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Posts: 31
Location: Pa. | I am curious about your thoughts on float stocking musky fingerlings . I think my biggest questions is do you guys think it helps?
As opposed to driving to the boat ramp and opening the hatch.
Our Muskies Inc Chapter (50) here in eastern Pa has been float stocking Pa fish commision raised fingerlings (about 20,00 per year) into our local lakes for 4 years now, so the fish that we started float stocking with should be 30"+ by now .
Its very hard to know if our hard work will pay off or are we doing more harm than good ? Thanks
Matt Lysek
Chapter 50
Muskies Inc. | |
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Posts: 178
| MATT LYSEK wrote: I am curious about your thoughts on float stocking musky fingerlings . I think my biggest questions is do you guys think it helps?
As opposed to driving to the boat ramp and opening the hatch.
Our Muskies Inc Chapter (50) here in eastern Pa has been float stocking Pa fish commision raised fingerlings (about 20,00 per year) into our local lakes for 4 years now, so the fish that we started float stocking with should be 30"+ by now .
Its very hard to know if our hard work will pay off or are we doing more harm than good?
DAVE: Matt, when I worked for the Missouri Department of Conservation, we had similar questions about the best way to release hatchery-reared fingerlings in the fall. A thorough investigation by my colleagues into immediate post-stocking movement in 8,000-acre Pomme de Terre Lake revealed that 10-12 inch fingerlings stocked at a single boat ramp in late September could be captured by electrofishing in ALL parts of the lake within only 4 days! Most fish had traveled several miles and seemed to be thoroughly dispersed within that time period.
This was actually a source of concern for MDC biologists, because we feared the young fish may be expending too much energy playing "ring around the lake" in their new, unconfined quarters. We did not want them to exhaust their energy reserves before winter. In response to these concerns, my colleagues tried placing a large block net across the entire cove where the fish were usually stocked, in order to "settle them down" for a few days before releasing them to the main lake. But that backfired when the great blue herons realized we had arranged a smorgasboard for them by concentrating literally thousands of naive hatchery fish in the shallows of one cove. After that, we resumed stocking as usual, knowing with certainty they would disperse on their own, but never learning how their wide-ranging movements affected survival.
I'm afraid I don't know the answer to your question. I suspect "float-stocked" fish behave similarly to those stocked at a single point location -- that they swim long distances to explore their new environment immediately after stocking. I doubt you are doing any harm by float stocking, but I also doubt that it makes a positive difference. Maybe one of the biologists in your neck of the woods has looked into it. In any event, kudos to Chapter 50 for seeking to learn whether their efforts are truly effective.
Dave Neuswanger
Fisheries Supervisor, Upper Chippewa Basin
Wisconsin DNR, Hayward | |
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Posts: 2384
Location: On the X that marks the mucky spot | Who am I to argue with a guy that stocks fish for a living?
I'll give you the input I've gotten from our DNR when we stock our fish. They like to spread their stocking around to several parts of the lake when they can. They feel that way they may stay put a little more and there wouldn't be as much of a hit on the forage in the area, not to mention the decreased competition for that forage. It's not always possible in smaller lakes or lakes that don't have many access points. I would think those types of lakes would be the most beneficial way to use a float-stocking method. | |
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Posts: 31
Location: Pa. | Thanks for the replies
Matt L | |
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Float stocking fingerlings ??