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Fishing Media Kit
Your one-stop shop for news and information regarding fishing from the Department of Natural Resources.
Ice Fishing
Photo Credit: Scott Hulse
Winter is a great time to panfish!
DNR Ice Fishing in Wisconsin web page is your gateway to information about season dates, regulations, and all things ice fishing. Ice fishing is a great Wisconsin tradition and one of the state's most popular outdoor winter activities. Head outside for some hot fishing. Flag's up!
- Ice fishing trails only sledding, snowmobiling and ice skating outdoors as the most popular of outdoor winter activities.
- Wisconsin has 1.4 million licensed anglers, and about one-third that number report they ice fish.
- Anglers spent 11 million hours ice fishing in 2006, the most recent year for which statistics are available. That's 21 percent of the total 52 million hours spent fishing across all of 2006.
Percent State Residents Participating in Wisconsin Snow- and Ice-Based Activities (Age 16+)
| Activity | Percent participants | Number of participants |
|---|---|---|
| Sledding | 29.3 | 1,218,000 |
| Snowmobiling | 18.3 | 761,000 |
| Ice skating outdoors | 16.6 | 690,000 |
| Ice fishing | 11.4 | 474,000 |
| Skiing - cross country | 11.4 | 474,000 |
| Skiing - downhill | 9.7 | 403,000 |
| Snowshoeing | 8.0 | 333,000 |
| Snowboarding | 4.7 | 195,000 |
| Ice hockey outdoors | 4.0 | 166,000 |
| Skiing - telemark | 2.4 | 99,000 |
| Dog sledding | 1.1 | 46,000 |
| Source: 2005-2010 Wisconsin Statewide Comprehensive Outdoor Recreation Plan (SCORP) | ||
- Panfish were caught more frequently than anything else, with northern pike and walleye second and third.
- A higher proportion of fish caught in winter are kept, or harvested. That holds true for individual species as well.
Top species of fish caught and harvested in Wisconsin in winter and across the year
| Fish | Total caught | Total Kept | Caught in winter | Kept in winter |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Panfish | 57.7 million | 25.7 million | 11.7 million | 5.7 million |
| Northern Pike | 3.2 million | 622,000 | 866,000 | 327,000 |
| Walleye | 7 million | 2.2 million | 750,000 | 315,000 |
| Bass | 10 million | 550,000 | 229,000 | 60,000 |
| All Fish | 88.2 million | 33.1 million | 14 million | 6.6 million |
| Source: 2006 DNR statewide mail survey | ||||
Fast Facts
The fish
It's fun to catch fish!
- The National Fresh Water Fishing Hall of Fame and Museum confirmed in January 2009 that the 51.25-inch musky Brad Bohen caught Oct. 16, 2008, was a world fly rod record for a released fish on a 36-pound tippet.
- Wisconsin waters are home to 165 fish species; 150 of these species are native to the state and 15 are introduced non-native species.
- The sturgeon is the state's largest, and longest-lived fish; in fact, the world's record sturgeon taken by hook and line was a 170-pound, 10-ounce giant hauled from Wisconsin's Yellow Lake in Burnett County in 1979. The state record for a speared sturgeon was set that same year, when a 195-pound lake sturgeon was speared on Pokegama Lake in Vilas County by a tribal member exercising his treaty rights.
- The muskellunge, or musky, is the state fish. More world record musky have been landed here than anywhere else. In 2006, for example, anglers reported catching more than 60 musky over 48 inches, including a 53-inch Vilas County fish that weighted 51 pounds and 2 ounces.
- Walleye are Wisconsin anglers' favorite targets, followed by bass. Collectively, panfish are caught most frequently.
- By far, most Wisconsin fish are the result of naturally reproducing populations. But the DNR typically raises and stocks about 12 million fish of larger sizes.
The waters
- 15,081 inland lakes, 42,000 miles of perennial streams and rivers, 1,000 miles of Great Lakes shoreline, and 260 miles of the Mississippi River.
