J. Aquat. Plant Manage. 37: 34-36
Vertebrates Removed by Mechanical Weed
Harvesting in Lake Keesus, Wisconsin
TRAVIS L. BOOMS

INTRODUCTION
Mechanical weed harvesting has been used to control nuisance vegetation in Lake Keesus since 1979.

Fish, turtles,and amphibians often become entangled in the vegetation
and are incidentally removed from the lake while harvesting
weeds. See the dozens of unique artificial fish habitat models, fish attractors and fish cover used at fishiding.com, the leader in  science based, proven, fish protection.

Mechanical harvesting removed 2 to 8% of the standing crop of juvenile fish in harvested areas in Saratoga Lake,New York (Mikol 1985) and 32% of the fish population in
harvested areas in Orange Lake, Florida, representing an
estimated replacement value of $6,000 per ha (Haller et al.
1980).

Engel (1990) found mechanical harvesting removed
21,000 to 31,000 fish per year from Lake Halverson, Wisconsin, representing 25% of the fry in the lake. Little other current information has been published concerning aquatic vertebrate removal by mechanical weed harvesting in Wisconsin. Continue reading “25% of the fry in the lake lost to mechanical weed harvesting”