Category: Fishing

Michigan: Oden hatchery readies for 10,000 Arctic grayling eggs

Arctic grayling swimming in a tankMichigan’s plan to reintroduce Arctic grayling to state waters is taking a big leap forward, courtesy of some generous donors and partners.

Plans are under way to install an ultraviolet water disinfection system at the DNR’s Oden State Fish Hatchery in Emmet County. The system, which should be in place by mid-August, is critical for both cultivating Arctic grayling and other fish broodstock – mature fish used for breeding – and ensuring that waters receiving those fish are protected from potential pathogens (things that can cause disease).

“We are grateful for the outpouring of support to bring this upgrade to Oden State Fish Hatchery, where protecting water quality is key to sustaining healthy fisheries across the state,” said Ed Eisch, manager of the DNR Fish Production Program.

The state of Alaska is providing Michigan with three “year classes” of wild Arctic grayling eggs. A year class is a group of fish of the same species and strain that hatched in the same year. Michigan’s first year class of eggs was collected a week ago at the Ruth Barnett Sport Fish Hatchery in Fairbanks, Alaska, with fish caught out of the Chena River. The eggs were collected by the Alaska Department of Fish and Game, with assistance from Michigan DNR staff. Michigan State University PhD candidate Nicole Watson will be bringing back enough eggs – roughly 10,000 – to run her second year of experiments and produce the state’s first year class of broodstock.

A DNR fisheries staff member collecting Arctic grayling eggs on a trip to AlaskaThese eggs initially will be reared in isolation at the Oden hatchery. Once cleared by fish health testing, they’ll be transferred to Marquette State Fish Hatchery. During broodstock development, scientific evaluations will continue on the Manistee River and begin on the Jordan, Maple and Boardman rivers to determine suitability for reintroduction.

More than $350,000 was raised to upgrade Oden’s isolated rearing facility, including engineering and construction costs. Major gifts were granted by Henry E. and Consuelo S. Wenger Foundation, Little River Band of Ottawa Indians, Trout Unlimited, the DNR, Rosso Family Foundation, Petoskey-Harbor Springs Area Community Foundation, Oleson Foundation, Rotary Charities of Traverse City, Friends of the Jordan River Watershed and supporters of the Little Traverse Conservancy.

Learn more about the initiative at MiGrayling.org.

Questions? Contact Ed Eisch, 231-922-6055 or Archie Martell (Little River Band of Ottawa Indians), 231-398-2193.
Fishing

AFFTA: Tariffs Add “Excessive Burden to the Fly Fishing Industry”

Increase will undermine $1 billion industry, hand cost to 10 million anglers

BOZEMAN, MT. – In response to the Administration’s action to increase tariffs on goods from China, AFFTA president, Ben Bulis, released this statement:

“The backbone of the fly fishing industry is small- to mid-sized business. Locally-owned and employing local people. From specialty retail shops, guides and outfitters to the manufacturers who develop and produce the gear that they rely on for their livelihood, we are a significant part of our nation’s powerful and growing outdoor economy, contributing more than $1 billion annually.

This increase in tariffs, on top of the already harmful tariffs imposed over the past 10 months, will only make it more difficult and costly for our industry’s businesses and the local economies that rely on them to stay viable. The increase will further stifle innovation, force unfair and highly expensive production changes, inhibit the free market and freeze, or worse, cut employment. Read more

Fishing

Learn to Fly Fish in Michigan

Fly Fishing School- June 14, 15, 2019

Do you want to learn the sport of fly fishing? The Great Lakes Council of Fly Fishers International will teach you the basics of fly fishing including learning about equipment and gear, knots, casting, entomology, fly selection, reading the water, on-stream tactics, and fly fishing etiquette. The school will include on-stream instruction. The school is being held at D-Loop Outfitters, 918 Seaman Rd. Wellston, MI 49689. The cost is $225. For more information and to download an application go to www.ffiglc.org or email dpeterson6325@gmail.com.

Fishing

Canadian Tariffs on U.S. Boats Removed

NMMA Canada and the Canadian Marine Trades Associations have been advised by the Government of Canada that effective April 30, 2019, all retaliatory tariffs on U.S. recreational boats entering Canada have been removed, marking the most positive development for our industry since this concerning issue first emerged.

The Canadian Marine Trade Associations have been advised that earlier this week, the Canadian government approved the “Order Amending the United States Surtax Order (Other Goods),” which ended the 10 percent retaliatory tariff on U.S. boats heading to Canada that was implemented in response to the U.S government’s Section 232 tariffs on steel and aluminum. Read more

Fishing

Fish for Free in Michigan this June

Michigan: home to outstanding fishing, more than 3,000 miles of Great Lakes shoreline, 11,000 inland lakes, and tens of thousands of miles of rivers and streams.

There’s no shortage of recreational opportunities to explore – and what better time to do so than the 2019 Summer Free Fishing Weekend!

The 2019 Summer Free Fishing Weekend will be held Saturday, June 8 and Sunday, June 9. As part of these weekends, all fishing license fees are waived for two days with residents and out-of-state visitors invited to enjoy fishing on both inland and Great Lakes’ waters for all species of fish during their respective open seasons. Please note all other regulations still apply during that time.

To encourage involvement in Free Fishing Weekends, activities are offered in communities across the state. These activities are coordinated by non-profit groups, schools, parks (local/state), businesses and others. Will you be joining them and planning a 2019 Summer Free Fishing Weekend event? Read more

Fishing

Michigan: birders, photographers, paddlers: Explore Wetland Wonders and win

May is American Wetlands Month, and what better way to mark the occasion than to get out and explore one of Michigan’s Wetland Wonders? During the DNR’s new Wetland Wonders Challenge (May 1 through July 14), visitors are invited to visit just one of the Wetland Wonders sites, snap a photo by the official challenge sign (pictured at right) and then submit it for a chance to win one of four Cabela’s gift cards ranging from $250 to $1,000.

