Max Wolter Wisconsin DNR Fish Biologist, Author at Outdoor News

Ask a fisheries biologist: Early spring fishing opportunities in Wisconsin

Features, Fishing, National Fishing, Wisconsin / Max Wolter Wisconsin DNR Fish Biologist

Anglers often overlook early spring, but this period offers some exceptional fishing at a time with limited outdoor opportunities. Starting in 2026, some new opportunities go along with the tried and true favorites.
The release trout season starts in January, but the harvest season now opens the first Saturday in April. Check the trout regulations for size and bag limits.

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Ask a fisheries biologist: What research is saying about the impact of forward-facing sonar

Featured, Fishing, National Fishing, Wisconsin / Max Wolter Wisconsin DNR Fish Biologist

In early February, the Wisconsin Chapter of the American Fisheries Society met in La Crosse. One conference topic heavily overlapped conversations among anglers: the effects of fishing technology.
In recent years, advanced sonar systems, commonly called ‘forward facing sonar (FFS),’ became a hot topic for anglers and researchers.

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Ask a Fisheries Biologist: How often are Wisconsin anglers limiting out on panfish?

Featured, Features, Fishing, National Fishing, Wisconsin / Max Wolter Wisconsin DNR Fish Biologist

Some anglers worry that other anglers are taking a full limit or more of panfish. How common is it for a panfish angler to keep a limit or more than the limit?

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Ask a fisheries biologist: Fish growth not a straightforward process

Fishing, National Fishing, Wisconsin / Max Wolter Wisconsin DNR Fish Biologist

Anglers love fish, but what they really love are big fish. The process for growing big is not always straightforward. When fish biologists talk about fish getting bigger, we talk in terms of ‘growth’ measured in inches or pounds gained.
Most commonly, I use inches because that is used for almost all of our harvest regulations.

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Ask a fisheries biologist: A better understanding of fish recruitment

Fishing, National Fishing, Wisconsin / Max Wolter Wisconsin DNR Fish Biologist

The sustainability of a fishery relies on new fish coming into the lake. Biologists call that concept ‘recruitment,’ one of the most important dynamics in our fisheries.

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Ask a fisheries biologist: Suckers good as table fare?

Fishing, National Fishing, Wisconsin / Max Wolter Wisconsin DNR Fish Biologist

Crappies, bluegills, walleyes, trout, and even northern pike wind up on many dinner tables, but there is an abundant group of fish that rarely gets eaten – suckers.
For our purposes here, ‘suckers’ will refer to the true sucker species and the redhorse species. These fish are native and common in many Wisconsin waters, especially medium-sized rivers.

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Ask a Fisheries Biologist: The winter life of fisheries professionals

Fishing, Wisconsin / Max Wolter Wisconsin DNR Fish Biologist

The job duties of fisheries professionals tend to fascinate anglers. What is not to like about a job in which a workday can be anything from wrangling 100-pound sturgeon below a dam to electrofishing for muskellunge late at night?

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Ask a fisheries biologist: How old do fish get?

Fishing, National Fishing, Wisconsin / Max Wolter Wisconsin DNR Fish Biologist

“Many people ask how old different species get. Here are a couple of examples. Brook and brown trout are relatively short-lived and typically do not get older than 5 or 6 years. Bluegills occasionally reach 10 years old, but most that you see in a lake would be 2 to 6 years old.

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Ask a fisheries biologist: What do we do in the winter?

Fishing, National Fishing, Wisconsin / Max Wolter Wisconsin DNR Fish Biologist

One of the more frequent questions people ask about my job is ‘What do you guys do in winter?’ People who ask that question correctly identify that our work changes quite a bit once ice locks fish under its cover until spring.

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Max Wolter Wisconsin DNR Fish Biologist

Ask a fisheries biologist: Early spring fishing opportunities in Wisconsin

Ask a fisheries biologist: What research is saying about the impact of forward-facing sonar

Ask a Fisheries Biologist: How often are Wisconsin anglers limiting out on panfish?

Ask a fisheries biologist: Fish growth not a straightforward process

Ask a fisheries biologist: A better understanding of fish recruitment

Ask a fisheries biologist: Suckers good as table fare?

Ask a Fisheries Biologist: The winter life of fisheries professionals

Ask a fisheries biologist: How old do fish get?

Ask a fisheries biologist: What do we do in the winter?

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