Swan Lake Electrofishing Report

On July 19 th, 2011 a fish population analysis was conducted using standard electrofishing procedures. Data collected during this study was analyzed to describe the current conditions of the fishery. Based on the data collected, management recommendations have been made to improve the fishery in order to reach your goals.

Electrofishing is the most scientifically advanced method of analyzing fish populations in freshwater lakes and ponds in the southeastern United States. Electrofishing provides a fisheries biologist with a representative sample of all fish in the lake.

An electrofishing boat was used that transmits an electrical current from a generator through a control box to a set of electrodes that are hanging at the front of the boat and into the lake. An electrical field is formed around the area of the electrodes. The field reaches up to 10 feet in front of the boat and to a depth of approximately 6 feet. This allows us to sample all habitat types found within the lake. Fish within this field are stunned and float to the water surface. No harm is done to the fish and the fish will recover completely within 5 minutes.

During the survey, the relative weight (Wr) was calculated for all largemouth bass collected. Wr is a coefficient used to compare the standard weight of a bass at a given length to the actual weight of the collected bass at the same length. It is the ratio of the actual fish weight to the standard fish weight. A Wr of over 80% is desired in a balanced fishery and above 100% for a quality bass fishery.

Wr = ______(Actual Weight of Captured Fish) * 100______ Standard Weight of Fish at Same Length (From Table) For Example: If we caught a 11½” bass that weighed 0.6 lbs. The standard weight of a 11½” bass in the table (following slide) is 0.8 lbs. Wr = (0.6) * Wr = 75% Values over 90% indicate a healthy bass population and adequate forage base. Relative weights below this level indicate limited “ideal” food sources for bass. Values below 75% indicate a “skinny” bass.

Length (inches) Weight (pounds) Length (inches) Weight (pounds)

Your goals are to produce a quality bass fishery with plenty of 3-5 lb bass with increased chance at a trophy. In order to achieve these goals you want to have a diverse and balanced relationship between the predator (bass) and the prey (i.e., bluegill) populations.

The lake has a good amount of dense structure to provide protective habitat for small fish. Also, the lake has a good amount of larger structure to provide fishing “hotspots” and orientation points for larger fish (i.e. Bass). The addition of both dense cover and larger structure will greatly benefit the fishery. This year the lake had algae and pondweed, both are manageable with regular service.

SpeciesSize Class (in.) Quantity Bluegill<3Good Bluegill3-548 Bluegill5-721 Bluegill7-92 Bluegill>90 Shellcracker<3Good Shellcracker3-54 Shellcracker5-78 Shellcracker7-91 Shellcracker>90 Largemouth Bass<4Good Largemouth Bass4-89 Largemouth Bass Largemouth Bass Largemouth Bass Largemouth Bass Largemouth Bass Largemouth Bass>183 SpeciesSize Class (in.) Quantity Black Crappie Bullhead Catfish131 Warmouth4-52 Golden Shiners7-9Abundant Yellow Perch5-76

Known as bream to many, bluegill are the backbone of forage production for largemouth bass ponds. Bluegill are very prolific, reproducing multiple times a season (3-5 times/year). This provides largemouth bass with a large quantity of food while still allowing themselves to sustain a healthy thriving population. They spawn in large colonies of nests in 3 to 6 feet in depth over sandy and gravel substrates close to the shore. Spawning occurs when water temperatures reach 67-70°F. Bluegill readily eat floating fish food and have great growth rates from supplemental feeding. They also provide excellent fishing opportunities for kids and novice fishermen. There are two subspecies, native (also called Mississippi) and coppernose. The coppernose are better suited for warm climates and are more aggressive when feeding on supplemental fish food compared to the Mississippi bluegill.

Also known as bream, shellcraker occupy a different ecological niche than bluegill, improving the utilization of the pond’s natural productivity. Shellcracker eat snails along with other invertebrates present in the pond and can help to reduce the incidence of some fish parasites (i.e., grubs, flatworms) that use a snail as a intermediate host. Similar to other bream species, shellcracker are a favorite prey fish for bass. They can grow larger than bluegill, but they are not as prolific, since they reproduce only once per year. Redear sunfish can be distinguished from bluegill by the presence of a red or orange ear tab.

