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GLSI Report

Hear about the latest information and research for our Lake Michigan salmon and trout fishery at the Great Lakes Salmon Imitative (GLSI) Fisheries Meeting Feb.17.

The program is free and open to the public.  There will also be an open forum question and answer sessions with all presenters.

Here is the agenda:

Results from the Lake Michigan diet study on what salmon and trout are eating by Dr. Brian Roth, Associate Professor, Department of Fisheries and Wildlife, Michigan State University.

Dr. Roth will present results of his multi-year study of the aquatic food web in Lake Michigan and what our salmon and trout are feeding on.

How the states surrounding Lake Michigan cooperate to manage our fishery via the Lake Michigan Committee along with a historical overview and current status of the forage base in Lake Michigan by Jay Wesley, Lake Michigan Basin Coordinator, Michigan Department of Natural Resources

Jay Wesley will explain how the Lake Michigan Committee works together to coordinate fisheries management of Lake Michigan and will also speak on changes and the current status of the forage base and how that affects stocking decisions and overall management of our fishery.

Chinook (King) SalmonChinook (King) Salmon

A project to improve chinook (king) salmon stockings at the East Chicago Marina by the Lake County Fish and Game Protection Association (LCFGPA) has received approval from the Indiana DNR and other local officials.

When it’s time to stock salmon fingerlings, 37,500 of them will be released into a large, floating cage, called a net pen which will be located inside the East Chicago Marina. Volunteers from Lake County Fish and Game Protection Association will feed the pen fish three times per day and monitor the water quality and health of the fish through the period.  

Net Pen for Salmon FingelingsNet Pen for Salmon Fingelings

The net pen is currently under construction and will be positioned in the marina by April 1. The exact date of the stocking will be determined at a later date by the Mixsawbah State Fish Hatchery manager, depending on biological factors. The date the pen will be opened so the smolts can begin their life in the wild will depend on their final development in the pens. That’s expected to be about three weeks.

MDNR Report

The Michigan Natural Resources Commission recently adopted regulation changes to establish a daily possession limit of one (1) rainbow trout 20 inches or greater year-round on select rivers, effective April 1, 2024.

The amendment will be a new component of the current daily possession limit regulation covering Type 3 and Type 4 waters where five (5) fish, but no more than three (3) trout 15 inches or greater with only one (1) rainbow trout 20 inches or greater are allowed.

The selected rivers are listed below by type regulation category. Where a confluence is mentioned, that simply means the point where two flowing bodies of water join together.

Subhead: Good Inland Bluegill Fishing Found Offshore

By Louie Stout

The cooler weather has drawn more trout and salmon into the St. Joseph River between Mishawaka and Lake Michigan, but we still need rain to raise water levels.

“The St. Joe is extremely low and guys are catching fish,” said Darrin Schaap of Clear H2o Tackle in Edwardsburg. “We need a good rain to raise the water level.”

The trout and salmon run into Mishawaka has picked up since Oct. 1. Lake Michigan Fisheries Biologist Ben Dickinson said an additional 183 steelhead, 90 kings and about 300 coho have passed through the South Bend ladder the past 12 days. Those join fish that ran into Indiana in September.

By Louie Stout

The crazy summer weather that hampered the Lake Michigan perch fishery and currently is delaying the steelhead run may have provided some positive benefits as well.

There is no question the summertime Lake Michigan perch fishery in Indiana was a stinker, due mostly to lake conditions, but there are signs of a brighter future.

More about that later.

Although the recent cool snap sent some trout and salmon through the South Bend ladder, we need rain to create more water flow and a drop in temperatures to draw more fall-run fish into the upper St. Joseph River and get them biting.\

Those were the opinions of Lake Michigan Biologist Ben Dickinson who noted the current warm weather and low water is delaying the run.

“The weather is the big thing,” he said when discussing the current trout and salmon fall run. “If the river is low and water temps are above 70, the fish don’t move upriver.”

South Bend fish ladder counts through Sept. 19 were 500 steelhead, 21 king salmon and 242 coho, most of which passed above the South Bend dam during last week’s cool down.