TROPHY BASS LAKE ENHANCEMENT - Creating a Wetland Wildlife Sanctuary 5

Posted by Cary Dietzmann
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Here is the end result of the enhancement efforts for this area of the wetland/lake.  The lake now at full fill.  Now that the site has been renovated, you can fly fish much more open shallows as well as have ducks land and feed on the water on both sides of the duck blind.  The duck blind is just out of site in the upper right of this photo. 

The depth of the water just in front of the first duck decoy you see is approximately 4' 6" deep.  The unseen deep channel, running straight out to the open waters, is between the shallow area emergent grasses & rushes on the left and the Island on the right.  The Island now somewhat "settled in" and emergent plants growing atop.

With the water line now in place you can see the desired design outcome for the emergent plant edge.  I contoured the edges to mimic a salt marsh. 

All of this "new" area of the Lake/wetland creating perfect habitat for ducks, wading birds, song birds and I even witnessed Wild Rio Grande Turkey wading in the grasses.  It also contributed to a massive amount of forage fish (prey) production which enabled incredible Bass growth and fishing.  Reference pictures of Bass caught via posts BASS1, BASS2, and BASS3.

A Bald Eagle, and large Osprey made regular their perch in the old oaks.  The Osprey often catching it's fish with a single talon, like a hook.  The Bald Eagle was never seen catching or eating fish.  It was a duck hunter. I never saw it catch a duck, but witnessed it multiple times consuming prey while in the oaks.

On more than one occasion, (unaware of the Eagles presence), while I was fast approaching on a 4 wheeler, the Eagle would startle from its perch in the old oaks, and drop it's prey (a duck) as it departed. 

Green Wing Teal, Blue Wing Teal, Cinnamon Teal, Northern Shoveler, Wood Duck, Ring Neck Duck, Lesser Scaup, Northern Pintail, Mallard, American Widgeon, Black Bellied Whistling Duck, Gadwall, Canvasback, Mottled Duck, Red Head Duck, Merganser were all visitors to this site after enhancement. 

A rewarding number of aquatic birds began to be frequent visitors.  Roseate Spoonbill, White Ibis, Yellow Crowned Night Heron, American Bittern, Great Blue Heron, Green Heron, Purple Gallinule, Snowy Egret, Long Billed Curlew, Spotted Sandpiper, Grebe, Anhinga, Cormorant, Western Sandpiper, Solitary Sandpiper, Great Egret, this is not a complete list....

Birds observed around the site included:

Ruby Crowned Kinglet, Brown Creeper, Carolina Chickadee, Yellow Throated Vireo, Green Crested Flycatcher, Yellow Warbler, Eastern Kingbird, American Pipit, Scissor Tailed Fly Catcher, Orange Warbler, Loggerhead Shrike, Black Phoebe, Brown Thrasher, Vermillion Flycatcher, American Robin, Eastern Bluebird, Northern Parula, Rough Winged Swallow, Barn Swallow, Tufted Titmouse, Carolina Wren, Sedge Wren, Marsh Wren, Summer Tanager, Swainsons Warbler, Oven Bird, Waterthrush, Indigo Bunting, Common YellowThroat, Scarlet Tanager, Dickcissel, Meadowlark, Painted Bunting, Red Winged Blackbird, American Goldfinch, Prothonotary Warbler, Grass Hopper Sparrow, Yellow Throated Warbler.....this is not a complete list

I recommend the National Audubon Society "THE SIBLEY - Guide To Birds".  It was my pictorial reference guide used over the years to distinguish and identify the birds listed above.

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