SHAD FISHERIES OF THE ATLANTIC COAST. 



119 



Boats, apparatus, etc., employed in Atlantic coast shad fisheries in 1896 — Continued. 



It will be seen that from St. Johns River to Cape Fear River, inclu- 

 sive, shad are taken principally in drift nets, with smaller catches in set 

 nets, bow nets, haul seines, and fall traps. Of 820,130 shad caught in 

 that region in 1896, 602,244, or 73 per cent, were taken in drift nets; 

 140,912 by seines; 45,425 by set nets; 36,785 by bow nets; and 764 by 

 fall traps and cast nets. The principal shad streams are St. Johns, 

 Altamaka, Ogeechee, Savannah, Edisto, Pee Dee, and Cape Fear. The 

 rivers of this section empty directly into the ocean, maintaining their 

 fluvial characteristics almost if not quite to their outlets. 



Next come Pamlico Sound and its important tributaries, Albemarle 

 and Croatan sounds, and the Neuse, Pamlico, Roanoke, and Chowan 

 rivers, etc. There the bulk of the catch is by stake nets, pound nets, 

 and seines, the drift-net yield being of very small extent. In 1896, 

 944,582 were taken in stake nets, 521,564 by seines, 478,531 by pound 

 nets, 46,606 by bow nets, 28,206 by drift nets, and 2,000 by fall traps. 



The shad fisheries of Chesapeake Bay and its tributaries are the 

 most extensive and valuable on the coast, the yield during an ordinary 

 year approximating nearly half the total product of the United States. 

 Although 1896 was an "off year" in the Chesapeake, the catch aggre- 

 gated 4,867,619, nearly 33 per cent of the total yield on the coast. Of 

 this product 2,320,921 were obtained by means of pound nets, 1,597,944 

 by drift nets, 433,842 by stake nets, 457,502 by seines, and the remain- 

 ing 57,410 by means of fyke nets, bow nets, and fall traps. 



Next comes* the important estuary of the Delaware, the yield in 

 which, including its tributaries, is usually about one-half that of the 

 Chesapeake and tributaries. In 1896, however, the yield was some- 

 what greater than usual, 4,017,462 shad being taken, of which 3,261,457 

 were secured by drift nets, 741,005 by seines, and the remaining 12,000 

 by spears, stake nets, fyke nets, and pound nets. 