- Wisconsin boasts 10, 266 miles of trout streams, with 4,136 of those miles being high quality, Class 1 trout streams.
- Vilas and Oneida counties in northern Wisconsin boast the world's largest collection of kettle lakes, with more than 2,000 lakes between them.
- More than 90 percent of Wisconsin waters are supported entirely by natural reproduction resulting from good aquatic habitat.
The anglers
- Wisconsin annually sells about 1.4 million fishing licenses to adult anglers.
- Anglers spent 20.8 million days fishing in Wisconsin in 2006.
- Nearly 41 percent of Wisconsin residents 16 and over participate in fishing
- Wisconsin is the second favorite destination spot for nonresident anglers
- Anglers annually catch 88 million fish and keep 33 million fish of all kinds, releasing the rest to challenge anglers another day.
- Wisconsin ranks among the top 5 states in terms of numbers of anglers, behind the more populous coastal states of Florida, California and Texas.
The economic impact
- Fishing generates a $2.75 billion economic impact in Wisconsin
- More than 30,000 Wisconsin jobs are supported by fishing
- Fishing related activities and sales generate $200 million in state tax revenues for local and state government. Less than 1 percent is returned to DNR for traditional fisheries management.
- 381,000 nonresident anglers fished in Wisconsin in 2006, spending a total of 3.8 million days and $280 million on retail goods.
---Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources; U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service; American Sportfishing Association
Top Fish Caught In Wisconsin
| No. of fish caught | No. of fish harvested | |
|---|---|---|
| All panfish | 57,728,758 | 25,732,346 |
| Walleye | 7,068,112 | 2,155,626 |
| All bass | 10,073,286 | 550,335 |
| All trout | 1,615,190 | 497,783 |
| Muskellunge | 223,101 | 12,493 |
| Northern pike | 3,158,927 | 621,700 |
| Catfish | 777,094 | 535,658 |
| Other | 7,580,707 | 2,983,290 |
| Total fish | 88,228,175 | 33,089,231 |
Source: 2006 DNR statewide mail survey of anglers
Multimeda
VHS
Viral Hemorrhagic Septicemia (VHS) is a deadly fish virus that is threatening Wisconsin's fish.
VHS has only been detected in fish from the Lake Winnebago system, Lake Michigan and Green Bay and hasn't spread more widely in Wisconsin, but it's important that anglers and boaters continue to take steps to help keep VHS out of Wisconsin's waters.
Listen to Wisconsin Fisheries Director Mike Staggs Discuss the VHS Fish Disease
- Wisconsin effective so far in stopping the spread of VHS
- No notable damage so far
- VHS still poses a serious threat to Wisconsin fish
- Existing budget has covered VHS costs
- VHS rules will help stop the spread of invaders
- Three things to do to stop VHS in 2009
VHS Resources
VHS Contacts
Campaigns
National Take Me Fishing (TMF) Campaign
The Take Me Fishing Campaign is a collaborative effort between the Recreational Boating and Fishing Foundation (RBFF) and 31 states, including Wisconsin to increase fishing license sales, a critical source of funding to maintain and improve fishing opportunities. Funding for fisheries conservation depends on license sales and federal excise taxes from fishing tackle sales, and Wisconsin’s fisheries program receives 99 percent of its funding from these two sources.
The TMF campaign is a three-year effort initiated by Secretary Frank in 2008. In the first year of this project, Wisconsin succeeded in luring more anglers back to the water than any other participating state.
- Although the number of licensed anglers in Wisconsin has held steady 1.3 million, fishing participation is declining nationally. Between 2001 and 2006, U.S. fishing license sales dropped by more than 12 percent.
- Fishing license sales contribute directly to aquatic conservation efforts.
- Wisconsin is one of 30 states partnering with RBFF to encourage more people to fish.
- This is a three-year effort in which RBFF contributes (up to) $25,000 per year and the DNR matches that amount.
- Anglers who skip years in their license buying history are sent a reminder direct mail postcard to purchase their fishing license this year. Demographics and market segmentation play a role in those who receive the postcard. We do not have enough funds to send every angler a postcard.
