Willard

[hedgesd]

My brother just got back and ended up catching a hand full of cats and one small wiper. He also mentioned that he didn't see any boils but the wipers were going crazy on top. Most of the ones were actually jumping all the way out of the water chasing shad.
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[RipNLips]

Where abouts was your bro' fishing. I fished of the west dike the other night and didn't see any Wiper activity on the surface.
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[hedgesd]

I've never fished Willard so I didn't ask.
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[aquaman]

hey ripnlips dont you mean the west beach !!

chris
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[RipNLips]

True. There are several feet of sand and gravel between the dike and the water now.
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[wiperhunter2]

What's the deal with those wipers this year, this time last year we were into boils big time. Even with the low water you would think the catching would still be good if the shad are there. Time to get back out there and see what's going on. WH2
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[TubeDude]

[cool]Just a wild guess, but I wouldn't be surprised if more than a few wipers (and others) hadn't sneaked out the back door. As much water as they dumped and pumped, there had to be some fish sucked out along with it. Whereever that water is going is likely to have some fish lying dead in the fields. Saw that a lot in the Sacramento area when they pulled major water out of the Sacramento River. Once saw a fifty pound salmon thrashing around in a two foot ditch. And a farmer once captured a huge sturgeon in a rice field.

As low as the remaining water is, the wipers gotta be feeling stressed. They typically need more depth to operate in, and move up and down in the water column according to clarity, light intensity and temperatures. You guys can only hope there is enough inflow to oxygenate the reduced water pool through the winter. Otherwise, a general ice sheet over the lake and you can kiss off the whole fishery.
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[wiperhunter2]

I hope you are wrong about the fishery being in trouble if we have ice this winter but I know there is a chance you are right. I guess time will tell.
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[TubeDude]

[cool]The obvious solution is for rain, snow and continuous runoff (filling) for the next six to eight months. That will bring up the lake and keep both the oxygen and nutrient levels up too.

The nutrient levels have been an overlooked part of the equation. Without runoff, the nutrient levels drop. That means lower levels of algae and zooplankton...the food for both the fry of all species and the gizzard shad throughout their life cycle. You end up with a lower productivity and survival rate for young walleyes, bass, cats and crappies...and a lower biomass of shad for the adults to feed on.

So, lots of good nutrient laden runoff is what will keep the fishies alive and give them a chance to repopulate Willard with more and bigger specimens of all species. And, even if there is an ice cover, runoff will keep enough oxygen in the lake for winter survival. Winter kill is a factor of low oxygen levels more than cold water.

I am doing my part to help. I am sending TubeBabe up this weekend to visit kids and sisters. She always brings rain.
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[RipNLips]

Reduction of nutrient content due to reduced water inflow may not be a problem. There are other nutrient vectors to consider at Willard besides just the water flowing in. Birds bring in far more nutrients then they take. And for Willard, a huge source of nutrients is all of the flying insects that die over the water. The insects come from the nearby swamp ground and farm fields. I've seen the surface so covered with insect corpses it looks like you could walk on it.

I think my biggest concern is of Willard capping over for any great length of time this winter without having adequate water inflow to keep it oxygenated.
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