Does Wabamun Lake Have the Potential To Become A Trophy Lake Once Again?

[Fishin' Fool]

Originally Posted by Don Meredith

The walleye have been reproducing in Wabamun ever since the first mature fish were transplanted, starting in 2011. AEP is waiting for the fish hatched in the lake to reach maturity in sufficient numbers to sustain a self-supporting population and ultimately a harvest.

That said, there are a number of non- or former government biologists who believe the walleye fishery could sustain a controlled harvest now. That would help sustain the populations of pike, white fish and perch that have suffered from the introduction of a new predator in the mix.

I wrote about it in 2017 for the AO:
https://donmeredith.wordpress.com/20...ishery-update/

Don

I misspoke, I meant a self-sustaining population but did not clearly articulate that. Thank you for the clarification.

[jungleboy]

I think that if or when they open Wabamun for walleye retention that it will be an all out assault on the lake just like when someone gives out info on a good perch lake. Due to its location and popular use the walleye fishery will be toast within a season or two. I wonder if this contributes to the reluctance to open it up.

I wonder what the mortality rate is for a strictly catch and release lake like Wabamun? Not so much for walleye but for Pike which have a habit of taking a bait deep in their throat. How many pike every yr are released with bleeding gills that don’t recover

What effect does the ridiculous number of wake boats and jet boats have on these small shallow lakes. They all seem to love to do there ripping and tearing close in shore for some reason and that must have some effect on the fish population wouldn’t it?
It seems to me that the slow demise of the fish populations in this province of not many lakes coincides with the huge prosperity we have experienced and the explosion of these massive boats that are designed to be used in very large lakes but are in every pond that has a launch big enough to back them in.
I can’t back up this idea but I do think it might be a factor.

[wind drift]

I think the catch and release mortality on pike is relatively high, and increasingly so as fish size increases. The way I see pike get handled is troubling. Hauled up out of the water by the gills or eyes, then dropped clumsily onto the floor of the boat to “quiet down” before the hook removal begins. Many aren’t prepared, equipment-wise and otherwise, to deal with largish toothy, twisty fish. Then, after the hook is out, the time taken to get the almost mandatory hero pics can take away the last hope of recovery.

A fish likely won’t be able to survive more than a couple such incidents over its lifetime.

[Quigley2000]

I think Wabamun may have a chance but certainly not with the current regulations. As it stands Wabamun is heavily pressured (shocker being an hour from a million people), and so hooking mortality rates would need to be minimized. To effectively do this you'd have to ban bait, and only allow single barbless hooks. That way fish won't get deep hooked nearly as much which will protect arteries and gills. Also the hooks will be way easier to remove which reduces handling time and increases survival rate. Lastly would need more enforcement on the lake to ensure that rules are being followed. Short of having these implemented I don't think much will change.

[cube]

Originally Posted by thorne

Potential is always there...but not likely. It have to stay a 0 retention lake because, lets face it, there are thousands of walleye unlawfully removed from that lake every year...as for the good ole days of 10-20+lb pike being a common thing, that was due to the power plant. The plant would pump warm water in the lake all year round keeping vegetation alive at the outlet, keeping large amounts of bait fish going and the pike feed like kings. Now the plant is gone, massive amounts of competition have been introduced with the walleye, and fishing pressure is waaayy up...so in all likelyhood, no. It will not regain the glory days of pre-2012ish...

I believe the power plant is a red herring. With out doubt it was the 11.7 million walleye that were stocked onto Wab that caused this mess. Unless steps are take to address the Walleye the pike, perch etc. will suffer.
If things keep with the Sullivan protocol Wab will remain closed for decades as self fulling prophecies are left to run the until many generations eventually naturally balance the lake.

Problem I have with that is WHY ARE WE PAYING BIOLOGISTS FOR THIS. If your letting mother nature manage the lake by its self I see no reason to be paying for the entire fisheries section. I would have though that with a bit of science and a bit of active management one could bring the balance about oh 2 DECADES earlier. Just look at Pigeon 3 DECADES in and still has not reached appropriate balance. And what about Lac La Biche etc. etc. etc. etc. That's what 50 lakes under the Sullivan protocol that he seems to have screwed up with no end in sight.