The bluegill population consists primarily of 3-5” bluegill. For adequate growth, a bass prefers to consume a bluegill that is 1/3 of its size. For example, a 12” bass prefers to consume a 4” bluegill while a 18” bass prefers to consume 6” bluegill. The average size of the bass sampled during the survey was 12½”. This means that the average bass in the pond needs a bluegill measuring 4-5” in order to have good growth rates. Having said this, the abundance of 3-5” bluegill in the pond shows that the bass do not have the forage they need in order to have good growth rates. All of the redear sunfish sampled were large in size (>7”). This is typical in older ponds since redear sunfish only spawn once a year and are known to grow larger than bluegill.

Largemouth bass are the preferred game fish in the U.S. providing exciting fishing for anglers. They will eat just about anything that they can fit into their mouths making largemouth bass the top end predator in most ponds. Largemouth bass begin to spawn when the water temperature reaches 63-68°F, normally once a year in the early spring before bluegill begin to spawn. There are two known subspecies, Florida and Northern. Florida bass are known to grow quite large but research has shown them to be less aggressive when adults, making them harder to catch. Northern bass are more aggressive but do not have the top end potential of Florida bass. There is also the F1, which is a pure cross between the two having the best characteristics of both subspecies (aggressive and grows big in size). You can also have Fx bass that are a mix of genetics of both subspecies.

The majority of the bass population consisted of smaller fish (8-12”). The lack of bass harvest over the years has caused the bass population to become over- abundant (i.e. heavy bass population). As a result, there is increased competition among the bass for forage. A bass needs 8-10 pounds of food to gain one pound in weight. Though the bluegill population is abundant and primarily consist of 3-5”, we need to see many more bluegill in order to keep the growth rates of the bass pointed in the right direction. On the previous slide you can see that the bigger bass are healthy, this is because there is not a large number of big bass in the lake which means there is less competition among the bigger bass for food compared to the smaller bass in the lake. Less competition equals better growth rates. Another factor hurting the growth rates of the bass is the high abundance of crappie in the lake. The crappie are competing with the bass for forage. Harvesting bass will help free up more forage for the bass which will increase the growth rates of the bass. The average size of the bass sampled was 12½”, 1.18 lbs, and the average relative weight of the bass was 87%. This relative weight indicates that the bass are slightly skinny for their size.

Black Crappie Bullhead Catfish Warmouth Golden Shiner Yellow Perch

This is a desirable species for many fisherman, however they can have a negative impact on the fishery. Spawning occurs when the water temperature reaches 62-65°F. This allows the crappie to get a head start on other species in the pond giving them a large recruitment class (i.e. small fish survive to reach a larger size). This results in the crappie fingerlings growing too big to serve as food for small bass and they compete with and predate small largemouth bass. This can lead to a rapidly expanding crappie population in smaller lake. As the crappie population grows, so does the competition between crappie and bass resulting in decreased growth in both species. Harvest crappie, and if small stunted crappie begin to show up, boost harvest rates to get the population back in balance.

Bullhead catfish have slow growth rates and are not of interest to anglers and they also compete for food and space with desirable fish species.

Warmouth belong in the sunfish family and closely resemble bluegill. They are aggressive predators and have a large mouth that enables them to eat small minnows and other aquatic organisms. Warmouth will compete with desirable species and can even prey upon smaller bluegill which will take away possible forage from largemouth bass.

Golden shiners feed on small aquatic organisms and provide an additional forage species for largemouth bass. They are known to eat the eggs of other species which does provide a management concern. However, this can help to keep the bass population from becoming over abundant. They routinely reach sizes up to 10 inches in length providing a larger prey item to the largemouth bass.

Yellow perch are great table fare and many fisherman target them for this reason. Adult yellow perch are typically 4-10” in size. Yellow perch feed on small minnows and the young of other fish species. They also feed on insects such as mayflies. Yellow perch not only provide fishing opportunities for fisherman, but they also provide forage for largemouth bass.

