Smallmouth
Bass in Angostura Reservoir
by Duke Doering, Rapid City, SD
A Rapid City woman, Mary Geitz, caught what was nearly a state record Smallmouth
Bass in Angostura Reservoir recently. The fish was 5 pounds, as it turned
out the state record is 6 pounds, 2 ounces. She was boat fishing with her
husband, Lynn, and son Tyler, when she caught the nice smallmouth bass on
a minnow. Geitz said "when I hooked the bass I did not know what I
had because it was such a strong fighter, but I was sure it was not a walleye
pike." She said "while I was reeling the smallmouth in I kept
thinking, there is a tournament going on today and I wish I would have entered".
She was fishing for walleye and when she caught the bass she "was pleasantly
surprised, especially when I found out that they seldom catch smallmouth
bass that size in Western South Dakota."
After seeing the picture of smallmouth I got to thinking that I had caught a lot of largemouth bass in stock dams in Western South Dakota over the years, but never had any experience with the smallmouths. I noticed the smallmouth bass had vertical strips while the largemouth has a horizontal one and the mouth size is spread beyond the eyes on the largemouth, but that was the only difference I knew about. In an effort to find out more about the smallmouth bass I talked with Gene Galinat , fisheries specialist for the South Dakota Game, Fish and Parks in Rapid City.
Galinat said that during fish checks "I have seen several nice sized smallmouth bass in Angostura, but I do not recall seeing one as big as the one Mary Geitz caught." I asked Galinat what positive steps were taken to make for such excellent smallmouth fishing. He says that "smallmouth bass like rocky points and fairly clear water, there are plenty of rocky points in Angostura." They like fairly deep water and are seldom found in shallow lakes or where the water is murky or polluted.
Galinat says "the smallmouth are strong fighters and have outstanding leaping ability, making them a favorite sport fish". Also he stated "since we introduced Gizzard Shad as white forage fish in 1992 and 1994, there has been an increase in the size of walleye, northern and bass in this reservoir."
Gizzard Shad are from the Goldeye species, with a silvery compressed body, and have sharp scales on the belly. The last ray of the dorsal fin is elongated. According to Galinat, "South Dakota is close to the northern limit of distribution for this fish species". They are found only in the Missouri River system up to Lake Oahe and in a few other rivers and lakes.
Gizzard shad are important prey fish in many impoundments throughout the United States. Although adults can grow to 1 or 2 pounds, most in South Dakota die during their first winter because of the cold water temperatures and other factors. Young gizzard shad typically reach 2 to 4 inches by late summer. They form large schools of several thousand fish and are heavily preyed upon by fishes such as crappies, walleyes, northern pike and obviously, smallmouths. Gizzard shad spawn in the spring, usually over flooded vegetation in shallow water.
They feed primarily on microscopic plants and animals and also obtain food from decaying organic material on lake bottoms. Anglers seldom catch gizzard shad.
Angostura Reservoir is located about 9 miles south of Hot Springs, SD which is in the Southwest corner of the state. The Cheyenne River feeds the reservoir. Formed by the Bureau of Reclamation for irrigation, it is also used for flood control and recreation.
The construction was started in 1946 and finished in 1949. The face of the dam is filled with 850,000 cubic yards of concrete. It is a rather large dam that when at 100% capacity, encompasses about 7 square miles.
The South Dakota Game, Fish and Parks personnel describe the lake as follows: Angostura is a lake with an average depth of 29 feet and the deepest part is 75 feet. The lake's average summer temperature is 66 degrees. The reservoir has 36 miles of shoreline and some of the finest sandy beaches in the state. Angostura Resort Management provides concessionaire services to the park through a marina with 3 locations and 155 boat slips, a beach club, four rental lodges with outdoor pool and a full service floating convenience store in the marina.
Because of several dry years in succession, the dam is at about 50% capacity this year.
According
to Galinat, "although it would be nice if the dam had a little more
water, it still does well producing fish at this level." I think Mary
Geitz would agree.
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