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I am in the process of writing an article for publication addressing the importance of habitat. I will also write about the issue of HABITAT vs FISH ATTRACTOR. Anyone who wishes to make a comment, share your thoughts or experiences, I would welcome them greatly. I don't want the article to be just my opinions, etc. If I use it in the article I want to do it as a quote. So, remember to give me your full name, city and state of residence and the lake where your habitat is. Thanks c.c'ers.
this is easyQuote:
Originally Posted by Darryl Morris
before the habitat you couldnt catch a cold off the dock at my in laws lake house on Lake of the Ozarks, with the habitat that we have laid out we have bagged over 200 Crappie in the last year and a half!
Please pm me if you want my name and all that.....would like that info to remain somewhat private
I put out pallet stakebeds in Nimrod alot. In low water years or when lots of cold fronts mess up spring spawns ,I believe the Crappie spawn on them. The Catfish really move on them after the Crappie spawn so I figure they spawn on them as well. With all of our lakes getting old and losing structures anything should help.
You might discuss as to why some states allow this practice, and some don't. It looks like research would prove, that it work or it doesn't. If it does work (as crappie fisherman know for a fact), why is it not legal in all states, with some sort of oversight program. In Ohio, it is usually done in the dark of night...or so I been told. 2¢
I agree with Nightprowler. I have sent some of your previous articles to the Ohio fish biologist already. They do not understand even thiugh that is what they are paid to know. Maybe a point that though when the lake was new there was plenty of habitat doesn't mean there is still enough to help sustain a prime ecological state 40 years later.
I live on a 50 acre man made lake with virtually no structure. We put in a few fish attactors a few years ago, but they don't seem to hold many fish. They are near the bank in relatively shallow water. We used to catch 100's of crappie here but with no real size. Now they are 14-15" but extremely hard to find over the past 3 years. Any ideas why they have seemed to disappear or are just so hard to find? And, how can we make the lake better for crappie fishing?
There are millions of bait fish around the shores all summer, are the crappie just getting all they want to eat at night possibly? But, where are they in the spring and winter?
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Originally Posted by davidbrown
is the man made lake fed by anything? Steam, Creek, ????. If so do you know where the main channel of that stream or creek is throughout the lake?
find that type of information out......
other ways are to find the drop offs or contours of the lake and drop your structure in and/or around the ledges and drop offs.....find the path that your fish are taking to get to the shallows......and litter that path with structure. also if you have 1 type of structure try switching it up......try pvc if you havent, try wood if you have not.......etc etc.
certain types of boat traffic will also have an effect on where the fish are...and what condition your structure is in......
we all know that in the spring and fall when the water temp is right crappie come to the shallows to nest/feed.....that path that they take is critical when dropping your structure.....
good luck
After finding a good area to fish on a bottom contour map and then proving my instincts to be correct by catching fish there I decided to place some fish attractors in. Now I cant catch a single fish out of the area???? So looking at the bright side I eliminated a place to go now all i have to do is fish the other 95% of the lake.
I'm all in for the Ohio side!!!
If they set rules on what you could place and where, I wouldn't think there would be any problems. I fish alot of upground reservoirs with no structure at all, man made or natural, and that some times dictates which lake I go to fish. If there is some structure in the lake, I will pick that one to go to if I know the fishing has been tough latley. Many of the lakes I fish are very clear, and if there is any structure, the crappie feel safer and seem to become more approachable and easier to catch.
I am thinking of "spreading out" and replanting some cattails that are in a local reservoir. I realize that cattails taking over the shore line would not be good for shore fishing, but it would be a way of creating "natural" cover. I would much rather see natural material being used than pvc or other trash and guess that is why it is not allowed in where I live. Many of these lakes and reservoirs were created as reliable source of drinking water for communities, they don't want people just throwing junk in their water. I say regulate it and there would be no problems.
I don't have any words of wisdom that will help your article, but I sure do look forward to reading it. I live in Ohio where we aren't allowed to place anything in the lakes, and the lake I fish the most doesn't really need any more "habitat" for a while as a lot of the original timber is still there. But maybe articles like yours will help open the eyes of some officials who won't consider the benefits adding cover can have on some lakes, even in the great state of NO-hio. Especially since you are pointing out the difference between fish attractors and habitat. Let us know where and when the article is published, please.
My son in law is a logger and many contractors would make them clean, pile-up and burn all brush left over after logging was completed.
States need to understand and adopt the policies of the forestry department when dealing with organic materials, the burning of underbrush and the leaving of materials in place to decay and improve the soil and the life of the forest.
Brush and trees and decaying materials is part of the ego system, like worms in fish--all fish have worms and it is part of the system to feed other creatures like birds or wildlife that prey on the smaller life forms and it spreads and provides food to all creatures.
Fish eggs and baby fish have to be able to survive until they are large enough and the underwater structures provide that protection for them. Alligators are placed in waterways to control turtles from destroying the fish population. Seems to me the people that fish are better science oriented than the scientist.
My fishing partner and I have put in many brush piles and PVC buckets and always look forward to reaping the rewards for our efforts. We primarily fish only brush piles year around and usuallly have really good success. Our home lake is Lake Oologah in Oklahoma and it is considered to be one of the top crappie lakes in the state. I think one of the reasons for this is that the Corp of Engineers office at Oologah has the best workers in the state. They actually take a weekend each year and place brushpiles in the lake to attract crappie. They ask the public to participate and it has been very successful. Thanks to their help and involvement there are more crappie and better habitat each and every year. They even go to the extent of marking and publishing GPS coordinates and publishing each brushpile site on photos of the different areas of the lake. I am not aware of any other lake in the state that has this kind of involvement and hard work done by the Corp of Engineers employees and the local fishermen. We appreciate their hard work and dedication to this lake.
have y0u seen the new one in bps catalog real pricy. I make a lot of stucture like J&j SELLS AND THEY WORK GOOD. EVEN THE BASS BUCKET HAS IT'S PLACE