Walleye bag limits revised on 255 northern lakes

Weekly News Article Published: May 19, 2009 by the Central Office

MADISON – Daily walleye bag limits will increase May 22 on 255 lakes in the Wisconsin Ceded Territory to reflect spring spearing harvest by six Wisconsin bands of Chippewa Indians.

A daily bag limit of one or two walleye will increase to two or three walleye per day on 92 lakes. In addition, 163 lakes will go from an initial bag limit of one or two walleyes per day to the state daily bag limit of five, according to Joe Hennessy, who coordinates the treaty fisheries management program for the Department of Natural Resources.

Anglers should consult the 2009-10 Guide to Wisconsin Hook and Line Fishing Regulations, signs at boat landings, and the 2009-2010 Revised Ceded Territory Walleye Bag Limits pamphlet for lake-specific information.

As part of a 1983 Federal Appellate Court decision affirming Chippewa off-reservation hunting, fishing, and gathering rights, the six bands of Wisconsin Chippewa set annual harvest quotas for off-reservation lakes in the Wisconsin Ceded Territory. To assure the combined tribal and recreational angler harvest does not exceed a sustainable level, the state sets recreational bag limits in lakes declared for harvest by the Chippewa bands.

An administrative rule passed by the state Natural Resources Board in 1998 allows the department to adjust initial bag limits annually to reflect actual spring spearing harvests and projected summer harvests.

Of the 258 lakes with bag limits less than five, 78 lakes will have a bag limit of two walleye per day, and 180 lakes will have a daily bag of three walleye per day. The six Chippewa tribes together declared a harvest of 53,706 walleye for 2009 and had harvested 32,198 as of May 15, 2009.

FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT: Joe Hennessy - (608) 267-9427