Lake Shelbyville - The Annual Fish Habitat Improvement Project at Lake Shelbyville is scheduled for Saturday, March 9, 2013. Volunteers are needed to help bundle 412 donated Christmas trees, assemble 160 new artificial fish attractors and help place all of the fish attractors in the lake. Due to the size of the artificial fish attractors they will need to be assembled on site. Anyone interested in volunteering should meet at the Coon Creek Boat Ramp at 9:00 a.m. on Saturday, March 9, 2013. If the conditions are not conducive on the 9th the work day will push backed to Saturday, March 16, 2013.
This year volunteers are asked to bring their pontoon boats as well as jon boats. The artificial attractors are approximately 5 feet in diameter and are more easily transported on a pontoon boat. If there is a shortage of boats it will slow down placement of the structures. If you have a boat and can bring it to help, please contact Natural Resources Specialist Ashley Florey at (217) 774-3951, ext. 7005 before the work day for planning purposes.
The donated Christmas trees will be bundled together in small groups, then taken out by boat and submerged in the lake at select locations. The attractors provide fish with breeding areas and escape cover. With the increase of habitat, fish have a better chance to reach maturity. The structures also provide a resource for anglers. This is the 32nd year this program and workday has been in operation at Lake Shelbyville to help provide and maintain suitable cover for fish.
The Lake Shelbyville U.S. Army Corps of Engineers will be providing lunch for the volunteers after the work is completed at the Lake Shelbyville Visitor Center Auditorium. All volunteers will receive maps detailing where the trees and artificial attractors were placed for later fishing reference. Maps will not be supplied to the general public, so if you would like one, we will see you on Saturday, March 9, 2013 at Coon Creek Boat Ramp. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Illinois Department of Natural Resources greatly appreciates the communities of Shelbyville and Sullivan for their support of this project. We would like to thank Wal-mart of Shelbyville for donating all of their left over Christmas Trees, Fox and Austin Masonry & Concrete Construction for donating oversized bricks for artificial fish attractors’ anchors, Johnstown Mall and the City of Sullivan for providing areas for collecting trees.
For more information on this fish habitat project contact Natural Resources Specialist Ashley Florey at (217) 774-3951 ext. 7005 or Fish Biologist Mike Mounce at (217) 345-2420.
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Release no. 13-021