Lake Life
Lake Life
Floating Plants and Water Lilies
Plants in this group are desirable as they grow and thrive by merely floating on the water surface. They afford shade and use nutrients restraining algae growth. The roots provide fish spawning habitat and newborn protection. Floating aquatic plants reduce evaporation by 10% on surface area covered.
Water Lilies are spectacular aquatic plants that all but command that you push back, relax and enjoy life. They provide color that is not equaled by any other flowering plant. They give surface coverage, provide temperature reduction, retard algae growth with their shade, have a demand for nutrients and prevent water loss from the surface due to evaporation.
Aquatic insects
The Dragonfly is usually the most enjoyable insect to watch near the body of water. Their beauty and wonderful powers of flight attract the attention to all. They also have value as they destroy mosquitoes, gnats and other pests. They are a very beneficial and attractive group of insects.
Midges
Midges are often mistaken for mosquitoes, they are about the same size, but do not bite. When present, they are seen swarming or dancing in the air close to the ground. They are nuisance because they develop in great numbers. They midge body is longer than its wings, and they have fuzzy antennae. The midge larvae develops in the water and these larvae acts as food for the mosquitofish. The larvae are often red and are frequently referred to as "blood worms".
Aquaculture
There are several types of fish that are stocked in the SAMLARC Lake, such as mosquitofish, Largemouth Bass, blue gill, redear, Sunfish and channel catfish. Mosquitofish eat mosquito and midge larvae and do not require extra feeding. Mosquitofish do not lay eggs but instead bear live offspring. They bear up to 10 fish a month throughout the summer. The young are approximately one-half inches long at birth, growing as large as 2 inches. They become sexually mature at four to five months.
Largemouth Bass
Largemouth Bass prefer warm waters usually in excess of 50 degrees F. They become lethargic and lose their appetite when water is colder than 50 degrees F, remaining in deep water in this torpid state for much of the winter. As water warms in the spring, they move into the shallows, and when the temperature rises to about 65 degrees F, they begin spawning. A female lays between 2,00 and 40,000 eggs, depending on her size. The rate at which eggs develop depends upon water temperature. Under normal conditions, they hatch in 2 to 6 days. By autumn the young fish are from 2 to 8 inches long and precocious ones may attain 10 inches within a year. Within 2 years most reach the 8 to 12 inch range. Under highly favorable conditions they may mature and spawn when 1 year old, but more often bass do not reach sexual maturity for 2 to 3 years. In general, bass weighing 3 to 4 lbs are considered good sized fish.
Bass hide and ambush prey from shadows, charging from behind sunken logs, trees and plant beds to catch their meals. If you are in the right place, but are hanging lures and baited hooks on submerged objects, stay there, this is where the big ones live.
Bass feed primarily on fish. Small bass up to 4 inches in length feed on microscopic live animals, insects larvae and other invertebrates. Bass 4 inches and up feed on fish. Bass may grow 1-2 lbs per year under optimal conditions. To just maintain its size a bass needs 3 lbs of fish per pound body weight. For a bass to gain weight it needs 5 lbs of fish for 1 lb gain in size. Two hundred pounds of bass is a good target weight of bass per acre of water (13.2 acres of SAMALRC Lake surface). Over fishing depletes populations causing over abundant forage (food for animals when taken by browsing or grazing) fish, who consume small bass. Only a few large bass is a sign of limited cover and food supply.
Bluegill prefer the shallow, rocky or marginal plant shore. They are generally found in schools near some type of cover. Bluegill feed on a variety of animal life. They grow best when water temperatures are 60 to 80 degrees F. Adults are typically 6 to 10 inches long and have been known to reach a weight of 4.75 lbs. Bluegill are quite prolific and can spawn four times a year. The peak of spawning is May or early June when water is about 67 degrees F. Six hundred pounds of Bluegill is a good target weight of fish per acre. Bluegill are often planted with bass as forage.
Redear Sunfish prefer deeper water of quiet, warm dense vegetation. They can spawn several times a year beginning when water temperatures reach 75 degrees F. They feed on the bottom eating snails, clams and other invertebrates with shells. They grow more rapidly than bluegill and are generally 6 to 9 inches long. Redear sunfish also forage for bass. Redear Sunfish can be substituted for Bluegill when used as forage.
Channel Catfish are the most active of the catfish and they grow quite large. Some fish reach 18 to 19 inches long in four years. Their large size makes them prized sport fish. They spend their days in deep holes and under structures. They feed in shallow water at night and eat young insects with some small fish and plant seeds. Larger fish are mostly fish eaters. Spawning occurs in the spring when water temperatures are between 72 and 82 degrees F. Nests are built in secluded semi-dark sites.
Catch and Release
The minimum size requirements for catch and release is 12 inches. All fish under 12 inches must be returned to the water immediately. Do not try to remove the hook if the fish has swallowed it. If the fish is hooked on the other than the lip, cut the line and the fish will absorb the hook.
