A partial fisheries survey of the Missouri River between Holter Dam and Cascade, Montana, with
special emphasis on growth rate of trout and suckers
by Joseph W Kathrein
A THESIS Submitted to the Graduate Faculty in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree
of Master of Science in Fish and Wildlife Management
Montana State University
© Copyright by Joseph W Kathrein (1950)
Abstract:
A study of the Missouri River between Holter Dam and Cascade, Montana was made during the
summers of 1948 and 1949 to determine existing conditions with reference to the trout fishery. The
gradient for this part of the river is 3.1 feet per mile.
Water temperature determinations made during 1948 and 1949 showed the average to be within the
generally accepted toleration range for trout production.
The presence of large quantities of Chara indicated that turbidity was not sufficient to prevent light
penetration necessary for successful plant growth.
Dissolved oxygen, pH, and alkalinity determinations showed dissolved oxygen to be near the saturation
point at all stations, the water to be in the alkaline range, and moderately hard.
A partial creel census showed the total catch per hour to be 1.91 in 1948 and 0.97 in 1949. The catch of
trout per hour was 0.70 in 1948 and 0.29 in 1949. The catch per hour for all species except whitefish
was less in 1949 than in 1948.
Fish collections indicated a predominance of rough fish. The ratio of game fish to rough fish was
approximately 1:3; trout to rough fish, 1:86; trout to suckers, 1:76.
Age and growth was determined for 478 rainbow trout, 127 brown trout, 87 longnose suckers, and 223
western white suckers. Age groups of rainbow trout ranged from I to VII; brown trout, I to IX;
longnose suckers, III to VIII; western white suckers, I to VIII. Age group II was most predominant in
rainbow and brown trout; VI in longnose suckers, and III in western white suckers. Greatest growth
was attained during the second year in rainbow and brown trout, and during the first and third years for
longnose and western white suckers, respectively. Trout growth is more rapid than sucker growth. The
majority of trout were represented in age groups I - III, while suckers were predominately represented
in age groups IV - VIII.
Coefficient of condition for 481 rainbow trout was 37.2 and for 117 brown trout was 34.6. A PARTIAL FISHERIES SURVEY OF THE MISSOURI ,RIVER BETWEEN
HOLTER DAM AND CASCADE, MONTANA, WITH SPECIAL
EMPHASIS ON GROWTH RATE OF TROUT AND SUCKERS
by
JOSEPH W. ^ATHREIN
A THESIS
S u b m itte d t o th e G ra d u a te F a c u lty
in
p a r t i a l f u l f i l l m e n t o f th e r e q u ir e m e n ts
f o r th e d e g re e o f
Master* o f S c ie n c e i n F is h an d W i l d l i f e Management
at
M ontana S t a t e C o lle g e
Approved:
H e a ^ f M ajor Def&r&nent
Bozemans, M ontana
June# 1950
' ' J U I I - I t l '.,II'll!,; ;;
l^ l U l r l -
IV
,,,q/;
: U / ; 1I .«
N W
K
\< ° \
Co V
2
T ab le o f C o n te n ts
I
...............................................................................
In tr o d u c tio n . . . . . . . . . .
. . . . .
3
...................
,
M ethods . . . . . . . . . . .
.....................................
T e m p e ra tu re , tr a n s p a r e n c y , and c h e m ic a l a n a l y s e s . . . . .
C re e l cen su s. . . . . .
.......................................... . . . . . . .
F is h c o l l e c t i o n s . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
S c a le s t u d i e s . ............................ ............................
C o e f f i c i e n t o f c o n d i tio n . .......................................... . . . . . .
Ox Ox O vt Vi Vh
............................ .... .................................................. 4
D e s c r ip ti o n o f th e a r e a
. . . . .
.
. .
o __
. . . . .
-O
A b stra c t . . . . . . . .
P h y s ic a l c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s
G r a d ie n t and flo w . .
T e m p e ra tu re . . . . .
T ra n s p a re n c y . . . . .
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C hem ical c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s . . ................... . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
H o lte r Dam . . . . . . . . .
............................
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n
12
................... 13
15
C re e l census
F is h c o l l e c t i o n s ........................ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
A ge-grow th . . . . . . .
Rainbow t r o u t
Brown t r o u t . . . . .
Longnose s u c k e r s . . .
W estern w h ite s u c k e r s
xO 'J ^3
A cknow ledgem ents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
. . . .
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........................ 19
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C o e f f i c i e n t o f c o n d i tio n . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
........................ 26
L ite ra tu re c ite d . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
93019
21
21
22
24
25
27
3
ABSTRACT
; ' A s tu d y o f th e M isso u ri R iv e r betw een H o lte r Dam and Cascade, Montana
was made d u rin g th e summers o f 1948 and 1949 to d eterm in e e x i s t i n g c o n d i­
tio n s w ith r e f e r e n c e t o th e t r o u t f i s h e r y . The g r a d ie n t f o r t h i s p a r t o f
th e r i v e r i s 3 .1 f e e t p e r m ile .
W ater te m p e ra tu re d e te rm in a tio n s m ade"during 1948 and 1949 showed th e
a v erag e to be w ith in th e g e n e r a lly a c c e p te d t o l e r a t i o n ran g e f o r t r o u t
p ro d u c tio n .
• " "
The p re s e n c e o f la r g e q u a n t i t i e s o f Chhra in d ic a te d t h a t t u r b i d i t y
was n o t s u f f i c i e n t to p re v e n t l i g h t p e n e tr a tio n n e c e s s a ry f o r s u c c e s s fu l
p l a n t grow th.
D isso lv e d oxygen, pH, and a l k a l i n i t y d e te rm in a tio n s showed d is s o lv e d
oxygen to be n e a r th e s a tu r a ti o n p o in t a t a l l s t a t i o n s , th e w ater to be in
th e a l k a l i n e ra n g e , and m o d e ra te ly h a rd .
A p a r t i a l c r e e l c en su s showed th e t o t a l c a tc h p e r hour to be 1.91 i n
1948 and 0 .9 7 i n 1949. The c a tc h o f t r o u t p e r hour was 0 .7 0 .in 1948 and
0 .2 9 i n 1949. The c a tc h p e r hour f o r a l l s p e c ie s e x c e p t w h ite f is h was
l e s s i n 1949 th a n in 1948.
^
•Fish c o lle c tio n s , in d ic a te d a predom inance o f rough f i s h . The r a t i o
o f game f i s h to rough f i s h was a p p ro x im a te ly 1 : 3 ; t r o u t to ro u g h f i s h ,
1 : 86 ; t r o u t to s u c k e rs , 1 : 76 .
'"
Age and grow th was d eterm ined f o r 478 rainbow t r o u t , 127 brown t r o u t ,
87 longnose s u c k e rs , and 223 w e ste rn w h ite s u c k e rs . Age g roups o f r a i n ­
bow t r o u t ran g ed from I to V II; brown t r o u t , I to IX; lon g n o se s u c k e rs ,
I I I to V I I I ; w e ste rn w h ite s u c k e rs , I to V I I I . Age group I I was m ost p r e ­
dom inant i n rainbow and brown t r o u t ; VI i n lo ngnose s u c k e rs , an d ,.JII in
w e ste rn w h ite s u c k e rs . G r e a te s t grow th was a t t a i n e d d u rin g th e second
y e a r i n rainbow and brown t r o u t , and d u rin g , th e f i r s t and t h i r d y e a rs
f o r lo ngnose and w e ste rn w h ite s u c k e rs , r e s p e c t i v e l y . T ro u t grow th i s
more r a p id th a n su ck er grow th. The m a jo r ity o f t r o u t were re p re s e n te d in
age groups I - I I I , w h ile su ck e rs were p re d o m in a te ly re p re s e n te d in age
groups IV - V I I I .
C o e f f ic ie n t o f c o n d itio n f o r 481 rainbow t r o u t was 3 7 .2 and f o r 117
brown t r o u t was 34 . 6 .
,
■.'i
1,
■V .
I
.
