Turtles

[Ranger375]

Seems to me somewhere I recall some body saying that if you see turtles in area you are trying to fish you won't find fish. Has anybody else heard this. Seemed like yesterday everywhere I tried the turtles were out sunning themselves and the fish were not biting.

[DENNIS BOWERS]

Ranger-never Heard It But There May Be Something To It!!alot Of Boat Traffic Yesterday So I Got Deep In The Bushes. Turtles Were Everywhere Sunnin Themselves--only Caught 5 In About 4 Hours.it Sure Beat The Options Of Getting Ran Over Or Having My Grandaughter Get Thrown Out Of The Boat By Peoples Wakes! Good Fishin To Ya!!!dennis

[whiplash]

Seems to me somewhere I recall some body saying that if you see turtles in area you are trying to fish you won't find fish. Has anybody else heard this. Seemed like yesterday everywhere I tried the turtles were out sunning themselves and the fish were not biting.

new one on me

[Moose1am]

Ranger I have not heard that. Now stop and think about what type of life you find in a pond. Take a small body of water about a acer is size? You may find algae, planton, crayfish, turtles, snakes and fish all living in this small body of water. There will be all kinds of terresterial (land) insects and Aquatic (water) insects in this pond as well. The fish will have to eat sometime or they would die. Now we have many a small pond like this thoughout the America's and they most always have some fish and turtles in them.


Here is what I have found to be true about turtles. They like to hide in brush piles. If you are out on the lake or pond and have a depth sounder and see a turle come up to the surface and then go back down check the area out for a brush pile. I read or heard about this somewhere and was fishing the Teezer Crappie Fishing Tournament last Nov when I was having trouble finding a brush pile in shallow 8ft deep water with my GPS and it's Kentucky Lake FHS digital Map. The GPS boat icon was right over the brush pile icon but the brush pile icon was much bigger on the screen and I could not find the brush pile with my sonar. I was with Russ Bailey's cameraman from Midwest Crappie, Jeff, and we were trying to find the only marked brush pile in Sulfur creek. The winds were so fierce that I could not fish the brush pile out by the mouth of Sulfur Creek so we were looking for the brush pile in shallow water at the back of the bay where it was protected from the wind.

after about 10 to 15 minutes of motoring around looking at the GPS map screen and the depth finder I was about to give up when I looked around and saw a turtle surface and dive back down about 100 to 200ft to my south. I said that there was the brush pile and related the story about turtles using brush piles to hide amoung the brush. So we went to where the turtle had come up for air and found the brush pile in that spot. The digital FHS Kentucky Lake map was off on it's brush pile loction but the trutle helped me find that brush pile straight away.

Turtles will steal your minnows though so watch out for that.

I think I got this information about turtles and brush piles by watching a nature show on TV. Wild America by Marty Stoufer.

Seems to me somewhere I recall some body saying that if you see turtles in area you are trying to fish you won't find fish. Has anybody else heard this. Seemed like yesterday everywhere I tried the turtles were out sunning themselves and the fish were not biting.

[crappster]

For the past three years I have had a small turtle in a 75 gallon tank with an assortment of crappie, bass, bream, and catfish in with him. None of them showed any fear of the turtle or even acknowledged him. And he was bigger than all of them too. So I think its one of those natural things etched into the fish's brain.

[Crapbie]

Here in Florida not a day goes by I do not see turtles out. I go to 2 city lakes and both have turtles out all times of the day. you can see them sunning themselves on the sides and you can see there heads sticking out the water as they sunbathe on the top of the water if the sides are to congested (they are very jumpy the larger they get). Most are large red ear sliders I think as I have seen some close up but there are other kinds too but they all act the same and there would have to be one hell of a lot of turtles to affect the fish populations in either as I walk around them daily feeding the minnow schools and ducks and such and would notice the turtles being a menace. I notice them making love alot more then making dinner : ) smart turtles

[scrap]

Ranger I have not heard that. Now stop and think about what type of life you find in a pond. Take a small body of water about a acer is size? You may find algae, planton, crayfish, turtles, snakes and fish all living in this small body of water. There will be all kinds of terresterial (land) insects and Aquatic (water) insects in this pond as well. The fish will have to eat sometime or they would die. Now we have many a small pond like this thoughout the America's and they most always have some fish and turtles in them.


Here is what I have found to be true about turtles. They like to hide in brush piles. If you are out on the lake or pond and have a depth sounder and see a turle come up to the surface and then go back down check the area out for a brush pile. I read or heard about this somewhere and was fishing the Teezer Crappie Fishing Tournament last Nov when I was having trouble finding a brush pile in shallow 8ft deep water with my GPS and it's Kentucky Lake FHS digital Map. The GPS boat icon was right over the brush pile icon but the brush pile icon was much bigger on the screen and I could not find the brush pile with my sonar. I was with Russ Bailey's cameraman from Midwest Crappie, Jeff, and we were trying to find the only marked brush pile in Sulfur creek. The winds were so fierce that I could not fish the brush pile out by the mouth of Sulfur Creek so we were looking for the brush pile in shallow water at the back of the bay where it was protected from the wind.

after about 10 to 15 minutes of motoring around looking at the GPS map screen and the depth finder I was about to give up when I looked around and saw a turtle surface and dive back down about 100 to 200ft to my south. I said that there was the brush pile and related the story about turtles using brush piles to hide amoung the brush. So we went to where the turtle had come up for air and found the brush pile in that spot. The digital FHS Kentucky Lake map was off on it's brush pile loction but the trutle helped me find that brush pile straight away.

Turtles will steal your minnows though so watch out for that.

I think I got this information about turtles and brush piles by watching a nature show on TV. Wild America by Marty Stoufer.

The wealth of knowledge on this site is amazing. I learn something new everytime I log on. Thanks everyone.

[Crapbie]

Tutles love bacon lol I hope no one catches any though or they will get the turtle curse blah.....

[TAE73]

I would say no if they are just sunning themselfs, but if they splash back into the water to go in hiding. I would think that would scare the crappie especially during the spawn.

[Meat on the Table]

I read a book one time on crappie fishing, and the author (some fish bioligist) called turtles chrysemys locators. He went on to say if turtles were present ina brush pile so would crappie be there. I can't say with any certainty either way from personal experience.