Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Goderich Signal-Star, 1966-11-17, Page 14nemy _Of Nature's Darlings s 9 The enemy" is -one of nature's darlings, having survive d through millions of years with: out the stages of evolution com- mon to other creatures. Its name is the sea lamprey; its origin the sea; its shape eel- like; ifs object to kill, as many lake trout and whitefish as it can. The sea lamprey—petrorrryzon marinus--i§ harmless during the first years "of- its life as an arn- mocoe•te Or larva. But during the last 12 to 18 months it feeds by- attaching itself to the sire :of its victim and sucking out blood and b.:dy juicLs. tf it hadn't been for man, the sea- lamprey would never have reached four of the five Great Lakes. Until the 19th century Niagai4cFalls prevented it from advancing into Lake Erie from its natural habitat. the North Atlantic. But with the ;building of tom. Welland Canal the door was opened to the upper Great Lakes iwhere large trout and whitefish roamed in abundance. It took the lamprey con.uri 's to deviate. from its normal spawning pattern. At the end of its life it would invade rivers running into the sea to spawn. The young into, after re- maining buried in the river mud, for several years, woi1d return to the sea with an appetite for large game fish. Once it had settled down in Lake Ontario, where sone re- mained at maturity ins;'. ad .;f returning to the sea, an::cher. , century passed. -_before it navi- wasted Federdtion 853 nnual Banqu Goderich Township Federa- tion of Agriculture held its an- nual banquet • meeting in Holmesville United Church last Thursday. Although adverse weather conditions nrevailed, 90 persons attended. • Entertainment was provided by Mrs. Jack Van'Egmand, dur- ing land after the banquet. Prominent among the guests were: Don Pullen, the depart- ment, of agriculture; Harry Oakes, township council; Charles Thomas, Brussels, coun- ty federation of agriculture, and Lloyd Bond who presented the prizes and certificate to the farm improvement winners in tl 0V114#lr;..0 Billr44r_ �. x riffs - ani'<.ai-`tobb. Guest speaxer IUI; the event was James Shearer, • Brigid, a former agricultural repeesenta- tive in Huron, presently farm- ing. - Mr. Shearer recalled events and people within the township that were prominent during his term here in the county. He expressed concern over the un - decisive attitude of many of the Canadian people and sug- gested that we need evolution rather than revolution. "Let's keep Canada one na- tion ,and also have one united _ farm organization1 ajlerept; us, rather than two divided or- ganizations," he said. Mr Shearer told of a recent trip to the western provinces and noted how progressive and impressive things looked the?%. as compared to other years. He stressed the importance of our export markets and tour- ist trade and finished his talk by urging everyone to nay at- tention to anything tha; will help Canada along. He left his audience with the impression that Canada was a ..wonderful country and that he was glad to be one of it; citi- zens. • gated through the Welland Can- al. And instead of returning either to Lake Ontario or the sea, several lamprey headed the ether way into Lake Erie. There 'they were first noticed in 1921. Shallow.. ,warm, Lake. St. Clair pre.; ntcd another; natural bar- . Tier to the .lamprey which is .accustomed to cold water. But 15 years after the invasion of Lake Erie, the lamprey, wlt•ich „grows to a length of three feet in the sea but only about two feet in fresh water, had proved on to Lake Huron. A decade later it was at work in Lake Michigan. \1r'•ith each female lamprey lay- ing about 60.000 eggs, of which 60 per cent are 'said to hatch, it was easy work for the invader to suck up the whitefish and trout, both of which 'happen to prefer the rocky shoals favored by the hungry eels. By 1947 lake trout catches in Lake Huron had ,been, reduced to virtually nil from 3,400,000 pounds in 1937. In Lake Mich- iean, • the catch was dawn to 500 pounds in 1951 from. 6,600,-• ' 901) in 1946. By 1945 the lamprey was es- tablished in Lake Superior. In the early 1950s, -'when it serious- ly threatened the last strong- hold o•f the trout and whitefish, man decided to intervene in the ba tfl`e. The decision came not a imi-0- ute - loo soon-. A 1953 curve " showed that 11,A! per cent or the lake trout caught in Lake Superior bore lamprey sears. What percentage had been kill- ed could never be determined. During those years attempts -were, made to bloekade lamprey- -spawning grourbtis' with river barriers, some of the'ni electrical and costing $3,000 to $4,000 a- piece. But in the depth of the lake landpri'ys had a feast on the 'defenceless tish. Commercial tisherunerr were feeling the result every, time they -hauled• in their nets. 'In 1954, lake trout catches in Lake Superior had dru.pped to 05,000 pounds.. Four year' earlier fish- ermen had hauled '4,500,000 pounds of trout from the lake. Results of early -experiments with mechanical river barriers \aero encouraging although flocds, heavy plecivpitation and floating logs often damaged the weirs,. allowing adult lampreys to slip through to their spawn- ing grounds. Electrical barriers were more successful. Eft-c'trodcs did not present as large an obstacle,"to• debris, but floating objects did often shdnt,circuit the two pales, putting generators out of ac- tion. In 1956 Canada and the [United States joined up in tthe Great L fkcs Fisheries Commission and 6,IV The Goderich Signal -Star,• Thursday, November 17, 196 declared war on ,the lamprey. Previously efforts to control it had been carried on by fisheries departments and agencies oLthe two countries. Biologists soon realized that the barrier -program would not be sufficient' tb stamp out the killed. The electrical barriers killed only the adult lampreys, leaving the young in the river mud to niature, a process es- tinrat,d to take three to six. years: The next lime of attack was poison to attack the young in their habitat. After 'testing more than 5,000 chemical combina- lions, the U.S. fish and wildlife service found a ppoison that .would kill the yo.unlg laanprey but leave other species virtually unharmed. The first full-scale cheanical attack was launched in 1959. 