360 REPORT OF COMMISSIONER OF FISH AND FISHERIES. 



White or silver bass {Roccus chrysops) are common and very abun- 

 dant in April and May about the mouth of Little Minnesota Eiver or in 

 any other inlet. This sj)ecies is said to take a fly almost as readily as 

 does a trout, and is captured in this waj^ or with a small minnow. It 

 attains a weight of from 2,h, to 3.J pounds, and is a luxury when brought 

 to the table. Yellow i)erch {Perca flavescens) can be taken in large 

 numbers, while large specimens of the two most abundant varieties of 

 iixiniiiih. {Leijomifi iHiUidus and Lepomis megalotis) can be taken from a 

 boat or at almost any point along the shore. Catfish [Ameiurus nehu- 

 losus) are taken, but are not valued as food. The sheepnose, or grunter 

 {ApIodinotHS (jrunniena), is also common, reaching a weight of C or 8 

 jjounds, but the larger ones are not prized as food, the flesh being tough 

 and unpalatable, especially after the spawning season. 



A sucker {Ictiobus cyprinellal) grows to a very large size in this lake. 

 It remains in deep water near the bottom during the day, but is speared 

 at night, when it enters the more shallow water to feed. 



Big Stone LaJce, Greager^s farm, July 16', 1892. — The water at this 

 place, 12 miles from the head of the lake, will average 14 or 16 feet in 

 depth, and the lake is at that point a mile wide. The shore consists of 

 a series of gentle curves and sharp points. The bed of the lake is in 

 places smooth and sandy and at others very rocky, the rocky bays usu- 

 ally alternating with the smooth sandy bottom of the points. The shore, 

 especially on the south side, is skirted with small trees and bushes, of 

 which elm, oak, and box-elder are the most common varieties. At this 

 place we spent an entire day collecting. The Ashing was done with a 

 250-foot seine. Though the bottom of the lake was somewhat stony, 

 the work was very successful, and not only a fair representation of the 

 species of the fish was obtained, but also an indication of the abun- 

 dance of each si)ecies. Every haul of the seine landed perch, bass, 

 suckers, pickerel, white bass, and sunfish. Percopsis guttatus was also 

 taken in large numbers. 



Big Stone Lalce, Ortonville, Minn., July 19, 1892. — Ortonville is at 

 the foot of Big Stone Lake and at the junction of the Wheatstone and 

 Minnesota rivers. The surrounding hills are very high and have been 

 eroded into somewhat rugged cliffs. The banks are well timbered on 

 the south side, along which the bays and inlets are Avell shaded. The 

 bottom of the lake is composed of sand, thickly strewn with bowlders. 

 The water is not deep, and the bed slopes gradually up toward the foot 

 of the lake and toward the shores. The coves along the eastern bank 

 are fiUed with granite bowlders, and the points of land extending into 

 the water are composed entirely of this material. The water is clear, 

 containing less vegetation than at the head of the lake. A few rushes 

 grow about the outlet, and the bottom in more shallow places is covered 

 with Ghara and Potamogeton. Water insects and small crustaceans were 

 observed, but were not abundant. The variety of fishes was much 



