﻿20 
  MUSSELS 
  OF 
  CENTRAL 
  AND 
  NORTHERN 
  MINNESOTA. 
  

  

  At 
  Praii-ic 
  Lake, 
  6 
  miles 
  north 
  of 
  Grand 
  Rapids, 
  the 
  water 
  is 
  

   considerably 
  discolored 
  with 
  iron 
  brought 
  down 
  by 
  the 
  Prairie 
  

   River 
  from 
  the 
  Mesabi 
  Iron 
  Range. 
  This 
  iron 
  does 
  not 
  appear 
  to 
  

   affect 
  the 
  mussel 
  fauna 
  at 
  all, 
  since 
  they 
  are 
  neither 
  stunted 
  nor 
  

   discolored. 
  But 
  thousands 
  of 
  logs 
  are 
  run 
  down 
  the 
  Prairie 
  River, 
  

   and 
  the 
  bottom 
  of 
  both 
  the 
  river 
  and 
  much 
  of 
  the 
  lake 
  is 
  covered 
  

   so 
  thickly 
  with 
  fragments 
  of 
  bark 
  that 
  no 
  mussel 
  can 
  live 
  in 
  it. 
  

  

  It 
  is 
  hardly 
  necessary 
  to 
  add 
  that 
  all 
  these 
  lakes, 
  the 
  Mississippi 
  

   itself, 
  and 
  its 
  tributaries 
  are 
  full 
  of 
  just 
  the 
  right 
  kind 
  of 
  fish 
  to 
  

   serve 
  as 
  hosts. 
  Furthermore, 
  Walker, 
  Cass 
  Lake, 
  Bemidji, 
  and 
  

   Grand 
  Rapids 
  are 
  very 
  conveniently 
  situated 
  for 
  propagation 
  work, 
  

   and 
  are 
  in 
  easy 
  railroad 
  communication 
  with 
  all 
  other 
  parts 
  of 
  the 
  

   State. 
  

  

  RECOMMENDATIONS. 
  

  

  1. 
  As 
  noted 
  under 
  the 
  Red 
  River 
  group, 
  suitable 
  passage 
  should 
  

   be 
  provided 
  for 
  fish 
  around 
  the 
  dams 
  at 
  the 
  outlet 
  of 
  Lakes 
  Pokegama 
  

   and 
  Winnibigoshish, 
  and 
  the 
  large 
  power 
  dam 
  1 
  1 
  miles 
  below 
  Lake 
  

   Bemidji. 
  These 
  last 
  two 
  are 
  across 
  the 
  Mississippi, 
  and 
  surely 
  that 
  

   river 
  ought 
  never 
  to 
  be 
  closed 
  to 
  the 
  passage 
  of 
  fish, 
  to 
  say 
  nothing 
  

   about 
  the 
  mussels. 
  

  

  2. 
  The 
  farther 
  the 
  source 
  of 
  supply 
  is 
  removed 
  from 
  the 
  button 
  

   factory 
  the 
  greater 
  is 
  the 
  cost 
  of 
  transporting 
  the 
  shells. 
  Therefore, 
  

   in 
  a 
  city 
  like 
  Bemidji, 
  forming 
  a 
  convenient 
  center, 
  the 
  establish- 
  

   ment 
  of 
  a 
  local 
  factory 
  for 
  sawing 
  blanks 
  can 
  not 
  be 
  too 
  strongly 
  

   recommended. 
  

  

  3. 
  This 
  is 
  not 
  the 
  best 
  locality 
  for 
  trying 
  the 
  experiment 
  of 
  intro- 
  

   ducing 
  commercial 
  species 
  of 
  mussels 
  into 
  some 
  of 
  the 
  Minnesota 
  

   lakes. 
  But 
  after 
  such 
  an 
  experiment 
  has 
  been 
  made 
  a 
  thorough 
  suc- 
  

   cess, 
  there 
  are 
  large 
  and 
  well 
  adapted 
  lakes 
  here 
  in 
  which 
  artificial 
  

   propagation 
  would 
  undoubtedly 
  yield 
  profitable 
  returns. 
  

  

  MUSSELS 
  OF 
  THE 
  ISOLATED 
  LAKES. 
  

   LAKE 
  PEPIN. 
  

  

  This 
  so-called 
  lake 
  is 
  reaUy 
  a 
  simple 
  widening 
  of 
  the 
  Mississippi 
  

   River 
  just 
  below 
  Red 
  Wing. 
  The 
  bottom 
  is 
  of 
  fahly 
  coarse 
  gravel 
  

   mixed 
  with 
  some 
  mud, 
  there 
  is 
  very 
  little 
  current, 
  and 
  the 
  water 
  

   varies 
  from 
  6 
  or 
  8 
  to 
  12 
  or 
  15 
  feet 
  in 
  depth. 
  This 
  locality 
  has 
  not 
  

   been 
  fished 
  for 
  mussels 
  until 
  within 
  a 
  few 
  years, 
  but 
  at 
  the 
  time 
  of 
  our 
  

   visit 
  there 
  were 
  100 
  clamming 
  outfits 
  along 
  the 
  east 
  shore 
  of 
  the 
  lake, 
  

   and 
  they 
  were 
  averaging 
  more 
  than 
  200 
  pounds 
  apiece 
  per 
  day. 
  

  

  An 
  examination 
  of 
  the 
  piles 
  of 
  shells 
  collected 
  by 
  these 
  fishermen 
  

   yielded 
  examples 
  of 
  the 
  following 
  species: 
  Lampsills 
  luteola, 
  recta, 
  

   fallaciosa, 
  and 
  alata, 
  TJnio 
  gihhosus, 
  Stropliitus 
  edentulus, 
  Obovaria 
  

   refiexa, 
  and 
  Quadrula 
  plicata, 
  undulata, 
  and 
  pudulosa. 
  

  

  