Improving Walleye and Musky Fishing in Iowa

Improving Walleye and Musky Fishing in Iowa

By Ben Leal

Walleye seem to always be at the top of many anglers list when it comes to choosing a favorite. Walleye are a part of the perch family and are sought after across the State. Musky is that forever elusive fish and is known as the “fish of ten thousand casts”. There are some very impressive specimens being caught and released here in Iowa each year.

The Walleye ranges from occasional to common in Iowa natural lakes and our major interior river drainages, such as the Des Moines, Iowa, Cedar and Wapsipinicon. Stocking efforts have also expanded angling opportunities to the larger man-made lakes and impoundments. Similar stocking evaluations and efforts have also improved walleye populations in many of Iowa’s interior rivers. Walleye are widespread and abundant in the Great Border Rivers.

Muskies have been stocked regularly into Brushy Creek, Pleasant Creek, Big Creek, Three Mile, Lake Macbride, Clear Lake, West Okoboji, and Big Spirit since the 1990s. Muskies can also be found in East Okoboji, Upper Gar, Lower Gar, and Lake Minnewashta due to their connection to West Okoboji, and occasionally below Red Rock and Saylorville Reservoirs due to their connections to Big Creek and Brushy Creek. Black Hawk Lake and Lost Grove Lake were stocked with muskies in 2013.

As widespread as walleye and musky are to date, the Iowa Department of Natural Resources (IDNR) Fisheries Bureau continues to find ways to improve fishing for both of these species.

“We observed a significant loss in muskellunge abundance in Big Creek Lake from 2007 to 2010. This loss seemed to coincide with flood events during their spawning period over several years,” said IDNR Fisheries Biologist Ben Dodd. “In addition, we were researching harvests in 2010/2011 at Big Creek, by tagging fish and releasing them back in to the lake; of those two tagged fish were caught downstream. One was caught below the Saylorville dam in the tail race and the other was caught up at the big dam at Fort Dodge.” At that point the IDNR fisheries biologists began researching fish barriers and finally settled on a physical barrier that consists of horizontal bars. The barrier was installed in 2012 with assistance from Central Iowa Anglers, Recycled Fish, the IDNR and the US Army Corps of Engineers.

The downfall of physical barriers is that they tend to get clogged with vegetation and woody debris which requires maintenance. The barrier has shown potential as an economical method to reduce fish escapement from reservoirs. This design has limitations but so far it seems to work well at Big Creek and while maintenance is required it has been minimal. “Interest in this style of barrier will likely increase if we find out that it significantly reduces escapement of these two popular game species”, added the biologist.

Dr. Michael Weber (Iowa State University) and the Iowa DNR Fisheries Bureau applied for and received funding through the Planning Assistance to States & Tribes program from the Corps. The IDNR is collaborating with Dr. Weber’s lab and the Corps to evaluate the effectiveness of the Big Creek spillway fish barrier at reducing walleye and muskellunge escapement.

On the evening of November 1, 2016 Ben Dodd and other IDNR were at Big Creek Lake electrofishing for walleye and musky. “We are tagging these fish and releasing them back in to the lake”, said Dodd. These PIT (passive integrated transponder) tags as they are referred to by the IDNR (similar to microchips that veterinarians provide pets), are implanted into the released fish. “The purpose of the tags is to individually mark the fish and to see if they escape through the fish barrier”, he added. “Before we tag them however we are gathering information on each fish such as, length, weight and sex. All that information is then recorded to coincide with the tag number being implanted.”

The DNR installed automated PIT tag readers at the Big Creek Lake and Brushy Creek Lake spillway late winter/early spring in 2016. Brushy Creek Lake is being used as a control lake during this project because it is similar in size and walleye and muskellunge escapement has been documented there and it has no barrier. “The tags monitor each individual fish and will let the IDNR know when a fish has gone over the spillway”, he continued. “These readers are set up behind or downstream of the barrier, if a fish goes through the barrier it gets detected, its fish tag number is recorded.” This study design will provide a means for comparison between a lake that has a barrier (Big Creek) and a lake that does not (Brushy Creek). Preliminary results indicate that fish escapement has been more of an issue at Brushy Creek than at Big Creek. Eight walleye and two musky have escaped from Brush Creek, while only two juvenile (<10 inches) walleye have escaped through the barrier at Big Creek.

Radio Telemetry
Radio-telemetry is also being utilized to monitor habitat use, movement and to determine what factors influence escapement of walleye and muskellunge. Robert Weber is a new Master’s student at Iowa State University, arriving in July after graduating with a Bachelors degree in fisheries and ecology management from Kansas State University. “I am the first of two Master’s students who will work on this project evaluating fish escapement from these two lakes.” The second part of the project will focus more on the escapement at both lakes. The first part of the project is more radio telemetry related; which involves implanting tags and tracking both walleye and musky in Big Creek and Brushy Creek.
“We’ll monitor movement rates and habitat use throughout the year as well as determine the home range size of the species”, continued Weber. “We’re looking to see how much and how far they move or if they tend to stick to a specific area.” Depending on how these fish are moving and where they’re going, these radio tagged fish will provide data on how effective the stocking is and whether or not viable populations of both species are being established. It will also help determine if movement, especially during the spawn, is related to some of the escapement. Forty-two walleye were implanted with radio tags and then released into Big Creek Lake. The team will be radio-tagging muskellunge at Big Creek in the spring of 2017. Brushy Creek currently has twenty-one fish that are radio tagged: 7 walleye and 14 muskellunge.

How you Can Help
You can be a part of the research team by doing your part, returning electronic tags that you find in harvested fish. “We would encourage the public to help by returning these tags to the IDNR when they find them”, noted the biologist. “We have signs posted at the boat ramps at both lakes that inform the anglers on the project and what to do with those fish when they are harvested.” There are drop boxes, surveys and envelopes at the fish cleaning stations at both lakes as well as the park offices at both lakes. He added that by providing those tags and surveys it lets the IDNR fisheries management team know that individual is no longer in the system. “It also gets us the tag back, which overall will help with project expenses”, said Dodd.

Acknowledgements
“We would like to thank our partners and volunteers for all their help on this project”, mentioned Dodd. “It’s been a pleasure working with folks who are so passionate about Iowa’s resources.

There’s nothing quite like seeing a trophy walleye or musky come out of some of Iowa’s local fisheries. The Iowa Department of Natural Resources is working hard for you, the angler, to improve these fisheries for not only you but for future generations to enjoy. Take someone fishing, young and old alike, and share your love of the sport. Remember that we are all responsible for the stewardship of not only our local fisheries, but lakes, rivers and streams across the country where we might fish. All of these resources are for you to use…pass them along in better shape than you found them. Do something today…give them tomorrow. Tight lines all!