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Ray Roberts Reservoir 2019 Survey Report media download(PDF 807.2 KB)

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Ray Roberts Reservoir - 2019 Survey Report

Prepared by Dan L. Bennett and Greg Cummings
Inland Fisheries Division
District 2-A, Pottsboro, Texas

This is the authors' summary from a 29-page report. For a copy of the complete report, use the download link in the sidebar.

Fish populations in Ray Roberts Reservoir were surveyed in 2019 using electrofishing and trap netting, and in 2020 using gill netting.  A bass-only spring electrofishing survey was also done in 2017.  Anglers were surveyed from March through August 2018 with a roving creel survey.  Historical data are presented with the 2017-2020 data for comparison.  This report summarizes the results of the surveys and contains a management plan for the reservoir based on those findings.

Reservoir Description

Ray Roberts Reservoir is a 28,646-acre impoundment on the Elm Fork Trinity River north of Dallas-Fort Worth in Denton, Grayson, and Cooke Counties.  The conservation elevation of Ray Roberts Reservoir is 632.5 feet above mean sea level.  Habitat features consisted mainly of flooded timber, rocky shoreline, native and non-native submerged vegetation, and riprap along the dam and railroad bridges.

Management History

Important sport fishes included Blue and Channel Catfish, White Bass, black basses, and Crappie.  A 14- to 24-inch slot length limit, 5 fish daily bag limit for Largemouth Bass was dropped in 2009, in favor of the statewide 14-inch minimum length limit, 5 fish daily bag limit. Statewide fish harvest regulations currently apply to all sport fishes in Ray Roberts Reservoir. Florida Largemouth Bass fingerlings have been stocked periodically since 1985.   

Fish Community

Management Strategies

Sport Fish Restoration Logo

Performance Report as required by Federal Aid in Sport Fish Restoration Act Texas Federal Aid Project F-221-M-6 Inland Fisheries Division Monitoring and Management Program