Geology topics

William R. Dryer

Publications and source records attributed to William R. Dryer.

6 recordsLinked to original sources

USGS1968

Rehabilitation of lake trout in the Apostle Islands region of Lake Superior

Marked success of rehabilitation of lake trout in Lake Superior has been due principally to the control of the sea lamprey and closure of the lake trout fishery in 1962 and large-scale plantings of yearling lake trout in 1959-66. After the sea lamprey became established in the late 1940s, spawning stocks of lake trout began to decrease and were almost nonexistent by 1960-61. After control of the sea lamprey and closure of the commercial fishery for lake trout in 1962, the abundance of spawning stocks began to rise and reached the highest levels on record in 1964-66. Successful spawning in 1964 and 1965 was demonstrated by catches of age-0 lake trout in 1965 and 1966, the first evidence of natural reproduction since 1959. Plantings of hatchery-reared lake trout in Wisconsin waters of Lake Superior began in 1952. The percentage of hatchery-reared fish in catches of juvenile lake trout increased almost steadily from 1953 to 1965 (when nearly all were of hatchery origin). The abundance of juvenile fish increased from 1959 to 1962 and remained nearly constant in 1962-66. The success of lake trout plantings was highest in 1959-61 but generally declined after 1961; the success of the plantings was inversely related to the abundance of older lake trout. Annual increments of growth of hatchery-reared lake trout varied from 1.1 to 5.0 inches after planting. The average lengths of fish of identical age-groups varied according to gear of capture, depth of water, and season. More than 65% of the season's growth of age-III lake trout took place after September. The findings indicate that the present rate of stocking lake trout may be higher than necessary to maintain optimum abundance.

Journal of the Fisheries Research Board of Canada↗

USGS1968

Growth changes of the bloater (Coregonus hoyi) of the Apostle Islands region of Lake Superior

Studies were based primarily on 3,097 bloaters collected in experimental gill nets and bottom trawls fished in 1958-65 in the Apostle Islands region of Lake Superior. The average size of bloaters increased considerably during the period. The percentage longer than 8.9 inches increased from 45% in 1959 to 99% in 1965. Calculated lengths were without exception higher in 1962-65 than in 1958-61. Growth in length and weight showed nearly steady improvement from 1951 to 1964. The species composition of chubs has apparently changed considerably over the past 40 years. The bloater has replaced the shortjaw cisco (C. zenithicus) as the principal species in commercial landings of chubs in Wisconsin. Annulus formation of bloaters extended from mid-May to August. Growth was slow during the spring and early summer but increased sharply in August. Age-group VI was dominant in the samples. Fluctuations in year-class strength were slight. Females outnumbered males in all age groups above III. The sex composition varied according to season of capture. Some bloaters matured at age II and all fish older than III were mature. The shortest length of mature bloaters was 6.0 inches for males and 7.0 inches for females; all fish longer than 8.4 inches were mature. Apostle Island bloaters spawn principally in February and March. The average number of eggs produced by 20 females, 8.4 to 11.7 inches long, was 6,533. Crustaceans were the most common food.

Transactions of the American Fisheries Society↗

USGS1966

Bathymetric distribution of fish in the Apostle Islands region, Lake Superior

Records of seasonal and “all-season” (April-December) bathymetric distribution are given for 17 species of fish taken in bottom trawls and experimental gill nets fished on the bottom in 1958–63 in the Apostle Islands region of Lake Superior. The data are based on catches from 578 trawl tows at 2–59 fathoms and 301,900 linear feet of gill nets fished at 2–89 fathoms. Size of the fish varied widely among different species from the same gear and the same species from different gears. Seasonal differences in depth distribution were greatest for lake trout, bloaters, round whitefish, and older smelt, which exhibited an inshore movement in the summer and fall, and for longnose suckers, which migrated to deeper water with progress of the seasons. The all-season bathymetric distributions varied considerably among species. Round whitefish, 0- and I-group smelt, longnose suckers, ninespine sticklebacks, and johnny darters were most abundant at < 10 fathoms. Concentrations of lake trout, lake herring, lake whitefish, older smelt, trout-perch, and burbot were greatest at 10–29 fathoms. Pygmy whitefish were most common at 30–39 fathoms, bloaters and spoonhead sculpins at 40–49 fathoms, and shortjaw ciscoes, slimy sculpins, and fourhorn sculpins at 50–59 fathoms. The kiyi was most abundant at 70–79 fathoms.

