W. D. Davies

Freshwater drum (Aplodinotus grunniens) are a significant component of the fishery resource in the Jordan Dam tailwater (Coosa River, Ala.). Most of the exploitation of the freshwater drum is centered around a spring influx into the system which appeared to be primarily mature fish moving upstream to spawn. There was little evidence of reproduction by this species within the tailwater. Although condition factors were highly variable across the range of lengths sampled, growth rates for freshwater drum in the Jordan Dam tailwater exceeded those reported elsewhere in the United States. By...

Few significant differences could be detected between a high flow year and a low flow year with respect to catch, effort, catch per unit effort, or the functional composition of the multi-species tailwater fishery below Jordan Dam on the Coosa River, Alabama. Additionally, no significant or consistent correlations were evident between mean daily discharge and daily catch during the 2 surveys. Correlations between daily effort and daily catch per unit effort with mean daily flow were few, inconsistent, and restricted to winter and late summer months when fishing effort was minimal. Angler...

A method was developed for estimating rate of exploitation from the rate of decline in catch per unit effort of tagged fish. The method was used to estimate exploitation of largemouth bass (Micropterus salmoides) at a 75-ha Chambers County Public Fishing Lake, Alabama. Fishing effort directed towards largemouth bass was estimated from an access creel survey employing nonuniform probability sampling. The estimated 58 percent rate of exploitation agreed well with an independent estimate made using catch records and an estimate of the number of harvestable-sized ( > 249 mm total length)...

A method of sampling fish populations in the littoral area of reservoirs was developed to estimate the number and standing stock of young-of-the-year (YOY) and adult fishes in West Point Reservoir, Alabama-Georgia. A surface area of 0.0 I ha was surrounded with a net (30.5 m x 2.7 m) and the fish were poisoned with rotenone. The sample sites were chosen randomly by using a grid system. The average monthly standing stock (kg/ hal from April to September 1977 ranged from 74.2 in September to 126.1 in June. The weekly samples yielded data that enabled us to estimate the reproductive success...

The species composition and relative abundance of fishes in West Point Reservoir, a main stem Chattahoochee River reservoir, changed after impoundment in 1975. Strong year classes of gizzard shad, threadfin shad, largemouth bass, black crappie, bluegill, brown bullhead, carp, bowfin, and many sunfishes were produced in 1975. Sixteen species disappeared from the present reservoir region; 11 were not collected after impoundment, and 5 others disappeared during the first year. Forty-three species were found in the reservoir 2 years after impoundment, of which 6 did not occur in preimpoundment...

Farm ponds and community lakes continue to attract a large number of fishermen. The manageability of these waters for increased fish production offers opportunities for substantial gains in terms of benefits to fishermen from management input costs. Intensive culture of channel catfish, tilapia and mirror carp can provide sport fishing opportunities, especially where fishing pressure is intense. Almost a ton of channel catfish per acre has been harvested by sport fishermen from intensively managed ponds. Problems associated with intensive culture are nutrition, disease, and the...