Can willows help Braidwood Lake bass?
Anglers and other volunteers are helping the Department of Natural Resources plant water willows at Braidwood Lake in an effort to help restore that lake’s bass fishery. “This is not a tree we are planting,” biologist Rob Miller told Bill Byrns of the Kankakee Daily-Journal. “When people hear the name, ‘water willow’ they think it’s a tree. This is the plant that grows all along the shore of the Kankakee River. It gets to be about knee-high and anyone who fishes or boats the river is familiar with it. “It’s a real good habitat plant,” Miller said. “It will reduce shoreline erosion a bit, but the main value is creating shallow-water habitat. It will provide a hiding place for young fish and shelter for both invertebrates and vertebrates — the bugs that support the food chain.” Similar plantings have helped bass at Newton Lake and Clinton Lake, Miller said. Click here to read the full story on the project.
