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Big Alkali is 850 acres of water. If you could add enough "brush" to cover 85 acres, and that would be a lot of "brush", it still would not make a $0.05-worth of difference in terms of fish production. Brush piles function as fish attractors that concentrate fish making them easy to find and catch. In all but the smallest waters brush piles and similar cover projects provide little in terms of real habitat benefits.Fish populations are dynamic. The crappie, perch, pike and carp populations in Big Alkali have been through several cycles of ups and downs. They will again.Daryl B.
Would add cover for small fish to hide and give them a chance to grow.
which thread did the quotes come from?
Was he a CO or just a person who works for game and parks? I wouldn't expect anyone but a CO to know seasons or regulations.
"Perception is reality, and right now the reality of the NGPC is all about $$$."Mark my words, the state will issue just as many deer permits in 2014 as they did in 2013 and 2012 because they will still want our money even though we all know what has happened with the deer numbers over the last 3 years. If you don't think so just look at the daily bag limit for pheasants today compared to 1960. REALLY? Even my 12 yr old asked "Why don't they just close pheasant season for a couple of years? All about $$$$ not preserving and passing on our sport. Nebraska has a lot of public hunting land sure, but is is full of temporary habitat. If it is dry we hay it and graze it. If it gets too good we burn it and plant it to "special" grass not native to the area. I have seen thousands of acres in Banner county that at one time were full of good, established habitat for game animals. When the landowners enrolled it in CRP the state made them tear it up and plant other "native" grass. Problem is that the habitat they just destroyed took hundreds of years to establish and already was host to many game animals. Those animals are not just waiting across the road for their house to be rebuilt, they are gone. And those "CRP" fields? You could roll a bowling ball across them, and you and I are paying for that. In more ways than one!
Every time I hear of a lake being killed off and restocked I know I have fished it for the last time. I have never seen good results from this. Quit practicing your "strategy" in our fishing spots! Sandhill lakes like Merritt and the Valentine refuge have been great for years without interference from NGPC. STAY OUT!
It seems interesting to me that no one really complains until the weather changes and the ice goes to crap so everyone is cooped up inside all the time. Every year, that's when the G&P bashing begins.I won't address much as 'whitetips' doesn't need anyone to defend him. His posts, blog & reputation stand for themselves. I will say that most of us will have a question at some point about fishing and I can personally vouch that Daryl is the go-to when I need the correct answer regarding anything to do with fish. How many have addressed these issues in person with someone who could actually make some changes? How many letters have been written? Phone calls? It's really easy to get on a forum and take pot shots at people & organizations. It takes real guts to actually do something about it. I don't agree with everything the G&P does, but that's not my world...I ain't educated in that stuff so I defer to the professionals, hence the constant stream of questions to knowledgeable people, like 'whitetips'.I may be a backwards hick from the panhandle, but I know a good thing when I see it. We have ample opportunities in this state, you just have to take advantage of them. We can all moan and complain about what we don't have or enjoy what we do have. I choose to do the latter. Kansas, SD, and every other state have their fair share of problems...best part is, moving is always an option.
Suggesting that you know more about Fisheries Management than a guy who has been thoroughly educated on the subject and (judging by his blogs) eats, breathes, and sleeps this stuff makes no sense to me.Kinda reminds me of the guy on the Progressive commercial that struts up and says "I got this" and tries to get in on the chainsaw juggling act.There is no possible way you can come to a truly informed understanding of these situations unless you've lived it from all sides.I keep seeing this "Perception is reality" quote thrown around here. I think it's missing one very important word. Try this on for size... "YOUR perception is YOUR reality".The same issue can appear totally different and a contrasting solution may be the appropriate one when seen from another point of view. But, there is no need to insult a guy who's trying to help you put more quality fish in your bucket.Daryl - Feeding the monkeys can be pretty thankless work especially when they start hurling crap at you.Q
I love Fish's comment on this, and it reminds me how limited some folks in wildlife and fisheries management can be when thinking about issues they don't read about in 'Journals'.Why not let some folks with good intentions tie some cement blocks onto used Christmas trees to create some habitat? Who cares how the statistics work out? You would be allowing folks that care, and their kids, participate.Perception is reality, and right now the reality of the NGPC is all about $$$. Why wouldn't you let folks do something that has absolutely no down-side, and could actually 'recruit' future generations through participation?Heaven help us if it, as Fish Icer says, might provide cover for YOY fishies to escape to actually recruit... Isn't those the biggest hurdles? Sportsperson retention and recruitment of new?I just don't get the 'It won't do any good so go away' attitude.I'll go to my corner now, and eat my 'bologna' sandwich.
