Waterfowl hunters do their part to stop the spread of aquatic invasive species

About the time the Green Bay Packers start fulfilling our football dreams, Wisconsin’s hunters prepare to take to the waters for the 2019 waterfowl hunting season on opening weekend, September 28-29. It will also begin the fourth year of Waterfowl Hunter Aquatic Invasive Species (AIS) Outreach, when teams of DNR staff, statewide AIS Partners and volunteers will be stationed at access points on opening days across the state to talk to hunters about AIS and what they can do to stop the spread. Staff at Glacierland RC& D will be out at the Marshes and other hunting hotspots around Sheboygan and Manitowoc Counties to assist hunters with preventative actions and answer any invasive species questions. Read more

MCLA MEETING ANNOUNCEMENT
Thursday, September 26th, 2019
Please mark your calendars and join us
at the Manitowoc County Office building @ 4319 Expo Drive,
Room 300, at 6:30pm.
Public and Guests are encouraged to attend.

Our program will be on internal phosphorus loading in our lakes with guest speaker Ron Gerrits from Bullhead Lake. Bullhead Lake is in the process of doing a feasibility study to determine if an alum treatment can be conducted to improve water quality conditions. Ron will highlight the findings of the project.

Our second speaker will be  the President of the Kewaunee County Lake Association, Randy Kleiman. He will discuss the successful alum treatment conducted on east Alaska lake in Kewaunee County to control the phosphorus internal loading.

The MCLA business meeting will follow.

Ever question your catch?

There’s a new FREE fish ID tool available from the University of Wisconsin Sea Grant Institute. Read more

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Madison—Thousands of Wisconsinites will take to the water this Fourth-of-July for the state’s busiest boating holiday of the year. During the tenth annual Landing Blitz, July 3-7th, 2019, many boaters will be greeted at landings and access points by Glacierland RC&D and Wisconsin DNR staff, as well as volunteers sharing a simple, but powerful message: YOU can protect lakes, rivers, and streams from aquatic invasive species.

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Starry stonewort (Nitellopsis obtusa), a submerged annual macroalga, is known to cause nuisance conditions in MI, NY and IN. It can outcompete other vegetation and forms monotypic stands that can reduce fish spawning habitat.

Learn about Manitowoc’s latest AIS threat at the next MCLA meeting on Wednesday, June 26th, 2019 at 6:30pm

Please join us at the Manitowoc County Office building @ 4319 Expo Drive, Room 300. Public and Guests are encouraged to attend.

DNR Fish Manager Steve Hogler will be our guest speaker, Steve will be reviewing last year’s fish survey findings on Wilke and Shoe lakes in the County and discuss DNR’s plans for surveying lakes this year. He will shed some light on the fish die off of Bullheads on Silver Lake this past month. This will be an opportunity to ask questions regarding the fisheries of the area and discuss the special panfish regulations on Long, Bullhead, English and Harpts lakes.

• View Steve Hogler’s presentation on fish survey findings

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Draining livewells can stop invasive species and protect Wisconsin’s Waters

MADISON- Fishing success is tied to healthy lakes, rivers and streams. Anglers can help keep our waters healthy and beautiful by stopping the spread of aquatic invasive species (AIS) by draining their live wells, bait buckets and bilges every time they leave a boat launch or fishing access. When we forget to drain, the water moved from one location to another can transport fish diseases and aquatic invasive species. The statewide Drain Campaign, our annual reminder, will take place on May 31-June 2, 2019 and coincides with the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources Free Fishing Weekend, June 1-2. Read more

The cost of poor water quality to property values, an analysis commissioned by Manitowoc County Lakes Association, and conducted by Drs. Wolf and Kemp of UW-Eau Claire, will be presented by MCLA past president John Durbrow. The study, which analyzed 8,372 property transactions between 2013 and 2016 in Manitowoc and adjacent counties, has demonstrated that lake water clarity directly impacts the property value of residences on that water body. The report concludes “…that a 1 meter increase in water clarity will result in a 10.5% increase in home values for properties located within 250 meters of a lake.” Conversely, the more water clarity is degraded, the more property values are reduced. Read more

Darren Kuhn has collected many stories in his career as a recreation safety warden, along with a strong desire for people to stay safe while having fun. Kuhn, who works for the state Department of Natural Resources, recently spoke to the Manitowoc County Lakes Association during a meeting in Manitowoc.

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Phosphorous levels are slowly increasing in Manitowoc County lakes.

Gene Weyer, water quality testing director and former president of the Manitowoc County Lakes Association, displayed graphs of phosphorous levels on 16 area lakes to those gathered at the association’s Feb. 21 meeting. Read more

BOATING ORDINANCES
February 21, 2019
Manitowoc County Office Building
4319 Expo Dr, Rm 300, at 6:30pm. 

Our guest speaker will be Darren Kuhn, DNR Conservation Warden. He will be addressing legal issues, explain the boating ordinance process and getting State approval to boating ordinances. He will take questions regarding creating local boating ordinances, specifically to deal with mirrors on ski boats, and PFD use. Read more

Dec 18, 2018. Steven Hogler, Senior Fisheries Biologist, Wisconsin DNR, has shared a Comprehensive Fishing Survey for Wilke Lake, as well as an electroshock survey report for Shoe Lake. In these reports, he summarizes changes in fish numbers and proposes steps to be taken to correct the overall downward trends.

Read more

Next MCLA Meeting Date: Thursday, Dec. 6, 2018

Manitowoc County Office Complex, Room 300
4319 Expo Drive, Manitowoc
Meetings are at 6:30pm — Public and guests welcome and encouraged to attend!

Our guest speaker will be Ted Rulseh, a former resident of Manitowoc County and author, editor and publisher of several books on the Great Lakes region, he is the author of On the Pond: Lake Michigan Reflections. He recently released a book called Lakeside Companion which presents the science of lakes in an enjoyable way, with real world examples. He explains how little things that shore residents do on their property can have a large impact on the lake’s ecology. Ted J. Rulseh writes the newspaper column “The Lake Where You Live” and is active in lake-advocacy organizations, including the Wisconsin Citizen Lake Monitoring Network. He lives in the lake-rich region of northeastern Wisconsin.

Following the program Gene Weyer will review the lake monitoring data for each lake in the MCLA monitoring program. We now have enough data to start to identify long term water quality trends in our lakes.