Susquehanna stocked tiger muskies on the move...downstream

[Mike]

In the past few weeks Susquehanna River, Section 05, extending from York Haven dam downstream to Rt 462, which runs between Columbia, Lancaster Co and Wrightsville, York Co, has received stockings of a few thousand pure and tiger muskellunge fingerlings (6-9" long). Bainbridge, Lancaster Co, which is about mid-way in that stretch, is the downstream stocking point. As the river was once again rising last Wednesday, the tigers were stocked in Bainbridge at 2 PM. At 8 PM we were electrofishing for smallmouth bass downstream in the impoundment created by Safe Harbor dam on the Susquehanna. Amazingly, we recovered a tiger muskellunge fingerling from the 2 PM stocking. We were 18 miles below that stocking point! Moving that distance in that amount of time (3mph) would not have been a problem given the river's velocity, but it was still interesting and a chance occurrence to actually document it. PS No near-by lakes or near-by other stretches of the river had been stocked this year.

As an angler, the take-home message should be that fishing for stocked tiger muskellunge probably should not be limited to the actual river or stream sections where they are stocked. In this case, the impoundment created by Safe Harbor Dam, which is known as Lake Clark (Susquehanna River Section 06 in PFBC stocking records), has been reportedly producing adult tiger muskellunge catches for bass anglers in the past few years despite not being stocked directly in that impoundment. As with trout, it pays to explore.

As for the bass, the total catch was very low in comparison to historical data from the Lake Clark site, but the number of bass 15 inches long and longer was acceptable based on statewide standards. The number of bass 12 inches long and longer was very close to the "acceptable" night electrofishing catch rate. Night electrofishing surveys of other traditional sampling sites will continue this fall if and when river flows allow them to occur.

 

[salvelinusfontinalis]

Very interesting Mike. Fish do like to move, thats for sure.

 

[Fishidiot]

Interesting stuff. I'm eager to see the SMB reports when they're up on the PFBC website. It sounds like the results are much the same as the past few years (plenty of big fish but much fewer smaller age classes)?

Anyway - regarding muskies. I'm not surprised to hear this considering the water levels. In the past, I've seen fingerling muskies move downstream hundreds of yards from where they were stocked a few days earlier. On the other hand, I see large tigers - fish that are 4+ years of age - hanging out in the very upper section of a local creek that is stocked with them. Hhmmm.....

There's been a debate for years over how purebreds got into the upper Potomac. The upper P was stocked with tigers by the MD DCNR for some years.... but by the late 1990s purebreds were showing up. The MD DNR claimed they were just "stocked tigers." Curiously, after a few years, the MD folks finally admitted they were purebreds and that they were spawning successfully in the river. There's still some question how they got there and some folks think they were illegally stocked. I think the answer is obvious: Virginia stocks (or used to) purebreds in the Shenandoah and these fish simply migrated downstream into the Potomac.

 

[Mike]

As for upstream movement, that's not surprising either based on work done by a friend and colleague in Wisconsin, as well as having worked for the PFBC in his college years. He was radio tagging muskellunge and walleye in a flowage in the NW part of the state. Each fall both species would move 30 miles upstream to the next dam, which was their spawning site, spend the winter there, spawn in spring, and then run the 30 miles downstream again.

 

[TimMurphy]

Dear Mike,

Walleye will definitely move a long way. I once caught a walleye in Johnson City NY that was tagged by the PA Fish Commission. It was at least 25 river miles upstream of Sayre PA.

In addition it was reported in the Binghamton Press by the local outdoor writer that a walleye was caught in Johnson City that had been tagged in Berwick PA. That was according to the documentation the angler received after he sent the tag back to the Fish Commission.

Coincidently, these walleye were caught below a dam that was ordinarily impassable except during extreme high water. The dam was at Goudey Station in Johnson City and I think it has since been removed or breached.

NY State closes the river to ALL FISHING in the Spring to protect the spawning walleye from Goudey Station to the Tioga-Broome county line. They know the walleye come from far and wide to spawn there.

Regards,

Tim Murphy

 

[PACOFRANSICO]

Ive caught pruebread musky miles away over 25 from were they were stocked. A musky will move from season to season. they have summering waters and wintering waters. If there isnt enuff food or to much compotition from other musky in that area they will move.
And for the low # of bass well musky eat upto a 1/3 of there body lenght. And put on upto 25 % of there body weight in the fall to get ready for winter and egg development. A smally is a easy target hell any fish is a easy target for a 40 inch fish.