Spoon River
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IDNR Region 1 Streams Biologist
Jubilee College State Park 13921 West Route 150 Brimfield, IL 61517
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309-370-5296
Description
The Spoon River valley is narrow, averaging less than one mile throughout its length. The slope of the main river ranges from 4 feet/mile near Modena, to 0.60 feet/mile near the mouth at Havana. The typical topography ranges from flat to gently rolling in the cultivated prairie regions to abrupt hills in the remaining timber areas along the river and its tributary streams (Russell, 1976). The river basin, including the tributaries, drains portions of 9 counties including Fulton, McDonough, Knox, Warren, Peoria, Stark, Marshall, Henry, and Bureau counties. The basin has been intensely developed for agricultural production. The principal tributary streams and their respective watershed areas in square miles are as follows: Cedar Creek (290), Walnut Creek (160), Haw Creek (113), Court Creek (97), East Fork of the Spoon River (96), Camp Run (93), Put Creek (92), Indian Creek (75) French Creek (69), Big Creek (66), West Fork of the Spoon River (62), Coal Creek (44), and Littlers Creek (42) (Russell, 1976).Fishery History
Channel Catfish and Flathead Catfish:
Channel Catfish are the primary sport fish in Illinois streams, and the Spoon River is a good stream for Channel and Flathead Catfish. Russell (1976) set small hoop nets (fiddler nets) and basket traps in 14 Spoon River sites for catfish population assessment. At that time relatively few individual Channel Catfish (5.8% of those captured) reached 12 inches total length. A repeat of those methods in 1995 (IDNR Fisheries 1996) found 22.8% of Channel Catfish catch were 12 inches or larger, 17.8% reached 16 inches and 0.4% reached 24 inches.
Electrofishing was the only sampling method used in the Spoon River mainstem in 2015. Samples at five locations produced a total of 51 Channel Catfish, 67% of which exceeded 12 inches. The largest individual was 24 inches long and weighed 5.5 pounds. Catch-per-unit-effort (CPUE) in the Spoon mainstem was 12.4 channel catfish per hour. That is comparable to the 11-Channel Catfish per hour from electrofishing samples in 1995 (IDNR Division of Fisheries 1996).
In 2020 and 2025, boat electrofishing was the only sampling method used in the Spoon River mainstem sites. In 2025, samples at 8 locations produced a total of 143 Channel Catfish, 48% of which exceeded 16 inches. The mean Wr for body condition was a value of 98. The largest individual was 24.6 inches long and weighed 5.97 pounds. Catch-per-unit-effort (CPUE) in the Spoon mainstem was 20.5 Channel Catfish per hour in 2025. This was an increase over the 14.2 per hour collected in 2020 from the same 8 locations.
From these data it appears that the Channel Catfish population of the Spoon River is stable and has continued to improve on the size structure that was documented 1995.
Of the tributary streams sampled, Cedar Creek produced the highest numbers of Channel Catfish, totaling 15. This converts to a CPUE of 30 channel catfish per hour. Shaw Creek, Haw Creek, Put, Court and Walnut Creek also produced Channel Catfish.
Flathead Catfish collections in the 2025 main stem samples totaled 31 fish from 6 of the 8 locations. The electrofishing CPUE was 4.4 flathead catfish per hour in the Spoon River in 2025. The largest fish collected was 25 inches in length. In 2020, 47 Flathead Catfish were sampled from 5 of these same 8 main stem sites. This was a collection rate of 6.9 fish per hour in 2020.
Flathead Catfish collections in the 2015 samples totaled 21 individuals, 16 of which were from the Spoon River mainstem. Electrofishing produced 3.5 Flathead Catfish per hour in the Spoon River in 2015. This is comparable to the 1995 electrofishing samples where the CPUE averaged 3.44 fish per hour (IDNR Division of Fisheries 1995). Electrofishing is not an efficient method for catfish so not much interpretation can be derived by electrofishing catch rates.
