both the smaller fingerling fish and the larger yearling trout.

O

NE OF THE MOST interesting of our activities has been the tagging and releasing of all fish caught in our nets each fall. This permits us to make population estimates and thereby calculate the survival from year to year of the stocked fish. This has been probably the most revealing part of this study. We now have complete information on three year-classes of fish from both Raymond and Crystal ponds. During the study years of 1971-73, we estimated that an average of about 250 catchable-size brown trout were available to the fishermen at the beginning of the fishing season at Raymond Pond, a pond of 340 acres. On the other hand, in Crystal, 189 acres, we estimated that

Main e Fish and Wildli fe -

S ummer 1975

nearly 1,100 fish were available to the fishermen at the beginning of the fishing season.

At Crystal, we have been stocking 850 yearling fish each fall. We estimated one year later, after they had been exposed to one year of fishing, that only 100 of these fish were left in the pond. From those 100, only 15 or 20 fish survive to the second year following t he stocking of the original 850 fish. From 40 to 50 per cent of the total loss is from fishing, while the rest are lost to natural causes.

At Raymond Pond, we were stocking 1,200 fingerling each fall, but fewer than 100 survived to the end of the first year, and nearly all of the fish lost died from natural causes. Only a few of these fish wind up in the fisherman's creel during the first year.

From the 100 fish surviving the first year, only 10 to 15 survive to the end of the second year. It appears from the information col-

lected so far at Crystal and Raymond ponds that most of the fish stocked each fall don't last very long in the fishery and for all practical purposes are all gone two years after being stocked.

We have always ass umed that brown trout in our lakes and ponds were hard to catch, particularly the larger fish. Our study so far has shown that this is not necessarily true and that fishermen are qui te efficient in catching a major portion of the available trout in a lake each year. We have found that brown trout between 12 and 14 inches long are so vulnerable that few survive past this size. There are so few big fish available in our lakes that it is no wonder s uch a small number are caught.

Information pooled from several brown trout lakes checked during the winter season showed that the average successful fisherman catches 2.2 brown trout for every

10 hours of fishing. During the summer, the average successful angler catches 3.4 brown trout for every 10 hours of fishing. These figures are at least comparable and in several cases better than similar figures reported from lake trout and salmon waters. Thus, our studies are showing that the brown trout certainly is providing a good fishery for Maine sportsmen and appears to be very popular where present. This information certainly makes one wonder if the stigma associated with the brown all these years has really been a justified one.

at Raymond and Crystal ponds will be continued through 1977 to collect additional information. We thank the many anglers who have kept valuable fi shing records for us during this study. Their help is very important. •

O

UR STUDIES

ecologogriphs ............. ....... ... ..... .... .... .... ... .. .... .. .. test your outdoor knowledge ACROSS

1.

5.

13.

15.

16.

18.

19.

20.

21 .

22.

24.

27.

31 .

33 .

35.

36.

38.

39.

40.

41 .

42.

43.

45.

47.

Carp-like fish of cyprinoid order.

A small spike bearing few flowers .

(Bot.).

Animals ' burrows or dens .

The study of mountains.

Earthworm, leech, or marine worm .

Material used for life-savers, sleeping bags, etc.

Time of special activity such as : hunting _ __ Wolves apparently for life.

Part of a fish hook.

Our only fish with jaws and snakelike body.

Compass reading .

Land set aside for game. (pl.).

Man 's nickname.

First stage of insect after leaving the egg. (pl.).

Second largest antlered mammal in N. A. Tool used in digging for mollusks.

(2 wds. ) .

A flock of quail or grouse.

A sailor.

Initials of common names for : Branta canadensis; Chordeiles minor; Alea torda.

Water level on hull of a vessel (abbrev.).

Environmental Engineer ( lnit.) .

Cuttlefish 's ink-ejecting organ .

Point at which the sun rises .

Buckshot of .33" diameter.

Maine Fish and Wildlife -

48.

49.

51 .

52 .

53.

54.

55.

56.

57.

To beat; tack ( naut.) .

An aromatic herb of the !'.}enus Mentha.

Opposite compass points.

A three-toed sloth.

Meat of the razorback.

East Indies (abbrev.).

Belonging or pertaining to it.

Fuel for lanterns, stoves, etc .

Skin of many mammals.

DOWN 1.

2.

3.

The hunt.

Sweet secretion deposited by bees.

Bone of the forearm (pl.).

4. Flower pollinating insect.

6. A group of seals .

7. Iridium (chem. sym.).

8. Landlocked strain of the sockeye salmon.

9. A click beetle.

10. A slow, easy gallop.

11. Self.

12. A low-bred dog.

14. The blackthorn shrub .

17. The state of being free from error.

23. A Greek island.

25. The furry skin covering a growing antler.

26. Tree yielding a wafer-like samara.

28. Society of Automotive Engineers (abbrev.).

29. Fly ing formation of some geese.

30. Smallest, lowest-set terrier.

S ummer 1975

31 .

32.

34.

37.

38.

41 .

44.

46.

49.

50.

53.

54.

Moving parts of shotgun or rifle.

Flat, treeless plains of S. A. Wild sheep with curved horns.

Flat-bottomed boat or scow.

Cartridge loaded only with powder.

Fish trips.

A young oyster.

Stratus (abbrev.).

Large , flightless , extinct bird.

Propelling force of a BB gun .

Liquefied Petroleum fuel (abbrev.) .

Europium (chem. sym.)

ANSWER ON PAGE 31

Š Doug Jackson 1974

15

If you were a baby moose - or a young beaver- what would you be called ? Some animal youngsters have interesting and different names - let's see how many you know!

Just look at the animals listed below, then put what their babies are called in the right places on the puzzle. If you get rea I ly stuck, answers are on page 30.

/.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

8.

DOWN Trout Bear Goose Dog Pheasant Deer Cat

ACROSS 2. Swan 5. Moose 7 . Duck 9. Goof 10. Coyote I I. Beaver (or fox)

I

2

3

4 5

9

6

7

8

/0

II

16

Ma ine Fi h a nd Wildlife -

S ummer 1 ~) 75

All you need is plaster of paras, water, a mixing dish, and some small sticks - - and you can ...

~~'\~

1\\~\ 1\~~\ \

7.

Choose a clear single track ... damp mud, sand or fine gravel I are good places.

Mix plaster and water until smooth and slightly runny. Pour into all I parts of track (watch small places}, cover whole track about 1" deep and place small sticks as shown.

Pick cast up carefully after about 30 minutes. It will be dirty, but I don't worry.

\

You can, with a small brush and a little water, clean the cast.

I Be careful of the small details!

l

Track is reverse of original. To make one the same as track, I coat cast with grease and put in fresh plaster.

