Lake Erie Committee Announces Walleye and Yellow Perch Harvest Levels for 2016

Maintaining a healthy Lake Erie walleye and yellow perch fishery is the responsibility of fishery scientists and managers from many states and nations that meet each year to discuss the monitoring data behind the delicate balance of understanding a healthy fishery. Forrest Fisher Photo

The binational Lake Erie Committee of the Great Lakes Fish Commission (GLFC), comprising fishery managers from Michigan, New York, Ohio, Ontario, and Pennsylvania, met in Niagara Falls, Ontario, and recommended a total allowable catch (TAC) of 4.937 million walleye and 9.208 million pounds of yellow perch for 2016 (Walleye are allocated by number of fish; yellow perch are allocated in pounds).  These TAC recommendations are an allowable combination harvest of recreational sport fishing and commercial fishing, for 2016 the numbers represent an increase in allowable catch for walleye from 4.114 million fish last year and a decrease in yellow perch from 10.528 million fish.

The Lake Erie Committee’s TAC recommendations are reflective of the status of Lake Erie’s fish populations and take into account the goal of consistent harvest from year to year. The individual provincial and state governments adhere to and implement the TAC recommendations in accordance with their respective regulations and management objectives.

TAC recommendations are produced after extensive lakewide biological assessments, analysis, discussions, and consultations with stakeholders. A central mechanism to discuss walleye and yellow perch management in Lake Erie is called the Lake Erie Percid Management Advisory Group, or LEPMAG. Through this process, stakeholder input directly informs the development of harvest strategies.

A healthy fishery affects the recreational economy and millions of people that utilize the resource.

WALLEYE

The Lake Erie Committee today recommended a 2016 walleye TAC of 4.937 million fish, a 20% increase from the 2015 TAC of 4.114 million fish. The TAC recommendation for 2016 reflects a stable adult population and a moderate to strong hatch in 2014. The 2011, 2010, 2007, and the 2003 year classes continue to contribute to the stability of the walleye fishery and allow for the increase in TAC from last year.

Each Lake Erie jurisdiction is responsible for implementing its portion of the TAC. The Province of Ontario and the States of Ohio and Michigan share the TAC based on a formula of walleye habitat within each jurisdiction in the western and central basins of the lake. Under a 2016 TAC of 4.937 million fish, Ohio will be allocated 2.523 million fish, Ontario 2.126 million fish, and Michigan 0.288 million fish. Most of the walleye harvest comes from the western portion of Lake Erie and, as such, jurisdictions in the eastern end of the lake are outside the TAC area. Harvest limits in the eastern basin are established separately by Ontario, Pennsylvania, and New York and remain in accordance with lake-wide conditions and objectives.

The walleye TAC recommendations are consistent with the Lake Erie Walleye Management Plan, which sets fishery goals and objectives for walleye. The plan is the result of extensive stakeholder and manager input through LEPMAG. In addition, the Walleye Task Group, comprising scientists and field biologists from all Lake Erie jurisdictions, provides scientific advice to the Lake Erie Committee. The committee also takes into account recommendations from LEPMAG and is informed by a model, developed in conjunction with stakeholders and Michigan State University.

YELLOW PERCH

The Lake Erie Committee remains strongly interested in maintaining stability in harvest while ensuring yellow perch sustainability. Consistent with that primary objective, the Lake Erie Committee recommended a 2016 TAC of 9.208 million pounds of yellow perch, a decrease from last year’s allocation of 10.528 million pounds. The decrease in the yellow perch TAC reflects declining abundance in the central eastern basins, coupled with increasing abundance in the western basin. Like the walleye TAC recommendation, the proposed yellow perch TAC is the result of deliberations among the jurisdictions and with stakeholders through the LEPMAG process.

The five jurisdictions on the lake share Lake Erie’s yellow perch established under an area-based formula. Under the 2016 TAC recommendation, Ontario will receive 4.385 million pounds, Ohio 3.876 million pounds, Michigan 0.209 million pounds, New York 0.119 million pounds, and Pennsylvania 0.620 million pounds.

The Lake Erie Committee noted that the lake-wide yellow perch fishery is performing at long-term trend levels and, thus, the overall TAC reflects a relatively small decrease. The performance, however, is not uniform throughout the lake. In some areas, called “management units,” the change in yellow perch abundance (and, hence, allowable harvest) is significantly different in 2016 compared to 2015. The Lake Erie Committee has strived to maintain harvest stability while still responding to specific trends in each management unit. The committee discussed the need to evaluate methods, including population modeling and assessment, for better understanding percid recruitment in the central basin.

