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Nonetheless, they came to the basin at the mouth of Sandy Bay, a spot they hadn’t gill netted in 10 years, to better determine to what degree lake trout have become the bullies of Maine’s largest inland body of water. In the past decade, lake trout, or ‘’togue’’ as they’re called in Maine, have strengthened their role as the dominant fish in Moosehead Lake — meaning they eat the food that smaller fish eat. The silvery, deep-dwelling fish that can easily grow to 20 pounds are a favorite game fish, but in Moosehead their numbers have exploded beyond that of two other natives, brook trout and landlocked salmon, fish that are also highly sought by fishermen. It is because of the togue’s dominance that biologists and anglers are for once in agreement on a proposed fishing regulation for Moosehead, one that would help deplete the togue population. At a public hearing in Greenville at 6:30 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 30, at Nickerson Elementary School, the nonprofit Moosehead Lake Fisheries Coalition will propose four new fishing regulations for consideration for a new state fishing rulebook. Because the proposals are coming from the public, and not the state, Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife biologists are not allowed to comment on the rules, but the one that would have the daily bag limit on togue increased from three to five fish has their blessing. They have proposed a similar rule for consideration by the DIF&W commissioner. “We know togue are vulnerable to exploitation. If we increase the bag limit, it should dig into their numbers,’’ said DIF&W biologist Paul Johnson. “We’ll protect everything over 18 inches, but allow exploitation of the young togue.’’ Like the coalition, Johnson said he wants to see more togue caught to help improve salmon fishing. The abundance of togue in the lake means there are fewer smelts, forage the landlocks prefer. The problem, according to DIF&W biologist Scott Roy, is that togue rely on smelts year-round, while salmon feed heavily on smelts in the winter and spring. If the togue population continues to rise, the salmon are in trouble. As it is, togue have proliferated in Moosehead Lake without much help. Biologists stopped stocking them in 1975. But the figures for catch rates in the past 25 years show togue have been far and away the fish most anglers have been catching. In 1991, togue accounted for 74 percent of the short game fish (fish caught measuring less than 18 inches). There were 21,000 short togue caught in Moosehead that year, while all game fish under 18 inches totaled nearly 29,000. Preliminary figures for this year show togue have made up 63 percent of the short game fish caught. With the fishing season coming to an end, it is estimated that 12,000 short togue will be caught this year and a total of 19,000 short game fish will be caught. The overall catch rate has dropped because the lake has been fished less. In 1991, DIF&W estimates, there were 59,000 angler days while in 2001 there were only 38,200. An angler day is each day a fisherman fishes the lake. Roy said the decline allowed the togue to expand in numbers. Last week, the biologists were on the 74,890-acre lake netting smaller togue, the ones too small for anglers to keep, and the ones biologists never get to see. From eight nets in the one basin — the deepest part of the bay, Johnson said a total of two dozen togue would offer a good sample. He and biologist Roy ended up with 22, taking six of them out of one net. “If this were mining, it would be the mother load,’’ Johnson boomed. Later, the stomachs of the togue were cut open to determine if the fish were indeed consuming many smelts. It was clear from the biologist’s messy work that the togue do prefer the small, thin fish. One 12-inch togue that Johnson referred to as a “little boy” had a whole smelt, well intact. Another 12-inch male had parts of three smelts. While another slightly bigger had five whole smelts. “These fish are the ones that will be thinned out under the three-to-five rule,’’ Johnson said. “These will be 14 inches in another year. So they will be vulnerable for the [proposed] five-fish limit [on togue 14-18 inches].’’ When the biologists were done cutting up the 22 togue, they had found smelts in roughly half the fish. Roy said the findings were similar in togue that had been taken from two other basins in the lake — and those findings were similar to years past. And yet, Johnson said the findings don’t tell the whole story about the smelt population. “I think the fish regurgitate them when we pull them up. We have no way of knowing,’’ he said. Deirdre Fleming covers outdoor sports and recreation for the NEWS. She can be reached at 990-8250 or at dfleming@bangordailynews.net. |