If cast is made in snow, be sure plaster mix is very cold, or else I the track will lose its shape. fai ne Fish a nd Wildli fe -

S umm er 1975

17

Figure 1 Common Diatoms

Trachelomona s ( Eugl l

Cyclotella

Melosira

Figure 2 Pyrrophyta and Euglenophyta

Cera ti um ( Pyrrl

O e d og onium

Figure 3 Typical Periphyton

THOSE BLOOMING ALGAE

By Jeffrey Dennis, Biologist Maine Department of Environmental Protection

HE QUALITY OF SURFACE WATERS has become a great concern to the people of Maine-a concern that includes not only the rivers and streams but also our lakes and ponds. The majority of water quality problems in l\laine lakes involve algae in some way, whether it is an algae bloom in a lake or a growth of filamentous algae along the shoreline.

Algae are simple, non-vascu lar plants most commonly found in a water environment. Mo t algae are si ngle micro copic cells, though many type form colonies of individuals which are often visible to the naked eye. Fresh-water algae may be divided into two type : planktonic and perivhytic. Planktonic algae, or phytoplankton, are free-floating algae which are suspended throughout the water. Periphytic algae, or periphyton, grow attached to rocks, logs, docks, floats, and rooted aquatic plants in the hallow water around the shoreline of the lake.

Since most algae do not have common names, it is necessary to use the Latin scientific names when discussing the various types. There are five major groups of algae found in Maine' fresh water'. These groups are called division · and are equivalent to the

T

18

phyla of the animal kingdom. They are Cyanophyta, hlorophyta, Chrysophyta, Euglenophyta, and Pyr1·ovhyta. The important characteristics of the five divi ions are presented in Table 1. Definitions of some of the terms used in the table are presented at the end of the article. All five of these divisions commonly occur in the planktonic communities of Maine lake , but Cyanophyta, Chlorophyta, and Chrysophyta are the only divi ions which include periphyton as well a phytoplankton. The Cyanophyta are called the blue-green algae becau e they are usually that color.

Chlorophyll, which is green, is the predominant pigment in the division Chlorophyta which, consequently, is referred to a the green algae. The division Chrysophyta is divided into three sub-groups or cla es-the yellow-green algae, the golden-brown algae, and the diatom .

Diatoms are very important in Maine lakes since they often account for a majority of the phytoplankton community, especially in the winter, spring, and early summer. Diatoms are characterized by glasslike silicified cell walls which are divided into overlapping halves ( ee figu1·e 1). The Euglenophyta and Pyrrophyta are generally less abundant in the phytoplankton than the other divisions. They are single celled organisms which propel themselves through the water with whiplike structure called flagellae Maine Fish and Wildlife -

S ummer 1975

(see figure 2). Some species of the Chlorophyta and Chrysophyta also have flagellae. their own food, like most other plants, by a process called photosynthesis.

In photosynthesis, the algae absorb dissolved carbon dioxide and water, and, using light energy from the sun, they convert these s ubstances to simple sugars which they use for growth and respiration. Oxygen is a byproduct of this process and is released into the water as dissolved oxygen. Algae cells contain specialized compounds ca11ed pigments which act as light absorbers, energy traps, reaction sites, and catalysts in the photosynthetic process. Chlorophylls, carotenes, and xanthophylls are the most abundant types of pigments. They are often localized within the algae cell in specialized bodies called chromatophores.

A

LGAE MANUFACTURE

T

Os cillatoria

,...

•;. •

\

)

'

Anabaena

Figure 4 Problem Blue-green Algae

Aphanizomenon /

include the carbon and oxygen necessary for photosynthesis, along with such elements as nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, magnesium, calcium, and sulfur. These elements are needed in relatively high concentration and are referred to as "macronutrients." Several other elements are required in much lower concentrations and are called "micronutrients" or "trace elements." Nutrients combine with the sugars derived from photosynthesis to form the proteins, pigments, and enzymes necessary for photosynthesis, cell construction, ce11 maintenance, and i-eproduction.

Nutrient concentrations usually determine, in absolute terms, the amount of phytoplankton produced in the lake. Lakes with high available nutrient concentrations are capable of producing more algae than lakes with low nutrient concentrations, if all other factors are equal. Lakes with high nuti·ient concentrations are called eutrophic while lakes with low nutrient concentrations are referred to as oligotrophic.

Phosphorus is the nutrient which most often limits algal growth in Maine lakes, not because it is any more important to the algae cell than the other nutrients but because it is often the nutrient in least abundance relative to the cell's requirements. This fact has been established by research and monitoring done on dozens of Maine lakes and is s upported by extensive studies by Schindler and Vollenweider on several Ontario lakes.

A

s

MENTIONED previously, some kinds of algae float freely throughout the water, while others grow attached to something.

P eriphytou are likel y to be found growing around the shoreline of most Maine lakes, attached to vari-

< Chlamydomonas

Gloeotrichia

Since they produce their own food, algae are the base of the lake's food chain and are therefore referred to as the primary producers. They are "grazed" by the zooplankton (small animals suspended in the water) and by insects living in the shallows. The zooplankton and insects are the primary corzsume?'S and serve as food for minnows and other sma11 fish which are in turn eaten by larger fish. Hence, the total fish population of a lake is indirectly limited by the density and composition of the algae community.

If fish are limited by the algae community, what determines the amount of algae produced in a lake?

Basica1ly, the growth of algae depends on the intensity and duration of sunlight reaching the algae, the temperature of the water, and the concentrations of s ubstances called nutrients in the water. Nutrients Maine Fish and Wildlife -

S ummer 1975

r· \ ' '·;~

~

Sp ha er o cyst is

Scenedesmus

Figure 5 Common Green Algae

19

ous s ubs trates s uch as rocks, logs, docks, and J-\oats.

Fresh-water periphyton are primarily composed of green and blue-green algae whose cells are joined end to end to form chainlike filam ents (figure 3). Th ese filaments appear as slimy, mossy, often hairlike masses growing on s ubstrates in shallow protected water.

Though periphytic growth is limited by the three factors already mentioned-sunlight, water temperature, and nutrient concentrations-it is also dependant upon the availabilitv of a suitabl e s ubstrate on which t o grow. A large:open lake with steep banks will offer little s uitable s ubs trate and thu s will have limited periphyton prcduction even if nutrient concentrations in t he water are high. On the other hancl , a lake with many shallow, protected areas containing s uitable s ubstrate co uld s upport considerable periphytic growth in comparatively low nutrient concentrations.

Many cottage ownel'S build whar ves or clocks ancl then wonder why thei1· previously st eril e shoreline is covered with green slime. They often blame thi s on a s udd en decline in water quality, not realizing that they have artificially created a sheltered area with plenty of substrate fo r the periphyton to grow on.

Water quality may have nothing to do with the problem.

Th e phytopla11ktoll comm unity of a lake is ver y dynamic. Its s ize and composition are chang ing all the time, and these changes us uall y 1·eflect vari ances in s unlight intensity or duration, water temperature, or nutrient concentration. Each species of algae has optimum conditions which will s upport maximum

TABLE 1.

rntes of growth and r epr od uction. When s unlight, water temperature, nutrient concentrations, and othe1· factol'S are closer to optimum for one type of algae than for the others, this species will dominate the community. Diatoms and other Chrysophytes us uall y do well in lower water t emperature and light intensities so they tend to dominate the phytoplankton in the winter and spring. Most green algae prefer warmer water and thus are more common in the summ er and fall. The blue-green algae often dominate the phytoplankton comm unity in the late summer and early fall because they are most competitive in the warmest water, especially if nutrient concentrations ar e also high.

