Passport to Texas

Shane Bonnot, hatchery biologist at Sea Center Texas in Lake Jackson, looks over one of several flounder brood stock tanks where fertilized eggs will be recovered.

Stocking Southern Flounder Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

This is Passport to Texas

Spotted sea trout, redfish and southern flounder are the top three popular sportfish. Sea trout and redfish populations are stable, but not so for Southern Flounder.

We’ve had a slow, but stead, decrease in flounder populations throughout the coast of Texas. It’s been worse in some bays than it has in others. But it’s just been a slow decline.

David Abrego oversees the hatchery program at Sea Center Texas. Data suggests fewer females, over fishing, and loss due to shrimp bycatch are some of the main issues affecting flounder. Coastal hatcheries are tasked with helping boost the Southern Flounder populations.

The whole point of the stocking enhancement program is to supplement the natural population with fish.

Former stocking team member, Shane Bonnot, says there’s a learning curve with flounder.

Flounder is totally different than redfish and trout; it’s a whole new ballgame. So, we’re at the beginning stages of learning how to culture this fish.

The process begins with capturing male brooders to fertilize the eggs. And it’s not easy to do.

You have so many factors that can go against you. Whether it’s the wind, or a strong tide. And of course, visibility is not optimal.

They breed healthy males with females at the hatchery, and after three months, they release thousands of flounder fingerlings into the bays to supplement the wild population…for your angling pleasure.

The Sport Fish Restoration program supports our series.

For Texas Parks and Wildlife, I’m Cecilia Nasti.

Summer Neighborhood Fishin' Means Catfish Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

This is Passport to Texas

It’s catfish stocking season in Texas, and thanks to the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department’s Neighborhood Fishin’ program families won’t have to travel outside of the city to catch them.

Parks and Wildlife’s Inland fisheries Department began stocking catchable-sized catfish this spring in 18 Neighborhood Fishin’ lakes in Texas’ metro areas.

The Neighborhood Fishin’ program encourages people to get involved in the outdoors by creating fun, convenient, and close-to-home opportunities where families can catch fish anytime they are ready to go.

Each of the lakes will receive continuous stockings of channel catfish every two weeks through early November—with a brief pause in August. The stocking schedule ensures families looking to spend quality time fishing together outdoors can do so conveniently.

These urban area parks are the easiest places in Texas for families to catch a fish close to home. Eighty-five percent of us live near one of these small lakes and ponds. By making fishing accessible, we’re helping create a whole new generation of anglers.

To find the Neighborhood Fishin’ pond near you or to sign up for email updates, visit neighborhoodfishing.org.

The Sportfish Restoration Program Supports our series.

For Texas Parks and Wildlife, I’m Cecilia Nasti.

Florida largemouth bass fingerlings

Stocking Lakes After the Floods Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

With so many reservoirs catching water from late spring rains, fishing in Texas is going to be better than ever in both the short and long term.

10- Texas was blessed with an abundance of water. And thanks to good, creative planning, we were able to redirect many thousands of fish to our lakes of greatest need.

Dave Terre, with Inland Fisheries, says lakes with increased water offer improved stocking survival…

08- …because of all this additional habitat. So, we’re able to divert those resources to those lakes to ensure that we have quality fishing for years to come.

This year, Texas Parks and Wildlife plans to stock between 6 and 8 million Florida largemouth bass.

17- A lot of those fish are going to the lakes that need it the worst. For those lakes that we can’t get to this year, we’re going to go ahead and get to them next year, or the year after next. Texas has about a thousand public reservoirs in the state, and four fish hatcheries to supply fisheries resources to those
reservoirs and rivers.

Find which species Texas Parks and Wildlife plans to stock, and where they plan to stock them when you log onto the Texas Parks and Wildlife website.

The Sport Fish restoration supports our series.

For Texas Parks and Wildlife, I’m Cecilia Nasti.