Maine Fishing Reports
02-16-2008
Region A - Southwestern Maine The rising popularity of winter ice fishing derbies has been embraced by many nonprofit organizations as a means to launch fund-raising efforts to support various charities and programs. Two of southern Maine's largest ice fishing derbies are scheduled to occur over the next two weeks.
On Feb. 17, FET Inc. will host a one-day event on Little Ossipee Lake. FET's mission is "to promote fishing and more specifically ice fishing as a fun inexpensive family winter activity. Other major goals involve maintaining habitat and practicing ethical fishing tactics that will allow fishing to grow and prosper as a fun family orientated activity."
Proceeds from this family-oriented event support a variety of local programs including MDIF&W's Hooked on Fishing Not On Drugs Program, MDIF&W sportfish management and conservation in southern Maine, Waterboro Park, as well as other local charities. Lots of door prizes, a youth and adult division, and a grand prize of $3,000 draws a growing number of participants to this well-organized and fun event. Tickets may be purchased at the Route 5 launch ramp and at Lakeside Market on the day of the event, but must be purchased before 9 a.m. Tickets also are available at the Gray True Value hardware store until closing on Feb.15. Additional derby details may be found on FET's website at: (www.fetinc.net).
The state's largest ice fishing derby is scheduled the week following FET's event on Sebago Lake (Feb. 22-24). This three-day event is hosted by the Windham Rotary, and has grown from being predominantly an ice fishing event to something more akin to a winter carnival, where many other nonfishing, family-oriented activities are planned including ice sculptures, polar dip, and auto/cycle/snowmobile/cross country ski races, to name a few. The popular kids fishing derby is scheduled for Friday Feb. 22 between noon and 3 p.m. at Thomas Pond outlet, located immediately adjacent to and north of Route 302. Kids must preregister to receive a free ice fishing trap. The fishing derby on Sebago Lake is a two-day event (Feb. 23-24). A statewide two-day derby also is scheduled for March 8-9. Prizes associated with the Sebago and statewide derbies include a Ski Doo GTX500, Ski Doo MX 2380, Polaris 300 ATV, an opportunity for entrants to win a 2008 Silverado Truck, and $20,000 in additional cash and prizes. Proceeds from the event will benefit a number of charities and good causes, including Camp Sunshine. For more information on the ice fishing derbies, prizes, registration, and a schedule of events, visit www.icefishingderby.com.
Both nonprofit organizations (FET & Windham Rotary) should be acknowledged for their efforts to collaborate with MDIF&W in the development of derby programs that support MDIF&W fisheries management objectives. For example, the Sebago Lake derby has increased recreational togue harvest opportunity by creating prize incentives for anglers to "weigh in" all legally caught togue, and not just the largest togue. This additional harvest is desired as part of an overall management scheme to reduce the lake trout population and restore the lake's smelt population and salmon fishery. FET also has adopted numerous strategies to balance fishing interests on Little Ossipee Lake. For example, FET raised the minimum length entry requirement on bass from 10 inches (general law) to 20 inches, reducing derby related bass harvest by 95 percent. This change has reduced derby related bass mortalities on this very popular open water catch and release, tournament sportfish. - Francis Brautigam, Regional Fisheries Biologist, Gray
Region B - Central Maine
As a fishery biologist I talk with hundreds of anglers every winter during our routine surveys. It's always good duty and very interesting to hear the many different view points of anglers, one group may tout the latest regulations as the best thing for the fishery...
while the very next group is just as likely to tell me how stupid the same regulations are. I also enjoy all the questions these anglers ask, ranging from the past deer hunting season to the state budget. To this end I thought this week I'd list the top 5 questions asked this year.
5. Are you a warden? This is one question every fishery biologist hears multiple times throughout the course of the winter. Of course we are not wardens and have no law enforcement responsibilities.
4. Are there any bad spots on the lake (referring to the ice conditions)? This may be the most frequently asked question during the first week or so of the season.
3. How much success are anglers having fishing at night? Now that ice fishing is open 24 hours a day people seem to be very interested in night fishing but most are not willing to deal with the cold and dark to give it a try. I've heard very little from people fishing at night. Most of the nighttime fishing has occurred from around 4 a.m. when its really just an early start rather than a nighttime trip. These early anglers have reported to me that the best fishing they have is just a dawn and now most of them just start around dawn. I know night fishing for smelt and black crappie can, at times, be very fast fishing. Hanging a light over an open hole while fishing through a hole close by seems to be the acceptable technique.
