Hot button Topic.

[Walleye Express]

This was an innocent enough topic when it started out, but became more heated as it progressed. I did not copy the whole thing but added my 2 cents at it's end.

AndrewL

the other day a 13lbs 3 oz 31 inches walleye was caught in Devils Lake, ND. it was a big ol mama. the guy who caught it was using a pink jig with white twister tail and a minnow. caught in the channel A area.

mgrandick

WoWWW. I'm afraid that would be a replica mount and returned if it was mine.

Mike.

AndrewL

yeah that was a heated topic around some of the local baitshops. most of us said thats exactly what we would do. if we had people keeping their limits(5 fish) of 13 pounders then we would start seeing probelms. but theres a lot of educated anglers fishing these waters. Also Devils Lake is such a great fishery this lake is full of walleyes, you just gotta find them and get them to bite. this past winter we got into a lot of young walleyes. there were a few giants caught under the ice as well.

O.K.

Here's Capt. Dans new rules.

#1. No more shooting deer with less then 3 points on each side. #2. No more shooting bears under 250 pounds. #3. No more shooting Pheasants with less then 29 Bars on their tail feathers. #4. No more shooting jake turkeys, 8 inch beards or longer from now on. Anybody breaking these new rules will be considered by me as a person not caring about our natural resources. Kinda dumb huh?

Wadster makes a very good point. This whole debate always seems to boarder on personal opinions and when challenged, sparks more personally directed anger then political arguments. While at it's core, the facts and parameters set on each body of water is based on scientific data, while being balance and dictated by the law. And we do little but degrade our own ranks when we hate each other over a bar set by our own professionals on the subject. Nobody can stifle or change what other feel about our own personal decisions concerning such matters. But being faithful to your own rules or inherited convictions, while within lawful parameters, should be good enough for anybody.

I've written to my DNR biologist buddy for his words of wisdom on the subject. When he gets back with me I'll post his scientific words of wisdom from our area on the subject.

[Reel World Fishing Team]

I only have one fish currently mounted. It is a male King caught in 1998 out of Ludington that was just under 30 pounds and just over 40 inches. A buddy of mine had just had a fish done with a replica mount and that was what I did with mine. The mount looks great and that's the only way I would do a fish.

I would have put that walleye back and mounted with a replica. That being said I didn't put this king back. We took him back to the dock, took photos and a bunch of different measurments and then cleaned him. This was better IMO because the other fish that have been caught off my boat that were mounted normally were frozen than carried home and then mounted, never to be used. I have photos and measurments of a 17 pound steelhead to get mounted someday, but I hope to catch a bigger one.

[Priority1]

A legally caught fish belongs to the fisherman that caught it. I'm all for selective harvest, but I don't force the issue. We could all do better as sportsmen, by zeroing in on poachers.

[Losin Lures]

IMHO if you catch it you decide. The mortality rate of Salmon caught in the lake I believe is astronomical when released. I know little to nothing about walleyes though. How do they fare when released?

[Priority1]

The mortality rate on walleye varies. Stress is a huge factor. Stress is greater at certain times of the year. All fish coming off the spawning beds are already somewhat stressed. Due to the spawning differences between walleye and salmon I would think that walleye have a potentially longer life span. We have all taken fish that had to be released, knowing well that the fish would die. I sometimes feel it's a terrible waste to throw back a under size fish with a torn gill. If that fish could be added to your limit, another fish may still swim. If everyone could be trusted to do what is best for the fishery, we wouldn't need DNR enforcement of the rules. This perfect world doesn't exist, so we do what we have to do. JMHO and the way I feel.

[Walleye Express]

Dan.

Question 1 about egg viability: Yes generally it is believed that younger walleyes have greater egg viability than older walleyes but studies on fish in general on this have shown that the decline in viability is slight and usually isn't apparent until a fish gets very old (most don't live that long any ways), so mostly we think its a non issue.

Question 2 about tape worms: We heard a lot about tape worms last year so I am not surprised we are hearing more about them again this year. Tape worms have been around forever in our fish but it does seem to me that something has changed. There is all kinds of big change taking place in the food webs in Lake Huron and in Saginaw Bay so my hunch is that its tied to that. We didn't see any increased evidence of it in our main survey in September, but it may be a seasonal thing. It bares watching. The best advice is to always ensure your fish is thoroughly cooked.

Question 3 about red sores on the swim bladder of a walleye. That sounds consistent with a VHSc infected fish. We know Saginaw Bay walleyes are carriers and this is the time of year they are most likely to show signs of it. You can read more about VHSc at http://www.michigan.gov/dnr/0,1607,7-153-10364_10950_46202---,00.html