TPWD 1956 F-6-R-3 #256: Inventory of the Fish Species in the Nueces, Frio, and Atascosa Rivers

--- Page 1 --- STATE Texas PROJECT NO. FOR3 ~ Job Bel a eR PERIOD July 1, 1953 - June 30, 195 Job Completion Report Alvin Flury - Project Leader TITLE Inventory of the Fish Species in the Nueces, Frio, and Atascosa Rivers. OBJECTIVES To determine the species present and their relative numbers in the waters entering Lake Corpus Christi. PROCEDURE Thirty-one seining and four netting collections were made on the three rivers during the first and third segments of the job. From the fifty stations, mostly at road crossings, established for the basic survey (see Map 1) only 31 of them were found to be suitable for making seining or netting collections. Table 1 shows a list of the species taken in these collections and Table 2 shows the numbers of each species taken at each station. Many of the fish collections were made on the same trips that basic data were gathered for the water analysis and stream survey observations. OBSERVATIONS By referring to the job completion report for F6R3 - Job A-1, it will be seen that these three rivers are intermittent, flowing only during and after run-off rains. The Nueces River is normally composed of long, narrow, deep pools occasionally connected by running riffles. The two major tributaries, the Frio and Atascosa Rivers usually have samller, more isolated pools of water. Most of the creeks and arroyos draining into the rivers are completely dry except for periods of run-off rains. Several channel dams have been built in the vicinity of Crystal City on the Middle region of the Nueces and they form long narrow lakes which are frequently pumped completely dry for truck farm irrigation. The upper Nueces and Frio Rivers are not in Region B-8 and are not included in this report. A total of 8,231 specimens was taken representing 32 species. Other species that were present in Lake Corpus Christi and almost certainly present in the Nueces River above the lake but not recorded in this job were Dorosoma petenensis, Cyprinus carpio, Notropis roseus, Pilodictus olivarius and Anguilla rostrata, Lucania parva, Carassius auratus and Eleotris pisonis were taken only rarely in Lake Corpus Christi and may occur in the watershed. Four species, Moxostoma congestum, Notropis Vemustus, Pimephales promelas and Poecilichthys lepidus were recorded in this”job but were not found to occur in the lake. The first two of these were found only at Station 1, a --- Page 2 --- clear water pool typical of the upper Nueces River but unique in this Region. P. promelas was collected both at Station 1 and at Stations 22 and 26 while P. lepidu: was found only at Station 26. Each of these stations contained running water over gravel bars. Only 17 fishermen were seen during the progress of this job: two at Stat- ion 1, three on Commanche Lake, two on Espintosa Lake and ten on Holland Lake. Fishing pressure is not very heavy because the silty nature of the streams and the irregular water supply strongly favors rough fish, catfish, and freshwater drum. ‘ Some of the lakes in the vicinity of Crystal City might be worth renovation by complete removal of existing fish populations and restocking but the excessive use of the water for irrigation and the strong floods would probably prevent them from ever producing first class fishing for any appreciable time. _ SUMMARY Fish collections were made by seines or experimental gill nets at thirty- five stations on the Nueces, Frio, and Atascosa Rivers, above Lake Corpus Christi. Four species were found that were not found in Lake Corpus Christi and eight species that do occur in Lake Corpus Christi were not above it. Both game fish populations and fishing pressure are apparently low in the three rivers because the streams are mostly muddy and the water supply is irregular. --- Page 3 --- Table 1. A List of Fish Species