Fishing

LINCOLN, Neb. – Rotenone will be applied Sept. 6 at Pelican Lake on the Valentine National Wildlife Refuge (NWR) south of Valentine to remove common carp. The Nebraska Game and Parks Commission and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) will apply rotenone, which is a toxicant often used by biologists to eliminate unwanted fish species, as part of the renovation of the lake. In recent months, liberalized fishing regulations have allowed anglers to remove many sport fish from Pelican, and …

I have some roots in North Platte, graduated from high school there.  This headline from the ole hometown newspaper caught my eye: Driver hit with Taser after threatening deputy, holding frog hostage Obviously, there is some funny stuff going on back in Flat Rock–holding frogs hostage!  What is this world coming to?  Here’s the whole story as reported in the North Platte Telegraph: A man rolled his car, then held an amphibious bystander hostage during an altercation with a deputy …

Fish have been displayed at the Nebraska State Fair almost since there was a state fair.  We know live fish were displayed at the State Fair back in 1885, and they have been there almost every year since.  This year is no exception as fish were collected from all corners to the state and hauled to the state fair last week.  Fish are collected primarily by electrofishing, hauled on pickups and then displayed for the duration of the fair in …

I am fully aware that there are 1,338 videos on YouTube demonstrating how to fillet a fish.  Well, make it 1,339: Keep in mind that video was made with the idea of keeping it simple for someone who might not have done it before.  I know there are a lot of variations, a lot of tricks and a lot of preferences that go beyond the basics.  You likely have a better way of doing it!  I also know that many …

Found this video on the interwebs this week.  Love it! I have not been where the young man in the video has been, but his story truly is an inspiration.  If you fish, you share that passion, and in many ways it defines our lives. I never will completely understand people who do not fish. Have a great weekend, and of course, GO FISH!

I actually escaped the office a week or so ago and helped with some field work!  I got to smell fishy again! Mostly I just want to show you some pictures of the fish we were sampling, flathead catfish at Branched Oak Reservoir.  However, I realize there might be some who read this and want more information, so let me recommend a previous blog if you want to know why we were doing this sampling:  Branched Oak Flatheads. Once again …

Water is in our DNA. Water is life. Water is soothing. Water is great outdoor recreation. So, it only makes sense that, as humans, we want to be on, in or near the water as much as possible. Furthermore, it only makes sense that we want to reside by water. Noted Archaeologist Brian Fagan says: “Water is something that humanity has cherished since the beginning of history and it means something different to everyone. We all have our own unique relationship and …

Gonna start this blog with a news release, like I often do, but then there is more to the story. . . . Major fish die-off investigated at Olive Creek Lake August 17, 2018 LINCOLN, Neb. – Low oxygen levels have caused a major die-off of fish at Olive Creek Lake, according to the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission. The remaining fish population is suspected to be small. The die-off was reported by the public and investigated by Game and …

LINCOLN, Neb. – The Nebraska Game and Parks Commission is giving young anglers in eastern Nebraska an opportunity to catch some “bonus-sized” channel catfish. Game and Parks on Aug. 14 stocked catfish ranging from 2 to 10 pounds in three lakes. There were 270 stocked in Omaha’s Wehrspann Lake, 50 in Lincoln’s Bowling Lake, and 50 in Papillion’s Lake Halleck. “There are very limited numbers of fish this large that can be produced in Nebraska state fish hatcheries, not nearly …

I got outta the office this week to help stock some fish.  Stocking fish is nothing unusual, we will stock over 30 million fish in over 250 Nebraska waterbodies again this year, and once in a while I lend a hand. The species of fish I helped stock was nothing unusual either, channel catfish.  We will stock over 200 thousand channel catfish in over 160 different Nebraska waterbodies just this year.  No, what made this unusual was the size of …