Managing Lake Erie Walleye and Perch Populations

Presented by Jeff Tyson, Lake Erie Program Administrator, ODNR Division of Wildlife
In Lake Erie, inter-jurisdictional yellow perch and walleye resources are managed by multiple agencies under the auspices of the Great Lakes Fishery Commission’s Joint Strategic Plan for the Management of Great Lakes Fisheries. Because of the shared nature of these resources (i.e. fish do not respect jurisdictional boundaries), there is the potential for the actions (or harvest) of one jurisdiction to affect other jurisdictions, therefore, consensus decisions on, among other things, harvest, are required by individual agencies. Because of the differences in the nature of the fisheries that operate in different jurisdictions, the Lake Erie Committee agencies use harvest quotas (total maximum “safe” harvest levels) as tools for effectively managing the yellow perch and walleye populations in Lake Erie for sustainability. Each agency around Lake Erie is responsible for implementing individual regulations on various fisheries within their jurisdiction to ensure that their harvest does not exceed their portion of the harvest quota. In this webinar I will detail the process that the Lake Erie Committee uses for estimating the status (or health) of yellow perch and walleye populations in Lake Erie, establishing annual harvest quotas, how Ohio allocates these fishery resources among various user groups (recreational and commercial sectors), and how Ohio ensures that these quotas are not exceeded.