Low Water Article

[Phil Lilley]

For those who like low water conditions on Lake Taneycomo, your fishing experience this spring and possibly summer will be just what you like. For those who like the water running, well, you better do a rain dance.

Our region has only seen a fraction of the normal rainfall for the past 10 months leaving area lakes and streams extremely low. And because we are entering summer months when the power administration likes to generate hydro power, the future of generation patterns is uncertain. But one thing is for sure, they will be conserving as much water in our lakes as possible.

Beaver Lake is 12.5 feet below power pool, Table Rock is 9.5 feet low and Bull Shoals 6.5 feet. Generation has been nonexistent this winter which is unprecedented. SPA may generate as temperatures reach the 90's but sparingly, in my opinion, assuming we received little rain this spring. Boating on the big lakes will become dangerous due to the gravel bars and standing timber in the lake. If you are vacationing on lakes and taking a boat--even if you've been on the lake numerous times--consult a local marina for a map and/or warning advisories for dangerous areas.

How will this affect Lake Taneycomo? Levels will not be dangerous to boats. Our lake is kept at power pool when not generating by virtue of a lower spillway plus turbines. Empire Electric, who owns and operates the dam (Powersite Dam), is not supposed to draw the lake down past a certain level, which is the power pool level. So our lake will not drop below power pool. But our situation could become dangerous--not for boaters but for our trout.

Rainbows can survive water temperatures up into the 60's and brown trout can tolerate temps even in the 70's but neither operate well in either. With no generation and no cold water entering the lake from Table Rock Dam, our water temps will reach these temps in time, just lake other lakes in the system. In the upper reaches of the lake, such as the trophy area, these temps will be reached much sooner. Unfortunately, this is where the highest concentration of trout reside. The area directly below the dam isn't affected by this phenomenon because of the inflow of hatchery water which is kept cold. But further downstream, namely from Lookout downstream, water temps have already risen into the 60's on several occasions.

If we don't see rain this spring, the Missouri Department of Conservation and SPA should have a plan in place to work together to make sure our trout fishery is kept safe from high water temps this summer. But how far downstream should this plan be considered? There are resorts and marinas as far downstream as mile 13 (1 mile below Branson) that count on trout fishing for their clients. I don't think it's fair for SPA to consider the cries of a resort owner at mile 18 and not the cries of a resort owner at mile 13... but we may not see fairness in this process--I don't know. One thing that the lake in the lower reaches has to it's advantage is deeper water. Trout can and will seek out cooler water at these deeper depths.

How do warmer temps affect trout fishing? Not too bad at all really. If given a choice, I'd rather have warm water than cold water. Let me clarify. In the past, we have seen water temps below 39 degrees in May and June during heavy generation. Our trout don't bite as well at these cold temps. They get lethargic. Compare that to temps in the 60's--trout are very active and actually need more food to survive so they bite better. The problem warm water/low flow creates is we will see thinner rainbows because of the higher stocking rates in the summer and less food for the trout in the lake.

I'm not a fisheries biologist so I can't say why exactly but it is my experience that during sustained low generation periods our rainbows become thin due to a lack of "bugs" in the lake. So putting two and two together I summarize low/no flow is bad for our food base. I've seen this numerous times. Will they die from starvation? In extreme times I guess so. Are we in extreme conditions? No-- not yet. But looking behind-- no real accumulative rain since June of 2005-- and looking ahead-- no real rain yet this spring and none in the foreseeable future, summer ahead of us, we could be in extreme conditions by the end of the summer and into the fall.

[riverrat]

Anybody know a good raindance?

[CaptainT16]

Yeah, it's starting to get a bit eerie. We do need some rain very quickly. Raindance.....anyone?