Turner Pond Fishing Spot

• County: Bristol - New Bedford MA
• Acreage: 55
• Public Fishing: Yes
• Mean Depth: 4'
• Max Depth: 20'
• Website: http://www.mass.gov/dfwele/dfw/habitat/maps/ponds/pdf/dfwturne.pdf
• Last Modified By: vinny60 on 06/05/11 09:42 PM
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Turner Pond is an infertile 55 acre impoundment of the Pasakamansett River This warmwater pond is characterized by dark brown water, poor transparency (about 1.5 feet) and a mud bottom. Emergent aquatic vegetation covers nearly half the surface in summer. Average depth is four feet and the maximum depth is 20 feet. The shoreline (2.3 miles) is undeveloped. The pond's water is very acidic (pH 4.2 to 4.9) due to drainage from the Acushnet Cedar Swamp. Turner Pond is located just to the northwest of the New Bedford Municipal Airport. The majority of the pond is part of the Acushnet Cedar Swamp State Reservation. The pond is easily accessible for shore fishing and for the launching of cartop boats and canoes. Old Fall River Road runs along the dam end of the pond and High Hill Road cuts through the middle of the pond. Some parking is available on adjacent conservation land and along the roadsides. Fish Populations: The most recent survey was conducted in August of 1992 and captured banded sunfish, golden shiner, black crappie and yellow perch. Previous surveys also noted chain pickerel, brown bullhead, tesselated darter and American eel. Anglers also report largemouth bass.

Despite angler reports of some nice largemouth bass, fisheries surveys indicate that the entire fish population of Turner Pond is sparse, dominated by yellow perch in poor condition. During the summer, the oxygen levels of the deeper areas are poor and fish are confined to the top 8 feet of water or shallower. While the scenery is nice, the fishing is poor, and likely to deteriorate further as the more species succumb to the acidic conditions.