Tag Archives: Fish

Lake Champlain Atlantic Salmon Run Underway

Lake Champlain Atlantic Salmon Run

Salmon can roam wild across lakes and oceans, yet somehow find their way back home to spawn in the same waterway where they were born.

Lake Champlain is hosting this miracle of nature this week, as thousands of salmon swim up a swift, narrow brook that leads to their birthplace, the Ed Weed Fish Culture Station at the Grand Isle Fish Hatchery.

Fish Culture Operations Chief Adam Miller with a landlocked Atlantic salmon from the Lake Champlain Atlantic Salmon Run at the Ed Weed Fish Culture Station in Grand Isle, Vermont

Fish Culture Operations Chief Adam Miller with a landlocked Atlantic salmon at the Ed Weed Fish Culture Station in Grand Isle, Vermont

State fish biologists are waiting upstream in the spillway and netting some of the fish for inspection and measurement. About 85 pair of male and female salmon will be removed and moved by truck to the hatchery where their eggs will be fertilized and grown into sac-fry over this winter.

In eighteen months about 20,000 salmon will be released back into the lake and the cycle will begin again.

“There’s very little natural reproduction of salmon (in Lake Champlain) — we’re trying to encourage it but really the fishery couldn’t be sustained without stocking. We’d see very few salmon in the lake without stocking.” Brian Chipman, fish biologist

Lake Champlain Atlantic Salmon Run. Lake Champlain Salmon Restoration Successful in 2014 The salmon restoration program in Lake Champlain has seen tremendous successes over the years. 2014 was the most successful year yet for the salmon restoration program. This year the salmon returning to the brook look healthy, with only about 15 percent showing any sign of parasitic lamprey wounds.

Kevin Kelsey, who runs the hatchery, said this is the highest run he’s seen since he started work here in 1997, and this indicates positive results for the salmon hatchery and the lampricide treatments in the lake.

View WPTZ video report of the salmon run.

Other Lake Champlain Wildlife Articles:

Muskellunge Released Into Missisquoi River in Swanton, VT

Thousand of Muskellunge Released Into Missisquoi River

Muskellunge Released Into Missisquoi River in Swanton

There are thousands of new fish in the Missisquoi River. Last Tuesday night, Vermont Fish and Wildlife workers released 5,500 young Muskellunge fingerlings or “Muskies” into the Missisquoi River in Swanton. It’s part of a six-year effort to restock the species into Vermont waters.

If the new fish make it to adulthood they could grow to be 25 years old and weigh 50 pounds. They hope the late night drop-off helps.

“We do this in the evening and as it approaches dark, the boats will go out and we’ll put these fish into the water. So not only are we putting them into thick cover, where they can hide, but we are doing it under the cover of darkness, as well, which offers them another layer of darkness,” – Shawn Smith, Vermont Fish and Wildlife fisheries biologist.

Muskellunge Released Into Missisquoi River

Experts say the muskies, a predator fish, are good from an ecological perspective and are also popular with sport fishermen.

Muskellunge Released Into Missisquoi River The fingerlings come from a hatchery in New York State and were free as part of a partnership between the two states to reintroduce the fish to its historical territory.

The decline in the Lake Champlain muskie population began in the 1970’s. The species is thought to have been wiped out in the lake after a spill from a paper mill in the late 1970’s.

2015 Lake Sturgeon Sampling Yields Encouraging Results

Record number of sturgeon collected and tagged in Lake Champlain tributaries

Vermont Fish & Wildlife Department reports that a total of 17 lake sturgeon were collected during sampling activities on several Lake Champlain tributaries. This is an encouraging sign for the endangered prehistoric species.