4
I n tr o d u c tio n
D uring th e summer o f 1948 a p a r t i a l f i s h e r i e s su rv e y , t h a t in c lu d e d
c e r t a i n p h y s ic a l, c h e m ic a l, and b io lo g ic a l d e te rm in a tio n s , was conducted
on th e M isso u ri R iv e r between H o lte r Dam and C ascade,' M ontana 6
T his p ro ­
j e c t was sp o n so red by th e C ascade C ounty W ild lif e A ssociation .
I t s prim e
o b je c tiv e was to determ in e e x i s t i n g c o n d itio n s which m ight e f f e c t th e
tr o u t fis h e ry .
A d d itio n a l o b s e rv a tio n s w ere made i n 1949 em phasising te m p e ra tu re ,
c r e e l c e n s u s , and th e s e c u rin g o f t r o u t and su c k e r s c a le s f o r ag e-g ro w th
d e te r m in a tio n s .
No p re v io u s f i s h e r i e s in v e s t ig a ti o n s ,o n t h i s p a r t o f th e r i v e r a re
known to th e w r ite r ,.
However, s im ila r u n p u b lish e d s tu d ie s have been
c o n d u c te d .o n .o th e r Montana s tre a m s .
Age-growth and c o n d itio n s tu d ie s were made f o r rainbow t r o u t ( Salmo
g a i r d n e r i i ) a n d .brown t r o u t ( Salmo t r u t t a ) .
Age-growth w as Also d e t e r -
mined f o r th e longnose su c k e r (C atostom us..c a to sto m u s) . and w e s te rn w h ite
su ck e r (C atostom us commersonnii s u c k l i i ) .
A com parison o f grow th was made
betw een th e s e s p e c ie s .
D e s c rip tio n o f th e Area
T he, stre am betw een H o lte r Dam (Tl^N, R 3W ,.S ection 5, Lewis and C la rk
County) and C ascade (Tj.8N, R14W, S e c tio n 26, C ascade County) com prises a
d is ta n c e o f 35 m ile s .
o f meadow la n d .
The up p er f i f t e e n m ile s tr a v e r s e s d harro w v a lle y
Below t h i s i t flo w s th ro u g h a canyon f o r e i g h t m ile s and
th e n o u t &hto a n open v a lle y o f farm la n d e x te n d in g td C ascad e.
5
There a re o n ly two m ajor t r i b u t a r i e s to /th is p a r t o f th e r i v e r , P r ic k le y
P ear G reek and th e D earbdrne R iV ere
They e n te r th e r i v e r th r e e and tw elve
m ile s , r e s p e c t i v e l y , downstream from H o lte r Dam9
a ls o e n te r t h i s s e c tio n o f th e r iv e r *
S e v e ra l sm all t r i b u t a r i e s
These l a t t e r stre am s c o n tr ib u te
c o n s id e ra b le w a te r d u rin g p e rio d s o f r u n - o f f , b u t v e ry l i t t l e d u rin g th e
d ry season*
Methods
T em perature * T ran sp aren cy , and Chem ical A n a ly sis
Morning, and evening w a te r te m p e ra tu re s w ere .ta k e n i n 1948 and 1949.
Most o f th e te m p e ra tu re s w ere determ in ed by th e use o f a p o c k e t therm o­
m eter c a l i b r a t e d a t two d e g re e i n t e r v a l s .
c e r t i f i e d ch em ical therm om eter.
T h is was checked a g a in s t a
A maximum-minimum therm om eter, and a
deep sea r e v e r s in g therm om eter were a ls o u se d .
A ll te m p e ra tu re d e term in a ­
tio n s were made i n th e shade, and w a te r te m p e ra tu re s were ta k e n in the
c u r r e n t.
W ater tra n s p a re n c y was determ ined by means o f a S e c ch i D isk .
C hem ical w a te r a n a ly s e s in c lu d e d d is s o lv e d oxygen, pH, p h e n alp h t h a l e i n a l k a l i n i t y and m ethyl orange a l k a l i n i t y .
T e s ts w ere made in
acco rdance w ith methods d e s c rib e d in " S ta n d a rd Methods f o r th e Examina­
t i o n o f W ater and Sewage", American P u b lic H e a lth A s s o c ia tio n (1 9 4 6 ).
The W inkler Method was used to d e term in e d is s o lv e d oxygen, and a H e llig e
p o c k et com parator and a p p r o p r ia te i n d i c a t o r s w ere u sed to d eterm in e pH.
C r e e l 1C ensus. F is h C o lle c tio n s , and S cale S tu d ie s
C re e l c en su s c a rd s w ere used w hich re q u e s te d th e fo llo w in g in fo rm a­
tio n s
Name o f fis h e rm a n , k in d s o f f i s h , c a u g h t, number o f h o u rs f is h e d ,
6
l o c a t i o n o f c a tc h , av erag e le n g th s and w e ig h ts o f c a tc h , and ty p e o f lu r e
o r b a i t used*
These c a rd s were e ith e h com pleted by anglfers o r by th e
w r i t e r a f t e r in te rv ie w in g f i s hermen*
The tim e i n t e r v a l co v ered by any
in d iv id u a l r e p o r t i s v a r i a b l e . ■ No s p e c ia l e f f o r t was made to g e t t o t a l
d a i l y c atc h e s*
A c tu a l w eig h ts and le n g th s were se c u re d o n ly on those, r e p o r ts
com pleted by th e w rite r*
Those ta k e n by fish e rm e n were e s tim a te s .
The m a jo r ity o f f i s h used i n th $ s s tu d y w ere c o lle c te d by a n g lin g .
Some were sec u re d by g i l l n e t , s e in e s , and by th e u se o f d y n am ite.
Common''
names used i n i d e n t i f i c a t i o n o f f i s h e s p re s e n t i n th e s e c tio n o f th e M is­
s o u r i R iv e r s tu d ie d were ta k e n from American F is h e r ie s S o c ie ty , S p e c ia l
P u b lic a tio n No. I (194-8). '
'• '
T o ta l le n g th s wfere d eterm in ed to th e n e a r e s t o n e - te n th o f an in c h , and
w e ig h ts to th e n e a r e s t o n e - te n th o f a pounds
S c a le s were sec u re d from th e l e f t s id e o f th e f i s h , between th e
d o r s a l f i n and th e l a t e r a l l i n e .
They w ere c lea n e d and mounted in a g ly —
>
c e r in e — gum a r a b le medium.
A nnuli w ere d eterm in ed a f t e r p r o je c tin g th e
s c a le s on a machine d e sig n e d f o r t h i s p u rp o se .
Annual in c re m e n ts on th e s c a le s o f rainbow and brown t r o u t were
m easured from th e c e n te r o f th e fo c u s a lo n g th e m e d ia n -a n te rio r r a d i u s .
Sucker s c a le in c re m e n ts were m easured a lo n g th e d o r s o - v e n tr a l d ia m e ter a s
d e s c rib e d by Spoor (1 9 3 8 ).
C o e f f ic ie n t s o f c o n d itio n (K) were c a lc u la te d f o r th e rain b o w and
brown t r o u t .
The form ula used was s
7
K » ¥ x 1C)5
l3
where W s w e ig h t in pounds? and L = t o t a l le n g th i n in c h e s .
Acknowledgements
My s in c e r e a p p r e c ia tio n i s ex ten d ed to D r. C. J . D. Brown, who
d ir e c te d t h i s i n v e s t i g a t i o n and a s s i s t e d in p r e p a r a tio n o f th e m an u scrip t?
th e C ascade C ounty W ild lif e A s s o c ia tio n and Mr. H arry E rig g e , who p ro v id e d
fu n d s f o r th e p r o j e c t , and th e Montana F is h and Game D epartm ent f o r t h e i r
a s s i s t a n c e , b o th i n th e f i e l d and i n th e la b o r a to r y .
I a ls o w ish to th an k
Mr. Raymond Hays f o r h is a s s is ta n c e i n s c a le m ounting and re a d in g .
I am
in d e b te d to D r. Reeve M. B a ile y o f th e U n iv e r s ity o f M ichigan fdl* th e id e n ­
t i f i c a t i o n o f th e s u c k e rs .
