04-15-2011, 10:44 AM
[cool][#0000ff]Like yourself and a few other longtimers I have "experienced" Yuba over several decades and have witnessed the boom and bust cycles. Because the lake is what it is...a desert lake subject to being sucked dry by water users...it DOES have up and down cycles.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]In past years the competition was mainly between the Yuba "trinity"...perch, walleye and pike. Yeah, there were carp, but they seemed to be in a kind of balance with the others. Ditto for catfish. [/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]However, when the lake was drained down to a mudhole for the dam work, about the only thing that survived in numbers were the carp. It was like the great drought of the 30's on Utah Lake. Most of the other fish could not survive but the carp came through just fine. And as soon as there was more water in the lake the carp exploded...without predators to slow them down. They had several years of unchecked reproduction and took over the whole lake. I have never seen them in such numbers in Yuba before...and they get a fresh batch from upstream every year too when Gunnison is drained.[/#0000ff]
[#0000ff]Since there is essentially no vegetation in Yuba, the carp have become piscivorous. They are a big factor in the survival of the baby perch...and other species. They hunt down and suck up large numbers of baby perch before they ever reach any size at all...before the larger perch, walleye or pike even have a shot at them. There has to be a huge perch spawn and lots of protective cover to hope for even minor successful recruitment and survival of the perchies. [/#0000ff]
[#0000ff]But, planting some larger perch might help provide a greater spawn for the carp to suck up...if they survived the toothy critters first.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]Until there is a way to reduce or eliminate the carp we are not likely to see Yuba return to anything near the former days of glory. [/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]In past years the competition was mainly between the Yuba "trinity"...perch, walleye and pike. Yeah, there were carp, but they seemed to be in a kind of balance with the others. Ditto for catfish. [/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff]However, when the lake was drained down to a mudhole for the dam work, about the only thing that survived in numbers were the carp. It was like the great drought of the 30's on Utah Lake. Most of the other fish could not survive but the carp came through just fine. And as soon as there was more water in the lake the carp exploded...without predators to slow them down. They had several years of unchecked reproduction and took over the whole lake. I have never seen them in such numbers in Yuba before...and they get a fresh batch from upstream every year too when Gunnison is drained.[/#0000ff]
[#0000ff]Since there is essentially no vegetation in Yuba, the carp have become piscivorous. They are a big factor in the survival of the baby perch...and other species. They hunt down and suck up large numbers of baby perch before they ever reach any size at all...before the larger perch, walleye or pike even have a shot at them. There has to be a huge perch spawn and lots of protective cover to hope for even minor successful recruitment and survival of the perchies. [/#0000ff]
[#0000ff]But, planting some larger perch might help provide a greater spawn for the carp to suck up...if they survived the toothy critters first.[/#0000ff]
[#0000ff][/#0000ff]
[#0000ff]Until there is a way to reduce or eliminate the carp we are not likely to see Yuba return to anything near the former days of glory. [/#0000ff]
[signature]