2. This is a generic question regarding specific fishing regulations, such as how many trout can I keep? Or what's the minimum length limit on bass? These questions are always easy ones to answer and usually not too controversial, although the answer usually leads into a lengthy discussion on fishery management. The most common discussion I've had in central Maine concerns natural reproduction of trout in lakes and ponds. Fishermen are very interested in having native trout but unfortunately we have very little natural reproduction in these waters. The lack of quality stream environments hinders trout spawning, there's also a lack of good nursery areas for young trout. Any trout that survives and moves into the lake experiences problems with poor water quality and the high numbers of competing fish species. These factors severely limit the number of trout that reach legal size.
1. And by far the most asked question is, "Where are all the fish? This is the easiest question of all to answer, since they are, of course, in the water!
- James Lucas, Fisheries Biologist, Sidney
Region C - Downeast
Free fishing days for this winter will be Feb.16-17! Anyone may fish without a license on those days as long as their fishing license has not been revoked or suspended. All other laws and regulations apply. This is a great weekend to try ice fishing for free if you have never participated. Beware, you may love it and decide to buy a year-long license! Then you also will have an excuse to buy such "necessities" as tipups, ice auger, snowmobile or ATV, ice shack, or even a lakeshore camp!
Togue are biting well at many of our lakes. Give togue fishing a try. You may like the action and the size of your catch. Although often caught on live bait and tipups, togue catchability improves if you jig for them. Proven producers are leadfish, Swedish pimples, chartreuse Weeping Willows, and airplane jigs, all commonly tipped with a piece of cut bait. Most anglers prefer fishing from 25- to 60-foot depths. Lakes that are producing good catches of togue this winter are Beech Hill Pond in Otis, Branch Lake in Ellsworth, Toddy Pond in Orland, Tunk Lake in Twp 10 SD, West Grand Lake in Grand Lake Stream, and West Musquash Lake in Topsfield. White perch are a perennial favorite of ice anglers because they usually bite actively both early and late in the day. Sometimes the flags fly so fast that anglers can't catch up to all of them quickly. Good locations for white perch fishing are the Chain Lakes (Twp 26 ED), Bog Lake (Northfield),...
Pocomoonshine Lake (Alexander), Meddybemps Lake (Meddybemps), Georges Pond (Franklin), Graham Lake (Mariaville), sections of the eastern end of Green Lake, and Webb Pond (Eastbrook).
With school vacation week upon us soon, family ice fishing trips will produce some excited kids chasing tipup flags, interspersed with trips to the campfire to cook some famed red hot dogs and warm up with a cup of steaming hot chocolate.
- Rick Jordan, Regional Fisheries Biologist, Jonesboro Region D - Western Mountains
This January was a good month to have gone fishing. Anglers had a lot of action and caught some nice fish. Here are the results of our last month's clerk creel surveys:
Pleasant Pond, Caratunk – The 336 anglers that we interviewed caught 192 legal lake trout and 2 brook trout. The largest togue sampled was 33 inches long and weighed 11 pounds. In the month of January we estimate that 443 togue were harvested; they weighed a total of 1196 pounds.
Clearwater Pond, Industry – We interviewed 290 anglers who caught 11 brook trout, 24 salmon and 27 lake trout. The largest brook trout was 16¾ inches in length and the largest salmon was 19 inches long. A few smallmouth bass were caught as well, the largest being 18¾ inches long and weighing 3½ pounds.
Porter Lake, New Vineyard — 41 anglers interviewed caught 102 salmon and 21 lake trout. Thirty-five percent of the anglers were successful at catching salmon and 41 percent of the fish were released back into the hole. The largest salmon kept was over 18” in length and the largest lake trout weighed 3¾” pounds.
Oaks Pond, Skowhegan — 42 anglers interviewed caught 2 brook trout, 36 splake, and a 17½-inch rainbow trout. Twenty-eight of the anglers were successful at landing a legal splake making for an 86 percent catch rate. These are very high numbers for a winter salmonid fishery.
Wentworth Pond, Solon — 99 anglers interviewed caught 20 brook trout and 43 splake. Average lengths were 14 inches for splake and 13 inches for brook trout. The largest fish were a 16¾-inch splake and a 14¾-inch brookie. White perch are beginning to show up in the fishery now.
