Muskie stocking on Gull?

[Lee Borgersen]

      ....  What comes next with muskie stocking on Gull?
 
          Muskies are planned to be stocked in the fall of 2017 in the Gull Lake Chain.

  .......
 Minnesota DNR  Each faction of the muskie stocking debate is preparing for their next move after the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources announced Monday it would stock muskellunge in the Gull Lake Chain of lakes.

Although he said some aspects of the muskie stocking are yet to be determined, Brainerd Area Fisheries Supervisor Marc Bacigalupi gave additional details on the DNR's stocking plans on Gull, which have been discussed for two years.

  ....
Meanwhile, Republican lawmakers said a possible special session of the Minnesota Legislature likely wouldn't tackle the stocking issue amid beefier bills left to resolve, like taxes and transportation. The numerous local opponents of the stocking have one option remaining: directly petitioning the state government to stop plans to put new muskies in Gull sometime this fall.

In addition to transmitted comments, the DNR fielded local opinions in person via a public meeting at the Crow Wing County Land Services Building in December.

Bacigalupi said that even if one assumes that the average Gull Lake property owner is against stocking, there's a much wider net of people whose needs and desires the DNR has to take into account in addition to them. Minnesota anglers who don't live on Gull—but have just as much right to lakes that are public property under the jurisdiction of the state government—want more muskies.

"We aren't just taking information from lake shore property owners," he said. "We have a broader group of stakeholders that we listen to, and the majority of those stakeholders are telling us they would like more muskie fishing opportunities."

Originally, the public comment period was supposed to be October of 2015 to January, with a decision on whether to greenlight stocking coming soon thereafter. However, the DNR held off on the decision for months in order to take in more comments and consider the matter further.

What will happen at the lake

Bacigalupi said the DNR is trying to have a system for stocking that's the same in each lake stocked throughout the state, so the DNR can better analyze the effects. The stocking template as applied to Gull would call for a rate of 2,000 muskie fingerlings every other year beginning in 2017, over a duration of at least 10 years, for a total of 10,000 fish or above.

Each fingerling is about 5 months old and 10-11 inches long, he said. The DNR gets them from a statewide network of rearing ponds, both natural and man-made, from places like New London-Spicer, Bemidji and Hinckley.

The stocking itself takes place in the fall, because colder temperatures mean less risk for the fish, which have more oxygen in colder water. In late September and October, the DNR drains the rearing ponds of water, gathering the fingerlings for distribution. However, the precise date will vary based on the stocking crews' availability and the outside air temperature, Bacigalupi said.

The agency then will likely put the fingerlings in Gull's public water accesses, taking care not to put them too close to the dam.

DNR biologists will monitor the stocked fish, hoping to see signs of natural reproduction.

They can identify whether or not a fish is stocked or natural using electronic tags inserted into the fish's musculature. While normally it's not common practice to tag every single fish that's stocked, Bacigalupi said the DNR aims to do that on Gull. Each tag costs about $1, and organizations outside the agency are more than willing to put up the costs of the tags and the muskie fingerlings themselves, he said.

Stocking foes' options dwindle as clock ticks

In contrast to the vast amount of effort going into stocking the lake, there's not much left for opponents of stocking to do—for instance, blocking the DNR by means of a bill introduced in a special session of the Minnesota Legislature.

A game and fish bill that passed the Republican-controlled House of Representatives during the regular session this spring had a provision which would force the DNR to call off its stocking plans not only in Gull but all six lakes and lake chains under consideration by the agency.

Minnesota Rep. Mark Anderson, R-Lake Shore, authored the anti-stocking provision, having lived on Gull Lake since 1973. The game and fish bill, which contained several other provisions designed to thwart DNR initiatives, ultimately was left behind in negotiations between the House and the DFL-controlled Senate. It never made it to the desk of Gov. Mark Dayton.

In a letter to the editor in February, before the 2016 regular session began, Anderson pointedly argued against the DNR's plan. He highlighted a survey of Gull Lake shoreline property owners that said 70 percent were opposed.

"That should carry weight with the DNR, but the local public's opinion seems to be falling on deaf ears at the agency," he wrote. "It is unfortunate that Gull Lake people I have communicated with on this matter indicate they are tired of being bullied by the DNR on this issue and others."

On Friday, Anderson said his muskie prevention bill had little chance of being seen again in a possible special session.

"The special session is basically going to be in and out," he said. "I don't think the special session is going to drag all these other issues into it."

Trying again during the next regular legislative session would be too late, as House and Senate won't convene again until January of 2017, months after the DNR begins stocking in the fall.

The only option that remains for muskie stocking opponents is to make direct appeals to DNR officials, or Dayton himself, Anderson said.

"All they can do is plead at this point," he said. "The DNR commissioner and the governor could stop this, if they wanted to."

Although he agreed that not much further could be done in terms of legislation, Minnesota Rep. Josh Heintzeman, R-Nisswa, said opponents were starting a petition to stop the stocking.

"I doubt that the governor's going to do an 180 on it," he said. "But you never know, he might hear from the people, and have a change of heart."


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