According to Graham a key surface water temperature anglers should keep in mind is 68 degrees. At that mark, added stress from long fights can increase mortality substantially.

“At that point, if you’re still wanting to fish the same waters, you should consider keeping what you catch if it’s legal to do so,” Graham said. “I know there’s a very strong catch-and-release ethic with our avid trout anglers, but there’s nothing wrong with keeping a few fish occasionally for a meal. Survival rates from fish that came from 68-degree and warmer water are pretty low, and we do need some harvest of trout to keep the system in balance and increase growth rates of the fish left.”

Graham says the best way to keep an eye on the water temperature is to carry a small pocket thermometer and make periodic checks where you are fishing.

“If you come across that 68-degree threshold, you may want to move upstream to cooler water,” Graham said. “The fishing is likely to be better where the trout are more comfortable and in a feeding mood anyway.”

Even at water temperature ranging 65 to 67 degrees, anglers may consider only fishing during the morning and using heavier gear to get fish in quickly instead of adding undue stress from long fights.

“Avoid fighting fish to the point of exhaustion and keep the fish in the water as much as possible if you plan to release it,” Graham said. “Even pulling it from the water for pictures can add enough stress to tip the scales and increase the chance of mortality after release.”

Angling is still one of the best ways to beat the summer heat, and the cold water of Arkansas’s trout streams make an ideal setting to enjoy a relaxing day on the water away from the noise of boats and beachgoers. With a few precautions, anglers can enjoy this resource and save the experience for the next generation.

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ANGLER WITH TROUT
Keeping fights short and keeping the fish in the water as much as possible can help trout recover from catch-and-release efforts during summer.

BROWN TROUT
Brown trout and rainbow trout both seek cooler water during summer, and anglers interested in releasing their catch should refrain from chasing fish in waters above 68 degrees. 

“Although the traditional trout waters end at Monaghan Womack Access where Highway 305 crosses the river, the researchers tagged fish from Highway 305 to Searcy to determine if there is a resident population in that portion of the river and if those fish are moving into the managed portion of the river during certain times of the year,” Graham said.

Previous research played a big part in the effort as well, according to Graham.

“Spawning research conducted by UAPB from 2020-2021 pointed out the shallow riffles and shoals that contain high numbers of spawning fish, and we avoided all of those areas to prevent disturbing the spawn as much as possible,” Graham said.

Researchers surgically implanted radio transmitters into the undersides of the fish, taking care to place the units where they would cause no harm and not interfere with the fish’s ability to swim or feed. Rather than using chemicals or drugs to anesthetize the fish during surgery, the team used specialized gloves that used low rates of electric current to immobilize the fish. This allowed them to complete the surgery quickly without long recovery times or side effects. Fish were able to swim away within minutes of the procedure, and very little, if any, mortality has been noticed thus far.

“They have received signals from 147 of the 150 transmitters so far, so we’re confident that very little complications were experienced as a result of the implantation surgeries,” Graham said. “The radio antenna protruding from the underside of the fish may seem a bit odd if an angler catches one, but that long antenna is needed to help the signal penetrate the water far enough to be picked up by receivers placed along the river.”

Graham says she has heard reports from many anglers and seen social media posts about catching some of the fish. Anglers are asked to consider releasing the fish to help continue the study, but if they do harvest them to please give the location and time where they were caught. Graham says the news that tagged fish are being caught is actually encouraging.

“It means the transmitters aren’t interfering with the trout’s behavior,” Graham said. “They’re still being trout and doing trout things, so they should represent movements of other brown trout in the system.”

Graham says they’ve  already seen some fascinating results from the study, including one fish that swam 806 miles up and down the river within the first 6 weeks of being tagged.

“If you look at that one’s movements, it just kept going up and down the river from just above Cow Shoals  all the way to the Ramsey Access,” Graham said.

UAPB researchers aren’t just sitting and waiting for the receivers to collect data, either. They’ve also boated up and down the river periodically with a portable radio receiver to capture locations on fish that may be homebodies.

“Each signal is unique, so once all of these data are collected, we’ll be able to compare each fish’s movement and look at all the local factors that may have played a role in their behavior,” Graham said. “This is really the first time I know of any research like this being done on brown trout in Arkansas, or anywhere else for that matter.”

Graham has coordinated with UAPB to hold a public meeting regarding trout management, habitat and research on the Greers Ferry Tailwater from 5:30 p.m.-7:30 p.m. May 7 in Room 3 of the Heber Springs Community Center at 201 Bobbie Jean Lane. Anyone interested in the radio telemetry project or other research being conducted on the river is encouraged to attend.