Anglers fishing late in the afternoon may see better action. With the days getting longer, there is more opportunity to fish later and anglers are reporting good action just before sunset. This seems to be the case with many fish species, but is especially true with lake trout and white perch.
This also is an excellent time of year to target cusk after the sun has set. Area waters that contain cusk and are open to icefishing are Chain of Ponds and Clearwater Pond in Franklin County, and Embden Pond, Oaks Pond, Spencer Lake, and Wyman Lake in Somerset County.
- Dave Howatt, Biology Specialist, Strong
Region E - Moosehead Region
This week marks the opening of the "Salmon Ice Fishing Season" on Moosehead Lake. On Feb.15 anglers are allowed to harvest, as part of their daily bag limit, one salmon over 18 inches. Prior to Feb. 15 all salmon caught were to be released alive without removing the fish from the water. Although, anglers are able to keep salmon, we are still emphasizing the importance of good handling practices of salmon that falling short of the 18-inch mark. The best way to release these fish without injury and without increasing handling stress is to cut the line as close to the eye of the hook as possible, with the fish still in the water.
Looking at the fish data the Moosehead Lake Region fisheries staff has collected for the early part of the season will give you an idea of what to expect if you're interested in fishing Moosehead Lake. Eighty-four lake trout over 18 inches have been measured, and the largest was 27 inches and weighed 5.7 pounds. The average lake trout kept over 18 inches was 19.6 inches and about 1.9 pounds. Lake trout (14–18 inches) have been averaging 15.7 inches and roughly a pound, and we have sampled 414 lake trout in this size range. Also, we have collected data on 63 lake trout less than 14 inches. These fish have averaged 13.2 inches and around half a pound. Lake trout are the predominant fish in the catch and are providing fast action to anglers targeting them in water depths 25-45 feet. We encourage anglers to take advantage of Moosehead Lake's liberal bag limits on these smaller lake trout in hopes to decrease the number in this over abundant lake trout fishery.
In our travels this winter we have seen very few brook trout on Moosehead Lake. To date, we have only seen 6 brook trout during our census coverage. The sad thing is that we have also seen almost as many illegal brook trout. Our staff has encountered 4 brook trout that have fallen short of the 14-inch minimum length limit. The 14-inch minimum length limit on brook trout has been in effect for the last three seasons on Moosehead Lake. Anglers should familiarize themselves with the regulations that are in place on the water bodies they fish. Length and bag limit regulations are different from water body to water body because management objectives often differ from water to water. So please consult the regulation book to confirm the regulation for the waters you are fishing this winter.
- Stephen Seeback, Fishery Biology Specialist, Moosehead Lake
Region F - Penobscot Valley Region
Over the past week the fishing pressure along with angling success has greatly improved here in Region F. This past weekend Department census clerks checked landlocked salmon exceeding 5 lbs from both Cold Stream Pond and Schoodic Lake, in addition to nice catches of lake trout. Anglers also reported good catches of salmon from Upper and Lower Jo Mary, Pemadumcook, Pleasant Pond, and East Grand.
At Scraggly Lake anglers were having lots of action for small, but legal salmon (the regulations on Scraggly are 3 fish, 12-inch minimum length limit). One lucky angler at Scraggly landed two nice brook trout, one just over 2 lbs and one weighing in at a hefty 3 pounds! In the Penobscot Region we have two fishing derbies this weekend. The Millinocket Fin and Feather Club will be holding a "Family Fishing Day" at Jerry Pond Feb.16 (Storm Day Feb. 17) for more information check out http://ffc.50webs.org/fin.html. The Milo Fire Department will be holding the 46th Annual Schoodic Lake Fishing Derby. Schoodic Lake has a well-deserved reputation for delivering larger-than -average lake trout and landlocked salmon. Fat lake trout from 5 to 7 pounds have become commonplace over the last 10 years at Schoodic, and landlocked salmon also are becoming an attraction. This year salmon over 5 pounds are expected each weekend that clerks check the lake. This past weekend was no exception. Anglers attending the Schoodic Lake derby will notice a change in the way lake trout and landlocked salmon are entered into the derby. This year, either species will have to be at least 22 inches to be registered. That doesn't mean that an angler cannot keep a fish of legal size, only that the fish will not be eligible to be entered for a prize in the derby unless it is over 22 inches.
