Billy Vue - DNR Intern and First Generation Student - files
←
→
Page content transcription
If your browser does not render page correctly, please read the page content below
Billy Vue - DNR Intern and First Generation Student
My name is Billy Vue and I am a summer to hobbies. This is now widely seen surveys consist of pulling a 50 ft seine
intern at the Minnesota DNR in Water- within my generation and those after. and backpack shocking the shore. Doing
ville. As a first-generation Hmong stu- Common experiences that Hmong fam- so allowed us to scoop up the smaller
dent, I am often reminded of my history ilies can relate to are fishing trips with fishes to identify, count and record. The
of migration, genocide, and assimilation. their families or even riding a bike to lake survey work consisted of placing
The Hmong people are a small ethnic the lake nearby to catch panfish. In my trap nets along the shore and setting gill
group that originated from Southeast fishing experiences, I have found it to be nets in deeper water. This type of survey
Asia with no designated country. I have one of the most enjoyable hobbies that would offer us the ability to take struc-
felt a great amount of pressure as a first have strong connections to my heritage. tures and length from the fish caught.
generation student to uphold my culture Nonetheless, I would like to continue Structures taken from fish include
on top of paving paths in a new land, a expanding this hobby into my future scales, otilith, cleithrum, and clipped
common experience many others face education and work. dorsal fins. Later on, these structures
as well. Being allowed to represent and DNR Experience will be used to read and tell the age of
work in my role as the fisheries intern individual fish.
for the Minnesota DNR has allowed me Throughout my time with the DNR,
to gain an array of experience and skills some of the things that I performed Giving Back
that alleviate pressures I experience. were identifying fish species for Index As my internship nears its end, I’ve
With my heritage and time at the Min- taken some time to reflect on the many
nesota DNR, I have had the opportunity experiences that I have encountered
to find ways to bridge these two parts this summer. This internship has solidi-
of my life. In addition to my position as fied my considerations of working with
an intern with the MNDNR, I am also the MN DNR in the future. The work
a student who currently attends the Uni- that I performed this summer is some-
versity of Wisconsin River-Falls. In the thing that I want to continue doing in
future, I plan to use the education, skills my career. I enjoy working with fish and
and experiences that I have gained to learning more about the different spe-
apply them in a Minnesota DNR fish and cies and habitats there are in the lakes
wildlife position. of Minnesota. I also believe that work-
ing with the DNR in the future will allow
Community Roots me, as a person of color, to give back
My passion for fishing began within to my community and fellow anglers in
my Hmong community. Fishing in the various ways. This would open doors for
Hmong community can be rooted back other ethnic people to learn more about
to Laos, where we lived a hunters and the DNR itself and to see where and
gatherers lifestyle. The main sources of how their contributions might fit into
DNR Intern Billy Vue.
income for Hmong people were either continuing to keep Minnesota’s fishing
farming or hunting. Therefore, these opportunity as some of the best in the
were embedded into our livelihood out- of Biotic Integrity surveys, conduct- country.
side of making income as well. Through ing lake surveys, boat electrofishing,
hatchery work, caring for fish. The IBI -Billy Vue, fisheries intern 2021
generations, our means of living shifted
Freeborn Lake - Shallow Lake Success Story
Freeborn Lake is a 2,222-acre lake lo- Unrealized potential not reaching its potential as a natural
cated south of the city of Freeborn and The fish population within Freeborn resource destination.
near the headwaters to the Cobb River Lake also suffered due to the poor Opportunity seized
watershed. Freeborn Lake has about habitat conditions. The predominate Efforts were made several times since
16 miles of shoreline that support a fish species have been Common Carp, the 1960s to designate Freeborn Lake
mixture of residential areas, agriculture, Black Bullhead, Fathead Minnow, for wildlife management, which by state
park and conservation lands, forests, Green Sunfish, and Yellow Perch. There law would enable draw downs, reclama-
wetlands, public right-of-way, and a were occasionally years where Yellow tions, and other forms of management
golf course. There are a total of three Perch angling was good, usually follow- to improve habitat conditions; however,
public accesses on the lake including ing winterkill or drought events that designation efforts were not successful.
the City of Freeborn pier on the north ‘reset’ the lake and resulted in short By 2015/2016 the dam at the outlet
shoreline, Arrowhead County Park on term habitat improvements. The DNR owned by Freeborn County was failing
the east shoreline, and a primitive DNR attempted stocking the lake for years to and needed replacement at a high cost
State Water Access on the southeast establish Walleye and Northern Pike to to local tax payers. This proved to be an
shoreline. Although Freeborn Lake is offer anglers opportunities and provide opportunity to leverage monies within
relatively large in area it is shallow with some ‘top-down’ control of rough fish, the Outdoor Heritage Fund (which was
a maximum depth of only 7.0 feet, and but these stockings were largely un- funded by a tax approved by Minne-
an average depth of just 3.5 sotans that partially goes
feet. toward protecting, restoring,
Management Issues and enhancing aquatic hab-
The shallow nature of itats throughout the state)
Freeborn Lake has creat- and to build public consent
ed a challenging situation in support of a lake reha-
to manage from a natural bilitation to improve water
resources perspective. A quality.
