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I MARCH 1963 •£9 M^^S^J vS!7^ ^ Tj/JA *^3 H •••• PENNSYLVANIA Pennsylvania Analei FISH COMMISSION DIRECTORY Published Monthly by the PENNSYLVANIA FISH COMMISSION EXECUTIVE OFFICE COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA ALBERT M. DAY Executive Director William W. Scranton, Governor DR. ALBERT S. HAZZARD Asst. Director * WARREN W. SINGER Assistant to Executive Director PENNSYLVANIA FISH COMMISSION PAUL F. O'BRIEN MAYNARD BOGART, President .. Danville Administrative Officer JOSEPH M. CRITCHEIELD, Vice President Confluence PAUL J. SAUER GERARD J. ADAMS __ — Hawley ALBERT R. HINKLE, JR. _ Clearfield Comptroller WALLACE C. DEAN _ Meadville R. STANLEY SMITH Waynesburg JOHN W. GRENOBLE - Carlisle RAYMOND M. WILLIAMS .... East Bangor DIVISIONS MARCH, 1963 VOL. 32, NO. 3 Aquatic Biology G°RDON TREMBLEY Chief Fish Culture HOWARD L. FOX Superintendent GEORGE W. FORREST, Editor JOHNNY NICKLAS, Photographer Real Estate and Engineering CYRIL G. REGAN _ Chief tDWARD MILLER . _ Asst. Chief Law Enforcement WILLIAM W. BRITTON Chief Contents Conservation Education-Public Relations 2 BETTER FISHING IN PENNSYLVANIA FOR LESS THAN A PENNY RUSSELL S. ORR — Chief A DAY—Albert M. Day, Executive Director, Pennsylvania Fish Commission • 6 PREVENTING LAND CANCER—M. Graham Netting, Carnegie Museum 10 -SPEARFISHERMEN OF TIONESTA—Steve Szalewtcz NORTHWEST REGION ' • CAIILYLE SHELDON Warden Supervisor 12 END OF WINTER—THE BIRTH OF SPRING—Don Shiner 2l2 E. Main St., Conneautville, Pa., Phone: 3033 14 BOATING—INSIDE THE NEW STERN DRIVE—Wayne Heyman 16 SPORTSMEN'S CLUB AIDS DELINQUENTS—Roger Latham SOUTHWEST REGION ^'NTEn C. JONES Warden Supervisor 19 SWING INTO SPRING—photo story by Johnny Nicklas, photographer, Penn "• D- 2, Somerset, Pa. _ Phone: 6913 sylvania Fish Commission 20 STREAM NOTES NORTHEAST REGION ;*• CLAIH FLEEGER Warden Supervisor 22 TYING THE STREAMER—Don Shiner B°x 64, Honesdale, Pa. _ Phone: 253-3724 £ERRY RA _. Fishery Manager DEK Cover Photo—Wetting the First Line of the Season R- D- 3, Honesdale, Pa. Phone: 253-2033 By Gordon L. Strobeck SOUTHEAST REGION Inside Cover—Nice Catch of March Suckers •JOHN S. OGDEN _ Warden Supervisor ll30 Ruxton Rd., York, Pa. _ Phone: 2-3474 ROBERT BIELO - - Fishery Manager Back Cover—A Wonderful Sign of Spring H°ltwood, Pa., Photos by Johnny Nicklas Phone: Rawlinsville Butler 4-4128 NORTH CENTRAL REGION JOHN J. g Warden Supervisor POSTMASTER: All 3579 forms to be returned to Times and News Publishing Co., UCK Gettysburg, Pa. ' O- Box 5, Lock Haven, Pa., The PENNSYLVANIA ANGLER is published monthly by the Pennsylvania Fish Commission, Phone: 748-7162 South Office Building, Harrisburg, Pa. Subscription: One year— 82.00; three yoars— $5.00; 25 cents AN HEYL _ Fishery Manager per single copy. Send check or money order payable to Pennsylvania Fish Commission. DO NOT R- D- 1, Spring Mills, Pa., SEND STAMPS. Individuals sending cash do so at their own risk. Change of address should reach Phone: Center Hall Empire 4-1065 us promptly. Furnish both old and new addresses. Second Class Postage paid at Harrisburg, Pa., and at additional mailing offices. Neither Publisher nor Editor will assume responsibility for unsolicited manuscripts or illustrations while in their possession or in transit. Permission to reprint will be given provided we receive SOUTH CENTRAL REGION marked copies and credit is given material or illustrations. Communications pertaining to manuscripts, "AROLD CORBIN __ Warden Supervisor material or illustrations should be addressed to the Pennsylvania Fish Commission, Harrisburg, Pa. W- 13th St., Huntingdon, Pa., NOTICE: Subscriptions received and processed after the 10th of each month will begin with the Phone: Mitchell 3-0355 second month following. Better Fishing in Pennsylvania for Less Than a Penny a Day By ALBERT M. DAY Executive Director Pennsylvania Fish Commission J. HE Pennsylvania Fish Commission on January 21, production lost at the Spring Creek facilities in Centre in an effort to improve its financial condition, voted to County. Production at these installations has been se request the Legislature to approve a $2 increase in all riously curtailed because of pollution from State College- fishing licenses. In other actions, the group moved to Badly needed rehabilitation of the hatchery system, de request General Fund appropriations to provide the velopment of sixteen additional access sites; construc Commission's share of a Federal Accelerated Public tion of a fishing lake, and payment of General State Works Program and to finance specified capital im Authority obligations could also be accomplished. provement projects. In addition, the Commission also If the proposed amendments to the boating law are voted to request the Administration for legislation approved by the Legislature the increase in revenues which would make the necessary changes in the boating would assure better services for boaters of the Com law so that it will conform to the requirements of the monwealth. An increased boating safety program, in Federal Bonner Act. cluding accelerated safety patrol of all