ASK THE WYOMING GAME AND FISH

[fishsqueezer]

We were talking about that last night.... 6 trout, no length limit in lakes.... verses the 3 trout limit in streams.  So, in Casper for example it's common to drive to Pathfinder or Alcova early in the day, and fish back to town along the river (finding the less windy spots along the way).

Question is.... Say I keep 3 trout from Pathfinder, can I stop and fish the river in hopes of keeping 3 more?  Or will I have to release everything from the river since I have 3 fish in the cooler?

YOu shouldn't have in your possession any more than the limit for the water you are fishing.  Suggest maybe fishing the river first, then Pathfinder?

[er-e-is]

Thanks for the answer fishsqueezer.

[Tripwy]

What happened to Whaley's reservoir out by Emblem... There used to be some good fish in there.  Will the G&F ever stock it again?

[doublehaul]

To the WyG&F-

Can live bait be seined or trapped in the Powder River/tributaries and used in the Sheridan region? (Kleiborn Acme ponds) If the appropriate seining liscense is possessed of course.

[ClearCreek]

To the WyG&F-

Can live bait be seined or trapped in the Powder River/tributaries and used in the Sheridan region? (Kleiborn Acme ponds) If the appropriate seining liscense is possessed of course.

Not according to an earlier post on here.  Starting Jan 1 I don't think you will be able to use minnows in the Kleenburn Ponds, but will be able to use "statewide" (read fathead minnows raised at a certified hatchery) at Healy and DeSmet. 

I don't think people have ever been able to seine minnows in the Powder River or tribs. 

[wyreellifeguy]

does Wyoming still stock tiger muskies in any waters if not way

[jpearce1fly]

What is the perch situation in Lake Hattie.  I know a few years back when the lake was smaller they were a great target fish for ice fishing.  I was wondering what if anything the Game and Fish knows about this population of fish.  And can we expect their numbers to increase with the new size of the lake?

[sportsman234]

To the Laramie G&F crew:

 With the new reg. change for lakes it would seem smaller lakes such as Gelatt, Meeboer, Leazenby could be severely hurt going to 6 fish any size. Why was such a drastic change made after having the previous 1 fish over 20" for many, many years in effect? I really think on small lakes this could be a bad idea. Larger lakes like Seminoe, Boysen, Flaming Gorge I could see it but not small impoundments. Anyone want to explain the logic behind the change?

Thanks

[badsparky]

Are there perch in West Newton lake near Cody?  Have heard rumors but I have never seen or caugt any there.

Thanks

[WGFFishBio]

does Wyoming still stock tiger muskies in any waters if not way

Happy New Year and thanks for the question. The stocking of tiger musky in Wyoming has not occurred since 2006 in LAK Reservoir near Newcastle.  Since Wyoming does not raise tiger musky, we rely on other states for these fish; our source was Pennsylvania. Starting in 2007 (I think) a moratorium was put into place to stop the moving of fish from east of the Mississippi to west of the Mississippi, hopefully to prevent the spread of a disease called VHS (Viral Hemorrhagic Septicmia), a nasty disease that has caused some drastic fish declines across parts of the U.S. As of this point (that we know of), Wyoming does not have VHS, nor do we want to accidentally bring it in, thus tiger musky stocking has ceased for now.

Other states have started to develop their own tiger musky and it is our hopes that WGFD will be able to work with these states so that we can once again stock tiger musky into some of our waters.

Tiger muskies (a northern pike - muskellunge hybrid) are a useful tool. They are a sterile fish so we can control the numbers by how many we stock. They are ferocious predators, so they can put down lots of groceries and help control undesirable fish (as was done in LAK Reservoir with green sunfish and white suckers, major decline in these species since tiger musky have been stocked). Plus they usually provide a "trophy" component to the water in which they were stocked.

We are hopeful that one day (soon I hope) we will once again be able to stock some tiger musky.

[theburbotking]

trade with utah for tigers!!!  and get some some more channel cats in this state!

[blockice]

hello g&f my question is why year after year seminoe is put in a different drainage than pathfinder it makes absolutely no sense to me and makes it very tough to icefish in the winter with minnows all i want to do is stop at sloanes and drive in past the mile and the dam. its one of the greatest drives out there in my opinion

[TN]

What causes a fish population to become stunted?  I always thought it was lack of food availability - either a crash in the food base or population explosion of fish, or a combination of both.  I noticed a drastic change in the size of mature perch in Sloans Lake in Cheyenne between last season, where the female perch averaged 8" and this year where they average about 5".  They are full of eggs.  Males have always been smaller.  There is speculation of overharvest, but if my understanding is correct, it would seem the opposite would be occurring - fewer but larger perch.

[duckman111]

trade with utah for tigers!!!  and get some some more channel cats in this state!

   you want to catch some channel cats fish the bighorn river from thermop on down.

[gemcityslayer]

When were perch stocked into Granite and Crystal Reservoirs?  Thanks.

[benwyo]

When were perch stocked into Granite and Crystal Reservoirs?  Thanks.