positive is that the watershed In 2017 after nearly 2 years
is relatively small for such of public input meetings and
a large lake with about 3.5 planning, a lake water level
acres of watershed for every drawdown was initiated
acre of lake. Lakes with a that extended into spring
small watershed to lake ratio 2019. During this time a
often can overcome some of high velocity fish culvert
the challenges of an altered was installed downstream
watershed. Yet, shallow of Freeborn Lake. The high
lakes are extra sensitive to velocity fish culvert serves as
pollution. Extensive nutrient Clear water and emergent vegetation at Freeborn Lake in a fish barrier, preventing rough
July 2021.
loading over the years has led to fish from migrating from the
those nutrients being trapped Cobb River back into Freeborn
successful. Periodic partial winterkills,
in the lake sediments and continuously Lake. In addition, a new variable crest
which most often eliminated game fish
mixed and re-suspended by rough fish, sheet pile outlet structure was installed.
while leaving a void for rough fish to
wind, and waves in the expansive and This new outlet structure differed from
proliferate, resulted in the absence of
open shallow waters. The situation was the previous fixed crest dam in that
any ‘teeth’ in the system to keep rough
made worse by the dam which allowed the runout elevation could be varied
fish in check. This exasperated the poor
Common Carp access to the lake, but to allow draw-downs of the lake when
habitat conditions, and the cycle con-
acted as a barrier to fish such as North- needed to better manage for improved
tinued. The poor water quality and lack
ern Pike. The end result was highly habitat conditions. Freeborn Lake was
of substantial aquatic vegetation also
degraded lake habitat conditions. Free- refilled beginning in spring 2019, and
suppressed the potential of Freeborn
born Lake was trapped in a ‘turbid state’ the initial rehabilitation was completed.
Lake to support ducks, geese, musk-
dominated by algal blooms, very poor - Freeborn Lake Continued on page 3
rats, and wildlife viewing. Like angling,
water quality, and with sparse aquatic
hunting/trapping and non-consumptive
vegetation that could naturally offset
opportunities suffered and the lake was
such conditions.
- Freeborn Lake continued from page 2 looking into waters that are crystal clear. put the tools in place to more proactive-
However, that was precisely the state of ly manage the lake for improved habitat
Fish Stocking Freeborn Lake in summer 2021. conditions long term. The ultimate goal
The lake was stocked with Northern is one of achieving a ‘clear water
Pike fry in the spring of 2018, 2019, state’ more-often-then-not rather
and again in 2021. In addition, Yel- than having persistent poor habitat
low Perch adults were stocked into conditions. The DNR and its part-
Freeborn Lake in 2019 and allowed ners will continue to work toward
to naturally re-populate. The goal of making Freeborn Lake the natural
fish management is to stock species resource destination it deserves to
tolerant of winterkill, which is the be!
case for Northern Pike and Yellow
Perch both of which are naturally Collaboration
adapted to shallow lake conditions. The Freeborn Lake rehabilitation
The goal also is to keep rough fish project is a cooperative venture
out of the lake. Test netting in with Freeborn County, Ducks
spring 2021 indicated Northern Unlimited, the Minnesota Depart-
Pike and Yellow Perch stockings ment of Natural Resources, and
were successful. Freeborn Lake many dedicated residents and
should offer anglers a great oppor- interested folks from the area that
tunity with a strong population of showed up to countless meet-
Northern Pike 24+ inches and some ings and provided input. These
‘jumbo’ Yellow Perch present in the unnamed people deserve a lot of
lake. Fish management is critical to credit in building support of this
support improved habitat conditions project. It was through these car-
in Freeborn Lake. ing people that Freeborn Lake has
been offered new hope for a better
Current conditions future. This project was made
The current habitat conditions in Northern Pike and Yellow Perch sampled at possible by Minnesota’s Outdoor
Freeborn Lake have demonstrated Freeborn Lake in May 2021. Heritage Fund, Freeborn County
a new found resilience to the poor Aquatic Invasive Species funds and
habitat conditions that were present a grant recommended by the North
prior to the rehabilitation. Based on Future American Wetlands Council.
the photos from July 2021, the goal of So, you might ask, what is the outlook of Freeborn County continues to own the
improved habitat conditions is currently Freeborn Lake, what should we expect dam and fish barrier road culvert. The
being achieved as Freeborn Lake has the moving forward? The reality is main- MNDNR will be responsible for execut-
appearance of an Oasis of good water taining such a large and shallow lake ing the lake aquatic habitat, wildlife, and
quality and great habitat value! It is not that still contains a great deal of nutrient fisheries management plan with input
often in southern Minnesota that you enriched sediments in a clear water from a citizens advisory group.
