WALRANGER5

In the June 18th Milwaukee Journal Sentinel Dan Egan, 10 fold increase in positive EDNA Asian Carp hits above the barrier. Regardless of where you stand on EDNA I would remind all of you Dr. David Jude only found one Goby in 1990!

From the Seagrant results "Lake Michigan and it's fish are shared resources" I have talked to Dan O'keefe several times, and many others, I did try. Forgive me if I splained it wrong. You cannot solve an invasive species problem by increasing an invasive species. PHD or not, that rule never chages.

The native fishery is restoring, without alewives. I have not brow beaten anyone, on the contrary everyone is having the salmon forced on them, by what appears to be only 580 concerned anglers. Please understand stand, if we lose the alewives, we only lose the salmon , not the whole big lake fishery. If we lose to the Asian carp, we lose the big lake fishery, and the inland fisheries as well. They will spread inland just like the gobies and what they're doing down south. I am trying to help other "anglers" including you.

Nope! Restoring the native fish population, (Perch included) is what we're all supposed to be working towards. According to the experts a diverse native fishery is more resistant to invasive species, they call it (biotic-resistance) in sufficent numbers even zebra mussel populations can be controlled. This alewife survey "too many predators (salmon) will wipe out the alewives" same same, big fish eat litte fish..... The Seagrant 2012 Lake Michigan salmon stocking survey results, paragraph 2 " The primary purpose of the survey, and the presceding outreach to stakeholders, was to evaluate stocking options on a lakewide basis "in recognition of the FACT that Lake Michigan and it's fish are shared resources" This "plan" is to refill the lakes with alewives, which by predation on native larval fish (Perch walleye ect..) destroys the "native shared fish resource" for everyone else. Sorry, that's the way it is. Perch eat all the invasives we have now will eat baby Asian carp all day long, but they also eat alewives. So we can't have any bio-tic resistance to any invasive species because that would affect the predator prey balance on the alewives! Some people dont want to share the resource, it's all about them. Sacrificing an entire natural ecosystem for one fish, is beyond selfish.

With respect, this "save the alewives" survey to avoid a "crisis" only generated minimal interest in saving the alewives/salmon. "Billions of dollars" worth of invisible "stakeholders" either didn't care or wern't there in the first place. Regardless this was a vote to increase an invasive species, (alewives) nothing more.

Only 580 people from all 4 states took the survey, only 271 from Michigan cared what happens to the alewives. This does not indicate "billion of dollars" in interest in keeping the salmon, not by any stretch of the imagination.

Yep, that be it, Thank You Sir for your help.

I'm not that user friendly, pasting wont work for me (My son has tried to teach me). But I don't understand I just google (asian carp spread map USGS) and there's the page with the sites. You can do this for all invasive species. The USGS is tracking them all. Google (common carp control using native predators) lots of interesting studies. If someone can paste them please do. I google most every thing.

Some recent things about the Asian Carp you all should be aware of, your paying for it. please go to asiancarp.us, and find (fishing down the bighead and silver carps) 100% of fish over 16 inches etc... Find Asian carp spread map USGS released 5/24/2012 see what the "barrier" is supposed to stop. The EPA is going to form yet another "advisory" committee for the great lakes thier first they say. The feds admit we have native predators for juvenile asian carp, and can control them,but they have to be abundant. The asian carp are very real, and have all the attributes to to very well here, to think otherwise would be irresponsible. If they get a foothold in Lake Michigan, we have a carp pond deluxe! You may also want to check the recent Goby spread Map USGS, that's just plain sad!

Thank you for pointing out alewife are major consumers of larval fish. Will alewives eat larval Asian carp? Sure if the carp spawn in june when the alewives come into spawn, the other 2 or 3 times they spawn the alewives will be out in the lake, salmon can't survive in the warm spawning areas, so Asian Carp have the advantage, as do the other freshwater invasive species, now spreading across the state and beyond. Growing too big for predators, protects thier females, and they have 20+ years to wait for "the right conditions" attacking or making the near shore spawning areas useless to them (lots of predators, no room at the inn), is our best bet at controlling them. This has been proven many times with common carp. Lack of predators allowed alewives etc.... There is no such thing as a safe level of alewives or any other invasive species. I was asked not to talk about Asian carp, but you asked. If the Asian carp get control of the spawning/nursery areas, it wont matter how many salmon you cut or stock!

Thank you.

Nobody knows how many people took the salmon survey?

Anybody know how many people took the stocking cuts survey?

As you wish. However this is my imput on stocking stratagies. Filling Lake Michigan back up with alewives, by any means, stocking cuts, planting (some are calling for planting alewives) is not in the publics and the lakes best interest, and will be a major factor in whether or not the Asian Carp can thrive in our lakes. Sacrificing an entire Great Lake and connecting waters for one non-native fish, is not what I'd call a good idea.

With respect, the salmon are not worth any billion, let alone 8 to 10. I stand behind what I said. Have a nice day.