Date Completed: _3/8/05_____

Biologist: _Francis Brautigam_______________

Name of Water: __Crystal Lake ________________________ Fishery Region: A_

Town: _Harrison _______________________ County:__Cumberland_____________

Source of LLS Stock (indicate source with an X):
Native_Wild ___

Introduced_Wild _X_

Stocked _X_

Mix (stocked + wild) ___

Smelt [Indicate predator/prey (LLS/SLT) ratio re growth & condition of LLS by placing an X opposite the appropriate category]:

Excellent: ___

Sufficient: _X_

Poor: _X_

Other forage (indicate species & importance):_______________________________________________

Competition (List significant competitors (use 3-letter spp code) in appropriate blank based on importance. Place an X opposite None if no significant competitors are present:

High: ___________________________

Moderate: __LKT / SMB_____________

Low: _____________________________

None: ___

Predation : (List significant predators (use 3-letter spp code) in appropriate blank based on importance. Place an X opposite None if no significant predators are present):

High: __________________________

Moderate: __SMB _____________

Low: ___LMB / PKL / LKT___________

None: ___

Habitat Considerations:(describe pertinent habitat pluses, deficiencies, etc.)

One significant tributary (Farnsworth Brook) is utilized by salmon for spawning, resulting in an insignificant contribution to the lake fishery. The fishery is maintained by stocked salmon.

Crystal Lake is a relatively small water (461 acres) that supports excellent water quality for salmon and smelt management.

The small size of Crystal Lake affords a greater opportunity for competing and predatory species to directly and indirectly influence the salmon fishery as a result of overlapping habitats. The small size of this water also limits the size of the potential salmon population, particularly given the emphasis on the production of larger, older fish.

Other Considerations:(historical significant population/fishery, genetically important population, social/traditional, etc.)

Crystal Lake is located in a lake-rich geographic area that offers an abundance of fishing opportunities for salmon and togue.

Historical management focused on LKT, not LLS. The historical LKT fishery was maintained by annual stockings, until 1995 when plans to stock LKT every 5^th year were not implemented in favor of managing this water more intensively for salmon. There is evidence that a residual population of wild, self-sustaining LKT has established in the absence of LKT stocking.

Summer and winter angler use is relatively light in comparison to other area lakes, yet 2001 winter creel census results indicated that between 42 and 55 % of the salmon stocked annually were harvested, largely by a single group of anglers. Furthermore, the data indicated most salmon were harvested once they attained legal size (14 inches in 2001). In addition to harvest, handling stress and associated delayed mortality from releasing salmon during the winter is believed to be another source of salmon mortality that limits the potential to develop a quality open water fishery in this small water.

The availability of adequate salmon forage is a priority consideration in the development of management strategies to create a trophy salmon fishery. The smelt population in Crystal has fluctuated over the years, providing a less than stable salmon forage base. When smelt are abundant, they are recreationally harvested during the spring spawning season with dip nets and to a much lesser extent by hook and line at other times of the year.

Current Regulations (list applicable regulations):

Summer/winter: 16” minimum length limit on salmon.

Proposed Regulations:

Close to dipping smelt.

Reduced LKT minimum size of 14” and expanded daily bag limit to 5 LKT.

Close to winter angling.

Open water: Establish a 20” maximum length limit for LLS (LLS may be harvested between 14” and 20”), 1 LLS daily bag.

Nonregulatory: Reduce LLS stocking by 50%; adjust stocking rate based on growth and survival.

Continue suspension of lake trout stocking, since 1995

Identify Individuals/Group(s)to Contact for Input and/or Support:

Action Plan: Use the next page to: 1. Identify and prioritize up to 5 management strategies. 2. Among these strategies identify those you feel most need to be worked on now, etc. and 3. Identify how SAM_FIC can help in implementation.

ACTION PLAN

The term “trophy salmon” is defined by the MDIFW as reasonable growth that could be expected on Crystal Lake, considering such factors as past growth and performance, water quality, forage, and lake productivity. The Department’s goal in the development of a trophy fishery on Crystal Lake is to increase the proportion of 3 to 4 pound salmon in the fishery, with the expectation that a few larger salmon would also be produced. Management will favor the open water angling experience, and the following strategies reflect an approach that is most likely to succeed.

Phase 1 (to be implemented ASAP)

1) Enhance the smelt forage base and increase their potential availability for use as salmon forage. Close to the harvest of smelt using dip nets (Currently open to hook and line and spring dipping) to increase smelt spawning success. The influence of smelt harvest by hook and line on smelt population enhancement efforts is considered inconsequential.

2) Reduce intraspecific competition. Stocking rates will be reduced and adjusted based on the abundance of salmon forage, as evidenced by growth and condition of the salmon. Salmon stocking rates will be reduced from historical levels to offset additional forage predation resulting from the proposed increase in older aged salmon. The current annual salmon stocking rate of 100 spring yearlings will likely be reduced, and may be as low as 50 spring yearlings.

3) Reduce competition between lake trout and salmon. Continue suspension of lake trout stocking and liberalize regulations to increase the harvest of lake trout.

4) Reduce winter mortality of LLS (harvest + handling stress-induced mortality of released salmon) to enhance salmon survival and the open water angling experience. This small water is vulnerable to even light winter fishing pressure. Past clerk surveys and trap netting results indicate winter harvest is relatively high over this small population of salmon. Furthermore, handling stress and associated delayed mortality from releasing salmon during the winter is believed to be another significant source of salmon mortality that limits the potential to develop a quality open water fishery. Restrictive winter regulations will affect relatively few anglers and little use opportunity in this geographic area. In 2001, winter angling accounted for only 225 angler trips. Many other nearby area lakes provide opportunities for salmon and togue fishing during the winter.

Phase 2 (to be implemented once rapid salmon growth rates are realized)

5) Protect and “recycle” salmon that are 3 pounds and larger, while allowing harvest of smaller salmon. Once rapid salmon growth rates have been realized restrictive salmon regulations should be adopted to encourage escapement of quality-size salmon (3 pounds and larger), while not allowing the salmon population to become over-abundant, and adversely affect growth. Larger, older aged salmon represent a small percentage of the salmon fishery (Age 3 and older fish comprise approximately 20% of the fishery, based on 2000 trap net data). Protecting only the largest salmon in the population will allow size-quality goals to be realized, while limiting the size of the salmon population and the extent of predation on forage fish populations. A harvest of smaller, younger salmon is necessary to offset the increased predation on forage fish resulting from the protection of larger size salmon. Changes in use and harvest may necessitate additional future regulation changes.

Under the aforementioned 5-point plan, the size and age structure in the salmon population will be adjusted to increase the proportion of 3 to 4 pound salmon in the fishery once growth rate objectives have been met. However, improved growth may only be realized under a reduced salmon stocking rate, which will provide slower fishing than experienced in the past, and even slower than typically associated with area salmon lakes. Although, under the most restrictive winter fishing regulations proposed, open water catch rates may not decline as noticeably. Furthermore, under this initiative it is recognized that some fishing opportunities (e.g., lake trout and smelt fishing) will be adversely affected under this intensively focused management effort. Intensive salmon management will also necessitate regular monitoring and evaluation, requiring a considerable long-term commitment of Department staff and resources.

SAM’s major involvement in implementing this trophy salmon initiative will be to: a) set up public informational meetings, participate in public meetings, and provide advertising of planned meetings; b) solicit public input and cultivate public support for this initiative, and the proposed regulation changes which may be considered controversial.