P h y s ic a l C h a r a c t e r i s t i c s
G ra d ie n t and Flow
Stream g r a d ie n t and volume a re f a c t o r s w hich may d e term in e th e s u i t a ­
b i l i t y o f a stream f o r t r o u t .
In th e s e c tio n o f th e M isso u ri R iv er s tu d ie d
th e r e i s an a v erag e g r a d ie n t o f 3 .1 f e e t p e r m ile ( e le v a ti o n a t H o lte r Dam
3454 f e e t - Cascade 3345 f e e t ) .
T his g r a d ie n t is-m uch lo w e r th a n th e a v e -
e ra g e f o r o th e r m ajor t r o u t stre am s i n M ontana.
S t a b i l i t y o f flo w i s a d e s ir a b le f e a t u r e o f any stream i n m a in ta in in g
h ig h p r o d u c t i v i t y .
H o lte r Dam, a t th e head o f t h i s s e c tio n o f th e stre am ,
u n d o u b ted ly h as a s e a s o n a l ,- s ta b iliz in g e f f e c t on th e flo w , i n t h a t w ater
i s impounded d u rin g p e rio d s o f heavy r u n - o f f and r e le a s e d when th e su p p ly •
i s low .
D a ily f l u c t u a t i o n i s p ro b a b ly g r e a te r th a n i t would be i f th e dam
8
were n o t p r e s e n t.
A p re d e te rm in e d amount o f w a te r i s drawn from th e
bottom o f H o lte r R e s e rv o ir once each day ( u s u a lly during th e n ig h t) f o r
u t i l i z a t i o n by fo u r power p l a n t s below t h i s S e c tio n o f th e M isso u ri R iv e r.
The mass o f w ater r e le a s e d a t th e dam moves downstream a s a U n it 9 w hich
r e s u l t s in a marked r i s e i n w a te r l e v e l a t a p a r t i c u l a r lo c a t io n i n a
s h o r t p e rio d o f tim e .
A fte r th e mass o f w a te r h as p a ss e d , low w a te r con=
d i t i o n s a g a in p r e v a i l , making i t p o s s ib le to have low w ater a t each end
and h ig h w a te r i n th e m iddle o f th e s e c tio n .
W ater r e le a s e d a t H o lte r Dam
a t m id n ig h t o f te n does n o t re a c h th e low er end o f th e s e c tio n a t Cascade
u n t i l 6 :0 0 P.M. o f th e same day.
T h is d a i l y f lu c t u a t i o n i n th e water
l e v e l o f th e r i v e r i s p ro b a b ly d e tr im e n ta l t o th e s p o r t f i s h e r y .
f a c t o r s may be in v o lv e d :
S e v e ra l
f i r s t , food organism s c an n o t occupy t h a t zone
which i s l e f t h ig h and d ry each day, and seco n d , f is h in g c o n d itio n s a re
made e x tre m e ly d i f f i c u l t by th e f l u c t u a t i o n i n w a ter l e v e l , r e s u l t i n g in
a re d u c ed h a r v e s t o f f i s h .
O b se rv a tio n s i n d i c a t e t h a t a n g lin g was more
s u c c e s s f u l d u rin g p e rio d s o f low w a te r.
The maximum; minimum, and av erag e a c tu a l o u tflo w i n c u b ic f e e t p er
second a t H o lte r Dam f o r th e months o f Ju n e , J u ly , A ugust, and September,
194-8 and 1949 i s re c o rd e d i n Table I .
T ab le I
M easured A dtiial vO utfldw ' "H olter Dam
■ . Cubic F e e t P e r Second#
June
J u ly
Maximum
Minimum
1948
35.8
13.6
19Z.9
16.3
5 .0
Av%r?ge
2 5 .0
10.0
* Thousands o f c u b ic f e e t
_1948__1949
15.0
4.5
3 .4
2 .2
7.5 , 3 .4
August.
1948
5.3
3.5
4.3
1949
2.5
1.8
2.2
S ep tem b er
1968
1969
3.5
4.1
3.?
2 .0
2.8
9
F lo od c o n d itio n s in 1948 were r e s p o n s ib le f o r th e la r g e flo w d u rin g June
and J u ly 5, w h ile i n 1949 a p a r t i a l d ro u g h t was r e s p o n s ib le f o r th e l e s s e r
o u tflo w i n J u ly , A ugust, and Septem ber,
Tem perature
W ater te m p e ra tu re i s p o s s ib ly th e m ost im p o rta n t p h y s ic a l f a c t o r in
s u c c e s s fu l t r o u t p ro d u c tio n .
An a tte m p t was made to d e term in e w hether
th e te m p e ra tu re o f th e M isso u ri R iv e r was w ith in th e a c c e p te d ran g e o f
. to le ra tio n .
Morning and ev en in g te m p e ra tu re s were ta k en i n 1948 a s fo llo w s :
S ta tio n I ( F ig . I ) - Highway b rid g e 2 m ile s downstream from H o lte r Dam;
S ta tio n 2 - 1 4 -1 /2 m ile s downstream from H o lte r Dam; S ta tio n 3 <= County
highway b rid g e a t C ascad e,
R eg u lar morning tem p eratu r e s w ere ta k en tw ic e
w eekly and evening te m p e ra tu re s fo u r tim e s w eekly a t S ta tio n I i n 1949.
Maximum, minimum, and av erag e te m p e ra tu re s a t each s t a t i o n a re p r e ­
s e n te d i n T able I I .
T able I I
Tem perature R ecording s - D egrees F a h re n h e it
M isso u ri R iv e r - 1948 - 1949
J™e
1948
S ta tio n I
Maximum
Minimum
Average
7 0 .0
. 6 8 ,0
6 9 .3
S ta tio n 2
Maximum
Minimum
Average
6 9 .0
6 7 .0
6 8 .6
S ta tio n 3
Maximum
Minimum
7 1 .0 •
65'o0
68 a0
1949
1948
J u ly
1949
A ugust
1948
1949
64.0 .
614
62d7
7 1 .6
6 9 .0
6 9 .7
7 0 .0
64.0
6 6 .1
7 2 .0
6 7 .0
6 8 ,9
-
7 1 .0
6 6 .0
6 8 .6
7 2 .0
-
■
■
7 1 .0
•6 5 .0
6 8 .9
59.0
7 1 .0
61.0
6 7 .0
... 67.4
7 3 .0
64.0
67 .3
Septem ber
1948
1949
7 0 .0
6 6 .0
'6 7 .0
7 0 .0
62.0
6 5 .9
68.0
6 1 .0
6 4 .0
6 7 .0
5 5 .0
59 .6
F ig u r e I
M is s o u ri R iv e r
H o lte r Dam - C ascad e , M ontana
11
Maximum-minimum te m p e ra tu re s w ere ta k e n a t S ta tio n 3 from J u ly 20
th ro u g h August I s 1948°
day p e rio d was 71 »6
The maximum te m p e ra tu re re c o rd e d f o r th e tw elve
F oj th e minimum 59.° 1° F , ? and th e av erag e 66,8? F 0
I n 1948 th e maximum te m p e ra tu re re c o rd e d was 72° P*, and i n 1949
73° F .
A t no tim e d id th e maximum te m p e ra tu re rem ain above 70° F , f o r a
p e rio d o f mop© th a n th r e e c o n se c u tiv e d a y s.
dropped below 70
fo llo w in g d ay .
I n each C ases th e te m p e ra tu re
F , d u rin g th e n ig h t and a g a in re a ch e d t h i s maximum th e
A ll te m p e ra tu re s rem ained w ith in th e g e n e r a lly a c c e p te d
ran g e f o r t r o u t .
T ran sp aren cy
L ig h t i s known to e x e r t a c o n s id e ra b le in flu e n c e on th e grow th o f
p la n ts and c o n se q u e n tly a n im a ls n e c e s s a ry f o r s u c c e s s fu l t r o u t p ro d u c tio n ,
S e e ch i d is k re a d in g s were made to d eterm in e r e l a t i v e tr a n s p a r e n c ie s (T ab le
III).
