dhickey Posted March 25, 2011 Report Share Posted March 25, 2011 i have been lucky enough over the past 43 years to have access to a small lake where i have watched the cycles of fish namely pike and bass. as a child the lake teamed with bass and the odd nice pike (10-17pounds thats big for this lake) through my 20s it was all nice bass 3-5 pounds. mid 30s early 40s its all big fish and the odd good eating one. my cuosin and i have no problem catching them but im begining to wonder if they should be weeded out? the baitfish population has declined dramaticaly over the past 6 7 yrs and smaller ones are not as plentyful.(bass/pike) it would seem to me that the big ones would be eating the food that the smaller need to survive. and the spawning beds just dont appear as often in the spring. has catch and release gone to far ? any insight is welcome. saltydawg. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest ThisPlaceSucks Posted March 25, 2011 Report Share Posted March 25, 2011 large healthy breeders are typically the key to a healthy population. i wouldn't go weeding them out to improve a fishery. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nipfisher Posted March 25, 2011 Report Share Posted March 25, 2011 Salty, O.K. if you are going to keep the bigger ones to eat them. If the idea you have is to cull the lake and remove big fish and "waste" them to allow for the smaller fish to do better then you won't get allot of support here. If the lake is full of big ones and you keep the odd one for table fare that's fishing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrisK Posted March 25, 2011 Report Share Posted March 25, 2011 Salty, Sounds like the lake has done well up until this point with no human intervention. So old saying goes,don't try to fix something that ain't broke....I would just continue to enjoy the lake Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dhickey Posted March 25, 2011 Author Report Share Posted March 25, 2011 ok lets get this streight. i would never take a fish from this lake or any other just to let it go to waste. but my concern is that the small ones arnt there . its all private land around the lake and not allot of people fish it. i am also shure that some of the fish i have cought over the past few years i have let go in the past. i only keep 2 or 3 per year and their not the 6-7 pound i always let them go. i also understand that a healthy breeding population is crucial. but when the pike you see are massive and no hamer handles and the bass seem to go from small to huge is there a problem? with not having the mid range fish.? dont get me wrong the 5-7 guys are only once or twice per year . we only go there on long weekends and the odd vacation. my cuzz and i know how to work this lake. im just sayin it woud be nice to see the 2-4 pounders again regularly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kickingfrog Posted March 25, 2011 Report Share Posted March 25, 2011 A few things to consider: It is very difficult to manage a fishery even if you know most/all of the information of a body of water. It is down right impossible from an individual's catch successes and memories. In very general terms it would be more of a concern if there was a preponderance of small fish in a body of water, because it might be an indicator of a "stunted" population. One factor that can lead to stunted fish is a lack of predation, namely from larger fish. "Small" fish are not necessarily young fish, and sometimes "big" fish are not the oldest fish. Over time, lakes will change due to a number of factors. Often these changes are result of humans, but not always. Sometimes we just speed up the aging process of a lake. Fish populations and the "demographics" of those populations will cycle as well. Without hard data its hard to say whether there is a change that you should be concerned about, or maybe you just had some good fishin'. The MNR might have some data on your lake. Come on spring. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mercman Posted March 25, 2011 Report Share Posted March 25, 2011 I wouldnt worry about it either.If the lake is producing 6-7 lb bass, then there must be enough fry and baitfish in the lake to support its populating.Enjoy the fisin Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
timmeh Posted March 25, 2011 Report Share Posted March 25, 2011 has catch and release gone to far ? saltydawg. Not at all. It seems you're lake is functioning great. Just because you're not catching the smaller fish doesn't mean they're not around. Smaller fish don't generally school together with larger predatory fish. And juvenile fish often have a different food source than the larger guys. If you've got a lake regularly producing 6-7 pound bass I wouldn't be messing around with that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dhickey Posted March 25, 2011 Author Report Share Posted March 25, 2011 ok. thanks for your input. live and let live. we have gone this far with it i should consider myself lucky.! but can i enter one of these for the team? catch and realese works.! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spincast Posted March 25, 2011 Report Share Posted March 25, 2011 I really think before passing judgment on this I would need to experience some of the fishing myself..I'd hate to make the wrong decision based on a lack of first hand knowledge.... care to pm me the gps location and I will get back to you in a month or so Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Billy Bob Posted March 25, 2011 Report Share Posted March 25, 2011 OK......PM me the exact location and I will give it a first hand inspection and evaluation.....and while I'm all the way up there do you have any lakes with a similar walleye problem....might as well check them out as well.....the only cost will be some Labatts Blue Light Beer....only because you're a member here. Bob Inland Lake Analalist. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
skeeter Posted March 25, 2011 Report Share Posted March 25, 2011 Saltydawg: Any fish you catch legally can be entered into the tourny. Make sure you have the OFC sign in the picture with it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nipfisher Posted March 25, 2011 Report Share Posted March 25, 2011 Saltydawg: Any fish you catch legally can be entered into the tourny. Make sure you have the OFC sign in the picture with it. Tape measure helps too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mercman Posted March 25, 2011 Report Share Posted March 25, 2011 Tape measure helps too. and dont forget the camera Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lookinforwalleye Posted March 25, 2011 Report Share Posted March 25, 2011 Me tinks the big pike are eating the little pike!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dhickey Posted March 26, 2011 Author Report Share Posted March 26, 2011 (edited) OK quick recap. OFC sign tape measure camera got it. i wish icould bring guys in . like i said its all private property/it isnt my call. (one owner) just lucky to have the privalage. i think lookingforwalley might have a piont. pike time? tite lines and good times Edited March 26, 2011 by saltydawg Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alphaalpha Posted March 26, 2011 Report Share Posted March 26, 2011 sounds like a fairly healthy lake. I am guessing it is quite small and could have had a couple years of hatches impacted greatly by weather or other factors. Too bad you didn't make it to team 9. sounds like you will be adding some good inches to your team in the not too distant future! Tight lines bud! AA. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sauce Posted March 26, 2011 Report Share Posted March 26, 2011 I bet there has been a change in the forage base. One of the pike and bass' main prey has dropped in numbers over the years. Probably a lot of cannibalism happening now. Which explains the low number of small fish caught. Without importing bait from other lakes, you could try increasing the forage base in the lake by improving frog habitat. There's probably already frogs there. Just need to give them a boost. Frogs are shoreline dwellers. 50% of the shoreline lost to docks and buildings can likely reduce the frog population by 50%. Id bet that surface baits near shore and structure are great on this lake. Or maybe they were back in the day. Any other trends you've noticed on your lake? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dhickey Posted March 26, 2011 Author Report Share Posted March 26, 2011 would water levels have a drastic affect on spawning? if so than i think that might explain the lack of mid size fish.? about 5-6yrs ago the water level droped by about 12 inches and took about 3 -4 yrs to recover. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now