The Milo Fire Department is to be commended for taking this extraordinary step to ensure the future of the Schoodic Lake fishery. After all, there are not many places where the fishing for both lake trout and salmon is good enough that a derby will not even measure fish less than 22 inches! For more information you can call 207-943-2303 or check out their web sight at http://www.trcmaine.org/fishingderby . Anglers can visit the Department's Web site for a list of derbies being held around the state this weekend. http://www.maine.gov/ifw/fishing/derbies_tournaments/index.htm.
If you want to try ice fishing and you do not have a license this is the weekend for you. Any person, except those whose license has been revoked or suspended, may fish on these days without a license. All other laws and regulations apply. Get out and enjoy the Maine outdoors! - Brian Campbell, Fisheries Biologist Specialist, Bangor
Region G - Aroostook County
Recent snow storms have made travel on area lakes very difficult. Deep snow on lake-ice creates slush as the weight of the snow forces water up onto the ice. If anglers are lucky to find areas with no slush, they oftentimes create it when holes are drilled for fishing. We have observed many parties stuck in slush when trying to pull tote sleds full of gear during the past week. During the derby at Long Lake, numerous trucks were stuck in snow, slush, and water and were having difficulty getting out. Anglers should be aware of these conditions during mid-February.
Fishery biologists continue to check anglers on area lakes. Use on the Fish River Lakes will likely level off at this time in the season and we are seeing more people venturing into the woods at Carr Pond, Millinocket and Millimagassett Lakes. During the Long Lake derby held Feb. 2-3, biologists counted more than 400 anglers fishing during the two-day event. The winning landlocked salmon weighed 7 pounds, 11 ounces; the largest brook trout weighed 3 pounds, 14 ounces.
Feb. 15 marks the opening of Madawaska Lake, a 1,500-acre water located along Route 161 in Westmanland and T16 R4. The Lake was opened to winter fishing for a three-year period beginning in 2006. Fishery regulations and stocking changes were made to coincide with this new season. To provide for higher catch rates, the Department has stocked 1,500 large, catchable brook trout in the fall of 2005, 2006 and 2007; these trout are available to be caught during the subsequent winter season. During the past two years, a small number of landlocked salmon have also been stocked; these fish should grow well due to the large smelt population. Fishery biologists will be monitoring this experimental fishery again in 2008.
- Frank O. Frost, Fisheries Biologist, Ashland
Ice fishing has been going good in this area so far. Some guys are smelting and catching a few but no big catches to report.
Ice conditions are better now, than what they were about a month ago. The first part of the season we had a lot of snow and the ice was not a solid ice and was thin in a lot of places.
I have ice fished a few times and been picking up a few brook trout. Some fish have been nice and fat but the pond I fish they have to be 12\" to keep one.
Spring is around the corner. But if you get cabin fever check around your area for fly tying classes or other things to keep you out of trouble till spring. You can also get out and try your luck at ice fishing.
Have fun and be safe.
Dave\'s Guide Service
11-16-2007
SOUTHWESTERN
Region A - Southwestern Maine The open water fishing season is coming to an end, but Maine's fall fishing opportunities can be fantastic for trout and salmon. There's nothing like catching a beautiful male brookie in the fall with colors that rival our foliage or a feisty landlocked salmon. The Sebago Region is blessed with some great fall fishing opportunities, most lakes and ponds are open to catch and release fishing until the end of November and a fair number of rivers are open to year round fishing! Be sure to consult your law book for further details.
Fall fishing can be very productive and successful. Trout and salmon become more active as surface temperatures begin to cool and they become concentrated in specific areas as the spawning season approaches. Anglers that target larger tributaries, dam outlets, and thoroughfares in October and November can have some great days of fishing. It is not uncommon for us to hear from anglers catching some beautiful mature landlocks, browns, and other salmonids on lakes like Thompson (Oxford), Auburn (Auburn), and Long Lake (Harrison). In addition, fall anglers also get the first crack at decent sized fall stocked fish (12-14"), which the hatcheries typically have out by the end of October. These fall stocked fish, as well as a few holdover trout have been producing a fantastic fall fishery at Crystal Lake in Gray. While this fishery has been in place for quite some time, anglers have had exceptional fishing off the Town beach in recent years. Some good fall river fishing opportunities include the Presumpscot River in Windham, the Pleasant River in Windham, the Royal River (Yarmouth), the Saco River (below most of the dams), and of course the tide water fisheries (the Mousam, Salmon Falls, and Ogunquit Rivers). The only bad thing about fall fishing is that it can compete with our time for other great fall activities like hunting.