These re a d in g s w ere made a t th e same tim e and s t a t i o n s a s tem pera=
tu r e s ( F ig . I ) „
The w ater was to o .s h a llo w to u se th e S ecch i d is k a f t e r
J u ly I and J u ly 9 a t S ta tio n s I and 3 S r e s p e c t i v e l y .
tin u e d th ro u g h Septem ber 10 a t S ta tio n 2 .
was re c o rd e d on August 21«
R eadings w ere con­
A maximum re a d in g o f 6 5 ,5 in c h e s
T h is re a d in g was more o r l e s s c o n s ta n t th ro u g h
Septem ber 1 0 .
Large numbers o f C lad o cera w ere o b serv ed i n water" sam ples tak en in
1948 and 1949.
D uring th e months o f J u l y s A ugust, and Septem ber o f 1948
and 1949 g r e a t q u a n t i t i e s o f Chara were p r e s e n t in th e r i v e r making a n g lin g
d i f f i c u l t f o r a l l e x c e p t f l y fis h e rm e n .
The p re se n c e o f Ghara in la r g e
12
q u a n t i t i e s in d ic a te d t h a t t u r b i d i t y was n o t s u f f i c i e n t to p re v e n t l i g h t pene
t r a t i o n n e c e s s a ry f o r i t s grow th.
"
June
S ta tio n I
Maximum
Minimum
Average
S ta tio n 2
. Maximum
Minimum
. Average
S ta tio n 3
Maximum
Minimum .
Average
1 '
J u lv
23.25 in c h e s
2 1 .5
2 1.75
.2 5 ,7 5
14.0
1 8 .5
"
' '
A ugust
Septem ber
2 8 .7 5 in c h e s ( J u ly l )
6 2 .5
> 4 .5
4 6 ,9
22.75
1 4 .5
1 7 .4
• ; •
.. Table I I I
'■
65 .5 in c h e s
5 7 .0
"60.0
65.5. in c h e s
65 .5
6 5 .5
2 6 .5
w .s
.
-'
2 ? .2 (9 days)
r
TT----— -r-'- .
C hem ical C h a r a c t e r i s t i c s
A l im it e d number o f ch em ical w a te r a n a ly s e s w ere made f o r d is s o lv e d
oxygen, pH, m eth y l orange a l k a l i n i t y , - a n d p h e n a lp h th a le in a l k a l i n i t y .
These a n a ly s e s w ere made a t th e fo llo w in g lo c a t io n s (T ab le I V )s
1.
2.
■• 3 .
4.
5.
6.
R e ta in in g w a ll im m ed iately below H o lte r Dam.
S ta tio n I ( F ig . I ) ,
Hardy B rid g e , 2 -1 /2 m ile s downstream from S ta tio n 2 .
S ta tio n 3 .
P r ic k le y P ear C reek, 3 m ile s u p stream from i t s m outh.
D earborns R iv e r - 300 f e e t u p stream from i t s m outh.
D isso lv e d oxygen c o n te n t a t each s t a t i o n was n e a r th e s a tu r a ti o n
p o in t.
The pH d e te rm in a tio n s w ere a l l w e ll w ith in th e a l k a l i n e ra n g e ,
and m ethyl orange a l k a l i n i t y show ed.the w a te r to be m o d e ra te ly h a rd .
T his
would a p p ea r t o be b e n e f i c i a l a s m o d e ra te ly h a rd w ater i s g e n e r a lly more
13
p ro d u c tiv e th a n very, s o f t o r v e r y h a rd w a te r .
The chem ical d e te rm in a tio n s
made on P r ic k le y P ear G reek and th e D earb o rn s R iv e r9 w ith th e e x c e p tio n o f
m ethyl orange a l k a l i n i t y and p h e n a lp h th a le in a l k a l i n i t y , w ere nearly i d e n t i ­
c a l w ith th o s e found i n th e M isso u ri R iv e r.
T able IV
Ghemic a l Wat e r A nalyse s
M isso u ri R iv e r - P r ic k le y P e a r C reek - D earborns R iv er
1948, - J 9 4 9 . ..
L o c a tio n
R e ta in in g w a ll
D ate
7 /9 /4 8
W ater
Temp
Time
° F„i r ? Op AM 67.6.
D.O.
pom
8 .2
nH
8 .0
MoO.
A ik.
Dtan
116
PhTh
A ik.
,nnnfi
S ta tio n I
9 /1 /4 8
9 /2 5/49
10:30 AM
10:30 AM
67.6
5 9 .0
8 .7
9 .0
8 .4
8 .2
133
144
7 .0
5.0
Hardy B ridge
7 /1 0 /4 8
8/31/48
10:45 AM
5:00 PM
6 6 .6 . 7 .9
6 7 . 6 ’ 8 .4
8.1
8 .4
120
134
4 .0
9 .0
S ta tio n 3
7 /1 3 /4 8
8/31/48
11 :0 0 AM
4 :0 0 PM
6 4 .0
67.5
8 .5
8.3
8 .1
8 .4
120
133
4 .0
6 .0
P r ic k le y Pear
C reek
7/10/48
1:4 5 PM
6 2 .4
8.3
8 .4
140
8.0
D earborns
R iv e r
7 /1 2 /4 8
2:45 PM
64.2
8.5
8 .5 .
170
8.5
W ater te m p e ra tu re s re c o rd e d i n T able IV a re b o tto m ? te m p e ra tu re s, and a re
v e ry s im ila r to s u rfa c e te m p e ra tu re s (T ab le T l ) .
H o lte r Dam
An e f f o r t was made to d eterm in e w hat p h y s ic a l and ch em ical e f f e c t ,,
i f any, H o lte r Dam m ight have on th e s e c tio n o f th e M isso u ri R iv er
s tu d ie d .
On A ugust 3 1 , 194-8 (6 :3 0 — 7 :4 5 P.M .) a s e r i e s o f w a te r tem pera­
tu r e s w ere ta k e n and chem ical a n a ly s is made on H o lte r R e s e rv o ir a t a
14
•p o in t 75 y a rd s above th e dams midway betw een th e e a s t and w e st sh o res (T ab le
V ).
The maximum d e p th o f th e r e s e r v o i r a t t h i s l o c a t io n was 102 f e e t .
T able V " "
W ater T em peratures and C hem ical A n a ly sis ■
H o lte r R e s e rv o ir, August 31, 1948
W ater
Tem perature
Deoth
D egrees F ,
S u rfa c e
6 8 ,1
5 ft.
■6 8 ,1
10 f t .
6 8 ,0
Il ft.
6 8 ,0
20 f t .
6 7 ,6
6 7 ,2
2$ f t .
30 f t .
6 6 ,9
50 f t , 6 6 ,2
60 f t .
6 5 .8
70 f t .
63,3
75 f t .
6 1 ,9
80 f t .
6 0 ,4
90 f t .
6 0 ,1
100 f t .
9 8 .6
D isso lv e d
Oxygen
oom .
. .
T30
8,7.
P h e n a lp h th a le in
A lk a lin ity
nnm
1 0 ,0
M ethyl Orange
A lk a lin ity
_____ RRBL ....
127
"
,
' '
-.
■
■ -'
5 .9
-- '
1 .6 ■0 .7
-
-—
7 .2
0 ,0
115
There was no marked th e rm a l s t r a t i f i c a t i o n i n th e r e s e r v o i r .
The d i f f e r ­
ence i n w a te r -tem perature betw een th e s u r f a c e and 100 f e e t was 9 ,5 ° F e
S in ce th e w a ter u t i l i z e d f o r power g e n e r a tio n i s drawn from th e bottom o f
th e la k e , i t would seem t h a t th e w ater te m p e ra tu re below th e dam would be
c o n s id e ra b ly low er th a n th e av erag e r i v e r te m p e ra tu re .