There is not always a dominant type of algae in the phytoplankton. Lakes often have communities in which many algae are found in s ignificant quantities but none are dominant. This type of phytoplankton comm unity is said to have a high diversity. In the opposite situation , when one or two species are dominant, the community has a low diversity. High diversity is typi cal of s table communities whereas low diversity might indicate that a community is under stress (i.e. , a lake receiving a s udd en input of nutr ien t s ) . known as an algal bloom may occur in a lake with very high nutrient concentration when other environmental factors encourage the dominance of a competitive species. During an algal bloom, the phytoplankton community has a very low diversity, ancl the dominant species becomes so abund ant that water transparency is reduced to

A

PHENOMENON

MAJOR CHARACTERISTICS OF FIVE DI VISIONS OF FRESHWATER ALGAE

DIVISION

APPARENT COLOR

Cyanophyta (blue -green algae)

blue-green to

Chi orophyta (green algae)

grass green

NUMBER OF FLAGELLA IF ANY

PIGMENTS LOCALIZED IN CHRO MATOPHORE S

never

PREDOMINANT PIGMENTS

FOOD STORED AS:

Chlorophylla,

amylopectin

Phycocyanin

reddish-green

Usually O or 2 ; rarely l,

al ways

Chlorophyl Is

primarily

STRUCTURE AND CO MPOSITION OF CELL WALL

inner wal 1 usua l ly surrounded by gelatinous sheath cellulose

yellow green

Chrysophyceae (golden brown algae)

golden brown or colorless

Bacillariophyceae (dia tom s)

golden brown

Euglenophyta

grass green

Usually O; rarely I or 2

always

0, l , or 2

al ways

0

l or 2

always

a 1ways

C~rotenes , Chlorophyll a

Carotenes , Xanthophylls , Chlorophyl la

leucosin,

greenish tan

to golden brown

20

Chlamydomonas,

Oocystis, Staurastrum varied

oi I

leucosin, Oi 1

Carotenes,

leucosin ,

Xanthophylls, Chlorophylls

a ;i

Chlorophylls

paramylon

or colorless Pyrrophyta

Anabaena , Microcystis

Sphaerocystis,

stare h

4 ,6, or 8

Ch ry sophyta Xanthophyceae (yellow - green algae)

COMMON GE NERA IN MAINE LAKES

Sil i Ci f i ed l ori ca

Ochromonas, Mallomonas ,

or plates

Oinobryon

naked or with

Sil i Ci f i ed overlapping valves

naked or surrounded by firm gelatinous

Asterionella, Tabellaria , Cyclotella

Euglena, Trachelomonas

material always

Carotenes, Xanthophyl ls, Chlorophylls

stare h. oi 1

naked or with cellulose plates

Mai ne Fis h a nd Wildli fe -

Ceratium, Peridinium

S umm er 1975

three feet or less. The water looks green or bluegreen (sometimes olive or black when the algae are dying) and may have a soupy appearance. The algae may be concentrated by wind action into windrows or along the downwind shore of the lake.

Most of the blooms in Maine lakes are either diatom bloom or blue-green algae blooms. Diatom blooms usually occur in late spring or early summer.

They are a response to a flux of nutrients into the euphotic zone (zone of significant light penetration) following pring turnover. Diatom blooms are less objectionable than blue-green blooms. They turn the water a bright green and cause a severe decline in water transparency but do not create the scums and odors associated with blue-green algae blooms.

They often occur without even being noticed by lake users. There are four types of diatoms that may bloom in Maine lakes and they are pictured in Figure 1. They are also commonly found in stable phytoplankton communities.

Cyanophyta or blue-green algae blooms create a much greater problem for lake users than do diatom blooms. Many blue-green algae have gas vacuoles which cause them to stay suspended near the surface. This makes them more subject to concentration by wind action and to formation of scums on the surface. This scum may be blown into the shallows and onto exposed rocks, making the shoreline appear to be covered with blue-green paint. When these algae die and decompose, the resulting odor can be very unpleasant. The problems are magnified since blue-green blooms usually occur in July, August, and September when recreational use of the lake is at its peak.

There are a number of blue-green algae which are likely to bloom in Maine lakes, given the right conditions (see Figure 4). The most common of these is Anabaena, a colonial genus which forms chains of bead-like cells. Recent s ummer blooms in Annabessacook and Cobbosseecontee lakes in Kennebec County and in Haley Pond in Rangeley were composed of Anabaena. In bloom concentrations, Anabaena filaments are visible to the naked eye if a sample of the water is held up to the light. Aphanizomenon has been the blooming algae in Sebasticook Lake in recent summers and Gloeotrichia has caused problems in Pennesseewassee (Norway) Lake. Though Oscillatoria rarely reaches bloom concentrations, it often dominates autumn and winter phytoplankton communities in productive lakes.

Algae blooms can have detrimental effects on the lake ecosystem other than the obvious aesthetic problems. If a lake thermally stratifies in the summer, there is no mixing of aerated surface (epilimnion) with the colder, bottom water (hypolimnion), and therefore the dissolved oxygen in the bottom water is not replenished. When algae in the surface water die, they settle out into the hypolimnion where they are decomposed by bacterial action. During the decomposition process, the bacteria consume oxygen, thus depleting the limited supply of dissolved oxygen Maine Fish and Wildlife -

Summer 1975

in the bottom water. If algal production is high, as is the case during algal blooms, the dissolved oxygen may be reduced to very low levels. This can cause suffocation of cold-water fi h s uch as togue and salmon which require the colder water of the hypolimnion.

If an algae bloom occurs in a public water supply, it may give the water an unpleasant taste or odor which is difficult to remove. It is a common misconception that algal blooms are a health hazard. Some pecies of blue-greens release toxins, and laboratory tests have shown that consumption of large amounts of these toxins can produce harmful effects in mammals . However, there have been no report of human disease or poi oning resulting from natural algae bloom ; for this reason, blooms should not be considered a heal th hazard.

Algal blooms are often a natural phenomenon.

Many small lakes have nutrient concentrations which are naturally high enough to support algal blooms.

Nubble Pond in Raymond is s uch a lake. All too often, however, human influences are either directly or indirectly the cause of algal problems. Municipal sewage or industrial wastes discharged into a lake or a lake's drainage system can add s ufficient nutrients to cause algal blooms, even in lakes with relatively low natural nutrient concentrations. Two prime examples of this exi t in Maine. Annabessacook Lake and Sebasticook Lake have both been s ubjected to municipal and industrial discharges which have resulted in severe blue-green blooms.

