Muskies to be Stocked in Pelican Lake after Judge Rejects Temporary Restraining Order

MuskyManiac

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Muskies were released Friday in Minnesota's Pelican Lake, despite efforts by some lake residents to stop the stocking.

Otter Tail County District Judge Waldemar Senyk rejected a temporary restraining order by the Pelican Lake Property Owners Association seeking to block the stocking, so 813 muskie fingerlings were placed in the lake Friday, said Jim Wolters, area fisheries supervisor for the state Department of Natural Resources.


"It's great to see the state recognize the scientific and physical efforts made by the DNR by dismissing the stocking injunction brought by the Pelican Lake Property Owners Association," said Pelican Lake muskie guide Jerry Sondag. "Today's (Friday's) stocking was a huge win for Minnesota fisheries."
The association filed a lawsuit in October alleging the stocking of muskies in Pelican Lake damaged the walleye population, harmed the lake's ecosystem, caused recreational users to be fearful and forced some residents to consider selling their property. The DNR refuted most of the allegations and Senyk agreed, saying he couldn't see irreparable harm from muskies being stocked in the lake this fall.
The stocking will not stop other legal action brought by lake residents, said Tammy Norgard, lawyer for the Pelican Lake Property Owners Association. The group continues to seek an Environmental Worksheet Assessment on the impact of muskies, zebra mussels and other factors on the lake, and a lawsuit seeking a permanent injunction on stocking is ongoing, she said.
"They're asking the DNR to do a better job of studying muskies in the lake," Norgard said.
Muskies, a large predator fish that can grow to be 50 inches or longer and weigh more than 40 pounds, have been stocked in Pelican since 1978.
The muskies being stocked were tagged so the DNR can track natural reproduction in the lake, Wolters said. This is the first time Pelican Lake muskies have been tagged, but Wolters said it was not because of the controversy.
"We've been streamlining our process statewide with our stocking program and the Pelican fish were going to be tagged anyway. But this is good. We manage muskies as a low-density species and if we find out there is higher-than-expected natural reproduction we can adjust our stocking numbers," Wolters said.
The muskies being stocked were fingerlings, ranging from about 10-14 inches in length.
 


johnr

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They are gonna eat all the eyes....haha

Good news for you musky guys.:;:thumbsup
 

MuskyManiac

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Yeah, good news so far. I really hope the DNR does a good study of the entire fishery on Pelican so everyone can see where things are at and hopefully squash some of this muskie negativity. I really think this is less about the muskies on Pelican and more about lakeshore owners trying to keep people off the lake. It is the most expensive lake to live on in the area.

I have actually only fished Pelican a couple times because of the zebra mussel problem. If you put in on there you can't really go fish anywhere else that weekend without a serious decontamination of your boat.
 

Kurtr

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There is going to be a shortage of softner salt with all the mass pickling going on.:cool: Nice to see common sense won out.
 

svnmag

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I'm still on my round goby kick. Can't hurt the place anymore IMHO.
 


shorthairsrus

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Cormorant Pelican and every lake is getting it. The moobas or whatever they are called "ones with baffles are the boats causing it" they suckin a lot of water they can't get it all out. I think the lake has more walleye boats going on than musky. I lived on a lake for over 20 years the residents don't fish. The avg nd resident buys a place works nite and day on keeping it up and keeping up with Jones. They don't fish. I think it truly is keeping a walleye fishery so values stay high. I to would like to see the study done. Did the lake have muskies way back in the day? Idk. My q again nd has a far superior stocking pgm why don't they stock dl and sak if life is so good
 

Kickemup

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So a bunch of rich liberals are complaining about something they don't understand. Glad to see they got stocked I don't fish for muskie but they are a cool fish and I like seeing pictures of them. Mabey if they put enough of them in a lake it could dwindle down there hammer handle population.
 

MuskyManiac

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Cormorant Pelican and every lake is getting it. The moobas or whatever they are called "ones with baffles are the boats causing it" they suckin a lot of water they can't get it all out. I think the lake has more walleye boats going on than musky. I lived on a lake for over 20 years the residents don't fish. The avg nd resident buys a place works nite and day on keeping it up and keeping up with Jones. They don't fish. I think it truly is keeping a walleye fishery so values stay high. I to would like to see the study done. Did the lake have muskies way back in the day? Idk. My q again nd has a far superior stocking pgm why don't they stock dl and sak if life is so good

So a bunch of rich liberals are complaining about something they don't understand. Glad to see they got stocked I don't fish for muskie but they are a cool fish and I like seeing pictures of them. Mabey if they put enough of them in a lake it could dwindle down there hammer handle population.


