58 U. S. BUREAU OF FISHERIES 
fisheries resources of the Red Lakes during the period Aug. 23 to 
Sept. 10, 1938. The commercial fisheries of the Red Lakes, first 
begun in the fall of 1917, constitute one of the principal sources of 
livelihood of the Red Lake Indians who, since 1929, have marketed 
their catches through their own cooperative under the supervision of 
the Superintendent of the reservation. Regulations for the conduct 
of the fisheries are promulgated by the Commissioner of Indian 
Affairs, United States Department of the Interior. Frequent contro- 
versies over the regulations and criticisms of the methods of conduct- 
ing the fisheries, as well as assertions that the Red Lakes were be- 
coming depleted, led to the need for an investigation of the various 
problems in order to find some means for their solution. The bio- 
logical data, statistical records, and historical and documentary in- 
formation accumulated during the course of the survey have been 
studied and embodied in a formal report that is approaching com- 
pletion. 
The statistics of the annual production of the Red Lakes fisheries 
yield no positive evidence of a decline. The observance of an arbi- 
trarily assigned maximum production limit of 650,000 pounds per 
year of the most desirable varieties appears to provide Insurance 
against overexploitation of the stock. The catches per unit of fishing 
effort in the Red Lakes compare favorably with the catches per unit 
of effort in some of the best fishing areas of Lakes Michigan and Huron. 
The growth of the wall-eyed pike (Stizostedion vitreum vitreum) 
is slower in Lower Red Lake than in Lake Erie, Lake Champlain, or 
Lake of the Woods, but is superior to the erowth of the same species 
in Lakes Nipigon and Abitibi (Ontario). The relatively slow growth 
of the Lower Red Lake wall-eyed pike is compensated to some extent 
by its heavy stature, since the coefficient of condition, A, for wall-eyed 
pike was higher than for any population for which such data have 
been obtained. There is no basis for the assertion that the wall- eyed 
pike of Lower Red Lake are inferior to other populations for com- 
mercial purposes because of their slenderness. The Red Lake wall- 
eyed pike reaches the size limit of 14 inches, fork length (about 15 
inches, total length), during the fifth year of life. The commercial 
catches consisted principally of members of age-groups IV and V. 
Studies of the percentage maturity at different lengths revealed that 
the 14-inch size limit (fork length) is adequate to permit the major- 
ity of females to spawn at least once before they reach commercial 
size. 
The yellow perch (Perca flavescens) of Lower Red Lake grows more 
slowly than the perch of Lake Erie and Nebish Lake (northern Wis- 
consin), but more rapidly than the perch of two other northern Wis- 
consin lakes. As was true of the wall-eyed pike, the yellow perch of 
Lower Red Lake had a higher average value of the coefficient of 
condition than any other per reh population for which data are avail- 
able. The commercial catch of yellow perch was composed, in the 
main, of members of age groups V to VII, with age group VI pre- 
dominating. Perch of younger ages and of smaller size could be taken 
with pr ofit and w ithout danger of depleting the stock. However, the 
gill-net mesh used in the Red Lakes must remain adjusted to the 
more abundant and commercially valuable wall-eyed pike, and there- 
fore the most efficient utilization of the perch population cannot be 