Over the past couple of weeks the regional staff has been conducting quite a bit of stream electrofishing, and it appears to have been a great year for brook trout and salmon. The abundance of juvenile wild trout and salmon appears to be up, particularly on the Crooked River. We are quite pleased at the number of young-of-the-year and parr salmon observed at our four index sites on the Crooked River system, which is related to the recent improvements we have seen in the Sebago fishery, as well as favorable stream conditions this summer. For those that know the river, we expect the Crooked River will provide some decent fall fishing providing we get some rain to draw in the fish prior to the close of the season. Good luck!
CENTRAL
Many anglers are interested in gaining what they can from the knowledge that Fishery biologists have of the waters they manage. We can provide information to virtually all anglers ? from those just starting out that who may know nothing about a local water, to the seasoned veteran, who knows every nook and cranny of his or her favorite lake. Even if we are stumped, we have a pretty good idea of whom we can contact to get the right answer to the inquiry.
Recently I had the opportunity to have Michael Witte, an Advisory Council member, accompany me on some routine habitat and fishery surveys of inland streams on the Pemaquid peninsula. He represents three of the coastal counties in this part of Maine. Mr. Witte and I traveled around Bremen and Bristol where he had first hand knowledge of the brooks and streams through assisting our Wildlife Division in their animal damage control program. Although I had been to some of the streams, Michael?s firsthand knowledge helped me complete the survey of the waters we visited. I was unaware that the Patriots Day storm this year had devastated some of the stream crossings in the area, so our field trip helped me put in perspective..some of the analyses of road and stream intersects. Mike?s first hand knowledge was a definite asset.
It certainly is a benefit to be able to glean knowledge from someone like Mike, who is very knowledgeable about waterways in his area. As biologists, we do not have all the answers, and we rely on people like Mike to learn more about certain areas, and the knowledge we accumulate from local anglers can give us a much clearer picture of local areas.
Mike and I did not find any spectacular fishery habitat but later, on my own, I discovered four streams in Bristol that contained brook trout populations that will need special measures for maintenance of the habitat. Close to fifty stream and road crossings were surveyed. This work will help future management of the inland fisheries of the region.
As Bass Pro Jimmy Huston once said, ?We all deserve the fruits of our collective knowledge and experience. As an angler, you should always be learning, whether it is from a biologist, or a local source like Mike Witte.
SOUTHWEST
About six months ago I was hired as the Downeast Region?s Fisheries Biologist Specialist. Prior to that I had worked seasonally for two years as a Contract Fisheries Aide. Before I began working for the Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife, I knew very little about what a fisheries biologist really did. Sure, I knew the work involved fish and some aspect of biology, but I never really gave it more thought than that. However, once I was hired on for my first seasonal position, that all changed. At that time I was like a kid in a candy store, just trying to learn as much as I possibly could and to leach as much knowledge as I could from any source that was willing to share with me. The more I learned, the more I wanted to make this my career and by the end of my first summer working with Region C?s biologists I couldn?t get enough of it. I volunteered some time in the fall simply so I could gain experience. Eventually my hard work paid off, and I was extremely fortunate to receive a position working for the state I have lived in my entire life. All of the fisheries staff members in the Downeast Region are native to the state and we are very proud of what we do.
So, then just what does a fisheries biologist do? The short and sweet answer I often use is that one of our responsibilities is to provide, and ensure, that a wide variety of fishing opportunities exist for many years to come. We are fisheries managers and that management involves working with fish and with people. We have a wide variety of tools available to us to manage fish populations. One way is by regulations. We are responsible for creating the fishing regulations on each water. It is the Maine Warden Service who then enforces these regulations. If a population needs to be protected we may impose more restrictive regulations or if we want to promote more harvest we may apply more liberal regulations.
Another tool on our ?management tool belt? is the ability to stock fish. The state of Maine fish hatcheries raise the fish and do an amazing job at providing large numbers of healthy fish to stock. Fisheries biologists decide how many fish to stock, what species, and how often the stocking should occur.