Wow, I have learned a lot this morning. We have enlisted the help of volunteers to place brush piles and other fish attractors into Nebraska waters. By the way, don't waste your time with Christmas trees, we have cedar trees in most areas of the state that folks want to get rid of, and they last a lot longer than Christmas trees. If any of you want to ram rod a project like that for Big Alkali, I can put you in touch with the regional fisheries supervisor and you can get something going.Just do NOT expect the brush piles or any other cover objects to provide any real improvements in recruitment of any species of fish in an 800-acre+ natural lake. You cannot add enough brush piles to result in a measurable difference, and there is already some natural shallow water cover, bulrushes, that do provide some shallow water habitat for small fish.I opened my mouth about the brush pile thing, because I believe it is important that folks understand exactly what that does and does not provide. If you think you are going to throw a few Christmas trees in Big Alkali and that is going to change that fishery, well, BALONEY. Besides having realistic expectations I believe it is important that fisheries biologists and fishermen understand what the real problems are and do not waste time and money jousting with windmills.Keep in mind that Big Alkali is called "Big Alkali" for a reason. Alkalinity of that lake tends to run higher than most of the other sandhill lakes in that area. That high alkalinity has an affect on water clarity, aquatic vegetation and fish production. Northern pike and yellow perch can tolerate higher alkalinities, other species, not so much. Even then, dynamics of the yellow perch and pike populations in Big Alkali are also impacted by fluctuations in alkalinity over time. Fish populations in all waters are dynamic, always changing, there are always "ups" and "downs", and there is always give and take between predator and prey populations.Anybody who wants to organize an archery carp tournament for Big Alkali can, anytime. Organize a whole archery carp series for Big Alkali if you wish, have at it. If you charge an entry fee we ask that you register your tournament, free registration. Other than that, have at it.Recruitment and retention of anglers is a huge issue right now. In recent years we have directed a lot of time and effort towards that. We have created and implemented several new programs to recruit and retain anglers in addition to managing waters across the state to provide the best fishing possible. That in fact is all my job is any more. Early indications are that some of those efforts are helping.As a matter of fact, I drive one of the vehicles with graphics on the side of it. Thought we were supposed to be promoting fishing and the recruitment and retention of anglers?Our 5 state fish hatcheries produce over 30 million fish and stock over 250 bodies of water in Nebraska every year. Nearly 1,000,000 fish have been stocked in Big Alkali in the past 25 years, everything from bluegill, black crappie and yellow perch to largemouth bass and northern pike, channel catfish and walleye. Stocking fish is a common solution to all of our problems. The only thing is we stock very few fish that are catchable-size when we stock them, and just dumping fish in any body of water is not guaranteed to make the fishing better. In some cases it could actually make things worse.I learned this morning that even though crappie show up on their own in eastern Nebraska reservoirs (a far different discussion than Big Alkali, but whatever), we should be stocking those too. We do, have stocked some fisheries recently with black crappies right away to try to beat the bucket biologists from stocking them for us. Maybe we are not so "far behind the times".Someone asked if walleyes were a good way to keep bluegill populations down? No, THE predator best suited for controlling bluegills and other panfish would be largemouth bass. Largemouth bass/bluegills are a classic predator/prey relationship.If you think you have not benefitted from lake renovations and rehabilitations, then I would like to know what bodies of water you are fishing in Nebraska. We have accomplished A LOT for Nebraska anglers across the state over the years by doing chemical renovations when they are needed. Yes, that includes sandhill lakes. In recent years we have ratcheted those efforts up through our Aquatic Habitat Program. Behind the times? BALONEY. Our Aquatic Habitat Program is the first of its kind in the country and fishing all over the state is better because of it. We have been managing sandhill lakes and Merritt Reservoir for a long, long time and the good fishing you enjoy there now is the result of that.I guess that makes us even?I am here all day, if you have any bullfrog questions, or any other questions on fish, fisheries management or fishing in Nebraska, I will have a correct answer or I will know where to find it.Daryl BauerFisheries Outreach Program ManagerNebraska Game & Parks Commission[email protected]http://neblandvm.outdoornebraska.gov/category/barbs-and-backlashes/