Contribution of Stocked Yearling Walleyes to the Fishery in Oneida Lake, New York

Abstract

Absolute estimates of stocked fish contributions to fisheries are important in determining the utility of stocking programs. Accounts of stocked fish contribution to fisheries are rare; such studies require (1) stocked fish to be uniquely marked so that they are identifiable when the cohort recruits to the fishery and (2) absolute abundance estimates to be available both from stocked fish and fish produced from other sources. Our objective was to assess the absolute contribution of walleyes Sander vitreus stocked as yearlings to the age-4 population in Oneida Lake, New York. Stocked yearlings contributed 1,778 fish to the age-4 population, which was estimated at 127,000. Estimated survival from stocking (age 1) to age 4 was 1.7% (range = 0.2–3.2%) and was similar to reports of the absolute contribution of fingerling stocking programs. Our results support findings from other studies indicating that attempts to strengthen walleye year-classes by stocking have had limited success; however, our data are based on only one year-class. Documented variability in stocking success on other systems warrants further investigation.