Recorded from Lake Corpus Christi. Scientific Name Common Name Lepisosteus spatula Lepisosteus productus Lepisosteus osseus Dorosoma cepedianum Astyanax fasciatus Ictiobus bubalus Moxostoma congestum Notemigonus crysoleucas Opsopoeodus emiliae Notropis venustus Notropis lutrensis Pimephales vigalax Pimephales promelas Ictaluruspunctatus Ictalurus furcatus Ameiurus melas Ameiurus natalis Schilbeodes mollis Gambusia affinis Mollienisia latipinna Menidia beryllina Micropterus salmoides Chaenobryttus coronarius Lepomis cyanellus Lepomis microlophus Lepomis macrochirus Lepomis megalotis Pomoxis annularis Etheostoma gracile Poecilichthys lepidus Aplodinotus grunniens Cichlasoma cyanoguttata Alligator gar Spotted gar Longnose gar Gizzard shad Tetra Smallmouth buffalo Gray redhorse Golden shiner Pugnose minnow Spottail shiner Red shiner Parrot minnow Fathead minnow Southern channel catfish Blue catfish Black bullhead Yellow bullhead Tadpole madtom Gambusia Sailfin molly Tidewater silversides Largemouth black bass Warmouth Green sunfish Redear sunfish Bluegill Longear sunfish White crappie Western swamp darter Greenthroat darter Freshwater drum Rio Grande perch --- Page 4 --- 4 Table 2. Numbers of Specimens taken in Netting and Seining Collections from the Nueces, Frio and Atascosa Rivers. nnn inennneeneinn insets omni Species Sta. Sta. Sta. Sta. Sta. Sta. Sta. Sta. Sta. Sta. Sta. Sta. Sta. Sta. Sta. Sta. Sta.Sta. 1 1* 2 7T* 8 9 Q* 10 12* 13 14 15 20 21 22 26' 27 2g L. spatula 2 9 1 TL. productus_ 27 3 3 | LT. osseus 3 2 2 D. cepedianun 16 23 29 16 67 26 13 1 14 15 1 A. fasciatus 46 5 _ a I. bubalus ak 10 11 M. congestum 4 N. crysoleucas 1 2 O. emiliae 23 2 8 5 5 7 13 21 N. venustus 14 1 N. lutrensis 115 y 1 10 14 189 30 P. vigilax 10 1 2 8 P. promelas 1 9 I. punctatus 1 3 6 1 1 1 12 1 I. furcatus 2 1 A. melas A. natalis a: S. mollis 1 G. affinis 1 10 35 129 38 9 1h = 164 26 «62 68 2 52 M. Latipinna M. beryllina 5 4 M. salmoides 1 1 C. coronarius 2 6 11 1 1 9 2 2 Ty L. 1lus 6 1 3 6 1 L. microlophus 1 7 an 1 19 9 L. macrochirus 1 33 98 2 73 1 18 226 2 8 10 1 53 Tes oti 2 9 10 P. annularis 11 15 32 10 11 E. gracile 10 i P. lepidus 1 A. grunniens 7 2 3 1 1 C. cyanoguttata 1 1 3 3 3 {i ¢ Totals 196 10 6 97 111 136 72 2ls 119 107 ~ 36 32 ©6436 47 288 154 48 126 * = Netting collection ' » Two collections --- Page 5 --- Table 2. (Continued). Species Sta. Sta. Sta. Sta. Sta. Sta. Sta. Sta. Sta. Sta. Sta. Sta. Sta. Sta. Sta. Sta. Sta. Totals _ _30' 3132 85 86 8788 89H RT S50 L. spat 12 L. productus ; 33 L. osseus ¥ D. cepedianum 3 9 e 235 A. fasciatus 2 8 3 9 7 I. bubalus h5 M. congestum h N. crysoleucas 3 1 T Q. emiliae 31 6 2 5 1 109 N. venustus 15 N. lutrensis 56 66 66 9 10 171 10 =. 33 116 55 97 1 23 1076 P. vigilax 4 23 i 15 37 1 10 2 ye 117 P. promelas 1 7 18 I. punctatus 1 1k 13 1 22 4 1 1h 2 98 i. furcatus 3 A. melas 1 1 2 4 8 A: natalis 1 2 S. mollis 1 2 G. affinis 167 53 216 3 5 3 286 95 103 252 139 435 6 1 11 2385 M. latipinna 495 156 254 83 hk 4O7 3 504 505 330 3 13 1 2778 M. beryllina 9 M. salmoides 7 2 4 15 21 1 32 C. coronarius 1 1 i 1 1 43 L. cyanellus 1 3 11 (4 2 38 L. microlophus 38 TL. macrochirus 8 5 2 52 7h 2 8 1 9 687 L. megalotis 7 14 6 1 56 11 4 1 13, 132 _P. annularis 1 80 _E. gracile 11 P. lepidus 1 ‘A. grunniens ee 16 C. cyanoguttata 8 2 1 1 1 4 20 2h 27 «6 3 116 Totals 783 297 567 37 117 189. 1060 111 688 920 533 453 160 11 39 8231 * Netting Collection ' = Two Collections --- Page 7 --- MAP I, THE WATERSHED OF THE NUECES, FRIO AND ATASCOSA RIVERS, 3 SK av ft K Bo =~ Xo NS WY & 2 Ne vs e “hk eon ve ee, AL S \. ~ z 7% mueces <a \ NA \, Yo , aeNe \v ft \ xe ~ ¥s \ . a NS. Sl ee or aoe 5 50 miles x 1 - Station locations Map adapted from "Report on Sedimentation Water Supply of Corpus Christi, Texas". Agriculture, Soil Conservation Se in Lake Corpus Christi and the Brown, Jonesand Rogers, U.S. Dept of ‘ce, SCS - TP - 74, December, 1948