Parsons, who has been Minnesota’s top fisheries manager for the past six years, said DNR officials have been considering a cut in the statewide walleye limit for at least the past decade. Walleye hotspots like Lake Mille Lacs, Upper Red Lake, Lake Vermilion and Lake of the Woods have, for years, been under special management with lower bag limits.
DNR Commissioner Sarah Strommen supports going ahead with the plan, Parsons said.
“I fully respect the people who have a different opinion,’’ Parsons said. “We will keep listening, but it’s not like we are doing something completely out of the realm.’’
Walleye bag limits and possession limits in surrounding states and in Ontario have all been lowered, Parsons said. Meanwhile, there’s mounting scientific evidence that walleyes – a species suited for cool and cold water – are losing habitat due to long-term changes in temperature. DNR scientists have documented damage to food chains in walleye lakes that have become infested with zebra mussels and other invasive species.
“Overall conditions in the upper Midwest and Canada are getting tougher,’’ Parsons said.
Former state Sen. Carrie Ruud, R-Breezy Point, carried a bill at the Legislature for three consecutive years that would have lowered the statewide keeper limit for walleyes to four. She eventually won backing from the DNR, but couldn’t muster enough support from her fellow lawmakers to pass the bill.