Scattered across the state, from Portage Marsh State Wildlife Management Area in the Upper Peninsula, to Pointe Mouillee State Game Area just 25 miles from the Ohio border, these areas provide great year-round recreation opportunities like birding, boating, fishing, hiking and hunting, not to mention capturing great photos.

Michigan’s Wetland Wonders are areas managed to provide high-quality wetlands for waterfowl and waterbirds, while offering great outdoor recreation opportunities. These areas are funded by hunting license fees, but they are open for anyone to visit, use and enjoy most of the year.

The contest is sponsored by Consumers Energy with contest partners MI Birds and Michigan United Conservation Clubs. Get full contest entry details and Wetland Wonders location information at Michigan.gov/WetlandWonders.

Fishing, Hunting, Wildlife

Anglers help protect Michigan’s waters from invasive mudsnails

By JOANNE FOREMAN
Michigan Department of Natural Resources

A closer look at New Zealand mudsnails is shown.

Thousands of anglers across the state are poised to dip their waders into cold-water Michigan lakes, rivers and streams beginning Saturday, looking to tempt a prize brookie, a colorful rainbow or sleek German brown trout.

As they move from one spot to the next, anglers can unknowingly help spread a devastating invasive species, the New Zealand mudsnail.

“If you are going to fish different streams, be sure to clean your waders and boots,” said Jeff Gerwitz, a member of the Vanguard Chapter of Michigan Trout Unlimited, supporting Oakland County’s Paint Creek. “Some people don’t think it’s a big deal or concern, and they don’t take the time to clean and inspect between sites, but now we’re finding these mudsnails in more and more places.”

New Zealand mudsnails were first discovered in the U.S. in Idaho’s Snake River in 1987. Since then, infestations have spread throughout the western states and into areas of the Great Lakes. Read more

Fishing

Michigan: get ready to fish several season openers Saturday

It’s time to put that new fishing license to good use. Saturday, April 27, is the statewide trout opener, as well as the start of the Lower Peninsula inland walleye and northern pike seasons. The DNR encourages everyone heading out this weekend to take along someone new and share the fun of Michigan’s world-class fishing opportunities.

A few reminders:

  • In Upper Peninsula waters, the walleye and northern pike possession seasons open Wednesday, May 15.
  • Michigan’s muskellunge possession season on all Great Lakes, inland waters, the St. Marys River, Lake St. Clair, and the St. Clair and Detroit rivers opens Saturday, June 1 – though catch-and-release fishing for muskellunge is open all year.
  • Catch-and-immediate-release season for largemouth and smallmouth bass is open all year on nearly all waters (unless otherwise closed to fishing; check the current Michigan Fishing Guide for specifics).
  • The possession season for bass opens statewide Saturday, May 25, except for Lake St. Clair and the St. Clair and Detroit rivers, which open Saturday, June 15.

Before hitting the water, be sure to have the new fishing license for the current season, which opened April 1. The 2019 fishing licenses are valid through March 31, 2020. Read more

Fishing

Michigan: Dozens of Walleye Confiscated After Anonymous Tip

Three walleye anglers fishing together last week on the Detroit River face losing their fishing licenses after being caught with 80 walleye – 65 over the river’s legal daily limit of five per person, per day.

An anonymous tip to the Michigan Department of Natural Resources Report All Poaching Hotline Thursday afternoon said that three males were suspected of exceeding the walleye limit while fishing the Detroit River. The caller provided a description of the anglers’ vehicle and said they were driving from Detroit toward Grand Rapids on I-96 west.

Conservation Officers Peter Purdy and Jaime Salisbury were on patrol in northern Livingston County when they received the notification from the RAP Hotline dispatcher.

After patrolling I-96 for about an hour, Purdy and Salisbury observed a vehicle matching the description provided by the caller. When the driver failed to use a turn signal while changing lanes, the officers stopped the vehicle along the freeway near Okemos Road in Ingham County.

“We asked the driver to be honest and tell us how many walleye the three men had in their possession,” said Salisbury. “The driver hung his head and stated, ’too many.’”

The three males – a 28-year-old from Byron Center, a 38-year-old from Allendale and a 30-year-old from Jenison – admitted to fishing the Detroit River earlier in the day and that they had all caught and kept too many fish. Read more

Fishing, Poachers

Orvis Announces Eleventh Year of Fly Fishing 101 Clinics

Orvis introduces more than 15,000 new people to fly fishing every year through free fly-fishing classes. FF101 classes can be found in 43 U.S. states and include a free annual membership to Trout Unlimited. Additionally, for every student that attends an FF101 class in 2019, Orvis will make a $1 donation to Casting for Recovery®, a unique organization that provides therapeutic fly-fishing retreats to women with breast cancer.

“At Orvis, we believe that fly fishing can have a positive impact on people’s lives, and we want as many folks as possible to have the opportunity to get out on the water and enjoy the sport,” states Tom Rosenbauer, fly-fishing mentor, author, and host of the Orvis Fly Fishing Podcast. “We created FF101 classes to encourage people of all ages and backgrounds to come learn to fish. Our hope is that we can help break down the barriers to entry and provide a unique opportunity for families and friends to come together and connect in the outdoors.”

Orvis is an instructional leader within the fly fishing industry, hosting schools in the U.S. since the early 1970s. For the 2019 season, classes will be offered from May through July at Orvis retail stores across the country. Students are guaranteed individualized instruction on all the basics, like how to assemble a rod, how to attach the reel, and how to string line up through the guides. Students learn the differences between the fly line and the leader, as well as basic types of flies and knots needed for a successful day on the water. Read more

Fishing
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