Looks like our pond has flooded significantly and I am curious if we should expect to lose a bunch of our bass and catfish or will they generally stay in the deeper waters? I'm sure we will end up with a bunch of new turtles. The pond is now connected via 2 culverts and a flooded field to a pond on a neighboring property. I will probably put screens up over the culverts soon but that doesn't help me now. We are starting to see more than a few bass and catfish so I am just hoping this does not mess that up. Interested in anyone's experience.
4:45p, 5/5/24
For clarification, the culverts are under my driveway that bisects the property, not anything state or county installed. I understand it could impede flow, but no real debris to speak of to get caught in them so I dont anticipate it causing issues.
4:52p, 5/5/24
I don't know how much stock I'd put in this, but I've been told that fish are more likely to swim UP stream than down. Perhaps someone more knowledgeable can add to, or subtract from, that.
Being in TexAgs jail changes a man……..no, not really
4:57p, 5/5/24
In reply to B-1 83
Well if they can get out of my pond and through the culverts they can get to the bar ditch and down to the creek it appears. I guess they could go up or downstream to their hearts content then
5:31p, 5/5/24
In reply to Sea Speed
Well, I guess you're either halfway safe, or f*****.
Being in TexAgs jail changes a man……..no, not really
6:30p, 5/5/24
You will probably loose some and gain some. Problem is that you will loose valuable fish and gain undesirable ones (bullhead catfish, green sunfish, carp, etc.).
6:31p, 5/5/24
In reply to B-1 83
Yep. Just hoping to keep getting moments like this in the front yard and not have to start over.
7:59a, 5/6/24
In reply to B-1 83
My fish hatchery has told me the same-will lose some but they are more likely to go up stream. Our pond has run over many times over the past 15 years-I have no way to confirm what fish we've lost or gained, but have not seen a significant change in what we catch.
8:04a, 5/6/24
I have a buddy that fishes a pond on the river bottom that floods regularly. He says they seem to catch the same bass before and after a flood so it at least doesn't flush out the whole thing.
Ive had the same question. The pond that I can use to dump water into my wetlands would make a great bass pond. Not sure if it's worth leaving some water in it for the bass or dumping the whole thing, since it floods regularly.
Ive had the same question. The pond that I can use to dump water into my wetlands would make a great bass pond. Not sure if it's worth leaving some water in it for the bass or dumping the whole thing, since it floods regularly.
8:22a, 5/6/24
Seaspeed...its a crap shoot. We have 2 large properties that have ponds ranging in size from 18 acres, to 2 acres. We DEFINITELY lose a ton of big fish. Generally speaking bass will always look for new water..."up or down" stream is irrelevant in our 20 years experience of intermittent flooding. Our 7 to 12 pound bass get replaced by giant carp and gar when we get flooded out by the Sabine- it is beyond maddening. We havent weighed anything over 7 in that pond since '22. We use to catch 3 to 7 daily over 7#.
Up by Gilmer Lake we tend to see smaller stuff like Crappie and various Perch end up in our biggest pond after floods. We do lease it out to a fishing club so its hard to determine how much is walking away in coolers too, but we definitely see number declines. We have biologists shock and survey. As a result i just try to make things bigger, faster. (Thats what she said).
Crawfish have been regular additions everywhere.
Up by Gilmer Lake we tend to see smaller stuff like Crappie and various Perch end up in our biggest pond after floods. We do lease it out to a fishing club so its hard to determine how much is walking away in coolers too, but we definitely see number declines. We have biologists shock and survey. As a result i just try to make things bigger, faster. (Thats what she said).
Crawfish have been regular additions everywhere.
Always the most goodest
8:27a, 5/6/24
After the drought of 2011, we stocked redears and bass in the pond we had dredged when it went dry. When it overflows, it feeds another of our stock tanks that we didn't stock. In 2018 we began catching redear and 6-8 lb bass in the lower pond. Some will leave.
8:36a, 5/6/24
I'd figure your bigger fish will stay while fry and smaller ones may get washed down.
We had a pond that would flow out the spillway when it rained a bunch and mostly what I saw in the wash area was basically all smaller than a dollar bill - but comprised of sunfish, bass, minnows.
We had a pond that would flow out the spillway when it rained a bunch and mostly what I saw in the wash area was basically all smaller than a dollar bill - but comprised of sunfish, bass, minnows.
8:43a, 5/6/24
Wire fencing should help maintain your fish as long as you don't have much floating debris to clog the water discharge thru the fencing. Then it becomes a lot of work for you cleaning up after each high water event.
9:56a, 5/6/24
In reply to Cen-Tex
I addressed that in my second post
Cen-Tex said:
Wire fencing should help maintain your fish as long as you don't have much floating debris to clog the water discharge thru the fencing. Then it becomes a lot of work for you cleaning up after each high water event.
I addressed that in my second post
10:26a, 5/6/24
Now ponds with grass carp for vegetation control will probably see those fish in Galveston Bay shortly.
10:26a, 5/6/24
In reply to Sea Speed
My experience is there will be plenty of fish that go looking for new water in the flood. You many lose some and gain some. However, any still in the area generally find their way back home as the water recedes. Warm weather pushes them to deeper water.
Oh, and if it's connected to live water enjoy the gar you just inherited.
Oh, and if it's connected to live water enjoy the gar you just inherited.
10:50a, 5/6/24
In reply to AgLA06
I was on my buddies place last year and walking a flooded road before driving over it to make sure I could pass and a 3 foot gar swam right past my feet.
1:32p, 5/6/24
We lived on a 3 acre subdivision pond in Katy during Harvey. My son had trained some large bass to eat from his hand. . There were probably 15 bass that would wait for him to come feed them. Some of these fish were 8-9 pounds.
During Harvey a wall of water came from the rain and creek overflow. Instead of a 3 acre pond it was a half mile wide river torrent. The water reached 6 feet above the normal pond level. We thought for sure all those trained bass would be gone...washed into the flood waters. I don't understand it but 3 days later after the water receded enough to tell it was a pond again.....those fish were down there waiting to be fed.
We were astonished. I guess they hunkered down in whatever eddy they could find from the flow until the flood receded. I honestly don't think we lost any of those fish. We did notice alot of long-nosed gar and other species that were never in there previously.
During Harvey a wall of water came from the rain and creek overflow. Instead of a 3 acre pond it was a half mile wide river torrent. The water reached 6 feet above the normal pond level. We thought for sure all those trained bass would be gone...washed into the flood waters. I don't understand it but 3 days later after the water receded enough to tell it was a pond again.....those fish were down there waiting to be fed.
We were astonished. I guess they hunkered down in whatever eddy they could find from the flow until the flood receded. I honestly don't think we lost any of those fish. We did notice alot of long-nosed gar and other species that were never in there previously.
7:00a, 5/7/24
Our pond damn is at an edge of a creek. We only lose catfish when it totally floods and becomes the creek. Bass sink and stay, catfish rise and search out new areas.
1:53p, 5/8/24
In reply to allMondjoy
I found a plastic tackle box in the ditch on the way to a boat ramp, it most likely fell off the truck or boat when leaving. When we opened it there was a tagger and three colors of small tags. It looked similar to a retail store tagging gun. We tagged many fish at a place that gets flooded anytime the river comes up. One big yellow cat sticks around no matter what water comes. Catfish get under the banks, and if they like it there they stay. We have only caught her twice since tagging but that is over 9years.allMondjoy said:
Our pond damn is at an edge of a creek. We only lose catfish when it totally floods and becomes the creek. Bass sink and stay, catfish rise and search out new areas.