Fish origin in the Salton Sea?

[Ifishtoolittle]

Can anyone here on the board tell me where the famous corvina, gulf croaker, sargo, and tilapia orginated from in the Salton Sea?

[Nessie Hunter]

The Salton Sea was part of the The Gulf of California (also known as the Sea of Cortez) A zillion years ago...
A land bridge developed and cut it off...
The fish were trapped and did well for many many many years...

http://tinyurl.com/o9da3

It has been flooded many times over the years by the Colorado River during big flood stages..
Also is fed by Agriculture run off from the area. Which is why it has become so polluted (the runoff is full of nitrates from Fertilizer etc).

The origin of the Saltwater fish was from 10,000 yrs ago and the Gulf Of Calif.. Corvina are still found in the Gulfs warm waters...

***
Tales of a Spanish galleon lost in the sands of the Colorado Desert (Imperial Valley & Salton Sea area) keep recurring, from an amazing variety of sources. One of the most persistent made the pages of the Los Angeles Star in 1870. It seems that hundreds of years ago, when the waters of the Gulf of California came up into the desert, a pirate ship sailed up the Gulf. It was caught in some cross currents and went aground on a sand bar. The crew died, and the ship was left stranded there with almost a million doubloons and pieces of eight in her hulk. It's only when the wind blows and the sand clears that you can get a good look at her, and then the same wind comes along and covers her up again. The Star locates the wreck about ten miles from Dos Palmas. The newspaper gives a graphic description of the time when the Gulf occupied the entire valley, and, in fact, connected up with the Pacific Ocean through San Gorgonio Pass and Los Angeles. The Star did a series of articles speculating that the ship might have been one of the units of King Solomon's navy, or the craft that carried the ten lost tribes of Israel to America; and for the latter offered proof that the tribes never reached America but died of diptheria in the Sandwich Islands! Another idea advanced was that a war-like people from the Indian Sea took a tempestuous voyage to the Gulf of California. Here their ship, Bully Boy, sank in treacherous quicksands. Her hull was made of teakwood and did not rot. The Digger Indians of California are descendants of this Shoo-fly tribe.
***




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[DEADROOTS]

You see the big brown strip which starts almost at the top of california and moves down all the way till about the Ventura areas and in the middle towards the left you see the bay area? Well that was a huge salt water body a long time ago before it was all drained out in to the Pacific through the bay area. With this map you can see what was under water and where it drained! Pretty neat huh?

[Jig-Guy]

Neat stuff, thanks for the post.

Jig-Guy

[Ifishtoolittle]

Thanks for the info guys.

[sansou]

Can anyone here on the board tell me where the famous corvina, gulf croaker, sargo, and tilapia orginated from in the Salton Sea?

Perhaps I'm misreading the call of the question based on the answers I see, but in a nutshell this is my understanding....

Around the turn of the 20th century a levee down south broke. Water filled up the dry below-sea level land we now called the Salton Sea. Around the 1950s corvina and sargo were succesfully planted (among dozens of other fish that they tried) and the place was promoted as a resort. As of very recent surveys, the only sportfish that have survived in the last 5 years are short tilapia.

Prior to the levee breaking, there was NO WATER at the "Salton Sea" for thousands of years.

[Carpholeo]

Actually, the Tilapia cant reproduce in the Salton sea, they get washed in every year from the Alamo,New river and other irrigation canal runoff.

[City Dad]

Perhaps I'm misreading the call of the question based on the answers I see, but in a nutshell this is my understanding....

Around the turn of the 20th century a levee down south broke. Water filled up the dry below-sea level land we now called the Salton Sea. Around the 1950s corvina and sargo were succesfully planted (among dozens of other fish that they tried) and the place was promoted as a resort. As of very recent surveys, the only sportfish that have survived in the last 5 years are short tilapia.

Prior to the levee breaking, there was NO WATER at the "Salton Sea" for thousands of years.


Rich,

Once again, you have allowed the facts to cloud an otherwise inspired story.

Everyone knows that Paul Bunyan is responsible for the Salton Sea and all the aquatic life therein...

(Must you be a lawyer 24 hours a day?!?!?):ROFL:

[DarkShadow]

Everyone knows that Paul Bunyan is responsible for the Salton Sea and all the aquatic life therein...


And I guess Babe, his big blue ox, is responsible for the smell?

[lurk 182]

Rich,

Once again, you have allowed the facts to cloud an otherwise inspired story.

Everyone knows that Paul Bunyan is responsible for the Salton Sea and all the aquatic life therein...

(Must you be a lawyer 24 hours a day?!?!?):ROFL:

seriously, any thoughts on Santa Claus?

[fishmounter]

No Carpholeo, I think you're wrong. I think the Tilapias do reproduce in the Sea. I've been there miles and miles from any creek or canal and have seen thousands, if not millions of tiny 1/4 inch long Tilapia fry. These mouthbreeding fish are not suppose to be in saltwater, but they have survived and adapted and evidently reproduce quite successfully. Also I wanted to add that one of the fish that the old CFG tried to introduce into the Salton Sea was the Pacific Bonito! That would have been crazy!

[Carpholeo]

Then why dont they get bigger than 1# or so

[pwynn]

I beleive they do reproduce in the sea, be it in the area's where the new and alamo come in, i have seen millions of fry swimming around in the lake. They do reporduce in the sea. They dont get over a pound because thir life cycle is cut short by the algae blooms that seem to have gotten worse. as for the bonito that is true they also tried striper and sharks.

[crystalmath79]

The message about the irrigation levees collapsing causing the basin to fill is how the Salton Sea came to be. All the fish were introduced into the sea to make it a fishing destination. Although a lot of tilapia die during the algae blooms, plenty do survive and reproduce. The reason they're around 1lb could be because of all the huge numbers of tilapia. If only the bonito managed to thrive there...

