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Member
Posts: 714
| Last night I attended the annual "Mille Lacs Fisheries Input Group" meeting with the Minnesota DNR.
It was proposed and approved by the group to recommend that fishing regulations for this coming season remain unchanged from what we had in 2005. For walleyes that will be:
4 fish daily limit.
20-28" protected slot from opener thru July 14th., and 22-28" protected slot from July 15th thru Nov. 30th. Then Dec. 1st though the end of the season (Feb.28) we will revert back to the 20-28" protected slot.
1 fish over the protected slot is allowed per person.
Both perch and tulibee numbers are showing great improvment and this fall the state is planning on opening the lake for sportsman tulibee netting for the first time in several years.
And.........drum roll please!!!!!!!
This spring Mille Lacs and 39 other lakes in Minnesota that are managed for muskie fishing will have signs posted at the landings informing the public that starting this fall, the state will be holding public input meetings for public response to their intention to raise the state legal minimum length for muskies from 40" to 48" starting opening day 2007!!!! | |
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Member
Posts: 389
| Sounds good Jack! With protection like that, the lake's fish population should be healthy for many years to come.
Juls
Edited by Juls_OH 2/8/2006 1:52 PM
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Location: Rhinelander | Great news about the Muskies and Walleye limits. Something had to be done to protect the Muskies, there's more pressure on Minnesota waters now than ever. Meanwhile, Mike Roberts, Norm Wild, and I have undertaken a project working with the WDNR to increase the size limit on Pelican Lake in Oneida County to 50" The Pelican Lake Property Association has approved the measure, and the DNR has fast tracked it to the State question list this spring for the CC meetings. EVERYONE GOING TO THE HEARINGS VOTE FOR THAT PROPOSAL!!!!!!MAKE SURE YOUR FRIENDS AND ASSOCIATES DO TOO!!! The lake is on a do-not-stock list until 2011 at least, and is a low density, high quality, poor natural reproduction system. Forage there is suckers, bullheads, and lastly, perch. A healthy Trophy Muskie population in Pelican bodes well for all fish species. The laocl folks WANT this, and support the proposal. VOTE! | |
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| Did the subject of the thousands of Cormorants nesting on Spirit Island come up at this meeting ? | |
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Member
Posts: 714
| No, comorants were never mentioned. They do not fall into the scope of our authority. Our group is commissioned strictly as a public input group for the purpose of filling the requirements of the U.S. Supreme Court ruling in regardes to fisheries managment under the terms of the 1837 Treaty. We are an advisory board only.
As for the issue of commorants, yes, their numbers are growing on Mille Lacs, but there are not "thousands" of them nesting on Spirit Island as you suggest. Other areas of the DNR, and USFW are actively monitoring those birds and the state is aware of the situation.
Edited by JLDII 2/10/2006 11:58 PM
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Member
Posts: 49
| There were thousands nesting there last spring and early summer. I own property near Spirit Island my partners in that property and I counted three to four thousand on several occassions we did an estimate as they took to the air when we boated to close . This was at the time they were proposing the efforts to limit them on Leech. Shortly after June they disperessed I called the DNR and spoke to them at the Atkin Office they told me they were not aware of any problem or numbers of cormorants ( sounds like your response ) Pretending this problem doesn't exist or stating that it is someone elses problem will not address it .From what I and others observed the cormorants consume as many or more resources as netters and anglers. From this site and others it seems they are a problem all over the northern states but seem to be ignored by so called authorities . It seems also strange to me that this group of folks invited to the round table did not include landowners who also have stake in the condition of the fishery | |
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Member
Posts: 714
| Craig,
I'm not trying to disput that there are thousands of commorants around the island, because there are. I do not believe there are thousands of nests on the island though. There are quiet a few, but "thousands" would be hard for that small an island. I do know for a fact that the U.S.F.W. was out there doing surveys this year as well.
As for the "Input Group" and its members, all of the group ARE landowners, as well as business owners on the lake, as well as state legislators, and Chamber of Commerce people and Mille Lacs Tourism board members. The private landowners and their interests are being very well taken care of, in as far as what we are commisioned to do.
Unfortunately, the commorant issue DOES NOT fall within our area of responsibility. I'm sorry. | |
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Member
Posts: 2393
Location: Waukesha Wisconsin | http://www.fws.gov/midwest/MNCormorantNEPA/
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2006 Mille Lacs Lake Regulations (proposed)