Brown Stocking In Niangua

[XP 590]

I posted some info a few weeks ago about catching a bunch of small browns around Barclay that seemed too small to be stockers. I met a guy in my local TU chapter who works for the fishery department at MDC whose name I won't divulge, but he does have a locally famous mohair leech named after him. He told me that they just stocked another 4000 browns in the Niangua in May including alot of these smaller ones. Apparently the browns are very hard to raise in captivity and they were having higher mortality this year so they are stocking higher numbers, and a bigger variety of sizes into the streams. That sounds like good news to me, some day we'll be pulling whopper browns from the Niangua!

[oneshot]

Well week ago there was thrree truck Loads put 1800 Rainbows in the river.And Conservation Guys told me they did put 5,000 Browns in the river first of May.I asked them right out if it was BS or True and they told me it was True.

oneshot

[fishinwrench]

Ok, so now we are up to 10,000+ Browns, and roughly 3000 Rainbows. That's about 1600 trout per mile, predominately Browns, not counting the holdover fish from previous stockings.

I'm not sure but that sounds like a more dense population than the spring branch has in it on opening day. And this is in a year when (earlier in the season) they said that overall hatchery numbers were "down" significantly, statewide.

Am I being overly skeptical or what ? This is such a pet-peeve of mine.

Is it ok for a tax funded hatchery to claim elevated numbers when nobody can prove otherwise ? I guess when you throw the results of your work in a river... you could put any number you want on your productivity reports, to keep that money flowing in.

[Paola Cat]

Maybe they're stocking the river with suckers .... seems to be lots of them. Wrench let's get over there and see if we can put a dent in those totals. Has the river come back down yet after the recent rains? PC

[FishinCricket]

Maybe they're stocking the river with suckers .... seems to be lots of them. Wrench let's get over there and see if we can put a dent in those totals. Has the river come back down yet after the recent rains? PC

back down a bit, but still muddy...

Not sure about the numbers, but there was a good 200 fish at the mouth of the spring this morning..

[oneshot]

Well I know around Aug. 11 they unloaded two full Truck Loads by me,said there was 600 per Load all Rainbows.My Son said they unloaded one Truck up by him same numbers.

Back first of Spring was seeing Post of 5,000 Browns put in the river and I thought it was BS too even though I was catching several short ones.And I talked to a couple that said the caught around 200 in one day.Like I say I thought it was BS too so I asked couple Conservation Guys Shocking and they said it was True.

Just going by what I seen and heard.

oneshot

[oneshot]

back down a bit, but still muddy...

Not sure about the numbers, but there was a good 200 fish at the mouth of the spring this morning..

Yea I went yesterday like you say still muddy and for me the bite had slowed but did keep 3 but gave them to my sweet Daughter in Law.

oneshot

[fishinwrench]

Maybe they're stocking the river with suckers .... seems to be lots of them. Wrench let's get over there and see if we can put a dent in those totals. Has the river come back down yet after the recent rains? PC

Sounds good PC, I don't know about reducing the numbers, since I still have plenty of fish in the freezer. But I'm certainly up for "educating" some of them. I've been in Smallie mode forever it seems, I'm due for a change-up.

It's been a really good year for Smallies too, I might add. The best Summer bite I can ever remember, and should be a kickazz Fall.

I've had to cut back on spending this season, staying fairly close to home and haven't done a shuttled float all year....but I sure haven't been shorted fishwise.

[ozark trout fisher]

Ok, so now we are up to 10,000+ Browns, and roughly 3000 Rainbows. That's about 1600 trout per mile, predominately Browns, not counting the holdover fish from previous stockings.

I'm not sure but that sounds like a more dense population than the spring branch has in it on opening day. And this is in a year when (earlier in the season) they said that overall hatchery numbers were "down" significantly, statewide.

Am I being overly skeptical or what ? This is such a pet-peeve of mine.

Is it ok for a tax funded hatchery to claim elevated numbers when nobody can prove otherwise ? I guess when you throw the results of your work in a river... you could put any number you want on your productivity reports, to keep that money flowing in.

I doubt that Bennett Spring only has 1600 trout per mile on opening day.... I believe that I read in the book Ozark Blue Ribbon Trout streams that Bennett Spring usually held-over more than 8000 trout per mile on average, so personally I doubt that's the case.

I don't know if the MDC is telling the truth. But I wouldn't be so quick to assume they are lying, when it seems proof is a bit lacking.

Remember that 1600 trout per mile stocked does not mean the river will hold that many,except for right after the stocking. A good number will die soon after stocking, and fisherman take care of a lot too. My guess is if they stock about 1600 per mile, the river may only hold about 300-400 per mile a few months after the stocking. Stocked trout have pretty bad survival rates in Ozark streams compared to other areas, especially if its managed as White Ribbon.

[Paola Cat]

Wrench .... strictly C&R. I'll bring a counter. LOL. BTW: Have you been doing any SM fishing on the upper Niangua (Charity, Hico, Big John)? Was wondering how it was down there? That's some of my favorite water for numbers. PC