A NEGLECTED ASSET

Dominion, Volume 10, Issue 2920, 4 November 1916, Page 11

A NEGLECTED ASSET

OUR TROUT FISHING. Sir,—l should just like to refer to the article headed "Rainbow Trout" by Mr. L. Hanlon, which appeared in recent publications. The figures in regard to the loss to New Zealand in £ s. d. when all these Bplendid, fishing lakes and rivers are destroyed through allowing the best breeding fish to be taken, and continually breeding each year from tho worst fish in the lakes are extremely interesting.. There can be little , doubt the bulk of the oversea fishermen do not now come to New Zeaknd for the fishing season. ■ The authorities are well awaro that the Natives in tho Rotorua. dietriot do just as they like, during the close season, with tho result, that each year the best fish l are taken for food and tho worst left. Try this, system with tiio best-bred flock of sheep in. Now Zealand ajid see hows few years it will take to bring disaster to the owner of tho flock. Now, fish aro much mora subject to deterioration caused by breeding from inferior fish, because of tho large number of unhealthy ova that a diseased or badly-bred fish spawns. The. rapidity of the deterioration is amazing to those who have not made a study of thp question. The Natives must be stopped taking fish during close season. This may be costly, but much depends on tho way it is tackled by the Government, and whether they \are wholehearted in their desiro to bring both Natives and Europeans under tho same law. Many New Zealaaders are tired of one law for the Natives and another for the European, and it behoves the Government to listen to the voice of the person who adheres to the law and pays the taxes instead of those who genorally i find some moans of evading many of the I laws and taxes of tho Dominion.

Netting during open season should be stopped. Plenty of fish can be taken to keep do nn ovorcrowding by trolling in the lakes and fly-fishing in tho rivers and at- the mouth. During close season netting should bo carried on to eliminate all the defective trout passing up the rivers for spawning purposes. Some of tho £2000 taken out of Taupo Lake last season by netting the fish could bo well spent on this work.

I am glad to note Mr. Hanlon has mado it clear what.l meant by "killing tho goose that_ laid the golden egg," and 1 do not think he has over-estimat-ed tho annual loss in hard cash to tho Dominion (due to tho deterioration and reduction in size that has already taken place at Lako Taupo) owing to oversea fishermen staying away from Now Zealand. I put tho annual loss to New Zealand down at £35,000, and based my calculations on Canadian, British Columbian, and U.S.A. statistics, wbicli show that cach traveller individually brings into, or rather leaves in, tho country, fully £500. Each traveller to New Zealand is worth fully £300 for a few weeks or two months' visit. Tho fishing, .which was the great attraction, has lost much of its lure. It was its own advertiser, and the' sizo and quality wore known in many parts of tho world. Now tht advertising is all the otlier way. People hear of nothing but bad reports, and stay away. Mr. Hanlon quotes evidence to disprove tho Hon. G. W. Russell's state-

ment that tho weight of the Rainbow in America is normally 2jlbs. to olbs., and shows that it reaches as much as 361b5., and thero can be no doubt that it would reach that sizo in Eotorua district if tho lakes wero dealt with in th(i right way. Comparatively speaking,. thero are very few brown trout in Taupo to what there were when the Rainbow were introduced, and there can bo little doubt that feeding on the brown trout ova, fry, and yearlings, made Rainbow grow so quickly into big fish. Just in the samo way that the salmon, goes to tho sea es a smolt, say, lib. in weight, and by feeding on'the herrings and its ova, readies, in a few months, anything between 71bs. and 91bs. in weight. I have suggested to the Department to team tho brown trout fry into all tho lakes in the Eotorua district; they will soon fatten on. the Rainbow ova and fry j only the best and strongest of tho fry will escape them, and theso, when they grow larger and spawn, will be the mean's of bringing tho fishing back t6 its natural or original state. In 1917 or 1918 new purebred rainbow stock should bo prooured from Canada and placed in the Jakes, and these will quickly grow into large fish, as they will havo a superabundance of food, first in the brown trout and its ova, fry and yearlings, and then in tho frogs, enunga, cours, etc., that abound in Taupo and other lakes of the district.

Wherever netting has been allowed in British waters the river fish have suffered unci in somo cases splendid salmoa rivers havo been entirely denuded of fish. . Some of these rivers were protected at the mouth and netting prohibited, and in a few years they were again full of fish. On one river in England thero was a fall of some 20 feet, too high a jump for a salmon. The owner made a fish ladder at a cost of a few thousand pounds, and in four or five years ho was taking £3000 a year from the river in salmon and sea trout, besides enjoying very lino fly fishing during the open season. A new fish ladder, which should not be costly to make, has been lately tried with great success. It is a wheel driven by water wiith a number of wells built in the wheel. As tlio wheel revolves slowly tho salmon passes into.tho well and is lifted to the higher level. The AVailcato would make a very fino river for Atlantic salmon if somo means were provided at tho Huka Falls to enablo tho salmon to pass up into Taupo Lake. The Atiamuri Rapids could easily be made negotiable for the salmon. If tho Huka Falls and tho Rapids aio ever used for generating electricity, a salmon ladder could, at little cost, bo embodied in tho scheme. Meantime, the Government should liberate Atlantic salmon in Lako Taupo. Aftor the young fish reach the smolfc stage they would probably remain in the lake a year or perhaps two before going down to the sea, in which case they would be moro prepared to' evade the voracious fish, such as tho kingfish, kahawai, porpoise, etc., which arc tho main obstaclos to the successful acclimatisation of the Atlantic salmon in tho big rivers of the Auckland -province.—l am, etc .

CEOIL A'. WHITNEY. Auckland, October 31.