Water clarity update: February 9, 2016
Winnebago System Sturgeon Spearing Enthusiasts:
Typically we check water clarity at least twice leading up to the sturgeon spearing season. The first check was roughly two weeks ago and we had 4-7’ of visibility throughout Lake Winnebago, 3-6’ of clarity on Lake Poygan and 1.5-3.5’ on Lake Butte des Morts (attached map: Water_Clarity_27Jan16). Our second check was today and included more locations throughout Lake Winnebago. Overall, clarity has improved everywhere. As of today we observed 7-10’ of clarity on Lake Winnebago with the clearest water found in the central part of the lake. Further, there was a consistent 7’ of clarity throughout the Upriver Lakes (attached map: Water_Clarity_9Feb16). Thank you to Jake Richter for his work checking water clarity and also for creating the clarity maps.
So it appears that clarity has improved on the average 2-3’ over the last two weeks. We will have to wait and see how much more conditions improve over the next few days and into the season. Good luck to those of you going out spearing Saturday and beyond! I hope to see you at one of our registration stations.
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Ryan Koenigs
Senior Fisheries Biologist / Winnebago System Sturgeon Biologist
Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources
625 E County Rd. Y, Suite 700
Oshkosh, WI 54901
Phone: (920)303-5450
Fax: (920)424-4404
Ryan.koenigs@wisconsin.gov