[Salavee]

Originally Posted by Quigley2000

I think Wabamun may have a chance but certainly not with the current regulations. As it stands Wabamun is heavily pressured (shocker being an hour from a million people), and so hooking mortality rates would need to be minimized. To effectively do this you'd have to ban bait, and only allow single barbless hooks. That way fish won't get deep hooked nearly as much which will protect arteries and gills. Also the hooks will be way easier to remove which reduces handling time and increases survival rate. Lastly would need more enforcement on the lake to ensure that rules are being followed. Short of having these implemented I don't think much will change.

The first post I have seen that addresses the major problem with C&R.
From our previous studies through the now defunct Western Walleye Council. delayed mortality is a lot higher than most anglers realize. Delayed mortality ( 2-5 days after release) can be as high as 15% after a Tournament weigh- Nice to see that method is no longer used at most events.
A live bait ban (crawlers & leeches) wouldn't hurt any Walleye population in the Province at the current time. That's akin to sleucing Ducks on the water and should be legal only when you wish to fish out a Walleye population in a hurry. Just a calculated opinion.

[Salavee]

[QUOTE=Talking moose;4193781]A lake of that size......with proper management.......has the potential yes.[/QUOT

Prior to the train derailment, Wabamun was a Class 1 Lake. I don't know if it still is , but it was one of the very few class one lakes in Alberta.

[EZM]

Originally Posted by Salavee

The first post I have seen that addresses the major problem with C&R.
From our previous studies through the now defunct Western Walleye Council. delayed mortality is a lot higher than most anglers realize. Delayed mortality ( 2-5 days after release) can be as high as 15% after a Tournament weigh- Nice to see that method is no longer used at most events.
A live bait ban (crawlers & leeches) wouldn't hurt any Walleye population in the Province at the current time. That's akin to sleucing Ducks on the water and should be legal only when you wish to fish out a Walleye population in a hurry. Just a calculated opinion.

Agreed - and a very important point worth repeating as most people don't think about mortality hours or days after a fish has been injured, stressed or kept out of water too long. Many guys think, as long as it eventually swims away "it will be fine".

On a many fish, when the fins, lips and head become red it is a sign of stress. That's why if I'm C&R - 95% of the time the fish don't leave the water and I just reach down, grab the leader with one hand (I use Fluoro) and unbutton the barbless hook with pliers with the other hand. Rarely even touch the fish.

[dryflyguy]

Originally Posted by Talking moose

I say put lakers back into lesser slave!!!! Touchwood too!!!!

That makes sense, at least those fish were once native to those lakes

I would say Wabamun has the potential to be a trophy lake, but until it's managed properly and the forage fish are able to recover, it'll be no better than most.

I'd say a lake like Gull is on a better trajectory to be a trophy lake than Wabamun is, at least in the short term

[Talking moose]

Originally Posted by dryflyguy

That makes sense, at least those fish were once native to those lakes

I would say Wabamun has the potential to be a trophy lake, but until it's managed properly and the forage fish are able to recover, it'll be no better than most.

I'd say a lake like Gull is on a better trajectory to be a trophy lake than Wabamun is, at least in the short term

Walleye were once native to Wabamun as well.

[dryflyguy]

Originally Posted by Talking moose

Walleye were once native to Wabamun as well.

Were they? I had read previously in Atlas of Alberta Lakes that they were "reportedly" present in the early 1900's but then died out, so I wasn't so sure that they were native or not

[cube]

Originally Posted by dryflyguy

Were they? I had read previously in Atlas of Alberta Lakes that they were "reportedly" present in the early 1900's but then died out, so I wasn't so sure that they were native or not

Schindler the water god of the University of Alberta concluded in his report " only anecdotal reports suggest that walleye were an
incidental species in Lake Wabamun"
So no they were never there, at least not in large numbers or consistently.

[Talking moose]

Walleye have not been seen in the lake since the early 1900s when they were fished out. Several attempts to restock walleye in the lake failed because the Wabamun power plant (built in the 1950s) discharged its heated cooling water into the lake, keeping that portion of the lake clear of ice. Walleye would spawn in the warm water weeks prior to their normal spawning time and the hatchlings did not survive when they could not find enough food in the still-cold portions of the lake. After closure of the Wabamun power plant in 2010, Alberta Fish and Wildlife attempted another stocking of walleye, and this one appears to have been successful. Walleye are reproducing and so are their young.[4] TransAlta no longer uses the lake for any of its operations.

