Spiel

More species invasions feared for Great Lakes January 9th, 2009 John Flesher / Associated Press Dozens of foreign species could spread across the Great Lakes in coming years despite policies designed to keep them out, causing significant environmental and economic damage, a federal report says. The National Center for Environmental Assessment issued the warning in a study released this week. It identified 30 nonnative species that pose a medium or high risk of reaching the lakes and 28 others that already have a foothold and could disperse widely. Among the fish that scientists fear could cause ecological and environmental damage are the monkey goby, the blueback herring and the tench, also known as the “doctor fish.” The report described some of the region’s busiest ports as strong potential targets for invaders, including Toledo, Ohio; Gary, Ind.; Duluth, Minn.; Superior, Wis.; Chicago and Milwaukee. “These findings support the need for detection and monitoring efforts at those ports believed to be at greatest risk,” the report said. Exotic species are one of the biggest ecological threats to the nation’s largest surface freshwater system. At least 185 are known to have a presence in the Great Lakes, although the report says just 13 have done extensive harm to the aquatic environment and the regional economy. Perhaps the most notorious are the fish-killing sea lamprey and the zebra mussel, which has clogged intake pipes of power plants, industrial facilities and public water systems, forcing them to spend hundreds of millions on cleanup and repairs. Roughly two-thirds of the new arrivals since 1960 are believed to have hitched a ride to the lakes inside ballast tanks of cargo ships from overseas ports. For nearly two decades, U.S. and Canadian agencies have required oceangoing freighters to exchange their fresh ballast water with salty ocean water before entering the Great Lakes system. Both nations also recently have ordered them to rinse empty tanks with seawater in hopes of killing organisms lurking in residual pools on the bottom. Despite such measures, “it is likely that nonindigenous species will continue to arrive in the Great Lakes,” said the report by the national center, which is part of the Environmental Protection Agency. Some saltwater-tolerant species may survive ballast water exchange and tank flushing, it said. And aquatic invaders could find other pathways to the lakes — perhaps escaping from fish farms or being released from aquariums. The report does not predict which species might get through. Instead, it urges government resource managers to monitor waters under their jurisdiction in hopes of spotting attacks in time to choke them off. “Early detection is crucial,” said Vic Serveiss, a scientist with the National Center for Environmental Assessment and the report’s primary writer. Hugh MacIsaac, a University of Windsor biologist and director of the Canadian Aquatic Invasive Species Network, said he expected very few invaders to reach the Great Lakes in ballast water now that both nations are requiring tank flushing at sea. Flushing and ballast water exchange should kill 99 percent of organisms, he said. “I would be very surprised if their prediction comes true,” he said, referring to the EPA report’s suggestion that numerous invaders could reach the lakes despite the new ballast rules. The report reinforces the need for further measures to keep foreign species out, including requiring onboard technology to sterilize ballast tanks, said Jennifer Nalbone, invasive species director for the advocacy group Great Lakes United. “We are only beginning to invest the tremendous amount of resources needed,” Nalbone said. “We’re being hammered by invasive species and are still woefully behind.” National Center for Environmental Assessment