Indirect discharges resulting from improper land use in a lake' drainage can a lso contribute significant quantitie of nutrients. Agricultural practices such as spreading manure on sloping or frozen fields, and pasturing of cattle on lake tributaries, have cau ed algal blooms in some waters such as Lovejoy Pond in Albion. Excessive erosion resulting from poor soil management has hastened the eutrophication of Long Lake in St. Agatha.

Extensive cottage development can also result in large nutrient additions to a lake system if septic tanks are not functioning properly or are located in unsuitable soils or flood plains. North Pond in Smithfield and Togus Pond in Augusta have experienced algae blooms as a result of their densely and improperly developed horelines. about algal blooms? a lake is naturally eutrophic and supports blooms reW gardless of human influences, there is little that can HAT CAN BE DONE

If

or sho uld be done to prevent them. However, if a lake's algae problem is a result of human influences, it may be solved by eliminating the so urce of nutrients. This can be accomplished by treatment or elimination of waste discharges, by-passing polluted tributaries, elimination or reconstruction of bad septic systems, or improved land management practices.

If the cultural sources of nutrients are removed, there is a good chance the lake will recover.

21

Brettuns Pond in Livermore provides an excellent example of this. In the summer of 1973, a poultry operation in the pond's drainage had several problems with manure collection, storage, and disposal, which resulted in a very large input of nutrients into the lake. Brettuns Pond had a history of relatively good water quality and no algal blooms before this discharge. By midsummer, the lake had a very dense algae bloom which continued through to mid-September. The Department of Environmental Protection investigated the problem, identified its cause, and requested that the egg farm clean up its waste problems. The farm's management was very co-operative and eliminated the discharge. The following summer, the pond was improved considerably, and there were no blooms .

The Brettuns Pond problem was relatively easy to solve because the discharge had only lasted one year , and nutrients had not had a chance to build up in the lake and its sediments. In a lake like Annabessacook or Sebasticook, where nuh·ient inputs have been recurring repeatedly for a long period of time, recovery may take many years.

Algicides such as copper sulfate are often proposed as the solution to algal problems, but there are three major drawbacks to the use of these chemicals. Algicides do not solve the problem. They are merely a temporary cosmetic treatment of the symptoms of nutrient enrichment-and a fairly expensive treatment at that. Another and perhaps more important problem with broad spectrum algicides is that repeated applications can have toxic effects on other aquatic organisms in the lake and its sedi ments, thus

disrupting the entire lake community. The third drawback is that resistant algae may develop as a result of repeated treatm~nt. Copper treatments of a lgal bloom in Sebasticook Lake caused a change in the blooming algae from Anabaena to a species of Aphanaz01neno11 which is not affected by copper and forms even mo1·e obnoxious blooms . For these reasons, use of algicides to control algal blooms is disco uraged.

·wE

SHOULD REALIZE that algae, though they can create problems of over-abundance in our lakes, are also a very important part of our environment.

Algae, both phytoplankton and periphyton, are present in salt-water as well as in fresh-water. Marine phytoplankton are the base of the ocean's food chain much the same as fresh-water algae are the base of a lake's food chain. Therefore, the harvests of the world's commercial salt-water fisheries are indirectly dependent on algal production.

Algae perform another, perhaps more important function in our environment. An estimated 70 per cent of the earth's surface is covered by water which supports a vast amount of algae that account for much of the planet' photosynthesis. During photosynthesis, these algae produce oxygen which is indirectly released into the atmosphere, where it is required by terrestrial plants and animals for respiration. A large percentage of the oxygen we breathe is produced by algae. So although they might turn your favorite lake green, algae are not without enormous value in the environment.

•

TECHNICAL TERMS USED IN THIS ARTI CLE Amylopectin-A type of starch which is the major food storage product in blue-green algae.

Carotene-A group of yellow, orange or red pigments found in all photosynthetic plants.

Cellulose-A polysaccharide which is the chief constituent of the cell wall of most photosynthetic plants.

Chlorophyll-A group of green pigments found in all photosynthetic plants. Chlorophyll "a" is necessary for photosynthesis.

Chromatophores-Specialized int race 11 u Jar structures which contain the cell's pigments and may be the site of the cell's photosynthesis .

Genus-A division of Linnaeus' biological class ification system which is the major subdivision of a family and which contains one or more species.

Leucosin-A carbohydrate storage product found in algae of the division chrysophyta (diatoms, yellow-green algae, and goldenbrown algae).

22

Xanthophyll-A group of yellow, orange, or red pigments which are the oxygenated derivatives of the carotenes.

Paramylon-A granular storage product found in algae of the division Euglenophyta.

Phycocyanin-A blue pigment found in the blue-green algae.

Silicified-Impregnated with silica.

Species-The fundamental division of Linnaeus' biological classification system which is the major subdivision of a genus.

Thermal Stratification -Lakes with sufficient depth undergo horizontal layering of water masses of different temperatures because the density of the water varies with temperature.

Vacuole- A fluid or gas filled cavity in a cell which functions as a food storage center or maintains the cell's size and density.

Non- Vascular- ot having specialized cond uctance cells for conveyance of water and food through the plant.

Maine Fish and Wildlife -

Summer 1975

What To Do About

UNWELCOME WILDLIFE

By Francis J. Gramlich State Supervisor of Wildlife Services U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service

Y WILD ANIMAL may create problems at certain times and in particular si~uations. As a responsible member of the ammal community, man should take steps to avoid attracting ~nwelcome wildlife and thereby preclude the necessity for "controlling" his animal neighbors.

Fencing, screening, boarding-up, plugging holes, or simply shutting a door will remedy many problems.

More often, cleaning up, putting on a lid, or haulingaway will suffice. Good housekeeping and sanitation deny the "pest" the food and cover that he need~.

Deterrents and repellents include the materials that smell, sound, taste, and look unpleasant or frightening to the target species. Many are sold; some are effective for short periods, but few give long-lasting protection.

Species must be considered separately, as they differ widely in habit and behavior. Before attempting lethal control on a protected species, the local game warden sho uld be consulted.

Rats and mice are, next to man, the most destructive animals on earth; we need waste no sympathy on them. Anti-coagulant rodenticides - warfarin, pival, fumarin, or diphacinone - are all effective.

Read the label for content - not the trade name.

Remember, the bait must be available for 15 to 20 days; feed it consistently or forget it. Trapping is effective, but never buy one mouse trap - buy a dozen, use plenty. Enlarge the triggers with cardboard, and set traps perpendicular to walls or runway. Bait daily with peanut butter, cat food, bacon, or similar foods. Freshness is important.

Bats: In some European countries, these insect feeders are completely protected; people build houses for them as we do for birds. To many night-flying insects, bats are the only serious enemies. A small

A

This article, which originally appeared in the Spring 1969 issue of MAINE FISH AND GAME, has been updated for publication in this issue.

Maine Fi h and Wildlife -

Summer 1975

l'hoto

Š

by l.câ&#x20AC;˘trn u rd Lee Hue 111

colony of bat in the attic or garage can be beneficial, but large colonies in houses can create problems.

