abundance of this fish suggests that it will re- 

 main a minor species in this reservoir. 



Yellow perch 



Although fairly abundant in 1956, the year 

 following dam closure, this fish was uncommon 

 in the reservoir (table 2). Reproduction as de- 

 termined by shore seining appeared good only in 



1956, 1957, and 1958 (table 7). Fish collected 

 after 1958 were all from the 1956-58 year- 

 classes. Although fish up to 6 years old have 

 been collected, almost none exceeded 6 inches 

 in total length. According to Trautman (1957) 

 perch are most abundant in clear waters of base 

 or low gradient, and where there is an abundance 

 of rooted aquatics. Numbers decrease drastical- 

 ly with increased turbidity and disappearance of 

 rooted aquatics as is the condition in Lewis and 

 Clark Lake . 



Sauger 



The sauger was the major sport species in 

 Lewis and Clark Lake . This fish was resident 

 in the Missouri River, and its abundance was in- 

 creased since formation of the reservoir 

 (table 2). This phenomenon also occurred after 

 impoundment of Fort Randall Reservoir (Shields, 



1957, op. cit.). A large sauger year -class was 

 produced in Lewis and Clark Lake in 1956, and 

 these fish dominated the catch until 1962 

 (table 20). Collections of young-of-the-year 

 sauger taken by shore seine suggested little 

 annual change in reproductive success (table 7). 

 According to Shields ( 1957 op. cit.) 



seining is a poor indicator of juvenile sauger 

 abundance. The age-class distribution of sauger 

 collected since 1956 corroborate this view. 



Sauger spawning was usually completed by 

 May 15, and annulus formation generally oc - 

 curred by the first week in June . Most fish were 

 mature when they were 3 or 4 years old. Aver- 

 age length of sauger in inches by age group in 

 1962 was as follows:^./ I, 5.5; U, 11.7; III, 

 14.7; IV, 18.9; V, 20.6; and VI, 21.2. Growth 

 was similar to that found fpr sauger in Oahe 



(Fogle, 1961, op. cit.) and Fort Randall 

 (Sprague, 1961, op. cit.) Reservoirs. Hassler 

 (1957) reported that the average total length of 

 6 -year-old sauger from Norris Reservoir to be 

 19.6 inches, which surpassed growth rates re- 

 ported from other waters at that time. The 

 sauger is well established in Lewis and Clark 

 Lake and will probably continue as the dominant 

 sport species. 



Walleye 



This species was uncommon in Lewis and 

 Clark Lake. Almost a million walleye fry and 

 fingerling were stocked in the reservoir in 1958 

 (table 1), but there was no evidence of survival 

 of these fish. Nine (69 percent) of the thirteen 

 walleyes collected in 1962 were 2 and 3 years 

 old, and only one was 5 years old. Available 

 evidence indicates that this species has not adapt- 

 ed to conditions found in the reservoir and that 

 the population will probably remain small . 



Freshwater drum 



This species was well distributed through- 

 out the reservoir, especially in the deeper 

 portions . Relatively few drum were collected 

 during the early years of impoundment, but in 

 1962 almost as many were taken as in the previ- 

 ous 6 years (table 2). Relative abundance of this 

 species in 1962 increased markedly over previ - 

 ous years (table 6). Dominant year -classes were 

 produced in 1956, 1957, and 1958 (table 21), but 

 this was not evident from young fish collections 

 obtained by shore seine (table 7) . 



Growth and annulus formation began about 

 June 1 , and spawning was generally completed 

 by early July. Average length in inches by age 

 group for fish collected in 1"962 was as follows: 

 I, 3.1; II, 5.8, m, 7.7; IV, 9.0; V, 10.0; and 

 VI, 11.0. Growth was poor compared with that 

 in Oahe (Fogle, 1961, op. cit.) and Fort Randall 

 (Sprague, 1961, op. cit.) Reservoirs and with 

 other areas of the United States (Carlander, 1953). 

 The freshwater drum will probably remain one 



_5/-Vanicek, Charles David. 1963. 

 (Smith), in Gavins Point Reservoir. 



Life history studies of the sauger, Stizostedian canadense 

 M.S. Thesis, Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa, 56 pp. 



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