Beaver Lake bass spawning habitat January 9th, 2009 Anthony S.C. Hampton / Napanee Guide Beaver Lake bass spawning habitat improvements underway in January A project to improve spawning conditions for bass in Beaver Lake near Erinsville will go ahead this month. According to Lennox & Addington County manager of roads and bridges Steve Roberts, the project is being carried out under the direction of the federal Department of Fisheries and Oceans as part of the HADD program. “It’s the Harmful Alteration Damage or Destruction to Natural Habitat program. In 2007 we did the Puzzle Lake Bridge road reconstruction on County Rd. 15. This displaced the bass spawning beds there,” said Roberts. After consulting with the DFO and biologists, the site in Beaver Lake was selected to make up for the displaced spawning beds from Puzzle Lake. “They have directed that compensation be located on Beaver Lake, adjacent to highway 41 in Erinsville. “What we’ll be doing is creating five spawning beds. The DFO felt this was a more productive and beneficial location to restore spawning.” In building up the spawning beds, workers will lay wash stone, varying from 1.5 to 3.5 centimetres thick. The stones are selected to create the optimal spawning environment for the bass. “The volume of stone is about 250 tonnes, and that will be placed over the five spawning beds. The gross area is approximately 140 square metres total, which means the five areas are about 28 square metres each.” Although it might seem work like this would be better suited to warmer months, the project is timed so that the stone can be placed on top of the ice. “The wash stone will be placed on the ice, then it will settle into the lake bottom in the spring. Primarily, this is because of current issues. Letting it sink in the spring allows it to naturally settle.”We’ve done this in several other locations over the winter, the material has a more natural ability to settle.” By allowing the stone to sink to the bottom, it will be naturally located where it is least likely to be shifted later by currents. The stones are also protected from quick cover by sedimentation. All of this improves the chances for bass that will use the habitat to lay their eggs and then spawn. “For those reasons, the DFO directed that this be done under winter conditions.” Work on the new bass habitat is being carried out in several phases, with an overall, up-front cost to the county of $15,000. The project has already been approved for shared funding, however, so the federal and provincial governments will be reimbursing the county for $10,000 total. According to Roberts, the work is set to be completed sometime between Jan. 6 and Jan. 16. For more information, contact the County of Lennox & Addington at 613-354-4883 or the project manager, G.D. Jewell Engineering of Belleville, at 613-969-1111.

Veteran captain hooks monster walleye January 11, 2009 Will Elliott / www.buffalonews.com Lake Erie charter captains see many sizeable fish while working eastern-basin areas of this great lower Great Lake for walleyes. Bob Rustowicz cruised that chartering circuit for more than two decades, trolling likely walleye waters from Buffalo to Barcelona and using the VHF handle “Forever Fishin’.” Excitement was always high when he and his clients hooked into limit catches, often with monster ’eyes weighing in well over the 10-pound mark. Despite all this time spent netting nice Erie ’eyes, his excitement level was that of a kid with his first big bass, trout or salmon when he called Wednesday evening after returning from an ice-fishing outing in the Big Bay area of the Bay of Quinte at the northeast corner of Lake Ontario east of Toronto. “Capt. Bob” and partner Tony Zogaria, both of Cheektowaga, hauled in some nice walleyes during their two-day stint on Quinte ice. “We weren’t getting any big fish but a lot of nice ones up to about seven pounds, and I saw a couple others [walleye] that might hit 10 pounds,” Rustowicz said of the fishing and catching going on before he hooked into the biggest walleye of his fishing lifetime. Bay of Quinte walleye schools had been the darling of summer and winter anglers decades ago. The Lindner brothers, Babe Winkelman, and other anglers in the national media focused many a camera lens on bull-sized ’eyes — mainly monster female walleye — caught through Quinte ice in the 1980s and early 1990s. Fishing pressure and changing fishery conditions there saw a decline in both numbers and sizes of ’eyes for more than a decade. But those conditions have improved in recent years. Ask Rustowicz. Included in the two-day limit catch he and Zogaria brought home Wednesday afternoon was a walleye taken on Tuesday. “It went 13.95-pounds on a digital scale late Wednesday, so it’s definitely a 14-pounder,” Rustowicz said of his 32-inch massive mount-worthy monster. “That one will definitely go on the wall,” he said of his personal-best walleye. The Lake Simcoe pack has been plagued with a run of runts in recent years, but the dink-to-keeper ratio has moved in favor of keeper numbers at the start of this ice fishing season. Ask Gene Borowicz of Cambria and John Ashe of Pendleton. Borowicz and Ashe booked a two-day trip with Steve Barber of Steve’s Fish Huts at Pefferlaw last week, and the duo did well on 10-inch-plus perch both days. “The bite was constant all morning till night. We released more than 300 and kept 85 [larger ones],” Borowicz wrote. He noted the perch moved in tighter schools during afternoon hours, but the bite was solid all day. “They’ve been doing best on live minnows, but the jack/J-hooks [small, spoon-blade baits] also work well now,” Barber said of the past week’s perch catching.

....Good stuff guys (and Gal). I had a few friends in Gilford on Friday who said it was crazy with fish. Just lots of small ones to weed through.

