Last Updated: Thursday, October 30, 2008 9:43 AM CDT
News : 5,000 walleye fingerlings stocked in Lake Metonga
Richard Ackley
Special to the Forest Republican
The chilly autumn air blowing across Lake Metonga at about 8 a.m. Thursday morning Oct. 23, prompted a small group of people to shiver a bit as they proceeded to transfer 5,000 walleye fingerlings into the lake. These hardy one-year-old to two-year-old fingerlings, measuring between six to nine inches, were released at the beach on the north end of Lake Metonga. The fingerlings were brought in from Silvermoon Springs fish hatchery near White Lake.
Sokaogon Mole Lake Chippewa Community tribal biologist and participant Joshua Grimm was very excited about the restocking program. “The reason why we restock is to increase the walleye population which will enhance the genetic diversity of the walleye which exist in Lake Metonga, and as these fish eventually mate, will create a more hearty fish,” he said. “We do this for the fishermen, both tribal and non-tribal.”
The cost for the fingerlings at about $10,000 or $1.95 each was shared by both the Lake Metonga Association and the Sokaogon Mole Lake Band of Chippewa. The fingerlings were given a clean bill of health prior to delivery as they were tested for viral hemorrhagic septicemia (VHS), an invasive aquatic species disease. According the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR),Viral Hemorrhagic Septicemia (VHS) is a deadly fish virus and an invasive species that is threatening Wisconsin's fish.
VHS was diagnosed for the first time ever in the Great Lakes as the cause of large fish kills in lakes Huron, St. Clair, Erie, Ontario and the St. Lawrence River in 2005 and 2006. Thousands of muskies, walleye, lake whitefish, freshwater drum, yellow perch, gizzard shad, redhorse and round gobies died. It's not a threat to people who handle infected fish or want to eat their catch, but it is threat to the more than 25 fish species. This is the first time a virus has affected so many different fish species from so many fish families in the Great Lakes. VHS virus is considered an invasive species (not native to the Great Lakes), but scientists are not sure how the virus arrived. It may have come in with migrating fish from the Atlantic Coast, or may have hitch-hiked in ballast water from ships.
For more on VHS and how you can help visit dnr.wi.gov/Fish/VHS.
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