2015 lake sturgeon sampling yields encouraging results

Jon Kimball and Chet MacKenzie of VT Fish & Wildlife pose with a lake sturgeon captured and released in the Winooski River last May.
(Vermont Fish & Wildlife photo)

“We started sampling in mid-May, collecting 16 sturgeon in the Winooski River over a five day span, as well as one sturgeon in the Lamoille River in three days of work. Water levels and temperatures were excellent for collecting fish in the Winooski, but not ideal for effective sampling in the Lamoille.” ~ Chet MacKenzie, fisheries program manager, Vermont Fish & Wildlife.

The sturgeon collected this year ranged from 48 to 55 inches in length and weighed between 20 and 40 pounds. The only sturgeon collected in the Lamoille River was identified as a fish that had been previously captured and tagged in 1999.

“By comparison, a total of 25 sturgeon were collected at spawning sites in the Winooski and Lamoille rivers during a 5-year span from 1998 to 2002. While it’s too early to know if the increase in the number of sturgeon collected this year indicates the population is beginning to rebound, it is good news that so many fish were collected in such a short time.” ~ Chet MacKenzie.

2015 Lake Sturgeon Sampling Also Shows Drop in Lamprey Damage

MacKenzie noted another encouraging sign this year: sea lamprey wounding rates had dropped significantly from previous sampling observation rates. The number of fresh and healing wounds on sturgeon collected this year had dropped to 18 wounds per 100 fish; this was significantly lower than the 276 wounds per 100 fish seen on fish collected between 1998 and 2002.

The department began collecting lake sturgeon again this spring at various spawning sites in the Winooski and Lamoille rivers and tagged the fish with radio transmitters to monitor their seasonal movements. Sturgeon were last sampled in Lake Champlain in 2002.

“We’re hoping to be able to identify locations in the lake where sturgeon congregate so that future sampling can be done more effectively, allowing us to learn more about their movements in the lake and spawning tributaries,” according to MacKenzie.

Ten sturgeon from the Winooski were tagged, enabling fisheries biologists to track them for the next ten years. So far, all ten sturgeon have migrated out of that river and have been located in Lake Champlain. MacKenzie said future sturgeon sampling is also planned for the Missisquoi River and Otter Creek, as well as additional sampling in the Winooski and Lamoille rivers.

About Lake Champlain’s Lake Sturgeon

Lake sturgeon in Vermont are only found in Lake Champlain and the lower sections of the Winooski, Lamoille and Missisquoi rivers and Otter Creek. They are a unique, ancient species of fish that are fully protected by state law and must be immediately released if caught. Lake Champlain and its tributaries have the only lake sturgeon population in New England.

Lake sturgeon movements are monitored by boat with a portable receiver and a network of stationary receivers spread throughout the lake by researchers from the University of Vermont. Vermont Fish & Wildlife asks anglers to help population recovery efforts by reporting any sturgeon they catch by calling 802-878-1564, or by contacting their local game warden or district office. Information obtained about sturgeon catches can be valuable to the department’s sampling efforts and to monitoring the trend in sturgeon abundance over time.

Anglers and the public are also asked to report illegal sturgeon harvest to law enforcement immediately by calling their local game warden, a state police dispatch center or Operation Game Thief at 1-800-752-5378.

To learn more about Vermont’s fisheries management programs and fishing in Vermont, visit www.vtfishandwildlife.com.

Learn More About Lake Champlain’s Sturgeon:

‘Lake Champlain Islands’
A Photo History of the Islands
On July 3, 1609, French explorer Samuel de Champlain and his group canoed south from Canada into an expansive lake and found four islands. These are the islands now known as the Lake Champlain Islands.
Located in the far northwest corner of the state, the islands are well known as a shoreline retreat for all of New England, with their small-town feel and picturesque farmlands. The Lake Champlain Islands are a tranquil, yet vibrant area of Vermont.Click Here to Order This Book Now

Lake Champlain Underwater Video

If you’ve ever wondered what goes on under the surface of Lake Champlain, check out this Lake Champlain underwater video. This is another in a series of ‘I See Fish People’ videos by Ben Maddox.

See how many different species of Lake Champlain fish you can find in this brief time capsule of life under the surface of Lake Champlain.

