jaught (table 5). During this period the net 

 was fished for 498 hoursi.' (equally divided be- 

 •f/een day and night fishing) out of a total of 

 !,'J72 hours. Fish had to use the fishway for 

 984 hours, which was the period of time the 

 water height was below 9.0 feet. The number 

 of>shad passed in 498 hours was 224. There- 

 fore, it is estimated that 440 shad used the 

 fishway between May 5 and June 26, 1953. The 

 efficiency of the fishway was not determined 

 because no estimate could be made of the num- 

 ber of fish which desired to pass above the dam. 



RE COMM EN DATIONS 



Accurate catch and effort statistics col- 

 lected for a period of years are essential before 

 any attempt can be made to scientifically man- 

 age a shad fishery. This type of data is lacking 

 for the Neuse River and every other river in 

 North Carolina. Scientific management of the 

 fishery requires that the State of North Carolina 

 establish a system of collecting accurate catch 

 and effort statistics. These data should include 

 both the amount and type of gear fished and the 

 total catch made by this gear each day. After 

 data of this type have been collected for a period 

 of years, studies can proceed to determine v/hat 

 factors are limiting population abundance. If 

 these factors can be controlled, the Neuse River 

 shad fishery could then be managed to obtain an 

 optimum yield. 



The Carolina Power and Light Company 

 dam near Goldsboro was constructed to ensure 

 a supply of water during extreme low flows 

 which rarely occur. The dam is equipped with 

 two sluiceways or flood gates which are fitted 

 with stop logs to a height level with the top of 

 tlie dam . It is proposed that the power company 

 remove the stop logs from the sluiceways dur- 

 ing the period March 15 through July 15 so that 

 shad and other species desiring to spawn in the 

 riv^r above the dam may do so . The stop logs 

 could be replaced when low river flows necessi- 

 tate pondage. Low flows generally occur only 

 m late summer and therefore the sluiceways 

 i-ould remain open during the remainder of the 

 year. 



W The number of hours the net was fished 

 when gage height was less than 9.0 feet. No 

 fish used fishway at gage heights above 9.0 feet. 



SUMMARY 



The Neuse River shad fishery was in- 

 vestigated to determine total catch, fishing 

 effort, fishing rate, size of run, and spawning 

 escapement for 1953.- 



Fishing in the Neuse River is under the 

 jurisdiction of two departments. The commer- 

 cial fishery, extending from the river mouth to 

 Pitch Kettle, is administered by the North Caro- 

 lina Department of Conservation and Development, 

 and the inland section, extending from Pitch Ket- 

 tle to the headwaters of the river, is administered 

 by the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Com- 

 mission. 



Shad are taken in the Neuse with the fol- 

 lowing types of gear: pound nets, stake gill nets, 

 drift gill nets, haul seines, and bow nets. The 

 fishing season in the commercial area is from 

 January 1 to May 1 and in the inland area from 

 January 1 to June 1 . The season can be extended 

 as was done in 1953. 



The shad catch in each sector was estimated 

 from the catch of a sample of the fishermen. The 

 estimated catch of the inland sector was subject 

 to large error because of the small sample from 

 which it was derived. 



An estimate of the number of shad avail- 

 able to the commercial sector was made. The 

 catch in this sector was 98,000 shad and since 

 the fishing rate was 65 percent, the number of 

 shad was approximately 151,000. Estimated 

 escapement from the commercial sector was less 

 than the catch in the inland sector. Either the 

 inland catch was overestimated, or a late run of 

 shad entered the river after the cessation of fish- 

 ing in the lower river. 



Shad scales from 709 fish taken from the 

 commercial catch were read to determine age. 

 Most male shad enter the fishery at 4 years of 

 age, most female shad at 5 years of age. Less 

 than 3 percent of the run was made up of fish 

 tfiat had spawned the previous year. Most Neuse 

 River shad probably die after spawning or upon 

 return to the sea. 



A fishway on the Carolina Power and 

 Light Company dam near Goldsboro permits shad 



11 



