By Louie Stout
Anyone who has fished the Mississinewa or Salamonie reservoirs for bass knows how tough those fisheries can be.
They are cool bodies of water except that the Army Corps of Engineers fluctuate the flood control water levels so much, especially in the spring, that it disrupts the spawn and hampers shallow water habitat development.
The fact that the lakes are loaded with shad doesn’t help matters.
The Indiana DNR manages those fisheries as best they can given the tough conditions they’re dealt. There have been some efforts made by the Army Corps to help, but not enough to allow the lakes to live up to their fishing potential.
Well, last year an opportunity to boost the bass population presented itself and the fisheries division took advantage of it.
The land around Mississinewa is managed by the DNR State Parks and there are some rearing ponds used for raising walleye. However, after minnows were stocked in those ponds to feed the walleye, the number of fry were reduced because of rising water levels.
As luck would have it, DNR hatcheries elsewhere had a surplus of 156,000 bass fry and they were put into that pond. Last October, the DNR drained the pond and salvaged 12,500 largemouth averaging around 5 inches and stocked them into Mississinewa at the Red Bridge Marina State Recreation Area.
DNR officials say they will resume using the pond for walleye but hope to use bass as a backup plan in the future.
Also, Salamonie also has a similar pond that may be used for raising and stocking bass that serve as the primary predator over the abundant shad population in both lakes.