Nebraska’s North End of Kingsley Dam to be Closed to Fishing
Friday, April 10th, 2009 at 10:32 AMNebraska’s North End of Kingsley Dam to be Closed to Fishing
Nebraska Game and Parks Commission
LINCOLN, Neb. – A portion of the face of Kingsley Dam at Lake McConaughy will be closed to boat and bank fishermen to protect netting operations by the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission over the next week. The closure begins Sunday, April 12.
“The area of the dam that will be closed will be from where the rocks begin on the north end of the dam to a point south of there that the Commission deems necessary to complete their netting operation,” according to Darrol Eichner, the southwest Nebraska fisheries supervisor. “The south point will be marked with a flashing light.”
Eichner said the netting operation will collect walleye eggs for hatchery production. He said that the spawning run has not begun at Lake McConaughy but should develop soon.
Eichner said that fisheries personnel will be using four, 200-foot gill nets with mesh size that is selective for large female walleye. He said it is important to keep boat and bank fishermen out of the area to ensure the success of the operation.
The Commission has not netted Lake McConaughy for walleye production for the past two years because of its tendency to be a late-developing spawning run. Biologists normally conduct walleye-spawn collections on reservoirs that offer early spawning runs. Lake McConaughy, however, is included in the backup plan if other attempts at egg collection fail. This year, the Commission decided to initiate the McConaughy operation when the collection of eggs from Merritt and Sherman reservoirs and the state of Colorado came up short.
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The mission of the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission is stewardship of the state’s fish, wildlife, park, and outdoor recreation resources in the best long-term interests of the people and those resources.