....Great, more chinooks.

....I used to fish out of "The Pines" not far up the road from Barrie. Lake trout and whitefish primarily. Run by the Chilmans (?), good folks. Not sure if they're still in buisness but I did find a listing on the net. The Pines 705-487-3305 RR #1, Oro Station, Ontario L0L 2E0

....An introduction, some background information, anything. Clarity is usually a good thing on a Saturday morning.

....Hmmmmm, ???????????

Well good luck with that.

....I suggest you go by the....oh hell I dunno? I think an "'09 OFC Tourney" logo will work for now till teams have been selected.

....Hey Jamie. Well 2009 is here and perhaps it'll be a better one for you and hopefully me. Glad you made it back.

....Well things are already being implemented (thanks Roy) and you probably should document anything you catch starting...................NOW!

Lake-saving material being tested Dec 31, 2008 Janis Ramsay / www.innisfiljournal.com The middle of the winter might not be a time to think about splashing around in the water, but the Lake Simcoe Regional Conservation Authority is doing just that. Phosphorous is still a problem in Lake Simcoe, and the conservation authority has a new solution on the horizon. Staff has just finished a pilot project to test phoslock – a clay-based material meant to absorb the phosphorous (nitrogen) in the water. It’s the first time it has been tested in Canada. “We had two projects and we’re evaluating the results,” said David Lembke, senior environmental monitoring scientist. The tests were done at the Cane Parkway Stormwater Quality Pond in Newmarket and a reservoir at the Scanlon Creek Conservation Area in Bradford. Those areas were picked because there’s little chance any water from those ponds will reach the watercourse, said Lembke. Phoslock is sprayed on the water after it’s mixed into a slurry, then it settles through the water. The important ingredient, Lanthanum, attracts phosphorous and locks it away from the water, so weeds and algae can’t use it to grow, said Lembke. It settles in a less-than paper-thin layer. In a similar way, Lanthanum is used by kidney disease patients to get rid of phosphates in their blood. Phosphorous isn’t good in a lake because it feeds weeds and algae, causing an overabundance of plant life. When those plants die, they decay and in turn absorb oxygen at the bottom of the lake. That means little fish can’t stay along the bottom of the lake to hide from predators, so they are also killed off. The conservation authority did jar tests of phoslock first, which showed no harmful impacts, but Lembke said a real-world environment also had to be tested. “It’s widely used in Australia and Europe and has gone through a lot of tests there. We wanted to test to be thorough.” All summer and into November, staff monitored water quality and algae content. Right now, various ministry officials are looking at the results, to be sure there’s no harmful impact to the ecosystem. The summer of 2008 had quite a bit of rain, which might skew some of the results, said Lembke. So a second test period is expected next summer. “We’d like to see it under different environmental conditions.” Phoslock is just one of many plans to combat phosphorous in Lake Simcoe. The province passed the Lake Simcoe Protection Act Dec. 1. That means $50 million in funding from provincial and federal levels of government will help clean up the lake. Lembke said waterfront residents can also do their part to protect the water, and there may be some financial assistance for changes made. For more information, go to www.lsrca.on.ca or call 905-895-1281.

