April 15, 2007
Press Release

Wisconsin - DNR News

New rules aimed at containing deadly fish virus

MADISON – All boaters, anglers and people who harvest bait from the wild must follow new rules regarding moving live fish, requiring water to be drained from boats after being used on potentially infected waters, and how they use and move bait.

The emergency regulations aim to contain a deadly fish virus that has already caused huge fish kills on several Great Lakes waters. They were adopted April 4 by the state Natural Resources Board and went into effect April 8.

They seek to prevent the spread viral hemorrhagic septicemia, or VHS, especially to Wisconsin’s inland lakes and rivers, by prohibiting anglers, boaters and wild bait harvesters from moving live fish or even water from the potentially infected waters of Lake Michigan, Lake Superior and the Mississippi River. The virus can be spread from fish to fish and can survive in water for more than a week; freezing or refrigerating fish does not kill the virus, although chemical and other treatment can. Fish infected with VHS can shed the virus into water in their urine and reproductive fluids; fish infected with the virus essentially bleed to death.

VHS is not a human health threat but more than 25 species of fish are susceptible to it, and state officials say the virus presents a very serious potential threat to fish populations and fishing opportunities in Wisconsin inland lakes and streams.

“We’re very worried,” says Mike Staggs, who directs Wisconsin’s fisheries program. “VHS virus can survive in the water without the fish and it can kill a broad range of species – all of which could allow it to spread quickly in our inland waters and have potentially devastating effects.

“We want you to continue to enjoy fishing and boating, but we truly need your help to protect Wisconsin’s waters and fisheries.”

The rules, which are similar to measures other Great Lakes states have taken, require anglers and boaters to:

• Be careful with live bait. Purchase your bait from a Wisconsin bait dealer or capture bait on the water in which you will be fishing. Anglers and boaters are not allowed to bring in bait from other states under a longstanding rule. You can also capture bait legally in a lake or stream and used in another lake or stream that is not the Mississippi River or any portion of a tributary stream to the Mississippi or to Lake Michigan, Green Bay or Lake Superior, up to the first barrier impassible to fish. Leeches, worms, and insects are not restricted by this rule and are OK on waters not restricted to artificial lures only.
• Be careful with dead bait. Several restrictions apply to dead fish, eggs, crayfish or frogs. Such dead bait may be used on the lake or stream where it was captured. Dead bait may also be used on Lake Michigan and Green Bay (including tributaries up to the first dam), as VHS may already be in those waters. The use of frozen or refrigerated dead bait is prohibited in all other waters. This includes frozen smelt taken from any waters. Dead bait may be used if preserved by means other than refrigeration or freezing, neither of which is assured of killing the virus.
• Don’t take live fish off the Great Lakes or Mississippi River. You may not take or transport any live fish or fish eggs (including bait) when leaving Lake Michigan, Green Bay, Lake Superior, the Mississippi River or any of their tributaries upstream to the first barrier impassable to fish. This includes fish caught and kept in livewells and leftover live bait, or minnows or fish eggs. There are some limited exceptions; contact your DNR office for information for those situations.
• Drain your boat and live well and empty your bait bucket before you leave the landing. After boating or fishing on the waters of the Great Lakes or Mississippi River (including all bays and tributaries up to the first dam), you must immediately drain all water from the boat and boat trailer, bilge, live wells and bait buckets or other equipment used onboard the boat. Place unused minnows in the trash, unless they are dead and will be saved for future use on the same body of water.
• Notify DNR if you see a fish with bloody spots on its skin. Call a local DNR fish biologist to help the agency monitor state fish populations for the virus. DNR is testing wild fish from Lake Michigan and Lake Superior this spring and will respond to fish kills.

VHS caused widespread fish kills in 2005 and 2006 in lakes St. Clair, Erie, Ontario and the St. Lawrence River, and was confirmed in early 2007 in Lake Huron chinook and whitefish collected in late 2005, Staggs says.

