The latest news from North Dakota’s Devils Lake Basin adds more evidence that concerns about biota transfer via the lake’s outlet are more about politics and misguided environmentalism than about good science. It seems carp from somewhere in the Red River watershed (not Devils Lake) are close enough to the big lake to threaten the sport fishery. The threat of carp and other undesirable “rough” fish is ironic, in that opponents of the lake outlet have claimed the risk to the watershed was the movement of unwanted species from the lake via the outlet.

The real concern is the other way around.

Carp, suckers and several other species of undesirable fish are either native or introduced to the Red River and its tributaries, including the Sheyenne. To date, none of those sport fishery-destroying species has been detected in Devils Lake. But fisheries experts and lake resort owners are worried about contamination from the Red via its tributaries. It seems high water for the last decade or so in the Devils Lake Basin has created connections to those tributaries at the northern reaches of the basin – connections that haven’t existed for more than 100 years.

The Red is home to all manner of biota (living organisms of countless shapes and sizes), most of which do not exist in Devils Lake. In fact, Devils Lake has become one of the best fishing lakes in the nation because of its thriving populations of walleye, northern pike and yellow perch. The lake’s habitat is productive. The water quality is good enough to support natural reproduction of walleye and other favored fish.

The introduction of carp, suckers and who knows what else to Devils Lake from the Red/Sheyenne system would be a strange turn of events, given the nonsensical opposition to a screen-filtered lake outlet that discharges a relative trickle into the Sheyenne.

But wait! Opponents of the outlet tried to make the case that a species of lake minnow got through the screen and was detected in the channel leading to the Sheyenne River. Further investigation gave little credence to the minnow migration downstream. However, the talk from Minnewaukan to Devils Lake among people who know the area intimately suggested some environmental crusader actually put the offending minnows in the channel and then reported his “find.” Given the emotions attached to the outlet controversy, that scenario has a ring of truth to it.

Meanwhile, fisheries scientists are trying to come up with a strategy to block the movement of Red River carp and other rough fish into the marvelous walleye/northern pike factory that is Devils Lake. If lake outlet opponents were serious about protecting the state’s waters, they would be doing their best to advance a legitimate scientific effort, rather than clinging to a destructive brand of environmental radicalism.

http://www.in-forum.com/articles/index.cfm?id=175681&section=Opinion&forumcomm_check_return&freebie_check&CFID=49715811&CFTOKEN=53520589&jsessionid=8830e3fe01955d464167


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