AMES, Iowa — In 2021, Iowa licensed nearly 270,000 anglers, whose pastime is estimated to represent more than $500 million annually in economic activity.
Michael Weber, associate professor in the Department of Natural Resource Ecology and Management, studies a variety of issues that impact fisheries and success for anglers, with help from dedicated graduate students and state biologists. One component of their research seeks to better understand the factors that influence survival rates of stocked fish.
Among the sought-after game fish that attract anglers to the state’s reservoirs and lakes are Walleye and Muskellunge. As these species do not naturally reproduce in Iowa reservoirs, their existence here depends entirely on the success of stocking.
Read full story - Iowa State research on game fish gains better picture of fish fate, escapement