It’s simple math really: Zero eggs equals zero fish for future stocking programs.
So, the spring walleye and steelhead egg collections by the Michigan DNR are critical components of the strategy for maintaining world-class fishing opportunities in the Great Lakes State.
Nearly fifty years have now passed since the first paddletail swimbaits splashed down in U.S. waters, the earliest designs having likely originated in France. Today, paddletails have almost singlehandedly rewritten the rules of soft plastics engagement. Fans of catching bass, crappie, walleye and inshore slams nearly always cast these ingenious tail-driven baits, each version capable of different retrieve speeds, actions and the almighty thump.
Gamakatsu has announced a proprietary new finish for their most popular hook styles.
By Louie Stout
All of those walleye stockings that the Indiana DNR has done the last couple of years appear to be yielding fair to good results.
Biologists spent last fall revisiting stocked rivers and lakes to shock around the shorelines in search of yearling fish and to evaluate the fishery.
Here’s a look at what they found:
St. Joseph River
Biologist Matt Horsley spent two hours electro-shocking, beginning at Baugo Bay in Mishawaka and worked down to the Twin Branch Dam, alternating shorelines every 15 minutes. Those are areas where fish are stocked every other year.
“We saw a slight increase (compared to previous stockings) of one-year-olds, but that’s probably because we stocked more fish than normal in 2019,” he said. “Growth seems to be fairly average, with one year olds running about 11½ inches and two year olds about 13½ inches.”
By Louie Stout
The number of registered bass tournaments held in Michigan in 2019 jumped by my more than 500 events compared to 2018.
Tournament directors are required to register their tournaments each year and provide statistical information.
Last year’s (2020) stats are still being tabulated at the time of this writing and will be reported by Michiana Outdoors News when made available.
One thing is certain – the pre-pandemic season was notable in numbers and weight of the fish caught in 2019.
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