THE LAKE ERIE PERCID MANAGEMENT ADVISORY GROUP (LEPMAG)

The Lake Erie Percid Management Advisory Group was first convened in 2010 and serves as the primary method to incorporate stakeholder needs and objectives into the Lake Erie yellow perch and walleye decision-making process. LEPMAG consists of senior representatives from all provincial and state jurisdictions on the lake, recreational fishers, commercial fishers, and other interested organizations. Through LEPMAG, fishery managers and stakeholders work together to identify the harvest policies for Lake Erie percids that meet the needs of all stakeholders while maintaining stability in the percid fishery. Michigan State University’s Quantitative Fisheries Center facilitates the LEPMAG process. Walleye are now being managed under the Walleye Management Plan, which was developed through LEPMAG and formally adopted by the Lake Erie Committee in December, 2015. LEPMAG members are in the process of developing population objectives and harvest strategies for yellow perch in Lake Erie. The objectives and harvest strategies are expected to be completed in the coming years.

THE LAKE ERIE COMMITTEE AND TACs

The Lake Erie Committee comprises fishery managers from Michigan, New York, Ohio, Ontario and Pennsylvania. The committee’s work is facilitated by the Great Lakes Fishery Commission, a Canadian and U.S. agency on the Great Lakes. Each year the committee recommends a TAC for walleye and yellow perch. The TAC represents the number or weight of fish recommended to be caught by sport and commercial fishers without putting the fisheries at risk. The individual agencies implement the recommended total allowable catch.

It’s Not Always About the Catch

  • Chautauqua County, NY, is noted for mega-limits of Lake Erie walleye and monster musky from Chautauqua Lake.
  • Great sunsets with a glass of microbrew beer or local vintage winery tastings are on the usual after-dinner menu.
  • Our group learned a lot about the fun of camaraderie, effective fishing tactics and great walleye recipe ideas. 
Fun fishing on Chautauqua Lake with (L to R), Jerrod Vila, Megan Plete Postol, myself (Dave Figura), and John Childs.

By David Figura

For many, a good time fishing is about how many fish one catches and/or the size of the ones reeled in.

Even more important, though, is getting out on a scenic, soul-soothing lake, river or stream and the company and conversation one experiences with fellow anglers. And if you’re lucky, it includes a great meal consumed from the day’s catch.

The fish cleaning table is where the grins and tactics are shared for long-term memory. Jerrod Vila (L) and myself.

I experienced all that and more at a Chautauqua County Outdoor Media Fish Camp along with four other outdoor writers in early October in this southwestern corner of New York State. The four-day get-together was sponsored by the Chautauqua County Visitors Bureau.

The purpose was to expose us to the celebrated Lake Erie fall walleye and perch fishery, the angling opportunities in nearby Chautauqua Lake where walleye, bass, perch and monster musky are plentiful — and a chance to fly fish on one of the tributaries that flow into Lake Erie this time of year that boast hard-fighting steelhead preparing to spawn. The Lake Erie tributaries along the eastern shore in New York are appropriately known as “Steelhead Alley.”

Much has been written about all three angling opportunities, and I was anxious to try them all. David Barus, the camp organizer, set us up in a quaint cottage on Point Chautauqua just off the eastern shore of Chautauqua Lake, scheduling us with experienced guides and “fishing hosts” for each of our three days of fishing.

Unfortunately, the stretch of warm, dry sunny conditions in the week leading up to our trip resulted in the streams being unseasonably low for the spawning steelhead who chose to stage out in the lake rather than running up the streams. That outing was scratched.

As things worked out, walleye and musky fishing were the offerings, and we had a good time wetting our lines.

I got out on Lake Erie the first day with fellow New York State Outdoors Writer Jerrod Vila, guided by charter boat Capt. Tom Yetzer of Reel Time Charters and his soft-spoken first mate, Randy Hinsken.

Outdoor media communicator, Jerrod Vila, landed the largest Lake Erie walleye of the day with this 28-incher.

Lake Erie, which at times can blow anglers off with high wind and waves, was comfortably calm that day. The wind vacillated around 3-5 mph, the temperature was in the high 70s (unusually warm for that time of year). The skies were sunny and bright. We were bottom-bouncing spinners tipped with worms in 60-80 feet of water. The marks on the fish finder were plentiful, but the bite was slow.

Vila got us all excited as he hooked something big. “Feels like I’m reeling in a cinder block,” he said, straining with his pole as the fish had several pronounced runs.