Pro bass fishing's in a boatload of sponsorship trouble Sunday, January 04, 2009 Mike Bolton / www.al.com Pro bass fisherman Randy Howell watched with limited interest on New Year's Day as Georgia trounced Michigan State in football. The smoked turkey he had brought got most of his attention. The upcoming Bassmaster Classic in which Howell will participate finally became a topic of conversation but that talk didn't last long. The unknown future of the 2009 Bassmaster season was obviously heavy on his mind. The parallels between NASCAR and pro bass fishing are remarkable but none are as key as both being sponsor-driven sports. The crumbling economy that has caused many NASCAR sponsors to flee is hitting equally hard in the professional fishing world. Professional bass fishing hit it big only after plastic worm and hard-plastic lure manufacturers were replaced by big-buck corporations as primary sponsors. With an economy that has caused all major companies to tighten their advertising reins, I suppose it was only natural that pro fishing would suffer. The professional fishing circuit, many companies have decided, isn't where they can get the biggest bang for their buck. The savvy Howell was one of the first to land a major sponsor outside of the fishing industry. His years-long association with Purolator opened the eyes of many pro anglers to the vast possibilities. But that sponsorship deal will be no more in 2009. "Everybody is losing sponsors," Howell said. "Greg Hackney and Marty Stone have lost Advance Auto Parts. GE Silicone has pulled out. "The fishermen are losing sponsors. BASS is losing sponsors. "We're keeping the lure companies but the big, non-endemic sponsors are saying they can't do it right now." Just as it takes a lot of sponsorship money to put a NASCAR Sprint Cup Series car on the track, it takes a boatload of money to fish on the professional circuit. Those anglers fishing on the Elite Series this year will pay $57,500 just in entry fees. Toss in expenses such as gas, lodging and meals and the costs can push $100,000. Howell says he spent $85,000 last year just to fish tournaments. "The bad part is that it comes on the heels of what was a tough year because of the gas prices," he said. "You pull a boat across the country and spend days running a boat when gas is close to $4 a gallon and it just about killed everybody." Howell believes the top 25 or 30 established anglers will struggle but survive. He says for the newcomers to the sport, the future will be questionable. "Sponsors are spending their money more wisely," he said. "They can't take a chance of getting a return on their dollar with a rookie." Howell says he and others are now focusing their sponsorship sights not on the big companies that pumped so many dollars into the sport in recent years but on independent companies that might want to get a better bargain on their advertising dollar. He isn't getting any takers yet. It just isn't a good time for the fishing industry. The major boat sponsors on the circuit - Ranger, Triton and Skeeter - were all off 17 percent or more in sales in 2008, Howell said. Regardless, he's headed to the Classic next month on the Red River in Shreveport, La., with his best opportunity ever to win bass fishing's biggest event. "It's perfect for my style of fishing," he said. "There are rocks and wood everywhere. I'm a shallow-water junk fisherman. If we can get a little bit of warm weather, it should be good. "The place is full of 3- to 6-pound fish. We'll probably see one of the biggest catches ever in a Classic."

‘09 must be better for lakes January 6th, 2009 / Traverse City Record-Eagle When it was finally over, 2008 was a good year for the Great Lakes. But work remains. Lake levels rose after nearing historic lows, a historic agreement to protect the lakes was approved by the Great Lakes states and Congress and the nation elected a president from a Lake Michigan state who is expected to give greater credence to science-based concerns, the environment in general and the lakes. Just a few weeks ago Congress adopted and President Bush signed a long-awaited Great Lakes compact aimed at limiting water diversions and managing state, federal and Canadian water policies. In addition to limiting diversions, the compact also calls on the eight Great Lakes states to regulate their own water use, including withdrawals for drinking water; Traverse City, for instance, draws its drinking water from the East Arm of Grand Traverse Bay. The compact requires such communities to meet rigorous requirements for managing water use. There is still work to do, however, and it needs to begin now. Although it was a huge step forward, the compact still contains a major diversion loophole that must be immediately addressed. During the last stages of actually writing the compact it was changed to exempt water diversions — make that sales — in containers of less than 5.7 gallons. While the move was defended as a minor wrinkle by compact defenders, environmental attorney Jim Olson of Traverse City pointed out that such a designation could be construed as declaring Great Lakes water a commodity and stripping it of the protections the compact supposedly provided — not to mention opening lake waters to bottling companies selling it in containers up to 5.7 gallons. U.S. Rep. Bart Stupak, D-Menominee, whose district includes portions of lakes Superior, Michigan and Huron, felt so strongly about the loophole that he voted against the compact as a whole. New wording to close the 5.7-gallon loophole must immediately be adopted. High on the agenda of the incoming administration of President-elect Barack Obama and Congress, then, must be closing that gap, no matter how much the lobbyists for the bottled water industry howl. What seems now to be a trickle could grow to a flood as parched states probe the compact for ways to get at the largest concentration of fresh water in the world. Once a federal court decides that the rules that cover other commodities also cover water, watch out. The federal government also needs to put some teeth into a new policy announced at the end of the year. The Environmental Protection Agency announced a requirement that commercial ships must dump ballast water at sea or rinse their tanks if they’re empty in an effort to prevent invasive foreign species from entering the Great Lakes and other U.S. waters. On its face, it appears to be the regulation activists have long hoped for. The announcement came after years of foot-dragging by the EPA and the U.S. Coast Guard and the flat-out refusal by both agencies to enforce federal Clean Water Act regulations and federal court decrees in relation to Great Lakes shipping. In reality, however, the new requirement falls far short of regulations that would force ships to install systems for sterilizing ballast tanks to kill aquatic creatures. Though other countries have long approved similar standards, we haven’t. Critics derided the new rules as a “rinse and spit” solution that would still allow the 61,000 domestic and 8,000 foreign-flagged vessels that ply the lakes every year to continue to bring invasive species into the lakes. Obviously, there are changes to be made, and if Great Lakes activists are going to make further headway, this seems the time. The anti-science Bush administration is on the way out, the Compact has just been signed and we’re getting a president who knows water issues. Stupak, Olson and others have work yet to do; if it’s ever going to get done, 2009 seems the time.

