Tuesday, August 4, 2009
New Sportfish Comes to Huntington North
Huntington North Reservoir received a new sportfish recently. On July 9, Division of Wildlife Resources hatchery workers flushed 10,000 wriggling wipers out of a hatchery truck and into its waters.
Wipers are a sterile cross between a striped bass and a white bass. They can grow to be more than two feet long and weigh almost 10 pounds.
Controlling chubs at Huntington North is home to a number of sportfish, including largemouth bass, channel catfish, bluegill and several species of trout. Unfortunately, the Utah chub, which has proven to be a nemesis at many Utah waters, also lives in the reservoir. The new infusion of wipers should help control the reservoir’s chub population.
Wipers are a pelagic fish that like to cruise for their prey. The basin-shaped construction of Huntington North is ideal for this species. Its shape should make it easy for wiper schools to patrolits open waters. The 1½- to 2-inch sized newcomers could be as long as 10 inches by next summer.
In three to four years, they should be at their chub-eating prime.Get ready for a big fight! In addition to being great chub eaters, wipers are also an exciting sportfish. They’re aggressive fighters -- once you hook one, getready for plenty of action. And make sure you take some home to eat; they’re delicious!
The daily wiper limit at Huntington North is six fish. Huntington North Reservoir is part of Huntington State Park. The parkis just outside of Huntington in central Utah. For more information, call the DWR’s Southeastern Region office at (435) 613-3700.
Labels:
Huntington North Reservoir,
Utah Chub,
Utah Fishing,
wipers