SHAD FISHERIES OF THE ATLANTIC COAST. 139 



bowlders, for if there be rocks or snags the net will " hang," permitting 

 the fish to escape. The use of these nets has considerably decreased; 

 in 1880 12 were reported, whereas in 1896 there were only 3, yielding 

 but 20 shad. 



The fall traps used in the rapids immediately below the Augusta 

 dam are made by placing stones in two straight converging lines in 

 the form of a V, but not meeting by 6 or 8 feet, thus constituting 

 breakwaters and preventing the fish from passing except through the 

 opening therein. Within this opening there is constructed a framework 

 of wooden slats with high sides, the up-river end of which rests on the 

 bottom, while the lower end is raised 5 or 6 feet. When the fish come 

 within the influence of the current passing through this apparatus 

 they are forced up on the slatwork and kept there by the strength of 

 the current, the high sides preventing them from flopping over. The 

 space between the slats is about 1 inch wide, permitting small fish to 

 pass through. When the river is low it is difficult for shad to pass 

 these obstructions, but during freshets, which are frequent in the shad 

 season, the traps are submerged and the fish readily pass over them. 

 The scarcity of shad during recent years has resulted in a decrease in 

 the use of this form of apparatus and the profitableness of those now 

 in the river results principally from the capture of catfish. In 1879 

 there were 110 fall traps, whereas in 1896 only 26 were reported, with 

 an aggregate yield of 50 shad. In 1873 the average catch for each 

 trap was reported at about 10 per day, and it was then stated to be 

 very much less than several years before. 



Several valuable seine fisheries formerly existed on the Savannah 

 below Augusta, but none have been operated during the past twenty 

 years. Compared with twenty or more years ago, the yield of shad in 

 the Savannah is small, except in the extreme lower end of the river. A 

 part of this decrease may be ascribed to the large amount of drift-net 

 fishing in the vicinity of Savannah, where the stream is quite narrow 

 and the amount of twine used therein almost completely obstructs 

 the passage of fish. A second cause for the decrease is found in the 

 limitation of the available spawning areas. The quantities of muddy 

 water render the lower length of the stream unfavorable for spawning 

 purposes, and the dam near Augusta prevents utilization of the area 

 above that point, thus limiting the spawning-grounds to a few miles 

 just below the Augusta dam, and within this restricted area the eggs 

 are quickly eaten by the predaceous fish attracted thither. 



The Savannah above the Augusta dam. — Above the Augusta dam there 

 are several shoals, but the ascent is slight, being 109 feet in the 51 

 miles to Petersburg, Ga., an average of 2.1 feet per mile. Omitting 

 Long Shoals Fall, where the river descends 53 feet in 10 J miles, the 

 average for the remaining 40£ miles is less than 18 inches per mile. 

 From Petersburg to Andersonville, S. C, a distance of 55 miles, the 

 current is very swift, the total ascent between the two points being 288 

 feet. At Trotters Shoals there is a fall of 74.88 feet in 7 miles, and at 



