Fish and Fisheries Management in Ontario: A Chronology of Events - 1 - Fish and Fisheries Management in Ontario: A Chronology of Events August 2010 This document should be cited as follows: Kerr, S. J. 2010. Fish and Fisheries Management in Ontario: A Chronology of Events. Biodiversity Branch. Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources. Peterborough, Ontario. 80 p. + appendices. Printed in Ontario, Canada (MNR 52661) (ISBN 978-1-4249-5661-6) Copies of this publication can be downloaded from the Ministry of Natural Resources website: www.mnr.gov.on.ca Cover photos from Ontario Department of Lands and Forests and Ministry of Natural Resources files Cette publication hautement spécialisée: Aquatic Research Series (ongoing series of reports) “Fish and Fisheries Management in Ontario: A Chronology of Events” n’est disponible qu’en Anglais envertu du Règlement 411/97 qui en exempte l’application de la Loi sur les services en français. Pour obtenir de l’aide en français, veuillez communiquer avec Linda Maquire au (705)-755-2581 au ministère des Richesses naturelles. Table of Contents Table of Contents ....................................................................................................................................... (i) List of Figures ........................................................................................................................................... (ii) Common and Scientific Names of Fishes and Aquatic Organisms Cited in Text .................................... (iv) List of Acronyms Cited in Text................................................................................................................. (v) Introduction ............................................................................................................................................. (vii) An Overview of Fisheries Management in Ontario......................................................................................1 Chronology of Events...................................................................................................................................3 References and Additional Reading Material.............................................................................................67 Appendix 1. First Nation communities in Ontario Appendix 2. A summary of selected introductions of fish and other aquatic organisms into Ontario waters. Appendix 3. Federal and provincial fish culture stations in the Province of Ontario, 1865-2004. Appendix 4. Record fish angled from Ontario waters. Appendix 5. Coarse fish removal projects carried out in Ontario waters. Appendix 6. Fisheries/Fish and Wildlife Branch Directors. Appendix 7. Conservation Authorities in Ontario. Appendix 8. Fishways in Ontario. Appendix 9. Ontario results from National Recreational Fishing surveys, 1976-2005. Appendix 10. Reports prepared during the Strategic Planning for Ontario Fisheries (SPOF) exercise. Appendix 11. Fisheries Assessment Units (FAU) in Ontario. Appendix 12. Distribution of selected sport fish species in Ontario waters. Appendix 13. Publications from the Ontario Fisheries Technical Report series. Appendix 14. Areas of Concern (AOC) identified on Ontario waters of the Great Lakes. Appendix 15. Background reports and final working group reports produced during the Lake Trout Synthesis exercise. Appendix 16. Background reports and final working group reports produced during the Percid Community Synthesis exercise. Appendix 17. Legislation related to fish or fisheries management in Ontario. Appendix 18. Ontario fish sampling protocols. Appendix 19. Physical dimensions of the Laurentian Great Lakes and connecting channels. (i) List of Figures Figure 1. Early fish hook made of caribou bone and tied with caribou thongs. Figure 2. Ojibwas fishing in the St. Marys rapids near Sault Ste. Marie circa 1900. Figure 3. Nipigon brook trout were highly prized by early anglers. Figure 4. Samuel Wilmot’s early fish hatchery near Newcastle. Figure 5. Early commercial fishers with their catch from the Bay of Quinte. Figure 6. The Goderich (Lake Huron) fishing fleet in 1884. Figure 7. Lake trout have traditionally been a highly valued fish in Ontario. Figure 8. The “Gilphie” was one of the first boats used for patrols on the Great Lakes. Figure 9. Many bass were distributed across northern Ontario by specially equipped railway cars. Figure 10. Phases of early bass culture at the Sandfield fish culture station on Manitoulin Island. Figure 11. Brown trout were introduced into Ontario from Europe in 1913. Figure 12. The Aurora trout, a colour variant of brook trout. Figure 13. Some of the earliest lake surveys in Ontario were initiated in the 1920s. Figure 14. Rearing lake whitefish eggs at the Little Current fish culture station. Figure 15. Fish stocking in