BY DAVID MAMARIL HOROWITZ

david.horowitz@bgdailynews.com

The Southwest District Fisheries Office and Cabela’s Outpost will again collect unadorned Christmas trees through Jan. 15 to support fish populations across the region.

It’s a Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources program. This department’s Bowling Green-based office oversees the state’s southwest department district, which comprises 16 counties – where one means of refreshing fish habitat is to place trees in lakes.

Fishery biologists at these Kentucky districts stay in tune with those local lakes and what regulations might need to be changed or tweaked to keep fishing sustainable in terms of harvest and to make the fish population better, said Spencer Phillips, a department fish habitat biologist.

The influx of trees also makes it easier for fishermen to target popular sport fish such as largemouth bass, crappies and bluegills, Phillips added. Fishing license purchases provide substantial funding for the department, which helps conserve natural resources and provide outdoor experiences statewide, Phillips said.

Last year, the southwest district collected 222 Christmas trees for Barren River Lake, Green River Lake, Mill Creek and Marion County Lake, Phillips said. That’s out of 4,800 Christmas trees collected statewide, he added.

Generally, the Southwest District Fisheries Office takes locally collected Christmas trees around the fishing piers at Barren River Lake, such as at Port Oliver, said Eric Cummins, the fisheries biologist who oversees the office.

The trees will be taken to other fisheries as needed, including at small impoundments districtwide such as Shanty Hollow Lake and Briggs Lake, he added.

Christmas trees are one category of tree among many used for this purpose, Phillips said. Evergreen trees free of decorations, lights and garland qualify, according to the department website.

Trees are placed in oxygenated layers within lakes year-round, Cummins said. The trees last for around three or four years, as as they degrade, a need grows for more, Phillips said.

Fish populations use these sites for refuge, cover and feeding areas, according to the department website.

“They flock to the sites almost immediately,” Phillips said. “We can put the Christmas trees in the lake, and the next day, you can go and catch fish off these sites.”

— Cabela’s Outpost is at 3395 Nell O’Bryan Court. The Southwest District Fisheries Office is roughly a mile down Bennett Lane, just past the Schneider Lane intersection, also in Bowling Green.