The Department of Natural Resources has established new fishing regulations that are designed to enlist anglers, boaters and the bait industry as allies to slow the spread of fish diseases, particularly viral hemorrhagic septicemia (VHS).

The regulations, which begin to take effect June 28, will be phased in over time since they are complex, and DNR officials believe everyone involved will need sufficient time to fully understand them.

A copy of the Fish Disease Control Order is available on the DNR Web site at www.michigan.gov/dnrfishing, along with other materials related to VHS, and the public is encouraged to check this site frequently for new updates and information.

"We must have anglers and the bait industry as allies in this effort since the DNR cannot do this on our own," said DNR Director Rebecca Humphries, who approved the new regulations in early June.

The regulations apply to 32 species of baitfish and other species of fish identified by the DNR as infected with VHS in Michigan or connected Great Lakes waters that have been placed on a Prohibited Fish Species List. The list, which will be updated as new cases of VHS are found, is posted on the DNR Web site.

Baitfish includes live or dead species of fish, or parts of fish excluding roe (eggs), that are used by anglers to catch fish.

The key baitfish species for anglers are spottail shiners, emerald shiners, bluntnose minnows, white suckers, gizzard shad, and Pacific herring (frozen for cut bait).

The key species for fish eggs are chinook salmon, coho salmon, brown trout and rainbow trout/steelhead.

"These regulations provide a set of best management practices for anglers and the bait industry and are consistent with those of other states and the Province of Ontario," said DNR Fisheries Chief Dr. Kelley Smith. "They are an educational tool to help our anglers, boaters and the bait industry to become full partners in the collaborative fight against fish diseases, such as VHS."

Under the new regulations, bait and fish eggs from fish on the Prohibited Species List can be used only when attached to a hook. The use of spawn sacks is acceptable. Anglers cannot release minnows when done fishing and must dispose of them when leaving the water.

"The release of many baitfish or large amounts of fish eggs by anglers that are potentially VHS-positive is an easy way to spread the virus," Smith said.

When fully implemented, anglers will get a receipt from the bait shop that will tell them where the bait can be used. This receipt is valid for seven days.

If the bait is certified VHS-free, it can be used anywhere in the state.

However, uncertified bait from a bait shop or bait collected by anglers is now restricted on where it can be used.

To establish where specific kinds of bait can and can't be use, the DNR has established three Disease Management Areas: a VHS-Free Management Area, a VHS-Positive Management Area and a VHS-Surveillance Management Area.

Baitfish from VHS-positive waters can be used only on VHS-positive waters, VHS- surveillance waters baitfish can be used in VHS surveillance or positive waters, and baitfish from VHS-free waters can be used anywhere in the state.

"Currently, the VHS-Free Management Area includes: Lake Superior and all inland waters in the watersheds of Lake Superior; all inland waters above the first barrier to Great Lakes fish in the watersheds of Lake Michigan including Grand Traverse bays and bays de Noc, and of the St. Marys River, except for those Lake Michigan and St. Marys River tributaries that are in the VHS-Surveillance Management Area.

The VHS-Positive Management Area includes: Lake Huron including Saginaw Bay, the St. Clair River, Lake St. Clair, the Detroit River and Lake Erie; and all tributaries to these waters in their entirety or from their confluence upstream to the first barrier that prevents the upstream passage of Great Lakes fish if such a barrier exists.

The VHS-Surveillance Management Area includes: Lake Michigan including Grand Traverse bays and bays de Noc, and the St. Marys River and tributaries to these waters up to the first barrier to the movement of Great Lakes fish; and all inland waters above the first barrier to Great Lakes fish in the Lake Huron watershed, except for those tributaries in these waters, and including the St. Clair River, Lake St. Clair, the Detroit River and Lake Erie that are classified in the VHS-Positive Management Area.

DNR fisheries officials encourage anglers and the bait industry to keep an eye on the DNR Fisheries Division's Web site (www.michigan.gov/dnrfishing) for changes to the Disease Management Areas and the Prohibited Species List.

"Detailed description of these waters soon will be available at bait shops, from fishing license agents and on the DNR Web site," Smith said.

Other key provisions include:

• When practicing catch-and-release fishing, anglers may only release a live fish back into water that the fish can freely swim into from the location it was caught. This applies to catch-and-immediate-release and catch-and-delayed-release fishing. This will prevent the virus from being transported by live fish to new waters.
• All water must be emptied from live wells and bilges when leaving a body of water. This regulation applies to all boaters and will prevent the virus from being transported by infected water.

Click here for more details on how anglers and boaters can help fight the spread of VHS.

DNR fisheries officials also are implementing a certification process that will allow retail and wholesale minnow dealers to provide disease-free bait for Michigan anglers.

"We are developing a two-stage process that includes both the holding facilities and the baitfish," said Gary Whelan, DNR fish production manager.

Whelan said although the new regulations to not require that baitfish are certified; uncertified bait will be restricted to where it can be used.

"Certified baitfish can be used anywhere in the state and provides the most flexibility for anglers," Whelan said.

When fully implemented, both wholesale and retail minnow dealers will provide receipts to their customers that will state where the baitfish was taken, the lot or transaction code, and in what management area the bait can be used. Receipts must be kept for one year by both wholesale and retail minnow dealers.

"The importance of having angler, boater and bait industry involvement in fish disease control is critical," Whelan said. "The DNR and other fisheries management agencies in the Great Lakes can implement all possible disease control measures, but without the boaters, anglers and bait industry as full partners in this effort, these measures will be in vain and fish diseases will rapidly spread to sensitive fish populations."

For the most up-to-date information on VHS and other fishing-related topics in Michigan, go to the DNR Web site at www.michigan.gov/dnrfishing.