<body><div><figure><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=1mZ4ib_0upVPraH00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=1mZ4ib_0upVPraH00" width="650" height="433" ><figcaption>A&nbsp;fish-stocking truck for the Michigan Department of&nbsp;Natural Resources is&nbsp;pictured near the edge of&nbsp;the Manistee River at&nbsp;Tippy&nbsp;Dam. A&nbsp;total of&nbsp;265,676 fish were stocked at&nbsp;this location in&nbsp;spring 2024. (Photo provided/Michigan Dept. of Natural Resources) </figcaption></figure> Successful spring and summer fish stocking seasons will create additional angling opportunities this fall. Michigan Department of Natural Resources officials announced Tuesday that the department stocked 9,118,112 fish that weighed nearly 321 tons and consisted of 10 different species and one hybrid. To complete the stocking task, 17 specialized trucks started in early spring and took 451 trips&nbsp;— traveling more than 100,000 miles and 2,829 hours&nbsp;— to 691 stocking sites, according to a <a href="https://content.govdelivery.com/accounts/MIDNR/bulletins/3ac3013" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank"> press release </a> . Most fish in Michigan are stocked in the spring. Releasing fish early in spring can reduce their loss to major bird predators, like cormorants, whose peak migration times come later in the season. “We had another excellent spring and summer stocking season that will bring ecological benefits and fishing opportunities to Michigan anglers,” Aaron Switzer, DNR fish production manager, said in the Tuesday release. “Thanks to the hard work and dedication of our staff, healthy, high-quality fish were reared and delivered to stocking sites in excellent condition. The numbers produced and stocked met the targets for most areas.” Stocking is when fish are raised in a hatchery and released into the lake to increase the existing population.&nbsp;Fish stocking provides Michigan residents and visitors with “quality fishing opportunities,” according to the DNR. The efforts also bring an estimated $4.2 billion into the state’s economy and help support a <a href="https://www.glfc.org/the-fishery.php?utm_campaign=fish+stocking+springsummer2024&amp;utm_medium=pr&amp;utm_source=govdelivery#:~:text=The%20Great%20Lakes%20commercial%2C%20recreational,support%20more%20than%2075%2C000%20jobs.#:~:text=The%20Great%20Lakes%20commercial%2C%20recreational,support%20more%20than%2075%2C000%20jobs." rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank"> Great Lakes fishery valued at over $7 billion </a> . The number and type of fish produced vary by hatchery, as the source and temperature of the water determine which fish can be raised in that location. Fish are reared in Michigan’s state fish hatcheries anywhere from one month to 1.5 years before they are stocked. <figure><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=3T2H3P_0upVPraH00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=3T2H3P_0upVPraH00" width="650" height="433" ><figcaption>A&nbsp;fish-stocking truck for the Michigan Department of&nbsp;Natural Resources releases fish into the Grand River in&nbsp;Lyons, Ionia County. A&nbsp;total of&nbsp;286,145 fish were stocked at&nbsp;this location in&nbsp;spring 2024. (Photo provided/Michigan Dept. of Natural Resources) </figcaption></figure> In Michigan, six statewide and two cooperative hatcheries work together to produce the species, strain and size of fish needed for fisheries managers, according to the DNR. The fish must be delivered and stocked at a specific time and location to ensure success. Each hatchery stocked the following fish this spring: <ul><li> Marquette State Fish Hatchery (near Marquette) stocked 323,710 yearling lake trout, brook trout and splake (a hybrid of lake trout and brook trout) that weighed 41,771 pounds. The hatchery stocked 90 inland and Great Lakes sites. </li><li> Thompson State Fish Hatchery (near Manistique) stocked 1,171,696 fish, including yearling steelhead and spring fingerling Chinook salmon. The fish weighed 102,442 pounds. The hatchery stocked 64 sites (the majority located on the