January – June 2017 Gill Netting on Bull Shoals Lake for Walleye, Striped Bass, and White Bass We conducted winter time gillnetting samples for Striped Bass, Walleye, and White Bass on Bull Shoals Lake over 6 nights in January and February 2017. This was our first attempt to sample these fish in Bull Shoals Lake using gillnets. There were two goals for this sampling effort: 1) try to sample the Striped Bass stocked by Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) and 2) collect a representative sample of the Walleye population. MDC has stocked Striped Bass at a low density into Bull Shoals Lake since 2013. These stockings have occurred every other year. We hoped the gillnet samples would give us a better representation of the Walleye population compared to our spring electrofishing samples at the dam. Over the 6 net nights, we sampled 137 fish. Our catch included two Striped Bass, 69 Walleye, and 67 White Bass. The two Striped Bass were approximately 20 inches long. We suspect these Striped Bass were from the 2015 MDC stocking. The Walleye ranged in size from 14 to 25 inches (average: 19 inches) and the White Bass ranged in size from 10 inches to 21.5 inches (average: 15 inches). Length frequency of Walleye and White Bass sampled while gillnetting in Bull Shoals Lake in 2017. January – June 2017 Spring Walleye Electrofishing Samples We conducted our annual Walleye electrofishing samples on Lake Norfork (3/16, 3/20) and Bull Shoals Lake (3/22, 3/27). A large number of mature Walleye congregate around the dams when temperatures near 55ºF to go through their spawning rituals. These areas have been routinely sampled for 12-14 years. Norfork Lake We sampled 129 Walleye in 1.33 hours of actual sampling on Norfork Lake. This resulted in a catch rate of 97.3 Walleye/hour, which was higher than the historical average of 83.5 Walleye/hr. The average size of Walleye sampled was 18.9 inches, which was close to the historical average of 19.1 inches. The largest Walleye sampled was a 22.4-inch male. Bull Shoals Lake We sampled 112 Walleye in 1.29 hours of actual sampling on Bull Shoals Lake. The catch rate was 86.7 Walleye/hour, which was slightly lower than the historical average of 92.2 Walleye/hour. The average size of Walleye sampled was 20.5 inches, which is similar to the historical average of 20.1 inches. The largest Walleye collected was a 26.5-inch female. It is interesting to note that we saw 2 Paddlefish during this year’s samples. These fish likely came from Table Rock Lake during the high spring flows and floodgate releases. MDC routinely stocks these fish into Table Rock Lake to support a popular snagging fishery. General Comments Walleye catch rates were higher on Norfork Lake but lower on Bull Shoals Lake compared to our long-term data sets. Spring time sampling for Walleye is all about timing. This year was challenging to determine when to start sampling due to the weekly fluctuating air temperatures and water temperatures. So far this year, anglers and spear fishermen have been reporting good numbers of walleye in both lakes. Length frequency of Walleye sampled in Norfork Lake (NF) and Bull Shoals Lake (BS) during the 2017 spring electrofishing samples. January – June 2017 Spring Black Bass Electrofishing Samples Norfork Lake We sampled 48 different sites on Lake Norfork during four nights of sampling in April 2017. We sampled a total of 2,761 bass during the eight hours of actual sampling time. This is the most black bass sampled in Norfork Lake since the inception of electrofishing samples in 1987. This resulted in a catch rate of 342 black bass/hour. We sampled 2,453 Largemouth Bass, ranging in size from 4 to 22 inches (average: 12.3 inches). We sampled 231 Spotted Bass, ranging in size from 4 to 16 inches (average: 9.7 inches). Finally, we sampled 77 Smallmouth Bass ranging in size from 3 to 16 inches (average: 10.2 inches). Bull Shoals Lake We sampled 48 different sites on Bull Shoals Lake during three nights of sampling in April 2017. We sampled a total of 2,635 bass during the eight hours of sampling time. This was also the most black bass sampled since the inception of electrofishing samples in 1987. This resulted in a catch rate of 328 black bass/hour. We sampled 2,196 Largemouth Bass, ranging in size from 6 to 21 inches (average: 12.4 inches). We sampled 312 Spotted Bass, ranging in size from 4 to 18 inches (average: 9.6 inches). Finally, we sampled 127 Smallmouth Bass ranging in size from 4 to 18 inches (average: 