Nice inland ice January 7, 2009 Will Elliott / www.buffalonews.com Solid ice surfaces formed on many water bodies for area anglers this past week from the north end of Lake Simcoe to the south end of Chautauqua Lake. Lenora Creber at Casey’s Fish Huts (705-437-1560) had huts out at Port Bolster last weekend and clients did well on perch throughout all daylight hours. Along with perch, jiggers have come up with an odd walleye from shallower bay areas. “One was a 10-pounder; it would be nice to see the walleyes come back here,” she said. Randy Carleton at Randy’s Fish Huts (705-437-2989) set up last Friday over 28-to 32-foot depths off Port Bolster for a good mix of perch and herring. Herring remain off the limits for anglers. “Whitefish have moved in and one client got a nice one, but [clients see the whitefish] cruise just under the ice holes,” he said. Steve Barber at Steve’s Fish Huts (705-437-1013) set up on 8- to 12-inch ice off Holmes Point Road in Pefferlaw. Barber’s clients have taken a higher ratio of keepers this year, with many measuring well above 10 inches. Cooks Bay at Simcoe offers good ice (averaging 10-12 inches) on the Keswick and Guilford sides of the bay. Early starters head out to deeper waters when possible. Jiggers work 25-foot depths, doing a lift-and-drop twitch for perch. Schools can be found at shallower depths, but the bigger perch hold deeper. Terry Goy at Terry Goy Fish Hut Rentals ( www.utube.com/terrygoy ) worked plain jigs Tuesday and caught perch without an attached bug/grub. “Just about everything works for perch right now,” Goy said, noting the keeper-to-runt ratio is about 5-1.

Hatchery offers thanks January 7, 2009 Mary LeFeuvre / www.bancroftthisweek.com To the editor: As we enter the New Year the Board of the North Hastings Community Fish Hatchery would like to wish you a very happy and healthy New Year. While many of our thoughts will be about 2009 we would like to briefly reflect on the past year. A mere 12 months ago the hatchery was nothing but a drawing on a piece of paper and a big hole in the ground. Today we have a facility, while not yet completely furnished, where we are raising our locally adapted, unique genetic Lake Trout called the Jewel. Despite the ups and downs that we encountered along the way we believe it was all worth it. The success of our building phase would not have been possible without the support of the many organizations, businesses and people in the Community. That support ranged from direct cash contributions, merchandise for the various fundraisers and the building; to lending a helping hand for hatchery chores, and we thank you for that generous support. We too would like to thank the following Governments and their agencies/programs for their support; The Eastern Ontario Development Program administered on behalf of Industry Canada by our local CFDC, The Rural Economic Development Program, administered by OMAFRA, The County of Hastings and the Municipality of Hastings Highlands. Our initiative as, among other things, an economic development opportunity, was important enough to gain their support and commitment. Your trust in our efforts is appreciated. Today we have about 8,000 newly hatched lake trout sac fry in the hatchery and in the first week of January, we will have brought back from the Haliburton Highlands Outdoor Association fish hatchery about another 6,000 yearling trout that they have been conscientiously raising for us. These fish will be released in local public lakes this Spring. We invite you to come see the new hatchery in the New Year and see what we have been up to for the last year. You can arrange a tour by calling 613-332-4084. We believe that 2009 will be an exciting year and we will be starting it off with our Annual General Meeting on January 23 at the North Hastings High School. All are welcome. Thank you for making 2008 a great year for the hatchery.