As managers, a major part of our job is to monitor survival and growth of our fish populations around the region. This is a time-consuming job because we stock about 110 of our 310 surveyed lakes and ponds, plus we have special management on many of our 90 bass waters.
We have several methods of achieving this goal, such as: electrofishing, various types of netting, angler creel surveys, water quality analysis, hydroacoustic surveys, anglers keeping records of their fishing trips, and more. All of these methods would be futile without one vitally important tool,experience. In the Downeast Region alone, we collectively have over 50 years of fisheries experience. It takes experience to interpret all of the data and set the appropriate regulations and stocking numbers. It is our goal to provide consistent and reliable fishing opportunities that people can count on for years to come.
Another aspect of our job is management that involves access. We are responsible for providing and ensuring public access to the region?s waters so that anglers and boaters have the ability to utilize them for fishing, boating, canoeing, and kayaking. We are constantly working with landowners around lakes and ponds so that our waters do not become privatized by camp owners. Greg Burr has worked extremely hard in our region to ensure that public access is secured. And once again it takes a great deal of experience to do the work Greg does.
We also work closely with members of the public in order to obtain information about fish populations. There are three staff members in this region to cover an area that is 80 percent the size of the state of Connecticut, a state that employs about 25 fisheries biologists and technicians. If our two-county fisheries region were staffed at the same rate as Connecticut, the Downeast Regional Office would have 20 people! So the information that anglers provide while they are out fishing is vitally important for us to manage fish populations the best we can.
For me this is a dream job. I am fortunate to be able to work in the state I grew up in, doing work that it is important to me as well as to many other people in the state. Everyday I learn more and more about the region, its fisheries, and its people and I couldn?t ask for a better job.
WESTERN MOUNTAINS
With the water cooling down and higher flows, many anglers are heading for rivers that flow into the large lakes. Most serious anglers know that the place to be a few days after a heavy rain event is were the brook trout and salmon will be running for fall spawning season. These rushes of water trigger the fish?s instinct to move to their pre-spawning holding areas. At this time large fish from the lakes are catchable by anglers wading or standing along the shoreline.
Anglers might also try their favorite trout pond again too. Often anglers fish a pond regularly in the spring, but then forget about it after the water warms up. However, water temperatures have begun to cool, so the trout are now on the move and feeding more aggressively. A few ponds to try would be Beal Pond in Madrid, Quimby Pond in Rangeley, or Rowe Pond in Pleasant Ridge Plt. All three of these waters are annually stocked with brook trout.
Anglers interested in bass fishing don?t have to give up quite yet. Although these fish become a little less active and more difficult to catch as the warm summer days end, they will take bait or lures if presented to them properly. Try fishing a little deeper than you normally would in lakes and ponds. The fish in rivers are more likely to be in their same old haunts, even moving into very shallow water on bright sunny days. For anglers in the northwestern part of the state I would recommend fishing the Androscoggin River in the Jay or Canton area. There are some very large smallmouths in this stretch of water.
MOOSEHEAD LAKE
The East Outlet is a perhaps one of the most popular river fisheries in the State. The river averages about 200 feet across and is nearly 3 miles long as it drops 75 feet from the dam on Moosehead Lake to the ?Last Drop? on Indian Pond. The habitat is primarily rocky/boulder riffle with many pools and pockets. It is ideal salmon and trout water. There is, however, a shortage of salmonid spawning habitat in the river. Surveys indicate that less than 0.5 percent of the total area in the river contains gravel that would be suitable for successful spawning.
The East Outlet dam; which is owned and operated by Kennebec Water Power (KWP), was relicensed in the 1990?s. Paul Johnson, the Regional Fisheries Biologist, led the negotiations for the IF&W. The resulting new license had many benefits for the fish and the fishermen, including higher minimum flows. Paul also identified 2 areas in the river that could be modified to increase the amount of spawning and fry habitat in the river. KWP was very supportive of the proposed project and funded the work. A channel about 25 feet wide and 250 feet long was created just below the Beach Pool. This channel alone effectively doubled the amount of spawning habitat in the river. Another channel averaging nearly 30 feet by 520 feet was also improved. This area provides great fry and some spawning habitat. The project was completed just one year after the license became final.
