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Beyond Trout: Which California City Ponds Get Stocked with Catfish

California stocks catfish in city ponds too — a separate CDFW program from trout, covering 15 Southern California lakes. Here's which ones, and when to fish them.

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Trout isn't the only fish California stocks in city ponds. CDFW's Fish Planting Schedule names 15 Southern California park lakes that get a separate catfish stocking — spanning Los Angeles, Orange, San Diego, San Bernardino, and Riverside counties, with the most recent plants recorded in 2026.

Key takeaways

  • California Department of Fish and Wildlife (CDFW) runs a catfish stocking program that's distinct from its trout program, covering 15 recorded Southern California park lakes.
  • Legg Lakes (Los Angeles County) is the most frequently stocked catfish water in the dataset, with multiple plants recorded across 2024–2026.
  • These are urban and suburban park lakes — Alondra Park, El Dorado Park, MacArthur Park, Hansen Dam, and similar community fishing spots, not backcountry waters.
  • CDFW's catfish schedule reports the lake and the week stocked, but not a fish count — unlike some of its trout reports, count data simply isn't published for this program.
  • Catfish stocking runs largely spring through fall, since catfish feed most actively in warm water — the opposite season pattern from cold-water trout plants.

Trout Isn't the Whole Story: California's Urban Catfish Program

Most coverage of California's community fishing lakes focuses on trout — for good reason, since trout plants are the largest and most frequent program CDFW runs. But CDFW's Fish Planting Schedule also names a separate, smaller set of Southern California park lakes that receive catfish. Channel catfish tolerate warm, still water far better than trout do, which makes them a natural fit for shallow, sun-warmed urban lakes during the months trout stocking tapers off.

If you already know these lakes for their trout program, our guide to urban trout stocking in community ponds covers that side of the picture — this article is about the catfish that share the same water.

Which Ponds Get Stocked with Catfish

Based on CDFW's own planting schedule, these are the recorded catfish waters, by county:

Most of these lakes cluster around Los Angeles, with one recorded water near San Diego. See the full, current list — plus every trout plant at the same lakes — on each waterbody's page, or browse the

Catfish stocking page for California for every recorded release statewide.

Why CDFW Doesn't Report Catfish Counts

Every catfish stocking record in CDFW's Fish Planting Schedule confirms the lake and the week — but none of them include a fish count. That's not a gap in our data; it's a gap in what CDFW itself publishes for this program, and we show it as "not reported" rather than guessing. Compare that to CDFW's trout reports, which do include counts for many plants.

How to Read a Fish Stocking Report walks through what each field in a state report means, including why some are shown as "not reported" instead of a guess.

When to Fish for Stocked Catfish

Catfish and trout want opposite conditions, which is part of why California runs separate programs for them. Trout prefer cold water and get stocked heaviest in winter and spring; catfish are far more tolerant of warm water and are typically most active from late spring through fall, especially at dusk and after dark. Channel catfish feed by scent more than sight, so cut bait, chicken liver, or prepared stink baits fished on the bottom generally outproduce the lures and flies that work for trout in the same lake.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does California stock catfish in the same lakes as trout?

Often, yes. Several of the lakes on this list — Legg Lakes and El Dorado Park Lakes among them — also appear in CDFW's trout planting schedule, meaning the same pond can offer both a cold-water trout season and a warm-season catfish fishery.

How big are the catfish CDFW stocks in city ponds?

CDFW's public planting schedule for this program doesn't report a size or count per plant, so we show that field as not reported rather than estimating a number that isn't in the source data.

Is there a catfish season, or can you fish for them year-round?

There's no closed season on catfish in most California community lakes, but activity slows dramatically once water cools — the practical window for reliably catching stocked catfish runs roughly late spring through fall.

Where can I find every stocked lake near Los Angeles?

Our Los Angeles stocking-near page lists every recorded stocking — trout and catfish alike — at lakes within range of the city, sourced directly from CDFW's own reports.

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