The purpose of this
report is to document Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife’s
(WDFW) high lakes management goal, objectives, and strategies, and guidelines
for management. For specific details of facts or figures contained within
this report see Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife’s High
Lakes Fishery – Final Report (Pfeifer et al. 2001). A copy of
this report can found on-line at: www.wa.gov/wdfw/fish/high_lakes.
The management goal
for fish populations in Washington’s high lakes is to:
Protect, restore,
and enhance fish populations and their habitats in high lakes while
maximizing recreational opportunities consistent with natural resource
protection guidelines.
Washington Department
of Fish and Wildlife’s (WDFW) high lakes program is an integral
part of the Agency’s overall trout program. People have been traveling
to the high elevations of the Olympic Peninsula and Cascade mountain
ranges for over 100 years to take part in this extraordinary recreational
experience. An estimated 128,000 license-buying anglers use Washington’s
high lakes annually. This equates to over a million angler days per
year. This activity has an estimated annual worth of nearly $34 million
while WDFW’s cost associated with managing the program is estimated
to be around $40,000. Because many of the high lakes support self-sustaining
fish populations, and because many of the lakes are stocked by organized
volunteers groups, the program is one of the most cost-effective program
administered by WDFW.
Lake Management
Strategies. WDFW manages each high lake with one of following three
basic management strategies. Fishless lakes are managed for native wildlife
species only, with no trout stocking. These lakes are found across the
landscape especially in designated wilderness areas and the state’s
national parks. Quality Fisheries are lakes where the local manager
regulates fish stocking frequency and density to produce fish of high
quality, but not necessarily quantity. Production water are lakes that
have no native wildlife species preservation concerns, are regularly
stocked or have self reproducing fish populations, have high angler
use levels, and easy access.
The result of these
strategies provide:
- Protection
of native species,
- A diversity
of fishing opportunities,
- Consideration
for ecological impacts of fisheries and fish presence, and
- Avoids the
development of self reproducing populations.
Of the more than
4,700 high lakes and ponds in Washington, at least 2,940 (62%) are fishless,
an estimated 1,000 of the lakes have self-sustaining populations and
only about 800 (17%) are periodically stocked.
Management Guidelines.
Fish Stocking.
As a general fish stocking guideline, high lakes should be managed for
a total standing trout density of no more than 50 to 100 fish per surface
acre. Fish stocks which have demonstrated an inability to successfully
reproduce in Washington’s high lakes should be considered first.
Management of high lakes is not driven by catch rates, instead stocking
strategies (densities and species) are used to address ecological issues
such as impacts to native fauna, down stream impacts, and the general
overall productivity of the lake. However, within the confines of stocking
densities guidelines, and frequency at which lakes are stocked, there
are opportunities to refine lake management to meet a desired catch
rate. For lakes that are managed for quality fisheries the catch rate
objective should be three 11-13inch fish per day. For lakes that are
managed for production fisheries an expected catch rate is five fish
per day. This includes those waters with self-sustaining populations
at undesirable levels.
Field Investigations.
Inventory Methods for information on certain physical, chemical, and
biological parameters is essential to any management approach for high
lakes trout fisheries. For consistency among data sets, the following
forms are suggested for use: High Lake Fishing Report Form: Appendix
A, and the Alpine Lake Field Survey Form Appendix B.
Ecological Considerations.
WDFW local managers will practice continued diligence managing high
lakes to be certain that fish species and stocks do not pose any realistic
chance of hybridizing or competing with native fish in downstream receiving
waters, and avoid unacceptable ecological impacts.
Washington Department
of Fish and Wildlife’s (WDFW) high lakes program is an integral
part of the Agency’s overall trout program. People have been traveling
to the high elevations of the Olympic Peninsula and Cascade mountain
ranges for over 100 years to take part in this extraordinary recreational
experience. An estimated 128,000 license-buying anglers use Washington’s
high lakes annually (Michael, 2004) and has an estimated worth of nearly
$34 million (U.S. Department of Interior, et al., 2003). WDFW’s
cost associated with managing the program is estimated to be around
$40,000 (Pfeifer et. al. 2001). Because many of the high lakes support
self-sustaining fish populations, and because many of the lakes are
stocked with low-cost small fry by organized volunteers groups (Trailblazers,
Highlakers, and Backcountry Horsemen), the program is one the most cost-effective
program administered by WDFW.
WDFW’s high
lake fishery program includes those lakes in western Washington above
2,500 feet mean sea level and above 3,500 feet in eastern Washington.
These elevations encompasses the sub-alpine and alpine habitat zones.
Since the alpine zone is defined as above the timberline and lies well
above 2,500 feet in western Washington the term “high” lake
is preferred to alpine lake.
The water bodies
in the high lakes program vary in size and may be categorized using
terms such as “lake” and “pond” or “tarn”.
The overwhelming majority of alpine and subalpine waters being maintained
for trout fisheries in Washington are at least large enough to appear
on standard 7.5 minute U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) topographic maps.
Smaller waters (between 0.1 to 0.2 acres) tend to be omitted from these
1:24,000 scale maps. Most of these do not support fish, but do provide
important, or critical habitat for amphibians and invertebrates (Kezer
and Farner 1955; Anderson 1967; Fukumoto and Herrero 1998). Of the more
than 4,700 high lakes and ponds in Washington, at least 2,940 (62%)
are fishless, an estimated 1,000 of the lakes have selfsustaining populations
and only about 800 (17%) are periodically stocked.
The purpose of this
report is to document WDFW’s high lakes management goal and objectives,
and the strategies for their implementation and evaluation.
Management
Goal and Objectives.
Washington Department
of Fish and Wildlife’s mission statement of “Sound Stewardship
of Washington’s Fish and Wildlife Resources” has as one
of it’s goals to “Maximum fishing, hunting and non-consumptive
recreational opportunities compatible with healthy, diverse fish and
wildlife populations”. Goals specific to fish management include
providing for significant recreation opportunities through artificial
propagation programs and providing a diversity of fishing opportunities.
The management goal of fish populations in Washington’s high lakes
is to:
Protect, restore,
and enhance fish populations and their habitats in high lakes while
maximizing recreational opportunities consistent with natural resource
protection guidelines.
Objectives:
The fish resources in high lakes will be managed with objectives that
when met will achieve the high lakes management goal. They are:
- Maintain the
productivity and diversity of native fish and wildlife populations
and their habitat in high lakes at healthy levels,
- Maintain introduced
fish stocks at desired levels in high lakes consistent with native
resource needs (protection from hybridization, and significant interspecific
competition),
- Provide a diversity
of recreational fishing opportunities in high lakes that are desired
by the public and consistent with native resource needs,
- Promote a conservation
ethic associated with the high lakes fishing experience, and
- Promote effective
coordination and communication of management objectives and and actions
with land managers, constituents, and other agencies.
