3 million walleye stocked in Wisconsin waters

Nearly 3 million walleye, Wisconsin anglers' favorite fish, have been stocked in dozens of lakes and rivers waters over the last few weeks.

The fish, up to 2 months old and 2 inches in size, were harvested from the Art Oehmcke Hatchery in Woodruff, the Tommy G. Thompson Hatchery in Spooner, the Lake Mills Hatchery in its namesake community, and, for the first time in 20 years, Wild Rose State Fish Hatchery in Waushara County. Construction of new coolwater facilities at that century-old hatchery allowed fish crews there to return to producing walleye for the first time in a generation.

"It was a good year for small fingerling walleye production, and it's good news for future walleye fishing opportunities in Wisconsin," says Dave Giehtbrock, statewide fish production manager. "The longer winter led to later egg collection, which caused a logistical complication at some hatcheries, but the cooler water temperatures were good for the walleye, and we were able to pull off successful rearing at our hatcheries, producing the fish we needed to produce."

The walleye are stocked to provide walleye fishing opportunities where otherwise there would be none, and to help restore naturally self-sustaining walleye populations in the receiving waters. The vast majority of the state's walleye fisheries are naturally reproducing but stocking plays an important role in some waters. .

How long it takes these little guys to reach legal size depends on the water where they're stocked and regulations, but count on two to five years before these fish are likely to turn up in the frying pan.

For more information, click here to be taken to the Wisconsin DNR website for the rest of this article.