Fishes of the Big Blue River Basin, Kansas Part 7

The ten baits most commonly used, in order of frequency, were worms, doughb.a.l.l.s, minnows, liver, beef-spleen, chicken-entrails, coagulated blood, crayfish, shrimp, and corn.

For purposes of later comparison the data on angler success (Table 4) have been divided according to areas: Area I, below Tuttle Creek Dam; Area II, in the Tuttle Creek Reservoir area; and Area III, above the reservoir. Areas I and III received the most fishing pressure, especially Station 4-S (in Area I), and Station 56-S (in Area III).

In Area I, the success ranged from 0.91 fish per fisherman-day in 1957 to 0.26 fish per fisherman-day in 1958. The 1957 census was made in April and May, when fishing in warm-water streams is considered better than in July (Harrison, 1956:203). The 1958 census was from late June through July, and stream-flow in this period was continuously above normal. Therefore, fewer people fished the river, and catches were irregular. Catches in 1958 ranged from 0.26 fish per fisherman-day in Area I to 0.44 fish per fisherman-day in Area III. In 1951, in the Republican River of Kansas and Nebraska, the average fisherman-day yielded 0.36 fish, 0.09 fish per man-hour, and 0.06 fish per pole-hour (U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service, 1952:13-14). The average fisherman-day in the Republican River study was 3.0 hours, whereas the average on the Big Blue River was 2.2 hours for all areas in 1958 (Table 4).

TABLE 4. ANGLING SUCCESS IN THE BIG BLUE RIVER, KANSAS, 1957 AND 1958.

================================================================= AREA, YEAR, |Average |Number |Number |Number AND NUMBER |length of |fish per |fish per|fish per OF FISHERMEN |fisherman-day|fisherman-day|man-hour|pole-hour[A]

---------------+-------------+-------------+--------+------------ Area I, 1957 | 2.7 hours | 0.91 | 0.33 | 0.23 53 fishermen | | | | Area I, 1958 | 2.5 hours | 0.26 | 0.10 | 0.07 84 fishermen | | | | Area II, 1958 | 1.7 hours | 0.37 | 0.22 | 0.14 27 fishermen | | | | Area III, 1958 | 2.4 hours | 0.44 | 0.16 | 0.11 41 fishermen | | | | All areas, 1958| 2.2 hours | 0.33 | 0.14 | 0.09 152 fishermen| | | |

[A] Fishermen used an average of 1.44 poles.

In the Big Blue River 47.7 per cent of all fishermen were successful in Area I in 1957, while only 13.1 per cent were successful in the same area in 1958 (Table 5). In the Republican River, 24 per cent of the fishing parties were successful (1.64 persons per party) (U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service, _loc. cit._). The average distance that each fisherman had traveled to fish in the Big Blue River was 15.7 miles. Seventy-nine per cent of the persons contacted lived within 25 miles of the spots where they fished. In the study on the Republican River, 77 per cent of the parties interviewed came less than 25 miles to fish.

TABLE 5. PER CENT OF TOTAL FISHERMEN SUCCESSFUL, AND DISTANCES TRAVELLED TO FISH, BIG BLUE RIVER BASIN, KANSAS, 1957 AND 1958.

ALL DISTANCES WERE MEASURED IN AIRLINE MILES.

============================+=======+=======+=======+=======+====== | 1957 | 1958 | 1958 | 1958 | 1958 | Area | Area | Area | Area | All | I | I | II | III | areas ----------------------------+-------+-------+-------+-------+------ Per cent of | 47.1 | 13.1 | 18.5 | 19.5 | 15.8 fishermen successful | | | | | | | | | | Distances traveled to fish | 0-121 | 1-197 | 0-124 | 0-60 | 0-197 (averages in parentheses) |(15.6) |(20.5) |(13.5) |(7.4) |(15.7) ----------------------------+-------+-------+-------+-------+-------

RECOMMENDATIONS

My primary recommendation is for continued study of the Tuttle Creek Reservoir, and the Big Blue River above and below the reservoir, to trace changes in the fish population that result from impoundment.