They have been stocking muskie in Pelican for over 40 years, so nothing really new, but they have not been in there forever like those lakes on the Mississippi chain. They have a couple big walleye tournaments on Pelican every year and the weights have remained consistent. FM Walleyes Unlimited is backing the muskie group on this whole ordeal. Believe me, you don't want a small group of vocal people changing DNR plans today as it could easily be walleye and other fish tomorrow. This should be an issue all fishermen rally around.
 

johnr

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I don't own a lake home, but camp up where lake homes are also prevalent, most lake homes in the area I frequent are actually just trailer houses plopped down on some core, or indian land. Some of the people that have a "lake home" (trailer house) on the lake act like the rest of us in the camper portion of the lake are of less value.
Snobs in a trailer house makes me smile.
Now way I could handle being in the Pelican lake area with all the wanna be's. I have a few friends I camp with that are multi millionaires, they sure don't act as though the shits they take are a rose garden.
 


svnmag

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I know I'm a dumb bastard and sometimes strive to improve upon it. The lack of response/reaction to my armchair suggestion of gobies has me a bit confused. Besides politics, is there a viable reason not to introduce them as zebra control and additional forage in Pelican? I also still "maintain" they could benefit Sak during low water periods due to their spawning habits and the die off of smelt. If they gradually replaced smelt in the system would this be a major detriment? If some survived the passage through the dam, would they not be quickly consumed? Concerning this matter, I'm prepared to be un-dumbassed or praised.
 

Sum1

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I believe gobys wreak havoc on native fish species by gobbling up their eggs thus the reason every fish in the great lakes is of an upper age class with very few being younger fish thus the reason all the smallies, walleye, our beloved muskie, and salmon are ginormous. While they are chowing down on the goby getting ginormous the goby are chowing down the ginormous fishes eggs. Eventually when these fish of outsized proportions are gone due to angler harvest (walleye), old age (muskie and smallie) there are none to take their place. In the end you have a lake full of gobies. This is the way I understand it.

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Disclaimer-I'm just an armchair biologist. Thought I heard or read this somewheres.

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I don't own a lake home, but camp up where lake homes are also prevalent, most lake homes in the area I frequent are actually just trailer houses plopped down on some core, or indian land. Some of the people that have a "lake home" (trailer house) on the lake act like the rest of us in the camper portion of the lake are of less value.
Snobs in a trailer house makes me smile.
Now way I could handle being in the Pelican lake area with all the wanna be's. I have a few friends I camp with that are multi millionaires, they sure don't act as though the shits they take are a rose garden.

Well then maybe your millionare friends should quit being so damn greedy and
give the rest of us some of that money. No reason any person should have a million dollars when I only have a couple thousand. Sick and tired of these rich people oppressing us po folk.

I'm done. That was my lame attempt at being a liberal.
 

johnr

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I agree sum1, the wealth should be spread amongst us all, regardless of effort to earn more or the lack there of.
We should all equally be removed of excess things, and given portions of happiness as hillary sees fit...haha
 

Brian Renville

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7, you confuse me. Why don't you make more understandable posts like the one above?

It was like, I mean, was, sorta, well.....normal. :;:huh I'm not sure if he was on the sauce or off it when he typed that. Confusing is right, not bad just different. I hope the 7 we are used to still shows up once in awhile.
 


svnmag

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They tend to occupy open water and rock...in places wallys feed?...Don't wallys spawn over mud flats? How would gobies further hurt Pelican? I agree with the adult dynamic Sum posted and am visualizing adult gamefish protecting their fry through feasting. This shi'ite is already ​"here" and can be managed through man/nature IHHO. Gobies eat zebras and up the ladder...In a century "the bitch" may be the return of murky water. Could not Sak benefit from a pre-installed predator? These are my beer questions:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lhOMbw2jcC8
 
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Brian Renville

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You may be on to something with Sak. Sak isn't managed for natural production anyway so if the forage helps then why not? Then again that is assuming that we only care about walleyes. I know a lot of guys would agree with that idea yet if the egg thing is true they really might raise hell with some of the other fish.
 

svnmag

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Thanks Brian. I'm feeling smart and that usually means I need a ball kick.
 
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guywhofishes

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http://m.startribune.com/minnesota-legislature-declares-war-on-muskies/477180523/

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[h=1]Minnesota Legislature declares war on muskies[/h]

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Ingebrigtsen’s bill is co-authored by Senate Majority Leader Paul Gazelka, R-Nisswa, and has bipartisan support from Sen. Tom Bakk, D-Cook, the previous Senate majority leader. It calls for muskie-stocking prohibitions, liberal harvest of muskies and a new muskie study.
Here’s what Ingebrigtsen’s bill proposes:
• Stop DNR from introducing muskies to waters not previously stocked with the fish. Any savings realized from the ban must be used for walleye stocking.
• Force DNR to drop its statewide, 54-inch minimum size limit for keeping a muskie. On “nonmuskellunge’’ waters, anglers could keep any muskie 20 inches or longer. The term “nonmuskellunge” applies to waters where “muskellunge are not indigenous’’ or where they are stocked by the DNR.
 • Allow spearing of muskies on “nonmuskellunge’’ waters.
• Empower counties to dictate what species of fish the DNR can stock within county boundaries.


• Impose a five-year moratorium on the DNR against stocking muskies anywhere in Otter Tail County.
• The DNR must convene a stakeholder group “to examine the effect of muskellunge’’ and spend $50,000 on a related study.
The legislation is friendly to an anti-muskie movement in Otter Tail County, one of the places where muskie fishing first took hold in Minnesota in the 1960s. Two years ago, county residents successfully campaigned to place Otter Tail County off limits to the DNR’s once-ambitious muskie stocking expansion plan.
 


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