T em peratures ta k e n
i n J u ly , 1948 from th e r e t a i n i n g w a ll im m ed iately below th e dam averaged
6 7 ,6 ° F ,
The av erag e te m p e ra tu re s i n A ugust a t S ta tio n I , tw o 'm ile s down­
stre am from th e dam were 6 8 ,9 ° F e i n 1948 and 6 7 ,3 ° Fe in 1949,
There
was a c o n s ta n t s p i l l o f s u rfa c e w ater from th e r e s e r v o i r over th e dam 24
h o u rs a day, w hich p ro b a b ly o f f s e t any te m p e ra tu re v a r i a t i o n t h a t would
15
have been caused by th e w ater being drawn from th e bottom o f th e r e s e r v o i r .
The m ixing o f s u rfa c e and bottom w a te rs was u n d o u b ted ly s u f f i c i e n t to p re v e n t
any lo w e rin g o f th e w ater te m p e ra tu re i n an a re a im m ed iately below th e dam.
The c o n d itio n w ith r e f e r e n c e to d is s o lv e d oxygen, pH, and a l k a l i n i t y
in th e r e s e r v o i r p ro b a b ly has no g r e a t in f lu e n c e on ch em ical c o n d itio n s '
o f th e r i v e r below th e dam.
C re e l C ensus
A p a r t i a l c r e e l cen su s was u n d e rta k en by th e w r ite r i n 1948 and con­
tin u e d d u rin g th e summer o f 1949 ( T able V I).
U. S. HighwayNo. 91 c lo s e ly
fo llo w s th e r i v e r from S ta tio n I (F ig . I ) to Cascade making th e stream
e a s i l y a c c e s s ib le to a n g le r s and th e c r e e l cen su s ta k e r .
p e rm it a com plete census o f th e e n t i r e a re a e v ery d ay .
Time did n o t
About o n e -h a lf o f
th e r e p o r t s sec u re d i n 1948 were a c t u a l in te r v ie w s and th e o th e r h a l f were
v o lu n ta ry r e p o r t s o f fis h e rm e n ..
The 1949 cen su s in c lu d e s o n ly a c tu a l i n t e r -
v iew s.
Of 802 c r e e l census re c o rd s sec u re d i n 1948, 88 ( l l p e rc e n t) r e p o rte d
no c a tc h , w h ile i n 1949, 87 (22 p e rc e n t) o f th e 381 re c o r d s re p o rte d ta k in g
no f i s h .
A nglers r e p o r tin g "no c a tc h " f is h e d a t o t a l o f 296 hours in 1948
and 152 h o u rs in 1949o
The p ro b a b le re a s o n f o r t h i s d if f e r e n c e i n "no
c a tc h " r e s u l t s from th e f a c t t h a t fish erm en a re h e s i t a n t to r e p o r t when
th e y ta k e no f i s h .
I n f i n a l a n a l y s i s , how ever, th e t o t a l c a tc h p er hour
was n o t a p p re c ia b ly a f f e c t e d by th e re c o r d s o f a n g le r s r e p o r tin g ('no c a tc h " .
The t o t a l c a tc h per h o u r, w hich in c lu d e d a l l s p e c ie s r e p o r te d , was
1 .9 1 i n 1948 and 0 ,9 7 in 1949.
The c a tc h p e r hour fo r a l l s p e c ie s o f t r o u t
" ' ! l UV. I t i r i t i l : ■; M l :
i I ' u t i t i
-
i
i
:i
16
was O070 i n 1948 and 0 .2 9 i n 1949«
The 1949 c a tc h p e r hour was l e s s f o r
a l l s p e c ie s , e x c e p t th e m ountain w h ite f is h , th a n i t was i n 1948.
The
av erag e a n g le r f is h e d 3.-7 h o u rs i n 1948 a n d :2 .5 h o u rs i n 1949, and f o r
h is e f f o r t to o k home 2 .0 6 t r o u t i n 1948 and 0.55 t r o u t i n 1949.
A lthough th e yellow p e rc h i s n o t c o n sid e re d a game f i s h i n th e Mon­
ta n a f i s h i n g r e g u la tio n s , i t p la y s an im p o rta n t r o le i n th e f i s h e r y o f
t h i s s e c tio n o f th e M isso u ri R iv e r, and i s c o n sid e re d a game f i s h f o r th e
p u rp o se s o f t h i s s tu d y .
Y ellow p e rc h were r e p o rte d more f r e q u e n tly th a n
any o f th e f i s h ta k e n i n 1948, co m p risin g 3 1 .6 7 p e rc e n t o f th e t o t a l c a tc h .
Fewer p e rc h w ere r e p o r te d i n 1949 th a n i n 1948, and made up o n ly 2 0 .2 p e r ­
c e n t o f th e t o t a l c a tc h .
Rainbow t r o u t i s the m ost im p o rta n t t r o u t s p e c ie s i n th e r i v e r , and
was r e p o r te d more f r e q u e n tly th a n e i t h e r th e brown o r e a s te r n brook t r o u t .
Rainbow t r o u t made up 29.13 p e rc e n t o f th e t o t a l c a tc h i n 1948 and 22.83
p e r c e n t i n 1949, w h ile brown and brook t r o u t combined o n ly com prised 7 .3 6
p e r c e n t o f th e 1948 c a tc h and 7 .6 8 p e rc e n t o f th e 1949 c a tc h .
Brown t r o u t
showed a s l i g h t in c r e a s e i n p e r c e n t o f th e t o t a l c a tc h in 1949 over 1948.
A ll o f th e e a s te r n brook t r o u t r e p o rte d were cau g h t w ith in a s h o r t d is ta n c e
o f th e mouths o f sm all t r i b u t a r i e s .
M ountain w h ite f is h was th e predo m in an t f i s h r e p o r te d in 1949, com pris­
in g 27.22 p e r c e n t o f th e t o t a l c a tc h , w h ile i n 1948 i t made up o n ly 8.85
p e rc e n t o f th e c a tc h .
C re e l census was ta k en o n ly d u rin g th e summer months
and so does n o t in c lu d e th e w in te r f i s h e r y which i s l a r g e l y w h ite f is h .
I f th e w in te r f i s h e r y had been in c lu d e d , w h ite f is h would u n d o u b ted ly be
17
T able VI
M isso u ri R iv e r C re e l Census
1948 - 1949
Number o f fish erm en
Number ta k in g no f i s h
1948
1949
802
8&
381
87
'Number o f f i s h ta k e n
T o ta l h o u rs f is h e d
C atch p e r h our
567$ , 911
2966
938
0197
1 .9 1
Ave„ h o u rs p e r fish e rm a n day
3 .7
2 .5
T ro u t p e r hour
W h ite fis h
P erch
S uckers
Carp
O th ers
0 .7 0
0 .1 7
0 .6 1
0 .3 0
0 .1 1
0 .0 2
0.2 9
0 .2 7
0 .2 0
0 .1 8
0 .0 2
0 .0 1
Rainbow t r o u t
Brown t r o u t
E a s te r n brook t r o u t
M ountain w h ite f is h
Yellow p e rc h
■Suckers
C arp
O th e rs ( B u rb o t9 C hannel
c a t f i s h . B row n-bullhead,
F la th e a d chub. C o itu s ,
B ass, S u n f ish)
1653
365
53
502
1797
886
322
. 97
208
66
4.
248:
184
182
15
4
P e rc e n t o f T o ta l
1948
1949
1 1 .0
22.83
-■
C atch
Number o f t r o u t p e r fish e rm a n
f o r th e season
2 9 .1 3
6 .4 3
0 .9 3
8 .85
31.67
1 5 .6 1
5.68
1 .7 0
22.83
7 .2 4
0 .4 4
27.22
20.20
19.98
1 .6 5
0 .4 4
'i *
2 .0 6
0.55
th e predom inant game f i s h f o r b o th y e a rs i n t h i s s e c tio n o f th e M isso u ri
R iv er
18
A la r g e number o f su c k e rs w ere ta k e n by b a i t fish erm en in 1948 and
1949.
Many fish e rm e n d id n o t r e p o r t t h e i r su ck e r c a tc h .
Two s p e c ie s o f
s u c k e rs , w ith p o s s ib le h y b rid s betw een them , were p re s e n t i n th e c a tc h .
No a tte m p t was made i n th e c r e e l census to d is t i n g u i s h betw een them .