Probably the fishes that inhabit the backwaters, creek-mouths, and borrow-pits in the Big Blue River Basin (gars, shad, carpsucker, buffalo, carp, sunfishes, and white ba.s.s) will increase in abundance as soon as Tuttle Creek Reservoir is formed. Also, as in eastern Oklahoma reservoirs (see Finnell, _et al_., 1956:61-73), populations of channel and flathead catfish should increase. Because of the presence of brood-stock of the major sport-fishes of Kansas (channel and flathead catfish, bullhead, bluegill, c.r.a.ppie, largemouth ba.s.s, and white ba.s.s), stocking of these species would be an economic waste: exception might be made for the white ba.s.s. It may be above Tuttle Creek Dam, but was not found there.

I do recommend immediate introduction of walleye, and possibly northern pike (_Esox lucius_ Linnaeus), the latter species having been successfully stocked in Harlan County Reservoir, Nebraska, in recent years (Mr. Donald D. Poole, personal communication). These two species probably are native to Kansas, but may have been extirpated as agricultural development progressed. Reservoirs may again provide habitats suitable for these species in the State.

If Tuttle Creek Reservoir follows the pattern found in most Oklahoma reservoirs, large populations of "coa.r.s.e fish"--fishes that are, however, commercially desirable--will develop (Finnell, _et al._, _loc. cit._). To utilize this resource, and possibly to help control "coa.r.s.e fish" populations for the betterment of sport-fishing, some provision for commercial harvest should be made in the reservoir.

SUMMARY

1. The Big Blue River Basin in northeastern Kansas was studied between March 30, 1957, and August 9, 1958. The objectives were to record the species of fish present and their relative abundance in the stream, and to obtain a measure of angling success prior to closure of Tuttle Creek Dam.

2. Fifty-nine stations were sampled one or more times, using seines, hoop and fyke nets, wire traps, experimental gill nets, rotenone, and an electric fish shocker.

3. Forty-eight species of fish were obtained, and five others have been recorded in literature or found in museums. One species, _Carpiodes forbesi_, is recorded from Kansas for the first time.

4. _Notropis lutrensis_ was the most abundant fish in the Big Blue River Basin, followed by _Notropis deliciosus_ and _Ictalurus punctatus_. The most abundant sport-fishes were _I. punctatus_, _I. melas_, and _Pylodictis olivaris_, respectively.

5. The sp.a.w.ning behavior of _Notropis lutrensis_ is described.

6. A creel census at major points of access to the Big Blue River, was taken in 1957 (below Tuttle Creek Dam) and in 1958 (above, in, and below the dam-site). Fishing pressure averaged one fisherman per 15.7 miles of sh.o.r.eline. The average length of the fisherman-day averaged 2.2 hours, with an average of 0.33 fish per fisherman-day being caught in 1958. The average number of fish per man-hour in 1958 was 0.14 and 15.8 per cent of the fishermen were successful. Distances traveled in order to fish ranged from 0 to 197 miles (airline) and averaged 15.7 miles.

7. The primary recommendation is that studies be continued, to doc.u.ment changes that result from impoundment. Because brood-stock of the major sport-fishes is already present, stocking is unnecessary, except for walleye and northern pike. Also, I recommend commercial harvest of non-game food-fishes.

LITERATURE CITED

BAILEY, R. M.

1956. A revised list of fishes of Iowa, with keys for identification. _In_ Iowa Fish and Fishing, by J. R. Harlan and E. B. Speaker. Iowa State Cons. Comm., Des Moines, pp. 325-377.

----, and CROSS, F. B.

1954. River sturgeons of the American genus _Scaphirhynchus_: characters, distribution, and synonymy. Pap. Michigan Acad.

Sci., Arts, and Letters, 39 (1953): 169-208.

BREUKELMAN, J.

1940. A collection of Kansas fish in the State University Museum. Trans. Kansas Acad. Sci., 43: 377-384.

BUCHHOLZ, M.

1957. Age and growth of river carpsucker in Des Moines River, Iowa. Proc. Iowa Acad. Sci., 64: 589-600.

CANFIELD, H. L., and WIEBE, A. H.

1931. A cursory survey of the Blue River System of Nebraska.

U. S. Dept. Comm., Bur. of Fisheries, Econ. Circ. 73: 1-10.

COLBY, C., DILLINGHAM, H., ERICKSON, E., JENKS, G., JONES, J., and SINCLAIR, R.

1956. The Kansas Basin, Pilot Study of a Watershed. Univ. of Kansas Press, Lawrence, ix + 103 pp.

CRAGIN, F. W.

1885. Preliminary list of Kansas fishes. Bull. Washburn Lab. of Nat. Hist., 1 (3):105-111.