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the headline is missleading , or at least confusing , it was a "Poor" year for fishermen last year - they caught way less than normal , not a 'poor' year for the fish - they actualy did well ,
next they will decide if they will increase the bag limits up from four , but im not expecting that ,
its in the story about the joint controls of the indians and the state , but whats not mentioned is that the state use is limited to 'sport' fishing by individuals with a single rod/reel/hook combination , while the indian harvest is primarily commercial fishing with gill nets and such ,
also not mentioned is that the 'state' is responcible for stocking and so forth , but this lake has a sustaining population ,
Feb 3, 5:55 PM EST
Mille Lacs walleye quota raised after poor year
ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) -- The safe-harvest quotas for Lake Mille Lacs have been raised for the 2009 fishing season after a slow bite last season, the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources announced Tuesday.
The overall walleye harvest was set at 541,000 pounds - 111,000 pounds more than the 430,000 pounds allowed last season, when sport anglers took only 76,000 pounds from Mille Lacs, one of the state's premiere walleye lakes.
The slow bite was due mainly to an unusual abundance of bait fish in the big lake, said Eric Jensen, a fisheries specialist with the DNR office in Aitkin. There was a large yellow perch hatch in 2007, and many of those fish are now in the 2-4 inch range, he said.
With so much forage available, Jensen said, predators like walleyes, larger perch, northern pike and muskellunge filled up on the little perch and were less likely to bite. He also said it will take a while for the bigger fish to clean the little ones out.
The allocation for sport anglers this year will be 414,500 pounds, up 107,000 pounds from the 307,500 pounds allowed last year.
Eight Ojiibwe Indian bands that signed an 1837 treaty guaranteeing their fishing rights can take 126,500 pounds of walleye under their own regulations this season, up 4,000 pounds from 122,500 pounds allowed last year.
Fisheries experts from the state and bands meet every January to determine the safe harvest levels.
The Minnesota DNR said it will evaluate the ice fishing season before deciding whether it needs to change the lake's current limits, which allow sport anglers to keep four walleye up to 18 inches, which may include one trophy over 28 inches. Mille Lacs sport anglers are required to release all walleye from 18 to 28 inches.
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