We have sold these attractors for years. They do a great job of attracting and holding fish in a given area. You need to put a minimum of three in a location to best satisfy a basses ambush needs. They are plastic so they will last a lifetime. The biggest advantage is the lack of lure hang-ups. It is practically impossible to hang a lure. The attractors come in 4 and 5.5 feet heights. The new Saturn series is better for those installing close to shore and due to shape, it better protects the smaller fish. This allows smaller fish to gain in size prior to bass eating them leading to less energy loss and better bass growth.

This is a fairly new product that came to us after some awesome reviews by other fisherman. While each unit has a higher price when compared it to a porcupine attractor, you actually get much more surface area with over 275 feet of poly tubing for the tree and 180 feet for the shrub. This means 15,000 square inches of surface area for algae, eggs and insect larvae. The exterior has a dozen slots where baitfish can hide attracting larger fish. They will of course last a lifetime being made of plastic and are self weighted for easily sinking in the pond.

The Poor Man Habitat are made in-house at AES. The Poor Man Habitat will save you quite a bit of money versus other habitat products on the market but is just as effective. Currently we have three configurations of the Poor Man Habitat: tree, log, and tree cluster. The poor man tree/log is made from standard 2” pvc and poly-tubing, this habitat product is lightweight and easy to install. The tree is installed by tying a brick to one end of the tree and then releasing the tree (brick end first) into the water. One very important component of the tree is that it can be suspended at any depth. You can also use the habitat as a log lying horizontal in the water. This is easily done by tying a brick to each end of the habitat. This will allow you to place the habitat in shallower water which will help protect smaller bait fish. You can create a cluster of trees by tying 3-4 of the individual of tress together which will give you the “cluster” effect. The poor man tree/log consist of one piece of 4’ (2”) pvc and six pieces of 10’ poly-tubing (60’ total).

Tree Log

A bass has to eat 10 lbs of fish in order to gain one pound in weight. Small one inch bluegill generally weigh 5 lbs per 1,000 fish thus the bass would have to eat 2,000 bluegill to gain one pound. Adding protective cover will allow the young bluegill to grow for an additional month or more. In just one month, bluegill can quickly grow to 20 lbs per 1,000 fish so now a bass only has to eat 500 bluegill to gain a pound. This means much less energy is expanded allowing energy for growth. This is a simplified example but indicates how protecting the small bluegill promotes and is essential for good bass growth. The attractors when placed in proper locations provide areas for fish hangouts/ambush points which also allows less loss of energy and improved weight gain.

To enhance the growth of the largemouth bass we recommend stocking threadfin shad to provide an additional forage species for the largemouth bass. I recommend stocking four loads of adult shad. A load consists of adult fish ready to spawn, which are stocked in April and May.

Limit the harvest of forage fish such as bluegill and shellcracker. It doesn't hurt to take out bluegill here and there but the bluegill are the backbone forage species for largemouth bass. So the more bluegill you harvest the more food you are taking away from the largemouth bass. Harvest all crappie measuring 10” or less. Put some serious efforts into harvesting crappie. Harvest all bullhead catfish from the lake. To keep the bass population in balance and to improve the growth rates of the bass, I recommend harvesting 2,000 pounds of bass measuring 14” or less within the year.

RecommendationQuantityPrice Threadfin Shad4 Loads$4, PoorMan Habitat-- Honey Hole Shrub-- Honey Hole Tree-- Due to the size of the lake, instead of proposing a certain number of habitats, I recommend developing a habitat improvement budget. With that budget then we can determine how many and what products are best to improve the fishery within that budget.

