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Study seeks angler input on Ohio’s world-class steelhead fishing
COLUMBUS – Steelhead anglers along Lake Erie’s shoreline and tributaries are being surveyed by the Ohio Department of Natural Resources, Division of Wildlife and The Ohio State University, seeking angler feedback on Ohio’s world-class steelhead fishery.
”This comprehensive creel survey is the first of its kind in almost 25 years,” reported Kevin Kayle, fish biology supervisor for the Division of Wildlife’s Fairport Fish Research Station. “The survey provides an excellent opportunity for us to gauge the popularity of this fishery, measure angler success, sizes of fish harvested, and use of access areas.”
The Division of Wildlife stocks 400,000 yearling steelhead each year in five northern Ohio streams: the Vermilion, Rocky, Chagrin and Grand rivers and Conneaut Creek. These surveys will help measure the quality of opportunities provided by these stockings, and allow comparisons with other steelhead fisheries throughout the Great Lakes.
Division personnel, known as creel clerks, began surveying steelhead anglers the first weekend in October and will continue the project through early May. Creel clerks also will encourage the anglers to participate in a follow-up mail survey conducted in cooperation with Dr. Jeremy Bruskotter of The Ohio State University. It is anticipated that the mail survey will provide additional insights regarding these anglers’ opinions, habits and fishing preferences, and how the fishery contributes to local economies. Bruskotter’s mail survey will begin this December and continue through 2009.
A random selection of all fishing license holders also will be invited to participate in the survey to determine how steelheaders compare to other Ohio anglers.
