CDFW Pilot Program Seeks to Establish Black Bass Fishery at Gibson Ranch
Sacramento County Park Pond Stocked with Smallmouth, Largemouth and Spotted Bass
Responding to angler interest in more close-to-home, warmwater fishing opportunities, the California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDF) has stocked smallmouth, largemouth and spotted bass into the park pond at Gibson Ranch in Sacramento County.
“We understand that most of California’s licensed anglers live in urban, metropolitan areas so creating diverse angling opportunities close to home is really important to keep these anglers engaged,” said Farhat Bajjaliya, a CDFW Fisheries Branch supervisor. “Creating a new fishing opportunity at a place like Gibson Ranch allows these anglers to get out close to home in a really beautiful area, a nature-like setting, and, hopefully, catch something.”
Gibson Ranch is a popular, 355-acre Sacramento County park located near the rural community of Elverta but still less than 15 miles away from downtown Sacramento. CDFW’s pre-stocking evaluations of the 7.5-acre Gibson Ranch pond showed an abundant food supply – including sunfish, crayfish and bullfrogs – to support the three types of black bass introduced. CDFW will continue to monitor the pond to see how the bass fare and how anglers respond to the new fishing opportunity.
Michael Mamola, a fisheries biologist with CDFW’s North Central Region, said many shallow farm ponds like the one at Gibson Ranch offer quality warmwater fish habitat, including the opportunity for natural reproduction.
“We had the perfect water body with great habitat that didn’t have a lot of fish in it,” Mamola said in choosing Gibson Ranch for the pilot effort.
The stocking was also fortuitous with the bass coming from Lake Berryessa by way of the International Sportsmen’s Exposition (ISE) in Sacramento in January. CDFW annually gathers bass and other local fish species for the ISE’s massive, 5,000-gallon aquarium demonstration tank. After the ISE, several dozen bass were diverted for stocking at Gibson Ranch.
“We got the fish into Gibson a few months before they were ready to spawn,” said Mamola. “So all those fish we put in are going to be staging in the shallow water, getting ready to build their nests, lay their eggs and, hopefully, create that next generation of bass.”
Angler observations shared through the California Inland Recreational Angler Survey, or CIRAS, Fishing in the City events and other public outreach efforts helped CDFW better understand local interest in close‑to‑home, warmwater fishing opportunities. Based on this input and CDFW’s broader fisheries assessments, Gibson Ranch will rejoin the Fishing in the City program and is slated to receive seasonal catfish and trout plants to complement the black bass fishery and support year‑round angling.
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