11.8 inches). General Comments Both lakes are full of black bass due to the recent string of high water events. This is evident when you have multiple electrofishing runs per lake of 140 plus black bass collected during a 10-minute sample. Our highest catch was on Bull Shoals Lake, where we collected 191 black bass in 10 minutes. That resulted in an astounding catch rate of 1,146 black bass/hour. Although both lakes have experienced the same amount of high water, the quality of black bass is much better in Bull Shoals Lake than in Norfork. This is obvious when comparing tournament results between lakes. We are unsure why the quality of black bass is lagging behind in Norfork. However, we plan on diving deeper into this issues in the upcoming sample seasons. Speaking of tournaments, we worked a total of four Winter Bass-O-Thon tournaments on Bull Shoals Lake (BS) and Norfork (NF) over the winter. Tournaments were held once a month from October 2016 through January 2017. Two tournaments were held on each lake. Two hundred twenty-one anglers fished the BS tournaments vs 215 anglers on NF. There were 432 black bass (BB) caught in BS resulting in a catch rate of 0.24 BB/angler-hour. There were 330 BB caught in NF for a catch rate of 0.19 BB/angler-hour. The average size of BB weighed in was larger in BS vs NF. For Largemouth Bass, the average size was 17.4 inches (N = 225) on BS vs 16.4 inches (N = 211) for NF. The average size of Spotted Bass at BS was 14.7 inches (N = 74) vs 13.8 inches (N = 61) for NF. For Smallmouth Bass, the average size at BS was 16.9 inches (N = 133) vs 16.2 inches (N = 58) for NF. January – June 2017 Length frequency of Largemouth Bass, Spotted Bass, and Smallmouth Bass sampled in Norfork Lake (NF) and Bull Shoals Lake (BS) during the 2017 spring electrofishing samples. January – June 2017 April and May Flooding Most of you are well aware of the flooding that occurred in Northern Arkansas (NA) and South Missouri (SM) during the months of April/May. Around the first of April, people were voicing their concerns on social media about low water levels on Bulls Shoals Lake and Norfork Lake. By the middle of May, conversations had shifted to the impacts of the flooding on the local communities and rightfully so. Rainfall totals for the months of April/May ranged from 16 to 30 inches in NA and SM. At the beginning of April, Bull Shoals Lake was at 654.59 ft-MSL and Norfork Lake was at 548.38 ft- MSL. After all the flooding, Bull Shoals Lake peaked at 693 ft-MSL on May 29th and Norfork Lake peaked at 579.8 on May 5th. However, that doesn’t really show the magnitude of the flooding event. During the large rain event on Saturday, April 29th, Bull Shoals Lake rose 10 feet overnight and a total of 12 feet by the end of the weekend. Norfork rose 12 feet overnight and 16 feet before the weekend was over. While these high water events are great for the fish, it can make things difficult for the anglers and local communities. Lake levels for Bull Shoals Lake and Norfork Lake from April 15th to May 15th. January – June 2017 Norfork Lake Cleanup The communities in the headwaters of Norfork Lake were impacted greatly by the April/May flooding. The headwaters received over 10 inches during the April 29th storm alone. This caused the North Fork River in Missouri to reached historical levels. It was estimated that water level rose to 41 feet at the Tecumseh Gauge on the lower section of the river. Unfortunately, the flooding resulted in many homes and business along the river being devastated. This resulted in a substantial amount of man- made debris being washed into Norfork Lake. Many people voiced their concerns about the man- made debris on Facebook pages like Norfork Lake Lovers. After scouting the lake, we decided to team up with the US Army Corp of Engineers Office in Mountain Home to tackle some of the large debris in the mid lake area. We retrofitted our habitat barge with a winch and pulley system to hoist debris into our pontoon boat. We spent five days picking up large man-made items like roofs, floors, water heaters, refrigerators and boards with wires/metal attached. Most of these items were water logged and cumbersome to handle. Some items weighed so much that all we could do was drag them to a boat ramp to be broken down and hauled off. Thankfully, the water level is dropping and Norfork Lake is getting back to normal. We want to say thank you to everyone that helped pick up debris around Norfork Lake after the flooding.