A lthough a c o n s id e ra b le number o f c a rp a r e p r e s e n t in t h i s p a r t o f
th e r i v e r th e y a r e n o t commonly tak en ' by fis h e rm e n .
I n 1948 an a tte m p t was made to d e term in e th e ty p e o f l u r e o r b a i t
u se d .
Two hundred th r e e a n g le r s r e p o r te d u s in g o n ly a r t i f i c i a l f l i e s ;
75 used s p in n e r s , spoons, and p lu g s ; 459. used, b a i t , w hich in c lu d e d a n g le worms, su ck e r m eat, g ra s s h o p p e rs , and m aggots; 64 d id n o t r e p o r t th e type
o f lu r e o r b a i t u s e d .
B a it f i s h i n g was th e m ost p o p u la r m ethod.
The
h ig h , muddy w a te rs i n 1948 p ro v id e d i d e a l c o n d itio n s f o r th e b a i t f i s h e r ­
man, w h ile i n 1949 low w a ter c o n d itio n s w ere more s a t i s f a c t o r y f o r th e
f l y fis h e rm a n .
The fo llo w in g f i s h were o b serv ed to be p r e s e n t i n th e s e c tio n o f th e
M isso u ri R iv e r s tu d ie d :
Rainbow t r o u t ( Salmo g a i r d n e r i i )
Brown t r o u t ( Salmo t r u t t a )
E a s te r n brook t r o u t ( S a lv e lin u s f o n t i n a l i s )
M ountain w h ite f i s h ( P ro sb n i um' w illia m s o n i)
Yellow p e rc h ( P erea f la v e s c e n s )
B urbot ( L ota l o t a )
Brown b u llh e a d ( Ameiurus h e b u lo s is )
Channel c a t f is h Tlc ta lu r u s l a c u s t r i s )
C arp ( C yprinus c a r n io )
F la th e a d chub ( P la ty g o b io
Longnose Dace (R h in ie h th v s s o . )
F resh w ater s e u lp in (C o ttu s s n . )
Pumpkinseed ( Lenomus g ib b o su s)
Largemouth b la c k b a s s (M ic ro u te ru s saltn o ld eg )
W estern w h ite su ck er ( C atostom us commersonnii s u c k l i i )
Longnose su c k e r (C atostom us c ato sto m u s)
19
F is h C o lle c tio n s
S e in in g was a tte m p te d a t s e v e r a l lo c a t io n s on J u ly 3 1 , 1948.
t r o u t , 16 s u c k e rs, and 5 c a rp were ta k e n i n s i x s e in e h a u ls .
Ten
A g raded
g i l l n e t (125 f t . ) was s e t a t IltO O A.M. J u ly 11 and l i f t e d a t seven
o ’ c lo c k th e fo llo w in g m orning.
p e rc h , and I brown b u llh e a d .
The c a tc h in c lu d e d 24 s u c k e rs , 2 y ello w
The use o f s e in e s and g i l l n e t s was con­
s id e r e d to be im p r a c tic a l b ecau se o f th e s i z e o f th e r i v e r , th e amount o f
c u r r e n t , th e n a tu re o f th e b o ttom , and th e la r g e amount o f f l o a t i n g d e A ris .
The use o f dynam ite was r e s o r te d to in . an e f f o r t to o b ta in a
re a s o n a b le sample o f f i s h .
On August 29-30, 1948 c o lle c tio n s were made
a t th re e - s e le c te d l o c a t io n s , a s fo llo w s s
stre a m from H o lte r Damg (2) 7 - 9
(l)
Ldne Pine - 6 m ile s down­
Ranch - 2 m ile s upstream from S ta tio n 2
( F ig . I ) ; (3) B a r r e t t Ranch - 3 m ile s u p stream from S ta tio n 3 .
R ecovery
o f f i s h was th e m ost im p o rta n t f a c t o r c o n sid e re d i n s e l e c t i n g th e lo c a ­
tio n s .
Each c o n s is te d o f an u p stream r i f f l e fo llo w e d by a deep h o le .
Bottom and s u rfa c e c h arg es o f f i v e , s i x , and te n s t i c k s o f te n p e r c e n t
dynam ite w ere exploded a t th e s e th r e e l o c a t i o n s .
Two man crew s, equipped
w ith d ip n e t s , i n m otor b o a ts p a sse d back and f o r t h in and below th e dyna­
m ite d a re a p ic k in g up th e f i s h a s th e y f l o a t e d to th e s u r f a c e .
I t was
n o t p o s s ib le to re c o v e r a l l o f th e f i s h t h a t s u rfa c e d a s some w ere swept
away by th e c u r r e n t .
The a i r b la d d e rs o f o th e r s were r u p tu r e d by th e
•e x p lo sio n and some o f th e s e d id n o t come to th e s u rfa c e im m ed iately .
a r e a s dynam ited were checked d a ily f o r dead f i s h .
The
Qn September I a number
20
o f f l o a t i n g f i s h were observed a t Lone P in e .
&. t o t a l o f 92 suckers,, 11
c a rp , and I y e llo w p e rc h w ere counted on th e bank and f l o a t i n g i n a back
w a te r.
The fo llo w in g day, Septem ber 2 , 40 u n id e n tif ie d f i s h were counted
f l o a t i n g i n th e r i v e r a t th e same l o c a t i o n .
S in c e sea g u l l s w ere p r e s e n t
i n th e a re a i t i s l i k e l y t h a t many dead f i s h w ere e a te n b e fo re b ein g
c o u n te d .
The f i s h c o lle c te d a f t e r dynam iting a re re c o rd e d i n T able V II.
Those counted on Septem ber I and 2 a re n o t in c lu d e d i n th e t a b l e .
■ T able V I I .
F is h C o lle c tio n s . - M isso u ri R iv e r
Lone Pine
7-9 Ranch
B a r r e tt Ranch
Ave.
Ave.
Ave.
five.
Ave.
Ave.
Length W eight
Length' W eight
Length W eight
No. .Inches. Pounds. --No0- In c h e s Pounds No. In ch es* Pounds
7
. .0
2
3
O
.G
"I
42
O
■3
S n eeid s
Rainhow t r o u t
Brown t r o u t
Y ellow p e rc h
M ountain
w h ite f is h
13
C arp
18
W estern w h ite
pucker
147
Longnose
Sucker
_ 37
T b ta l
257
1 2 .5
1 7 .4
6.61 ■■■ • 96 ■12.4
10 1 8 .3
2 .5 6
1 3 .7
1 3 .3
41
1 .0 0
114
264
0 .6 4
3 .2 1
16
60
1 4 .0 . 1 .0 4
73
1 4 .0
1 .2 7
1 0 .6
0 .5 2
73
166
* Am i «„„4.^.,
Game f i s h ( t r o u t , w h ite f i s h , and perch ) com prised 24«7< p e r c e n t, and rough
f i s h ( suckers, ,and .carp). .75.„3 p e rc e n t o f th e t o t a l c o lle c te d ,by th e use .of
c
‘
_
dy n am ite. ...The. r a t i o o f game f i s h to rough f is h . was. 1 :3 , t r o u t to... ro u g h ...
f i s h , 1 :8 6 , and t r o u t to s u c k e rs , 1 :7 6 .
21
Age“ grow th
Age and grow th was d eterm in ed f o r 478 rainbow t r o u t , 127 brown t r o u t ,
87 longnose s u c k e rs , and 223 w h ite s u c k e rs .
S in ce th e sam ples were ta k e n
a t v a rio u s tim e s d u rin g th e grow ing se a so n , c a lc u la tio n s were made to
d eterm in e le n g th s a t th e end o f e ac h y e a r o f l i f e .
T a b u la tio n s in c lu d e
th e a v erag e c a lc u la te d t o t a l le n g th i n in c h e s a t e ac h a n n u lu s f o r each age
gro up, th e grand av erag e o f c a lc u la te d le n g th s , th e number o f sam ples
c o n sid e re d i n e ac h age group, and th e av erag e a c t u a l le n g th s o f th e f i s h
a t th e tim e th e y were c o lle c te d .