We were thinking of trophy walleye. Vila, after first catching sight of the fish in the water, changed his mind and announced it had to be a huge lake trout. Once the fish was netted, though, we all laughed. It was a hefty, 30-something-inch blue catfish.

Shortly after, Vila hooked another big fish. This time, it was an appreciable 28-inch walleye, which turned out to be the biggest walleye of the day. We ended up boating several more, keeping a total of six for the tasty fillets. My biggest was a 22-inch ‘eye. I also lost three keepers right near the boat.

Meanwhile, writers Mike Joyner and Megan Plete Postol, also NYSOWA members, brought back two nice walleyes from their excursion on Chautauqua Lake, using a “snap jigging” technique with weighted lures. The remaining writer, John Childs of Texas, who went out himself with Captain Frank Shoenacker (Infinity Charters) on Chautauqua, caught some perch and silver bass, but no walleye.

When we got back to the Air Bnb, Barus was talking about going out to dinner or preparing a meal himself. But Vila, an expert cook when it comes to wild game/fish dishes, wouldn’t have it. He made a quick grocery store run with Plete Postol and came back with crab meat, celery and several other ingredients and spices

This is an 18-inch cooking pan filled with a customized gourmet walleye preparation, as described in the story. Served with couscous, a salad, and a glass of Dry Reisling wine from Liberty Vineyards, it was delightful and enough to feed 10 people!

With the help of writer John Childs from Texas, Vila proceeded to slice the walleye fillets into strips and prepared a filler with the crab meat and other ingredients.

The filler was spooned onto the fillets. The fillets were then rolled up into little coils about 2-plus inches in diameter, placed on a huge frying pan, sprinkled with mozzarella cheese and white wine, and then baked.

I‘d be negligent if I didn’t mention the writers came up with a delicious sauce in a separate pan to drip over Vila’s creation, along with couscous in another pan as a side dish. It all made for a delicious, filling meal.

The following day Childs, Plete Postol and Joyner get out with Capt. Yetzer on Lake Erie with slightly rougher conditions. This time, the three-some boated around 20 walleyes and kept 10.

Vila and I spent our outing that day jigging with weighted lures for walleye on Chautauqua Lake with experienced angler Don Staszcyk. Despite the best efforts by Staszcyk, who repeatedly marked fish on his fish finder in more than 20 different spots, we were unable to hook a single walleye. However, we did boat a number of silver bass and small perch.

On the final day, Joyner had to leave early. The remaining four of us went out with Rob Oram, another experienced Chautauqua Lake angler. We began by trolling for three hours for musky but had no luck. We finished up jigging for walleyes, boating a 22- and a 17-incher,

In hindsight, the beauty of the three outings wasn’t about the catch, although it was appreciable and more than enough to prompt a return to Chautauqua County. It was the chemistry and conversation of the five writers.

I came home with several bags of walleye fillets and insight into several walleye jigging techniques — methods I intend to try out soon on a local lake near me.

Fishing Lake Erie was fun, we filled our coolers with fillets for a special dinner or two at home.

I also picked up some cooking tips for fish, suggestions on improving the offerings of NYSOWA to its members, and solid advice on playing and purchasing an electric guitar and amp. Two of the writers had played in rock bands for years, they said.

Do you say you don’t have the time to get together at a fishing mecca such as Chautauqua County – or any other countless angling destinations in New York State?

Make the time! It’s there waiting for you. Do it with a friend or someone you’d like to befriend.

That’s how deep friendships in the outdoors world start and last.

For more info on lodging, fishing and the area, visit www.TourChautauqua.com.

Western New York for Whale-Sized Walleye

  • Thriving with walleye and smallmouth bass, Lake Erie is the most biologically productive of all the Great Lakes.
  • The “Come-Fish-Lake Erie Program” provides one and all with access to many choices of affordable charter fishing services.
  • Fishing with artificial lures, live bait, and planer boards – Lake Erie walleye fishing from Chautauqua County, NY, was exciting, educational AND tasty!
Look at those teeth! Keep your fingers in your pocket!

By Dr. Peter Brookes

As all three (!) of my social media followers know, I’m mostly a fly angler. But I recently went over to the “dark side” and did some—this is hard for me to write…deep breaths, deep breaths—spin fishing.

Yes, I said spin fishing…even trolling on a powerboat.

Perhaps even more egregious for a fly angler, I kept the fish I reeled in from the depths of Lake Erie. And then going even more off the rails for a fly fisher, I cooked and ate my catch of walleye and yellow perch when I got home.

Phew!

I’ve been keeping that secret bottled up for a bit now; it’s so good to get it off my chest. Indeed, despite going astray, it was such a fabulous trip that I wanted to share it with you all—fly anglers or otherwise.

