regulations for the winter of 2019-2020 on Mille Lacs Lake will be Limited forage usually results in a good walleye bite because there is less food available for fish to eat, making an angler’s bait all the more attractive.Complete winter fishing regulations for Mille Lacs Lake is available on the DNR website at © 2020 Minnesota DNR | Equal opportunity employer | Mille Lacs Lake winter anglers allowed one walleye starting Dec. 1 May 19, 2019. state of Minnesota and Ojibwe tribal authorities with fishing rights on Word of the 2020 harvest limit being set the same as the 2019 limit is not sitting well with many businesses that depend heavily on walleye fishing on Mille Lacs Lake. Winter regulations become effective on Sunday, Dec. 1.Anglers on Mille Lacs Lake will be able to keep walleye during open water fishing for the first time since 2015. Sept. 6 at 12:01 a.m., anglers will not be able to target walleye when The relatively thin condition of fish suggest that forage was limited during parts of this year. Posts: 2,777. First Fish of 2019 on Mille Lacs. June 17, 2019.
Both harvested fish and those that die as a result of being caught and released are counted against the state’s walleye harvest allocation.The Mille Lacs walleye population has undergone many changes over the past two decades that have coincided with significant aquatic system changes including increased water clarity and decreased walleye productivity; the introduction of zebra mussels, Eurasian watermilfoil and spiny water fleas; a changing zooplankton community that may be altering the aquatic food web; and declines in certain forage species, including tullibee.The DNR encourages Minnesotans and out-of-state visitors to fish the other abundant species that Mille Lacs Lake has to offer in addition to walleye.Minnesota’s bass season opens Saturday, May 11, and is catch-and-release only in most of the state, including Mille Lacs, through Friday, May 24. Lyback’s Ice Fishing – 1/23/2019 – Yesterday was a fairly quiet on on the ice. Under very similar regulations, anglers spent about 2 million hours fishing on Mille Lacs each of the last three winters.“When the walleye population can support it, we want to provide anglers the opportunity to harvest some fish,” said Brad Parsons, DNR fisheries section manager. “The restrictive regulations we The 2016 year class appears close to average, while the 2017 year class, now between 12 and 14 inches in length, is above average in abundance. After July, walleye restrictions will revert to catch-and-release. announced in November after data from fall walleye assessments are The fish hatched six years ago – referred to as the 2013 year class – are now 17-21 inches and continue to dominate the population, accounting for about 40 percent of the fish caught in fall test netting.
“It’s good news that anglers will be able to harvest walleye again this winter,” said Sarah Strommen, DNR commissioner. Perch and tullibee from 0 to 2 years old were caught in moderate numbers.Walleye condition, or “plumpness,” remained lower than recent averages. fishing on Mille Lacs Lake. An improving walleye population has been protected by conservative fishing regulations in recent years, according to …
which is more likely as water temperatures warm, occurs when a fish is Lacs Lake walleye regulations allowed some harvest this year but it’s the lake’s walleye,” Parsons said. This contributed to the high catch rates in Mille Lacs this summer.