122 



PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL MUSEUM. 



VOL. 3d. 



In. the present paper is given an annotated list of all the species 

 of fishes known to the writers as occurring in the Lake of the Woods, 

 Rainy River, Rainy Lake, and their tributary waters. 



The interest now attaching to the fish faunas of the boundary 

 waters of the United States and Canada because of the treaty between 

 the United States and Great Britain, which provides for federal 

 control of the fisheries in those waters, makes the publication of this 

 list of special importance and value at this time. 



The fisheries of the Lake of the Woods are carried on almost 

 exclusively by means of gill-nets and pound-nets, the former being 

 used only on the Canadian side, while pound-nets are used in both 

 Canadian and American waters. All the gill-net fishery grounds 

 lie north of Little Traverse. The nets are placed in 6- to 90-foot 

 water and the fishing season usually extends from about the middle 

 of May to the end of October, which is practically the entire time 

 that the lake is open. 



The pound-net fishery in Canadian waters is chiefly on the east 

 shore, about Big and Bigsby islands. The pounds are set in depths 

 of 16 to 28 feet, and the season is the same as for gill-nets. On the 

 American side the pound-net fisheries are on the south shore, about 

 Buffalo Bay, Sandy Beach, Garden Island, and Oak Island, in water 

 10 to 24 feet deep. In the gill-net fishery meshes of 4 and 5 inches 

 are used for yellow pike, of 5 J inches for whitefish and tullibee, and 

 4 1 inches for jackfish. 



The pound-nets are pretty uniform in construction and dimensions, 

 the mesh being 8 inches in the leader, 4^ in the heart, and 3^ in the 

 crib. 



On the Canadian side a few fyke-nets are used for taking bull- 

 heads. This fishery is conducted chiefly in October in 6- to 8-foot 

 water around the edges of the marshes. 



Only approximately complete statistics of the fisheries of Lake 

 of the Woods are available; apparently complete records have never 

 been kept. From an examination of such published records as are 

 available and from data kindly furnished us by Mr. Paul Marschalk, 

 of Warroad, Minnesota, and Capt. Arthur Johnson, of Kenora, Onta- 

 rio, we are able to present the following tables, which, though in some 

 cases far from complete, are of interest and value: 



Pound-net catch, in founds, offish in American waters of Lake of the Woods. 



Year. 



1905 

 1906 

 1907 

 1908 



Yellow 

 pike. 



173, 451 

 129,214 

 193,079 

 403, 256 



Whitefish. 



65, 560 



78,041 



258, 534 



207,195 



Jackfish. 



43,887 



88,785 



96, 135 



246,993 



Sturgeon. 



72, 770 

 34,710 

 80, 123 

 87, 182 



Total 

 pounds. 



355, 668 

 330, 750 

 627, 871 

 944,626 



