Alaska Department of Fish and Game to provide conference keynote

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Published: Tuesday, 27 March 2018 19:30

Kristine Dunker and Parker Bradley with the Alaska Department of Fish and Game (ADFG) will provide a conference keynote, “Northern Pike: The Unwelcome Invader,” on April 24^th.

The message to their friends and peers in the lower 48 is clear: northern pike is a clear and present danger to our ecosystem and recreational economy. Being slow to respond will not only make things worse for Lake Roosevelt, but pose a downstream threat to salmon and other fisheries.

Kristine joined ADFG twelve years ago and currently oversees several efforts to suppress and eradicate northern pike in Southcentral Alaska. What started out as a nuisance caused by illegal stocking dating back to the 1950s was getting out of control by the 1990s. Lakes and streams once supporting healthy numbers of coho salmon, Chinook salmon and rainbow trout were being largely or fully displaced by northern pike.

ADFG has used gillnetting, rotenone (a piscicide that kills all fish in a waterbody), and other methods since the early 2000s to eradicate and suppress northern pike populations and prevent them from spreading to other waters.

Kristine and Parker will share success stories in some areas, and the reality of spreading populations in other areas. Said Kristine, “Once the cat is out of the bag, it becomes exceedingly difficult and far less likely that pike can be eliminated entirely. You need to play the long game. That’s why I’m such a firm believer in prevention and early action.”

In the worst cases, ADFG has been forced to close salmon fisheries. Kristine also notes that problems with northern pike are compounded by habitat and other conditions posing challenges.

A breakout session after the keynote will provide details on regional and local efforts to cope with the spread of northern pike. Said one fishery manager, “When you see pictures of pike eating walleye and rainbow trout whole, you get the point that this is a voracious apex, opportunistic predator.”

Locally, the Kalispell Tribe has done terrific work reducing northern pike in the Pend Oreille River’s Box Canyon Reservoir. And to their credit, they spread the alarm years ago that a basin-wide approach to prevention and containment was needed.

Said Andy Dunau, the Forum’s Executive Director “Lake Roosevelt is now on the frontlines. Alarm bells for basin-wide coordination and funding will continue to sound as pike potentially migrate downstream. Now’s the time to learn from the Alaska experience.”