The Black Lake Chapter of Sturgeon for Tomorrow (Cheboygan County) is seeking volunteers to join in its effort, in partnership with the Michigan Department of Natural Resources, to help protect lake sturgeon from illegal harvest during the annual spawning run.

Every spring, mature lake sturgeon – a fish species that is threatened in Michigan and rare throughout the United States – become vulnerable to poaching as they briefly leave Black Lake for spawning sites upstream in the Black River.

Hundreds of volunteers are needed to stand guard along the Black River during the spawning season (mid-April through early June) to report suspicious activity and deter the unlawful take of this iconic fish.

“The annual Sturgeon Guarding Program has proven that people serving as sturgeon guards watching over the river have virtually eliminated poaching, while helping to ensure the protection and reproductive success of the species,” said May Paulson, the program’s new volunteer coordinator. Read more

Ohio announces walleye and yellow perch bag limits

COLUMBUS, OH– Lake Erie anglers have the chance to experience excellent fishing opportunities on Lake Erie in 2019, according to Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR) Division of Wildlife. Walleye angler harvest rates set records in 2018, and numerous large hatches point to a bright future for the Walleye Capital of the World.

Ohio’s Lake Erie daily bag limit for walleye is four fish per angler and the yellow perch daily bag limit is 30 fish per angler through April 30, 2019. The daily bag limit will be six walleye per angler from May 1 through Feb. 29, 2020. A 15-inch minimum size limit is in effect during the entire season for walleye. The yellow perch daily limit will remain at 30 in all of Ohio’s Lake Erie waters through April of 2020, with no minimum size limit. Read more

A 24-year-old man from Taylor, Michigan, was hospitalized and treated for hypothermia last night after his kayak overturned in Lake Erie.

Michigan Department of Natural Resources Conservation Officer Nick Ingersoll received a call from Monroe County Dispatch at 7:18 p.m. A kayaker who was walleye fishing overturned in Brest Bay of Lake Erie, offshore of Sterling State Park in Monroe. The capsized kayaker originally was reported by Deputy Seth Evans, with the Monroe County Sheriff’s Department, who witnessed the kayaker overturn.

Located nearby on highway 275 and Ready Road, Ingersoll activated the emergency lights on his DNR patrol truck and drove to the Sterling State Park headquarters, where he had prepared his DNR patrol boat earlier in the season. Ingersoll towed the boat to the Sterling State Park boat launch, where two fishermen aided him in launching the patrol boat into the bay.

Dispatch provided Ingersoll with the kayaker’s location based on cellphone coordinates obtained when the kayaker had called 911 for help. Evans also had maintained sight of the kayaker and was able to direct Ingersoll through radio communication, once Ingersoll was in his patrol boat and on the water.

Receiving navigation assistance from Evans, Ingersoll saw the kayaker, located about a quarter of a mile offshore. The kayaker was in the water, holding onto the kayak with one arm, waving his lit-up cellphone in the air with the other arm.

“The water was very choppy, making it difficult to clearly scan the water for the victim,” said Ingersoll. “If it weren’t for the kayaker’s lit-up cellphone, he would have easily been mistaken for a log in the water.”

At 7:38 p.m., Ingersoll reached the kayaker and instructed him to continue holding the kayak. The kayaker was not wearing a lifejacket when he overturned and told Ingersoll that he was unable to find his lifejacket once he was in the water. Ingersoll positioned the DNR patrol boat as close to the kayaker as he safely could and threw him a lifejacket. Once the kayaker had the lifejacket, Ingersoll continued to instruct the kayaker. Read more

Muskegon River anglers should be on the lookout for Department of Natural Resources personnel collecting walleye eggs below Croton Dam this spring.

Walleye will be collected with electrofishing boats starting as early as the week of March 27 and concluding by April 17. Anglers should exhibit caution when fishing near the electrofishing boats. Wading anglers will be asked to exit the water when the boat approaches to ensure their safety. Those who wish to avoid the walleye collection activities should fish downstream.

The DNR plans to collect approximately 30 million walleye eggs from the Muskegon River this year, which will result in more than 13 million fry for transfer to rearing ponds and direct fry plants throughout the Lower Peninsula. Walleye fry transferred to ponds will be raised to fingerling size (approximately 1.5 to 2.5 inches) and stocked in late spring or early summer in lakes and rivers throughout the state. Read more

Members from Coast Guard Station Marblehead rescue ice fishermen from an ice floe north of Catawaba Island, March 9, 2019. (U.S. Coast Guard Photo)

CLEVELAND — The U.S. Coast Guard and local agencies rescued 46 ice fishermen from an ice floe that broke free near Catawaba Island, Saturday.

An additional estimated 100 people were able to self-rescue themselves from the ice floe either by swimming or walking on ice-bridges that were still connected to the floe initially.

At 8:13 a.m., Coast Guard Station Marblehead received notification from an Ohio Department of Natural Resources representative that there were approximately 100 people stranded on an ice floe and that there were an additional 30 to 40 people in the water. Coast Guard District 9 Command Center launched two 20-foot Special Purpose Craft–airboats from Station Marblehead, two MH-65 Dolphin helicopters from Coast Guard Air Station Detroit, and two MH-60 Jayhawk helicopters from Coast Guard Air Station Traverse City to respond for a mass rescue. Read more

The Michigan Department of Natural Resources reminds anglers that mandatory ice shanty removal dates are approaching. Regardless of the date, shanties must be removed before the ice is unable to safely support them. In warmer weather, the ice quickly can become unsafe for anglers to retrieve their property.

The deadline for removal from waters in the northern Lower Peninsula is midnight Friday, March 15. Counties in this area include Alcona, Alpena, Antrim, Arenac, Bay, Benzie, Charlevoix, Cheboygan, Clare, Crawford, Emmet, Gladwin, Grand Traverse, Iosco, Isabella, Kalkaska, Lake, Leelanau, Manistee, Mason, Mecosta, Midland, Missaukee, Montmorency, Newaygo, Oceana, Ogemaw, Osceola, Oscoda, Otsego, Presque Isle, Roscommon and Wexford. Read more

Winter conditions – very cold temperatures and heavy snow over ice, for example – can kill fish and other aquatic creatures like turtles, frogs, toads and crayfish. When ice and snow start to melt in the spring, it’s likely that people will begin to discover those deaths.

“Winterkill is the most common type of fish kill,” said Gary Whelan, the DNR Fisheries Division’s research manager. “As the season changes, it can be common in shallow lakes, ponds, streams and canals. These kills are localized and typically don’t affect the overall health of fish populations or fishing quality.” Read more