ALBEMARLE SOUND AND ITS TRIBUTARIES. 



633 



The principal tributaries of the Chowan arc the Nottoway and the Meherriu. The sources 

 of these rivers do not penetrate to the mountains, and this difference in the physical features of 

 the two river basins entails corresponding variations in the character of the rivers themselves. 

 The muddy waters which pour down the Roanoke during the seasons of high water bear a marked 

 contrast to the dark and clear waters of the Chowan. 



A number of minor tributaries of the Albemarle are North, Pasquotank, Little, Perquiiiiaiis, 

 and Alligator Rivers. These do not penetrate far into the interior, but all of them formerly re- 

 ceived each season vast schools of herring and shad. At the present time, however, the fish- 

 eries on these rivers have become unproductive in consequence of the diminution oft he supply. 

 The main fisheries of the Albemarle are found about the head of the sound and for a short dis- 

 tance up the Roauoke and Chowan Rivers. 



The waters of the Albemarle Sound are always fresh ; indeed, it is only in dry seasons that 

 the waters of the sound become at all brackish. In the season of 1880, during the whole of 

 which extreme drought prevailed, the water was somewhat brackish as high up as Palens fishery, 

 where several salt-water species were captured in considerable numbers. 



The fishing season for the large haul seines on the Albemarle begins between March 1 and 15, 

 although shad are sometimes taken in gill-nets in the Sound some weeks earlier. The following 

 summary of fishing records for Willow Branch Fishery from 1835 to 1874, which was compiled by 

 the late Professor Milner from the books kept at the fishing shore, gives a number of interesting 

 data in regard to these fisheries. The duration of the fishing season and the date of maximum 

 run, both for shad and herring, is found to vary widely from year to year. These fluctuations are 

 due to corresponding changes in the meteorological conditions, which are of course impressed upon 

 the waters. 



Summary of fishing records for shad and alewives kept at Willow Branch Fishery,* North Carolina, from 1835 to 1874. 



"Willow Branch Fishery, North Carolina, situated just within the month of the Chowan River, was one of the 

 most valuable of the extensive seine fisheries lying around the head of the Albemarle. Its records, running almost 

 continuously from 1835 to 1874, present most interesting material for study; and, when taken in connrrtioii with 

 otlnT records of the Albemarle fisheries which are extant, and cotemporauemis mi'tuurologiral observations will prob- 

 ably furnish valuable conclusions in regard to the laws or influences determining the great seasonal fluctuations in 

 the river fisheries. 



