Apr
               MAY
				Jun11
				Next capture2008
               2009
				2010**2 captures**
           8 May 09 - 11 May 09
   Close
       Help


Ashland NFWCO
 Midwest Region
 ***Dedicated To Tribal Aquaculture Programs***http://www.fws.gov/midwest/ashland/mtanhome.html      Fish Jumping          **March 2008 ~ Volume 63****Coordinator:                  Frank G. Stone                   (715-682-6185) Ext. 12                  U.S. Fish and                  Wildlife Service                Email: [email protected]**                **Edited                  By:                  Elizabeth W. Greiff                   (715-349-2195) Ext. 5141                  St. Croix Tribal Nat. Res. Depart.                Email:  [email protected]** Topics  Of Interest:  MTAN ArrowTribal Hatchery Programs of the Northern Great Lakes Region   buttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbutton      Theobjective of the Midwest Tribal Aquaculture Network (MTAN) is to provide current information that will help tribal aquaculture programs promote their specific resource needs. Often these needs will be equipment oriented, step-by-step procedural questions or perhaps just the need to contact another facility to ask how they would solve a particular problem. To any hatchery program, this kind of resource network could provide a much needed source of information and contacts to help solve their specific needs.        The information that follows is a list of the tribal fish hatchery programs in the Northern Great Lakes Region. The MTAN hopes you will use this resource to better understand the hatchery operations taking place in your area and to provide contact information to help solve any fish rearing questions you may have.      buttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbutton**TheBad River Tribal Hatchery**, (now dubbed the Raymond   “Snooty Couture” Fish Hatchery) has been in operation since 1968. Throughout   this time, the hatchery has concentrated its activity around the culture of   walleye fry and fingerlings for the purpose of supplementing existing natural   walleye reproduction within reservation waters. Hatchery operations and   renovations were vastly expanded from 1999-2003. In addition to walleye, the Bad   River Hatchery also raises yellow perch and lake sturgeon.  There has also been   a large increase in walleye fingerling and extended growth production as result   of recent improvements to the facilities.      During its first decade of operation, the Bad River Tribal Fish Hatchery   utilized "hand-me-down" equipment. During the past 11 years, a number of   significant improvements have been made to the facility that have increased its   reliability, improved working conditions for hatchery crew members and has   progressively increased walleye fry and fingerling production levels.  In   addition, the increase of hatchery capacities has enhanced the ability of the   tribe to culture yellow perch, white suckers and lake sturgeon.      The Bad River tribal fish hatchery possesses the capacity to incubate and   hatch 240 quarts of walleye and white sucker eggs. Surface water pumped from the   Kakagon River and groundwater from a 6" well provides the hatchery with an ample   supply of high quality water.    The hatchery also possesses 3.1 surface acres of pond space for walleye and   perch fingerling production. Surface water obtained from the Kakagon River has   provided a highly fertile environment for the production of zooplankton that are   a major food source for young walleye and perch. The Bad River tribal hatchery   produces 500,000 walleye fingerlings and produces an average of 12 million and   1.2 million walleye and perch fry annually. Future plans include rearing pond   expansion potentially doubling the fingerling and extended growth production of   walleye and perch.**TheKeweenaw Bay Tribal Hatchery** was established in October   1989. Initially housed in a small tribal storage building north of L'Anse,   Michigan, the hatchery quickly outgrew that building. It moved into it’s present   15 acre location on Pequaming Bay of Lake Superior in March 1993. The hatchery   expanded in 1997 to establish a native brook trout broodstock and brook trout   stocking program. The goal of Keweenaw Bay's hatchery is to rear native fish   (lake and brook trout) for stocking into Lake Superior and adjacent streams to   provide a self-sustaining fishery on the reservation and 1842 ceded waters. The   hatchery presently receives 900 gallons/minute from three deep water wells.   Production capacity is 100,000 lake trout yearlings (6" fish) and 25,000 brook   trout yearlings annually. The hatchery contains thirty-two Heath incubation   trays for the trout eggs and eleven- 1,500 gallon fiberglass tanks.      