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8/8/2016 Invasive fish and poor water quality challenge central Maine fisheries biologists | georgesmithmaine.com

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Invasive fish and poor water quality challengecentral Maine fisheries biologistsSubmitted by George Smith on Sat, 07/16/2016 14:38

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A LIFE LIVED OUTDOORS

In A Life Lived Outdoors, published by

Islandport Press, popular Maine columnist and

outdoor enthusiast George Smith reflects on the

way life should be, could be, and sometimes is

in the great state of Maine. From finding

newborn mice in a drawer the first day back at

camp, to saying goodbye to a beloved son after

graduation, to searching for the right words to

honor a friend, Smith transforms everyday

encounters and outdoor adventures into an

entertaining narrative that is both funny and



“Central Maine is the invasive species headquarters for the state.” That’s the sobering conclusion of DIF&W

Fisheries Biologist Jason Seiders, one of the three biologists in Region B which includes 4000 square miles, 370

lakes and ponds, and 3500 miles of flowing water in central Maine. Yes, these folks are busy!

But not too busy for Jason to present a very interesting talk at the Maine Lakes Conservation Center in Belgrade

Lakes on July 14. Local game warden Ethan Buuck, who lives down the road from me in Mount Vernon and covers

five towns in our area, also spoke. Ethan’s short talk focused on boating law enforcement during the summer

months. It was good to hear him say, “Most people behave very well.” And he said he’s often told, “We’re glad to

see you guys out.” I was surprised to learn that the Warden Service employs boating assistants in the summer with

federal funding from the Coast Guard.

Ethan also told us that “spring fishing was a little slow. We didn’t see the usual number of violations. And it was

also a slow winter” on the ice. The day he spoke to us, he’d worked on a search warrant and given a talk to kids

about wildlife.

SeidersJason Seiders has been working at DIF&W for ten years, and has developed

an excellent reputation in my area. He gave a very informative and interesting

talk, and answered many questions, including a bunch from me.

He told us we no longer have brook trout that spawn and hold over to the next

year in the Belgrade Lakes area, because of invasive species, and he noted

that, “Invasive species are becoming more popular with anglers here than

stocked fish.” I’d talked that day at the Liberal Cup in Hallowell with an outof

state angler who was staying at Castle Island Camps on Long Pond in

Belgrade. He came here specifically to catch smallmouth bass and northern pike, dominant fish in Long Pond,

where I once caught wonderful Landlocked salmon.

DIF&W has given up on trout and salmon in the pond, and has begun stocking rainbow trout there, because

rainbows will eat the landlocked alewives that have now eliminated smelts from the pond. Jason also said that

crappie, in addition to pike, are now very popular in Long Pond. That reminded me of my recent column titled,

“Fishing is Crappie.”

Jason thinks that rainbows will bring outofstaters to Maine to fish, but I told him I’m skeptical of that. There are a

lot of great places to fish for rainbows, and I have done that, primarily in Montana and Alaska. But rainbows will

certainly be popular with local anglers.

He also explained a fish kill this spring on McGrath Pond and Salmon Lake, which turned out to be all white perch.

“Water temperature changes killed the spawning fish,” he said. Technically, their ability to manage sodium was

diminished, causing infections to set in, along with parasites and fungal infections. He did reassure us that “there

are still plenty of white perch there.” And he knew that because he fishes those waters often.

Then he turned to Great Pond, where just a few years ago they were catching brown trout up to 8 pounds. Last fall,

heartfelt. In thiscollection of new andfavorite columns,Smith finds theperfect hook to landyour attention andkeep you readinguntil the very last line.

“This book is a longvalentine to the hills,small towns, backroads, woods, ponds,

and streams (especially the streams) of Smith’snative state.” – Angus King, U.S. Senator(Maine).

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08/02/2016 (/articles/book-reviews/august/2016/cold-blood-hot-sea-charlene-d%E2%80%99avanzo)

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Maine once had 50 fish hatcheries or feeding



while trap netting Great Pond, they sadly caught no brown trout. They did catch a huge 42 inch 7 pound eel. Their

recent summer survey, using gill nets which kill the fish, found 4 small brown trout in Great Pond. He said he’ll be

doing a winter creel survey to learn more about what’s happened to the brown trout here.

A rather humerous comment from the audience at this point noted that brown trout are also an invasive nonnative

fish. They’re not even native to our continent! So yes, we pick and choose our invasives. Some we love, some we

love to hate. I happen to like walleyes, and there were a few for a while in Long Pond, but they are long gone, and

Jason said that’s a good thing, because if they’d done well there, he’s afraid anglers would have spread them to

other waters. That’s sad but true, I think. Maine did, at one time, stock walleye in a lot of waters.

Jason brought us uptodate on the closure of the Gray fish hatchery, due to a sudden drop in water flowing to the

hatchery. I wrote about that when it happened, and will be publishing an update on the situation soon.

Stating that the proliferation of invasive fish “is really a shame,” Jason surprised me when he said juvenile pike

have moved up into the small streams and brooks in the Belgrade watershed, eliminating the brook trout that used

to thrive there. He said the pike stay in the streams and brooks all summer, “and consume everything.”

At the end of his enlightening talk, Jason summed things up, noting that “water quality is the biggest problem and

challenge in this region,” – even bigger than invasive fish. Something to think about – and work on.

George's Outdoor News (/articles/georges-outdoor-news)

stations, 07/28/2016 (/articles/georges-outdoor-news/july/2016/maine-once-had-50-fish-hatcheries-or-feeding-stations)

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Frank’s food is as good as the scenery,07/19/2016 (/articles/best-maine/july/2016/frank%E2%80%99s-food-good-scenery)

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tells-us-how-improve-wildlife-habitat-our-own-land)

We should be so lucky as to celebrate ourbirthday on a Maine island!, 07/10/2016(/articles/book-reviews/july/2016/we-should-be-so-lucky-celebrate-our-birthday-maine-island)

Everything you want to know about vernalpools and estuaries – in wonderful childrens’books, 07/10/2016 (/articles/book-reviews/july/2016/everything-you-want-know-about-vernal-pools-and-estuaries-%E2%80%93-wonderfu)

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