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| Message Subject: Stocking larger muskies | |||
Larry Ramsell |
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Posts: 1275 Location: Hayward, Wisconsin | More and more states are starting to follow this idea: From The Fishing Wire: "Indiana DNR Stocks Larger Muskies in Lake Webster | May 25, 2016 Responding to a decline in muskie fishing at Lake Webster, the DNR is modifying its muskie stocking program at the popular lake in northern Indiana. On May 19, biologists released 1,500 muskies into Lake Webster that were 12-14 inches long. Normally, the fish would have been part of a group stocked last October when they were 8-10 inches long. Instead, the 1,500 fish were held at the Fawn River State Hatchery in Orland over winter and fed minnows. The minnows were purchased from a commercial source and paid for by the Hoosier Muskie Hunters. By stocking larger muskies in spring, biologists hope to overcome factors that reduced muskie survival in recent years. "We've seen a big drop in muskie fishing at Webster during the past 10 years," said Jed Pearson, DNR biologist. "Holding half of the muskies we stock each year for a longer period in the hatchery should help reverse the trend." To compare survival of the larger spring-stocked muskies, each fingerling was tagged with a transponder before release. A similar group of 1,500 smaller muskies scheduled to be stocked this fall also will be tagged. "The tags will allow us to test which group survives better," Pearson said. "If the spring-stocked muskies win out, we'll probably switch the stockings at Webster entirely to the spring." Pearson said studies in Iowa proved spring-stocked muskies survive better than muskies stocked in the fall because more food and cover are available during summer than winter. Larger fingerlings can also avoid more predators. Muskies were first stocked into Lake Webster in 1981. By the mid-1990s, the lake developed into a fishing hotspot that attracted muskie anglers from throughout the Midwest. As muskie fishing interest increased, so did muskie numbers. By 2005, biologists estimated 5,000 adult muskies were present in the lake. That year anglers spent 65,000 hours fishing for the species. In a move to improve stocking efficiency, the length of time muskie fingerlings were fed minnows before release was shortened to 30 days. As a result, the fingerlings were smaller and less robust. Additionally, weed control altered muskie habitat and reduced the amount of cover where fingerlings could hide. Pearson also thinks the large population of adult muskies preyed on the newly stocked fingerlings. Because of these changes, survival of stocked fingerlings took a nosedive. Eventually the number of adult muskies dropped too. In 2005, anglers caught 2,200 muskies. Last year, they caught 560. Fishing efforts directed at muskies dropped by 50 percent over the same period. "We estimate there are now fewer than 500 muskies in the lake," Pearson said. "That's a huge decline from the 5,000 we had 10 years ago. We're hoping the switch to a spring-stocking program will get the number back up somewhere in the middle." Muskie anglers hope so too. To view all DNR news releases, please see dnr.IN.gov. -30- Media contact: Jed Pearson, fisheries biologist, DNR Division of Fish & Wildlife, (260) 244-6805, [email protected]. - See more at: http://www.thefishingwire.com/story/376037#sthash.7ovMX7hi.dpuf | ||
| tkuntz |
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Posts: 815 Location: Waukee, IA | Good to hear Iowa's program is giving something back to the muskie community via scientific research. Now if they'd just start stocking some Iowa rivers we would be set! | ||
| ToddM |
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Posts: 20179 Location: oswego, il | We have been asking for over wintering fish in illinois as well. The problem is money. Even in this instance on webster it was done with outside funding. I am sure the tagging program will produce good data and more states can follow. | ||
| kapcoleo |
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Posts: 114 | The two chapters in Iowa plus Hugh Becker fund are helping the DNR with funds to run a study to try to determine the best method of stocking the larger muskies in the spring. They have three control groups of 20 each of 12-16 inch fish that have radio tracking transmitters in them and are checking locations and live/dead status daily. Twenty were stocked over 12 feet of open water,20 in shallow water near bull rushes(last years) and 20 were held for 40 hours in hatchery tanks before stocking and fed after their 6 hour truck ride from their winter holding tanks in southern Iowa. All were stocked 2 weeks ago.Iowa has also been getting low survival rates the past few years in spring stocked fish that are in the 12-14 inch range. Are they getting eaten? Are they just dying? The truck water has to be treated for zebra mussel problems. Is this the problem?The transmitters will generate signals for four months. Hopefully they learn something. It is interesting already in that many of the fish have not moved more then 300 feet along the shore from their stocking spot! The test will be repeated next year on new fish. Edited by kapcoleo 5/25/2016 7:10 PM | ||
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