The Keweenaw Bay Indian Community has invested over $650,000 in   this facility to date, with over half of these funds stemming from gaming   profits, an indication of the tribe's commitment to this fishery. This   commitment involves not only re-stocking efforts, but tribal participation in   fishery assessments and cooperative work towards achieving a healthy fishery   habitat. To date, this facility has stocked over 680,000 yearling (5-9") lake   trout and 80,000 brook trout.      In 1995 and 1997, the Keweenaw Bay Indian Community signed a   Memorandum of Understanding with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to   temporarily utilize the Keweenaw Bay Tribal Hatchery as a lake and brook trout   isolation facility. The operational plan calls for the transfer of wild lake   trout and coaster brook trout eggs directly to this tribal facility. Once the   fish pass a two-year disease clearance period, they will be transferred (as   future broodstock) to other Federal/State hatcheries. If this broodstock   rejuvenation program works as planned, the Tribe and the Service may decide to   continue this program.    This project was of special importance to Ashland NFWCO because of the long   term commitment we have had in developing a broodstock management plan for wild   lake trout and brook trout in the Great Lakes. It was during the summer of 1990   that Frank Stone (Ashland NFWCO Fishery Biologist) first presented his idea of   seeking assistance from one of the tribal hatchery programs to help the Service   introduce wild lake trout gametes into the National Fish Hatchery system.**TheLac Vieux Desert Tribe** is a newcomer to the business of hatching fish. The  tribe started their fish hatchery program in 1992 using the space efficient Big  Redd incubators to house fertilized walleye eggs for hatching.  Today, in addition to the Big Redd incubators  the hatchery consists of a 20-unit Bell Jar system.  A recirculated/replenished well water system  is used during incubation.  Tribal staff,  occasionally assisted by biologists from the Great Lakes Indian Fish and  Wildlife Commission, has collected walleye eggs in the same period as the  tribe's annual spearing harvest. The eggs are fertilized shortly after the  females are milked and then transported to the hatchery's Big Redd and Bell Jar  units for incubation. Production capabilities are approximately 1.3 million  walleye eggs each year. Walleye fry are currently stocked in area lakes  surrounding the reservation that are not naturally reproducing walleye. LVD is  currently constructing two 1⁄2 acre rearing ponds to raise walleye fingerlings.**TheNunns Creek Fishery Enhancement Facility**, located near Hessel, Michigan, was purchased in 1987 by the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe on behalf of the Chippewa/Ottawa Treaty Fishery Management Authority, which also serves the Bay Mills Indian Community, Little Traverse Band of Odawa Indians, Little River Band of Ottawa Indians and the Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians. Concern for the preservation of a fishery under pressure from both sport and commercial efforts prompted tribal involvement on behalf of its treaty commercial fishermen.      The Nunns Creek facility has approximately 75 square feet of indoor rearing space and 1,200 square feet outdoors. In addition, four ponds totaling approximately 250 acres are used for walleye fingerling production. These ponds consist of an 8 and 15 acre pond used to culture fathead minnows in addition to a 200 acre pond used for both the culture of fathead minnows and subsequent extended walleye fingerling production. A newly purchased 40 acre drainable pond is used to culture summer walleye fingerlings.      This facility has the potential to produce approximately 1,000,000 two inch walleyes and 100,000 six to ten inch walleyes. These fish are stocked into all three of the upper Great Lakes in order to promote and enhance tribal commercial fishing in these areas.      Walleye eggs are typically collected in mid to late April mostly from Munuscong Lake of the St. Mary’s River system. Approximately 2-3 million eggs are collected. After about 30 days, hatching occurs and the fry are transported to rearing ponds about 30 miles away. In 2005 approximately 872,168 walleye fingerlings were stocked from this facility (772,510 two inch and 99,658 eight inch walleye). Nearly all of these fish were stocked into the 1836 treaty ceded waters of the Great Lakes.    The Michigan Department of Natural Resources annually stocks 250,000 chinook salmon above the facility at Nunns Creek. As the chinook salmon become sexually mature and return, they are guided up a fish ladder into a large raceway where biological data is recorded. The indoor circular tanks have been used to hold whitefish and adult sea lamprey for a cooperative tag/recapture study.