Finding and plugging their entrance will exclude them; quarter-inch mesh is excellent. Entrances are easily found by the dark smears left by the bats.

Squirrels are usually pleasant company around home or camp. However, they sometimes cause damage. They may invade camps or attics, destroy fruit or garden crops, injure tree and shrubs, or gnaw anything from utility cables to maple syrup lines.

Squirrels usually enter near the eaves of a building. Search for and close un creened openings and knotholes. Look for paces under flashing and around chimneys and utility line entrances. Undampered chimneys often provide entrances. Isolated trees without low hanging branches may be protected by placing two-foot wide metal bands around the trunks at a height of six feet or more.

Live traps or small box traps placed in squirrel's route of travel are quite effective. Nutmeats, pumpkin or sunflower seeds, peanut butter, or grain

makes excellent bait. Number O or Number 1 baited steel traps can be used where permitted, but they present a danger to pets and other non-target species, including songbirds, and are not recommended.

23

Shooting with a small gauge shotgun, where permissible, is the easiest solution and is selective for the individuals creating the problem. Red squirrels are not protected, and although greys have game status in Maine the law does permit you to kill them out of season when they are destroying your property.

Chipmunks, the striped members of the squirrel family, sometimes become bothersome in newlyplanted seed beds and gardens but seldom invade residences. They are easily live-trapped using the methods and baits outlined for squirrels. Tie or firmly fix the bait to the trap trigger to ensure tripping by these smaller animals. The ordinary wooden-base rat (snap) trap works well if it becomes necessary to use lethal control.

Meadow mice or voles cause serious economic loss to fruit growers and other tree owners. Maine state law prohibits the dispersal of toxicants except for protection of orchards and nurseries. A permit is required and can be obtained upon request from the Commissioner of Inland Fisheries and Game, State House, Augusta. Orchard damage is prevented by late fall application of zinc-phosphide treated oats, corn, or apple cubes. Most orchardists apply baits by hiring aerial application or by using tractordrawn spreaders. Cultural practices to eliminate mouse cover, combined with ap.p lication of toxic baits, usually provides adequate protection. Weather at time of bait application is critical. Rain following baiting within 72 hours is undesirable; within 24 hours necessitates reapplication.

Moles: These small burrowing insectivores ordinarily do little damage. They consume great amounts of earthworms, grubs, beetles, and insect larvae.

Only occasionally are plants or bulbs fed upon.

Mole damage is caused by dislodging plant roots as the animals tunnel through the soil in search of living prey. On golf greens, lawns, and in gardens, large numbers are undesirable. Mounded tunnels and piles of dirt at burrow entrances are sure signs of their presence. Eliminating or reducing the food supply in the soil will effectively reduce moles. Unfortunately, the insecticides capable of controlling soil organisms are injurious to birds and other animals as well; if used at all, these materials should be limited to small critical areas.

Moles produce only one litter of about four young per year and therefore are susceptible to control by trapping. One or two "prong" or "harpoon" type mole traps used persistently as recommended by the manufacturers will control moles on a small lawn or garden. Early spring is the most effective trapping period. Visible tunnels should be tramped down daily and marked. After several days, the persistently reopened tunnels will be known, and traps employed in these will catch moles. Star-nosed moles do not create visible burrows - only piles at tunnel en24

trances. Burrow systems must be excavated and traps set in them. Moles remain active all winter and during extreme frost conditions have been known to invade cellars in search of food.

Skunks are lawn damaging animals; they dig pits in search of grubs. Control of grubs eliminates the digging. When skunks take up residence in or under buildings, they can often be excluded by closing the entrance - after the skunk leaves for the evening.

Sprinkled flour at the exit point and examination for tracks will show if the skunk has left. Covered box traps usually enable skunks to be taken without voiding scent. Skunk odor can be masked by use of eutroleum Alpha, obtainable at large drug s upply stores.

Woodchucks are ea ily controlled by use of woodchuck cartridges, once the den is located. The cartridges are placed in the burrow and all entrances covered with dirt or sod. The problems from that particular den are solved immediately. Cartridges are sold at farm supply stores for a reasonable price.

Den gassing is most effective in springtime.

Porcupine damage can best be overcome by trapping at winter denning areas. Choose a warm, sunny period following a storm. Dens can be found by tracking in snow. Animals in the open are easily shot or clubbed, and size 11/:.! to 3 steel traps set at den entrances will prove effective. Set traps off center in trails and at den entrances. Porcupines in corn field s and orchards can be reduced by hunting with a light and a club during the first four hours after sunset.

Raccoons provide challenging problems in sweet corn, poultry houses, and in many urban and rural situation . Hunting with dogs is one of the most productive methods of reducing populations around crop areas. Individuals preying on poultry or other livestock can be controlled by trapping. Large livetraps baited with sardines work very well as do o.

2 steel traps set with reasonable care along stream banks, near den trees, or in shallow riffles of a stream. In making a water set, cover the trap pan with aluminum foil. Fresh fish, sardines, chicken parts, or fresh, unshucked corn make attractive baits.

Foxes, mink, weasels, and fisher are seldom problems now that poultry are housed in modern buildings. Trapping for pelts during open seasons usually provides adequate control.

HE BUREAU of Sports Fisheries and Wildlife, Division of Wildlife Services, Box 800, Augusta, Maine 04333, will furnish detailed control information on specific bird and mammal problems upon request. a

T

Maine Fish and Wildlife - Summer 1975

The Union

By J. Dennis McNeish Regional Fishery Biologist T MA y SURPRISE YOU to learn that three out of every ten acres of land in Hancock County are drained by the brooks and streams that join to form the

I

Much information in this article was obtained from the report, Union River Drainage by Keith A. Havey, Fishery Research Biologist, Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Game.

Maine Fish and Wildlife -

Union River. In fact, more than half of the 69,000 acres of lake and pond water in Hancock County are in the Union River drainage.

The Union River has three major branches and a main stem.

The branches are known as the East Branch, the Middle Branch, and the West Branch while the

Summer 1975

main stem is called, simply, the Union River.

Rising just west of Lead Mountain in T.28, M.D., Hancock County, the East Branch joins the West Branch at Graham Lake in Mariaville. Ponds in the East Branch drainage comprise a total lake area of some 4,000 acres and a total drainage area of 150 square miles. The main thread of the East Branch is 17 miles long from Rocky Lake in T.22 to Graham Lake.

The Middle Branch of the Union River begins at the foot of Middle Branch Ridge in T.28, M.D., Hancock County. It joins the East Branch at the north

' UNION RIVER DRAINAGE

)

\

y:.¡ ~ -,â&#x20AC;˘

"'"'

"

~

HANCOCK AND

The Union River drainage offe rs several canoe trip possib iliti es as well as good fishi ng.

PENOBSCOT COUNTIES

012345 MILES

end of Trout Brook Ridge about 13 miles downstream from Lower Middle Branch Pond. There are a total of 850 acres of lake water in the Middle Branch drainage, which drains an area of 45 square miles.

