sad day on the Nipigon River

[Guest BannedCore]

I went to Alexander Dam today and walked the River for a few kms and was heart broke about what I saw. Crayfish and Kockatoosh by the thousand dead and dying left high and dry. I also watched many baitfish and some Brook Trout fry and they seemed to be o.k. There were alot of fish jumping and rolling on the surface. All I could think about was, is there a better way than this to control the Lamprey. Sometimes we argue on here and many of us have different opinions especially when it comes to our favorite fish and our honey holes. But I hope we all can agree that fighting the Lamprey and maybe finding a better way to deal with them would benefit everyone. Everything on the River suffered today and the birds of prey were out in full force. I did drag a dying Lamrey out of the water and it made me feel better.

[Chuck 19]

My son and I put in at Parmachene and went up the river as far as Alexander along the way we stopped at a few spots looking for lures The river was a stinking cesspool . sickly green We did manage to find a couple of puddles that held about a dozen or so cockatouche minnows and we helped them back to the river . really sucks to be a clam though most of them give up trying to get to the water We didn"t even fish. We did manage to get a few Raps and some Cleoes an a big wad of old lines that were tangled along the way Like Hardcore said it was a sad day

There has to be a better way

[Jayfishin 63]

Anyone know what the impact will be on the fall chinook run? We have usually make a trip or two between now and late september. When will OPG release water? I wonder, when the flow starts will it trigger some salmon to head upstream from the bay or will this lamprey control measure take a while to clear the river?

Hoping to get up there soon pending weather and work... and water conditions!

Jay

[Guest lacman]

Anyone know what the impact will be on the fall chinook run? We have usually make a trip or two between now and late september. When will OPG release water? I wonder, when the flow starts will it trigger some salmon to head upstream from the bay or will this lamprey control measure take a while to clear the river?

Hoping to get up there soon pending weather and work... and water conditions!

Jay

I believe that the water will go back up sometime late Thursday night.

As for a better way, as far as I know the lampracide is the only proven way to control the lamprey population. From what I have heard if is used with faster water flow, the lampracide will not be effective as it will go down the river to quickly ie: not have the proper retention time in the river.

[Guest TerryK]

Unfortunately it's a necessary evil if we want our fish stocks to survive the lamprey invasion. There has been continuous research done since the discovery of TFM and nothing else has proven effective.

[Guest BannedCore]

So true.

When they treat the rivers the amount of dead Lamprey blows my mind and also creeps me out.

[Guest TerryK]

So true.

When they treat the rivers the amount of dead Lamprey blows my mind and also creeps me out.

The thing about it is, you don't see the vast majority of the dead detritivore larve as they live their larval stage buried in the bottom of the stream and these larve are what the TFM is designed to attack.

[Guest Wes]

I am concerned about the limited summer run Chinook that may have already spawned. Those eggs could be high and dry. Too bad but like others have stated, a necessary evil.

[Guest TerryK]

It really is hard to say if that is happening Wes, although I'm sure there are some eggs being destroyed, but as you know, the vast majority of salmon spawn a bit later in the season. I believe that part of the DFOs timing. Fry from the spring spawning species are large enough to be more resistant to the TFM and fall spawning species are not quite ready to spawn. I actually have a really good paper written about the history of lamprey treatment in the great lakes if you'd like to read it sometime.

[Guest terminal tackle]

terry i was out there yesterday in the river and there was alot of spawn high and dry on the shoal up by the dam and down by the narrows

[Guest TerryK]

terry i was out there yesterday in the river and there was alot of spawn high and dry on the shoal up by the dam and down by the narrows

I figured there would be. But hey, there a a lot of salmon left to spawn yet so I think they'll be OK! They've been treating the Nipigon since the 50s and the fish seem to recover from any damage done.

[Guest Wes]

This may be a question for Mykiss but if anyone knows the answer please respond.

What makes the few Chinook spawn in July and Aug around here? Is it genetics or was it just time to go (water level/temp or what ever the trigger is)? If it is genetics then that is what I was concerned about. I am not all that concerned about a few reds getting destoyed if they are fall run fish. As stated before, necessary evil. We all know the number of salmon that return to spawn in the fall. I would hate to see the numbers of summer run chinook suffer as this is a fish that we need. How cool would it be to see fall numbers in July? I have personally caught and know people who have caught chinook in the rivers in July and I kinda dig it.

my 2¢

[Guest TerryK]

Keep in mind guys, this treatment isn't done every year.

[Guest Munshaw]

There are chinnok spawning at some point in that river I'll bet from May right through until November/December if not later. Out west there's a summer and winter run of chinooks, and I think there's just some that are programmed to go earlier. Something to do with survival of the species in case of droughts and floods etc. I believe.

[Chuck 19]

My Son and I had to go and rescue my boat at Parmachene today and had a chance to speak to a couple of guys from the DFO Brian Stevens told me that the Nipigon River is one of their priorities and they do it here about every 4 years plus or He told me that they put 750 20 liter jugs of TFM in the river with a cost of 250 k just for the chemical, so with wages and equipment costs, it would add up to a substancial investment. just on the Nipigon River alone . We took the boat from the landing down to Lake Helen and stopped along the way to do some beachcombing.there were dead and dying lampreys along the way so it seems that it does work , we did notice a few dead minnows but no more than what I get in my minnow tank in the morning

He also stated that once the TFM reaches the mouth of the river at Lake Helen it is diluted so much that they measure it in parts per billion and it is harmless to people, thats a comforting thought ,seeing we get our water from the river.I told him that I don"t eat yellow snow either I didn't think to ask him if the money comes from our liscence fees or does it come from the community pot in Ottawa

Hopefully it comes from our liscence fees so at least we all know that by paying the fee we all contribute to the welfare of all the streams and creeks that we all get to enjoy today. and in the future

Nessessary Evil??? Kudos to them

The Enemy

The Cure

The product

The Bonus

[img]http://i248.photobucket.com/albums/gg175/rockrangers/Nipigon063.jpg[

That"s all for now Chuck and Jon

[Wade O. 44]

HEY! That was my rap!

