100 
BULLETIN OF THE BUREAU OF FISHERIES 
to go through a 2-inch mesh could get past, with the net on the gate, was by passing 
downward through one of a series of horizontal openings between the beams of the 
gate and then under the walk of the gate. These openings are shown in Figure 9. 
They are not rectilinear; of the eight, six measured about 3 by 8 feet (1 by 2 meters) 
and the others were smaller. In order to find these openings a fish would have to 
descend sharply into a narrow passage without an obstacle to guide him downward. 
It is possible that some fish of bottom habit might make this sharp descent, but these 
are the fishes least likely to surmount the wall at the upper end of the lock. 
The first operation with the net on the gate was made on March 25, 1915, and 
the last on August 25 of the same year. Excluding three days, the record for which 
was lost in a notebook that fell into the water, 94 operations were made — 1 in March, 
28 in April, 23 in May, 21 in June, 17 in July, and 4 in August. A schedide, con- 
formed to as closely as the exigencies of navigation allowed, provided for different 
hours on each day of the week- — from 3 a. m. to 11 p. m. 
In the net itself there were caught about 46 Ohio shad (all but one taken from 
the lock side), 11 bigmouth buffalo, 2 each of longnose gar and river herring, and 1 
each of smallmouth buffalo, river quillback, sauger, mooneye (Alosoides), and bowfin. 
During these operations many more fish were caught on the surface of the gate than 
in the net. The net was run diagonally across the gate, bisecting its surface. Except 
on the first day, note was made as to whether fish lay on the side toward the lock 
(“below”) or on the side toward the lake (“above”). The total of all fish taken in 
the net and on the gate during the 94 operations was 167 above, 457 below, and 7 not 
noted. These were distributed among the various species as follows: 
Table 1 
Species 
Below 
Above 
Not 
noted 
Total 
2 
O 
4 
21 
5 
26 
1 
1 
Mooneye (Alosoides) 
4 
4 
4 
4 
Mooneye (lost before identified) 
1 
1 
Gizzard shad 
23 
1 
24 
2 
2 
45 
1 
46 
Eel. 
1 
1 
20 
1 
21 
Smallmouth buffalo fish - _ 
8 
2 
10 
Buffalo fish (lost before identified) 
1 
1 
206 
87 
293 
Quillback (D iff or mis) 
3 
i 
4 
Quillback (lost before identified) 
1 
1 
Shorthead redhorse. __ - 
6 
1 
7 
Quillback or buffalo (lost before identified).. 
1 
1 
6 
2 
8 
Shiner'(Atherinoides).. - 
1 
1 
52 
32 
84 
7 
9 
16 
3 
2 
Bluetfill ‘ ‘ 
2 
1 
3 
2 
1 
3 
5 
3 
§ 
White bass 
1 
1 
] 
1 
30 
14 
6 
50 
457 
167 
631 
This is a representative list of the commoner species found about Keokuk during th at 
year, except for the omission of the minnows, goujon, and two species of the current — 
shovelnose sturgeon and Missouri sucker (blue sucker). Nearly all species were taken 
more numerously from the lock side than from above. This was due partly, at least, to 