Rainbow T ro u t
The av erag e c a lc u la te d le n g th s f o r rainbow t r o u t a t th e end o f each
y e a r o f l i f e (T ab le V III) a re a s fo llo w s?
F i r s t y e a r , 3 .2 in c h e s ; second
y e a r , 7 .9 in c h e s ; t h i r d y e a r , 1 1 .1 in c h e s ; f o u r th y e a r , 1 3 .5 in c h e s ;
f i f t h y e a r , 1 5 .9 in c h e s ; s ix th y e a r , 1 6 .6 in c h e s ; se v e n th y e a r , 1 8 .5
in c h e s .
The a v e ra g e s beyond th e f o u r th y e a r may n o t be s i g n i f i c a n t due
to th e sm all s iz e o f th e sam ple.
W hile grow th was g r e a t e s t i n th e s e c o n d .y e a r, i t was a ls o c o n s id e ra b le
i n th e f i r s t and t h i r d y e a r s .
Ninety-two p e r c e n t o f a l l rainbow t r o u t
were re p re s e n te d i n age" g ro u p s I - I I I , w ith th e l a r g e s t number i n age group
II.
The re m a in in g e ig h t p e r c e n t were i n age groups IV - V II.
Average a c tu a l t o t a l le n g th s o f rainbow t r o u t from th r e e M ichigan
s tre a m s , i n age groups I and I I , a s shown by S h e tte r and H azzard (1939)
a r e l e s s th a n i n th e same age groups o f M isso u ri R iv er rain b o w t r o u t .
22
T able V I I l '
Average C a lc u la te d T o ta l'L e n g th s and In c re m e n ts o f
Rainbow T ro u t C o lle c te d In 19A8 and 1919
Ho0
Ave.
of
A ctu al
Group
F is h
Length
Tv
107
8 .8
II
202.
Ilo ^
HI
129
15.3
IV ■
36 1 5 .1
V
2 1 1 .5
. vi
i
16.1 .
V II v 6
i ; , ,1 ^ 7 .. ;
G rand Average- .. ..
C d icu lA ted Length
Iricreineht
Humbeb o f f i s h
C a lc u la te d t o t a l , le n g th s (in c h e s ) a t end o f y e a r
of life
I.
2
3
A
5
6_____ 7 _
316
3 .2
8 .3
3 .2
7 .6
1 0 .9
1 1 .0
3 .3
1 3 .4
1 1 .6
1 7 .6
4 .1
15.3
1 7 .1
i i . 4 ' ; 15.2
15.9
8 .5
1 0 .0 . 1&.5
.$ :■
S
8
3 .2
3 .2
478
4 .9
'4 .7
571
'l l a
3.-2
■ tl6 8
13.5
2 .4
40
’ -■
15 .9
2 .4
4
'
1 6 .6
0 .7
2
,
-
1 8 .5
1 .9
I
I
Brown T ro u t
The a v e ra g e ca lcu la ted l e n g t h s f o r . brown t r o u t a t th e end o f e a c h
y e a r o f l i f e Are a s fo llo w ^ (T a b le I X ) :
F i r s t y e a r , 3 .9 in c h e s ; seco n d
y e a r , 8 .1 , in c h e s ; t h i r d y e a r , 12*0 in c h e s ; f o u r t h year, 15.3 i n c h e s ; f i f t h
y e a r , 1 8 .2 in c h e s ; s i x t h y e a r , 20iO in c h e s ; s e v e n th y e a r , 2 1 .7 in c h e s ,
e i g h t h 'y e a f , ' 2 2 .2 l n d h e s ; n i n t h y e a r , 2 1 .6 in c h e s .
Growth was r a p id d u rin g th e f i r s t th r e e y e a rs o f l i f e , w ith th e
g r e a te s t,g r o w th o c c u r rin g d u rin g th e second y e a r .
There was a g ra d u a l
d e c re a se in- grow th in c re m e n ts f o r - e a c h y e a r o f l i f e beyond th e se c o n d :y e a r.
S ixty^tw o p e r c e n t o f th e sample was re p r e s e n te d i n age g ro u p s I I I I , . a n d tw e n ty -e ig h t p e rc e n t was i n age groups V - IX.
The l a r g e s t number
was re p r e s e n te d i n age group I I , c lo s e ly fo llo w e d by age groups I I I and IV .
23
Average a c t u a l le n g th s o f brown t r o u t from th e M isso u ri R iv e r were
g r e a te r th a n th o s e o f brown t r o u t tak en in C r y s ta l C reek , New York a s
shown by Schuek (1 9 4 5 )o
T able IX
Average C a l c u la te d .T o t a l ■L engths and In crem en ts Of
Brown T ro u t C o lle c te d : I i T l W a n d ___
No.
Ave. C a lc u la te d t o t a l , le n g th •’(in c h e s ) a t end o f y o a r o f
of
Age
A c tu al l i f e \
, •
-Length. JL,:... 2___ 3
4
5
(
7r-:;
I
17
8
4 .9
II
36
11
3 .6
8 .5
III.
26
3 .8
13
8.2 1 2 ,0
IV
16
29
8,
12 ,,0 1 4 .9
3 .9
V
,8
12 .8 1 5 .0
7,
19
14
18 ,1
VI
2
21
,7
8.0 12 ,3 1 6.4
18, ,7 2 0 .4
V II
I
,0
23
8 .4 12 ■3 16 .3
19 ,2 21 .5 22.5
V III
I
,8
7
.8 11 6 16.8
2 4 .4
2 0 ,3 2 2 .0 23.3 24.2
IX
21a6
I
15, ,1 1 7 .0 1 9 .0 2 0 .2 2 1 .6
___ U ___ S z L 1 2 .4
Grand Average
C a lc u la te d Length
8.1 12.0 15.3
3 .9
1 8 .2 2 0 ,
21
22.2 21.6
In crem en t
4
.2
3 .9
3 .9
I,
3 .3
2 .9
I,
0 .5
Number o f F is h
127
103
71
.47
2
19
,
,
-
,
,
,
,
,
Rainbow and brown t r o u t b o th showed t h e i r g r e a t e s t growth d u rin g th e
second y e a r o f l i f e .
Brown t r o u t grow th in c re m e n ts were p r o g r e s s iv e ly l e s s
a f t e r th e second y e a r o f l i f e , w h ile, th e re was no p ro g r e s s iv e d e c re a se
e x h ib ite d f o r rainbow t r o u t .
Growth r a t e f o r brown t r o u t was g r e a te r th an
rainbow t r o u t i n a l l y e a rs e x c e p t th e f i f t h and s e v e n th .
The sam ples
r e p r e s e n tin g th e s e two y e a rs were sm all f o r b o th s p e c ie s , and may n o t be
re p re s e n ta tiv e .
th a n ra in b o w .
Brown t r o u t were more numerous i n th e o ld e r age groups
The grow th o f b o th rainbow and brown t r o u t in t h i s s e c tio n
o f th e M isso u ri R iv e r i s a s good o r b e t t e r th a n t h a t o f th e same s p e c ie s
i n c e r t a i n o th e r t r o u t stre am s o f Montana.
24
The a v erag e c a lc u la te d le n g th s f o r lo ngnose s u c k e rs a t th e end o f
each y e a r o f l i f e a re a s fo llo w s (T ab le X )s
F i r s t y e a r , 3 .0 in c h es?
second y e a r , 5 .5 in c h e s ; t h i r d y e a r , 8 .1 in c h e s ; f o u r th y e a r , 1 0 .4 in c h e s ;
f i f t h y e a r , 1 2 .3 in c h e s ; s ix t h y e a r , 1 3 .7 in c h e s ; se v e n th y e a r , 1 4 .7
in c h e s ; e ig h th y e a r , 1 5 .5 in c h e s .
Growth was g r e a t e s t d u rin g th e f i r s t y e a r and p r o g r e s s iv e ly
d e c re a se d a s th e f i s h grew o ld e r , e x c e p t in th e t h i r d y e a r .
T ab le X
Average C a lc u la te d T o ta l L engths and In c re m e n ts o f
Longnose S uckers C o lle c te d i n 1948 and 1949
- 1• - >
No.