[Monks 164]

My Son and I had to go and rescue my boat at Parmachene today and had a chance to speak to a couple of guys from the DFO Brian Stevens told me that the Nipigon River is one of their priorities and they do it here about every 4 years plus or He told me that they put 750 20 liter jugs of TFM in the river with a cost of 250 k just for the chemical, so with wages and equipment costs, it would add up to a substancial investment. just on the Nipigon River alone . We took the boat from the landing down to Lake Helen and stopped along the way to do some beachcombing.there were dead and dying lampreys along the way so it seems that it does work , we did notice a few dead minnows but no more than what I get in my minnow tank in the morning

He also stated that once the TFM reaches the mouth of the river at Lake Helen it is diluted so much that they measure it in parts per billion and it is harmless to people, thats a comforting thought ,seeing we get our water from the river.I told him that I don"t eat yellow snow either I didn't think to ask him if the money comes from our liscence fees or does it come from the community pot in Ottawa

Hopefully it comes from our liscence fees so at least we all know that by paying the fee we all contribute to the welfare of all the streams and creeks that we all get to enjoy today. and in the future

Nessessary Evil??? Kudos to them

The Enemy

Thanks for the report guys and for relaying the goal of the project. I think we all need to realize that this is being done for the benefit of what we all want, a healthy fishery. Yes there are some casualties but from what I have read the benefit of losing some preferred species is outweighed by killing the invasive species. (We created his problem) I will take the DFO or MNR side here. They are here to help us out and in this case I believe they are doing that. If you guys feel otherwise write somewhere else other than here, because parliment is not familiar with TBF.

The Cure

The product

The Bonus

[img]http://i248.photobucket.com/albums/gg175/rockrangers/Nipigon063.jpg[

That"s all for now Chuck and Jon

[Guest BannedCore]

I know that this is the best method so far to control the Lamprey. I just hope that somebody is still trying to figure out a better way.

[Guest TerryK]

I know that this is the best method so far to control the Lamprey. I just hope that somebody is still trying to figure out a better way.

They have been doing continued research since 1953.

Here's and interesting fact for you guys: Above the Black Sturgeon dam there are and estimated 14.7 million Northern Brook Lamprey a native, non parasitic species that was just recently placed on the "species at risk" list.

[Guest Sea Bass]

They have been doing continued research since 1953.

Here's and interesting fact for you guys: Above the Black Sturgeon dam there are and estimated 14.7 million Northern Brook Lamprey a native, non parasitic species that was just recently placed on the "species at risk" list.

Oh man....not the Dam.

All we need is a few good men, a pickup truck, a couple beers, and a couple sticks of dynamite. We'd never have to hear about the stupid Dam again.

[Guest Dan]

A few shots from the Neebing River last June. The biggest guys here were 18 to 20"+.

[Guest Sea Bass]

A few shots from the Neebing River last June. The biggest guys here were 18 to 20"+.

Where those picture before or after the poisoning?

[Guest Dan]

Way before.. I talked the guy from oceans and fisheries about this and he told me that they wouldn't be treating the Neebing until August. Taking these photos were kind of a blast from the past for me. As a youth I spent every summer day at the Neebing River weir. I've seen that same scene many, many times before, but not for several decades. We used to have guys on the bridge, who were the eyes, and guys on shore with 3 pronged hooks. The guys on the bridge would tell the guys with the rods just when to pull. We pulled out a bunch of these guys each year in the 70's. Yeah, we were breaking the law and snagging. I've recently found out that not all Lamprey are bad. I hope that we were killing the bad ones. Oh well. Kids will be kids regardless.

[Guest Sea Bass]

Way before.. I talked the guy from oceans and fisheries about this and he told me that they wouldn't be treating the Neebing until August. Taking these photos were kind of a blast from the past for me. As a youth I spent every summer day at the Neebing River weir. I've seen that same scene many, many times before, but not for several decades. We used to have guys on the bridge, who were the eyes, and guys on shore with 3 pronged hooks. The guys on the bridge would tell the guys with the rods just when to pull. We pulled out a bunch of these guys each year in the 70's. Yeah, we were breaking the law and snagging. I've recently found out that not all Lamprey are bad. I hope that we were killing the bad ones. Oh well. Kids will be kids regardless.

how can snagging lampry be bad or illegal??!

[Guest Dan]

how can snagging lampry be bad or illegal??!

Apparently there's some Lamprey that are harmless to fish. I was told this when I posted these photos on another message board. So I'm not sure.

Just another quick story about Lamprey here. Again, as a youth, I was swimming in the Neebing River near Chapples golf course. We had a couple of inner tubes and were doing just what kids so in the summer. Once, as I lifted my leg on to the tube, I noticed a Lamprey stuck to my thigh. I tried grabbing it and pulling it off, but it was too slippery. I ended up slapping the thing off of my leg and I practically walked on water to get out of the river after that. How many here can claim that they've had a Lamprey stuck to them? Besides me..