Meeting of the Experimental Regs on Walleye &Saug

REVIEW OF EXPERIMENTAL MISSISSIPPI RIVER WALLEYE-SAUGER REGULATION TOPIC OF PUBLIC MEETINGS!!!!!!

BELLEVUE, Iowa – The Iowa Department of Natural Resources (DNR) is hosting three public meetings to discuss the current experimental walleye and sauger regulations on the Mississippi River and the proposed changes to those experimental regulations. The public meetings will be held from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m., Tuesday, Dec. 1, in Davenport, Wednesday Dec. 2, in Dubuque, and Thursday Dec. 3, in Burlington.
Walleye and sauger anglers have been taking part in two experimental regulations over the past five years with the goal of reducing sauger mortality in the winter by closing tailwater fishing at three lock and dams, and increasing egg laying walleyes in the population with a 20 to 27-inch release slot on walleyes from Dubuque south to the Missouri border.
Iowa fisheries researchers have looked at the data to determine whether there has been an improvement in the size structure and catch rates of sauger and walleye in the special regulation areas and are presenting this information to the angling public.
“This is an opportunity for our anglers who support fisheries to give us some feedback on these regulations. We will go over the experimental walleye and sauger regulations and our rational for any changes and take comments from anyone willing to speak,” said Mike Steuck, Mississippi River fisheries research biologist. Research findings and public input will assist DNR Fisheries staff in decision making to continue, expand or change the regulation.
Any interested person may make written suggestions or comments on or before December 31, 2009. Written comments may be sent to Mike Steuck, Bellevue Fisheries Research Station, 24143 Hwy 52, Bellevue, IA 52031, or faxed to 563-872-5998.
The Iowa DNR Fisheries Bureau will have staff members present at each site to answer questions and to take any written comments.

Public Meeting Locations. All meetings are scheduled from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m.
Davenport: Tuesday, Dec. 1, Davenport Library, 3000 N. Fairmont St. Davenport
Dubuque: Wednesday, Dec. 2, Swiss Valley Nature Center, 13606 Swiss Valley Rd. Peosta
Burlington: Thursday, Dec. 3, Starr’s Cave Nature Center, 11627 Starrs Cave Rd. Burlington

Mike Steuck
Fisheries Research Biologist
Bellevue Fisheries Research & Management Station
Iowa Department of Natural Resources
24143 Hwy 52
B

“increasing egg laying walleyes in the population with a 20 to 27-inch release slot on walleyes”

Why wouldn’t we want a slot up the river to the Minnesota border? To me a 15″ to 18″ walleye is a much better eating fish than 20″ to 27″ fish. Sure the river is good fishing, but why not implement a plan to make the fishing even better with a cost that is nothing?

Am I missing something?

I just Faxed in my 2 cents

The reason it is only from Dubuque south is because Wisc. didn’t go along with it. It simply won’t work unless both border waters states are in agreement.

I’d like to know the ‘proposed changes’.

But like I stated in an earlier thread, they most likely have their minds made up what they are going to do and the meetings are just a formality. I guess we’ll see.

The first meeting was in Davenport last night. Did anybody from IDO attend?

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“increasing egg laying walleyes in the population with a 20 to 27-inch release slot on walleyes”

Why wouldn’t we want a slot up the river to the Minnesota border? To me a 15″ to 18″ walleye is a much better eating fish than 20″ to 27″ fish. Sure the river is good fishing, but why not implement a plan to make the fishing even better with a cost that is nothing?

Am I missing something?

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I’m not sure that either I understand you, or you understand what they are saying.
Fish between 20 and 27 inches will have to go back, the 20-27inch class fish are the main breeders for the walleye stock, proving the most and best eggs.

Personally I think if you wre going to put regulations on the walleye population this is a pretty good slot, letting you keep fish up to 20 which lot of people do not choose to keep a walleye that big, most anglers like the 16 inch give or take a couple. It also allows you to keep a fish of a lifetime if you so choose.

People these regulations really shouldn’t affect a good angler the believes in C&R any ways, personally I like sticking some big eyes, I myself wouldn’t keep them. Fished and seen a lot of really restrictive and ugly regulations, I think this one is decent, I’d venture the guess it may actually improve the fishing in the future.

I think Iowa should give it a try

What about a season on them? That should also help improve fishing.

i think iowa kinda wimped out on this one..should have made the slot limit for the entire length of the states border and if bordering states follow so much the better..they dont let ya pay taxes to a bordering state if their rates happen to be a little less.. its a big equation the dnr is trying to solve here and they not be real clear as to exactly where the $ sign fits in the process..

