Tri-County Pond Fisheries Survey (2001)
Survey Number: 701011
Survey Date: June 28, 2001
A biological survey was conducted on Tri-County Pond, Tioga County on June 28, 2001. This pond has been managed with a put-grow-and-take rainbow trout stocking of 200 fish for several decades. Recent requests by anglers to allow ice fishing and the lack of any recent fisheries data prompted the survey. A gill-net and trap-net were each fished for one night, and water chemistry data was collected.
Oxygen and temperature levels between the depths of 5 and 8 feet were suitable to support trout (Note: although not known for sure, temperature and oxygen levels probably reflect conditions which typically occur in late July, due to the unseasonably warm and dry spring of 2001). Six yearling rainbow trout were captured in the gillnet and all were in good condition. Over 400 black crappie were captured in the trapnet, all between 5 and 6.5 inches in length. All crappie sampled were 4 years old, indicating severe stunting has occurred. Several bullhead and golden shiners were also captured.
It is recommended that future management of the trout fishery be on a put-and-take basis due to the likelihood of future reintroduction of unwanted fish species by anglers. Ice fishing will also be permitted as of October, 2002. The introduction of adult largemouth bass is being contemplated in order to reduce the abundance of crappie. This should allow the remaining crappie to grow better but would also negatively impact survival of stocked trout.
