|
RMAs Help DWR With Yuba Fish Survey
|
(May 2, 2005) In April and May, 2005, members of Rocky Mountain Anglers were working with DWR biologists to survey fish populations in Yuba, Deer Creek and Jordanelle. Environmental Officer/Program Director Will Jefferies cordinated RMA volunteers with the DWR's schedule.
The photos below show some of the activities at Yuba. Scroll down to see the big surprise biologists found.
(Photos courtesy the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources Central Region and Ray Schelble.)
 |
Surveys at Yuba were conducted in April, 2005, to see how the reservoir is faring after being drained for dam repairs in 2003 and then receiving plants of yellow perch and rainbow trout. The majority of the fish netted in April were healthy, fat rainbows. After removing them from the nets, fish were measured . . . |
. . .weighed . . . |
 |
 |
. . .and released.
"So far the biggest surprise has been the size of the rainbows," says Mike Slater, Aquatics Biologist with the DWR Central Region. "We knew there was some nice rainbows, but the numbers as well as the size has been quite impressive. In addition to that, we’re excited about the perch we are seeing." |
Although four different year classes of yellow perch were found in the nets this year, the perch numbers caught this year were not as high as last year. Slater attributes this to the water being quite a bit higher this year, which spread out the perch over a wider area. |
 |
 |
"The perch that we have seen have been ready to spawn, the females as well as the males," Slater points out, "and most of those fish that we’ve seen come from those ones that we stocked, those little three inchers that we bought with the help of various organizations, Rocky Mountain Anglers included."
Hundreds of larger perch were also transplanted from Jordanelle Reservoir into Yuba in Fall, 2003, and Summer, 2004. The yellow perch on the left, which was caught in the Yuba survey nets this year, measured in the 9- to 10-inch range. |
So what about the walleye?
Slater observes, "Based on what we’ve seen of other species, the northern pike, the catfish, the green sunfish, some of those other fish that obviously had to go through the same process when the lake was drained as the walleye did, well they’re here. So if we’re seeing those, there’s no reason to expect the walleye not to be here as well."
Sure enough, at the end of the survey, on April 28, one of the nets produced this beautiful walleye on the right and held by the DWR's Mike Hadley below. Don Wiley, DWR Central Region Aquatics Manager, described it as a spawned out female, and said it had a 7-inch yellow perch in its belly. |
 |
 |
The DWR will not be planting walleye in Yuba this year or probably next, and there's a good reason why. In the past, each time Yuba crashed the walleye came back on their own. This time should be no different, but the priority is to get the perch firmly established first. Tens of thousands of perch have been planted since Yuba was drained, and giving them a few years head start will mean big benefits for the fishery in the long run.
"Please be patient," Slater cautions. "The perch are going to come. We need them to come, and the walleye will follow. And if we get two or three years down the road and we’re not seeing walleyes, maybe that’s the time we’ll take some steps. We just don’t want anybody to take those steps for us right now and ruin a good thing. I think we’ve got some positive things that are going to happen in this lake. It’s just going to take time. It’s not going to happen overnight. We need to take some time and let it happen on its own with what we’ve done so far." |
Back to the Top
|
