Population Studies of the Sports and Commercial Fin-Fish and Forage Species of the Corpus Christi Bay System - Analysis of Populations of Sports and Commercial Fin-Fish and of Factors Which Affect These Populations in the Coastal Bays of Texas

Fish samples in 1963 indicate a decrease in numbers of redfish, Sciaenops ocellatus; drum, Pogonias cromis; and flounder, Paralichthys lethostigma, with a correspondering increase of trout, Cynoscion nebulosus; and sheepshead, Archsargus probatocephalus, as compared with samples taken in 1962. The most abundant adult game fish taken was trout with an average of 1.43 fish per acre sampled. Fish tag returns were highest for redfish which had 10.4 per cent reported recoveries. Trout, drum, and sheepshead had low tag returns, and flounder had no returns. Forage fish were most abundant during August with an average weight of 3.33 pounds per 15-minute drag with a 10-foot trawl. Pinfish, Lagodon rhomboides, and croaker, Micropogon undulatus, produced the most pounds per unit of effort during the study period. Juvenile game fish samples indicate a reduction of 20.9 per cent for trout, 31.6 per cent for sheepshead, 55.0 per cent for flounder, 63.8 per cent for redfish, and 96.0 per cent for drum in 1963 as compared with 1962.