We are excited to offer kayaks to our clients. We have looked long and hard to find a well built kayak at an affordable price. Please pass this information around to al lakeowners who are interested. These are the latest designed sit on top kayaks the Splash I (single), Splash II (double), Fisher Xtreme Single, and Fisher Xtreme Double. These kayaks were designed by Olympic kayaker and design guru Bob Mcdonough to be fun boats for everyone. Great for paddling in lakes, oceans, rivers, bays and just about anywhere else water is found. Also, great for fishing with the ability to operate in 1ft of water. The kayaks feature a full length keel for straight tracking to make it easier to stay on course for longer paddling and also provide stability. Polyethylene roto-molded for strength and security. The width of the kayaks makes for the most stable boats on the market, allowing kayakers of all experience levels to enjoy. Carrying handles on both ends and molded handle in the middle on one of the sides allows the single models to be carried by one person. Featuring full deck rigging, dry storage with 8” deck plate in the hull, and a large storage area in back. These Kayaks are the same quality as high priced units. They range from $325- $475 depending on model. Feel free to compare to the Ocean Kayaks that cost up to $1,000.

Splash I features: 10 ft long, 32 inches wide, 300 lb. capacity Deck plate dry storage with ditty bag Full length keel for speed and excellent tracking Large storage in rear with bungee cords Molded side handle for one person carrying 3 scupper drainage holes Available in 14 different colors Optional Accessories: The "Deluxe Kayak Seat” offers superior back support with its four point rigging. Straps located on the bottom prevent the seat from slipping out from under you. The straps are adjustable for a more customized fit creating the best supporting and most affordable seat on the market. "Whisper Paddle" This collapsible paddle boasts features usually found only on expensive models: a composite ferrule that won't seize up in sand or salt water, a high-performance "Dream" blade shape, and 3M Versafit grips.

Splash II features: 13 ft long, 34 inches wide, 500 lb. capacity Three seat capability and 3 cup holders Three seat design allows for single person paddling from middle seat Large storage at stern with bungee cords 4 Scupper drainage holes and self draining cockpit and seat Deck rigging and paddle notches Full length keel for speed and excellent tracking Molded side handle for one person carrying Available in 14 different colors Optional Accessories: The "Deluxe Kayak Seat” offers superior back support with its four point rigging. Straps located on the bottom prevent the seat from slipping out from under you. The straps are adjustable for a more customized fit creating the best supporting and most affordable seat on the market. "Whisper Paddle" This collapsible paddle boasts features usually found only on expensive models: a composite ferrule that won't seize up in sand or salt water, a high-performance "Dream" blade shape, and 3M Versafit grips.

Fisher Xtreme Single Features: Same features as the Splash I plus: Interior rear rod holder allows for trolling, hands free fish and a great place to store your rod while paddling out. Exterior rod holder with two receiver locations enabling you to fish from either side of the kayak. Available in 14 different colors Optional Accessories: The "Deluxe Kayak Seat” offers superior back support with its four point rigging. Straps located on the bottom prevent the seat from slipping out from under you. The straps are adjustable for a more customized fit creating the best supporting and most affordable seat on the market. "Whisper Paddle" This collapsible paddle boasts features usually found only on expensive models: a composite ferrule that won't seize up in sand or salt water, a high-performance "Dream" blade shape, and 3M Versafit grips. Optional SEA-Light, Storage Cap w/ Removable Tackle Box

Fisher Xtreme Tandem Features: Same features as the Splash II plus: Two interior rear rod holder allows for trolling, hands free fish and a great place to store your rod while paddling out. Exterior rod holder with three receiver locations enabling you to fish from either side of the kayak. Available in 14 different colors Optional Accessories: The "Deluxe Kayak Seat” offers superior back support with its four point rigging. Straps located on the bottom prevent the seat from slipping out from under you. The straps are adjustable for a more customized fit creating the best supporting and most affordable seat on the market. "Whisper Paddle" This collapsible paddle boasts features usually found only on expensive models: a composite ferrule that won't seize up in sand or salt water, a high-performance "Dream" blade shape, and 3M Versafit grips. Optional SEA-Light, Storage Cap w/ Removable Tackle Box

Splash I $325 Splash $375 Fisher Xtreme Single $400 Fisher Xtreme Tandem $475 Paddle $65 Seat $75

Report Prepared By: Matthew Morgan Fisheries Biologist