A high rate of mortality due to handling was observed in Area 1 for the red shiner and in Area 6 for river carpsucker (young-of-the-year), sucker-mouthed minnows, red-finned shiner, red shiner, blunt-nosed minnow, and stoneroller. In Area 3, in contrast, there was little mortality in the same species during the twelve-hour interval that fish were held in traps prior to release as marked individuals.
The following species were common in at least one area, but probably are sufficiently mobile (see page 416) to invalidate estimates of static populations in small areas: red shiner, red-finned shiner, and channel catfish (yearlings and older). Other species were rare and are indicated as "T" in Table 13.
Those species for which population-estimates seem warranted include: golden redhorse, sucker-mouthed minnow, red shiner, sand shiner, fat-headed minnow, stoneroller, stonecat, channel catfish (young-of-the-year), green sunfish, long-eared sunfish, slender-headed darter, and orange-throated darter. I consider the estimate valid if a high percentage of the marked fish is recaptured. Results are presented in Table 15, and ordinarily will not be referred to in the following discussion of the population in each of the three areas.
Area 1
The order of abundance at Area 1, in terms of the estimated population per 500 square feet, was as follows: stoneroller (47.6), stonecat (29.4), channel catfish (young-of-the-year) (20.6), green sunfish (19.4), red shiner (18.2), long-eared sunfish (9.4), channel catfish (yearlings and older) (6.5), golden redhorse (1.2). Insufficient data make inclusion of other species unreliable.
A comparison of the order of abundance between the estimated total population and the percentage composition in the first collection from each area shows significant correlations. The percentage-composition of the fish fauna at Area 1 was calculated as follows: stoneroller (27.7%), red shiner (18.2%), green sunfish (11.2%), stonecat (10.3%), channel catfish (young-of-the-year) (9.5%), channel catfish (yearlings and older) (5.8%), long-eared sunfish (5.4%), golden redhorse (0.8%). It can be seen that the stoneroller, green sunfish, long-eared sunfish and golden redhorse follow each other in the same order in both calculations. The stonecat is shown to be more common than channel catfish (young-of-the-year) in both calculations, but both species appear to be more abundant than green sunfish and red shiner in calculations of the total population and less abundant in the percentage-composition in the first collection. I think that the order of abundance as shown by percentage-composition is the more accurate figure for Area 1. The abundance of the red shiner is known to have been affected by mortality in collecting. Furthermore, as will be shown later, the species is so mobile that its abundance often changes markedly in a short time. Therefore, it is not surprising to find the red shiner in widely varying positions of relative and absolute abundance. However, the green sunfish maintains stable populations and should remain in about the same position of abundance in relation to other species (such as the stonecat and channel catfish young-of-the-year) that also maintain stable populations. The differences in order of abundance obtained by the two methods for green sunfish and channel catfish young-of-the-year are not great. However, in the estimation of total population the abundance of the stonecat seems significantly greater, in relation to other species, than in the calculation of percentage-composition. I believe that this difference can be attributed to the relatively low number of marked fish recaptured, which is probably due to a slow rate of dispersal from the point of release. Stonecats were released in relatively quiet water, and if they remained there they might be missed in subsequent collections, because they lack air-bladders and tend to remain on the bottom when shocked. Therefore, the calculated total population of the stonecat in Area 1 may be too high.
Table 15. Data Used in Estimating Total Populations, by Direct Proportions, in Areas 1, 3, and 6 at the Upper Neosho Stations.
| Species | Number captured first collection | Number marked and released | Number captured second collection | Number of marked fish recaptured | Estimated total population | Percent of marked fish recovered | Number per 500 square feet | ||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 3 | 6 | 1 | 3 | 6 | 1 | 3 | 6 | 1 | 3 | 6 | 1 | 3 | 6 | 1 | 3 | 6 | 1 | 3 | 6 | |
| Golden Redhorse | 2 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 100 | 100 | — | 1.2 | .4 | 0 |
| Sucker-mouthed Minnow | 0 | 54 | 31 | 0 | 51 | 15 | 0 | 42 | 12 | 0 | 17 | 0 | 0 | 126 | — | — | 33 | 0 | 0 | 10.0 | — |
| Red Shiner | 44 | 116 | 186 | 22 | 106 | 86 | 7 | 165 | 202 | 5 | 18 | 14 | 31 | 972 | 1284 | 23 | 17 | 11 | 18.2 | 77.1 | 64 |
| Sand Shiner | 0 | 25 | 10 | 0 | 25 | 7 | 0 | 35 | 10 | — | 12 | 1 | 0 | 73 | — | — | 48 | — | 0 | 5.8 | — |
| Blunt-nosed Minnow | 0 | 4 | 108 | 0 | 3 | 28 | 0 | 10 | 91 | 0 | 1 | 8 | 0 | — | 319 | — | 33 | 28 | 0 | — | 16 |
| Fat-headed Minnow | 1 | 1 | 112 | 1 | 1 | 101 | 0 | 2 | 156 | 0 | 0 | 19 | — | — | 830 | 0 | 0 | 19 | — | — | 41.5 |
| Stoneroller | 67 | 84 | 54 | 58 | 79 | 33 | 39 | 107 | 67 | 28 | 35 | 8 | 81 | 242 | 276 | 48 | 44 | 24 | 47.6 | 19.2 | 13.8 |
| Channel Catfish (j)[I] | 14 | 37 | 3 | 9 | 32 | 3 | 7 | 16 | 1 | 6 | 13 | 0 | 11 | 39 | — | 67 | 41 | 0 | 6.5 | 3.1 | — |
| Channel Catfish (yy)[J] | 3 | 34 | 40 | 22 | 33 | 39 | 16 | 34 | 23 | 10 | 11 | 1 | 35 | 102 | — | 45 | 33 | 3 | 20.6 | 8.1 | — |
| Stonecat | 25 | 7 | 0 | 25 | 7 | 0 | 8 | 7 | 0 | 4 | 1 | — | 50 | — | 0 | 16 | 14 | — | 29.4 | — | 0 |
| Green Sunfish | 27 | [K]— | 62 | 27 | — | 62 | 17 | — | 62 | 14 | — | 22 | 33 | — | 175 | 52 | — | 35 | 19.4 | — | 8.8 |
| Long-eared Sunfish | 13 | 6 | 10 | 13 | 6 | 10 | 12 | 3 | 22 | 10 | 3 | 6 | 16 | 6 | 37 | 76 | 50 | 60 | 9.4 | .5 | 1.9 |
Area 3
The order of abundance of the species at Area 3, in terms of the estimated population per 500 square feet, was as follows: red shiner (77.1), stoneroller (19.2), sucker-mouthed minnow (10.0), channel catfish (young-of-the-year) (8.1), sand shiner (5.8), channel catfish (yearlings and older) (3.1), long-eared sunfish (0.5), golden redhorse (0.4). Insufficient data make inclusion of other species unreliable.