In the future, the Channel Catfish and Flathead Catfish populations in the main stem of the Spoon River could be evaluated better by hoop net surveys if the time and manpower permits for this targeted effort.
Smallmouth Bass
Smallmouth Bass are widespread and locally abundant in the Spoon River Basin. A total of 399 Smallmouth Bass were collected from 29 of the 36 stream sites sampled in 2025. The 8 main stem sites accounted for 138 of the collected fish. The CPU at these main stem sites was 19.8 Smallmouth Bass per hour of boat electrofishing. The mean Wr for these fish was a value of 91. The size distribution of the main stem sites was 29% larger than 11 inches and 14% larger than 14 inches. The largest fish from the main stem sites was a fish at 17.6 inches in length and 2.7 pounds in weight.
In 2020, these same 8 main stem sites produced 79 Smallmouth Bass for a CPUE of 11.7 fish per hour. And the 2020 Spoon Basin had a total collection of 344 Smallmouth Bass from 26 of the 32 stream sites.
They were encountered in 14 of the 17 sites sampled in 2015.
In 2025, the tributary streams to the Spoon River with at least 10 Smallmouth Bass in the sample were Cedar, Cedar Fork, Shaw, Haw, Brush, Court, Walnut and Camp Run Creek. The Spoon River Basin is a hidden gem for a quality Smallmouth Bass population.
Fish Contaminant Advisories:
Common Carp, Smallmouth Bass and Channel Catfish flesh samples were taken from three Spoon River sites for contaminants analysis by Illinois EPA. The results are not currently available. Contaminant sampling over many years has not warranted the issuance of a contaminant advisory in the Spoon River or any of its tributaries.
Site Regulations
Statewide Fishing Regulations apply to the Spoon River.Additional Information
The Spoon River Basin was surveyed in 2020 and 2025 as a joint effort of the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency and the Illinois Department of Natural Resources, Division of Fisheries. Fish community, macroinvertebrate, habitat and water quality were sampled at sites throughout the watershed. Data collected from basin surveys are used to monitor the health of Illinois stream systems. This report is an assessment of the fish community. The 2020 and 2025 sampling marked the 6th and 7th Spoon basin survey to sample the main stem and smaller streams. Prior to joint IDNR-IEPA basin sampling, the Spoon basin was intensely sampled in 1975 by long time Fisheries Biologist Ken Russell. He used multiple methods for fisheries assessment including minnow seine sampling of smaller tributaries.
METHODS: A total of 36 locations, 8 mainstem Spoon River sites and 28 tributary sites, were sampled in 2025 (Table 1). Stations were sampled with a 5000-watt pulse DC electrofishing boat with the exception of 2 sites that were sampled with a backpack electrofishing unit due to shallow conditions and very poor access. Larger fish specimens were identified to species, weighed, measured and returned to the stream. Smaller specimens were preserved and processed in the laboratory.
Results: A total of 16,873 fish with 54 native, 3 nonnative and 1 hybrid fish species were collected from the Spoon River Basin in 2025, representing 12 different families of fishes in 2025. Included, among others, were 16 native minnow species, 7 native sucker species, 6 native darter species and 8 native sunfish species. Smallmouth Bass was the most abundant and common game fish in the Spoon River Basin, while Channel Catfish was the most abundant and common game fish collected in the 8 main stem sites. Both were collected at all the main stem sites in 2025.
In 2025, 14 of the stations sampled scored an IBI rating between 50 and 60. This rating indicates that these streams are considered highly diverse, unique aquatic resources in excellent condition. And 11 of the stations scored an IBI rating between 40 and 50. This rating indicates that these streams are in good condition, with only minimal impairment due to some factor. And 11 of the stations scored less than 40, which indicated some degree of impairment. Overall, 69% of the stations rated were in the good to excellent category. The Spoon River Basin appears to be in good condition overall with only a few streams showing some impairment. The fish diversity is outstanding throughout the basin.
Fish Species
Scenery