[Talking moose]

https://donmeredith.wordpress.com/20...heries-update/
Wabamun Lake has probably been fished as hard and for as long as any lake in the province. As early as 1850, the lake was heavily fished to supply the people at Fort Edmonton and area, most likely to feed sled dogs as much as people. This pressure increased into the 20th century as the importance of the lake fishery as a source of food grew and was enhanced with the building of a railroad to the lake. In 1910, weekend railway excursions were organized from Edmonton to the lake, increasing sportfishing pressure. The building of cottages began shortly thereafter.

In the past, Wabamun has had viable native populations of lake whitefish, northern pike, yellow perch and walleye. However, the walleye population was fished-out by the early 1900s. Commercial fishing of lake whitefish continued but the whitefish population cycled wildly from low densities to high and back again, most likely because walleye were no longer controlling whitefish numbers. As the number of anglers increased over the decades, the demand for whitefish and northern pike exceeded the capacity of the lake to supply. As a result, the government closed commercial fishing on the lake in 2004 and imposed catch-and-release only fishing in 2008 to allow fish stocks to rebuild.

[Talking moose]

So yes. They were there. In large numbers.

[cube]

Originally Posted by Talking moose

So yes. They were there. In large numbers.

So why did the commercial fishing logs from that time not mention them? They cataloged all the other fish types. That is why Schindler said "only anecdotal reports suggest that walleye were an incidental species in Lake Wabamun"

So no not there consistently or in high numbers probably.

[Talking moose]

Originally Posted by cube

So why did the commercial fishing logs from that time not mention them? They cataloged all the other fish types

Not sure. Gone by then?
Can you think of any lake the size and depth of wab that didn’t support native walleye? (Buffalo is fairly big but it’s shallow and pretty much a glorified slough)

[Talking moose]

tive Summary
The following recommendations are in roughly descending order of importance:
The parties who would implement these recommendations are not identified in this report since the Panel assumes that responsibility for implementation would be allocated according to a combination of current government agency mandates and activities, industry permit requirements, and input from citizen or scientific advisory groups (see final recommendation).
Fisheries
Despite heavy recreational activity and industrial use, Lake Wabamun is in moderately good condition. The most serious problem is with the fish community. As a result of commercial fishing, sport overfishing, and destruction of fish habitat, walleye have disappeared from the lake. Few pike survive long enough to reach reproductive age. Lake whitefish have not successfully reproduced for several years.
• We recommend that commercial fishing be eliminated altogether, and that sport fishing be restricted to catch and release until populations recover to more normal age structures.
Past efforts to re-introduce walleye have been unsuccessful. High hooking mortality from catch and release angling is probably responsible.
• We recommend that any future attempts to reintroduce walleye be accompanied by total closure to angling of areas of the lake where walleye congregate, until several age classes are established.
While great efforts have been made to reduce industry-related fish mortalities, they are still significant and in some cases unpredictable in occurrence. They are, however less important than mortalities caused by angling or commercial fishing.
• We recommend continued vigilance to prevent and correct fish mortalities. These mortalities should also be taken into account in management and allocation of the fisheries resource.
Weed harvesting is a relatively insignificant source of direct fish mortality, but it causes a significant loss of fish habitat. Modifications of shoreline properties by cottagers have also resulted in significant loss of fish habitat.
• We recommend that weed harvesting be discontinued, and that other prohibited destruction of fish habitat, including weedbeds, be monitored and enforced according t

[Talking moose]

There’s all kinds of info stating walleye were plentiful in the lake prior 19th century.

[Talking moose]

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Talking moose]

Oops. That last one is basically same as first one. Anyway. I’m done. I believe Mother Nature at one time, blessed the lake with walleye.

[wind drift]

A few years ago, I saw copies of commercial fisheries records in the Museum at Seba Beach that reported catches of “pickerel” from Wabamun. That was the common commercial label for walleye for many decades. I was astonished to see the total numbers taken out annually. The lakeside hall at Seba was first built to be a fish plant. Wabamun, Ste. Anne and probably also Isle and Chip lakes were fished hard for many years, with fish going east and west to markets by rail.

When one thinks about it from another perspective, there’s no physical barrier between walleye in the North Saskatchewan river system and Wabamun Lake. Wabamun Creek is a waterway with no permanent barriers. Walleye are native to Jackfish Lake and that outlet creek is smaller than Wabamun Creek.

The history of our lakes is fascinating and easily lost. Makes me want a time machine.