Stirboy, evidently you don’t understand how these borderwater regulations work.
Let’s say Ia, wnet with this law the full length of the state, But Wi refused to. Now the guys licensed in Ia. are restricted to the slot rule but the guys licensed in Wi. can fish the same exact area and keep those slot fish. Exactly what is right about this scenario? Wimped out? I don’t agree.
Now you could say that if Iowa fishers wanted to be on equal footing with the Wi. fishers they could buy the non-res license. But that’s not the solution, it’s just a way around the law.

Besides all this, none of these laws make a danged bit of difference to the law breakers, and there is plenty of it happening, as long as we have no enforcement of them. I can’t even guess at how many years it’s been since I saw a CO from Ia. on the water this time of year, or any time of year for that matter.

My opinion; Open up the three dams in question,since the DNR study has proven the closures is not having any effect on the sauger population. Keep the slot limit for the walleyes and impose a slot limit for saugers. Close the river for walleye and sauger fishing between March 1st & April 15th to protect the spawn.

Does anyone have a link to the data or had the chance to attend a meeting?

I think it would be very interesting to see the results from the study. The Iowa DNR has control groups to compare the results to in the northern pools with no change to the regulations in those pools. The data that John Pitlo had gathered and published prior to these experimental regs going into effect should form a great basis for the study.

I also wonder why the MN DNR doesn’t have some sound scientific data available and published that compares pool 2 C&R regs to the other Mississippi pools?

My $.02,
barc

No Herb your wrong on the slot there is Iowa side of the river & a Wisconsin side of the river you must obay the regs in the state you are fishing so if a Iowa fisherman is fishing on the Wisconsin side he can keep one in the slot only if he does not stop & fish on the Iowa side he must go straight back to the landing if put in on the Iowa side like everybody does at Dubuque IA

I’ll give you that zonar because I don’t have the most recent Wi. regs. Now, where is that boundary line at, exactly?
Ya know, it would really be nice if both border states could adopt the same regulations and eliminate the confusion. But in the end it don’t matter much cause I seldom keep a limit, never keep a biggun, and have no interest in trophy fish. If I catch one fine, it’ll go back cause I know we need those big females in the water. But I do get some enjoyment watching the game hog’s reactions when turning a big one loose. I just like to catch fish.
And that’s just my opinion of all this.

Herb i also never keep one over 20 & i am fine with the slot but Iowa closed on dec 1 & they can fish the Wisconsin side of the river. You can find the line on a map of the river or on a gps mapping chip

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Herb i also never keep one over 20 & i am fine with the slot but Iowa closed on dec 1 & they can fish the Wisconsin side of the river. You can find the line on a map of the river or on a gps mapping chip

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I believe it is from the DAM down to the Train Bridge on the Wisconsin side…

Thats the closer stickman & only Iowa has it anybody have any info on the meeting

In case you missed the meeting Dubuque last night, the meeting in Davenport went like this: As long as public comments don’t disagree too much, the tailwater closings are being removed, the 20-27 slot is being kept.

haasjj : Is the lifting of the dam closer starting this year or next.

Its already in the 2010 Iowa regs so next year at the earliest but don’t hold your breath

haasjj did they give any numbers of increas or decrease in numbers of walleye & sauger

The guess was that if everything went smoothly, IA water would be open 1/1/2011 and IL would be 4/1/2010. So you’d be looking at a December 2010 would still be closed, but that’s it. Of course this is all in a perfect world, but it looks likely.

Walleye over 20″ and particular over 27″ did increase a fair bit, but sauger numbers didn’t trend any different than the control pool. It’s not a total fish initiative, but a trending of experimental pools versus control pools.

I know in Pool 14 there are a ton of slot fish and it seems we’re picking up bigger fish all the time. I had 3 fish between 12-13 lbs in the hatchery this spring. Usually we’re tickled to have one. A lot of 6-10 pound fish out there.

If you can’t make a meeting, give Mike Steuck (IADNR) a call, he’s really open to talking about it the regs (563)872-4976. He’d know timelines better than I do too.

I really wish they would add pools 10 and 11. Those two pools really needs some help. All I can say about Pool 12 is Big Fish. Fished there for 2 days this summer and caught 2 26″ fish 4 24″ and a couple 21″-23″. No keepers and lost a couple more big fish.