State of Eastern Finger Lakes Meetings

[vogel451]

Any discussion on the topic of smelt on Cayuga?  Im not sure what they could do beside close the season...

[flyrod2]

Lil Jake did a good job describing lamprey issue. They mis-calculated the juvenile population prior to the 2011 flood which in turn led them to believe that the numbers in lake would not be bad. We now know they were bad, but yes that 2007 age class will decline next year. Bottom line, as long as they control the issue in the inlet, they should solve the issue of the 2011 crew. Very little reproduction of lamprey in the lake.

 

On the walleye, what we are seeing and I have caught in fall creek is a particular year class that was put in without permission. Any other haphazard catch come from a now abundant population in the Seneca river that get into the lake on occasion. There is no reproduction in Fall creek by those that do come up in the Spring.

 

Other major topic at both meeting was on walleye in Owasco. DEC has made it clear that they will continue to make it a brown/rainbow fishery or  go to a walleye fishery, not both. If it becomes a walleye lake they will discontinue stocking browns and rainbows. Survey coming out in future. Survey will only be a piece of the picture and will not dictate in whole what they will do. Please give them your opinion if you have one.

 

I have the PP presentation as a whole as well as a smaller version with each lake separate. I can try to put them on this sight if people want to see them or PM me.

 

Hydrilla is mostly under control. Main issue is funding and they wanted to take money from fish/wildife. As we all know the issue is in the inlet. Many of the boats that go through there as well as the Treman launch are the big pleasure boat that come from anywhere USA. Far more than fishing boats. That was reflected in a response to the State.

 

Sturgeon are doing well in the Lake.

 

Water level is a canal corp thing with too much input from power plants(my opinion) troughout the river.

sorry for long winded reply.

 

 

[Sk8man]

Thanks again Flyrod2 ...for the report and your efforts.

[vogel451]

QUOTE

On the walleye, what we are seeing and I have caught in fall creek is a particular year class that was put in without permission. Any other haphazard catch come from a now abundant population in the Seneca river that get into the lake on occasion. There is no reproduction in Fall creek by those that do come up in the Spring.

 

Could you please explain to me how you came up with this answer?  Ive caught 13lb hens that were about ready to pop!

Edited March 22, 2013 by vogel451

[hermit]

I'm guessing the same reason the LL don't reproduce, stream conditions aren't right.  It gets very low and warm by summer.  Has anyone seen a small walleye in Cayuga?  The only ones I've seen or heard about were big and those have been in there a while, the "unauthorized stocking" reason is the same too.  Either the same fish or someone did it again. (Also the season is closed during the time period we're talking about for anyone getting too excited.)

Edited March 22, 2013 by hermit

[flyrod2]

correct Hermit!

Fish will always produces eggs. This does not mean they will produce viable offspring. Owasco is a perfect example. In the day you could see a steam load of walleye in Dutch Hollow Creek. There was no viable reproduction.(hence why stocking is the only alternative) Again those in the 9 to 13lb range are from a couple years of stocking that was not reported or simply came in from canal. Hermit is correct that there are poor conditions, thiamine deficiencies from eat alwives and so on so the salmonids do not reproduce either. This is why Skaneateles has a natural Lake trout population. No Alwives so they eat perch and their spawn habitat is ideal. Ther are many interesting fish reproduction abstracts out there if interested in the answers.

[Bigfoot]

We think of alewives as baitfish, but alewives think of walleye fry as baitfish. Walleye fry don't have a snowballs chance in you know where of surviving in a deep water lake like Owasco or Cayuga. So even if the few walleye in Cayuga were able to reproduce, it would be extremely unlikely that any of their offspring would grow to maturity.

History tells us that the introduction of the alewife into Owasco lead to elimination of the walleye population.

[BSmaster]

All of these are good explanations of why there is no reproduction.  Please explain to me why I catch LL Par/juvies in the streams?  Are they put there by man?  I have not looked into the reproduction of walleye so I do not know, but the reasoning in Conesus is that the alewives return the favor. 

 

I always like to ask an old timer as well as a highly educated fisheries expert and then formulate my own ideas.  You can learn so much from both of them but both make assumptions that I do not always agree with.

 

Was there a time table set for the Owasco fishery going all warm or all cold?

 

Thank you to all that went.  I could not make it and I really appreciate that some made the effort.