State of Idaho DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND GAME

CREEL CENSUS SUMMARY

Fisheries Management Area II, District 2 1958

Ralph B. Pirtle Fisheries Biologist II

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State of Idaho DEPARTMENT OF FISH AND GAME

CREEL CENSUS SUMMARY - 1958

Fisheries Management Area II, District 2

Ralph B, Pirtle Fisheries Biologist

December 30, 1958 The creel check data contained in the following summary was collected by Conser- vation Officers, Management Biologists and Project Biologists. The creel census information is provided far your use and reference. Purpose of the Census:

The primary purpose of the census is to provide general information on fishing success and species composition of the sport catch from various waters in District Two. Creel Census Methods

The major portion of the data was collected by Conservation Officers during regular law enforcement activities. Other data were collected by check stations specifically set up to census creels and from check stations set up for other purposes. The informa- tion from Dingell-Johnson Project F 32-R-1 was obtained by a randomly scheduled creel census. Findings: To begin with, we should state again that the primary purpose o£ this type of creel check is to provide general information on the fishing success and species composition. The information contained here does a good ,job in providing a general picture of the fishing success throughout the District during 1958. Same waters are not included because of the lack of information and other waters do not haves adequate checks to give a good picture, however, as a whole, the information is sufficiently adequate to provide a good estimate of fishing success. It appears that the fishing success during the past season was good in District Two. The information will become more valuable when we can compare the trend over several years.

The response from Conservation Officers in 1958 was very heartening. Information from this source more than doubled over that of the previous year. I hope that the response in 1959 will be even mare pronounced.

Non-resident participation in the fishery, as shown, represents less than one- half of one per cent of the fishing pressure in District Two. This appears to be a little low and may be the result of forgetting to check far residency or from marking the wrong column on the creel check sheet.

The column "Fish per fisherman" has been broken down into two groups, as follows: "Not Completed fishing" and "Completed Fishing." The title of the first column may be a little misleading since it includes all the fishermen that were checked. The last column includes only fishermen that had completed fishing for the day. It was thought that the fishermen who had completed fishing would be more representative of the fishing success. This is not true when the sample is small, however, the validity will increase with the increase in sample size. In most cases, the fishing success is best for fishermen who have completed fishing. In some instances, the fishing

success shows a decrease in “Completed Fishing, "which is probably the result of small samples. What probably happened was that a few discouraged fishermen were checked as they were leaving the stream while the ones who were catching fish were still fishing.

The Dingell-Johnson project data summarize the information collected during a random creel census. This project is part of a Statewide project, "Tests for Increasing the Returns of Hatchery Trout." The information collected during the census is a good indication of the fishing success for these waters, and since the sample was random, the waters can be compared directly. You will note that in comparing the D.-J. sample with the sample from other sources, the D.-J. sample shows a fishing success of about one-half that of non-random sampling. This is explained by the fact that the non- random sample was collected largely on opening day of the fishing season, and on holidays and week ends.

CREEL CHECK SUMMARIES, CLEARWATER RIVER DRAINAGE, AND LOWER SNAKE AND SALMON RIVERS, 1958

Fish per Fisherman Number Completed Not Fishermen Fish Fishing Completed Completed Water Res NRes Rb Ct DV Brk Wf St Bass BuC Caught Men Fish Fishing Fishing SALMON RIVER: Skookumchuck Creek 3 19 3 22 1 15 7.3 15.0 John Day Creek 2 1 1 0.5 Papoose Creek 4 23 23 1 15 5.7 15.0 Rapid River 2 15 4 19 2 19 9.5 9.5 Corn Creek 4 21 21 5.2 Race Creek 4 20 20 5.0 Slate Creek 19 136 136 9 121 7.1 13.4 Whitebird Creek 10 30 30 10 30 3.0 3.0 Deer Creek 56 427 427 56 427 7.6 7.6 Totals 104 265 7 427 699 79 627 6.7 7.9 SOUTH FORK CLEARWATER: South Fork Clearwater 30 2 51 3 3 1 9 67 3 32 2.1 10.6 Warren's Creek 22 8 37 103 148 7 135 6.7 19.2* French Creek 2 5 5 2.5 Mill Creek 8 2 3 3 3 0 0.3 0 Peasley Creek 3 15 15 5.0 Crooked River 13 15 15 1 31 1 2 2.4 2.0 Red Horse Creek 6 113 113 5 113 18.8 22.6 Red River 26 4 17 31 20 4 72 4 21 2.4 5.2

Newsome Creek 7 4 6 1 11 1.5 Elk Creek 2 4 4 2.0 Meadow Creek 3 2 2 0.6 Cottonwood Creek 27 7 1 2 10 9 5 0.4 0.5 Totals 149 8 118 208 4 135 14 2 481 32 308 3.1 3.4 MIDDLE FORK CLEARWATER 26 2 16 2 2 20 4 8 0.7 2.0 SELWAY RIVER 76 6 128 35 12 175 15 66 2.1 4.4 LOCHSA RIVER 118 10 172 45 2 5 324 5 39 2.5 7.8 * These were evidently cases with overlimits of fish.

