08-23-2006, 09:00 PM
I think both sides have some valid points.
Boom and bust most likely is affected by water levels, as well as predators eating themselves out of house and home. Really it doesn't matter which it is, or if it is both.
The fact is, Utah is a desert-like state, and we have periods of drought, and of good water, historically cycling through them about every 10 years.
When water levels are low for several years in a row, dissolved oxygen levels usually drop due to warmer water temps., and fish numbers also usually drop. While many banks are left high and dry, new vegetation grows there on the dry ground. Meanwhile, the part left with water has little or no structure/weeds, so spawns are not as successful.
Come the next good water year, the reservoir fills, floods all that vegetation, then we get a banner year of good spawning/reproduction. If the water remains up for a couple years in a row, then enough prey survives to create a boom in population, with the predators following suite.
Then, the cycle repeats itself. Is this going to change? NEVER. In fact, it will most likely get worse as the population in Utah continues to grow and we continue to need more and more water from these reservoirs.
Fishing is always a 2nd priority on almost every Utah Reservoir, because the water is stored and owned by water users associations, local governments, etc. and used for irrigation and potable water. That need is always growing. The amount of water to be used is not.
Think about this -- even Strawberry Reservoir in the next 10 years will begin to have more of these problems, because they will be piping water from it to Diamond Fork/Spanish Fork Canyon, to be used in Utah and Salt Lake counties. That will cause its levels to fluctuate more each summer as well.
What we need to do is enjoy the boom years, and pray for their return during the bust years.
Also, keep the bucket biologists from spreading species and further complicating more waters.
The list of waters already affected by boom and bust cycles is many -- and growing.
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Boom and bust most likely is affected by water levels, as well as predators eating themselves out of house and home. Really it doesn't matter which it is, or if it is both.
The fact is, Utah is a desert-like state, and we have periods of drought, and of good water, historically cycling through them about every 10 years.
When water levels are low for several years in a row, dissolved oxygen levels usually drop due to warmer water temps., and fish numbers also usually drop. While many banks are left high and dry, new vegetation grows there on the dry ground. Meanwhile, the part left with water has little or no structure/weeds, so spawns are not as successful.
Come the next good water year, the reservoir fills, floods all that vegetation, then we get a banner year of good spawning/reproduction. If the water remains up for a couple years in a row, then enough prey survives to create a boom in population, with the predators following suite.
Then, the cycle repeats itself. Is this going to change? NEVER. In fact, it will most likely get worse as the population in Utah continues to grow and we continue to need more and more water from these reservoirs.
Fishing is always a 2nd priority on almost every Utah Reservoir, because the water is stored and owned by water users associations, local governments, etc. and used for irrigation and potable water. That need is always growing. The amount of water to be used is not.
Think about this -- even Strawberry Reservoir in the next 10 years will begin to have more of these problems, because they will be piping water from it to Diamond Fork/Spanish Fork Canyon, to be used in Utah and Salt Lake counties. That will cause its levels to fluctuate more each summer as well.
What we need to do is enjoy the boom years, and pray for their return during the bust years.
Also, keep the bucket biologists from spreading species and further complicating more waters.
The list of waters already affected by boom and bust cycles is many -- and growing.
[signature]