I was invited to Western New York (WNY) by the Chautauqua (pronounced” “shaw-taw-kwa”) County Visitors Bureau to do some fishing on Lake Erie and Chautauqua Lake in early August. It’s a six-to-seven-hour drive—plus stops—from the DC area through rural Maryland, Pennsylvania and then into the Empire State.

It’s a beautiful trip north through some very picturesque countryside.

My destination was Chadwick Bay in the town of Dunkirk. The first thing I noticed when I arrived on the sunny August day was the seemingly endless expanse of blue water and the cool breezes coming off Lake Erie.

It was in the high 70s and a welcome drop in temperature from the DC area.

At one point, I mentioned to the hotel staff that my air conditioner was having a hard time keeping my room cool. Without a second thought, she told me: “The AC is working really hard today…it’s almost 80 degrees out there.”

Being from DC, I burst out laughing.

Our ride for the day. Safe and comfy with Captain Jim Klein, even in the waves.

I was very excited about getting back to WNY and out onto Lake Erie. I grew up along the Lake in a town called Orchard Park, the well-known home of the Buffalo Bills and some very snowy winters. (Go Bills!)

Orchard Park is often one of the places the cable weather channels report from when WNY gets a big snow. Last NFL season, the Bills had to move a game with the Browns out of town to Detroit due to an impending November snowstorm.

I left WNY for the Naval Academy (courtesy of the late Rep. Jack Kemp) and, after my Navy time, settled in the DC area. I’ve been back a few times for steelhead fishing (on the fly), but it had been a few years, so I was really looking forward to getting back “home.”

We’d planned for two days of fishing, but a weather front came through the day before my arrival, making the Lake a little too rough for a comfortable ride on Day One.  As one charter captain said to me at a lunch gathering, “If the Lake looks like it’s covered in fluffy white sheep, don’t go fishing.”

Indeed, when he shared that with me, I laughingly wondered if he had “Ovinaphobia” (i.e., a fear of sheep), but then I looked out at the Lake and saw the white caps. It actually looked quite pastoral, as if there were gently rolling hills of blue dotted with a large flock of chalk-colored lambs happily grazing.

Not a very nautical saying—using sheep, that is—but it’s great advice.

On Day Two, we made a run for the Lake to hit a weather window before the winds and waves picked up. Out from shore a mile or two, our charter captain, Jim Klein, hustled to get our trolling lines in the water.

The first set of trolling lines out! Planer boards and diving planes were rigged with lines to reach the thermocline.

I was gobsmacked at how technical the fishing was. We used both artificial lures, live bait, and planer boards, trailing the boat at different depths and distances behind and out to the side, away from the boat.

In no time, we were reeling in good-sized walleye and yellow perch.

I’d heard that Lake Erie walleye could be big, but I have to say that I had no idea.  The first walleye exceeded 20-inches and a couple of pounds.  Locals told me that they catch walleye over 30-inches regularly, tipping the scales at five to six pounds.

No “Dirty-30 Club” membership card for me this time, but it turns out that Lake Erie is a world-class walleye fishery and, not surprisingly, the home of some very big walleye fishing tournaments.

After a couple of runs up and down the coastline, as predicted, the winds and the waves started to pick up; it was time to head into port. I’m OK with following seas, but a head sea coming right at you can be a bit uncomfortable—even for a salty old Navy guy.

I loved the Chautauqua County fishing, the mild summer weather, and getting back to WNY. But I was also really happy to see Lake Erie thriving. In the 1960s, Lake Erie was “dead” due to the pollution that poured in from the heavy industries and large cities that ring the Lake.

In fact, in 1969, the Lake infamously caught fire near Cleveland.

But now, Lake Erie, which is the 11th largest freshwater lake in the world, is now the most biologically productive of all the Great Lakes. Besides (great tasting) walleye and perch, it’s also a top fishery for lake trout, musky, steelhead, and largemouth and smallmouth bass.

Not too shabby!

My first Lake Erie walleye!

My only regret is that due to commitments at home, I didn’t have more time to root around the area more, including visiting Jamestown, the historic Lake Erie lighthouses, local wineries, the Concord Grape belt, the famous Chautauqua Institute—and some childhood friends.

Of course, being disappointed in this case only means one thing: I’m going to have to go back soon.

Editor Note: Dr. Peter Brookes is an award-winning outdoor writer. Brookesoutdoors@aol.com

 

Branson Fishing Lakes rank among BEST-IN-AMERICA

The Tri-Lakes area of southwest Missouri and northern Arkansas includes fishing hotspot waters, including Lake Taneycomo, Table Rock Lake and Bull Shoals Lake.