**TheLeech Lake Tribal Fish   Hatchery** was first constructed in 1984 and expanded just two years   later in 1986. This 25,000 square foot indoor complex contains rearing tank   space in addition to an 80 jar egg incubation battery. Due to increasing   production needs, construction began on a 10 acre drainable pond complex in   1993. This state of the art hatchery facility has a total capacity of about   1,500 quarts of eggs and indoor rearing space for about 400,000 whitefish   fingerlings. Once the outdoor pond complex was completed, an additional 500,000   fingerling are were able to be reared. In addition, this program uses some of   the small natural lakes on the reservation, as well as some natural rearing   ponds on the White Earth Reservation, to cooperatively rear walleye fingerlings.            Annual fish production is 8 to 10 million walleye fry, 50,000 walleye   fingerlings, 400,000 lake whitefish fingerlings, and when the need arises,   trout, bass, cisco, and panfish are also produced. In addition, upwards of   20,000,000 white sucker eggs are collected annually. These eggs are incubated,   hatched and sold to bait growers who in turn rear and sell them as fishing bait.    All of the game fish are stocked back into lakes and streams on the   reservation for tribal subsistence harvest as well as tribal and non-tribal   recreational fishing. Whitefish support a tribal commercial fishery and other   nongame fish species are also commercially harvested by tribal members. A   commercial bait harvest industry, regulated by the Leech Lake Band of Ojibwe   also exists.**TheWhite Earth Hatchery** fishery program has been in production since   1982. The facility is located south of Ice Cracking Lake in Minnesota and is   operated for the benefit of the White Earth Reservation Ojibwe people.   Reservation lakes have been the target of the hatchery's stocking program since   its inception. In 2003, a record 255,086 walleye fingerlings were stocked in 29   lakes.       Muskellunge are stocked to provide a trophy fisheries in one lake   and Lake Sturgeon are stocked in two lakes, as a multi agencies cooperative   effort to restore this culturally significant species to the Red River   Watershed. Also, Black Crappie have been stocked to restore some pan fish   populations due to winterkill loss.      Like other tribal hatcheries, the facility has continued to improve and   expand over the years. Expansion included the construction of four - 1⁄2 acre   rearing ponds capable of producing 140,000 walleye fingerlings per year, a   settling pond, a lake pumping station, and a well head filtration protection   unit. In addition, the hatchery has improved both site security and site   maintenance. The fishery program also operates 10-15 natural ponds for an   additional 70,000 walleye fingerlings per year.      In addition, new technologies that are being applied to walleye and other   cool/coldwater species culture will soon be implemented. The current goal is to   stabilize production at approximately 50,000 fingerlings per year throughout the   fish hatchery's rearing pond complex and natural ponds.    The tribe is actively managing seventy four lakes. Current fishery management   operations include electrofishing lakes to help determine the level of natural   reproduction, lake population assessments, winterkill and stocking assessments,   and creel census.**TheLac Courte Oreilles  Fish Hatchery** officially went into  production in the spring of 1992 when construction on a hatchery facility first  began. However, prior to the new hatchery, the tribe's natural resources  department reared walleye and musky using leased incubators and natural ponds.  While the facility is new, the interest and effort towards replenishing the  fishery is not.       The Lac Courte Oreilles  hatchery houses egg incubation systems and three, clay-lined ponds,  approximately one acre in size each.  The  facility has the capability of incubating approximately 7,000,000 eggs in an  egg battery with McDonald-type hatching jars.    Production of extended growth  walleyes (6-8”) has been the focus of the hatchery in recent years.  The capacity of the rearing ponds is about 10,000  of these larger fish. In 2005, the LCO Fish Hatchery had a record year.  Utilizing all available pond space (including  several outlying rearing ponds) LCO was able to stock 24,270 extended growth  walleye into reservation area lakes.   Yellow perch, white suckers, and muskellunge have also been produced at  the facility.  