Something big is happening beneath the surface of this Lake Corpus Christi

State fisheries officials are stocking Lake Corpus Christi with bass and catfish, but anglers will have to wait to see the full payoff.

CORPUS CHRISTI, Texas — Lake Corpus Christi is getting a boost for anglers as state fisheries biologists work to improve the lake’s fish population and create better fishing opportunities in the years ahead.

Fishermen are already taking advantage of the lake’s improving conditions.

Roque Longoria was fishing from the pier at Lake Corpus Christi State Park with his wife, Elsa, when he landed a blue catfish.

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“I was happy to finally catch something and I’m fixing to throw it back because he’s too small for me. They have to be like 12 inches long before you can take them home,” Longoria said.

Nearby, Clyde Oliver was fishing with his nephew Spencer and niece Adriana.

“Hopefully catch something that they can brag about so I look good. Otherwise, all they were going to say was that I took them to McDonald’s, right?” Oliver said.

While anglers are enjoying what they can catch now, state biologists are focused on building the fishery for the future.

Dusty McDonald, a district supervisor with the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department’s Inland Fisheries management district, says hundreds of thousands of catfish and bass have recently been stocked in Lake Corpus Christi.

“We just stocked some Lone Star bass, which is a second generation ShareLunker largemouth bass. These are fish that have gotten up to 13 pounds. So, it’s a really large bass genetics. We stocked them last month,” McDonald said.

The Lone Star bass are part of an effort to introduce strong largemouth bass genetics into the lake.

McDonald says not every stocked fish will survive. Biologists estimate only about 5% to 10% of stocked fish are expected to make it.

More catfish could also be stocked this fall.

But anglers will have to wait before the new fish reach a size that can make a noticeable difference for fishermen.

“I would say after a good year or a year and a half with really good growth, you’ll have a legal size bass to catch. With catfish, I would expect it to be probably about 2 to 3 years,” McDonald said.

For anglers like Longoria, the restocking effort is welcome news.

“They can stock as much fish as they want. I don’t think it would hurt it. I think it will do a whole lot of good, it will,” Longoria said.

Biologists say the changing conditions at Lake Corpus Christi could also benefit the fishery.

As conditions settle in the coming months, plant growth around the lake is expected to provide additional habitat for fish.

That habitat could help support stronger populations of crappie and bass and give anglers more opportunities to catch fish in the years ahead.

For now, fishermen are enjoying the lake while state officials work on what could be a much bigger payoff down the road.