Yes, I’ve used the search function…

[Shaun Solomon]

…and I still can’t find an answer.

This is probably a question for a biologist. I’m wondering if anyone has a comprehensive list of the species of fish which are present in Lookout Point reservoir.

More specifically, I’m interested in forage/prey species. Are there minnows, apart from pikeminnow?

I know that rainbows, cutts, landlocked chinook, largemouth and smallmouth bass, crappie, walleye, bullhead, pikeminnow, and (at least one) bluegill are present. Are there any shiners? Native minnows or forage species of any kind?

I was forced to keep a trout recently that grabbed a crankbait and got both barrels. Luckily it wasn’t very large, so I didn’t feel terrible about it. I’ve never targeted trout out there but I’ve got a few as bycatch and they have mostly been impressive specimens. I got another one the same day as the kamikaze fish and it was maybe 19”, but I bet it weighed five pounds. Absolute tank. The kamikaze fish was pretty healthy too, before it engulfed two sets of treble hooks. It contained fourteen baby crappie and one baby bluegill, ranging in size from a quarter to about the size of a silver dollar. I was worried the trout might taste funny with the odd diet, but it was perfectly palatable.

I talked to a guy in a Tr-21 at the ramp who said he was graphing clouds of bait, and catching gamefish (smallies) out of the bait balls, but he said he had no idea what the bait was.

Anyway, here is a picture of the trout, as a means of enlivening the otherwise bland text of this post.

cheers all.

SS

 

[jamisonace]

Are you showing off the trout or that filet job? I find the filet job significantly more impressive than the trout. LOL

I have no idea about bait up there. I catch a lot of walleye there but have never thought about looking to see what they eat.

 

[Shaun Solomon]

Lol yeah it cut nice. I’ll agree it wasn’t a toad, I was glad it wasn’t one of the big ones I’ve got up there. I’m not typically trying to kill any fish.

I’m just wanting to get a better idea of the predator/prey dynamics, as it allows you to refine your presentations. I’ve noticed they like traps and blades, and those baits definitely match the baby crappie hatch.

 

[Shaun Solomon]

Jamisonace, are you relying on electronics much on those eyes? I haven’t had a boat since I’ve been out here, but in my experience eyes don’t tend to graph very well, at least compared with other species. It’s probably their tendency to hang out on or near the bottom.

In my experience, when targeting eyes it was often better to graph for textbook structure and bait, assuming the eyes wouldn’t be far from the groceries. It tended to work well enough that I didn’t mess with the formula, but then electronics are SO much more powerful now than what I am accustomed to using.

I tend to think there might be ways to catch them that didn’t involve trolling, and it’s always my inclination to zig when everyone else is zagging.

 

[jamisonace]

Jamisonace, are you relying on electronics much on those eyes? I haven’t had a boat since I’ve been out here, but in my experience eyes don’t tend to graph very well, at least compared with other species. It’s probably their tendency to hang out on or near the bottom.

In my experience, when targeting eyes it was often better to graph for textbook structure and bait, assuming the eyes wouldn’t be far from the groceries. It tended to work well enough that I didn’t mess with the formula, but then electronics are SO much more powerful now than what I am accustomed to using.

I tend to think there might be ways to catch them that didn’t involve trolling, and it’s always my inclination to zig when everyone else is zagging.

My experience is the same. We graph structure and occasionally see fish but mostly looking for structure and depth.