Fishing for Walleye is a popular winter sport on the Saginaw River near downtown Bay City. (MyBayCity 2009 File Photo)

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Walleye Hatcheries Working Overtime After Disinfectant Found to Cut Disease

Good News for Fishing Enthusiasts From DNRE Scientific Laboratory

January 8, 2011       Leave a Comment
By: Dave Rogers

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Fishers, bait your hooks -- more walleye are coming!

After several years of wrestling with a walleye virus, the Department of Natural Resources and Environment (DNRE) has found a disinfectant and is returning hatchery production and stocking of walleyes to historic levels.

The DNRE plans to take some 50 million eggs this spring to produce fry for pond-rearing and direct stocking, an eight-fold increase over the last two years.

The DNRE expects to produce at least 80 percent of the total capacity for walleye fry in 2011 and be back to full production in 2012.

Since 2006, the DNRE has cut back on most of its walleye rearing activities because of the presence of Viral Hemorrhagic Septicemia (VHS) in the brood-stock waters.

Now, after extensive testing, a technique has been found to disinfect walleye eggs and prevent spreading VHS. As a result, the DNRE will now resume large-scale rearing and stocking of walleyes.

"In a perfect world, we wouldn't have cut our walleye fry production," DNRE Director Rebecca Humphries said, adding:

"But the specter of bringing VHS into our hatchery system or transferring VHS to new waters was just too risky. The ecosystem is constantly changing and our management practices must change with it. We are pleased that an effective treatment for walleye eggs against VHS has been found and we're ramping up our production accordingly."

The DNRE expects it to take two years to return to full production of walleye fry. A number of the rearing ponds, which have been idled for the last several years, are in need of maintenance before they can be brought back on line for production.

For more information, visit www.michigan.gov/fishing.

The Department of Natural Resources and Environment is committed to the conservation, protection, management, and accessible use and enjoyment of the state's environment, natural resources, and related economic interests for current and future generations. Learn more at www.michigan.gov/dnre.

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Dave Rogers
Dave Rogers is a former editorial writer for the Bay City Times and a widely read, respected journalist/writer in and around Bay City. (Contact Dave Via Email at carraroe@aol.com) More from Dave Rogers

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