LEXINGTON COUNTY, S.C. — As temperatures begin to warm up, more people are heading out to the lake to go fishing. Before more anglers cast their lines, the South Carolina Department of Natural Resources is working to restore the fish population and habitats in Lake Murray.
Two dozens fishing hotspots are spread along the shores of Lake Murray, housing thousands of fish. SCDNR calls these spots "fish attractors."
The agency is dropping old Christmas trees in the lake.
"It does help the lake a lot," said Rusty Whaley, Lake Murray Resident. "A lot of people fish for crappie. It draws bate fish in, and then you fish around the beds and you catch fish."
Whaley said trees are dropped in about 20 feet of water.
"When the lake goes downs, you still have plenty of water to cover the beds," Whaley said. "This time of the year, as the water temperatures get like this, like I said, the fish will come out of the deeper water and head to the shallows to spawn. And once they spawn, they head back out. And a lot of times, that's where they congregate and feed in those areas."
Jason Bettinger is the Region 3 Fishery Coordinator for SCDNR. He said each year, more than 300 trees are dropped in the lake, with between 20-30 trees dropped at a dozen attractors, every other year. In total, there are 24 sites.
"They’re deteriorating and that’s why we’re replacing them on a 2 year cycle, essentially, so we can keep that habitat there," Bettinger said. "It provides some complex habitat for juvenile fishes."
Bettinger explains people can't just drop their own Christmas trees in the lake.
"We operate under a permit form the core of engineers," Bettinger said. "Anyone that was looking to do their own habitats, sink their own Christmas trees, they probably need to contact the Dominion Energy Lake Management for Lake Murray."
To learn where these Fish Attractors are located, CLICK HERE.