Being a city located on the Great Lake we call Michigan, numerous anglers and boaters are residents. So the Cudahy Family Library is featuring "Family Boat Day."
On Wednesday, July 21, 2010 from 4:00 - 7:30 pm, the library will display fishing boats, sailboats, canoes and kayaks. Activities such as crafts and storytimes, plus a representative from the Coast Guard, knot-tying techniques demonstrated by the Boy Scouts and informative displays on fly fishing lures, boating safety, zebra mussels, gobis and other invasive species and possible invasive species such as the big head carp are featured.
The library is located east of Patrick Cudahy at 3500 Library Drive, Cudahy, WI 53110. The phone number is (414) 769-2244.
Pick-up some FREE TIPS AND TECHNIQUES. Step inside and read or check out some fishing books. They are located in the northwest corner in the 799.1 area of the Dewey Decimal system.
NOTES:
1.) Look for upcoming articles on the pike family, the perch family, stonerollers and what panfish are eating.
The stoneroller is a native fish that is both hardy and active when hooked. It is a member of the minnow family as is the common carp. In Tennessee, the stoneroller is a popular food fish.
2.) When aquatic plants, aka "weeds," are cut or poisoned, small fish are immediately in trouble. Aquatic creatures requiring these plants for their survival can no longer do their jobs as food for the creatures and as the "Beanstalks" to the watery surfaces. Fish die-offs, such as the not-too-distant-past crappie die-offs on Racine County's Eagle Lake resulted from heavy weed poisoning that removed a major section of the food chain relied upon by crappies.
3.) Anglers looking to fish in tournaments can find some of the weekly local contests put on by taverns and bait shops.
by: L.A. Van Veghel
Wednesday, July 21, 2010
Public input for Leech Lake management plan open until July 30
Citizens interested in the Leech Lake fishery have until Friday, July 30, to provide input to Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR) staff on the department’s proposed five-year fish population objectives and fisheries management actions.
The public can review the Leech Lake Advisory Committee’s final report and provide proposal feedback online. Paper questionnaires also are available in Walker at the DNR’s Walker Area Fisheries Office, 07316 State Highway 371 NW, and the Walker Public Library, 207 Fourth St.
For more information on the draft management plan and the public input process, contact the DNR’s Walker Area Fisheries office at 218-547-1683.
The public can review the Leech Lake Advisory Committee’s final report and provide proposal feedback online. Paper questionnaires also are available in Walker at the DNR’s Walker Area Fisheries Office, 07316 State Highway 371 NW, and the Walker Public Library, 207 Fourth St.
For more information on the draft management plan and the public input process, contact the DNR’s Walker Area Fisheries office at 218-547-1683.
Nature’s fish factory: phenomenal, fragile
When it comes to factory tours, Dirk Peterson, Minnesota’s new fisheries chief, figures his tour rocks, literally.
“You won’t need a hard hat or ear plugs on my tour,” he said with a smile. “Instead, we’ll be on the water - casting lures toward lily pads, bulrush, rock rubble and the rest of the production facility.”
Though many folks don’t view lakes and rivers as factories, Peterson does. He knows they kick out the fish that contribute $4.8 billion a year to the state’s fishing-related economy. He also knows the lakes are incredibly fragile, comprising parts and processes that took thousands of years to evolve.
“You can’t fix a lake with parts from Fleet Farm,” said Peterson. “That’s why we, as a society, must keep nature’s fish factory intact.”
To Peterson, that means maintaining clean water, spawning sites, nursery areas, and the vegetation that provides shelter for some species and ambush lairs for others. “If any of these elements are missing from the production line, fish go missing, too,” said Peterson.
He added that Minnesota’s excellent fishing is not guaranteed and cannot be taken for granted. He said anglers can easily see physical changes in habitat - more lakeshore development, more urbanization of watersheds, more removal of underwater logs and brush in the name of swimming and boating - but it is difficult to detect the subtle interactions beneath the surface.
