"Electric Device For Control of Lampreys OK'd" from the May 27, 1952 Door County Advocate
Electric Device For Control of Lampreys OK'd
Federal and State Men See Experiments on Tour Ending in Door County
The use of electric barriers, in keeping the dreaded lamprey eels from going up creeks to spawn and increase their species was recognized as successful when Great Lakes and Washington biologists completed a tour of federal experimental sites last Thursday night. The tour began in Michigan and finished up in Kewaunee and Door counties. Lampreys are the snake-like fish that attach themselves to other fish and suck their blood until they die.
As a result of the inspection, numerous permanent electric installations will be made next year both in the United States and Canada, but the barrier at Hibbard's creek in Jacksonport will continue to be used in conjunction with the conventional wire traps operated for some years by the Wisconsin Conservation department, so that further study can be made of the effectiveness of various voltages and placing of the electrodes.
Thousands Are Killed
Hibbard's creek has been the site of the largest catches of lampreys in traps and provides an ideal means of close observation of the eels. Once caught in the trap, the eels can be counted and a definite check made on what happens when they are released to go farther upstream where the experimental electric barrier is located. Then in case any lampreys get through the electric field, another wire trap is used to catch them again.
The visitors last Thursday night saw how thousands of lampreys are killed when they get into the charged area. Federal research biologists pointed out that the electric barrier is much cheaper to operate than traps because only two men, for example, would be needed to tend all the barriers in this area.
When using the trap method, it is necessary to remove the fish and bury them, as well as frequently clean out the traps which get filled with debris in the fast moving current. Electric barriers are simple to lift out and put back into the water, and when the lampreys are killed they merely disintegrate.
Other Fish Not Affected
The experiments with electric barriers have showed that it is possible to construct the devices in such a manner that other fish will not be affected. At Hibbard's for example, suckers are entering the charged field, but even if forced back into the lake they can spawn there. Lampreys will spawn only in a fast moving current, and after spawning, they die. If they can be prevented from spawning they will die anyway and their number will decrease rapidly.
One of the successful methods of avoiding danger to other species is use two electrically charged barriers such as at Kewaunee. The first barrier carries a low charge that makes desirable fish go around it upstream, while the lampreys, unaffected, continue through the bather into another one with high enough voltage to kill them.
12 Outside Visitors
Twelve outside visitors were in the party that came to Sturgeon Bay Thursday.
Those from the U.S. Fish and Wild Life service were Paul E. Thompson, assistant chief fisheries biologist, and W. F. Carbine, chief of the inland section, from Washington, D. C.; and the following from the Great Lakes office at Ann Arbor, .Mich.: James W. Moffett, chief of Great Lakes investigations, and John. Van Oosten, Ralph Hile and Paul Eschmeyer, fisheries research biologists.
Dr. Vernon C. Applegate, research biologist in charge of the Hammond Bay, Mich., station, was also here and completed a movie made of the entire tour.
Representing the Wisconsin Conservation department were Edward Schneberger, superintendent of the fish management division at Madison; Charkes Lloyd, his assistant, also from Madison; Richard Harris, area coordinator of the division from Oshkosh, and Matt Patterson, supervisor of commercial fishing in the Sturgeon Bay area.
The province of Ontario, Canada, was represented by H. H. McKay and a Mr. McGillivary of Toronto.
Also making the inspection was Assemblyman Frank N. Graass of this city. Host to the group was Leonard Joeris, fisheries research biologist in charge of the Sturgeon Bay station.
Experts from other Great Lakes states were members of the group for parts of the trip.
See Cisco Operate
Most of the visitors remained to take a trip on the 60-ft. federal research boat Cisco that was especially designed for the government by Walter W. Haertel, local naval architect, to serve as floating laboratory with headquarters in Sturgeon Bay.
The Cisco's trip was made into Green Bay waters to demonstrate the use of scientific equipment. William Glidden of Ann Arbor is the fisheries biologist in charge of the Cisco, assisted part time by Howard Buettner, also of Ann Arbor.
Vernon Seaman of Cheboygan, Mich. is captain of the boat. Clifford LaLonde of this city is engineer, and John Blanchard and John Hayden of Manistique, Mich. are crew members.
Gill Nets Set
The Cisco first showed how experimental gill nets are used. Friday's set was on the bottom at a depth of about 60 feet. A lift was made before returning to port. Only perch was caught, but: is was explained that daytime catches are rare. The nets are always left over night when fish in any quality are desired.
Off Chambers Is. the bathythermograph which records depths and temperatures at the same time was demonstrated, as well as the use of bottles that take water samples every 10 feet of depth so that chemical analyses can be made of the contents at various levels.
Also shown was a device called the plankton which is towed at various depths and strains out even microscopic organisms so that the amount of fish food in the water can be measured. Finally, a bottom sampler was used to show how fish food is is found in mud.
Research work in Green Bay waters, as far as the Cisco is concerned, will end this spring. After that the boat will be taken to Lake Huron for similar work while a smaller boat continues research here.
A tremendous amount of information on the fishing industry is being collected by the scientists but its real value will not be known until enough years have elapsed for the data to provide a pattern for conclusions.
[author not stated]
Courtesy of the Door County Library Newspaper Archive
Posts about fish and fishing
https://doorcounty.substack.com/t/fish-and-fishing
Articles about pest control
https://doorcounty.substack.com/t/pest-control