Hatchery offers thanks Posted By Mary LeFeuvre Posted 21 hours ago To the editor: As we enter the New Year the Board of the North Hastings Community Fish Hatchery would like to wish you a very happy and healthy New Year. While many of our thoughts will be about 2009 we would like to briefly reflect on the past year. A mere 12 months ago the hatchery was nothing but a drawing on a piece of paper and a big hole in the ground. Today we have a facility, while not yet completely furnished, where we are raising our locally adapted, unique genetic Lake Trout called the Jewel. Despite the ups and downs that we encountered along the way we believe it was all worth it. The success of our building phase would not have been possible without the support of the many organizations, businesses and people in the Community. That support ranged from direct cash contributions, merchandise for the various fundraisers and the building; to lending a helping hand for hatchery chores, and we thank you for that generous support. We too would like to thank the following Governments and their agencies/programs for their support; The Eastern Ontario Development Program administered on behalf of Industry Canada by our local CFDC, The Rural Economic Development Program, administered by OMAFRA, The County of Hastings and the Municipality of Hastings Highlands. Our initiative as, among other things, an economic development opportunity, was important enough to gain their support and commitment. Your trust in our efforts is appreciated. Today we have about 8,000 newly hatched lake trout sac fry in the hatchery and in the first week of January, we will have brought back from the Haliburton Highlands Outdoor Association fish hatchery about another 6,000 yearling trout that they have been conscientiously raising for us. These fish will be released in local public lakes this Spring. We invite you to come see the new hatchery in the New Year and see what we have been up to for the last year. You can arrange a tour by calling 613-332-4084. We believe that 2009 will be an exciting year and we will be starting it off with our Annual General Meeting on January 23 at the North Hastings High School. All are welcome. Thank you for making 2008 a great year for the hatchery.

Wegman to host ice fishing seminar January 07, 2009 / www.yorkregion.com Georgina Advocate columnist Wil Wegman will host an ice fishing seminar Monday from 7 to 9 p.m. at the De La Salle Hall in Jackson’s Point. Mr. Wegman, who writes the Focus on Fishing column, was the 2006 Perch Trap Attack winner and a member of Team Canada during the 1991 World Ice Fishing Championship. He has taught ice fishing courses at Seneca College since 1987 and also presented his seminars from Sudbury to Toronto and Hamilton to Ottawa. “This will be the first time we have had the opportunity to host one of them here, thanks to the town and The Georgina Advocate,” he said. “The Jackson’s Point venue will be perfect with many avid ice anglers living within a half hour drive.” His presentation focuses on ice fishing in Lake Simcoe with emphasis on how to catch more yellow perch, northern pike, whitefish and lake trout. “Lake Simcoe is a huge body of water and receives more fishing pressure than any other inland lake in the province,” he said. Draw Prizes will be offered courtesy of HT Enterprises, Rapala/Normark, Berkley/Pure Fishing and Lowrance. Gerry Heels, a Lowrance Electronics rep will be on hand to answer questions about their sonar units and how to maximize their performance during the winter. Admission is free, but you are asked to bring along a non-perishable food item for the Georgina Food Bank.

.....Funny you know, with 30 years of ice fishing Simcoe I can't honestly remember seeing a slaughter of on ice smallies and yet I hear they're in there.

....I'll cut him slack this time Roy. He's not been round the board much cause he's actually been out harassing the wee fishies under the ice.

....Attaboy. You know all these perch reports are starting to affect me palate.

....Experience is a great teacher Wayne....

....Sweeeet!

....A word of caution, just becasue the switch may be off it does not mean there is no power in the socket. Best to remove the fuse (or trip breaker) before jamming anything conductive into a broken bulb.