Peter Jacobson, a DNR fisheries research biologist, explains. “The person who peers into the water and sees rocks covered in a green algal slime may think nothing of it, other than don’t step there because that’s slippery. But a fish manager sees a very different thing in those same rocks. He or she sees the outcome of excessive nutrient-loading, the deterioration of walleye spawning habitat that provides Minnesota’s most cost-efficient way to maintain a walleye population, which is for the fish to simply reproduce naturally.”
Jacobson explained certain algae-laden gravel bars are useless as walleye spawning habitat because the eggs are suffocated in the slime.
“The connection between walleyes and water quality cannot be stressed enough, said Jacobson. “In the century ahead, the lakes that will continue to provide the best fishing are those that remain clean, resilient, and contain all the elements of a complex natural system.”
Peterson, the DNR Fisheries Section chief, agrees. He encourages anglers statewide to get involved in local water policy planning, habitat conservation projects and funding initiatives for water-related conservation. Closer to the water, he encourages riparian property owners to conserve habitat, and to take steps that minimize soil erosion or nutrient loading by maintaining buffer strips or planting deep-rooted vegetation. These actions, as well as helping educate others on the importance of habitat, are in the best long-term interests of the angling and fishing-related business community.
“Minnesota has a very popular and effective $3 million-a-year walleye stocking program,” said Peterson. “Yet we should never forget that 85 percent of the state’s walleye harvest is the result of naturally reproducing wild fish. Therefore, we need to keep those natural factories in good shape. They are the low-cost way to produce fish for they require no labor, no trucks and no gasoline to take fish from here from the eggs to the end of your line.”
“You won’t need a hard hat or ear plugs on my tour,” he said with a smile. “Instead, we’ll be on the water - casting lures toward lily pads, bulrush, rock rubble and the rest of the production facility.”
Though many folks don’t view lakes and rivers as factories, Peterson does. He knows they kick out the fish that contribute $4.8 billion a year to the state’s fishing-related economy. He also knows the lakes are incredibly fragile, comprising parts and processes that took thousands of years to evolve.
“You can’t fix a lake with parts from Fleet Farm,” said Peterson. “That’s why we, as a society, must keep nature’s fish factory intact.”
To Peterson, that means maintaining clean water, spawning sites, nursery areas, and the vegetation that provides shelter for some species and ambush lairs for others. “If any of these elements are missing from the production line, fish go missing, too,” said Peterson.
He added that Minnesota’s excellent fishing is not guaranteed and cannot be taken for granted. He said anglers can easily see physical changes in habitat - more lakeshore development, more urbanization of watersheds, more removal of underwater logs and brush in the name of swimming and boating - but it is difficult to detect the subtle interactions beneath the surface.
Peter Jacobson, a DNR fisheries research biologist, explains. “The person who peers into the water and sees rocks covered in a green algal slime may think nothing of it, other than don’t step there because that’s slippery. But a fish manager sees a very different thing in those same rocks. He or she sees the outcome of excessive nutrient-loading, the deterioration of walleye spawning habitat that provides Minnesota’s most cost-efficient way to maintain a walleye population, which is for the fish to simply reproduce naturally.”
Jacobson explained certain algae-laden gravel bars are useless as walleye spawning habitat because the eggs are suffocated in the slime.
“The connection between walleyes and water quality cannot be stressed enough, said Jacobson. “In the century ahead, the lakes that will continue to provide the best fishing are those that remain clean, resilient, and contain all the elements of a complex natural system.”
Peterson, the DNR Fisheries Section chief, agrees. He encourages anglers statewide to get involved in local water policy planning, habitat conservation projects and funding initiatives for water-related conservation. Closer to the water, he encourages riparian property owners to conserve habitat, and to take steps that minimize soil erosion or nutrient loading by maintaining buffer strips or planting deep-rooted vegetation. These actions, as well as helping educate others on the importance of habitat, are in the best long-term interests of the angling and fishing-related business community.
“Minnesota has a very popular and effective $3 million-a-year walleye stocking program,” said Peterson. “Yet we should never forget that 85 percent of the state’s walleye harvest is the result of naturally reproducing wild fish. Therefore, we need to keep those natural factories in good shape. They are the low-cost way to produce fish for they require no labor, no trucks and no gasoline to take fish from here from the eggs to the end of your line.”