  • World class fishing is found everyday in the famous Tri-Lakes region of southwest Missouri.
  • Lake Taneycomo, Table Rock Lake & Bull Shoals Lake offer trout, bass, crappie, walleye, catfish, perch and more.
  • Visitors discover affordable family fun, family fishing, family entertainment and restful accommodations. 
Big trout live here, including this 40-pound 6-ounce Missouri State Record Brown Trout from Lake Taneycomo.

By Larry Whiteley

Where can you go and fish three different lakes for 23 different species of fish in one trip? The answer is Branson, Missouri. Located in the famous Tri-Lakes area of southwest Missouri and northern Arkansas, this family fishing hotspot includes Lake Taneycomo, Table Rock Lake and Bull Shoals Lake. All have been ranked among the best fishing lakes in America. In 2018, Branson was named #1 in ”Top 10 Lake Towns,” then in 2020 was ranked #2 in ”Top Affordable U.S. Lake Towns” by www.realtor.com.

Wrapping around the eastern border of Branson is Lake Taneycomo, renown as the “Trout Capital of America.” It is internationally known for world-class rainbow and brown trout fishing. The Missouri state record brown trout was broken twice in 2019 with a 34-pound 10-ounce fish, followed seven months later with a 40-pound 6-ounce brown. The world record is 42 pounds 1 ounce and was caught in New Zealand. In 1997, a dead brown trout was found floating in Taneycomo that was 41.75 inches long, and based on those measurements, it would have weighed over 44 pounds. Will the next world record come from Lake Taneycomo? The fabulous trout fishing is not the only great fishing that Taneycomo offers. The diverse fishery also features catfish, crappie, bass, sunfish and walleye that all thrive in the cold, nutrient-rich waters.

Massive fish thrive in the Tri-Lakes region, like this 65-pound 10-ounce Missouri State Record Striped Bass from Bull Shoals Lake.
Tasty yellow perch are among colorful fish to be caught here. This 2-pound 7-ounce Yellow Perch was taken from Bull Shoals Lake, it’s a Missouri State Record.

Table Rock Lake is also a big part of the fishing and fun in the Branson area, with shorelines covering both Missouri and Arkansas. When I say big, I do mean BIG! The 43,100-acre reservoir has excellent bass fishing year-round and is annually ranked in Bassmaster Magazine’s 100 Best Bass Lakes listing. If you have dreamed of catching the “Triple Crown of Bass” (largemouth, smallmouth, spotted), this is the place you could make it happen. White bass are also in these waters, so I guess if you caught one of them along with the other three, you would have a “Grand Slam of Bass.” There are also a limited number of striped bass, but I have no idea what you would call it if you caught one along with the other four. A miracle, I guess, and something you can tell your grandkids about. In addition to all the bass species available in Table Rock waters, there are also white and black crappie, walleye, goggle-eye, channel catfish, flathead catfish, carp, bluegill and longear sunfish. If you are into catching something really different, Table Rock is also home to ancient paddlefish.

Bull Shoals Lake is a short drive from Branson, and like Table Rock, is in both Missouri and Arkansas. It, too, is nationally known for its excellent bass fishing. Largemouth weighing up to 12-pounds have been caught here. There is also hybrid bass, smallmouth bass spotted bass, stripe bass, and white bass too. Bull Shoals is not known for hybrid bass, but a local angler recently caught a state record 29-pound 1-ounce hybrid that might very well also be a line-class world record if it passes all the judging criteria. A 65-pound, 10-ounce state record striped bass was also taken from these waters. Bull Shoals is also nationally recognized as a fabulous walleye lake. The Missouri state record at 21-pounds, 1-ounce came from Bull Shoals. Crappie fishing is also popular and, if you’re into catfishing, there’s plenty of those too. There are a limited number of rainbow trout and a few of the historic paddlefish here. Another fish in Bull Shoals, and conservation folks are not sure how they got there, is the yellow perch. This species is very popular in America’s northern lakes and in Canadian waters. The Missouri state record is 2-pounds, 7-ounces, which is a good size for this good-tasting cousin of the walleye.

Besides fishing, there are many family fun things to do in this beautiful area of America. Go to www.explorebranson.com and check it all out for yourself, then come explore all that Branson, Missouri has to offer for fishermen and families. For additional information regarding travel or accommodations, you may also  contact the Branson Visitors Bureau by phone: 1-800-296-0463 .