[fishmounter]

I've seen them average 12 to 14 inches long there a few years ago. Seriously! A few were over 3 lbs and about 16 inches long! Strong fighting fish on light tackle! Like huge crappie with muscles. As long as they have food, and oxygen, they will grow to these sizes. If there is a bad algae bloom that depletes the sea of oxygen, there will be big Tilapia die offs like in the past.

[Carpholeo]

I'd have to actually see the beds before i believe it, anyone seen them?

[annex138]

I spent every summer break as a kid out at the sea. I have seen ton of beds out in the sea.

[fishmounter]

They are mouth breeders...they don't make nests...

[BassinPLS]

Perhaps I'm misreading the call of the question based on the answers I see, but in a nutshell this is my understanding....

Around the turn of the 20th century a levee down south broke. Water filled up the dry below-sea level land we now called the Salton Sea. Around the 1950s corvina and sargo were succesfully planted (among dozens of other fish that they tried) and the place was promoted as a resort. As of very recent surveys, the only sportfish that have survived in the last 5 years are short tilapia.

Prior to the levee breaking, there was NO WATER at the "Salton Sea" for thousands of years.

I agree with Sanou's opinion as to how the Salton Sea was created, (for what it is worth)!
BassinPLS

[Mister Twister]

I agree with Sanou's opinion as to how the Salton Sea was created, (for what it is worth)!
BassinPLS Yep, the fish were stocked,1905 the levee broke.

[crappie stalker]

Actually, the Tilapia cant reproduce in the Salton sea, they get washed in every year from the Alamo,New river and other irrigation canal runoff.
Are you sure because I have seen them bedded up around the shore sitting on there nest.. They dont usually do that unless they are on eggs and or fry.. You can see hundreds of round circles with Big tilapia floating about them...

CS

[pwynn]

their will be beds everywhere in the marina at the state park as soon as the weather starts warming up

[ToadsToadsOnly]

Quick Google Search
http://www.aquaticcommunity.com/tilapia/invasivespecies.php
"Many species of tilapia are amazingly adaptable and this makes them especially prone to becoming problematic invasive species. Quite a few tilapias can adapt to brackish conditions and some are even capable of living where the salinity is 35 ppt, the average salinity of sea water. Tilapias are also famous for their opportunistic feeding style and many species can make use of a wide range of food sources, from aquatic invertebrates and small fish to decomposing organic matter (detritus), plants and plankton. In addition to this, many species and variants breed rapidly and grow fast. It should however be noted that most species are sensitive to cold since they hail from tropical environments.

Tilapia can cause problems for native flora and fauna in several ways. They will compete with other species for food and can disrupt the ecological balance. Tilapia can also cause turbidity in clear waters since they are fond of digging. Turbidity will reduce the amount of available light in the water, which affects all organisms relying on photosynthesis.

Examples of tilapia as an invasive species
In the United States, established tilapia populations of tilapia occur in the many different parts of the country. There is for instance a thriving population of Oreochromis mossambicus in Salton Sea, an inland saline lake in Southern California."

Here is the history of salton sea;
http://www.saltonsea.ca.gov/histchron.htm

Intresting fact:

1950: Orange mouth corvina becomes the first salt water game fish to be successfully established in the Salton Sea. Short fin corvina and gulf croacker are also successfully transplanted.

1951: 65 sargo introduced to the Salton Sea—they quickly multiply and become the most abundant fish caught in Salton Sea until their numbers begin declining presumably due to salinity.

[SOSO]

Anyone have actual real life experiences at Salton Sea that they can share? Pics?

[KID CREOLE]

I've fished the Salton Sea since I was a kid, 25 or so years ago. The fishing was epic during the 80s and 90s with the surge of Talapia. I have caught 100's if not 1000s of Corvina but kept very few, only fish that couldn't survive release. When the fishing spawning, late April early May, you could hear the fish moving through the water, males looking to spawn would surrounf females up on the surface, croaking, splashing around and stuff.

Typically, Corvina would swim with fish of their own size, 5lbrs with 5 lbrs, 20 lbrs with 20 lbrs. Smaller fish were easy to catch on small crome jigs like crocodiles and spoons, larger Corvina loved to eat yellowfin croaker which at that time the Sea was full of them!

Typically you neede three rods, a small 8 lb rod for catching yellowfin with, a 10 to 30 lb rod that you might fish the ocean with and then a 7 to 8 ft flipping rod to throw swim baits.


Back in the 80's or so was the time Kalin lures got going, the owner Al Kalin used fish the Sea started producing the swim bait called the lunker lure. These soft swim baits were very effective, pink, pearl and chartruse were great colors to use. Later on, other swimbaits came out that were a little more effective!

At times when we were looking for Corvina we would troll a few lures, once we go bit we tossed over a float with a short 20 ft section of rope and would drift this area until the fish moved on, this was before GPS chart plotters came out!

Fishing was still very good until about 6 years ago, when the water deal to move farm water to the city of San Diego put the nails in the coffin of the Salton Sea.

With all the bad press the Sea has gotten, I would give up fishing anywhere else to have back the fishing at the Salton Sea the way it was!

Here was a average fish!

http://www.bloodydecks.com/gallery/files/8/9/1/corvina2.jpg

http://www.bloodydecks.com/gallery/files/8/9/1/corvina5.jpg

Wild Pink Flamingos on the shore of Salton Sea

http://www.bloodydecks.com/gallery/files/8/9/1/saltonseaflamingos.jpg

[PHISHnutS]

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v644/PHISHnutS/Trevssaltydawg.jpg