Upriver sturgeon season
An annual lottery for permits to spear sturgeon on the Upriver Lakes began in 2007. Spearers need to apply for an Upriver Lakes sturgeon lottery tag by August 2 and are notified no later than October 1 if they were successful in receiving authorization to purchase an Upriver Lakes sturgeon spearing license.
Group lottery applications of up to four persons are also accepted. Group applications must be submitted through the DNR Online Licensing Center. Spearers who applied for but not authorized to purchase an Upriver Lakes license receive a preference point, and can still purchase a license for Lake Winnebago, but must do so by the Oct. 31 license sales deadline (spearers can only buy one tag or the other, not both). Sales for both Lake Winnebago and Upriver Lakes sturgeon spearing licenses end Oct. 31. The Upriver Lakes sturgeon lottery fishery limits participation to 500 tags in 2011 and will have a small sub-allocation of the overall sturgeon harvest cap.
Group lottery applications of up to four persons are also accepted. Group applications must be submitted through the DNR Online Licensing Center. Spearers who applied for but not authorized to purchase an Upriver Lakes license receive a preference point, and can still purchase a license for Lake Winnebago, but must do so by the Oct. 31 license sales deadline (spearers can only buy one tag or the other, not both). Sales for both Lake Winnebago and Upriver Lakes sturgeon spearing licenses end Oct. 31. The Upriver Lakes sturgeon lottery fishery limits participation to 500 tags in 2011 and will have a small sub-allocation of the overall sturgeon harvest cap.
Tuesday, July 13, 2010
Turtle season opens July 15
MADISON - Turtle season opens statewide July 15 and runs through Nov. 30. The open season does not include those species that are listed as endangered or threatened. The ornate box turtle, Blanding’s turtle and the wood turtle are protected and may not be taken at any time.
Anyone who collects or possess native Wisconsin unprotected aquatic turtles must have one of the following licenses: Fishing, Small Game, Sports, Conservation Patron, Setline, or Set or Bank Pole. See the turtle Wisconsin Amphibian and Reptile Regulations (pdf) pamphlet for more information.
There are also reports in the northern part of the state that turtles are nesting later than the usual May-June period, and motorists are urged to be on the alert for turtles crossing roads and highways.
When turtles are nesting they begin the journey from their aquatic habitat near lakes, wetlands and streams to drier habitats where the female will deposit her eggs.
Although most turtles will stop moving when they feel or see an approaching vehicle, motorists are encouraged to do the following during nesting season:
•Slow down near wetlands;
Stop and help the turtle cross the road if it’s safe to do so;
•Turtles found crossing a road should be carefully moved to the side of the road in the direction they are facing; and
•Use common sense -- and a stick for the turtle to bite -- if assisting a snapping turtle. Slowly pull the turtle across the roadway by its tail.
Turtles are up against tough odds even without highway mortality. Three of Wisconsin turtle species are listed as either threatened or endangered species. As few as 5 percent of eggs laid survive to hatch and of those, only very few may survive to reproductive age. Natural predators of turtles and turtle eggs are many and include raccoons, skunks, fox, opossums, herons, egrets, seagulls, cranes, crows and others.
Anyone who collects or possess native Wisconsin unprotected aquatic turtles must have one of the following licenses: Fishing, Small Game, Sports, Conservation Patron, Setline, or Set or Bank Pole. See the turtle Wisconsin Amphibian and Reptile Regulations (pdf) pamphlet for more information.
There are also reports in the northern part of the state that turtles are nesting later than the usual May-June period, and motorists are urged to be on the alert for turtles crossing roads and highways.
When turtles are nesting they begin the journey from their aquatic habitat near lakes, wetlands and streams to drier habitats where the female will deposit her eggs.
Although most turtles will stop moving when they feel or see an approaching vehicle, motorists are encouraged to do the following during nesting season:
•Slow down near wetlands;
Stop and help the turtle cross the road if it’s safe to do so;
•Turtles found crossing a road should be carefully moved to the side of the road in the direction they are facing; and
•Use common sense -- and a stick for the turtle to bite -- if assisting a snapping turtle. Slowly pull the turtle across the roadway by its tail.
