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Show Wide Hollow Reservoir Receives 5,000 Trout By Terry Smith Escalante Conservation Officer ESCALANTE - Fishing at Wide Hollow Reservoir is expected expec-ted to be at its best during the next few months. Wide Hollow, located at the Escalante State Park, was stocked with fish on Monday, March 4. The nearly thawed reservoir received re-ceived 5,000 rainbow trout from Mammoth Creek Hatchery. These fish had been growing at the Mammoth Mam-moth Creek facility since February 1990, averaging 2.5 fish per pound or about 10-11 inches long. On October 18, 1989, Wide Hollow Reservoir was treated with a chemical to remove the bluegill. The bluegill compete with the trout and limit their food availability, thus slowing their growth. During the following winter, Wide Hollow was left empty while the chemical, used to remove the rough fish, was decomposing. Wide Hollow was then restocked with 5,000 rainbow trout in the spring of 1990. Water in this reservoir is used for irrigation in the Escalante area and by July the water level is very low, which sets the scene for the dreaded summer kill. Summer kill usually occurs when water levels drop and temperatures tem-peratures rise. Water temperatures in which rainbow trout exist are between 33F-78F, optimal being in the neighborhood of 59F. Fish are cold-blooded and their growth and metabolic rates are related to the water temperature. For every 19F that the water temperature increases, rainbow double their metabolic rate and they, in turn, require more oxygen, which may not be available if the water level is too low. Water temperature alone may increase to a point above which trout can tolerate. As the temperature temper-ature increases, the ability for wa ter to hold dissolved oxygen decreases. de-creases. Plants producing carbon dioxide at night in addition to the warm water not storing the dissolved dis-solved oxygen can kill a lake overnight. During these dry years water levels will drop fast in our reservoirs reser-voirs and the temperatures will rise accordingly. Start gearing up for an early spring fishing season and enjoy catching fish before things heat up. Elder Brayton Talbot |