walleye rant

[JoeB]

SSKY, I know this is a hot button issue with you and I'm not trying to start an argument, but the conditions that the native walleye adapted to no longer exist. They adapted to a river environment that no longer exists and did extremely poorly after the lake was impounded. Yes, Sauger exist in the lake, and there are some big ones. In the early 80s, I caught one at the mouth of Harmon that weighed 7 lbs. But, existing and flourishing are different things. I don't think anybody would describe the Cland sauger fishery today as good. It can only be described as remnant. I would hate to think that I had to catch one on any given day. However, before impoundment, I'm sure the sauger fishery was quite good. Like the native walleye, they didn't adapt well to the lake environment. Today though, I think the debate is moot. The erie walleye is here and even if native fish were restocked, they would surely hybridize with the erie fish. Given the erie strain's lake environment adaptability, I would expect their genetic make up would completely over shadow that of the native fish after a few generations. As you know, there is still a population of native fish in the Rockcastle, and natives were stocked in Woods Ck lake a few years ago on an experimental basis. Woods Ck has no erie strain fish to compete with them so we'll see in a few years if they grow to the giant proportions that our grandfathers caught from the Cumberland River. I hope they do.

[JoeB]

PS I still maintain that money was never the issue in deciding to stock the erie walleye. Walleye (any strain) are very inexpensive to raise as long as there is an egg source.

[SSKY]

Joe B I agree with your opinion and I also see that the striper population flourishes without stocking. It is amazing to watch them swim up from La. up the river and jump the dam then rest in our lake. Again just joking, no offense. Question for you, the erie strain makes its way all the way up the southfork up to the shoals in the winter all the way to Tenn. If the fish can hybridize I see no way that the same scenario could not have happened in the Rockcastle river.If not then there would be a easy egg pool to get and then stock only those in the lake as stocking seems to be necessary anyway. I understand the genetic dilution but I thought an F1 hybrid bass in texas with florida strain and local fish was a good thing?

[JoeB]

The difference is that without stocking, stripers would be completely gone from Cland in a few years, walleye would not as they do spawn successfully and the stockings are supplimental. What would a walleye hybrid do?? I don't know. Maybe a good thing, but I don't know. The geneticists say that the rockcastle fish is an isolated population and that the strain is pure. I'll have to take their word for it. However, I would describe that egg source as anything but "easy".

[SSKY]

thanks for your input Joe B. I really would like this discussion to continue and be civil even if I can't keep my smartO comments to myself. The stripers, there are a plenty, What does it cost each year to get them to stock? and what is their "source"?

[JoeB]

I am not sure, but I think I recall that the striper eggs come from South Carolina. I wouldn't swear to that in court though. I can't give you a dollar amount on what the hatchery costs are, but it's not a huge amount of money. Striper stockings this coming year will be bumped up to 7 fish per acre, and it has nothing to do with cost, but increased pressure on the fishery. Walleye will remain at 4 or 5 fish per acre, plus natural reproduction.

[SSKY]

With the walleye that are collected on the lake, How many does it take to get eggs to support the hatchery? And, What is the cost to bring them to the point of stocking? And how would that compare to the price of stocking stripers? Just curious?

[JoeB]

John Williams, fisheries biologist in Williamsburg, can tell you the numbers of fish/eggs necessary to stock, but I would only be guessing. Walleye are hatched in jars that tumble the eggs with a very basic filtering system. The cost difference between hatching walleye vs stripers would be a push, but the fisheries folks could probably give you an exact dollar amoount. However, it's not an astronomical amount of money.