174 
BULLETIN OF THE BUREAU OF FISHERIES 
showing the yield of catfish from commercial fisheries of the Misisssippi River and 
tributaries, not including the Atchafalava River. 
Pounds 
1894 9 , 689,034 
1898 7 , 648,179 
1903 5 , 191 , 850 
1908 - 8 , 073,000 
1922 - - 6 , 263,025 
The fishery has evidently been fairly uniform; the fluctuations during a long period 
as shown by these figures, are not striking, except perhaps for the low point reached 
in 1903. 
Fulton cat. Icialurus furcatus (Le Sueur) 
BLUE cat; chucklehead cat 
Locally known by the distinctive name of Fulton cat, this species is the largest 
of the Mississippi River catfishes. 16 In fact, among all the food fishes it is rivaled in 
Figure 13. — Fulton catfish, Icialurus furcatus 
size only by the paddlefish and lake sturgeon, and large examples of these are not now 
common. It sustains an important fishery in the south (Evermann, 1899, p. 305), 
where it is most abundant, but many were taken in the vicinity of Keokuk during 
1915 and 1916, the latter year being reported by fishermen as the best they could 
remember for Fulton cats. According to Forbes and Richardson (1908), it frequents 
the deeper waters of the river channels, coming out into the shallow sloughs and 
backwaters in spring. Some fishermen say that it prefers rocky bottoms. On June 1, 
1915, in the slack water of a creek near Keokuk, three large Fulton catfish were taken 
in nets along with the buffalo fishes subsequently to be mentioned, the largest having 
a total length of 30 inches (76 centimeters). 
This catfish is reported to breed in Louisiana. (Evermann, 1899, p. 294.) The 
observations made by Stringham indicate that it breeds near Keokuk, probably about 
June. On June 10, 1915, there were seen at Canton, Mo., 20 miles below Keokuk, 
three Fulton catfish with eggs nearly or quite ripe and another with small eggs, possibly 
“ Evermann (1902) says: “I have been told that one was taken weighing 185 pounds, and another 250 pounds.” Forbes and 
Richardson (1908) say: ‘‘It grows to a great size, specimens weighing as much as 150 pounds being occasionally caught, although 
the average size of the larger ones is only 15 to 20 pounds.” Meek (1890), speaking of Ameiurus nigricans, a name formerly but 
erroneously applied to large examples of the Fulton cat, spoke of it as the largest catfish found in Iowa and said that examples weigh- 
ing 200 pounds were reported to have been taken in past years, but that, about 1890, it seldom attained a weight of 60 pounds. He 
added that in Iowa the fish was known only from the Mississippi River. 