Because fish, chinook move widely in and between the Great Lakes, DNR biologists say the virus is “almost certainly” in Lake Michigan, and it may also be in Lake Superior, which is connected to Lake Huron. It may also be in the Mississippi River or the waters that drain to that river, which connect to Lake Michigan through the Chicago Sanitary Ship Canal.

More information on viral hemorrhagic septicemia is available on the DNR Web site.

FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT: Mike Staggs - (608) 267-0796, Bill Horns - (608) 266-8782 or Steve Hewett - (608) 267-750

Fish surveys basis for quality fisheries, ice-out starts process

WOODRUFF, Wis. – As soon as the lakes thaw, state fisheries crews begin surveys that are the cornerstone of the state’s system to manage waters in the ceded territory of northern Wisconsin.

“We plan to get in the lakes with fyke nets as quickly as possible after ice-out, and we’ll leave nets out through the peak of the walleye spawning period,” says Dennis Scholl, who leads a team of biologists and technicians responsible for conducting fishery assessments on a number of northern lakes.

The netting surveys are the first step in a year-long, multi-step process to assess fish populations and to monitor the sport fishery in each lake. Most surveys target walleyes because of their importance to tribal fishery and sport anglers, but information is also collected on other gamefish and non-game species.

As part of a 1983 federal Appellate Court decision affirming Chippewa off-reservation hunting, fishing, and gathering rights, the six bands of Wisconsin Chippewa set annual harvest quotas for off-reservation lakes in the Wisconsin Ceded Territory. To assure the combined tribal and recreational angler harvest does not exceed a sustainable level, the state revises recreational bag limits in lakes declared for harvest by the Chippewa bands. Those recreational angling bag limits for walleyes will soon be announced for 2007.

“Many people assume that the reduced bag limits are a response to some damage that’s occurred in the fishery, when in actuality they are only a preventive measure to assure that the total combined sport and tribal harvest for the year does not reach an unsafe level,” Scholl says. After about 18 years of experience with the current harvest management system, we know that, in general, it’s working. The surveys are a critical part of that system.”

Due to staff and funding limitations, only a small proportion of the 800+ walleye lakes can be surveyed in any one year. So, DNR biologists focus on lakes that are most heavily targeted by tribal spearers and sport anglers, and then use a conservative formula to generate tribal harvest quotas and sport bag limits for lakes lacking current surveys.

Lakes scheduled to be surveyed in 2007 in northeastern and north central Wisconsin include: Moen Chain and Hat Rapids Flowage in Oneida County; Trout, Little Arbor Vitae, and North and South Twin in Vilas County, Metonga in Forest County, Fay in Florence County, and Spider in Iron County.

Lakes scheduled to be surveyed for 2007 in northwestern Wisconsin include: Lower Eau Claire and Cranberry in Douglas County, Middle Eau Claire and Owen in Bayfield County, Lipsett and Big McKenzie in Burnett County, Magnor and Wapogasset in Polk County, and Sand in Sawyer County.

The survey process begins when crews stretch large fyke nets perpendicular to the shore where adult walleyes, muskies, and other gamefish congregate in spawning areas. The crews measure the fish they collect, determine their sex by the presence of eggs or milt, mark the fish by finclipping or tagging, and then remove a scale or dorsal fin spine sample for later analysis to determine the fish’s age, before releasing them.

A short time later, crews return to the same lakes in what are known as “recapture runs” to see how many of the same fish they catch. The crews use boats equipped to deliver an electric current in the water that stuns the fish and sends them to the surface. Crews then scoop them up with nets and place them in a tank filled with water. The crews do one entire circuit of the shore with the electrofishing boats, and again record data on fish size, age and sex before releasing them. The key information they collect includes the number and proportion of fish that were marked in the earlier fyke netting.

“The basic method for doing population estimates is to look at the ratio of marked to ummarked fish among those in a recapture sample, and that ratio is theoretically the same as the ratio of marked to unmarked fish in the population as a whole,” Scholl says.

