Somebody asked what fish are in the Withlacoochee River where we did the Troupville upstream Withlacoochee River chainsaw cleanup pictures 2024-08-17.

I answered, redbreast, spotted, redear, and bluegill sunfish, largemouth and warmouth bass, brown and yellow bullhead, pirate perch, brooks silverside, spotted sucker, swamp darter, and others.

Many species are called bream, including all the sunfish.

This is where I got those species, from the April 13, 2020, Consent Order on Valdosta by GA-EPD, after the notorious December 9, 2019 7.59 million-gallon raw sewage spill into Sugar Creek, which was after the 21,814,000 gallons of rainwater and raw sewage spilled from December 2, 2018 to December 17, 2018, much of that also into Sugar Creek.

Fish Species, Withlacoochee River, Downstream from Sugar Creek to Little River Confluence

I congratulate the City of Valdosta, and especially the new-since-2019 Utilities Director, City Engineer, City Manager, and Mayor, as well as the City Council, for the steps forward they have made since then on fixing the city’s sewer system infrastructure, for the reduced number of spills and amount of sewage spilled, and for notifiying the public more quickly and more precisely.

This history is still relevant, however, to anyone who boats on that stretch of river, for recreation, cleanups, or clearing deadfalls. Not to mention anyone who fishes in there.

And of course effects not as obvious as a fish kill continued far downstream into Florida. Continue reading →