The West Branch is the largest of the three branches, draining 175 square miles. The West Branch begins on the south slope of Passadumkeag Mountain in Grand Falls Township. Penobscot County, and Joms the East Branch at Graham Lake. The West Branch from Great Pond to Graham Lake is 17 miles long.

26

The total lake surface area of the West Branch is approximately 4,000 acres.

HE WATERS of the Union River drainage contains, perhaps, the greatest diversity of fishing opportunities of any of the state's major river systems. Consider: an Ellsworth angler can fish for brook trout, brown trout, lake trout, landlocked and sea-run salmon, smallmouth bass, white perch, and pickerel and still never be more than 20 miles from home! There is just as wide a diversity of fishing experiences

T

as there are species to catch.

These experiences can range from small brook fishing on a sunny May afternoon to three day canoe trips on one of the river's major branches. If you would rather fish lakes and ponds, your choices run from crystal-clear, isolated, mountain ponds to sprawling, moderately-developed lakes.

Perhaps the best way to tell the story of the Union River is to consider its various sport fishes in turn and the opportunities to fish for them. I will include only a few examples for each species. A more complete list of the fishing opportunities is provided in the table elsewhere in this article.

Let's begin with trout fishing in some of the smaller streams and ponds. If I had to draw up a list of my favorite trout waters in the Union River system, Dutton Pond in Amherst would be somewhere near the top of the list. Dutton is just about the prettiest pond around, and even though the trout it produces are not record breakers, they are ready and willing to come to a fl y ! Still, I wouldn't pass up Giles Pond in Aurora. Giles certainly isn't isolated, but it produces some of the fastest fishing for nice, chunky brookies that you are likely to

Maine Fi h and Wildlife -

Summer 1975

encounter. I should also mention Jellison Hill Pond in Amherst.

Although it is not as remote as Dutton Pond, it does provide good brook trout fishing.

As for stream fishing, well, if that is your forte, you are in for a real bonanza. Haines Brook from Route 9 to the West Branch is a dandy trout stream. So is Alligator Stream from Alligator to its confluence with Main Stream. I could go on for quite a while, for there are almost 500 miles of brooks and streams in this river system, and hardly one of them is without at least a few brookies !

You should not neglect the larger waters for brook trout, either. All three of the major branches of the Union can provide some really fine fishing in the spring and early summer. I guess the East Branch is my favorite. It seems to give you a feeling of solitude. If you plan your trip well, you can have some great trout fishing plus an interesting canoe trip. But use a little caution! The East Branch will not be much of a challenge to the experienced canoeist, but a neophyte can find himself in trouble if he doesn't exercise some common sense.

I don't mean to slight the West Branch or the Middle Branch, as they also offer some high grade fishing and canoeing. In fact, the Great Pond to Tannery Loop canoe trip is probably the most popular trip in the area. It provides some challenging water along with excellent trout fishing.

Some of the bigger lakes and ponds of the Union also offer trout fishing .. Hopkins Pond in Mariaville and Clifton is probably the best bet for brookies among the larger waters of the drainage. Summer "dock" fishing and ice fishing in the winter season are probably the most popular ways to catch brookies at Hopkins. This Department is attempting to supplement the

fishery at Hopkins with regular, annual plantings of hatcheryreared trout.

Approximately 10,000 fall fingerling brookies have been stocked in Hopkins in each of the last two years. All of these fish have been marked by

Maine Fish and Wildlife - Summer 1975

Table 1.

removing various combinations of fins so that Department personnel can more easily determine the age of the fish when they are caught. These marks will also enable us to differentiate between wild and hatchery trout in the

Species management for the surveyed ponds of the Union River drainage.

Fish Species

Lake or Pond

Salmon

Togue

Brook Trout

Brown Trout

Bass

White Perch

Brandy

Chain Pickerel X

Middle Oxhead Trout

X

Halfmile

X

Debee Great

X

Rift

X

King Long

X

X

X

X

X

Litt le

X

Giles

X

Lower Springy Graham Alligator

X

Upper Middle Branch

X

X

X X

X

Lower Middle Branch Upper Lead Mountain

X

X

Middle Lead Mountain

X

X

Lower Lead Mountain

X

X

Rocky (T. 22)

X

X

Spectacle

X

X

X

X

Molasses

X

Abrams

X

X

X

Georges Webb

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

X

Floods

(Sunapee trout)

Beech Hil 1 Burnt

X

X

Green

X

X

Branch

X

X

X

X

Rocky (Otis)

X X

Upper Patten Lower Patten Goose Philips

X

X X

X

X

X

X

Hurd

X

X

X

X

X

X

George

X

Hatcase

X

Mountainy Second

Rocky (Orland)

X

X

X

Harriman

Jellison Hill

X

X

X

Moulton

Hopkins

X

X

X X

X

X

X X

X X X

27

fishery. We will be doing some creel censusing on Hopkins, and we have also distributed some forms to individual anglers so they can maintain a record of their fishing at Hopkins. If you are interested in participating in this investigation, please let us know at the Machias Fish and Game Headquarters. We'll be happy to have you aboard.

The fishing opportunities for landlocked salmon are probably not so diverse as for brook trout, but there are still lots of acres to fish. Trolling streamers or "sewn" bait in the spring is probably the most popular technique, but ice fishing has seemed to gain favor in recent years. Among the better known waters for landlocks are Beech Hill Pond in Otis, Green Lake in Ellsworth and Dedham, and Branch Lake in Ellsworth. This is a good place to point out that the Union is one of only four river basins that mark the original distribution of the landlocked salmon in the State of Maine.

Lake trout (togue) are found in many of the same lakes that contain landlocked salmon. So, while you're trolling for salmon at Branch, Beech Hill, and Green, why not try for togue? Ice fishing for lakers is also worth a try at any of those three lakes. By the way, I bet you don't know where the largest togue ever creeled in Maine was caught.

Moosehead Lake? East Grand Lake? Maybe Cold Stream Pond?

Those are good guesses, but the answer is Beech Hill Pond. The fish, caught in 1958 by Hollis Grindle of Ellsworth, weighed 31 pounds 8 ounces. Now there's a bragging-size laker! It is mounted and on display at the Department's main office in Augusta.

Lake fishing for brown trout is really quite limited in this drainage, but where it does occur, it is just about as good as you will find anywhere in Maine. I'm thinking of our old friend, Branch Lake.

28

Catching big browns on Branch is perhaps, a little harder than catching salmon or togue; but if you have some time and patience, you will eventually find the right combination. Then watch out!

You'll need home heavy gear.

Branch Lake browns are perennial derby winners, and we have weighed some over eight pounds at the Brewer Kiwanis Derby.

