05-09-2023, 09:47 PM
From the DWR:
"We recently completed our spring sportfish sampling at Otter Creek Reservoir in southern Utah! ?☀️
Last year, the reservoir dropped below 10% water capacity, and we were concerned about the health of the fishery after years of significant drought. But we’re happy to report that fish numbers and size appear to be great! We reduced our stocking efforts last year with the low water conditions, and that was reflected by lower catch rates of smaller (8- to 12-inch) fish than during the previous two years. We found that older rainbow trout are abundant and measure 15 to 22 inches. These fish will experience exceptional survival and growth this year.
Chub populations remain low and the ones we caught in our sample were either very small or very large. This means wiper are doing a great job keeping chub numbers in check. Wiper was caught inconsistently in our gillnets, but we saw a few very healthy wiper in the 5- to 6-pound range. We also caught two big brown trout between 5 and 7 pounds.
Overall, Otter Creek is in great shape, especially considering the recent drought years. Twenty years ago, similar conditions would have devastated the trout fishery. Now, with wiper helping to control the chub population and water users keeping the minimum amount of water in the reservoir, the fishery has survived and will rebound quickly."
https://fb.watch/k00V8U1JjA/?mibextid=uc01c0
"We recently completed our spring sportfish sampling at Otter Creek Reservoir in southern Utah! ?☀️
Last year, the reservoir dropped below 10% water capacity, and we were concerned about the health of the fishery after years of significant drought. But we’re happy to report that fish numbers and size appear to be great! We reduced our stocking efforts last year with the low water conditions, and that was reflected by lower catch rates of smaller (8- to 12-inch) fish than during the previous two years. We found that older rainbow trout are abundant and measure 15 to 22 inches. These fish will experience exceptional survival and growth this year.
Chub populations remain low and the ones we caught in our sample were either very small or very large. This means wiper are doing a great job keeping chub numbers in check. Wiper was caught inconsistently in our gillnets, but we saw a few very healthy wiper in the 5- to 6-pound range. We also caught two big brown trout between 5 and 7 pounds.
Overall, Otter Creek is in great shape, especially considering the recent drought years. Twenty years ago, similar conditions would have devastated the trout fishery. Now, with wiper helping to control the chub population and water users keeping the minimum amount of water in the reservoir, the fishery has survived and will rebound quickly."
https://fb.watch/k00V8U1JjA/?mibextid=uc01c0