Turtles are up against tough odds even without highway mortality. Three of Wisconsin turtle species are listed as either threatened or endangered species. As few as 5 percent of eggs laid survive to hatch and of those, only very few may survive to reproductive age. Natural predators of turtles and turtle eggs are many and include raccoons, skunks, fox, opossums, herons, egrets, seagulls, cranes, crows and others.
First sturgeon stocked from renovated Wild Rose Hatchery
Four waters stocked to open new era in restoration
WILD ROSE – Wisconsin's efforts to restore lake sturgeon to inland waters took a leap forward last week as the renovated Wild Rose State Fish Hatchery sent its first sturgeon out the door to new homes in four Wisconsin waters.
On July 7, DNR fisheries crews stocked more than 6,100 tiny sturgeon in the Baraboo River in Baraboo, returning the prehistoric species to that water for the first time since the 1800s, when dams built on the river, along with overfishing and water pollution, helped doom their populations. An audio slide show recording this historic return is available on the Department of Natural Resources website.On July 9, another 7,400 sturgeon, spawned from fish from the Yellow River in northwest Wisconsin and raised at Wild Rose, were returned to that river, to the Clam River Flowage in Burnett County, and to Minong Flowage in Douglas County.
"This is really good news," says Ron Bruch, DNR senior sturgeon biologist and co-leader of the agency's statewide sturgeon team. "We have the Wild Rose facility online and staff have shown they can produce the quality and quantity of lake sturgeon we need to really look well into the future for our population restoration needs."
The second phase of renovating Wild Rose State Hatchery is about complete, giving anglers and the Wisconsin's fisheries program state-of-the-art facilities for raising cool-water fish including lake sturgeon, northern pike, walleye and musky.
Now, the sturgeon can be raised entirely inside tanks in a climate controlled building where water temperatures, dissolved oxygen, food and others aspects are carefully monitored by staff and by computers.
"It's like going from the stone age to the space age," Bruch says. "Before, we had little tanks outside, and little ability to control water temperatures and other factors. It was terrible. Those guys did a really good job considering what they had to work with, but this renovated facility really is state of the art and we expect it will let us stock more waters with more fish."
The renovated hatchery and the staff who run it are already having an impact. Sturgeon weren't scheduled to be stocked out of the facility until this fall, but so many sturgeon hatched and survived that some needed to be removed from the tanks to allow the remaining fish more room to grow, says Steve Fajfer, hatchery supervisor.
"The staff have done a fantastic job learning a whole new system and producing more fish, bigger fish and healthier fish," Fajfer says. About 60,000 lake sturgeon remain at the hatchery and will be raised to the more normal sizes for stocking, about 6 to 9 inches for fingerlings, and 10 to 14 inches for yearlings. The fingerlings will be planted this fall, and the yearlings next spring, Fajfer says.
Waters planned for stocking from Wild Rose are the Menominee River in Marinette County, the Wisconsin River in Marathon County, the Wisconsin River flowage at Stevens Point in Portage County, Upper St. Croix Lake, Eau Claire River, and St. Croix Flowage, all in Douglas County, and the Namekagon River and Trego Lake, both in Washburn County.Other waters being stocked with sturgeon in 2010-2011 include the Milwaukee and Kewaunee rivers, which will receive fish raised at streamside rearing facilities along those waters, and the Fox River in Marquette County from the UW-Milwaukee Water Institute, and the Manitowish River, which will receive fish from DNR's Woodruff Hatchery.
