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MPR News Staff

DNR to open Mille Lacs for winter walleye, allow some keepers

Lake Mille Lacs catch
A bin holds a day's catch of walleye and northerns from Lake Mille Lacs, in this file photo from May 2009.
Ambar Espinoza | MPR 2009

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State conservation officials said Thursday they'll let anglers on Lake Mille Lacs keep some walleye during a winter fishing season running Dec. 1 to Feb. 26.

The decision is a course change for the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. In March, the agency banned walleye keepers during the open water season that began in May.

The department eventually shut down catch-and-release in early September, citing concerns from eight Chippewa bands.

Mille Lacs' walleye population has fallen significantly in recent years on the iconic lake and officials have struggled to balance the demands of local businesses dependent on walleye fishing with the need to rebuild the fishery.

On Thursday, the DNR said agency and tribal biologists met Tuesday to evaluate the status of the walleye population and concluded they'd met the goal of conserving the 2013 year-class of young walleye, the lake's future spawners, with "minimal fishing mortality occurring during the past year and key population benchmarks successfully met. Those factors combined to support a modest winter harvest for Mille Lacs Lake walleye."

"The winter season regulation enables Mille Lacs anglers to catch and keep walleye while providing necessary fish conservation and support to the Mille Lacs area economy," Don Pereira, DNR fisheries chief, said in a statement.

The 2016-2017 season continues last winter's one fish daily limit but moves the harvest slot up slightly from last year's 18 to 20 inches. Anglers can keep one walleye between 19 and 21 inches or one longer than 28 inches.

Winter rules also allow anglers to keep five northern pike under certain conditions.

Bass regulations on Mille Lacs will remain the same, although the DNR noted that "on the heels of a very successful Toyota Angler of the Year tournament and the increased attention it has focused on Mille Lacs' world-class smallmouth, discussions with the Mille Lacs advisory committee will be ongoing to determine if changes may be warranted for the open water bass season."