Based on the population estimates for a lake, biologists calculate the “total allowable catch,” or TAC, which is the number of the adult population that can be safely harvested by all fishing methods combined, both sport and tribal, Scholl says. Because tribal harvest methods like spearing and netting are considered to be intensive harvest methods, biologists apply additional safety factors to the TAC to determine the “safe harvest” level for walleyes and muskies. Limits on the tribal harvest are calculated based on the safe harvest level for each lake.

If a population estimate hasn’t been done within the last two years on a lake, biologists use a mathematical model to generate a safe harvest figure for lakes, based on numerous population estimates from prior years. The model is intentionally designed to yield a more conservative estimate than would be generated after a survey, and results in a 1 in 40 risk of over harvest.

Another component of the overall study is the “creel survey,” where a creel survey technician counts and interviews anglers throughout the fishing season. Creel surveys provide information on catch and harvest rates, fishing pressure, and total angling exploitation. Exploitation is the percent of the spring adult population that ends up being harvested during that fishing season. That information will help manage the walleye populations over the long-term, and help monitor whether the regulatory system is working.

FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT: Dennis Scholl - (715) 358-9210 or Mike Keniry - (715) 685-2927

With turkey hunter numbers increasing, safety concerns also increase

DODGEVILLE – More than 100,000 hunters will take to woods and fields over the next six weeks in pursuit of the wild turkey with 2007 marking the 24th year of modern turkey hunting in Wisconsin.

“Turkey hunting has become the fastest growing outdoor sporting opportunity in the country. Each year, more and more specialized equipment and methods become available for the turkey hunting enthusiasts to try and outwit this quarry,” says Chuck Horn, Department of Natural Resources conservation warden supervisor at Dodgeville.

The spring hunting season in Wisconsin runs April 11 through May 20, with the season divided into six 5-day Wednesday through Sunday time periods.

However, as the sport grows, Horn says, so does the possibility of hunting accidents.

“When you consider that a turkey hunter is usually dressed in complete camouflage and makes sounds that imitate his or her target, it is easy to see why hunters need to be safety conscious,” notes the warden.

Since the first modern turkey hunting season in 1983, Wisconsin has experienced turkey hunting accidents, including several fatalities. The primary cause is hunters failing to follow one of the key safety rules: be sure of your target and what’s beyond it. The victim was mistaken for game in almost 80 percent of these accidents.

What can a hunter do to avoid being a victim? Horn offers several points to stay safe. First, avoid making gobbler-type calls.

“There are still a few hunters around who try to stalk gobblers, in spite of the fact that it is never successful,” says Horn. “By gobbling, a hunter might not only attract a turkey, but he might also attract another hunter.”

Another activity to avoid, he says, is sudden movement, “especially if you spot another hunter. Holler, whistle or yell, but don’t wave or call with a turkey call. The other hunter might mistake your movement for a turkey.”

Another safety measure is when looking for an area to hunt or call from, it’s best to set up with your back to a tree that’s at least as wide as your shoulders. This will usually protect a hunter in the event that someone is hunting behind them.

“Wearing a blaze orange hat or coat when you are moving around from one hunting spot to another or back to your vehicle can also make other hunters more aware of your presence,” according to Horn.

Horn adds that using something orange also holds true for carrying a turkey you’ve bagged or a turkey decoy. There are inexpensive blaze orange mesh bags on the market for toting decoys and turkeys that will help identify them as non-targets to another hunter.

To avoid the possibility of shooting another hunter, Horns says “first and foremost,” turkey hunters should never assume they are the only hunter in the woods, even if hunting on private property for which they are the only one with permission to hunt. That’s because hunters on adjacent land may not be familiar with property boundaries and inadvertently wander across the line. And sadly, not everyone asks a landowner’s permission to hunt, points out the warden.