Creel Check Summary, cont. Fish per Fisherman Number Completed Not Fishermen Fish Fishing Completed Completed Water Res NRes Rb Ct DV Brk Wf St Bass BuC Caught Men Fish Fishing Fishing NORTH FORK CLEARWATER: North Fk. Clearwater 246 12 646 102 11 2 132 893 46 233 3.4 5.0 Kelly Creep 26 2 177 14 1 192 20 163 6.9 8.1 Pete Ott Creek 3 27 5 2 34 3 34 11.3 11.3 Long Creek 3 37 12 12 5 66 3 66 22.0 22.0* Weitas Creek 6 43 43 6 43 7.1 7.1 Cayuse & Monroe Cr. 8 17 62 79 8 79 9.8 9.8 Elizabeth Creek 2 25 25 2 25 12.5 12.5 Orogrande Creek 5 1 41 41 6.8 Moose Creek 2 1 1 2 1 0.5 0.5 Glover Creek 1 3 3 1 3 3.0 3.0 Little North Fork 6 9 2 11 1 2 1.8 2.0 Floodwood Creek 4 9 19 28 4 28 7.0 7.0 Breakfast Creek 2 3 2 1 3 5 3 0.6 0.6 Alder Creek 8 2 20 22 2.7 Total 322 18 1,011 245 26 22 137 1,441 101 680 4.2 6.7 OTHER CLEARWATER STREAMS: Lawyer's Canyon Creek 65 1 153 153 29 84 2.3 2.9 Little & Big Canyon Cr. 75 3 176 2 178 23 75 2.3 3.2 Orofino Creek 8 1 22 22 2.6 Hildebrand Creek 5 2 31 33 5 33 6.6 6.6 Cottonwood Cr. (Lower) 28 46 46 6 9 1.6 1.5 Lapwai Creek 25 2 20 20 9 1 0.7 0.1** Sweetwater & Webb Crs. 30 3 137 137 17 99 4.1 5.8** Mission Creek 62 188 1 189 17 84 3.0 5.0** Potlatch River to E.F. 47 92 92 14 74 1.9 5.1 Total 345 10 836 31 3 870 120 459 2.4 3.8 LAKES AND RESERVOIRS: Waha eke 515 15 2,210 1 2,211 478 2,080 4.1 4.3** Soldier Meadow Res. 69 294 294 49 215 4.2 4.4** Elk Creek Reservoir 92 11 244 219 5 468 11 78 4.5 7.1 Fish Lake 43 1 1 73 37 111 29 107 2.5 3.7 Moore's Lake 4 8 8 4 8 2.0 2.0 Cont. *Evidently a case of overlimit of fish. ** D. J. F 32-R-1- Creel Census reported separately.

Creel Check Summary, Cont. Fish per Fisherman Number Completed Not Fishermen Fish Fishing Completed Completed Water Res NRes Rb Ct DV Brk Wf St Bass BuC Caught Men Fish Fishing Fishing LAKES AND RESERVOIRS: Cont. Middle Gospel Lake 4 1 1 4 1 0.2 0.2 Mann's Lake (Res. A) 155 250 31 281 155 281 1.8 1.8 Blue Lake 52 114 114 52 114 2.2 2.2 Total 934 27 3,113 82 37 220 31 5 3,488 782 2,884 3.6 3.5 STEELHEAD AND STURGEON FISHING: Salmon & Snake R. 83 13-Sturgeon 37 50 83 50 0.60 0.60 Clearwater River 361 100 100 0.27 Middle Fork 39 3 3 0.07 Selway Falls Area 1,235 358 358 0.29 Selway R. (Others) 132 39 39 82 18 0.29 0.22 Total 1,850 13-Sturgeon 537 550 165 68 0.29 0.41 D. J. F32-R-1; RANDOM CREEL CENSUS: Waha Lake 578 29 1,608 1,608 2.6 Soldier Meadow Res. 840 45 1,381 1,381 1.6 Lawyer's Canyon Cr. 46 1 52 52 1.1 Lapwai Cr. Drainage 70 7 25 25 0.3 Mann's Lake (Res. A) 386 12 217 217 0.5 Total 1,920 94 3,283 3,283 1.6

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DIAGRAMMATIC SKETCH OF SUGGESTED-TYPE BRUSH SHELTER

Note: The foundation of the brush shelter is constructed with 12 green logs, 10 feet

long, decked as shown, and wired or nailed to form a 10-foot-square or larger framework. Green limbs and brush are piled on top of framework and wired as necessary to hold the structure together. Sandbags or other-type weights are wired to the lower logs as necessary to sink structure and hold it on the lake bottom.

Sandbags or weights Sandbags

or weights