Finally, for those who like the exotic, there are Sunapee trout in Floods Pond, Clifton. Until quite recently, this was the only water in Maine to contain this rare race of Arctic charr. Sunapees don't

come big at Floods Pond, but I can personally attest to their willingness to strike a lure. ow LET'S CONSIDER the warmwater fisheries, starting with smallmouth bass. This game fish is present in nearly all of the ponds of the drainage except those in the upper East and Middle branches. Fishing opportunities are, again, quite variable.

Small pond enthusiasts could try Abrams, Webb, or Georges ponds.

Those who like to fish larger waters might give Graham Lake a go, or try Branch or Green

N

Maine Fish and Wildlife -

Summer 1975

lakes. White perch can be found in many of the same waters as smallmouths ; however, some of the better perch ponds do not contain smallmouth bass. Spectacle Pond in Osborn and Rocky Pond in T.22 are good examples of fine white perch ponds that do not contain bass. Incidentally, the latter two ponds are good pickerel waters. Graham Lake combines white perch and pickerel fishing. Warmwater fisheries are available in a great many other lakes (see table). Actually, the major problem with warmwater species is almost always overabundance rather than short supply. So don't be afraid to give the warm-water fisheries a whirl, summer or winter. It can only help!

OOD TIMES

are here again !

Some interesting and excitG ing things have been happening to the Union River recently.

There was much excitement in the summer of 1974 by the bluefish run, and it was truly exciting. But, fond wishes notwithstanding it seems likely this was just a short term affair (although we can hope!) . Just as exciting but for the long term as well as the short term is the return of the sea-run Atlantic salmon.

The Atlantic salmon fishery was eliminated from the Union River in the nineteenth century by the erection of several dams on the main stem. These dams proved to be impassable to fish migration. Large runs of anadromous alewives and shad were destroyed by the erection of the dams. Two modern structures continue to restrict the migration of anadromous fishes. They are a 65 foot high dam at Leonard Lake in the city of Ellsworth

Creel census boxes, provided by the local Trout Unlimited chapter , help in the evaluation of the Union River's new brown trout fishery.

Maine Fish and Wildlife -

and a 25 foot dam at Graham Lake. These two dams and their associated lakes preclude the possibility of managing the river for a fishery based on a self-sustaining population of Atlantic salmon.

The existing fishery for searun Atlantic salmon is based on fish which were stocked at the base of Leonard Lake dam a few years ago. The purpose of the stockings was twofold : ( 1) to provide brood stock for the new federal hatchery on the outlet of Green Lake, and (2) to provide a fishery for the adults returning from the sea in excess of the needs of the hatchery. The brood stock are being captured in the newly constructed trap at Leonard Lake dam. Incidentally, the Green Lake hatchery will produce approximately one-half million smolts when the facility is fully operational.

Upriver, the newest and most exciting event has been the introduction of brown trout into the three main branches of the Union.

This program was initiated by the Department of Inland Fisheries and Game in the spring of 1972 with a stocking of 4,000 spring yearling brown trout. A total of 16,500 spring yearlings had been stocked through last spring.

The long-term objective of this project is to produce a self-sustaining brown trout population.

In that regard, Fishery Division biologists have already observed several brown trout redds in the West Branch. Another promising sign is the excellent growth achieved by the stocked fish. Some anglers reported catching brown trout more than 15 inches long during the 1974 season. Since these fish were about seven inches when stocked, they had grown a good eight inches after little more than two s ummers at large. The fact that the brown trout are around at all after two summers at large is another good sign.

Summer 1975

I can report these latter facts only because of the assistance of a very enthusiastic group of anglers - the Sunkhaze Chapter of Trout Unlimited. This group has provided invaluable impetus and assistance for the Union River brown trout project. To mention a few specifics, the Sunkhaze Chapter has built, placed, and maintained creel census boxes used to gather information about the brown trout population and the brown trout fishery of the Union River. If you fish the Union River, please be sure to complete a census card and place it in one of the boxes. Your efforts will be greatly appreciated. that the Union River offers something to almost any member of the angling fraternity. Most fishermen would agree that the Union's diversity of angling opportunity is reason enough to close with a precautionary note. This river has escaped many of the problems of our other large river systems. There are no large industrie:; on the Union, nor are there any large population centers.

Still, the Union has not survived man's ways completely unscathed.

One need look no further than the two large dams on the main stem of the river or the ever increasing number of camps bordering many of its lakes to see the signature of modern man. So, don't be complacent. Get yourself informed about the environment and the laws and organizations that protect it. A good place to start would be the article, "Land Laws," in the summer 1973 issue of Maine Fish and Game magazine. A copy of this and other articles about our environment can be obtained by writing to the Information and Education Division, Department of Inland Fisheries and Game, 284 State Street, Augusta, Maine 04333.

Don't forget to fish the Union some time!

T

HERE IS NO DENYING

â&#x20AC;˘

29

N

C WARDENS HONORED Four members of the Maine Warden Service were cited for meritorious

ly injured victims of a snowmobile accident from Spider Lake to

service recently in connection

a Presque Isle hospital.

with two separate winter rescue

made the flights at night and in

operations.

adverse weather conditions, both

Wardens Norman Moulton of Lincoln

The two

having to rely on instrwnents .

Moulton has been with the Maine

and Carter Smith of Lincoln Center were responsible for pulling two

Warden Service since 1968, while

men to safety after their snowmo-

Smith joined the force in 1964.

bile crashed through the ice on

McPhee began his warden work in

Upper Sysladobsis Lake in March

1964, and Dwnond transferred from

of 1974.

the Forestry Dept. to the Warden

A third man in the party

drowned in the accident.

Service in 1968.

Town and John McPhee of Plaisted

awards presentation May 20 dur-

were cited for their efforts in

ing a Department-wide seminar at

February of 1974 to fly two bad-

the University of Maine at Orono.

NRA OFFICIAL Dr Alonzo H. Garcelon of Augusta, chairman of the Maine Fish and Game Advisory Council, is the new second Association .

The well-known Augusta sportsman was elected to the post at the 104th Annual NRA Meeting April 22 in San Diego, Calif .

KID-BITS ANSWERS

Garcelon, a dentist,

is an expert on guns, and has taken many awards in regional and nation

F R

benchrest competition.

He was first appointed to the

C y G N E T u 0

April of 1959, moving to chair the

8

council in 1961.

p

s

L C A L F D u C K L I N G p H A I N wH E L p T G K I D y C N T K I T E

N 30

GARCELON NAMED

vice president of the National Rifle

The four were honored at an

Warden Pilots Gary Dwnond of Old

Dr. Alonzo H. Garcelon

Fish and Game Advisory Council in

Garcelon was appointed as a member of the Governor 's Committee on Hunting Safety in 1964 by thenGovernor John H. Reed.

He was elected

chairman of that committee in October of that year, and re-elected chairman in 1967 under Governor Kenneth M. Curtis.

Maine Fish and Wildlife -

Summer 1975

NEW LEGISLATION We plan to run the usual legislation roundup in the

6.

License fee increases were enacted; they

fall issue of MAINE FISH AND WILDLIFE; it will cover

become effective January 1, 1976, and most

the major proposals considered this year by the 107th

are summarized below .

