Quinte Fishing

It's time for our favorite fish to do its thing but the question arises as to what difference will it make? Slot limits and regulations can be effective management tools but can they make the difference in an everchanging enviroment. My understanding of the spawning process is that while millions of eggs are deposited anually on the spawning beds only a small fraction of those ever survive to return and spawn again. Perhaps those who would point thier finger at the fish hogs and native groups should pause to consider another possible reason for the decline in fish stocks. As we all may not know a body of water is much like a farmers back fourty. The ability of a given acre of land to produce a number of bushels of grain is limited to the amount of nutrients available in the soil. While there is a limit to what any field can produce based on ideal conditions it generally produces less than that limit based on other variables such as weather and predation by insects and animals.The bays ability to produce walleye is subject to similar processes. The appearance of zebra muscles has reduced the nutrient quantity of the bay by removing vast amounts of zooplankton,the first building block in a food chain that culminates in you and I, the anglers. Also, factors such as water levels, temperatures and quality affect he bays ability to produce bumper crops of walleye.While the taking of females on the spawn does nothing to contribute to the oveall situation in a positive manner, I am certain that the culprit for reduced stocks lies elsewhere.You can't tell a farmer to grow wheat in a desert and it is no less unreasonable to expect the bay to produce walleye under comprable water conditions.
thanks for listening
Fishhit

In light of what happened Sunday at Northport park where a group of volunteers tried to collect spawn for the Napanee fish hatchery, and were stopped by a group of OPSEU strikers some of have determined the true culprit in the decline of walleye stocks is the mismanagement and interference of MNR, Government and OPSEU strikers. Guess they hoped we'd kill each other off and they wouldn't have a problem. Well folks. it's not the Natives or Commercial Fishermen or Recreational Fishermen that are the problem, it's the powers that be that can't get their heads out of their asses to see what's really going on. Not to offend anyone, of course.

Ok Netter theres validity to your arguement that some of the powers that be have buried their heads in the sand on many of the enviromental and social issues facing the bay and its area peoples but a firm understanding of the scientific principals involved in coming to an understanding of the fishery is vital to solving this crisis. The ministry of natural resources shares most of the blame to be sure. The lack of scientific data pretaining to the walleye fishery is perplexing indeed. Creel and questionare surveys may be one of the tools used by biologists but the lack of control studies into factors such as reduced nutrient loads and forage base numbers leaves me scratching my head. The factors cited by the ministry for the decline in walleye numbers are based soley on traditional factors such as sportfishing and native use of the resource. These numbers, it seems to me, have been more or less steady in thier explotation of the resource. Why then has the ministry not gone on to mount studies that indicate other causes for the so called declines.The Ohio state fisheries department has determined that the sole cause of reduced creel surveys in lake Erie waters is due to increased water clarity leading to a much more wary population of walleye. This is one theory that seems to be bourne out by repots on this very board of numerous fish on the screens of sonar units but few fish in the boat. The slack attitude and action by MNR staffers with regards to alternate causes to the lack of fish seems to give creedence to your comments. Just a thought, Fishhit

In reply to Walleyeman..... Well said and accurate! No one situation is to be blamed for the current conditions of the Bay. It is to be noted however, that the fishery is still one of the few places that a trophy walleye can be caught (and hopefully released) by those willing to change tactics and fish intelligently. The Bay will probably never be like it was in the late 80s and early 90s. Todays Bay of Quinte is showing signs of a good number of game fish for one and all. It must be maintained and contolled properly by those in authority. We must all do our part to ensure that it never really dies. Enjoy your fishery for it is still fantastic. A new crop is growing and we can all share its bounty. Good Luck to all that do whatever can be done........Len