are as yet incomplete, and at present do not permit 
the drawing of final conclusions relative to the 
fishery, we believe that certain preliminary find- 
ings on the sport fishery will be of interest to 
anglers. Information now available relates to (1) 
kinds and numbers of fish caught by anglers; 
(2) annual changes in abundance of certain species 
of fishes; (3) annual changes in the average size 
of certain common fishes; (4) influence of water 
levels on fishing; (5) seasonal biting of certain 
species; and (6) types of fishing techniques that 
are successful in catching fishes. 
Methods of Study 
Creel censuses were made to determine the 
kinds and numbers of fishes caught by anglers, 
number of fishermen coming to the lake, number of 
hours they spent in fishing, and distance they trav- 
LC-15 
CHAUTAUQUA LAKE PERMIT 
ILLINOIS NATURAL HISTORY SURVEY, HAVANA 
Date Boat No. 
Number in party fishing 
eae ee ee Deere Time! mie Fl abe ei 
Ba Check here if nothing was caught. 
Kind of Fish Number 
Over 10” | Under 10” 
Largemouth bass 
Bluegill 
Other kinds of sunfish 
Ring perch 
Buliheads 
Streakers 
Crappies 
Channel catfish 
Drum 
Carp 
Whitebass 
(31978—10M—6-51) 
eled to fish. Since April 15, 1950, fishermen have 
been requested to obtain permits to fish at Lake 
Chautauqua. The fishing permits, which are issued 
free of charge to anglers at the four boat yards on 
or near the lake, fig. 2, function as creel-census 
cards, fig. 3. 
Since shore fishing is not permitted, most 
anglers must go through one of these boat yards if 
they are to fish on the lake. During the summer 
months a few permit cards are issued to nearby 
cottage owners and permanent local residents. 
Such anglers complete their own creel cards and 
deposit them in conveniently located collection 
boxes. In the winter of 1950-51 some ice fishermen 
fished without permits; however, it is believed that 
catch records were obtained from the majority. 
When a fisherman goes out from a boat yard, 
the boat liveryman fills in, on the permit card, the 
fisherman’s name, address, license number, and 
NAMES AND ADDRESSES 
LICENSE NUMBERS 
Fig. 3. -- Combination permit and creel-census card used at Lake Chautauqua, 1950 and 1951. 
