As your lake fills for the very first time, you must wait patiently for the opportunity to begin stocking fish. Before fish can be stocked you will need to make sure the lake will hold water, that water turbidity is not an issue, and that the lake is fertile.
When you are finally able to stock baitfish, months of waiting will follow as baitfish grow and reproduce. Building a large forage population is instrumental for long term success in any fishery. Eventually it will be time to stock the predator fish. If done correctly the fish will thrive and the lake will experience a phenomenon called New Lake Effect.
A New Lake Effect is considered the magical first 5-7 years when baitfish populations are abundant, predators exhibit extraordinary growth, and catch rates are high. With proper management you can continue this success for several more years. However, many road blocks will occur as you attempt to manage your dream fishery. Aquatic plants will grow, trash fish may show up, or drought could reduce your water body to half size or less.
Short term drought can be beneficial to a lake as it will reduce vegetated growth along the shoreline and can increase predators ability to capture forage fish. If the drought extends several years the negative effects will begin to increase. Forage fish populations will be greatly reduced, vegetation can become very abundant, predator fish will lose weight, and shoreline brush can begin to prohibit bank fishing.
The following year, an increase forage base and a mature habitat begins to equal fat predator fish. Years two and three will be marked with overweight fish. With the right management years four and five you may begin to see young trophy-caliber fish being caught consistently.
This phenomenon is not limited to private lakes and in fact all of North and Central Texas reservoirs could experience a miniature New Lake Effect with the recent rains. The potential is there for all our fisheries to thrive over the coming years.
Happy Fishing!!!
Steven Bardin M.S.
