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Outdoor Insights: New perch bag limits on Minnesota’s Mille Lacs serve as a forward-facing sonar wake-up call
Two weeks ago, Minnesota DNR Fisheries restricted the bag limit for yellow perch on Lake Mille Lacs.
The fantastic jumbo bite there this winter produced big grins and piles of fillets for anglers, plus positive news for the Mille Lacs region. Coupled with the upcoming two-walleye bag beginning May 10, the year has kicked off well for the big lake.
The perch limit slashing from 20 to five presents a case study that could’ve happened anywhere. I think we just witnessed the first major Minnesota DNR reaction to the huge effects of forward-facing sonar.
Anglers who know more about fishing than me will tell you the jumbos on Mille Lacs didn’t magically appear. They’ve been there a couple of years. Some anglers were catching them, but the bite blew up because so many more anglers are employing FFS. (In fairness, better ice conditions this winter made these perch more accessible, too.)
The majority of the perch caught since New Year’s were on mid-lake flats or roaming what Joe Fellegy calls “deep nowhere” away from structure. A few years ago, a lot of these perch would never have seen a hook. Today, the combination of social media and FFS quickly put overwhelming pressure on them during an icy three-month window.
Again, it’s good that anglers enjoyed fine fishing. But when harvest (43,000-plus pounds and counting) blows up 600% from the previous high of the past 13 years (7,000 in 2013), some intrepid outdoors writers might ask the DNR what FFS means for all our fish species. How can stocking or natural reproduction keep up with that pace of angler harvest? This Mille Lacs example is simply the bleeding edge.
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Three-plus years ago, a fishing guide pulled me aside and said, “Rob, I see how effective I’ve become with this forward-facing sonar. When everyone is using this, there will not be any fish left in the lakes.” Since then, this newspaper and other outdoors media have profiled the technology extensively.
Some folks privately are complaining that FFS has changed the culture of fishing. Everyone’s slowly criss-crossing lakes while staring at screens and searching for big fish instead of actually wetting a line. No one believes we can ban it or place the genie back in the bottle, but the Mille Lacs perch example proves its effects on fish populations are real. FFS demands a new worldview from state fish managers.
It’s not just Mille Lacs. Outdoor News is hearing reports that the perch bite on places like Devils Lake in North Dakota has declined, in part because big perch can’t hide anymore. Red Lake crappies were back this winter, but slabs don’t hold out long today when guides and anglers can locate them so quickly.
In just a couple of years, the culture of guiding and tournament angling has been turned upside down. Yeah, that’s change and that’s life – ask anyone in computer coding how their field has changed in the past 18 months thanks to AI – but fish managers have the ability to anticipate what’s coming and adjust regulations appropriately.
The nonprofit group MN-Fish will hold its Anglers Summit this week in Grand Rapids, then DNR Fisheries will convene a summit of its own on Saturday at Central Lakes College in Brainerd. Technology, specifically forward-facing or live sonar, will be on the agenda at both events. Fishing advocates in this state need to move beyond talk and initiate pro-active strategies with the FFS phenomenon, instead of reacting with 75% bag limit decreases.
We’ve been talking about this herd of techno-elephants in the corner for years; we shouldn’t be getting caught with our pants down when legions of savvy anglers simply follow the bag limit and technology rules, then wipe out an entire year-class of panfish in a few months. To paraphrase Mr. Fellegy: Game on, sharpies!
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5 thoughts on “Outdoor Insights: New perch bag limits on Minnesota’s Mille Lacs serve as a forward-facing sonar wake-up call”
Hi Rob
I happened be out on mille lacs during this bite. First off it not just forward facing sonar catching more fush these days all eletrics these days helping in catching . The number one reason for more fush being caught cell phones and faces book everyone and there brother was call and posting fir there friebds come up . I ask are you going take there phones away? I fish alot during summer like all the time i have forward facing s9bar its a tool they dobt always bite. Do know what catches me more fish than anything ? Good mapping abd spot lock trolling motor. I ask are we going take everyone trolling motors . I think your taking this way too Far my option! As far as perch mille lake the DNR has damn limit way to high begin with who need 20 perch should be 10 all year. My option the also need set fish house limits they bring whole damn family and piles kids they wgere filling5 gallon pales perch. I think they should set family bag limuts they dobt need 100 s fish per Family. As far fish run in 10 year cycles this way tgere so many jumbo being caught it age class
I personally feel bag limits
Should be lowered
I use ffs
You can just watch reaction of fish / change color /jig
You can get them to bite
I also agree that the whole family
Should only have 20 crappies for family of 4 if out fishing
5 crappies per person is enough
Per day and 10 total in possesion
Walleye 2 between 15 to 18
1 over 24
Just my opinion
Or the lake wont have any fish
Left
FFS isn’t the major issue in my opinion. Social media is the biggest culprit. MN also has extremely outdated regulations, I know a lot of lakes have special regs for walleyes, but the statewide limit of 6 hasn’t been changed since the mid 1960s. The MN DNR has been decades behind the curve for a long time on all species. Lower limits, increase angler education on proper fish handling, and encourage catch and release. Who’s hurting a lake more, a guy who uses FFS to find spring crappies and releases most of his catch, or a guy who doesn’t use FFS but takes multiple limits of crappies per week in the month of May during the spawn? It’s really simple, with the number of anglers in MN and the rise of social media, we need to focus on less fish being taken out of the lake, not just banning technology.
I know the DNR has to measure their policies weight on the resorts and tourism that fishing creates, with what is good for the fish populations and the lakes in general. I agree with what others have said here. The multitudes of people catching buckets of fish is IMHO excessive and ridiculous on a lot of levels. For so many people it becomes this “badge” that they can have a picture with 100 fish. For others, they just don’t seem to care what affects it has. “I got mine before they were all gone”. Red lake crappie was a perfect example of what happens.
How many get netted? They blamed the single pole angler for walleye numbers dropping but allowed natives to continue to net during the spawn. I’m sure the one angler catching 20 walleye a season vs the thousands netted during the spawn was really the issue😂