“We also give regular updates on our research through our Fisheries newsletters and AGFC Fisheries Division Facebook Page,” Graham said. “Those are great resources to keep up with all of the work going on throughout the state for trout as well as warmwater fisheries in The Natural State.”

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CUTLINES

BROWN TROUT IN HANDS
Researchers from UAPB are involved in an extensive telemetry study to learn more about daily movements of brown trout on the Little Red River below Greers Ferry Dam. Photo courtesy of UAPB.

RESEARCHERS IMPLANTING TRANSMITTER
Special gloves were used to immobilize trout while completing the surgery, preventing the need for chemicals or drugs to accomplish the project. Photo courtesy of UAPB.

RESEARCHERS IN BOAT
Radio signal receivers are placed along the Little Red River to detect fish movements, and researchers survey the areas between the stationary receivers to fill in any gaps. Photo courtesy of UAPB.

TROUT AFTER SURGERY
Although unsightly, the transmitter surgeries have not affected the small number of tagged trout’s ability to swim or feed. Photo courtesy of UAPB.

“When I caught a trout to start the year, I decided to see just how fast I could get it done,” Ferguson said. “I caught a bass the next day, then a catfish and bluegill the day after. I went one day without that last fish, so I went to Higginson Lake because I know it’s got crappie, and I caught that one the next day.”

JJ Gladden, AGFC assistant chief of education, said the beauty of the Arkansas Grand Slam program is that an angler doesn’t have to have access to many bodies of water or a boat to complete the award.

“You can do it in a single Family and Community Fishing Program pond if we stock it with trout in winter,” Gladden said. “Or you can go nuts and travel all over the state if you want to. The main thing is to get out, fish and have a good time.”

All qualifying applicants will receive a decal to put on their car, boat or tackle box letting all their angling buddies know they are a fishing fanatic.

Fanatic is a bit of an understatement when it comes to Ferguson. When we caught up with her for an interview, she had just loaded her kayak and was headed to the Kayak Bass Fishing National Championship being held in Alabama on Lake Guntersville April 3-6.

“I fished the Catch 22 nationwide online fishing tournament last year and the team I was in placed in the top three, which qualified for the national championship this year,” Ferguson said. “I’m really excited about it. I normally fish from the bank, and I’ve been a little cautious about fishing in a lake here in Arkansas, but here I am, about to fish in a kayak on a 69,000-acre lake!”

Ferguson says she began fishing about six years ago, when her children were about to head off on their own.

“I wanted something fun to do with all the extra time I was going to have,” Ferguson said. “I got some of my husband’s fishing stuff out of the garage and started going to Searcy City Lake. For the first year and a half, I caught nothing but panfish, but then I caught my first largemouth and it was ‘game on!’ I’ve since caught my personal best largemouth at 6.8 pounds down at [Rick Evans Grandview Nature Center].”

Ferguson volunteers for anything fishing related with the AGFC’s Fishing in The Natural State or Becoming an Outdoors-Woman programs.

“I try to help people out whenever I’m fishing and see someone holding their rod wrong or looking lost, and I volunteer with Lea White (AGFC BOW coordinator) and Bo Davidson (AGFC FINS coordinator) whenever I can,” Ferguson said.

Ferguson doesn’t just fish. Thanks to an extensive lineup of courses and offerings she learned about through the AGFC, she’s gone headfirst into hunting as well. “I’ve been able to do so much in the outdoors thanks to the [Arkansas Game and Fish Commission]. I got to take my first deer, my first alligator, went on my first duck hunt and my first quail hunt, and that is all since October!”

Visit www.agfc.com/education/arkansas-grand-slam to learn more about the Arkansas Grand Slam and apply for your award when you’ve completed the quest.

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CUTLINES:

WOMAN WITH BLUEGILL
Caroline Ferguson caught this nice bluegill in her four-day quest to complete the Arkansas Grand Slam this year. Photo courtesy of Caronline Ferguson.

WOMAN WITH TROUT
A rainbow trout at Searcy City Lake kicked off Ferguson’s Arkansas Grand Slam for the second year in a row. Photo courtesy of Caronline Ferguson.

LOGO
The Arkansas Grand Slam is an incentive-based program to reward anglers who catch at least one bream, one bass, one catfish, one crappie and one trout in a single year.

WOMAN WITH CRAPPIE
He might be small, but this crappie completed Ferguson’s Grand Slam Fishing Award. Fish of any size qualify. Photo courtesy of Caronline Ferguson.