Croatan National Forest Fishes 
99 
hectares are present there. Most of the land not forested is in agricultural 
use. There is little domestic or industrial pollution and, because the land 
is generally level, there is little evidence of soil erosion. 
Water was tannin stained and acidic, as is typical of the Coastal Plain, 
and pH values of 4.6 - 9.0 have been recorded in the Neuse River within 
the forest, 5.1 - 8.2 in the White Oak, 4.9 - 8.1 in the Newport, and 4.5 - 
4.7 in the lakes (Bayless and Smith 1962; Davis and McCoy 1965; Bay- 
less 1966). Water temperatures in our study ranged from 3.0 C in January 
to 31.0 C in June, and the waters were usually clear. 
Stream-side vegetation was typical for the Coastal Plain. Twenty 
aquatic plant species were observed in the area: filamentous algae; 
Sphagnum sp.; Taxodium distichum ; Typha sp.; Sparganium amencanum; 
Potamogeton pectinatus ; JVajas sp.; Ruppia maritima; Sagittana sp.; Scirpus sp.; 
Pontedena cor data; Juncus sp.; Saururus cernuus; Ceratophyllum demersum; 
Polygonum punctatum; Nymphaea odorata ; Proserpinaca sp.; Myriophyllum 
brasiliense; Hydrocotyle sp.; and Utnculana purpurea. 
MATERIALS AND METHODS 
From 3 September 1973 to 16 September 1978, 94 collections were 
made at 51 localities in and near the forest (Fig. 1). All specimens were 
collected either with a 3.0 m X 1.2 m, 3.1 mm mesh flat seine; a 6.1 m X 
1.2 m, 6.4 mm mesh flat seine (used several times); or a 30.5 m gill net of 
vahying mesh sizes (used only once). No attempt was made to standardize 
the collection methods used because of variations in physiography at the 
different sites. Fish were immediately preserved in 10% formalin and 
returned to the laboratory for identification. Representative specimens 
were deposited in the Institute of Marine Sciences - University of North 
Carolina (UNC) collection. Water and air temperatures and pertinent 
physical characteristics of each site were recorded. Although two sites 
were sampled intensively as part of several life history studies, most 
localities were sampled only once. 
Data from collections made at 31 localities (Fig. 1) by the North 
Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission (NCWRC) (Bayless and Smith 
1962; Davis and McCoy 1965; Bayless 1966) were summarized and are 
included. These collections were made with 5% emulsified rotenone. Data 
from seine and gill-net collections made at 17 localities (Fig. 1) by earlier 
workers at UNC-IMS and Duke University Marine Laboratory (DUML) 
are also included. Additional records were obtained from the fish collec- 
tions at the North Carolina State Museum of Natural History (NCSM) 
and Duke University (DU). All localities at which collections were made 
are listed in Table 1. 