We have been back to these sections since the work was finished and have observed many salmon using the spawning areas and we have also electrofished young salmon utilizing the improved nursery habitat.
Another method we use to evaluate the production of wild salmon in the East Outlet is the fishway in the dam. IFW staff has operated the trap in the fishway during 14 years in the period of 1974 to present, so we have good baseline data to use for comparison.
Tending the fishway is one of the more interesting projects we have in this region. While we are mainly interested in enumerating the small (less than 12 inches) salmon moving from the river to the lake, you just never know what the catch will be for any given day. Just as an example, this year the last day of tending was July 30. We anticipated a light catch of perhaps 50-75 fish based on previous tends and the warm weather. But as we dropped the water level in the trap, we were greeted by 315 brook trout in addition to over 100 salmon. How many people out there can say they caught over 300 brookies in one morning?
Staff from IFW, assisted by Mike Moon, the dam operator for KWP, tended the fishway trap this summer. We are very grateful for the help from Mike and KWP. They have made many improvements to our operation over the past years. We operated the trap during the peak period of salmon movement; which is generally from mid June to the end of July. Salmon don?t start moving upstream until the water warms to about 60 F and by August, the water warms to a level where it becomes difficult to handle the fish and their movement tends to decline as well.
This years catch of young wild salmon was the 2nd best since 1974. In fact, we handled over 1500 salmon in 2007. We categorize these young fish into size groups: less than 8 inches, 8 to 12 inches, and greater than 12 inches. We saw improvements across all categories. The overall catch rate for young wild salmon was just shy of the record set in 2001. In fact, there has been a general trend toward an increasing number of young salmon produced in the river since the habitat improvement project was completed. Salmon less than 12 inches far outnumber the larger size category by nearly 4:1. The largest salmon sampled was 22 inches. Many, if not most, of the legal salmon appear to be of hatchery origin. We do take other species in the trap as well, including: brook trout, lake trout, round whitefish, longnose suckers, white suckers, and various minnows. The salmon, brook trout, and lake trout are measured and a temporary fin clip is applied. All fish are then released into the lake where they will continue to grow and contribute to the lake and associated river fisheries. Check out some photos of this year?s East Outlet fishway operation at:
Penobscot Valley
On Monday, with the help of our fin clipping crew, staff from other hatcheries and regional fisheries offices and our research office, we will begin the annual fall fish marking at Cobb Fish Hatchery in Enfield. This crew will mark more than 90,735 Brook Trout and 20,350 Splake. In a week?s time, 111,085 fish will be netted out of the raceways, loaded onto a truck and transported to a holding pool. Then the fish are netted out, placed in a trough with an anesthetic, and then the anesthetized fish are then are netted and placed in a trough to be clipped. After this, they are sent through a pipeline back to the pool were they started. In most cases, the fish go through this complete process in about 15 min. It is quite a process to see. If your happen to be in the Enfield area this week stop by.
After this week of fin clipping, the hatchery staff here at Cobb Hatchery will begin the task of stocking more than 116,260 fall fingerling brook trout; 4,950 fall fingerling splake; 17,900 fall yearling brook trout; 1,600 fall yearling splake and 5,000 adult brook trout. It is truly an amazing feat that they can stock over 145,000 fish in less than two months. The start of fish marking signifies to us here in the office that summer is over and fall is here. Lets hope for some great fall weather with plenty of rain to bring the flows up in the streams and rivers as well at the water levels up in the lakes and ponds. Get out and enjoy the great fall weather. The trees will be turning soon.
Aroostock County
We routinely receive questions on the presence of muskellunge in the St. John River drainage. This weeks fishing report affords the opportunity to view the history of muskellunge in this river system.
Muskellunge were introduced into Lac Frontier, a 260 acre headwater lake of the NW Branch of the St. John River, by Quebec fishery personnel in 1970.
It was assumed that the muskellunge were sedentary and territorial, bred in the lake and did not migrate; therefore they would not endanger the St. John River system in Maine.
MDIFW authorities were not consulted prior to the stocking and only found out as the result of information passed on to the Commissioner by District Warden Dan Glidden at Daquaam.
Lac Frontier stocking schedule: 1970 3000 @ 3-6 inches 1971 1000 @ 5-6 inches 1972 1000 @ 3-4 inches 1973 1000 @ 6-8 inches 1974 250 @ 6-8 inches
Discontinued after 1979 due to self-sustaining population.