Transactions of the American Fisheries Society↗

USGS1964

Movements, growth, and rate of recapture of whitefish tagged in the Apostle Islands area of Lake Superior

A total of 1,303 whitefish were marked with spaghetti streamer tags in Wisconsin waters off Lake Superior in November of 1959, 1960, and 1961 and June-July 1960. The fish tagged in June-July 1960 were mostly undersized (less than 17 inches long) whereas those captured on the spawning grounds and tagged in November 1959-61 were almost all legal size. Of the 374 recoveries (28.7 percent), nearly all were made during the first 2 years after tagging. The earliest returns were from fish which were among the largest when tagged. Over one-half of the recoveries were made within 5 miles of the tagging site; the greatest distance traveled by an individual was 25 miles. The fish tagged in June-July 1960 grew 1.6 inches the first season and 1.2 the second. Of 27 whitefish recaptured within 6 months from the November 1959-61 group, 17 (63 percent) had lost length (range from decrease 0.1 to 1.4 inches). Whitefish of the June-July group recaptured during the second growing season after tagging gave an exploitation rate of 22.6 percent. First-year returns from the November 1959-61 tagging gave an exploitation rate of 20.5 percent. The true exploitation rate probably is higher since no allowance has been made for tagging mortality, loss of tags, or unreported recaptures.

Fishery Bulletin↗

USGS1964

Life history of lake herring in Lake Superior

The average annual commercial catch of lake herring (Coregonus artedi) in U.S. waters of Lake Superior was nearly 12 million pounds in 1929-61. This production contributed 62.4 percent of the total U.S. take of lake herring for the Great Lakes. About 90 percent of the annual catch is taken from small-mesh gill nets during the November-December spawning season. The life-history studies were based on 12,187 fish collected in 1950-62; past growth was computed for 3,779 specimens collected from commercial landings at: Duluth, Minn.; Bayfield, Wis.; and Portage Entry and Marquette, Mich.

Fishery Bulletin↗

USGS1963

Age and growth of the whitefish in Lake Superior

The average annual commercial production of whitefish in the U.S. waters of Lake Superior dropped from 2,194,000 pounds in 1879-1908 to 504,000 pounds in 1911-59. The modern production, though far below the earlier, has accounted for more than 10 percent of the total value of the fishery in all but one of the last 20 years. Data are given on growth rate, age and year-class composition, size distribution, and length-weight relation of 1,800 fish collected in 1957-59 at Bayfield, Wis., and Marquette, Whitefish Point, and Dollar Settlement, Mich. Studies of the body-scale relation, sex ratio, and age and size at maturity were limited to fish collected at Bayfield. The age composition and mean age varied widely by port and year of capture. Oldest fish were those of the 1957 Bayfield samples which were dominated by age group VII and averaged 5.5 years old. The youngest were from Whitefish Point in 1959; age-group III was dominant, and the mean age was 3.2 years. The evidence on the strength of year classes was not clear-cut, but it was obvious that fluctuations in stocks of different areas were largely independent. The percentage of legal-size fish (17 inches or longer) in age groups ranged widely; only 8.6 percent of the V group were legal in the 1957 Bayfield collections, whereas 100 percent of fish of the same age were legal in the 1957-59 collections from Whitefish Point. The weight of whitefish in the combined samples increased as the 3.2408 power of the length. The growth rate from the fastest to the slowest growing stocks ranked as follows: Whitefish Point; Dollar Settlement and Marquette (fish from the two ports reversed ranks after 3 years); Bayfield. The major differences in growth in length among the various stocks occurred during the first years of life. Beyond the fifth year the annual increments were nearly the same in all stocks. The whitefish from Whitefish Point, Dollar Settlement, and Marquette are among the fastest growing in the Great Lakes. The differences among the Lake Superior stocks in age and year-class composition, and in growth rate offer convincing evidence that populations of different areas are entirely independent. The sexes were almost equally represented (51.5 percent males) in the combined Bayfield samples, but males were scarce in age groups older than VIII. Whitefish from Bayfield shorter than 14.5 inches were immature and those larger than 17.4 inches were mature. The youngest mature fish belonged to age-group V,and all older than the VII group were mature.

Fishery Bulletin↗