Pond Boss Forums INTRO Questions & Observations Shallow Pond

I have a friend looking at a piece of property that has a government built watershed. The lake is 12-15 acres and was built in 1960. The dept. of soil and conservation came in 8 years ago and raised the spillway 5 feet. Obviously they have a limited budget and we know the government sees this lake as a flood control project and not a recreational trophy fishing lake. They did not dig out the lake depth at that time.

My question is this lake only has a depth of about 5 1/2 to 7 feet at the spillway and a high percentage of the lake is 4-5 feet deep with the shallow area falling off to 3,1, and 1 1/2 feet.

The property has great potential for other ponds to be built. Would this lake concern you?

We are told this is an awesome fishing lake with huge bass and was heavily stocked 7 years ago.

Can fish thrive in this shallow of water especially in Oklahoma where it gets up to 100 in the summer.

Your thoughts are appreciated.

I guess this is a stupid question as not a single post since the original post?????
C'MON fellow Pond Boss Readers.........

I used to fish a pond in MS that you'd be hard pressed to find a spot over your waist and every year this small hole would yield 6 and 7 pound bass and good numbers all the way around. I remember this pond well because it was the first pond I ever caught two fish over 5 in one outing. The actual depth at the deepest was no deeper than 5 feet.

NOW, the bad side -- about 5 years or so ago they had a drought in Northern MS and it went dry -- sad day to watch the birds pick em off.

It may not be optimum but will probably work. Is there any reason that your friend couldn't have a pro do some electroshocking? This could be pretty valuable.

I HAVE A SHALLOW POND LIKE YOU DISCRIBE,IN THE SUMMER THE TEMP GETS TO AND ABOVE 100 DEGREES,THE FISH DO FINE AND GROW VERY GOOD,THE ONLY PROBLEM I HAVE IS CONTINUALLY FIGHTING THE WEEDS.

Thanks for the feedback, sounds like the pond will be just fine especially with some improvements that can be made.

I appreciate your comments!

In my experience, a shallow pond is less than 3 feet deep and has weed problems. A proper average depth is 5 to 7 feet. Deep ponds have a tendency to create a thermal layer and trap oxygen depleted water at the bottom. There is a very strong possibility that come the fall rains, the top layer will chill down and sink. The bottom layer will come up. The fish are use to living in the top 3 feet and will remain there until they die and then they float. This may be the number one cause of most fish kills in Oklahoma ponds. In Okie land we say "the pond turned over". I have one deep hole (14 foot) in my pond so I put in a windmill aerator before I stocked. No problems. My Uncle has a very deep pond without aeration and lost almost all his fish late last summer. Another reason I like a shallower pond is for safety of the kids. I can remember being very young and not being able to swim. My brothers and I would "walk' across the pond by sinking to the bottom and pushing ourselves up at an angle, over and over until we reached shallow water. We were not too smart but had a lot of fun.

I have several similar lakes under professional management. One is about 30 acres, with at least 10 acres less than three feet deep. It's turbid, same color as coffee with heavy cream. It produces nice bass, plentiful. We added lots of brush pile-type structure, dense for baby bluegill. After electrofishing, we saw the lake needed an infusion of forage fish. We chose bluegill. Plus, bass numbers were low, carp were high. We electrofished nearly 1,000 carp from the lake during five different expeditions. Turbidity changed, visibility increased to eighteen inches. Three years later, bass are thriving, the lake is doing well. Feeders were set up to feed bluegill. There is no aquatic plant growth.
The second lake is about 15 acres, crystal clear and shallow. About 40% of this lake is shallow, and full of vegetation. The landowner is okay with it, because he is a duck hunter. The fishery has abundant bluegill, many sizes. Bass numbers are moderate, but bass don't grow as well as they should because accessing food is tough. So, the landowner understands the compromise and is happy with it.
The third one is a lake with a well defined creek channel, good depth, with a small amount of shallow water. The shallow water is vegetated, but these plants are native, and provide just the right amount of cover for the fishery.
These lakes all sit in north Texas.
They get hot.
My advice to your friend is this...eliminating shallow water in a silted flood prevention site is too expensive. Look for other sites for a new lake. Manage the flood control lake as it is...it can certainly grow some nice fish. The heat won't cause problems.