TWRA's Region IV Reservoir

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[font "Comic Sans MS"][#ffffff][size 6][/size][/#ffffff][/font][font "Comic Sans MS"]As East Tennessee's reservoirs age, they slowly lose the natural woody debris that serves as refuge and spawning habitat for fish. Some of our reservoirs, like Norris, are nearly 70 years old and have lost all their woody debris. Other reservoirs, such as Tellico, still contain a significant amount of underwater structure. The TWRA established a fish attractor program 20 years ago to introduce artificial and natural structures back into these aging reservoirs.[/font]

[font "Comic Sans MS"]A wide variety of fish attractors have been used over the years. Brush piles that are anchored to the ground [/font][font "Comic Sans MS"]and made of cedar and hardwood trees are the most commonly installed and are utilized by a wide variety of [/font][font "Comic Sans MS"]game fish species. Stake beds have been constructed to provide habitat for crappie, and spawning benches have [/font][font "Comic Sans MS"]been built to create nursery habitat for smallmouth bass. These wooden structures work well for a few years, [/font][font "Comic Sans MS"]but must continually be refurbished to retain their effectiveness.[/font]

[font "Comic Sans MS"]Live plantings with bald cypress and black willow trees have been established in drawdown areas to create [/font][font "Comic Sans MS"]additional, long lasting habitat. The possibility of growing button bush in nurseries and transplanting into [/font][font "Comic Sans MS"]reservoirs is being examined.[/font]

[font "Comic Sans MS"]Shoreline seeding of grasses during the winter drawdown has the potential of creating spawning habitat and [/font][font "Comic Sans MS"]cover for young fish. Seeding has been successful in some areas, but inconsistent water levels have rendered [/font][font "Comic Sans MS"]most shoreline seeding projects impractical. Many of our reservoirs fluctuate 30-40 feet between summer full [/font][font "Comic Sans MS"]pool and the winter drawdown, a phenomenon which presents a serious challenge to the establishment of [/font][font "Comic Sans MS"]vegetation.[/font]

[font "Comic Sans MS"]Following are some pictures of fish attractors that have been established in area reservoirs. This is very [/font][font "Comic Sans MS"]labor intensive work and Region IV has only two individuals assigned to the program. Volunteers are encouraged [/font][font "Comic Sans MS"]to contact Russell Young at (865)587-7037 or (800)332-0900, extension 250, for the current work schedule.[/font] [center][/center] [center][/center] [center][/center] [center][/center] [center][/center]
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