212 REPORT OF COMMISSIONER OF FISH AND FISHERIES. 



TransquaMng River, — This is a small stream situated wholly in Dor- 

 chester County and entering Fishing Bay at the extreme northern part. 

 Shad are taken by near-by residents, principally for local use. There 

 are three forms of apparatus used, viz, i)ound nets, " stick weirs,'' and 

 bow uets, the catch by the first named being over twice as great as by 

 the other two combined. The i)Ound nets are small, costing probably 

 $70 each, and are operated from the 1st of March to the end of Ajiril, 

 and also in the fall. The number used in 1896 was 17, catching 3,846 

 roe and 6,378 buck shad, valued locally at $920. The " stick weirs" 

 are constructed by fixing sticks and brush in the bed of the river so as 

 to form a weir. They are rude contrivances, costing possibly $15 each, 

 and the catch is entirely for local use, the yield in the 12 weirs last 

 season approximating 850 roe shad and 1,020 bucks. In addition to 

 shad, many alewives and other species are taken in both pound nets 

 and weirs. 



A few bow nets are used on the Transquaking and its principal tribu- 

 tary, the number in 1896 being 20, yielding 1,600 shad, about equally 

 divided between roes and bucks. 



Blackwaier River. — This stream is situated wholly in Dorchester 

 County and empties into Fishing Bay, not far from the Transquaking. 

 About 8 miles above its mouth it separates into two branches, known, 

 respectively, as Little Blackwater and Big Blackwater. Shad ascend 

 this river and its branches to the uppermost limits, and are taken at 

 numerous points in drift nets and pound nets. The drift nets average 

 40 yards in length, 7 feet in dei)th, with 5-inch mesh. The 34 drift-net 

 boats in 1896 required 36 men and used 46 nets, 1,840 yards in length, 

 worth $184. The season began about the third week of March and 

 lasted four or five weeks. The catch approximated 3,700, about evenly 

 divided between roes and bucks. The pound nets and "stick weirs" 

 used in the Blackwater and tributaries are similar to those in the 

 Transquaking, except that they are somewhat smaller. Of the 39 used 

 in these waters, 24 were in the main river, 9 in Little Blackwater, and 6 

 in Big Blackwater. The catch was 5,645 roe shad and 3,815 bucks, 

 valued at $1,051, making the total yield of shad on the Blackwater 

 River and tributaries 13,160, worth $1,480. Very few of these shad are 

 shipped to distant markets. 



CHOPTANK RIVER. 



The Choptank is the largest and most important of the Eastern 

 Shore rivers. From the Chesapeake to Hunting Creek, a distance of 

 30 miles, it is a tidal estuary, the width ranging from 5 miles to 500 

 yards and the depth in the channel from 70 to 20 feet, the water being 

 nearly as salty as in Chesapeake Bay. About 18 miles above Hunting 

 Creek it receives the waters of Tuckahoe Creek, a tributary nearly as 

 long as the main stream above this point. The river is navigable for 

 vessels of 9 feet draft to Denton, 7 miles above Tuckahoe Creek, and 

 small-boat navigation extends to Greensboro, 8 miles further. The yield 



