Columnist Paula DelGiudice: Anglers chasing $1 million fish

Paula DelGiudice

Thursday, July 5, 2001 | 12:35 p.m.

Paula DelGiudice's outdoors notebook appears weekly. Reach her at desertdenizens@aol.com.

So the search for Big Jake is on. The contest sponsored by Anheuser-Busch officially opened July 1.

It was previously noted that the fish that would be tagged for Lake Mead would be a largemouth bass, but the contest organizers have changed that fish to a striped bass. That's probably a relief to many anglers. So everyone who has been fishing for largemouths can change gears and look for that tagged striper.

Remember, 30 lakes and reservoirs across the country received a tagged fish for this contest. One of the tagged fish is worth $1 million. All other tagged fish are worth $1,000. Anyone with any information on catching Big Jake should let me know at DesertDenizens@aol.com.

* STRIPER ACTION: Though it may seem a little too warm to fish this week, the action at lakes Mead and Mohave has been good for topwater angling for stripers. According to the Nevada Division of Wildlife, striper boils are being seen throughout the Boulder Basin. Anglers are catching fish by casting stick baits and other surface lures to the feeding fish. Boils occur when stripers force threadfin shad to the lake's surface.

Doug Nielsen, NDOW game warden, said the best way for boaters to catch stripers from boils is to stop outside a boil and cast lures to its edges. Running over a boil will cause the fish to stop feeding and will certainly frustrate the other boaters who may be fishing in the area.

"Racing other boats to boils is dangerous because it can result in an accident," Nielsen said. "Approach boils cautiously and be always courteous to other boaters."

Fishing continues to be fair in the Overton Arm with stripers being taken from Fish Island and the Muddy River above Overton Beach Marina.

Striper anglers have more to smile about than the far off dream of catching a fish worth a million dollars. Even better news is that the topwater fishing has turned on this season. The best news to come out of the Lake Mead striper fishery for a couple of years is that the spawn of threadfin shad appears average, which, according to NDOW biologists, is a notable improvement from last year.

NDOW biologist Jim Heinrich has been collecting larval shad in all areas of the lake during his nighttime trawls. Counts from the trawls show that this year the spawn has been above average, except for inner Las Vegas Bay (Las Vegas Wash), where near record counts of shad have been seen.

Heinrich said that shad are important because they are the main source of food for striped bass and other game fish. While a successful spawn will result in healthy game fish, it can slow fishing success because an abundance of forage may make the fish more difficult to catch. In the long run, healthy populations of shad will increase the base population of striped bass providing more and bigger fish for anglers.

Biologists monitor shad spawning at Lake Mead each spring to gauge the overall health of fish stocks. During 2000 and 1999, the spawn was below average and resulted in anglers catching some "skinny" stripers during the winter months.

* OTHER SPOTS: The fishing has slowed way down at many other Southern Nevada fishing spots.

Eagle Valley has been suffering from the growth of aquatic vegetation in the lake. Boaters are having better luck than shore anglers at dodging the weeds. The fishing at Echo Canyon has also dropped off along with the water level, now at 15 feet below the outflow pipe as a result of drought conditions and a persistent leak in the lake. The fishing has only been fair in recent weeks for stocked rainbow trout as well as largemouth bass and crappie.