I have lived here for 28 years now and they where there back them. Crystal used to have lots more and better size. North Crow was the same, but lots of little one back in early 80's, my wife did pull one out 13 1/4 inches....
Benwyo.

[gemcityslayer]

What happened to the perch in N. Crow?

[WGFFishBio]

What causes a fish population to become stunted?  I always thought it was lack of food availability - either a crash in the food base or population explosion of fish, or a combination of both.  I noticed a drastic change in the size of mature perch in Sloans Lake in Cheyenne between last season, where the female perch averaged 8" and this year where they average about 5".  They are full of eggs.  Males have always been smaller.  There is speculation of overharvest, but if my understanding is correct, it would seem the opposite would be occurring - fewer but larger perch.

While I don't know anything about Sloans in Cheyenne, you have pretty muched nailed it as far as why fish become stunted. In Healy Reservoir's case, perch came in from an upstream source, no predators originally in Healy so the perch grew very fast. With perfect spawning conditions and no predators it didn't take long for an explosion of fish. Once you get a large population, food generally becomes a limiting factor. With limited food you get smaller fish. Fish will continue to spawn, but because of a lack of food, they are smaller in size when reaching sexual maturity (smaller but likely of same age). This cycle continues until predators are introduced, angler harvest increases, or disease takes over.

If over-harvested, it can sometimes appear to be the same thing. Whereas there are fewer fish, so in order to keep the population in existence, fish will often reach sexual maturity at a younger age.  Sampling and comparisons of catch rates (in nets) between years would be needed in order to figure out what's going on for sure. Perch populations can be over-harvested, especially in waters where there is slow growth. This happens on occassion in the upper midwest where limits generally aren't as liberal and in some cases there are minimum length limits on perch.
Hope this helps.

[Special]

Question who is the best person to talk to about putting on a Ice tournament circit?  I don't have a clue how to start this but I'm willing to learn.  In the regulations it stats that you have to register with G&F.  I have not done any research yet but hopfully you can help me bypass a lot of time by giving me a contact to start looking into a possibility of getting a tournament list started.  Thanks

[Wyofarmer]

Question who is the best person to talk to about putting on a Ice tournament circit?  I don't have a clue how to start this but I'm willing to learn.  In the regulations it stats that you have to register with G&F.  I have not done any research yet but hopfully you can help me bypass a lot of time by giving me a contact to start looking into a possibility of getting a tournament list started.  Thanks

I think the best thing to do is go into your local/regional G&F office and tell them what you would like to do. They should be able to point you in the right direction. Good luck.

[wyofly99]

Do you G&F guys know what all species are in Bryan Stock Trail Pond? When was the last time it was stocked? Is it worth fishing? Thanks

[Special]

What are the little white bugs floating around in our camera lenses. Like the ones in TeamLighting video and our cameras. Shrimp, Scuds, Bugs? If you can't be specific give me a couple of choices please.  Location Keyhole

[tjohn]

What species are in Festo Lake in Wheatland, Wy. The regs book says there is a limit on Bass?

[lowrygofish]

What species are in Festo Lake in Wheatland, Wy. The regs book says there is a limit on Bass?

Largemouth bass were stocked into it in 2010 and bluegill in 2011.

[tjohn]

thanks lowrygofish, always wondered if the did anything after they cleaned er up

[HighBrew]

Why is G&F stocking fish in lakes where they cannot reproduce. E.g.  rainbows in granite. Just doesn't seem logical.

[ClearCreek]

Why is G&F stocking fish in lakes where they cannot reproduce. E.g.  rainbows in granite. Just doesn't seem logical.

What is illogical about stocking fish to provide angling opportunities???

HighBrew - you will have to explain that one!!

ClearCreek

[jopes]

Is there any info on the G&F website on what species and quantity is stocked in what lakes?

[Wyofarmer]

Is there any info on the G&F website on what species and quantity is stocked in what lakes?

All I did is go to the G&F office in lander and talk to one of the biologists. He gave me everything I wanted/needed on the lakes around here. Good luck!

[WGFDFishBioLaramie]

I am wondering about the possibility of lake trout in Walker Jenkins. From what I have read, the lake is very deep, and the water is fairly cold year round. Seems like it would be a perfect place for them. Also, I think I read years ago that there were kokes in it, are there still any?
Thanks,
307_BOWS

307_BOWS,

Thanks for your interest in Walker Jenkins, it is truly a unique fishery in the middle of the Shirley Basin. Kokanee were stocked in 1996 and 1997, due to the unproductive nature of this deep lake, there was a lack of zooplankton for the kokanee to feed on and they never did well so stocking was ceased and they are no longer present. Rainbow trout have been the predominant species stocked into Walker Jenkins and they are able to find enough food to grow to a decent size. We started stocking a slighlty larger sized trout in 2009 to see if we could get a larger max. length and cutthroat were stocked for the first time in 2011 to provide diversity. Walker Jenkins is a deep reservoir, but it currently lacks abundant numbers of other forage fish lake trout to where they would not key in on the stocked trout.

Thanks,

WGFDFishBioLaramie