Upon completion of a new  indoor production building, lake sturgeon may also be raised.**TheLac du Flambeau Tribal Fish Hatchery** was established in 1936 as a   walleye, muskellunge, and white sucker egg/fry production facility. Through the   years the hatchery has expanded into a comprehensive fish culture program which   utilizes intensive and extensive fish culture techniques to raise fry and   fingerlings. Species of fish raised include walleye, muskellunge, white suckers,   fathead minnows, brown trout, brook trout, rainbow trout, cisco, and on   occasion, largemouth bass and smallmouth bass.         The fish culture facility includes a 315 McDonald jar   hatchery, three walleye and muskellunge fry tanks, a start tank facility which   includes six Heath incubators, six aluminum fry troughs, six 3'x 3'x 15' start   tanks, ten 200' x 6' x 4' outside concrete race-ways, and twenty 1⁄4 acre to acre   earthen ponds. The walleye, muskellunge, fathead minnows and bass are raised in   the earthen ponds to fingerling sizes, while the trout are raised in the raceway   facilities.       The majority of the   fish are raised to stock the reservation's 158 lakes and 34 miles of creeks,   rivers and streams. The rainbow trout are produced for sale. Revenues generated   are utilized to support the tribal Natural Resources Department.    From 1960 to 1995, the Lac du Flambeau Fish Culture Program has produced over   492 million walleye fry, 5.6 million walleye fingerlings, 2.2 million   muskellunge fry, 107,000 muskellunge fingerlings, 306,867 largemouth bass,   49,000 smallmouth bass fingerlings, 140,663 brown trout fingerlings, and 71,105   brook trout fingerlings. Approximately 343,812 pounds of rainbow trout were also   produced. The stocking program benefits tribal as well as state-licensed anglers   who fish the reservation lakes.**TheMenominee Tribe** initiated its hatchery program in 1992 focusing on   the rearing of walleye fry to fingerling. The hatchery received walleye fry from   the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) in 1992. These fry were reared in a   natural rearing pond and stocked into four reservation lakes. The success of the   rearing/stocking project spurred the tribe to further development.     In 1993 the tribe's conservation department has   been constructing four, one acre earthen ponds to replace the natural lake pond   and increase the rearing capacity. Each of the ponds will have the capacity of   rearing 100,000 fry to fingerling size. About five acres of land was procured   for the project and landscaped for the installation of four pond catch basins   and a well. The tribe is also considering branching into in-stream incubation of   rainbow trout eggs for on-reservation streams.**TheSokaogon Chippewa** fish hatchery project started in 1990 when one Big   Redd incubation unit was obtained from the Great Lakes Indian Fish and Wildlife   Commission. With that unit the tribe began an initiative to reproduce and stock   walleye and has continued to grow as the tribe seeks to expand the hatchery's   capacity and improve the facility.       In 1992 with the addition of three Big Redd units, a total of 902,000   walleye fry were hatched. Fifty thousand of those fry were donated to the Forest   County Walleye Association. Remaining fry were released into area lakes speared   by the Sokaogon Chippewa.     In 1993,   three million walleye eggs were collected from speared walleye in six lakes with   a resulting hatch of approximately two million walleye fry. The current hatchery   is presently under re-construction. The Sokaogon Chippewa look forward to a more   successful rearing seasons once the new hatchery facility is completed.**TheRed Cliff**Tribal****Fish Hatchery was established in 1994, as a   trout and walleye rearing facility, after many years of rearing fish in "small   temporary hatcheries". Through the years the hatchery has increased in size and   production into a comprehensive fish culture program which rears brook trout,   walleyes, and lake sturgeon. The 40’ x 100’ main building houses the Natural   Resources and Fish Hatchery Management offices, and the intensive coldwater   production area which includes: an incubation area, fry tanks, wet lab,   furnace/pump control room, and twenty fiberglass raceways for fingerling   production. Coldwater (45 degree F) is supplied from two 300’ wells with 50hp   submersible pumps capable of up to 1200 gallons per minute.      Red Cliff has developed a Lake Superior coaster brook trout broodstock (Lake   Nipigon strain) consisting of three year classes of actively spawning fish. This   is the only known broodstock for this strain of brook trout that is available in   the U.S. The broodstock is producing up to a million production and broodstock   eggs a year. Eggs and fish from the hatchery are used to stock Lake Superior by   the Red Cliff Tribe as well as many other state, tribal, and private agencies.   