I read some stuff similar to that and watched a few videos before I posted this thread. I seen mixed views. From an officials standpoint, Hydrilla is bad. But from a bass fishermans standpoint, Hydrilla is good. I havent heard of any reports where Hydrilla has been detrimental to a lakes fish population. Thats why I wanted to ask some of you fellers, to see if you guys had any problems with Hydrilla being detrimental to the fish population down in Tayhas.

It might mess up the pump's for Dallas water

There is no question that Hydrilla made a bass lake out of Amistad. And I will be the 1st to admit that I love to fish the grass but Hydrilla can be a problem. Anyone who has been to Amistad can atest to finding Hydrilla growing strong in 20'+ of water. Now imaging that on Lake Dunlap or McQueeney where the average depth is 6'-8'. Hydrilla would quickly sock these lakes in making them unuseable to most recreational users, fishermen included. When it were to "die back some" in the winter where do you think it goes? It floats, it sinks, it drifts. Where ever it goes it decays. Decay in water is proven to deplete dissolved oxygen levels in the water. If a lake like Dunlap were to completely cover with Hydrilla, which is entirely possible, and this was to die in the winter then the DO levels would drop to dangerous levels and could cause a fish kill. During fish kills the rule is the biggest first. Big fish are most likely to suffer from the stress of a DO problem. Its working fine were it is (Amistad, Choke, etc) because these are big lakes with deep water and the Hydrilla can not really take over these lakes. But it should not be intentionally spread to water systems that don't have it. We don't have it, we don't need it, we don't want it.

Agreed. A lot of folks just think of the short-term benefits of extra cover without thinking of long-term consequences. Left unchecked, hydrilla can mat up a lake much like giant salvinia.

It mostly has to do with the number of pleasure boaters that move out to and live on a particular lake to voice their opinion and get rid of it.

Lake Amistad, Lake Fork, OH IVie, Caddo Lake have one thing in common. These lakes are thriving largely in part because of hydrilla. I have to call BS on decaying hydrilla causing fish kills.

I am still wondering why they killed it all in Purtis Creek State Park. That lake is not used for a water source, not used by recreational watercraft, and the whole thing is no wake. Why get rid of the grass? I wish I understood.


Jody

The TPWD hates hydrilla is why they got rid of it on Purtis Creek. There is a bias against it in the Dept.. They consider it a noxious invasive.

Having said this TPWD own studies say that a 40% coverage of hydrilla optimizes fish populations. Also on the oxygen depletion I have questions also ... isn't hydrilla a plant? And don't plants make nutrition through the process of photosynthesis? And isn't a by-product of photosynthesis oxygen? I"M JUST SAYIN' !!!!!!!!

I know in the mid and near late 90's Rayburn was kick azz and was covered with huge mats of hydrilla. The fishing was unbelievable around the grass too. In fact we would run thru the mats on plane and cut it up then come back in 15 to 20 minutes and pitch into our prop trail and catch lotsa fish because of all the invertebrates that would be dislodged by the prop would stimulate a feeding frenzy!

Then big water level fluctuations from 11' over pool to 13' below pool wiped the hydrilla out. Coincidentally there was then the LMBV disaster. Rayburn has never been the same IMO. Still really good fishing but not at the mid 90's levels. Me being the tin foil hat type I think the huge water fluctuations were planned events to lessen the hydrilla amounts. On Rayburn grass seldom is much deeper that 15'-18', so these drastic level changes wiped out the grass.


That's all I got to say about that ... maybe!

hydrilla does produce oxygen during the day, but at night it is not able to preform photosynthesis. So at low level lighting, or at night they are using up oxygen. Also when the plant dies several kinds of decomposers eat it, the more dead plants= more decomposers, and most of these decomposers ( if not all) use oxygen also.

Ray Roberts seemed a lot better when it had grass all over it. I miss those days....

I just want to hear of a lake where the bass population has been hurt by Hydrilla. I dont think there is one.

i likes mine crispy

Ray Roberts WAS a lot better before the grass died.

Lake Wales, Florida.

An excerpt from the abstract of a paper published in the journal Transactions of the American Fisheries Society authored by Dr. Colle and Dr. Shireman.

"Harvestable(creelable)largemouth bass had low condition values once hydrilla coverage was above 30%; however, smaller largemouth bass were not as adversely affected until percent coverage exceeded 50%."

It's been mentioned several times in this thread alone, but hydrilla will adversely affect fish populations if left unchecked.

OH Ivie has had hydrilla for at least twelve years. To my knowledge has never been treated to reduce the amount chemically or with grass carp and look at it now. What will reduce fish populations of all kinds is lack of good habitat both for the fish and their forage. I have personally experienced this with two of my local lakes. The hydrilla was killed off of Tradinghouse and Lake Limestone and the fish populations have suffered accordingly.