In 1973, District Warden Rod Sirois received report of a pike being caught in the St. John River but the fish was not observed.
In spring 1984, MDIFW biologists confirmed two muskellunge from the St. John River.
1 @ 25 inches from 7 Islands, 40 miles below Lac Frontier. 1 @ 25 inches from the NW Branch, 3.5 miles below Lac Frontier. An additional 4-5 fish were reported but not confirmed.
In late summer 1984, MDIFW biologists captured muskellunge using a large seine in the NW Branch. Six young of the year @ 6 inches and one yearling at 14 inches are captured.
1 In 1985, no muskellunge were captured with the seine in the 7 Islands area of the St. John. 2 In 1986, biologists used a seine to capture 9 young of the year at Turner Deadwater on the Baker Branch and 1 young of the year at Baker Lake, 45 miles from Lac Frontier. Anglers begin catching musky in Baker Lake in 1987.
3 In June 1988, New Brunswick Dept. of Natural Resources personnel reported the first capture of a muskellunge in the Mactaquac Fishway trap just upstream from Fredericton. (400+ miles from Lac Frontier) The fish was 28 inches @ 6 lb 12 oz. From 1998-2000, 97 muskellunge were captured in the trap and in 2001, 41 were captured through mid-July. Presently they inhabit the river below Fredericton.
4 First reported taken by anglers fishing Glazier Lake in January 1992, confirmed by District Warden Chuck Richard. New state record in 2004: 43.9 inches @ 27 lb.
5 1998 to present, muskellunge are routinely caught and actively sought by anglers at Glazier Lake, the St. Francis River and St. John River.
6 In May 2001, fishery personnel captured 2 muskellunge in the St, John River near the mouth of the Fish River using an electrofishing boat. These fish are males that have spawned and have lengths of 26.7 and 33.5 inches.
7 In June 2002, the Fish River from the lower falls to the railroad trestle (3.25 miles) was sampled using the electrofishing boat no muskellunge are taken. Also an area around Soldier Pond was sampled with no muskellunge captured.
8 Muskellunge have been caught in the Allagash River below Allagash Falls. 9 Muskellunge have been observed and unconfirmed angler catches have been reported below the lower Fish River Falls.
10 No muskellunge have yet to be reported in the fish trap at Tinker Falls on the Aroostook River in New Brunswick.
11 Planning for Maine?s Fisheries 2002-2017 involved a public working group process with public representatives. Management for exotic species should be to control further spread beyond affected waters and ?seek to minimize impact?on the fisheries of the target waters.
12 Present Regulations in the open water season and ice fishing season are no size and bag limit. Commencing 2004, there will be an extended fall fishing season from Oct. 1-31, artificial lures only, open to the taking of muskellunge on the following waters: the main stem to the confluence of the St, Francis River, Northwest Branch, Southwest Branch, Daquaam River and Baker Branch.
13 Management problems associated with the presence of muskellunge in the St. John River include:
Impacts on brook trout and other coldwater species.
1 Natural movement of muskellunge to other tributaries of the St. John. 2 Illegal introductions to other waters/drainages. 3 Lack of information on the tendencies of movement in a river system. 4 Lack of information on the biology of muskellunge in Maine waters. 5 Public interest to manage for quality fisheries.
In 2004, MDIFW conducted a winter creel survey at Beau and Glazier Lakes. Few anglers and no muskellunge observed at Beau Lake. Angler use at Glazier Lake estimated at about 900 anglers. 21 percent successful at catching a muskellunge, 7 percent a togue and 2 percent a salmon. Legal togue and musky were caught at almost the same rate but numerous sublegal togue (16-17 inches) from a Maine stocking in 2001 were reported. Musky averaged 32.6 inches/10.1 lb (range 24-43 inches). Togue averaged 19.1 inches/2.3 lb. For the season, 89 musky and 35 legal togue were estimated to have been harvested.
1 In September 2006, the Fish River below the falls in Fort Kent and an upstream section between the falls and Soldier Pond was sampled using an electrofishing raft. No muskellunge were captured.
2 Jeff Albert of Madawaska caught the state record muskellunge at Glazier Lake on March 24, 2007. The fish measured 46 inches and weighed 31.02 pounds.