“Here’s all the fish from 1 Hour of a Gopro on a sunken tripod at Burton Island State Park edited down. Thanks to Northwest Access TV for the use of the Gopro. Watch more underwater videos from Vermont here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list… or find me on facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ISeeFishPeople” ~ Ben Maddox

Reminder: Lake sturgeon are protected under state laws

Anglers reminded that lake sturgeon are protected under state laws

Lake sturgeon are protected by legislation in both New York State and Vermont and anglers’ help is needed to protect the endangered species by practicing responsible angling and by reporting catch information.

lake sturgeon are protected

“Lake sturgeon, which are listed as an endangered species by the State of Vermont, are fully protected and all sturgeon caught by anglers need to be released immediately. Harvesting a lake sturgeon would result in the loss of an angler’s fish and wildlife licenses in Vermont and most other states for up to three years. It would also come with a $2,000 fee, paid as restitution to the state’s fish and wildlife fund, as well as a $722 fine for the offense itself.” ~ Chet MacKenzie, fisheries biologist, Vermont Fish & Wildlife.

Lake Sturgeon Facts

Also known as rock sturgeon, reddy sturgeon, or common sturgeon, the lake sturgeon is the region’s largest completely freshwater fish. A mature adult can measure between three and five feet in length and weigh up to 80 pounds, but can occasionally grow as large as 7+ feet and weigh 300 or more pounds. The largest on record in North America weighed over 300 pounds, and the oldest was 154 years old.

lake sturgeon are protected species The body coloration changes with age. An adult lake sturgeon is a uniform dull grey color while younger sturgeon are brownish grey with clear green on the lower parts of the head and body. They have sharp, cone-shaped mouths with four smooth barbels on the underside. The mouth is wide and there are two smooth lobes on the lower lip.

Lake Sturgeon Habitat

Lake sturgeon, which in Vermont are only found in Lake Champlain and the lower sections of the Winooski, Lamoille and Missisquoi rivers and Otter Creek, are a unique, ancient form of fish that were first given complete protection by Vermont law in 1967. Lake Champlain has the only lake sturgeon population in New England. New York lake sturgeon have been collected in the St. Lawrence River, Lake Ontario, Lake Erie, the Niagara River, Cayuga Lake, the Seneca and Cayuga canals, and in the Grasse, Oswego, and Oswegatchie rivers, as well as Lake Champlain.

Historically the fish were more common in Lake Champlain, but declined because of over-fishing and loss of spawning habitat caused by dam construction.

Lake Sturgeon Restoration

Anglers are also encouraged to help with the Lake Champlain sturgeon restoration effort by minimizing injuries to any accidentally caught sturgeon.

“If by chance an angler catches a sturgeon, we ask that they leave the sturgeon in the water as much as possible and remove the hook if the fish is hooked in the mouth, but cut the line and leave the hook in place if the hook is swallowed. If possible, sturgeon should not be removed from the water. Anglers can also help by choosing to change fishing locations or using a different bait in the event that they catch multiple sturgeon in a particular area,” said MacKenzie.

lake sturgeon are protected under state laws

Vermont Fish & Wildlife urges anglers to help population recovery efforts by reporting any sturgeon they catch to the Department at 802-878-1564, or by contacting their local fish and game warden or district office. Information obtained about sturgeon catches can be valuable to the Department’s sampling efforts and to monitoring the trend in sturgeon abundance over time.

Anglers and members of the public are also asked to report illegal sturgeon harvest to law enforcement immediately by calling their local warden, a state police dispatch center or Operation Game Thief at 1-800-752-5378.

To learn more about Vermont’s fisheries programs, fishing regulations or to purchase a fishing license, visit www.vtfishandwildlife.com

More About Lake Sturgeon:

A Dinosaur Among Us- The Lake Sturgeon

Lake Sturgeon Thunder

Lake Champlain Life

Exploring Life on and Around Lake Champlain