KEWAUNEE, Wis. (AP) - Underwater holding nets will give thousands of fingerling Chinook salmon a fighting chance in Lake Michigan and give the Kewaunee area a boost as a popular sport fishing destination.
The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources has released 10,000 salmon fingerlings into two holding pens in the Kewaunee River. The pens will keep cormorant and other birds from devouring the small fish and will help the hatchery salmon adjust to Lake Michigan. Net penned fish have a better survival rate than those that are stocked directly.
Survival of the salmon affects the bottom line for those involved in the sport fishing industry along Lake Michigan.
Lee Haasch, a fishing guide from Algoma, charters more than 200 trips a year.
“We’re trying to make this a better fishery for all the fishermen, not only those on charters, but those coming with their private boats,” said Haasch told WLUK-TV (https://bit.ly/1mLtEpW ).
The pens are the result of a state law passed last year which partners the DNR with local sporting clubs who typically pay to build the pens, feed the fingerling and monitor their progress.
The fingerlings ability to become accustomed to the river can take up to 6 weeks. Once they are released in deeper lake water, the fish later return to the area where they were established.
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Information from: WLUK-TV, https://www.fox11online.com
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