I read on our local DNR page that due to the insane winter we've had that low oxygen levels in bodies of water could contribute to fish kills in some lakes/ponds.

 

I was wondering, as a rookie, how does this affect fishing?

 

Simple logic would state that it might cause poor fishing for the remainder of the year. But then again, the fish that DO survive might be more apt to eat my lure more readily since the level of baitfish isn't what it usually is.

 

Anyone have experience fishing the season after a winter fish kill? What are your results like?

 

 

Do you have a link to that info?

I don't. It was in a newsletter I receive from them occasionally

Ok, are you sure they cited low oxygen levels as the reason for fish kills? Low D.O. in winter months is usually not a problem.

Some lakes have shallow tributaries that freeze-over completely.  Some fish die, some retreat to deeper waters.  For the places that freeze-over completely or run out of oxygen, there will be complete fish kills.  The main body of lakes will not suffer as badly due to deeper water, so most fish will survive with minimal impact.  Fishing this year will be normal but there will be fish missing if they perished.  I do avoid certain areas in the Spring, knowing fish kills are common in such places.  Some others will fish there and waste their time but time and experience teaches that and nobody likes to be told they are wrong, so there ya have it   Good thinking, Preytorien, you are stacking the odds in your favor with thoughts like this.  Me and my fishing partner brainstorm constantly and pick things apart and it usually is beneficial.

 

FL

Ok, are you sure they cited low oxygen levels as the reason for fish kills? Low D.O. in winter months is usually not a problem.

 

The DNR cited that as the problem. Granted the only bodies of water they mentioned were small lakes and ponds. Places that could totally freeze over. They said some of our waters are seeing 20-inches of ice. I suppose that's the problem....incredibly thick ice

The DNR cited that as the problem. Granted the only bodies of water they mentioned were small lakes and ponds. Places that could totally freeze over. They said some of our waters are seeing 20-inches of ice. I suppose that's the problem....incredibly thick ice

 

Ok, thanks, that makes sense on the small bodies of water

I read the same thing today on the wish-tv app. Though it said the larger reservoirs would not be at much of risk for a fish kill.

 

Here's the link:

 

http://wishtv.com/2014/03/06/thick-snow-ice-on-ponds-may-cause-big-fish-kills/

Here in South Florida we have thousands of canals of various depth. During a warmer time of the year, we had a violant thunder storm with heavy hail that lasted hours. The storm dumped loads of cold water and ice into the canals. That cold water went straight to the bottom of the canal and drove water low in O2 from the bottom to the upper reaches of the canal. The canals completely turned over in a short period of time. This killed thousands of fish of all sizes and the smell was awful. They were floating all over the Holiday Park area. The only ones happy were the gators. They feasted for weeks.