THE WATERS OF NORTH CAROLINA. 11 



related to those of the adjacent South CaroUna rivers than to those of the 

 Neuse, and include a number not known from more eastern waters of the state. 

 Among these are the flat-headed cat-fish, /I meiurus platycephalus , which is very 

 abundant,, and several minnows. The smaller tributaries of the lower course of 

 the Cape Fear and extensive swampy tracts adjacent thereto now constitute 

 the most promising field for the collector and will doubtless be found to contain 

 a considerable number of species which there reach their northermost limit. 

 Quite recently this region has yielded half a dozen species not before known 

 from the state, including Elassoma, Copclandellus, Heterandria, Chologaster, and 

 Dormitator. 



The Yadkin, or Great Pedee, is a very large and important stream whose 

 upper waters are in North Carolina and whose lower course is in South Carolina, 

 Winyah Bay being its place of discharge. Its entire length is more than 400 

 miles, and the area which it drains is about 17,000 square miles, of which more 

 than half is in North Carolina. The headwaters come from the slopes of the Blue 

 Ridge in Wilkes, Caldwell, and Watauga counties. After flowing nearly due 

 east and receiving as tributaries from the north numerous rapid mountain 

 streams, among which are Reddies, Fishers, Ararat, Roaring, and Mulberry 

 rivers, Rock and Elk creeks, and Lewis and Stony forks, the Yadkin bends 

 abruptly and pursues a generally southward course. The principal North Caro- 

 lina tributaries below the bend are the South Yadkin, Uharie, Rocky, and 

 Little rivers, and the Little Pedee, Lumber, and Waccamaw rivers, which rise in 

 North Carolina but join the main stream in South Carolina. The Great Pedee 

 crosses the fall-line near Cheraw, South Carolina. The upper waters resemble 

 the Roanoke and Cape Fear; the slopes are steep, but the presence of heavy tim- 

 ber makes the flow quite regular and reduces the violence of freshets. The river 

 and its tributaries are for the most part discolored almost all the time by the red 

 clays of the Piedmont region; and fish life is not abundant in that part of the 

 stream within the state of North Carolina. While additional collecting will 

 doubtless increase the number of species known from the Yadkin, at this time only 

 about a score of fishes have been recorded, by Professor Cope in 1870 and by 

 Professor Jordan in 1889. Perhaps the most characteristic feaJture of the fish 

 fauna is the occurrence of a number of species of coarse-scaled suckers {Mox- 

 ostoma), which are of large size and exist in considerable abundance, running in 

 spring from the main rivers into the tributaries to spawn. 



The Catawba and Broad rivers are the North Carolina tributaries of the 

 Santee. The Catawba, known in South Carolina as the Wateree, rises in Mc- 

 Dowell County, on the eastern slope of the Blue Ridge near Swannanoa Gap, and 

 first flows eastward and then southward into South Carolina, where it unites with 

 the Congaree to form the Santee. The Broad rises near the headwaters of the 

 Catawba, and flows southeasterly into South Carolina, there joining the Saluda 

 to form the Congaree. The Catawba is the largest and clearest of the branches 

 of the Santee. Its course in North Carolina is 180 miles long; the headwaters are 

 nearly 2,700 feet above the tide, and the descent within the state is about 2,150 