Lake sturgeon are living fossils, relics from the Upper Cretaceous period of the Mesozoic era, and they rank as Wisconsin's largest and oldest fish, confirmed again this winter when an Appleton man speared a 212-pound, 3.2 ounce lake sturgeon that stretched 84.25 inches on opening day of the 2010 Lake Winnebago lake sturgeon spearing seasons.Historically, lake sturgeon were found throughout the Great Lakes and Mississippi River basin. They flourished in Wisconsin's boundary waters including the Mississippi, Wisconsin and Menomonee rivers, Lake Superior, Lake Michigan and Green Bay. Dams, pollution, habitat degradation and overharvest dramatically reduced lake sturgeon populations in some Wisconsin waters over the past 100 years, and eliminated them entirely from other stretches of water. Because female fish don't reproduce until they are 20 to 25, and then spawn only once every three to five years, lake sturgeon populations are very vulnerable to overexploitation and slow to rebuild.
"Wisconsin's Lake Sturgeon Management Plan" (pdf) calls for restoring lake sturgeon to many waters in its historic range. DNR will be updating the plan this year and seeking input from people outside the agency interested in sturgeon management. Wild Rose Fish Hatchery will play a key role in that plan, along with protective regulations, research, dedicated funding for sturgeon restoration, and other factors, says Karl Scheidegger, a DNR rivers biologist and co-leader to the state sturgeon team.
"The new Wild Rose cool water propagation facility will give the fisheries program the ability to restore multiple sturgeon populations for many years to come," Scheidegger says. "And that, we hope, means that down the road more people will be able to experience these remarkable fish."
Thursday, July 1, 2010
Pick it or Ticket...
“Pick it or Ticket.” That’s what will happen if people don’t do their part to stop the spread of aquatic invasive species, according to Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (DNR).
DNR conservation officers and watercraft inspectors will step-up enforcement of invasive species law over the Fourth of July weekend. They will also be out educating boaters about a new law that goes into effect July 1 requiring boaters to now remove the plug and drain water before leaving any lake and river in Minnesota.
“Our lakes and rivers are too important to take for granted,” explained Larry Kramka, DNR assistant commissioner. “Boaters need to be accountable and personally responsible to prevent the further spread of aquatic invasives.”
The water draining law is intended to help prevent the spread of fish diseases such as VHS, and invasive species such as zebra mussels and spiny waterfleas that cannot be seen when free floating in the water in early life stages.
Boaters are required by law to:
Minnesota’s water resources are threatened by numerous aquatic invasive species such as the zebra mussels, Eurasian watermilfoil and spiny waterfleas. These species could be easily spread within the state if citizens, businesses and visitors don’t take the necessary steps to contain them.
The zebra mussel populations currently in Lake Mille Lacs, Alexandria chain of lakes
(Le Homme Dieu, Carlos, and Geneva), Pelican Lake in Otter Tail County, Prior Lake in Scott County and Rice Lake near Brainerd are a particular concern as they can be key sources for zebra mussel spread.
DNR conservation officers and watercraft inspectors will step-up enforcement of invasive species law over the Fourth of July weekend. They will also be out educating boaters about a new law that goes into effect July 1 requiring boaters to now remove the plug and drain water before leaving any lake and river in Minnesota.
“Our lakes and rivers are too important to take for granted,” explained Larry Kramka, DNR assistant commissioner. “Boaters need to be accountable and personally responsible to prevent the further spread of aquatic invasives.”
The water draining law is intended to help prevent the spread of fish diseases such as VHS, and invasive species such as zebra mussels and spiny waterfleas that cannot be seen when free floating in the water in early life stages.
Boaters are required by law to:
- Remove aquatic plants and zebra mussels from boats and trailers.
- Drain all water, including pulling the drain plug, open water draining devises, and draining bilges and live wells.
- Drain bait buckets when exiting lakes that have been designated as infested with spiny water flea or zebra mussels. Anglers can keep unused bait when leaving infested waters if they replace the water with tap or spring.
Minnesota’s water resources are threatened by numerous aquatic invasive species such as the zebra mussels, Eurasian watermilfoil and spiny waterfleas. These species could be easily spread within the state if citizens, businesses and visitors don’t take the necessary steps to contain them.
(Le Homme Dieu, Carlos, and Geneva), Pelican Lake in Otter Tail County, Prior Lake in Scott County and Rice Lake near Brainerd are a particular concern as they can be key sources for zebra mussel spread.
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