- This integrated marketing campaign includes direct mail, and radio and TV ads.
- The heart of the campaign is built around creating memories with family and friends that will last a lifetime.
Anglers’ Legacy
Anglers’ Legacy is a separate program from TMF and is built around recruitment of anglers, complimenting the TMF campaign which is retention of anglers.
- This program rallies the country’s most avid anglers to introduce newcomers to fishing. "Ambassadors" simply Take the Pledge to take at least one new person fishing this year. Give back what someone once gave to you: the gift of fishing.
- Fishing participation is declining nationally and mentorship is needed to reverse this trend. More than 24 million Americans say they’d go fishing if someone helped them get started.
- Taking the Pledge preserves the sport, the tradition, the legacy and our natural resources.
- Nearly 90 percent of Ambassadors bring an average of 4.5 people fishing. This equates to:
- An initial $120 in fishing tackle/equipment sales
- An initial $166 in boating supplies/accessories
- Purchases of 3.2 fishing licenses, which means more money goes into conservation and preservation of our waterways
Messages For Anglers:
- You’re going fishing anyway—bring along a companion
- It’s a great opportunity to build connections/relationships with family, friends, and colleagues
- All it costs is a bit of your time and attention
- It’s the right thing to do—it feels good to do it.
For more information please contact:
Rachel Piacenza
(608) 261-6431
More Resources
Contacts
Bureau Director, Fisheries Management
Mike Staggs
(608) 267-0796
Statewide Fish Propagation Coordinator
Al Kaas
(608) 267-7865
Fish Health
Sue Marcquenski
(608) 266-2871
Fish Consumption
Candy Schrank
(608) 267-7614
Treaty Fisheries Coordinator
Joe Hennessy
(608) 267-9427
Aquatic Education
Theresa Stabo
(608) 266-2272
Take Me Fishing and Anglers’ Legacy Campaigns
Rachel Piacenza
(608) 261-6431
Tournament Fishing
Andy Fayram
(608) 266-5250
Great Lakes
Bill Horns
(608) 266-8782
Inland Trout
Larry Claggett
(608) 267-9658
Urban Fishing
Matt Coffaro
(608) 263-8614
Fish Kills
Andy Fayram
(608) 266-5250
Mississippi River
Ron Benjamin
(608) 785-9012
Questions About Fish Species
Musky
Tim Simonson
(608) 266-5222
Walleye
Ted Treska
(608) 267-7659
Sturgeon
Karl Scheidegger
(608) 267-9426
Bass
Joe Hennessy
(608) 267-9427
Related News
Fishing tournament application deadlines coming up
Issued by DNR Central Office on Tuesday, March 02, 2010 at 12:18:47 PM
Hunting and fishing licenses go on sale March 10
Issued by DNR Central Office on Tuesday, February 23, 2010 at 12:28:46 PM
Deadlines approach for ice fishing shelter removal
Issued by DNR Central Office on Tuesday, February 16, 2010 at 1:52:07 PM
Minnow harvest ban, other VHS fish disease rules in effect on Lake Superior
Issued by DNR Central Office on Thursday, January 28, 2010 at 11:54:43 AM
VHS found in Lake Superior fish
Issued by DNR Central Office on Wednesday, January 27, 2010 at 2:50:32 PM
Poll quizzes anglers about VHS fish disease
Issued by DNR Central Office on Tuesday, January 26, 2010 at 11:57:24 AM
19th Annual Kids' Ice Fishing Clinics set for Saturday,February 6
Issued by DNR Southeast Region on Monday, January 25, 2010 at 4:02:05 PM
Ice fishing season around the corner
Issued by DNR Central Office on Tuesday, December 08, 2009 at 1:49:14 PM
‘Water guards” will be working ice fishing season to help prevent spread of deadly fish disease
Issued by DNR Central Office on Tuesday, December 08, 2009 at 1:48:11 PM
Ice fishing season around the corner
Issued by DNR Central Office on Tuesday, December 08, 2009 at 12:40:41 PM
