Datasets / Fisheries Management Plan: Rice Lake National Wildlife Refuge


Fisheries Management Plan: Rice Lake National Wildlife Refuge

Published By US Fish and Wildlife Service, Department of the Interior

Issued over 9 years ago

US
beta

Summary

Type of release
a one-off release of a single dataset

Data Licence
Not Applicable

Content Licence
Creative Commons CCZero

Verification
automatically awarded

Description

Rice Lake National Wildlife Refuge provides a sport fishery on three of the four refuge lakes. Fishing is restricted to designated areas. Rice Lake, though not open to fishing, is an important spawning area for northern pike. A common problem confronting the refuge fishery is reduced dissolved oxygen levels during the winter months. This problem limits the major fish populations to species tolerant of low levels of oxygen, i.e., northern pike, yellow perch and bullheads. A second problem is limited predation on bullheads which leads to overpopulation and stunted growth. Fishing opportunities on the Rice Lake Refuge are limited, but increased fishing can be provided with minor changes in refuge public fishing regulations. The sport fishery can be improved by reduction and control of nondesirable species. This plan was developed in concert with the refuge manager, Rice Lake National Wildlife Refuge by the fishery management biologist, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Iron River, Wisconsin. Input was provided by the refuge staff and the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. This version updates a previous plan produced in June 1980. The purpose of the plan is to present a management scheme which will make optimum use of the fishery resource and be compatible with state and refuge objectives.