Ontario peaked in the late 1930s-early 1940s. Figure 16. Coarse fish removal programs, for species such as carp, were very common in Ontario between 1930 and 1960. Figure 17. The sea lamprey was one of the most destructive species to invade the Great Lakes. Figure 18. Winter fishing for lake whitfish has been a traditional activity on Lake Simcoe. Figure 19. Repairing nets at the Ontario Department of Lands and Forests southern research station at Maple. Figure 20. Raising a trawl on a Lake Erie tug. Figure 21. Conservation officers with muskellunge seized from poachers on Lake Simcoe. Figure 22. Aerial view of Lake 226, Experimental Lakes Area, during a eutrophication experiment. Figure 23. Top span of the prototype wooden eel ladder at the Moses-Saunders hydroelectric station on the St. Lawrence River. (ii) Figure 24. K. H. (Ken) Loftus was one of the principle architects of the Strategic Plan for Ontario Fisheries (SPOF). Figure 25. Administrative districts and regions of the Ontrario Ministry of Natural Resources in 1978. Figure 26. Recreational angling has important social and economic benefits. Figure 27. The introduction of zebra mussels had major impacts on the Great Lakes ecosystem. Figure 28. Initial efforts to re-introduce Atlantic salmon into Lake Ontario commenced in 1988. Figure 29. Today, dogs are routinely used to assist in fisheries enforcement activities. Figure 30. The provincial Percid Community Synthesis consolidated science and knowledge for improved management of walleye in Ontario. Figure 31. The Bait Association of Ontario (BAO) was formed in 1998 to represent the interests of bait dealers and harvesters in Ontario. Figure 32. Biologically-based minimum size limits for Ontario muskellunge were established in 2001. Figure 33. Competitive fishing is a rapidly expanding activity in Ontario. Figure 34. A major fish and wildlife enforcement conference was held in Sault Ste. Marie in 2006. Figure 35. Lake sturgeon are considered a species at risk in many areas of Ontario. Figure 36. In 2010 winter fishing for selected species was reopened in the Kawartha Lakes (FMZ 17) for the first time in almost eighty years. (iii) Common and Scientific Names of Fishes and Aquatic Organisms Cited in Text Alewife (Alosa pseudoharengus) Spiny water flea (Bythotrephes cederstroemi) American eel (Anguilla rostrata) Splake (Salvelinus namaycush x S. fontinalis) American shad (Alosa sapidissima) Suckers (Catostomus spp.) American smelt (Osmerus mordax) Sunfish (Lepomis spp.) Arctic char (Salvelinus alpinus) Walleye (Sander vitreus) Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) White perch (Morone americana) Aurora trout (Salvelinus fontinalis) Yellow perch (Perca flavescens) Ayu (Plecoglossus altivelis) Zebra mussel (Dreissena polymorpha) Black crappie (Pomoxis nigromaculatus) Bluegill (Lepomis macrochirus) Blue pickerel (Sander vitreus) Brook trout (Salvelinus fontinalis) Brown trout (Salmo trutta) Burbot (Lota lota) Channel catfish (Ictalurus punctatus) Cherry (masu) salmon (Oncorhynchus masu) Chinese mitten crab (Eriocheir sinensis) Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) Chum salmon (Oncorhynchus keta) Coho salmon (Oncorhynchus kisutch) Common carp (Cyprinus carpio) Danube salmon (Hucho hucho) Freshwater drum (Aplodinotus grunniens) Kokanee salmon (Oncorhynchus nerka) Kamloops trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) Lake herring (Coregonus artedii) Lake sturgeon (Acipenser fulvescens) Lake trout (Salvelinus namaycush) Lake whitefish (Coregonus clupeaformis) Largemouth bass (Micropterus salmoides) Mullet (Catostomus spp.) Muskellunge (Esox masquinongy) Northern clearwater crayfish (Orconectes propinquus) Northern pike (Esox lucius) Paddlefish (Polyodon spathula) Papershell crayfish (Orconectes immunis) Pikeperch (Lucioperca lucioperca) Pink salmon (Oncorhynchus gorbuscha) Pumpkinseed (Lepomis gibbosus) Quagga mussel (Dreissena bugensis) Rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) Redside dace (Clinostomus elongates) Redspot salmon (Oncorhynchus rhodurus) Round goby (Neogobius melanostomus) Ruffe (Gymnocephalus cernua) Rusty crayfish (Orconectes rusticus) Sea lamprey (Petromyzon marinus) Smallmouth bass (Micropterus dolomieu (iv) List of Acronyms Cited in Text AFS – American Fisheries Society AHI – Aquatic Habitat Inventory A/OFRC – Ashinabek/Ontario Fisheries Resource Centre AOC – Area of Concern ARMAC – Aquatic Resource Management Advisory Group ASPY – Assessment of Stock Prediction and Yields BAO – Bait Association of Ontario BNA – British North America Act BTIN – Brook Trout Index Netting CARS – Canadian Aquatic Resource Section CCFAM – Canadian Council of Fisheries and Aquaculture Ministers CCIW – Canada Centre for Inland Waters CEAA – Canadian Environmental Assessment Act CFIP – Community Fisheries Involvement