The holidays may be over, but they're just beginning for Kentucky fish.
For those fretting about taking down the Christmas tree, the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources has a fun and environmentally-beneficial way of helping local wildlife while also decluttering your holiday decor.
From Dec. 26 to Jan. 15, any natural (real) Christmas tree donated to the KDFWR will be used to create habitats for fish and invertebrates in Kentucky's waterways through the Christmas with the Fishes Tree Recycling Program.
Lake Reba's soccer complex B (its parking lot is behind the adult softball fields across the lake) functions as one of over two dozen drop off points spread out across the state where people can donate any of their natural Christmas trees. Trees can be dropped off from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. at any of the available spots.
For the safety of the creatures who will benefit from donated trees. Fish and wildlife officials ask that trees be stripped of any lights, ornaments, tinsel, garland, and other decorations before being recycled.
The program is a collaboration between KDFWR and Richmond Parks and Recreation, who said they appreciate the partnership every year.
"Christmas with the Fishes is a Kentucky Fish and Wildlife program. We do encourage people to utilize it as it does benefit Lake Reba, and helps with getting rid of people's Christmas trees. We are happy to provide the location for the drop off to help with this program," said Richmond Parks and Rec. Program Coordinator Elizabeth Foster.
Trees and other fallen woody debris provide a natural cover for both predator and prey alike in the lakes and reservoirs in Kentucky. Brush reefs made from the trees create effective breeding and rearing grounds for gamefish and the smaller fish that will eventually eaten by them. The habitats built by the sights will be spread across various depths and areas of the waterways they are installed in. Some of those areas might include creek backs, large flats, small pockets, and main points in lakes.
That cover is an important part of the ecosystem, and is dwindling in some waterways.
"Many of our lakes and reservoirs in the state are in excess of 50 years old and a lot of the woody habitat just can't last that long, so we'll be replenishing that with these donated trees," Joseph Zimmerman, habitat program coordinator for KDFWR, said in a video. "These trees will be able to benefit fisheries statewide."
The benefits of Christmas for the Fishes are not limited to just fish.
Some of the donated trees will be used to make fish attractors in some waterways, making them prime fishing spots for the state's many anglers.
"We'll utilize donated Christmas trees in deeper areas as well. We'll cluster several of them together in these sites to serve as fish attractors for bass, bluegill, and crappie. We'll be marking these areas with GPS coordinates and placing them on our website for anglers," ZImmerman said.
To find any of these fish attractors go to fw.ky.gov and type "Lakes with fish attractors" into the search engine. KDFWR recommends using a fish finder to locate these attractors, as most will be located in deeper water.