'A year later the lamprey popul- ation in Lake Superior had more than doubled and the lake trout population was down. -The reason was.a natural one. lake trout start spawning at about seven years of age when they weigh three to five pounds. But that is also the size'laimprey prefer. Consequently. while the 700,000 lake trout yearlings' planted in Lake Superior in 1959 survived unmolested, spawning trout Were nearly extinct. By the cud of 1960, scientists - technicians' and Fisheries of the Agent for 24 -hr. —FILM—DEVELOPING--- ,.., DEVELOPING fiiiness Directory 4, Harboui Air Services Ltd. For Charier Flights -- Flying Instruction New & Used Aircraft Sales Reserved For An .Interesting Announcement REFRIGERATION and • APPLIANCE SERVICE All makes -- All types GERRY'S APPLIANCES The Square Phone 524-8434 "'Phe Store That Service Built" ,Alexander and Chapman GENERAL INSURANCE REAL ESTATE PROPERTY MANAGEMENT Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce Building Goderich Dial 524-9662 G. C. ,WHITE Accredited Public Accountant 88 Elgin Ave. W. 524-0797 Goderich Ontario R. W. BELL OPTOMETRIST • The Square 524-7661 A. M., HARPER CHARTERED ACCOUNTANT 55-57 SOUTH STREET TELEPHONE GODERICH, ONTARIO 524-7562 ,-- DON'T MISS THIS OPPORTUNITY -- ANNUAL M „utle Research Board of Canada and the Bureau of Commercial Fish- eries in Iiariamond I3ay, Mich., had treated 20 streams in Can- ada and 52 in the United States, with chemical lampricide At the same time restocking of lake trout continued. In 1960 there were 1,050,000 trout yearl- ings planted, far short of the 7,500,000 needed annually to br- ing the lake back to its former level of population. But plant- ings now are being increased. In 1961 the lamprey popula- tion in Lake Superior had again doubled: But in 1962 it showed a drop.' And in subsequent years the trout population "in- creased_ "We now have obtained some measure of control over T. Tiib- bles, director of the Sea Lam- prey Control Station in Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., .said recently. But he emphasized that' the battle is still far from won. Lake Huron streams have un- dergone chemical treatments but the program there will have 'to be accelerated. ciie .�.tl�7 r-a+r II„ n06 & LEATHER G*ODS SAI TON LIMITED (EST. 1894) TH: PHONE BLYTH 523-9373 On Hwy. 4, Between Clinton and Wingham CONTIN ILS TILL NOVEMBER -19th AT - T}1E.OLD. we, HOURS: 9:00 A.M. TO 6:00 P,M. WEEK DAYS, INCLUDING WEt)t"!ESDAY SATURDAYS, 9:00 A.M. TO 10:00 P.M. ' ALBERT 1 SHORE United Accumulativ0e -mob Fund 'Ltd. Now serving the' savings and investment needs of more than 120,000 • Canadians --`[Net assets as of June 30, 1966: $256,711,168 Superior • investment program for as little as $100, or $20 A month United Investment Services Ltd: 92A Quebec St. 524-8164 48 MONTH INSURANCE GUARANTEE Mor - Power DUAL - DUTY Guaranteed 48 -months of full powered performance;. combines "H!- . Capacity" to spin zero cold'engine foster and longer, plus "Hi-Wotei'• feature that protects the plates ,that produce the power, when you forget to odd water. Also the exclusive advantage of Power -Sealed Dry -Charge that erasures buttery freshness. Exceeds new car equipment quality. 6 -Volt —I Fits Chev., 1950-54; Dodge, 1935-55 (most); Plymouth, 1939-55; Pontiac, 1949-54 (20- 22 series) .and, many -Withers; -- 12 -Volt Fits Chev., 1955 - 66;' Chrysler prod. ' 1956-66 (most); Ford prod. (most) 1956-66; Pon- tiac, , 1955-66; and many other late models. INSTALLATION 30e 1 .95 DRY CHARGE- : Gaga ,o with trade DRY CHARGE BRAND NEW KEYSTONE BATTERY 6 -VOLT DRY CHARGE 6.95 WITH TRADE : 12 -VOLT DRY CHARGE 9.95 WITH TRADE INSTALLATION 50e Now. for ra limited time, you can get a famous -make gas range for as low as $1.9 We're offering you top trade-in values, no down payment, and; if you wish,.as little as $4.35 a month on your regular gas hill. Modern gas ranges include such features as infinite heat selection, automatic ignition -and clock control, low temperature.ovens, smokeless broilers, large oven windows and lift-off doors. Save on one of these modern gas ranges now, and you'll know why gas makes the gig difference. In addition, you have a chance to get a modern U;<'is dryer for as low as $199,,95,, no down payment, or as little as $4.35 a month on your regular gas bill. Each quality gas dryer is gentle enough for any fabric, and a must for permanent press"garments. Only a gas dryer gives you complete circulation of warm air, at a speed that leaves clothes fresh and wrinkle -free and what a big difference in -operating cost. Take advantage of the special low prices on these dryers now, 'Asia4 if S;' i aWt+ r �• p' �? taM ,, s.n.•„."Y`Y,f}y1'... ;c (=i. -s+. ° ,1: '1' >i: °Fn'�?kr�# %l.LM: � } x°11 i( °"'�j' y4%,Lf.•{ f + . 44, h ifIOFFAT, FINDLAY, TAPPAN • GURNEY, ENTEIf'RISE,I3EACH. MOFFAT, HAMILTON,.MAYTAG, WESTINGHOUSE, THOR, INGLIS, SIMPLICITY: SAVE SAFELY "NIP" w WHETRTON, 36 NORTH STREET GODERICH