Ave.
C a lc u la te d t o t a l le n g th (in c h e s ) a t end o f y e a r o f
Age
o f - A c tu al l i f e
Groun
F is h Length I
2
3
L
6
5
7
8
I
0
II
0.
III
1 1 .0
3
1 2 .9 2 .6
6 .5
IV
10
3
.0
6
.1
9 .2
1 2 .0
1 3 .4
V
1 4 .7 3 .4
9 .0
19
6 .5
11.5 1 3.6
VI
28
1 5 .3 3 .2
8 .0
5 .5
14.2
10.5 1 2 .5
V II
1 5 .7 2 .6
19
4 .7
7 .2
1 5 .0
8.9 1 1 .4
13.4
V III
8
16.3 2 ;8
4 .4
8 .4 10 .5
1 2 .A
6 .3
1A.1
15 .5
Grand Average
C a lc u la te d L ength
3.,0
8 .1
5.5
1 0 .4 12.3
13.7
1 4 .7
1 5.5
In c re m e n t
3 .0
2 .6
2 .5
2 .3
1 .0
0 .8
1 .9
1 .4
Number o f F is h
87
87
87
27
8
55
84
74
N in e ty - f iv e p e r c e n t o f a l l sam ples a r e i n age groups IV - V I I I , w ith
th e l a r g e s t number in age group V I.
f o r th e la c k o f age groups I and I I ,
No sm a ll f i s h were ta k en which a c c o u n ts
25
The a v e ra g e c a lc u la te d le n g th s f o r w h ite s u c k e rs a t th e end o f each
y e a r o f l i f e a re a s fo llo w s ( T able X I)s
F i r s t y e a r , 2 .6 in c h e s ; second
y e a r , 5 .3 in c h e s ; t h i r d y e a r,. 8 .2 in c h e s ; f o u r th y e a r , 1 0 .1 in c h e s ; f i f t h
y e a r , 1 2 .2 in c h e s ; s i x t h y e a r , 1 3 .7 in c h e s ; s e v e n th y e a r , 1,4.3 in c h e s ;
e ig h th y e a r , 1 5 .2 in c h e s .
of lif e .
The m ost r a p id grow th o c cu rs in th e t h i r d y e ar
There i s a c o n s id e ra b le d if f e r e n c e i n grow th r a t e o f th e o ld e r
fis h .
T a b le X l
Average C a lc u la te d T o ta l L engths and In crem en ts o f
__:_________ W estern W hite S uckers C o lle c te d i n 1948 and 1949
Age
No.
of
I'
II
III
IV
V
VI
V II
9
22
62
42
40
32
11
Ave.
A c tu a l
Length
5 .6
7 .4
1 0 .9
1 1 .9
1 3 .4
1 5 .0
1 4 .8
1 6 .0
Grand Average
C a lc u la te d L engths
In crem en t
Number o f F is h
C a lc u la te d
life
2
I
2 .5
2 .6
5 .2
5 .8
2 .5
2,. 4
5 .1
2 .6
5 .0
3 .0
5 .9
2 .5 . 4 .9
2 .6
4 .4
t o t a l le n g th (in c h e s ) a t end o f y e a r o f
3
4
5
6
7
8
9 .2
7 .5
7*2
8 .7
6 .9
6 ,8
1 0 .0
9 .7
1 1 .0
-9.0
8 .9
1 2 .0
1 2 .6
1 1 .8
1 1 .0
14.2
1 3 .8
1 2 .6
1 4 .1
1 4 .1
1 5 .2
8 .2
2 .9
192
1 0 .1
1 .9
131
1 2 .2
2 .1
90
1 3 .7
1 .5
49
1 4 .1
0 .4
17
1 5 .2
0 .9
5
-
2 .6
2 .6
223
5 .3
2 .7
214
F i f t y - e i g h t p e r c e n t o f a l l sam p les w ere r e p r e s e n t e d i n a g e g ro u p s
IV - V I I I w ith th e l a r g e s t number i n age g ro u p I I I .
G row th in c re m e n ts w ere g r e a t e r f o r th e lo n g n o s e s u c k e r th a n th e w h ite
s u c k e r i n th e f i r s t y e a r .
A f te r th e f i r s t y e a r th e a v e ra g e c a l c u l a t e d
l e n g t h s a t th e end o f e a c h y e a r o f l i f e w ere v e r y n e a r l y i d e n t i c a l .
26
Rainbow and brown t r o u t grew more r a p id ly th a n the s u c k e rs .
T ro u t
were m o stly i n age groups I — I I I jl w h ile th e s u c k e rs were p redom inant in
age groups IV - V I I I 0
C o e f f ic ie n t o f C o n d itio n
The c o e f f i c i e n t o f c o n d itio n (K) was c a lc u la te d f o r each specim an
o f rainbow and brown t r o u t f o r w hich w eig h ts were a v a ila b le (T ab le X I I ) „
T able X II
Average 'C o e f f ic ie n t o f C o n d itio n f o r Rainbow and Brown T ro u t
C o lle c te d in 19X8 and 19X9
S n e c ie s
Rainbow t r o u t
No. o f F is h
I
3 6 .9
113
. Average v a lu e o f K p e r age group
II
III
IV
V
VI
V II
37^7
3 7 .1
3 4 .2
35 .5
2 9 .5
20$
2
125
I
35
Brown t r o u t
No. o f F is h
3 6 .3
21
3 3 .6
30
3 3 .4
24
3 4 .6
26
3 6 .6
12
3 7 .0
2
3 7 .4
I
V III
1 9 .8
I.
C o n d itio n (K) o f rainbow t r o u t was h ig h e r th a n t h a t o f brown t r o u t in
age groups I ~ IV s w h ile brown t r b u t showed a h ig h e r K v alu e i n ag e groups
V and V I0
The a v erag e K v a lu e f o r rain b o w t r o u t i s 3 7 .2 , f o r brown t r o u t
34»6 s and f o r th e combined t r o u t sample i s 36«70
The c o n d itio n (K) o f
rainbow t r o u t a p p ea re d to fo llo w a d e f i n i t e tre n d o f d e c re a s in g s l i g h t l y
a s th e f i s h grew o ld e r , w h ile th e r a t h e r in a d e q u a te sample o f brown t r o u t
showed th e o p p o s ite to be t r u e .
"
",
27
L i t e r a t u r e C ite d
American F is h e r ie s S o c ie ty
1948o
o f common"and s c i e n t i f i c names o f th e b e t t e r known
f i s h e s o f th e U n ited S ta te s and Canada0 American F is h e r ie s
S o c ie ty , S p e c ia l P u b lic a tio n No. I (1948 )0
American P u b lic H e a lth A sso c ia tio n "................. .........
1946o S ta n d a rd methods f o r th e e x am in atio n o f w ater and sewage,
8 th e d i t i o n 0 New Y ork, x iv p lu s 309 pp„
Schuck, Howard A0
1945 0 S u r v iv a l, p o p u la tio n d e n s ity , grow th, and movement o f th e
. w ild brown t r o u t in C r y s ta l C reek . T ran s. Am. F i s h 0 S oo..
V ol. 73 (1943), PP. 209-230.
S h a t t e r , D avid S0 and A lb e rt S. Hazzard
1939. S p e c ie s c o m p o sitio n by age g roups and s t a b i l i t y o f f i s h
p o p u la tio n s i n s e c tio n s o f th r e e M ichigan t r o u t stream s
d u rin g th e summer o f 1937. T ra n s. Am. F is h . S o c ., V ol.
68 (1 9 3 8 ), pp. 281-302.
S p o o r, W illiam A.
1938. Age and grow th o f th e s u c k e r, C atostom us cnmmArenmnii
(L acep ed e), i n M uskellunge Lake, V ila s C ounty, W isco n sin .
T ra n s . W isconsin Academy o f S c ie n c e s , A rts and L e t t e r s .
: .
V o l. XXXI, 1938, pp. 457 - 505 .
MONTANA STATE UNIVERSITY LIBRARIES
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