Trout Winter Kill
I went down to a local municipal lake where the Iowa DNR planted some trout last fall and winter and saw quite a few dead ones the short time I was there. Another fisherman told me the DNR checked the oxegen levels in February and found they were low. It looks like I probably won't be fishing for trout there this spring.
You need an aerator
Sounds like a good project for some local clubs and the city, install an aerator system in the lake to work all the time. That will keep the oxygen levels up so the fish don?t suffocate.
Larry---sagefisher---
Organizations and clubs I belong to:
Fly Fishers International Life Member
FFI 1000 Stewards member
FFI Presidents Club
FFI Fly Tying Group Life Member
Washington State Council FFI
V.P. Membership
Alpine Fly Fishers Club
President & Newsletter Editor--The Dead Drift
North Idaho Fly Casters club
Why the Trout Died
That fisherman I talked to said the reason why the oxygen got law was the lake froze over early and had snow cover for a very long time. This prevented the plants in the lake from making oxygen, hence the very low levels. Normally this lake doesn't have a problem with winterkill since it has a good amount of water 15 - 20 ft. deep and even as deep as 25 ft. in places.
At this point I'm just happy to report the only casualties I saw were the trout and one fairly large catfish.
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