DNR: Netting surveys on Mille Lacs bode well for future walleye numbers

Members of the Mille Lacs Lake citizens’ advisory panel are urging state fisheries managers to set the walleye bag limit at two fish for the upcoming ice fishing season so as to motivate more anglers to make the trip.

At a regularly scheduled meeting Tuesday evening in Isle, most committee members who voiced an opinion said it would make sense to allow anglers to keep two walleyes in the ranges of 18-20 inches or 18-21 inches. The suggestions didn’t draw any immediate negative reactions from representatives of the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. The agency is weeks away from announcing a decision.

If the DNR adheres to the guidance, rules for the 2024-2025 ice season on Mille Lacs would sharply depart from a year ago. Then, ice anglers on the 200-square-mile lake were only allowed to keep one walleye 21–23 inches long or one walleye longer than 28 inches.

The rationale for a more liberal winter regulation was laid out by the DNR at the meeting. Before inviting the advisory group to offer winter bag limit suggestions, fisheries staff presented good news about the most recent fish surveys.

For starters, fall netting of baby fish by the DNR resulted in catches that were extremely strong.

On Tuesday, the baby walleye catch rate was described by the agency as “phenomenal,’’ both in quantity and size. The data suggests that the class of walleyes born this year will survive the winter and the spring of 2025 in large enough numbers to become integral for future reproduction and harvest.

Catch rates in the netting survey were also stellar for baby perch and baby tullibees – two primary forage fish for walleyes. The tullibee counts were as high as they’ve ever been, and baby perch were the second-highest on record since the special netting started about 14 years ago. A DNR official described the current class of forage fish as “hyper-abundant’’ — a dynamic that has greatly dampened the catch rate of mature walleyes this year because they’re well-fed.

The agency’s fall netting results regarding mature walleyes also was good. Crews reported an encouraging abundance of fish longer than 14 inches and with above-standard body condition – many with visible stores of fat. Fall sampling also confirmed that the largest numbers of mature walleyes in Mille Lacs are sized between 18 and 20 inches.

One option for winter fishing discussed at Tuesday’s meeting is for the DNR to stick with the current walleye bag limit, in effect since mid-August. It allows anglers to keep two walleyes 18-20 inches long or one fish 18-20 inches and the other longer than 28 inches.

A couple of committee members at the meeting said many anglers were encouraged by the latest walleye regulation on Mille Lacs because it lowered the size of walleyes they can keep. They also noted that ice anglers aren’t likely to over-harvest walleyes in January and February because catchability is down.

Several members of the advisory committee also encouraged the DNR to be more aggressive in setting walleye bag limits. Too often, they said, the state falls far short of its safe harvest level on Mille Lacs. The quota is set jointly at the outset of every year by the DNR and eight Ojibwe bands with fishing rights on Mille Lacs.