can visit a large shallow lake and feel like state indefinitely is not likely. Rather,
you are on the shorelines of an undevel- the rehabilitation and infrastructure -Craig Soupir, area supervisor
oped northern Minnesota pristine lake, improvements on Freeborn Lake have
Public Meetings Lake Washington: September 30th
from 7pm to 8pm at the Waterville
If you are unable to attend you
can still comment online https://
Waterville Fisheries staff will hold three Area Office 50317 Fish Hatchery Road, www.dnr.state.mn.us/fish/sun-
seperate public input meetings regard- Waterville MN. fish/index.html or by emailing:
ing proposed sunfish regulations at waterville.fisheries@state.mn.us
Lake Washington, Madison Lake, and Madison Lake: October 4th from 7pm
Shields Lake. Meetings will be open- to 8pm at Bray Park picnic shelter
house style with no formal presenta- 22214 Oriole Road Madison Lake MN.
tion.
Shields Lake: October 14th from 6pm
Members of the public are invited to to 7pm at Faribault Community Center
attend and learn more about the pro- Peterson Room 15 West Division Street
posed regulations and give their input. Faribault MN.
What did you catch?
Whether or not it has something to do pie shaped
with auto correct, fisheries managers - do not grow nearly as large (5lbs)
seem to get many inquires about strip- - stripes not as pronounced
pers. These are certainly not our special- - only one stripe typically makes it to
ty. Stripers - as in Striped Bass - however the tail
are more in our wheelhouse. In Minne- - spines on the anal fin are different
sota we do not have "Stripers" but we lengths Striped Bass NOT caught in southern
do have White Bass and we also have MN.
some Yellow Bass working their way Yellow Bass are found in parts of south-
north. I will help you to discern which ern Minnesota. Yellow Bass are smaller
species you are catching in this article. than White Bass. Typically, they can
To start, Striped Bass are a native ocean grow to about 2 pounds. Often times
fish that swim upstream in rivers to when encountered in southern Minne-
spawn, similar to Salmon. Stripers can sota they are similar in size to crappies
live their entire lives in freshwater and Bluegills. When Identifying Yellow
however and many states stock them in Bass look for stripes that are broken or
reservoirs. Striped Bass are an amazing segmented above the anal fin. Also they
sportfish as they grow large (70lbs) and usually have more of a yellow hue than
put up a good fight. White Bass. The two longest spines on
Distinguishing features of Yellow Bass the anal fin of a Yellow Bass are about
Let’s talk a little about identification. (top) and White Bass (bottom). Courte- the same length as each other.
Striped Bass: sy of Indiana DNR.
Remember, it is illegal to move fish or
- longer than it is deep (torpedo) Many people like to target White Bass eggs from one body of water to anoth-
- distinct stripes that go to the tail as they like to school up and will readily er - help stop the spread of invasive
- two tooth patches on toungue take a lure. Once the fish is on the angler species.
White Bass: is in for quite a battle. These fish are also -Tyler Fellows, fisheries specialist
very good table fair.
- larger height to length ratio, think crap-
Hello, my name is...
In this feature, I will introduce you to a inch range. At first glance, you might that set up downstream of the action
Waterville Area nongame fish species think it looks like a dirty version of the and pick off goodies that drift their way.
that you have likely never heard of. closely related White Sucker you can The Northern Hogsucker is common
Although they may not end up in your buy for pike fishing. Look closer and throughout the Waterville Area in our
livewell or mounted on the you will notice the large many large streams and small rivers.
wall these species deserve concave head, protruding Their preferred habitat is near swiftly
some attention for the lips, and oversized pectoral moving riffles with sand and gravel
important roles they play fins that set the Northern substrates and for this reason, they are
in our local stream and lake Hogsucker apart. Viewed a good indicator of stream health. You
ecosystems. You will not from above, the brown sad- won’t find them in streams degraded by
hear the term “rough fish” dles help camouflage the heavy siltation and/or channelization.
around here! fish while moving through
shallow water where it Like most sucker species, they spawn
So, without further ado, in late spring and the young provide an
please say hello to the feeds on prey it uncovers
using its armored head and excellent prey for stream predators like
Northern Hogsucker. I know Walleye and Smallmouth Bass. If you’re
what you are thinking and powerful lips.
interested in seeing one in person, con-
no, that is not a nickname! Much like the terrestrial sider targeting small fish with a seine or
A moderately sized member animal it is named after, dipnet or angling for larger adults with
of the sucker family, the the Northern Hogsucker a well-placed worm.
Northern Hogsucker
Northern Hogsucker grows is a messy eater. In fact,
to maximum length of around 19 inches the action often attracts other fish like -Sky Wigen, fisheries specialist
with most adults falling into the 10-13 Common Shiners or Smallmouth Bass
WATERVILLE AREA FISHERIES (507) 497-1820
50317 Fish Hatchery Road Waterville, MN 56096
You can also read
