Marked and Tagged Fish

[GLF]

The DNR continually evaluates the migration, survival, and harvest of various fish stocks to provide more and healthier fish to sport anglers. This evaluation involves the marking of fish with a fin clip, external tag, or an internal tag. You might take a fish bearing an external tag with the letters DNR, WIDNR, IDNR, IDC, FWS, or OMNR inscribed.

If you catch one of these fish, please record the following information and notify the nearest Fisheries office: species, length, weight, sex (if possible), date and location caught, and fin clip or tag number.

If releasing the fish, please do not remove the tag.

A very important study where Michigan anglers can help is that of tracking Great Lakes salmon and trout species. Many of these fish have been marked with a small coded-wire tag, invisible to the naked eye, implanted in the head of the fish. Fish with these tags can be identified by the absence of the adipose fin. If you should catch a trout or salmon with ONLY its adipose fin missing, that fish could have such a tag. Please record the information cited above, freeze only the head and take it with the data to (or notify) the nearest Fisheries office

More information is located here. Marked and Tagged Fish