I have a 2-1/2 acre lake it is 50 yrs old  was 40' deep now it is 6' deep. I have Large mouthup to 21", carp up to 24", crappie, bluegill catfish up to 38" and some big turtles. My question is I have never kept the fish I caught, I always throw them back in.  I had someone say I need to get rid of the fish I catch. Any suggestions?  Also if everyone that fishes there throws them back in I am not loosing my big fish. Thanks

Tim

Would you eat them?  I've always been catch and release.  Can understand making a nice meal out of them if you like the taste and the trouble, but it sounds like your thinking there is some other reason to get rid of the fish????  It sounds like they're doing just fine, putting them back in will just allow them to get bigger when you catch them again in a few years.

Why'd it go from 40' to 6'?  That's a big drop.

Depends what you want.  If you want BIGGER bass, remove the competition for food,...i.e. small bass, Pickerel, etc.

Fatten up your bait, a feeder is highly recommended.

If you want #'s or balance, leave it as is for now.

 

What are your goals for this lake?

1. Trophy Bass

2. Trophy Bluegill

3. Lots of average fish

4. A balanced fishery

Once we know the answer to this question I might be able to help you out.

Would you eat them? I've always been catch and release. Can understand making a nice meal out of them if you like the taste and the trouble, but it sounds like your thinking there is some other reason to get rid of the fish???? It sounds like they're doing just fine, putting them back in will just allow them to get bigger when you catch them again in a few years.

Why'd it go from 40' to 6'? That's a big drop.

C&R is fine if your fishing public waters but it is usually detremental to private fisheries. It causes over population and stunted growth. Selective harvest is the only way to go when it comes to private water.

I am no expert on this subject but I know that over population of fish can stunt their size.  If you have more fish than baitfish then you may need to thin the smaller ones out.

Why'd it go from 40' to 6'?

The lake was on 70 acres now it ison 12 acres. All the silt from the subdivisions has filled the lake.

What are your goals for this lake?

No real goals I like to walk down to the water and fish. In the future I want to move the dam 600' and dig it back out.

40' down to 6'...your lake is pretty much just exactly what you want..just walk down and catch a few out of it. Not much potential for any lunkers. Next step is it will be 2 ft deep and the gov will step in and tell you it is a wildlife sanctuary and you can't do ANYTHING to it.

You need to move that dam and do some digging. If you got it back down to say 12 or 15' your fish would do better.

It's sound like your goal is to make it bigger....... Well then make it bigger and then worry about the fish. Working on the fish and then makeing it bigger would be pointless.

I have a pond as well. We manage the number of fish in it. We take out the fish that are between 15 and 18 inches and put them in a bigger pond on my neighbor's property. as a result we have a large number of small fish that are easy and fun to catch. We also have a couple of fish that are 20 and 24 inches long. The bigger fish have plenty of food to survive and maintain and the smaller ones grow, spawn and eventually get culled. Too many fish spoils the pond.

I agree that too many fish spoils a pond. It limits the food source so that the fish never get but so big.