Legislature.

Some of the measures, however, are of more than routine interest, so we will summarize them brief-

HUNTING ANO TRAPPING LICENSE FEES

ly. (Items with an asterisk* are effective October 1, 1975.) *l.

2.

The bounty on bobcat has been repealed.

The proposed moose hunting season was not

enacted . *3 .

Bear hunters, individually or as a group,

may not hunt with more than four dogs.

Bear

may not be hunted within 200 feet of any dumping area in unorganized territories or plantations in Maine.

4.

A pheasant stamp wi 11 not be required this

fall.

5.

Passed on an emergency basis and already

in effect is a change in the penalty for night hunting.

It provides for a fine of $500 to

$1000 and by imprisonment for three to five days for a first offense and a fine of $500 to $1000 and ten to fifteen days imprisonment for succeeding offenses.

No punish-

ment shall be suspended, and firearms seized

Ma ine law does not permi t refunds on licenses.

NOTE : New fees enacted by Legislature in 197 5 to become effective in 1976.

Nonresident Citizen Big Game Hunting - 10 yrs. and over A l ien Big Game Hu nting (new license in 1976 ) Nonresident Small Game Hunting - 16 yrs. and over Nonresident Junior Small Game Hunting - 10-15 yrs. inc.

Nonresident Archery Deer Hunt ing - 12 y rs. and over Nonresident Trapping N onresident Guide - 18 yrs . and over Alien Gu id e (new license in 1976) Res ident Jun ior Hunting - 10-15 yrs. inc.

Resi dent Hunt ing - 16 yrs. and over Res ident Combinatio n Hun ting and Fishing - Over age 70 Resident Com bi nati on Hunting and F ishing - 16 yr s. and over Residen t Servi ceman Combination Resident Archer y Hunting - 10 yrs. and over Resident T ra pp ing (Sta t ewid e) Resident T ra pping (Orga nized T ownsh ips) Resi de nt Guide - 18 yr s. and over Resident Deer T ra nsport ati on License Dup licat e Lice nse (See no t e bel ow )

Through 1975

Effective Jan . 1, 1976

$ 46.50

$ 60 .50

100.00 22.50

30 .50

12.50

15.50

4 2.50 200.00 100.00

60.50 250 .00 125.00 150.00

1.50 6.50

1.50 7.50

free

free

10.50 2.50

12.50 3 .50

6.50 10.00

7.50 13 .00

5.0 0 25.00

(no ne) 32.00

40.50 1.00

40.50 1.00

All resi dent dupl ica t e licenses are to be ob tained from t he cl erk wh o issued the original license. Nonresident duplicates mu st be obtained from th e Department offi ce in Au gusta.

No t e: All li censes shall ex pi re at m idn ight of December 3 1st of t he year o f issue.

in such cases shall be sold at auction upon conviction .

MAINE DEER SEASONS SET The deer hunting season in Maine

ANSWER TO PUZZLE ON PAGE 15

this fall will open Monday, Nov . 3 in the northern zone and Monday,

meeting. The 1975 seasons offer one

Nov. 10 in the southern zone. Both

more hunting day than last year in

zones, along with the bear hunting

each zone.

season, will close Saturday, Nov .

29 .

Seasons were set by Fish

The northern zone, as in 1974, consists of wildlife management

&Game

Commissioner Maynard F. Marsh at a

units land 2; the southern zone is the remainder of the state. A

&Game

map showing these units appears in

Advisory Council, only a few days

the regulations summary each year .

May 12 meeting of the Fish

after the deadline for copy in our spring issue.

Continued progress in recovery

Maine F ish and Wildli fe -

census of wildlife biologists and warden supervisors speaking at the

The special archery season will open statewide Monday, Oct . 6; it closes Saturday,

ov . 1 in the

from a low deer population level

northern zone and Saturday, Nov . 8

of the early 1970 ' s was the con-

in the southern zone.

S ummer 1975

31

SUBSCRIPTION

EXPIRING?

Don ' t take a chance on missing a single issue of "IE FISH AND WILDLIFE -- check to see when your subscription expires.

If you see LAST ISSUE printed on your mailing label, your current subscription has run out .

The

three digits on the second line of your label at the right indicate your last issue - - 176, for instance, stands for the first, or winter, issue of 1976. !~re ' s how to read the essential information on your magazine labels (starting with spring 1975):

'Prrson~l pai!

~ub1C'r1,tioY1 . A Q, 1i>t svhr"ir,t1·0\o\ ~ i \ \ "'" c. \ cS t~s'tlad o-f p

:tcl•h'fr9,·cat,o~ ""'

----® M3 FOX, L. B. ROUTE 3 AUGUSTA

fill

'Ho,1'g

ME

04 33 0

r\UMbtr

,P~r

sub.c·ript1'ov, .

F'i11a I iscsui a t'\d

'1tar. ( I .i: i.uintu•; 2,.i:

Sfl"i~1~ 3 ~

$cJM~"'j

4 .: -fl.a.\ ,. ) If you wis h to renew your subscription, or if there are any problems with delivery of your MAI E FISH~ D WILDLIFE, please let us know of all the information on the label.

but include a label from your magazine, or at least a copy It will greatly help speed up processing.

START 'EM EARLY!!

MAlNE FISH AND WILDLIFE added to it s subscription list recently the name of one who is very possib l y the younges t maga zine subscriber in t he worl d -- he was bor n May 31, and was only six weeks old when t he subsc r ipti on was t aken !

The gift s ubscrip t ion fo r Mas t er Seth I. Kirk land of Richmond , Va . was purchased by grandfathe r L. A. Ki rk land, Jr . , wi t h a special reques t f or a gi ft card t o be s ent f r om "Grand POP." Many thanks for t he subs cr iption , Mr . Kirkland .

You sound like a very

pr oud gr andfather, and we off er you all congr atulati ons!

SNOWMOBILE SAFETY DIRECTOR Lorenzo A. Gaudreau, left, was presented May 13 with a national citation for his work in snowmobile safety training.

Gaudreau is shown accepting the award from John C. Penn, president of Arctic Enterprises, Inc., during proceedings of the International Snowmobile Congress in Milwaukee, Wis. The award, given on behalf of the International Snowmobile Industry Association, has been presented annually for the past three years to an individual judged to have done an exceptional job in promoti ng and teaching snowmobile safety. Gaudreau has managed the snowmobile safety effort in Maine since 1969.

32

MOVING? H you are moving, please drop us a line and give both your present mailing address (exactly as it appears on your mailing label) and your new one, including zip codes.

We must have this information at least four weeks in advance of the next publication date. The magazine is not forwarded automatically, and undeliverable copies are not returned to us.

Maine Fish and Wildlife -

S ummer 1975

RETURN POSTAGE GUARANTEED Postmaster: If undeliverable, please return entire magazine with form 3579

Maine Department of Inland Fisheries & Game

284 State St.

Augusta, Maine

04333