1934 -1987 Fisheries Study

Waterbody: Babcock Lake Location: Rensselaer County, Town of Grafton, NY Watershed Index No. (WIN) = H264-4-P1095-3-6-P1109 Status: Private Warmwater Fishery. The following information is a summary of historic records compiled by Ian Kiraly, Region 4 fisheries office; Stamford, NY 607-652-7366 (Nov 2008).

Babcock Lake Fish Surveys (1934-1987) Gillnet and seine net surveys were conducted in Babcock Lake on September 11, 1934. The shoreline was wooded, and aquatic vegetation was scant and mostly floating. Before the surveys, the pond had already been stocked with smallmouth bass, yellow perch, and largemouth bass. Two gillnets were set near the North end of the lake, along the Eastern and Western shores, and many areas close to the shoreline were sampled using the seine net.The survey found smallmouth bass, chain pickerel, pumpkinseeds, and brown bullheads to be common. Yellow perch were quite abundant, blacknose dace were rare. Largemouth bass were not collected in the survey, but were reported common by Leo Watson. There were 67 cottages on the lake, and despite heavy angling pressure, fish were abundant. Young bass, however, were not very common, possibly because adult spawner bass had been caught out (reducing recruitment potential). Large bass were seldom caught by anglers, according to reports. Few largemouth bass had been caught by anglers, and the lake was believed to be better suited for smallmouth bass (good depth, little veg). The outlet of the pond was artificial, and was at the South end rather than the Southwest corner of the lake. A large beach was also constructed on the Eastern shore.

On June 20, and July 1, 1952, the lake was surveyed by observation. The shoreline was still wooded, and vegetation was scant. The water was clear, with ideal conditions for fish observation. Of those fish observed, pumpkinseeds were overly abundant. Smallmouth and largemouth bass were common, but with small bass. Rock bass were also common. Chain pickerel and golden shiner were less common, while banded killifish were rare. Of those reported but not necessarily seen, one white sucker may have been seen but was not positively identified, yellow perch were reported as common, and black crappie were rare. Reports by Mr. Leo Watson, the owner of the only boat livery, show many 8-10” bass being caught; the largest fish were largemouth bass. Fishing was good for those who knew how to fish Babcock Lake, but the boat livery had only 5 boats for rent. The cottage owners did not seem to fish very much, according to Mr. Watson.
One 250 foot gillnet was set on June 28, 1955. In this net, yellow perch were abundant, while largemouth bass were common. The perch were 10-12 inches long and in good condition, and the bass weighed 1.5 pounds. Both the perch and bass were moderately infected with bass tapeworms. The gamefish to non gamefish ratio was 1:10. Soil type was deemed poor and invertebrate food was fair. The shoreline was wooded, and aquatic vegetation was abundant and submerged. There was a 25 foot earthen dam with spillway at the outlet. Mr. Skorupski and Mr. Butkas expressed a desire to poison the lake and manage the lake for trout, since bass fishing over the last 4-5 years had been poor.
The lake was surveyed again on July 7-8, 1970 using a variety of methods (Table 1). One gillnet was set on the Western shore about half way up the lake, trapnets were set on the North end and the South end of the lake, a 50 foot seine net was used near the boat launch, and electrofishing gear was used around the lake margins. The survey found many species that were not found in 1934. There were smallmouth and largemouth bass, chain pickerel, yellow perch, black crappie, pumpkinseeds, rock bass, brown bullhead, white sucker, and golden shiner. It appears as though largemouth bass greatly outnumbered smallmouth bass. This survey did not find banded killifish.

Table 1. 1934 fish survey results for Babcock Lake, Rensselaer County, NY. through Gillnets, Trapnets, Seines, and 220 volt D.C. Smallmouth Bass - 2 Largemouth Bass - 24, Chain Pickerel - 1, Yellow Perch - 44, Brown Bullhead - 6, Pumpkinseed - 56, Rock Bass - 10, Black Crappie - 1, Golden Shiner - 20, and White Sucker - 2.
The most recent survey found was June 29, 1987 by the Adirondack Lakes Survey Corporation (see attached pages; Table 2). Fish species and abundance was measured using three 150 foot gillnets, one minnow trap, and one 30 foot minnow net. Two new species were identified in the lake, which were brown trout and yellow bullhead. Many of the species found in the past still exist in the lake. This survey did not find banded killifish, black crappie, or white sucker.

Table 2. 1987 fish survey results for Babcock Lake, Rensselaer County, NY. Species Abundance, Minimum Length (in), and Maximum Length (in) accordingly: Brown Trout- 3, 13.8, & 14.8; Chain Pickerel- 1, 16, & 16; Golden Shiner- 32, 8.1, & 10.2; Yellow Bullhead- 11, 3.4, & 10.8; Brown Bullhead- 11, 9, & 13; Rock Bass- 12, 6.7, & 11; Pumpkinseed- 30, 6, & 9.8; Smallmouth Bass- 1, 9, & 9; Largemouth Bass- 3, 8, & 8.4; and Yellow Perch- 36, 8, & 13.5 accordingly.

Babcock Lake Water Chemistry (1934-1987) 9/11/1934 Survey at 11:00am. Site was near middle of the lake where maximum depth was found. Air temperature was 63 degrees F. 6/28/1955 Survey at 10:00am. Site was near the deepest part of the lake. Air temperature was 73 degrees F. 7/7/1970 Survey at 3:00pm. Site was on the South end in the middle of the lake in 32 feet of water. Air temperature was 86 degrees. 7/10/1987 Survey. At a depth of 4.9 feet, one sample had an Acid Neutralizing Capacity of 350.6, and a specific conductance of 83.4 μmho/cm. The water color was yellow brown.

For a complete copy of the report posted above, please click here, Babcock Lake 1934 - 1987.pdf
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For the most recent Babcock Lake Assessment Reports provided by the Citizens Statewide Lake Assessment Program in combination with the NYS Department of Environmental Conservation, which is also posted on the NYS Federation of Lake Associations website, please click on the following PDF links.

2008 CSLAP REPORT BABCOCK LAKE.pdf

2007 CSLAP REPORT BABCOCK LAKE.pdf

2006 CSLAP REPORT BABCOCK LAKE.pdf

2005 CSLAP REPORT BABCOCK LAKE.pdf

2004 CSLAP REPORT BABCOCK LAKE.pdf

2003 CSLAP REPORT BABCOCK LAKE.pdf

2002 CSLAP REPORT BABCOCK LAKE.pdf

2001 CSLAP REPORT BABCOCK LAKE.pdf

2000 CSLAP REPORT BABCOCK LAKE.pdf

1999 CSLAP REPORT BABCOCK LAKE.pdf

1998 CSLAP REPORT BABCOCK LAKE.pdf

1997 CSLAP REPORT BABCOCK LAKE.pdf

1996 CSLAP REPORT BABCOCK LAKE.pdf

1995 CSLAP REPORT BABCOCK LAKE.pdf

1994 CSLAP REPORT BABCOCK LAKE.pdf

1993 CSLAP REPORT BABCOCK LAKE.pdf

1992 CSLAP REPORT BABCOCK LAKE.pdf

1990 CSLAP REPORT BABCOCK LAKE.pdf

1989 CSLAP REPORT BABCOCK LAKE.pdf