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For the second year in a row, DNR fisheries biologists will tag and release 1,500 one-year old muskies into Lake Webster to boost the lake's sagging muskie population.
The stocking will happen this month. The fish normally would have been stocked last fall but were held over winter in a pond and fed live minnows at the Fawn River State Hatchery in the hope of increasing their chance for survival.
Studies in other states show that year-old muskies stocked in spring survive at higher rates than fingerling muskies stocked in fall, presumably because they can avoid predators more easily and have more food and cover in fall.
Muskies stocked this month will average 12.5 inches long, about 2 inches larger than a batch of 1,325 fingerlings stocked in the 774-acre Kosciusko County lake last fall.
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Effective July 1, Indiana will require children under age 18 to wear an approved helmet when riding any off-road vehicle (ORV) on public or private property in Indiana, including Interlake and Redbird state recreation areas.
House Enrolled Act 1200, which was signed into law by Gov. Eric J. Holcomb on April 26, means changes to the rules at the two off-road-riding properties owned and operated by the Department of Natural Resources, Redbird and Interlake. Redbird SRA is near Linton, and Interlake SRA is near Lynnville.
Both properties previously required children and adults to wear approved helmets when riding all-terrain vehicles (ATVs) and dirt bikes but not when riding side-by-side ORVs equipped with roll bars or overhead protection. HEA 1200 applies to both ATVs and side-by-side ORVs. The new law will add the requirement that children in side-by-side ORVs wear approved helmets.
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Eight Indiana counties will be able to address sediment problems in lakes and rivers, thanks to $617,500 in grant funding from the DNRís Lake and River Enhancement (LARE) program.
LARE grants are administered through DNR Division of Fish & Wildlife. Division director Mark Reiter said the funding will support 11 projects this year.
"The goal for these projects is to improve public accessibility to Indiana waterways and lakes," Reiter said. "Improved access will increase recreation opportunities for boaters, anglers, paddlers and others who love water."
The 11 projects were chosen in a competitive process from applications submitted by local sponsors, who agree to share at least 20 percent of the cost.
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A new boat ramp and larger parking area are now available for anglers at a public access site on Bixler Lake in Noble County.
The improvements at the 117-acre lake were made possible through an agreement between the DNR and the Kendallville Park Department.
The DNR leased an existing access site on park property off Sherman Street. Last fall, the agency replaced the ramp with funds generated from fishing license sales and taxes on boat fuel.
Additional upgrades scheduled for this spring include paving the parking area, designating space for accessible parking, installing a loading pier, and signage.
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(Provided by IDNR)
Despite the low number of adult muskies now present in Lake Webster, DNR fisheries biologists were able to catch enough sexually ripe females this spring to obtain nearly 500,000 eggs.
That amount fills the annual quota needed to support Indiana's muskie stocking program.
Biologists captured 88 muskies in trap nets set over an eight-day period in late March and early April at the 774-acre lake in Kosciusko County. Fifty were adult males and 24 were adult females.
From this group, five females were "ripe" enough to provide nearly 11 quarts of eggs that were stripped from the fish, fertilized with milt from males, and then transported to the Fawn River Hatchery in Orland.