Tag Archives: fish biology

This was mentioned in a news release last week.  Let me publicize it some more here: Research seeks answers to Missouri River fishery decline after 2011 flood Biologists are continuing to tag and track walleye and sauger in the Missouri River and Lewis and Clark Lake between Fort Randall and Gavins Point dams as part of an effort to understand declines in the fishery following historic flooding in 2011. Since 2021, 201 fish have been tagged in the river and …

If you have been drawn into the addiction that is muskie fishing, you have a few stories to tell.  Most of those stories will be about fish caught and fish lost, close encounters and days, weeks, without a bite.  However, with all the time on the water, you will see some strange things.  One of the strange things muskies do is described in this article.  A couple of really smart, pointy-headed fish biologists propose theories for the behavior.  Read on, …

I hope I do not offend anyone with this blog post.  I found an interesting article that made some observations about the personalities of some of our favorite fish.  Now, I have told you before I have not yet learned to talk to the fish.  If I suddenly, unexpectedly retire, you will know I figured it out.  Since that is not yet possible, we can only assume that these would be the personalities of the fish we pursue. From what …

I got drawn into an on-line discussion the other day about the variable colorations of rainbow trout.  The discussion got me thinking about the different colored rainbows I have caught from a variety of Nebraska waters.  I put together a little “collage” of some of them: Rainbow trout are a species that has been “domesticated”.  They have been selectively bred to be easy to raise in a hatchery.  As a result, there are a variety of different “strains” of rainbow …

I have been blogging for a lot of years now.  It has been long enough that yes, there are “re-runs”.  Many of the same topics are relevant seasonally, year after year, and they get repeated in some form. There are other topics that I may have blogged about in the past, and I like to reference those old blogs.  Problem is some of those disappear from the archive over time.  When that happens, I may literally post them again.  Going …

You know I love big fish, big fish of any species, but especially big, bad, predator fish.  Nebraska is blessed with a variety of fish, including a variety of large predator fish.  Two of our largest, apex predator fish would be flathead catfish and muskellunge. Flatheads and muskies are not found in every Nebraska water, but we do have some excellent fisheries for both species.  Obviously, flatheads and muskies are two very different fish.  Or are they?  Having fished for …

Trying to think of something to blog about today when I was asked a familiar question, “What are these black specks on my fish?” There are a variety of fish parasites that are present in our waters.  They are there all the time and nothing can be done about that.  From time to time, those parasites will be obvious on or in the fish. Of course the first concern is usually if those fish are safe to eat? There are …

It is early spring and our waters are cold.  Without a doubt I hear anglers ask more about water temperatures at this time of year than any other.  There may be some reasoning behind that, but water temperature may not be as important as some think it is. Don’t get me wrong.  I have carried a thermometer of some kind with me on every fishing trip since I was a kid.  I have logged water temperatures from thousands of fishing …

If you blog about the outdoors, fish and fishing, subject matter is seasonal.  Same time every year the same subjects are relevant and I will probably blog about them in some form.  I hope people do not mind “re-runs”, but I am betting most will not remember, and there are a bunch of new readers.  I re-ran one last week, got another here. . . . As soon as we have some nice weather this time of year, everyone wants …

There is no question the most common phone call/e-mail/FaceBook message I have received in the past few weeks has been about some dead fish in this or that location across Nebraska.  This has been widespread enough that we put out a news release last week: Spring fish die-offs not unusual in Nebraska LINCOLN, Neb. – Spring fish die-offs in Nebraska are not unusual. Reports of these fish kills – which have been due to natural causes – have come from …