Intensive Bullhead Removal Program - All Lake Metonga Friends and Property Owners are Encouraged to Participate

We are back at it, not because there are still too many bullheads but rather, we have been successful in improving the natural reproduction of walleyes by significantly decreasing the bullhead population. This will be our 4th year collecting bullheads.

If you are new to our program and want to learn more about why and/or what we have been doing to improve walleye fishing on Lake Metonga, please check out some of the articles on this page for details and/or data validating our efforts as making a difference. Right here you’ll find informational newsletter articles and DNR Fall Walleye Survey Results.

We ask our volunteers to collect the eggs, minnows, and the full-grown bullheads for disposal away from the lake. Many of the past collectors will collect their catch, freeze them in a Ziploc bag, and bring them to the collection site on collection Saturdays, which provides the added convenience of volunteers logging your catch data for you and disposing it.

Collection data is a critical part of this program so if you prefer to dispose of your “catch” in lieu of the dropping off at the collection site, we have placed a downloadable log sheet on this page for your convenience which you can complete and send to the postal or email address listed on the form. Again, this year in partnership with our LMA project, Mole Lake Fisheries will be or have been out electroshocking to collect as many of the adult bullheads before the bullrush gets too tall. We’ll let you know their results in our newsletter later this year.

We, the Lake Metonga Fisheries Committee, hope that additional volunteers will come on board to collect the bullhead minnows this summer. Like previous years, the DNR requires using the Volunteer Agreement Form and Bullhead Removal Project Volunteer Letter. You will find a link below to download a copy of the 2024 Volunteer Agreement form, which will also be available in print form at our annual meeting on June 29, 2024 and at the collection site. After submitting your completed application, you will receive a copy of the DNR Volunteer Letter.

Below are the directions depending on your choice to email (preferred) OR mail the form. The pier collection program , which is located at the city pier on the northeast shore of the lake, will start on Saturday July 6th and run every Saturday for six consecutive weeks through August 10th. Once again, we will be handing out Palubicki’s Eats & Treats and Yeti's coupons, sponsored through the generosity of Don LeMaster and Lee & Ed Smith, to volunteer participants on collection days.

Thanks for participating!

2024 Volunteer Agreement Form

2024 Bullhead Removal Log

 

DIRECTIONS for the Volunteer Agreement Form

If sending form by MAIL (United States Postal Service):

1. Complete all applicable spaces in top 4 lines of the Volunteer Agreement Form
2. Sign and date at bottom of form
3. Mail completed form to: Grant Reed 6670 Wintergreen Trail Sobieski WI 54171
4. When we receive your form, the Bullhead Removal Project Volunteer Letter (from the DNR) and a copy of your Volunteer Agreement Form will be mailed back to you. SAVE THESE FORMS!
5. If questioned by a conservation officer, game warden, etc. you must show the Volunteer Agreement Form AND the Bullhead Removal Volunteer Letter.

If sending form ELECTRONICALLY (email):

1. Complete all applicable spaces in top 4 lines of the Volunteer Agreement Form
2. Sign and date at bottom of form
3. Take a picture or scan completed form to gmreedi@gmail.com
4. KEEP original form!
5. When we receive your form, the Bullhead Removal Project Volunteer Letter (from the DNR) will be emailed to you. SAVE THESE FORMS!
6. If questioned by a conservation officer, game warden, etc. you must show the Volunteer Agreement Form AND the Bullhead Removal Volunteer Letter.

Bullheads in Lake Metonga: Why they are Public Enemy #1 for Now

Why the Need: The overabundance of black bullheads that thrive in Lake Metonga has a negative effect on the walleye and perch populations. When the stomach contents of bullheads have been examined, they are full of small perch, bass, walleye, and crayfish. Bullheads also invade the nests of game fish and consume the eggs. Juvenile bullheads feed on the common invertebrates, midges, worms, copepods, etc., which are also the food source for juvenile perch, bass and other game fish.

Since 2008, the Lake Metonga Association has worked with the Mole Lake Sokaogon Chippewa Community's Mike Preul (Mole Lake Fisheries Biologist) and Greg Matzke (DNR Fisheries Biologist – Forest and Florence Counties) in an effort to decrease the number of bullheads in the lake.

Partnering with the Mole Lake Sokaogon Chippewa Community, the Association sponsors an annual bullhead harvest conducted under the supervision of Mike Preul. This harvest of several tons of bullheads is typically donated to the Raptors Educational Group, Inc. in Antigo to feed the bald eagles and other birds being cared for at their facility.

Want to learn more about bullheads impact on walleye population in Lake Metonga? Watch the first fifteen minutes of this Greg Matzke presentation on Lake Metonga and the next ten minutes about the Patten Lake Project to get a clear understanding of why the LMA Bullhead Removal Project is so important: The Fight to Maintain Quality Walleye Fisheries

Continuing the Status Quo is No Longer Enough: The recent diminishment of Rusty Crayfish population is the latest canary in the coal mine indicator that the bullhead population is getting out of control. Additional measures are going to be required, additional measures that necessitate that lake shore owners and lake users step up and and help out.