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| In order to learn more about predator/prey relationships I have some questions for all the pros who fish shield trout lakes.
I'm planning a late sept/early oct trip to a deep clear water shield lake that has lake trout and whitefish in it. What are the typical surface water temps when the trout start to spawn? Over what type of bottom do they spawn and in general terms what depth? Do the trout spawn during the day or the night? Do whitefish spawn at the same time as the trout, and in the same locations? How does the weather affect the trout spawning? Perhaps the most important question, how do the muskies relate to the spawning trout/whitefish?
This is my first trip to this type of water. I have fished the meso shield lakes before and have learned some patterns for them. I'm reading Pearson's book and he has some great info on the structures to fish in shield trout lakes, but he doesn't talk about predator/prey relationships. Maybe he's saving that for his second book, if we can talk him into writing it. [;)] Any other info that you might care to share would be appreciated. Thanks |
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| Lakers usually spawn in early to mid October, (angling season closes the end of Sept), in water temps from 10-14 Celsius (50-58 degrees). They usually spawn on broken rubble or angular rock in fairly shallow water, usually in water depth from 1 to 4 meters (4 to 16 feet or so), but that can vary. This is based on reports from the Ontario MNR in a recent study of Clearwater Bay on the LOTWs. On Clearwater Bay the average size of the female trout was 12lbs so probably not good muskie forage, although I know that Crow lake trout average smaller. Overall, given the quickness and size of spawning lake trout I would think that they would not be a perfered forage fish, they would be pretty hard for a muskie to catch on a consistant basis.
Crow lake also has whitefish and tullibee, but they spawn later. 40-45 degrees for Whitefish, and 40 degrees or less for tullibee. These are probably a much more important food fish for muskies than trout, with tullibee being the most important, given the size and abundance of them.
They also spawn on shallow rocky rubble areas, and I'm sure that there are favorite (for the fish that is) areas located in Crow Lake. Most of the spawning of these species is done at night, but they usually are staged just outside their favorite spawning areas. Usually the muskies can be either up shallow waiting for the fish to come in (this is by far the easiest spot to catch them) or out some where chasing them around (in a lake the size of Crow, this can be like looking for a needle in a haystack, but not impossible, as you can cover lots of water trolling).
There are some nice fish in Crow, good luck!
Doug Johnson |
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| Doug J: Either you saw another of my posts on a different board or you have a psyhic ability. I'm indeed going to Crow lake, with the gang from my chapter. This is my first trip and am trying to start my homework now. Thanks for the tips and the info. I'll have to keep an eye on the temp gauge as the week goes by. |
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| Say now,that's a handy tip to have. I'll have to ask around about where the nets used to be set. Thanks! Find the bait and find the 'skis.
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| Is there any good pizza places near crow I will be on that trip too and I also relate heavily to forage |
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