Donabauer thinks the increase in bass numbers is due to larger minimum size limits established in the late 1990s and an increase in catch-and-release fishing. This has led to greater bass predation on bluegills. As a result, fewer bluegills survive but those that do have more food and grow larger.

In contrast, the survey results indicate some fish are declining. �There has been a subtle decrease in species richness,?Donabauer said. �Our data suggest that the loss of one species from a lake over a 15-year period is the new norm.?Species showing the largest declines are those that Donabauer describes as �cool-water?fish. These are generally found in clean lakes where oxygen is present in deeper, cooler water.

�Northern pike is a good example of a cool-water fish,?Donabauer said. �They survive, grow, and reproduce best where water temperatures are less than 73 degrees and at least 3 parts per million of oxygen occur.?  As lakes age and become nutrient enriched, they can lose their layer of cool-water habitat and stress fish that depend on it.  Pike were found in 40 percent of our lakes in the 1980s. Now that figure has dropped to 30 percent, Donabauer said.

�This is the type of information we get from surveys and is crucial for us to understand what�s going on in lakes,? Donabauer said. �More important, it serves as a basis for taking corrective management actions and provides a way to measure their success.?

Contact Information:, Jed Pearson, (260) 244-6805, [email protected]

summer. Haunert is blogging about the project at muskietrackecr.blogspot.com/.

Muskies have been stocked at Eagle Creek Reservoir since 2011. Indiana muskie populations are dependent upon stocking. The DNR Division of Fish & Wildlife stocks muskies in 12 Indiana lakes. Eagle Creek Reservoir is stocked at a rate of one-fish-per-acre, which is less than the traditional five-fish-per-acre stocking rate in other Indiana muskie lakes.

The DNR and Ball State will evaluate the survival and growth of stocked muskies and the entire fish community in coming years to assure that stocking muskies does not negatively affect other sport fish in the reservoir. 

and other aquatic life are temporarily preserved by the cold water.

"Winterkill begins with distressed fish gasping for air at holes in the ice and often ends with large numbers of dead fish that bloat as the water warms in early spring," Whelan explained. "Dead fish and other aquatic life may appear fuzzy because of secondary infection by fungus, but the fungus was not the cause of death. The fish actually suffocated from a lack of dissolved oxygen, caused by decaying plants and other dead aquatic animals under the ice."

Dissolved oxygen is required by fish and all other forms of aquatic life. When daylight is greatly reduced by thick ice and deep snow cover, aquatic plants stop producing oxygen and many die. The bacteria that decompose organic materials on the bottom of the lake use the remaining oxygen in the water. Once the oxygen is reduced, other aquatic animals die and start decomposing, increasing the rate at which oxygen is used for decomposition and further decreasing dissolved oxygen levels in the water, leading to increasing winterkill.

State Regulations Target Aquatic Invasive Species

Boaters Now Required To Clean and Drain Boats Prior to Launch

As part of an aggressive effort to prevent invasive species from entering and damaging New York water bodies, the State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) today adopted new regulations that require boaters to remove all visible plant and animal materials from boats, trailers and associated equipment, and to drain boats prior to launching from DEC lands.

The regulations, which are effective today, pertain to all DEC boat launches, fishing access sites and other DEC lands where watercraft such as boats, kayak or canoes, can be launched into the water.

"New York State continues to work with its state, local, federal and environmental partners to protect water bodies from destructive invasive species," DEC Commissioner Joe Martens said.  "Boats, trailers and associated equipment are common pathways for spreading aquatic invasive species. These new regulations will help reinforce the message that boaters need to clean their equipment of any clinging plant and animal materials and drain their boats prior to launching at lands administered by DEC."

►Boaters should take the following steps to ensure that their boat, trailer and equipment are free of aquatic invasive species:

►Visually inspect the boat, trailer and other fishing and boating equipment and remove all mud, plants and other organisms that might be clinging to it.  Materials should be disposed of in one of the Nuisance Invasive Species

Disposal Stations installed at many DEC boat launches, in

the trash or at an upland location away from the launch ramp.

Drain the boat's bilge and any other water holding compartments such as live wells, bait wells and bilge tanks.  This does not apply to water associated with sanitary systems or drinking water supplies.

Drying boats is also highly recommended but is not required under the new regulations.  Boaters who are unable to dry their boats between uses should flush the bilge and other water holding compartments with water, preferably at a temperature of 140 degrees Fahrenheit.  Microscopic larval forms of aquatic invasive species, such as zebra mussels and spiny waterflea, can live in as much as a drop of water.  To ensure that these organisms are not accidentally spread, anything holding water should be dried, flushed or disinfected with hot water to ensure that these aquatic invasive species are not spread.  Additional information on AIS and disinfection recommendations can be found www.dec.ny.gov/animals/48221.html.

The new regulations are available at www.dec.ny.gov/regulations/propregulations.html.

Boaters intending to boat on Lake George this year are also reminded that the Lake George Park Commission has enacted new regulations that require all boats to be inspected for aquatic invasive species prior to use.  Additional information on this new mandatory boat inspection program can be found at: www.lgboatinspections.com.

location scheduled to open this fall.  The store is expected to employ approximately 170 full-time and part-time employees, most from Woodbury and the surrounding area. It will be located adjacent to the Woodbury Common Premium Outlets near the intersection of Highway 6 and 17 at Averill Avenue.