Table 1. Historic average salinities for the study area. Where study 

 reports a larger area, data were used only for stations closest to State 

 Wildlife Refuge (usually western shore of Vermilion Bay). 



Gill net samples use a 60-m net with four sections, 15 m each, with mesh sizes of 2.5, 5.0, 7.5, 

 and 10.0 cm. These are fished simultaneously in the three locations for a 24-hr period. Three 5- 

 min trawl samples in each water body are taken with a 3-m trynet with a 4.4-cm body and a 3.2- 

 cm cod with 1.25-cm stretched nylon liner. 



A quantitative barrel sample was developed based on a smaller version of a drop sampler 

 (Zimmerman et al. 1984) which will be used at the same locations as the gill net samples at the 

 same intervals. The sampler is a plastic 208-L drum cut open at both ends, but, as of this writing, 

 sample analysis is incomplete. Only gill net and trawl data will be presented here. Statistical tests 

 were done using the non-parametric sign test and the Friedman two-way analysis of variance (Siegel 

 1956). 



Additional incidental collections have been made by using various types of collecting gear to 

 assist in the analysis of data and to assure that a complete list of animals is developed. Also all 

 literature relative to the fisheries of the refuge and the effects of weirs are being gathered and 

 studied. 



RESULTS 



GUI Net Collections 



A total of 18 species were caught in gill net samples. The greatest number of species was 16 

 in Fearman Lake with Toms and Bob's Lakes each having 12 species (Table 2). These differences 

 were not statistically significant (p> 0.11). 



There were nine species caught at all three sites. The number of species caught exclusively at 

 each site were: Toms - one; Fearman - three; and Bob's - one. The number of species uniquely 

 absent from each site were: Toms - two; Fearman - none; and Bob's - two. Species found in both 

 small lakes were also found in Fearman Lake. The coefficient of similarity (Southwood 1978) 



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