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Posts: 1283
| Just wondering if you guys think stocked muskie stay in the same general area as they were released on a chain of lakes/flowage? I know some will move to other lakes, but do you think most stay in the same lake?
Edited by achotrod 12/19/2013 9:31 PM
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Posts: 409
Location: Almond, WI | They will imprint and migrate back at spawn usually but other than that, not necessarily, I've even heard of tagged fish moving through dams. They will follow current (and food), both up and down stream. Usually there's a higher density on a stocked lake in the chain, density decreases the farther you go away, but I would not hesitate to fish anywhere on a chain/flowage as long as there is an established population adjacent. |
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Posts: 20211
Location: oswego, il | If the lake has an inlet or outlet, some will leave never to return. Stocked fish. I have caught musky in the fox river that are many many miles from a stocked lake.
I used to hunt the creek that feeds shabbona when I was a kid. A few miles up stream. This was before the lake was even open for public use. We seen one specie of fish in the creek and quite a few.of them. Muskies. |
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Posts: 371
Location: Dixon, IL | Agree with ToddM
I know some fish swam to Fox River from Fox Chain O Lakes. If Lake don't have dam or any inlet or outlet creek then Muskie stay in lake. I believe that smaller fish swim around lake and escape while most muskie grow larger and stay in lake as home. Over 40 inch is rare fell below dam and escape unless dam broken.
Edited by ILmuskie 12/20/2013 8:17 AM
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Posts: 1283
| Actually the Fox Chain O lakes is why I ask. I know they stock the chain and was wondering if the lake they stock them in would be the best bet on catching fish on the chain. Ive also been reading reports of fish caught/ seen way south of the chain in the river near the Batavia area. Did these fish really make it that far south through multiple dams from the chain?
I live a couple blocks from the Fox river between the Algonquin Dam and McHenry Dam. Is this stretch worth fishing for them? Ive been told its not worth it, but then I see these reports of fish even further south of that. |
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Posts: 553
Location: 15 miles east of Lake Kinkaid | ToddM is dead on. Numerous telemetry studies have shown Muskies are not like trout and will spawn in different areas from year-to-year.
ILmuskie- I agree that the fish that stay in the lake are the ones that grow the largest if this I what you were saying. However, I would disagree that big fish don't escape our reservoirs. Some very large fish have been captured below spillways around the Midwest. |
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Posts: 20211
Location: oswego, il | Any muskie caught north of the yorkvile dam is probably a stocked chain fish. Below that they can come from the chain, shabbona or lake holiday.
Edited by ToddM 12/20/2013 11:34 AM
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Posts: 371
Location: Dixon, IL | achotrod - 12/20/2013 1:07 PM
Actually the Fox Chain O lakes is why I ask. I know they stock the chain and was wondering if the lake they stock them in would be the best bet on catching fish on the chain. Ive also been reading reports of fish caught/ seen way south of the chain in the river near the Batavia area. Did these fish really make it that far south through multiple dams from the chain?
I live a couple blocks from the Fox river between the Algonquin Dam and McHenry Dam. Is this stretch worth fishing for them? Ive been told its not worth it, but then I see these reports of fish even further south of that.
Muskie might pass you but if you see nice quite deep water pool then wouldn't hurt to cast! I know few at Elgin and south Elgin. When musky fell below dam and cant go up then it stay or swim downstream. Few muskie already caught and release down in Salt Creek came from Busse Lake. |
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Posts: 3518
Location: north central wisconsin | Just because a big fish is caught below a spillway, doesn't mean it escaped when it was that size, or escaped at all. One would be surprised how little water it takes for a fish to make a run upstream to spawn or eat, and then make its' way back down into the next lake/pond/resevoir, no matter how many miles. To think that every fish caught/netted/seen below a dam, just fell over the dam, is unfounded. Now, there is no doubt that these downstream unstocked bodies in Illinois, have been 'naturally' stocked with fish making it through from above, but once in these lakes, they act like Muskies everywhere, making runs both up and downstream, only to be stopped at the next barrier. |
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Posts: 1283
| I guess another question would be if you knew what lake they were stocked in on a chain of say 8-10 lakes, would your best bet be to fish the lake they were originally stocked in or does it not matter so much? |
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Posts: 1283
| After hours and hours of research/reading I do believe that most stay in the lake they were stocked in or in very close lakes with easy access for them to get too. I also know with out a doubt some will move miles away and to further lakes in a chain and over dams but not nearly as many that stay.
Thats what I have put together anyways, please correct me if Im way off on this. |
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Posts: 8775
| I would think they'd stick around as long as there is adequate food and habitat in the area where they were stocked. I don't think that N/R fish are any different, except that they return to the areas where they originally hatched from to spawn. Very interesting topic now that I think about it. No matter where they came from, they're likely going to travel where there is food to be had. It sure does seem like certain fish tend to have their favorite areas, judging by the fact that the same fish have been caught multiple times in the same places year after year. |
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Posts: 20211
Location: oswego, il | One thing project green gene has shown in its study is that escapement increases during high water periods. |
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Posts: 371
Location: Dixon, IL | Agree that high water periods is bad for lakes that lose muskie and walleye! Other thing that I learned something is Wisconsin don't want to stock less than 8 inch length of musky. They said that smaller than 8 inch is waste of money. Larger is better for future musky fishing. |
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Posts: 78
| To play devils advocate here. If in fact ,all the necessary components were present such as food, habitat, deep water ect... in a lake these fish were stocked in, why would there be so much migration in lakes like the Fox Chain? These fish swim through 7-8 lakes filled with all the above to get to the river. Not only do they get to the river, that btw is also filled with forage and places to hunt and be stealthy, but they migrate 30-40 miles and more down the river. We know that muskies love current. Its in their dna basically, but why such long migrations? To answer the original question tho, I believe some stay for awhile in an area but we also know that these fish move a lot. Especially in systems like the Chain or where rivers and current is present. |
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