The 45’ x 100’ broodstock area consists of six large concrete raceways, a water   quality lab, and an information center.      Red Cliff is actively involved in raising walleyes throughout the summer in   outdoor drainable ponds. Eggs and milt are collected from tribally speared fish   in the spring. The fertilized eggs are transported to the 35’ x 54’ coolwater   production area for incubation in bell jars. The coolwater production area   consists of a bell jar incubation battery, several fiberglass rearing tanks,   brine shrimp incubation units, a 400 gallon recirculation system, feed area, and   small shop room. After hatching, the walleye are placed into three outside   drainable rearing ponds or into several different cooperators ponds for   additional rearing. Extended growth walleyes (6-10 inches) are removed from the   ponds in the fall, finclipped, and released back to the lakes were the eggs were   originally collected.      For the past several years, Red Cliff has been raising Lake Superior Lake   Sturgeon in a cooperative effort with the Bad River Tribe and the U.S. Fish and   Wildlife Service. Sturgeon eggs are collected from adult sturgeon and brought   back to the hatchery were they are incubated and hatched in the coolwater area.   Sturgeon fry are fed a mixture of plankton and live brine shrimp until they are   approximately two inches long. They are then converted over fresh frozen brine   shrimp and bloodworms. The sturgeon are reared until they are about six inches   long, microtagged, and released back into the Bad River for   restoration/supplementation efforts.    The hatchery has been working on a fish/wetland pond complex behind the   broodstock area for the two years. The complex design is based on the idea of   using a wetland to treat the hatchery broodstock effluent water before it enters   Red Cliff Creek. Effluent treatment of phosphorous and nitrates is a major   concern with many fish rearing facilities. The front portion of the pond complex   will also serve as a fee fishing pond for excess brook trout with the funds   generated going back into the program. This wetland treatment of fish effluent   treatment is a fairly new idea and has generated national attention.**TheSt. Croix** **Tribes** walleye management program is an  integral part of the tribe’s cooperative work to maintain Wisconsin’s fishery for future generations.  The tribe began stocking in 1980, first buying their fingerlings from other  tribes. In 1987, St. Croix signed a  cooperative rearing agreement with the Wisconsin Department of Natural  Resources. With the DNR supplying fry and technical assistance, the tribe  leased farm ponds to raise the fish.      In 1989, the tribe hired a  biologist to lead the project. Today the tribe employs four full-time and two  part-time fisheries specialists in its Natural Resources Department and has  invested over $250,000 in hatchery equipment and facilities. St.   Croix began collecting and incubating walleye eggs in 1990.  Fisheries staff collect eggs in the spring from adult walleye netted in area  lakes. The eggs hatch in three to four weeks in the Tribe’s custom incubators.  Staff transport the fry to rented ponds used to grow the walleye to fingerling  size. Harvest crews begin netting the fish from the ponds about six weeks  later.  All walleye are stocked in public  lakes in Barron, Burnett, Douglas, Polk, and Washburn Counties.  As of 2007, St. Croix  has stocked 3.4million  walleye fingerlings, 5.6million walleye fry, and 20,762 walleye yearlings into  36 lakes.          The St. Croix Natural Resources Department  continues to work cooperatively with tribal, state and federal agencies as well  as local community organizations to assess the needs for fishery enhancement  and to meet those needs through fish production and stocking.  **Return          to MTAN selection pageReturn to Ashland NFWCO home pageReturn to Region 3 U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service**  Product and company          names mentioned in this publication are for informational purposes only.          It does not imply endorsement by the MTAN or the U.S. Government.
 
 Ashland Home Midwest Region Home
 U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Home Page Department of the Interior USA.gov About the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Accessibility Privacy Notices Disclaimer FOIA
 Find Office By ProgramAdministrationEcological ServicesExternal AffairsFisheriesLaw EnforcementMigratory BirdsRefugesState Programs