64 Clark and Gillette — Unionidas of Little Arkansas River. 



in a considerable measure to many springs, or that its bed lies 

 about on the level of the underground flow. 



The water is moderately clear, excepting after heavy rains, 

 when it has a dark gray appearance. This is in marked con- 

 trast to the waters of the Arkansas River proper, the waters of 

 which are light ashy in color at normal stage. The banks of 

 Little River are lined with trees and underbrush. Among the 

 trees are found Cottonwood, willow, birch, walnut and elm, the 

 trees and underbrush extending back from a few to several rods. 

 The banks on one side are rugged and steep, while on the other 

 they are low and in some places boggy, — the high and low side 

 depending on the curvature of the stream ; on the convex side 

 of the curve will be found the high bank, and on the opposite 

 or concave side is the low and boggy portion . 



Observations were made from near the mouth of the river to 

 about 10 miles upstream, near Valley Center. About two miles 

 above Wichita a dam, known as Sullivan's dam, has been built, 

 for the purpose of dividing the flow of the river, causing a por- 

 tion of the flow to run through the eastern part of the city. It 

 is said that this dam was built for two purposes : ( 1 ) to protect 

 the city from overflow and (2) to furnish means of flushing a 

 small stagnant creek, Chisholm Creek, which flows through the 

 eastern part of the city, and into which the refuse of manufac- 

 turing plants, packing houses, etc., is dumped. 



This dam is built principally of cement, is 4 to 6 feet high 

 and from 50 to 75 feet long. As it has no fish way, the only 

 means by which fish below the dam could get up above would 

 be by passing down stream into the Big Arkansas and then up 

 Chisholm Creek, and finally pass through this artificial ditch 

 or cut-off to the waters above the dam. At the head of the 

 ditch near the dam is a floodgate, also built of cement. When 

 the water in the river is running high this gate is kept closed, 

 so as not to let too much water into Chisholm Creek; during 

 low water, however, the gate is always kept open. 



Above the dam the river is considerably deeper than below ; 

 it has a much slower current, and spreads out to a breadth of 

 from 75 to 100 feet. Most of the collecting was done above the 

 dam. This was very difficult because the bottom was full of 

 broken logs, rubbish, etc. The bottom consists mostly of 

 muck and coarse gravel, with very little shifting sand, the 