boating waters If the fishing license increase is granted it is expected and buoying and marking of dangerous channels would that $650,000, or two-thirds of the anticipated million be instituted. The vacant assistant director for boating dollar increase, will be needed to place the organization position would be filled. back on the same footing it was eighteen months ago. There is a growing interest in all forms of outdooi' The other one-third, or $350,000, would be used to recreation in Pennsylvania. We cannot afford to let the expand services for those who fish in Commonwealth important elements of fishing and boating deteriorate. waters. However, continuing all of the functions of the Fish If a General Fund appropriation of $300,000 is au Commission on a fixed income in the face of increased thorized to match a similar amount available to the costs of services and commodities is no more possible state through the Federal Accelerated Public Works than operating a home when income has failed to keep Program, it will be possible to immediately undertake pace with cost of living increases. a sizable stream improvement operation and develop The sale of Pennsylvania fishing licenses reached its two large lakes and an important boating access area peak in 1953 when more than 750,000 licenses were on Lake Erie benefiting fishermen and reducing unem sold. This number decreased gradually until it seems ployment in critical areas. to have leveled off at about 600,000. If the request for a General Fund appropriation of During this same period operating expenses—salaries, $1,136,000 for capital improvements only is approved wages, equipment, supplies, fish food and even postage a new hatchery will be constructed to replace the fish —have continued to increase. 2 PENNSYLVANIA ANGLER Perhaps it is of little comfort to compare our situa This was difficult, but it was essential. In engineering, tion in Pennsylvania with neighboring states, but 1 we abolished our two stream improvement crews— should point out that the trend here is not peculiar, very reluctantly, I can assure you. In the hatchery di pearly au the eastern, and some midwestern, states vision, Upper Spring Creek in Centre County was !*ave shown similar declines in license sales. New York, partly closed; operations were reduced in all others West Virginia, Maryland, Ohio and Michigan, and by a sharp cut in manpower, while the muskellunge °thers are undergoing the same fiscal crisis that we program in the Northwest was curtailed by the use are here in Pennsylvania. of less expensive pond culture to replace some of the A recent national survey conducted by the U. S. tank rearing that had been most successful. Mew *sh and Wildlife Service points out that only two cents equipment is not being bought. The hatcheries, one of °* the fishermen's dollar goes toward his license fees, which dates back to 1875, have had no major improve ^et this is the only means of supporting, managing and ments in twenty years. They continue to deteriorate. Seating better fishing. The other ninety-eight cents Because of the continued pinch in finances, we found S°es for incidentals such as boats, gas, oil, food, cloth- it necessary late last fall to liberate some 110,000 two- lnS. tackle, etc. year-old trout into lakes throughout the Common When it became evident in August, 1961, that ex wealth because we couldn't afford the $50,000 or more penditures were exceeding income, the Fish Commission that it would cost us to carry these fish through the ^'d the only wise thing that a responsible agency could winter for planting this spring. d°- Expenditures were cut to a point somewhere close We stopped the long established and exceedingly to revenues. The result was a substantial saving for popular operations at Fishermen's Paradise, distributed ^e balance of the 1961-62 year and a considerable re some 12,000 of the large fish held there around the duction in operating costs in all major lines of activity state and made the Spring Creek project a "fish for '0r the fiscal year 1962-63. fun" stream. Auxiliary equipment 37% Privilege fees and other expenses 26% Fishing equipment 11% Transportation expenses Food and lodging 10% Licenses 2% NUUCH—1963 for land also are rapidly absorbing many areas which j would be suitable for development for fishing and boat ing purposes. In many areas, the point of no retursl is already here. In others, acquisition must be at" complished soon or never. Unless additional revenues are made available to the Fish Commission, it will be necessary to drop or defe1'I indefinitely planned development of lakes and access sites already acquired, quite possibly at the risk c| losing Federal Dingell-Johnson funds. These funds, de rived from the Federal excise tax on fishing tacklf and equipment, are used to reimburse state agencies at the rate of 75 per cent of the cost of approved projects- Unless the Fish Commission has sufficient funds to initially finance the projects, the Federal money is lost- The Commission's policy has been to keep main- j tenance of our properties at a high standard.

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