News
Rainbow Smelt Spawn Uncertain for ND's Lake Sakakawea
See More News
7/28/2010
The North Dakota Game and Fish Department says Lake Sakakawea has improved water conditions and a productive environment for both predators and prey, but it's too early to judge this spring's rainbow smelt reproduction.
BISMARCK, N.D. (AP) — The North Dakota Game and Fish Department says Lake Sakakawea has improved water conditions and a productive environment for both predators and prey, but it's too early to judge this spring's rainbow smelt reproduction.
Smelt provides lunch for game fish such as salmon and walleye. Sakakawea's last good year for smelt hatch was 2005, and before that it was 2002.
Scott Gangl, fisheries management section leader, says rising water levels created conditions that were right for a good smelt spawn. But he says strong winds during and after the spawn stirred up the lake and might have killed a lot of eggs.
