Workshops Address Status of Lake Huron Fishery

Sport anglers, charter captains and resource managers were among nearly 400 people who met throughout April to discuss the status and future of Lake Huron’s fishery.

Stakeholders shared information during a series of workshops conducted by Michigan Sea Grant in cooperation with the Michigan State University Extension, the Michigan Department of Natural Resources (DNR), and various fishery stakeholder groups.The workshops provided an opportunity for in-depth analysis of some of the major fisheries and food web concerns in Lake Huron.

“The Lake Huron fishery has undergone marked changes in recent years,” said Dave Borgeson, Northern Lake Huron unit supervisor for the DNR’s Fisheries Division. “The invasion of exotic aquatic species and the near absence of the Chinook salmon’s preferred prey, the alewife, have greatly altered the lake’s food web. These workshops and meetings give all stakeholders a chance to sit down and discuss these changes and the future of the lake’s fishery.”

Alewife Decline Affects Chinook

According to DNR data, Chinook salmon have been naturally reproducing in increasing numbers in Lake Huron, with fish of wild origin now greatly outnumbering Chinook of hatchery origin. Some Chinook caught, however, are reported to be in poor condition, likely the result of lack of food.

Alewife, the primary food for Chinook, have significantly declined, according to data from researchers at the USGS Great Lakes Science Center. This rapid decline in alewife has been attributed primarily to over-predation by salmon, as well as poor survival of young alewife during consecutive cold winters.

Additionally, the aquatic organism diporeia, at the base of the food web, continues to decline in Lake Huron, according to the NOAA Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory, likely due to competitive interactions with invasive zebra mussels and quagga mussels.

Conditions Favorable for Some Native Species

In contrast, favorable spring spawning climate conditions and the near absence of alewife have contributed to increased natural reproduction of yellow perch and walleye in Saginaw Bay. Lake trout have also exhibited small steps toward rehabilitation in Lake Huron, with a few naturally produced young lake trout being sampled throughout the Lake for the first time in more than 20 years.

“It’s important that stakeholders are aware of these fishery changes that are occurring in Lake Huron and have an opportunity to engage in discussion about these changes with researchers and managers,” says Michigan Sea Grant extension educator Brandon Schroeder, who facilitated the workshops.

The workshops were held in Bad Axe, Oscoda, Port Huron, Alpena and Cheboygan. Results will be provided to the DNR Fisheries Division, Lake Huron Citizens’ Advisory Committee and other partners.

Contact: Brandon Schroeder, (989) 984-1056
See: www.miseagrant.umich.edu/fisheries

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