Great Lakes). </li><li> Oden State Fish Hatchery (near Petoskey) stocked 762,074 yearling brown trout and rainbow trout that weighed 112,704 pounds. Oden also stocked 3,689 adult brown and rainbow trout that weighed 8,148 pounds. The hatchery stocked 159 inland and Great Lakes sites. </li><li> Harrietta State Fish Hatchery (in Harrietta) stocked 684,487 yearling brown trout and rainbow trout that weighed 84,812 pounds. The hatchery stocked 200 sites (the majority located inland). </li><li> Platte River State Fish Hatchery (near Honor) stocked 2,272,494 fish, including yearling Atlantic salmon, yearling coho salmon and spring fingerling Chinook salmon that weighed 161,396 pounds. Platte River also stocked 31,514 Skamania steelhead obtained from the Indiana DNR that weighed 4,314 pounds. The hatchery stocked 23 sites (the majority located on the Great Lakes). </li><li> Wolf Lake State Fish Hatchery (near Kalamazoo) stocked 1,485,711 fish, including yearling steelhead, yearling muskellunge and spring fingerling Chinook salmon that weighed 123,381 pounds. Wolf Lake also stocked 22,067 channel catfish obtained from the Ohio DNR, that weighed 670 pounds. The hatchery stocked 51 sites (the majority located on the Great Lakes). </li><li> A cooperative teaching hatchery at Lake Superior State University (in Sault Ste. Marie) stocked 19,285 Atlantic salmon weighing 1,849 pounds into the St. Marys River. </li></ul> Included in this year’s total fish stocked were 2.4 million walleye spring fingerlings. The fish, reared in ponds by the DNR with extensive support provided by local sporting organizations, were stocked at 61 inland lakes and rivers and Lake Michigan. Some hatcheries will also provide fish for a few additional stockings (consisting of brook trout, Atlantic salmon, walleye, lake sturgeon and muskellunge) to be made this fall, according to the DNR. The lake sturgeon will come from the cooperative hatchery in Tower, Michigan, that is operated with Michigan State University. The public is welcome at any of Michigan’s state fish hatcheries to see the fish-rearing process firsthand. More information is available online at <a href="https://www.michigan.gov/dnr/managing-resources/fisheries/hatcheries?utm_campaign=fish+stocking+springsummer2024&amp;utm_medium=pr&amp;utm_source=govdelivery" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank"> Michigan.gov/Hatcheries </a> . To find out where many of these fish were stocked, check out the DNR’s Fish Stocking Database online at <a href="https://michigandnr.com/fishstock?utm_campaign=fish+stocking+springsummer2024&amp;utm_medium=pr&amp;utm_source=govdelivery" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank"> MichiganDNR.com/fishstock </a> . Earlier this summer, fisheries staff for the <a href="https://www.manisteenews.com/news/article/michigan-kills-thousands-salmon-19494291.php" rel="noopener nofollow" target="_blank"> DNR euthanized just over 31,000 Atlantic salmon </a> that were sick with a deadly disease. The fish were a “fraction” of statewide fish production and stocking efforts, according to the DNR. Those euthanized were infected with bacterial kidney disease or BKD. It is a bacterial disease known to cause mortality in trout and salmon and is believed to be largely responsible for the decline in Great Lakes Chinook salmon populations in the mid-1980s. The disease was discovered in early April when a routine pre-stocking inspection of fish being reared at the Harrietta State Fish Hatchery, in Wexford County, found it to be present. Staff at the Michigan State University Aquatic Animal Health Lab noted signs of active disease and confirmed the presence of Renibacterium salmoninarum, the bacterium that causes BKD. The DNR stocks 20 million to 30 million fish annually in Michigan’s public waters. </div></body>

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DNR stocks Michigan waters with 321 tons of fish to create more angling opportunities this fall

“Anglers can look forward to great fall fishing,” Michigan Department of Natural Resources officials said Tuesday, due to successful spring and summer fish stocking.