12-10-2004, 10:58 PM
[font "Courier New"]I received an informative email from Ray Schelble. With his permission I share it with everyone on BFT:[/font]
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[font "Courier New"]"Hi Kent,
My name is Ray Schelble. I am an angler and live in the Salt Lake City area. I have been involved as a volunteer representative of Rocky Mountain Anglers in studying, planning and stocking of Yuba Reservoir since the mid 1990s. I was extensively involved in efforts to improve habitat and then stock the reservoir after it was drained. Over the years this effort has also involved representatives from B.A.S.S. and a variety of people and agencies that include the DWR, water users, Utah State University, State Parks, the Habitat Council, the Blue Ribbon Fisheries Council and many others.
First, I applaud your efforts to get out accurate information to the angling public through bigfishtackle.com. In the interest of accuracy, I have a correction regarding your Nov. 26 post on BFT about the fish plants in Yuba Reservoir:
Bluegills and pike have not been planted there recently. In the cases of the plant you identified as pike and the one you identified as bluegill, both were yellow perch. The 800 "pike" were perch caught in Jordanelle by the DWR and volunteers and transported, and the 50,000+ "bluegills" were perch purchased from an out of state hatchery with money from the Blue Ribbon Fisheries Advisory Council. Central Region Fisheries Manager Don Wiley explained that there was a mistake in their records that will be corrected.
I don't know how much of this you already know, so forgive me if I'm restating the obvious. Briefly, the main problem in Yuba is the lack of forage, which has been attributed in part to insufficient habitat. The boom and bust cycles of the reservoir go roughly like this: the perch numbers increase, then the walleye numbers increase, then the perch crash, then the walleyes crash. The reservoir has followed this pattern several times over several decades. When the perch come on, not only do they become forage for the walleyes, smaller perch also become forage for larger perch. As water levels in the reservoir drop during the summer season, the perch are left without any place to hide to avoid becoming a meal. Also, lack of brushy cover in the water in spring can seriously reduce chances for a successful perch spawn. (The draining and drought have caused an explosion in brushy shoreline cover the past couple years. This shoreline cover is great for the fish, but it breaks down over time when underwater.) It may not be obvious to many when the walleyes are skinny and hard to catch, but the perch are the key to this fishery.
To the DWR's great credit, many options have been considered for the management of this fishery. Over the years, various sources of forage, including bluegill, and combinations of forage/predators have been considered for Yuba, but all would either create problems, provide little benefit or change the nature of the fishery. The direction now is to continue with the perch/walleye fishery that has worked in the past, along with some adjustments to reduce the "boom and bust" cycles. The perch are being planted to help establish a good initial forage base. In the past, the walleyes have always come back on their own, even when the reservoir has been drained, and that is expected to happen again this time. A bit of patience in giving the perch a few years head start is good for the reservoir and good for us anglers. The trout were planted to provide a fishery for anglers while the perch and walleye come back.
Adjustments include new habitat structures. You may have noticed the new rock reef on the shore across (east) from the main boat ramp. As with the Christmas tree structures that we put in several years ago, these are being built perpendicular to the shoreline to provide cover as the water levels drop during the summer. Also, there may be changes down the road in the limits for perch and walleye to help keep these populations in balance. Again, what we have done in the past has worked great in the short term but not in the long term, and everyone is now focused on trying something different to reduce Yuba's "boom and bust" cycles.
Because of its potential to produce numbers of beautiful perch and walleye, Rocky Mountain Anglers considers this fishery as a very important one. The DWR has demonstrated that they share our interest, and we will remain actively involved with them in working to improve it.
I have replied directly to you because of the age of your post and because you have an interest in the information. Again, thanks very much for your efforts to keep anglers informed. Feel free to contact me if you have any questions or comments.
Take care,
Ray" [/font]
[signature]
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[font "Courier New"]"Hi Kent,
My name is Ray Schelble. I am an angler and live in the Salt Lake City area. I have been involved as a volunteer representative of Rocky Mountain Anglers in studying, planning and stocking of Yuba Reservoir since the mid 1990s. I was extensively involved in efforts to improve habitat and then stock the reservoir after it was drained. Over the years this effort has also involved representatives from B.A.S.S. and a variety of people and agencies that include the DWR, water users, Utah State University, State Parks, the Habitat Council, the Blue Ribbon Fisheries Council and many others.
First, I applaud your efforts to get out accurate information to the angling public through bigfishtackle.com. In the interest of accuracy, I have a correction regarding your Nov. 26 post on BFT about the fish plants in Yuba Reservoir:
Bluegills and pike have not been planted there recently. In the cases of the plant you identified as pike and the one you identified as bluegill, both were yellow perch. The 800 "pike" were perch caught in Jordanelle by the DWR and volunteers and transported, and the 50,000+ "bluegills" were perch purchased from an out of state hatchery with money from the Blue Ribbon Fisheries Advisory Council. Central Region Fisheries Manager Don Wiley explained that there was a mistake in their records that will be corrected.
I don't know how much of this you already know, so forgive me if I'm restating the obvious. Briefly, the main problem in Yuba is the lack of forage, which has been attributed in part to insufficient habitat. The boom and bust cycles of the reservoir go roughly like this: the perch numbers increase, then the walleye numbers increase, then the perch crash, then the walleyes crash. The reservoir has followed this pattern several times over several decades. When the perch come on, not only do they become forage for the walleyes, smaller perch also become forage for larger perch. As water levels in the reservoir drop during the summer season, the perch are left without any place to hide to avoid becoming a meal. Also, lack of brushy cover in the water in spring can seriously reduce chances for a successful perch spawn. (The draining and drought have caused an explosion in brushy shoreline cover the past couple years. This shoreline cover is great for the fish, but it breaks down over time when underwater.) It may not be obvious to many when the walleyes are skinny and hard to catch, but the perch are the key to this fishery.
To the DWR's great credit, many options have been considered for the management of this fishery. Over the years, various sources of forage, including bluegill, and combinations of forage/predators have been considered for Yuba, but all would either create problems, provide little benefit or change the nature of the fishery. The direction now is to continue with the perch/walleye fishery that has worked in the past, along with some adjustments to reduce the "boom and bust" cycles. The perch are being planted to help establish a good initial forage base. In the past, the walleyes have always come back on their own, even when the reservoir has been drained, and that is expected to happen again this time. A bit of patience in giving the perch a few years head start is good for the reservoir and good for us anglers. The trout were planted to provide a fishery for anglers while the perch and walleye come back.
Adjustments include new habitat structures. You may have noticed the new rock reef on the shore across (east) from the main boat ramp. As with the Christmas tree structures that we put in several years ago, these are being built perpendicular to the shoreline to provide cover as the water levels drop during the summer. Also, there may be changes down the road in the limits for perch and walleye to help keep these populations in balance. Again, what we have done in the past has worked great in the short term but not in the long term, and everyone is now focused on trying something different to reduce Yuba's "boom and bust" cycles.
Because of its potential to produce numbers of beautiful perch and walleye, Rocky Mountain Anglers considers this fishery as a very important one. The DWR has demonstrated that they share our interest, and we will remain actively involved with them in working to improve it.
I have replied directly to you because of the age of your post and because you have an interest in the information. Again, thanks very much for your efforts to keep anglers informed. Feel free to contact me if you have any questions or comments.
Take care,
Ray" [/font]
[signature]