March_April 2013.pdf - North Dakota Game and Fish

Q: What’s the Game and Fish Department’scriteria for a healthy perchstockinglake?A: First, it has to be of some size. Andmore importantly, the maximum depthhas to be 12 feet, although 15 feet ormore is much better. Then, if it’s withoutpike or other predators, the betterchance it has to become establishedas a perch fishery. Lastly, we need toensure there is public access.Q: Do fisheries biologists get a chanceto test-net all these perch lakes eachyear?A: Not even close. There are just too manylakes to get to them all. But usuallywithin two years after the initial stocking,we’re able to get in and do a quickassessment.Q: Largemouth bass and trout typicallyare at the bottom of the popularitylist in North Dakota. Has thatchanged at all? Is the trout stockingprogram in limited lakes still ongoing?A: I don’t think their popularity haschanged much, but we’re conducting amail survey right now and that is oneof the questions. I don’t think it’s adislike for trout or bass, but rather thatNorth Dakotans are crazy for walleyeyear-round, plus pike and perch inthe winter. We still have lakes that aremore suitable for trout and/or bassand we’ll continue to manage them forthese species, and encourage familiesand youth to get after them as they canbe relatively easy to catch and providegreat entertainment. We continue tostock as many trout as we did 10 yearsago.Q: Any concerns with hatchery fundingthis year?A: This has become an ongoing concernand, unfortunately, talk at the nationallevel hasn’t been overly encouraging.Again on a local level, the U.S. Fishand Wildlife Service hatchery employeesdo a great job trying to keep the“recreational fish” stocking portionof their mandates solvent. But recreationalfish stocking continues to bede-emphasized within the USFWSso the state will likely be asked to doTalk on the federal level about hatchery funding hasn’t been encouraging, state fisheriesofficials say.more, and we will.Q: Devils Lake is on a roll. What is thestatus this year?A: The lake level has not stabilized. Thecombination of limited inflows lastspring, a dry summer, and the operationof the emergency outlets, contributedto a decrease in lake level of about3 feet in 2012.Even if the outlets didn’t exist, DevilsLake would naturally experiencewater level changes. The lake level justdoes not remain steady for very long.A fluctuating water level is actuallybeneficial for fish reproduction andsurvival.At high lake levels this past decadeplus,walleye and northern pike havegenerally reached higher populationlevels relative to perch and white bassthan when the lake was at lower levels.According to Todd Caspers, Departmentfisheries biologist in Devils Lake,Game and Fish conducts creel surveys on North Dakota waters occasionally to determine angleruse and harvest.March-April 2013 ND Outdoors 33ALLISON HESFORD CRAIG BIHRLE