Another thing to consider is that with the weather continuing to be on the cold side, there will be a lot of Walleye heavy with eggs when the season opens because the weather hasn't warmed the water for spawning. The season could have been kept open for a week longer and closed for a week maybe two depending on the weather. Too bad that the people that make these decisions aren't in touch with what is going on.
they are very in touch. Derek answered this question on MFF. Here's his response from a biologists standpoint:
Originally Posted by upnorth
Hey Derek.... Given the drama that comes up every spring regarding why the south division is closed for six weeks, could you or ken please try to elaborate on the reasoning why? When we look at Ontario, Minnesota and North Dakota, they have specific restrictions or no closures at all.
I think it would help educate all the masses on what seems like an outdated policy.
Thanks for your time.
Hi UpNorth,
The general spring closure is a method of protecting a highly exploited species (Walleye) when individual water body regulations are not feasible.
There is a lot to discuss on this topic, but I will try to keep this short.
First, Ontario is not wide open. There are about 25 to 30 water bodies in the Kenora district alone (a relatively small zone compared to MB Southern zone) that have general spring closure just like ours - some of them until the end of June. Very few people who think we are outdated / ignorant / uneducated want to acknowledge this fact. Jurisdictions to the south have warmer, more productive waters that can sustain higher rates of exploitation.
Second, Northern Ontario Walleye regulations (full license) are 4 per day - 1 over 45cm. That is a lot less 'biomass' of Walleye compared to Manitoba's 6 Walleye - 1 over 55cm. So Ontario has gone with less harvest potential per day. An angler could easily take home 10 pounds more Walleye per day in Manitoba than in Northern Ontario. Ontario has gone one way - Manitoba has gone another. Neither is right or wrong - just different.
Third, Walleye can be caught by anglers on the spawning grounds. A quick Google search will lead you to many magazine articles that tell you exactly how to do it. While it is difficult to quantify the stress on a fish that has been caught and released, we feel it is important to protect the fish species that is probably the most important to the majority of anglers in the province.
Now, that being said, Manitoba fisheries biologists and managers are fully aware of alternate strategies for management. We are not saying "our way is the only way", but without having the information to properly assess each water body, we are currently in a management strategy that protects the spawning population of our most exploited fish species. You could say we are using the precautionary principle.
We understand that this approach is frustrating to some, but we feel that this is management approach is defensible given the resources we have available.
I hope that this has bee helpful.
If anyone wants to discuss further, I am happy to receive calls at 204-345-1450.