“We had a situation several years ago, where two hunters received permission to hunt the same parcel of land from two brothers who co-owned the property. Neither brother knew the other had given permission to anyone else to hunt and each hunter assumed he was the only one with permission to be there. As one hunter was walking across a field, the other hunter shot him. He lost his sight in one eye from his injuries. The shooter was so sure that he was the only human out there that he thought the other guy was a turkey,” Horn says.

Hunters should never shoot at sounds or movement. “Assume that everything you see or hear is another hunter until it is proven otherwise. We’ve had several accidents where the shooter shot a victim because he heard him calling and thought the victim was a turkey,” Horn says.

He emphasizes that hunters should become thoroughly familiar with what a tom turkey looks like and how it should act.

Several years ago, a hunter was adjusting his camouflage head net when another hunter saw this and shot him. When a warden interviewed the shooter, he said thought the victim was a gobbler with its tail feathers fanned out.

“Everyone has heard of buck fever. Unfortunately the same thing can happen to turkey hunters. The mind starts playing tricks on the eyes and makes turkeys out of things that just aren’t turkeys. Think safety and have a safer and more enjoyable hunt,” added the warden.

Finally, hunters always need to remember the four basic rules of hunter safety:

• Treat every firearm as if it were loaded;
• Always keep the muzzle pointed in a safe direction;
• Keep your finger off the trigger until you are ready to fire; and
• Always be sure of your target and what lies beyond it.

FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT: Chuck Horn – (608) 935-1931 or Tim Lawhern, DNR hunter safety administrator - (608) 266-1317

Earth Day: One day isn’t enough in Wisconsin

MADISON – Gaylord Nelson, the founder of Earth Day and a Wisconsin Senator, described his experience organizing the Earth Day movement: “Earth Day worked because of the spontaneous response at the grassroots level. We had neither the time nor resources to organize 20 million demonstrators and the thousands of schools and local communities that participated. That was the remarkable thing about Earth Day. It organized itself.”

The first Earth Day took place on April 22, 1970. More than 20 million people came together that day to show widespread support for environmental policies. Today, more than 200 million people all over the world participate in Earth Day.

Gaylord Nelson passed away July 2005 at the age of 89. But his spirit lives on. Earth Day is Sunday April 22.

Here are four ways the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources recommends that people can get involved:

• Attend a community event. Many communities and schools are sponsoring events, film screenings, waterfront clean-ups and speakers on issues ranging from climate change to forest sustainability.
• Take a young person on an outdoors adventure. Go for a walk or bike ride. Go camping. Put up a bird feeder. Or go outside on a starry night and look at the sky. To create a better future for children, help them connect with nature. The “Leave No Child Inside” movement is an ambitious agenda to re-connect youth with nature and prepare a future work force to take care of the nation’s natural resources. Learn more by reading Richard Louv’s best-selling book, Last Child in the Woods: Saving Our Children from Nature-Deficit Disorder, which inspired the campaign.
• Reduce your “carbon footprint.” Your carbon footprint is the amount of carbon dioxide -- CO2, one of the global-warming-causing gases – that your daily life generates from the consumption of fossil fuels. You can calculate your own carbon footprint – and learn how to reduce it – at www.carbonfootprint.com (exit DNR)
• Visit EEK! DNR’s Environmental Education for Kids website to learn about April flowers that are blooming or the Wisconsin Natural Resources magazine to find a field trip that suits your outdoors interest.

The Wisconsin DNR will host several Earth Week activities from regional office recycling displays to clean-up activities.

DNR Secretary Scott Hassett also will be traveling the state to participate in Earth Week events ranging from a walking tour of the 30th Street Corridor in Milwaukee to awarding Stewardship Fund checks in several communities, joining tribal members from the Bad River and Red Cliff in signing a Lake Superior Tribal Fishing Agreement and attending the Aldo Leopold Foundation Legacy Center Grand Opening.

FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT: Erin Celello - (608) 264-6004