Thread: Gold Creek Alligator Weed

I know that removing vegetation on lakes is a hot topic right now and that this gets some people's blood boiling. This is a good example of when I biologist receives constructive criticism from fellow anglers and takes the message to heart and listens. For those of you that don't know, alligator weed is a non-native invasive plant that is trying to overtake Lake Conway. We (AGFC) have been spraying it for several years now to "knock it back" and keep it under control. This includes the Gold Creek area of Lake Conway. A few wise men, such as CrappiePro and Cmj, informed me that our spraying in Gold Creek hurts the fishing around the pads and grass when the crappie are moving up the creek. Being an angler also, I listened. So the past two years we took a more selective approach and targeted just the alligator weed. This selective approach has lead to more of the lily pads coming up. Also the killing of the alligator weed has allowed for the native water willow to start coming back. Water willow is much more beneficial to fish than alligator weed. It is one of the best types of vegetation to have in a lake. The moral of this story is that anglers and biologists can work together to benefit a fishery. All it takes is some CONSTRUCTIVE criticism and OPEN ears and mind. Thanks for the suggestions Russ and Chris. I am predicting that the "pad bite" will be in full force this fall. The third and fourth pictures are water willow. The last picture is alligator week.