New regs proposed

[reelrusty]

  Well, just done lookin at proposed changes that affect my local area and one thumb up and one thumb down! Thumb up... Hawk Springs Reservoir now 6 lines for ice fishing Thumbs down  I will no longer be able to use the minnows I trap from the river @ Lingle in Glendo. I really don't ice fish Glendo anymore but I really like early catfishing where the river empties into the lake and save my biggest river chubs for this purpose. But, I guess they've identified Asian Clams in the drainages below Glendo and this is an effort to contain this. Hope it works! Hope everyone is havin a great open water season. See ya on MFF

[appleye]

You can use the minnows, they just have to be dead. I would salt em down and use em. I'll bet they catch just as many fish. The other way would be to make a salt ice water slurry and kill the minnows just before getting to the lake so they are fresh. Chunk bait is what I like to use, a fresh caught carp then in the water.

[jopes]

Can you still use state wide minnows?

[POk3s]

How crazy would it be if our "state wide minnows" THAT COME FROM ARKANSAS are the cause of this. I've been crying about that ever since I heard of it.

Thinking about it, I still can't believe that with all these minnow regulations that we get our state wide ones from Arkansas.

[ClearCreek]

How crazy would it be if our "state wide minnows" THAT COME FROM ARKANSAS are the cause of this. I've been crying about that ever since I heard of it.

Thinking about it, I still can't believe that with all these minnow regulations that we get our state wide ones from Arkansas.

The reason is quite simple:

The fathead minnows that come from Arkansas are cultured in a hatchery there.  Because they come from a hatchery and not wild caught they are pure fathead minnows, no hybrids, etc.   With  them being pure fathead minnows they can be used in any water in Wyoming where live minnows are legal to  use, hence they are referred to as "state wide minnows".    By allowing these pure fathead minnows to be used as bait minnows, there are several more waters where live bait minnows can now be used because there is much less risk of moving unwanted wild caught "minnows" into waters where they do not belong.

Moving wild caught minnows from one water to the next can cause huge problems and be very expensive for fish managers to try to "fix", if a fix is even possible.  A visit with fish managers in states to the east of Wyoming will inform a person of the cost of fish management actions (rotenone treatments) to rid lakes of unwanted fish that were used as bait "minnows" and dumped into the water at the end of the day. They have all kinds of horror stories they can tell.     

ClearCreek



 

[reelrusty]

So, If I were to use my dead minnows I've trapped in area 5 below Glendo in or just above Glendo, would freezing kill this Asian Clam that is the worry?

[appleye]

Yes freezing while kill it. Use kosher salt and it will work better.

[Kinkyline]

   Just curious as to what hatchery raised fatheads grow up to be. Why would anyone dump their unused bait into the lake anyway? Theses buggers are expensive if you get them from a bait shop. Salting them down is a great idea. Someone should start a minnow farm right here at home.

[reelrusty]

Wasn't there a minnow farm in Casper not too long ago? Bluebell if I remember right. Also had statewide minnows. Wonder what happened to make them non-viable?

[jopes]

I just hope F&G put a C&R only on sauger they planted in the platte river

[TiggerTamer]

I find it ironic that the state minnows are from Arkansas as it was Arkansas fathead loads which brought brook sticklebacks to Wyoming. Arkansas isn't very reliable in regards to unwanted exotics, think asian carp, fertile grass carp etc. the list goes on. Due to Wyoming's climate it is difficult to grow minnows to a size of interest to anglers in significant numbers. The only way it would work would be Wyoming Game and Fish to dedicate or build a hatchery for minnow production. Even then the baitfish would likely be very expensive.

[WGFDcasper]

I will try to address some of the questions above:

Yes, you can freeze your 5A minnows (or salt them) and use them at Glendo after January 1. 

hatchery fathead minnows grow up to be...fathead minnows.

There is a minnow farm in Casper - Bluebell.  Last I knew they were importing minnows from Arkansas for sale and are still trying to breed and raise fatheads in their indoor tanks.

We do not have a C&R only regulation on Sauger in the Platte  -  the Sauger limit is 2 (same as everywhere else).

Back in the day of unregulated importation, brook stickleback did come into the state with minnow loads (although as I recall it was mostly from South Dakota loads). 

but in the meantime...

Arkansas has instituted a baitfish certification program through their state department of Ag that is the most rigorous in the country.  It incorporates strict biosecurity protocols, and rigorous fish health testing for viruses and bacteria - things that can impact wild fish populations.  They also undergo testing for AIS species.  Certified hatcheries must use only well water and utilize captive brood stocks.  If they fail any of the testing, they lose certification until they test negative for 2 years.  Certification is expensive and not all AR hatcheries are certified.  At this point there is only one authorized Arkansas hatchery that ships to WY. 

[fish/hunt4ever]

Thanks for the reply it helps clarify some regulation's for me at least.

[wyoutdoors]

Thank you very much for the reply WGFDcasper! 

[reelrusty]

Ditto wyoutdoors  Very glad to see WGFD input in these conversations! I think it would be a great benefit to sportsmen and WGFD if we had someone who could chime in here more often. A position in the department much like whitetips (Daryl Bauer) fills for Nebraska. Thanks all! have a great and safe season and don't forget TAKE A KID FISHIN 

[POk3s]

It just always seemed risky to import in minnows from another state which has so many different species than we do! But this better helps me understand it! Thanks WGFD!

[TiggerTamer]

A large portion of the brook stickleback in Wyoming are from Arkansas courtesy of Jim Zastro from Thermopolis. He supplied Wyoming Game and Fishes fatheads that were stocked in Deaver Reservoir (that had sticklebacks mixed in) by Wyoming Game and Fish. Deaver became overrun with sticklebacks. He also supplied various baitshops in the surrounding areas and the baitshops that didn't check their deliveries sometimes sold fatheads with these invasives mixed in. I don't know anything about South Dakota's involvement but I'm sure they probably added to the problem.