LAKE GIRARDEAU WELCOMES MUSKIES; LOCAL LAKE STOCKED WITH 486 OF THE NORTHERN BIG GAME FISH

Scoot over largemouth bass, the big boys are moving in.

Well, they weren't exactly big boys on Thursday, but in five years fishermen at Lake Girardeau are expected to start hauling off muskellunge in excess of 42 inches long and weighing over 20 pounds.

On Thursday, Lake Girardeau became just the fourth site in Missouri to be stocked with the big game fish as a shipment from the Blind Pony Hatchery, located in Sweet Springs, arrived. A total of 486 muskies were released into the lake as well as a "starter kit" of 265-pounds of minnows.

Muskies are among the top freshwater game fish, equipped with sharp teeth and sometimes approaching weights of 70 pounds.

"Fishermen in Southeast Missouri should be pretty excited to get this opportunity," said Mark Boone, a fisheries management biologist for the Missouri Department of Conservation.

Boone noted that Lake Girardeau is the only new muskie site added to Missouri this year. The Conservation Department has a goal of 12 muskie lakes for the state. Pony Express, Pomme de Terre and Hazel Creek Lake are the only other lakes where muskie have been introduced.

"These are true trophy fish," said Boone. "Or they will be as soon as possible."

The fish released, approximately six months old, ranged from six inches to one foot in length, but are expected to grow quickly. In two years the fish are expected to reach 30 inches in length, the current minimum size for harvest in Missouri, and weigh 10 pounds.

However, fishermen at Lake Girardeau will have to wait approximately five years before removing fish from the 162-acre lake.

The current size limit will be raised to 36 inches on Jan. 1, 1996 and is expected to be extended to 42 inches in 1997.

"The fish should start reaching legal size five years from now, and that will be the fastest growing ones," said Dennis Norman, the fisheries district supervisor for the Missouri Department of Conservation. "In seven or eight years all of these will be legal. But there will be absolutely no harvest for five years."

That doesn't mean anglers can't enjoy catching the game fish. Boone said he caught his muskie, an 11-pounder, three weeks ago at Pomme de Terre.

"I didn't stop shaking for a half an hour," said Boone. "And mine was only an 11-pounder - imagine a 30-pounder."

But Boone does caution that anglers treat the muskies with respect.

"The thing we want to stress is for fishermen to please release them with as little damage as possible," said Boone. "Our concern is that there are not many in here and we don't want people killing them thinking they're gar."

The only similarity to the gar is the long, thin body. As muskies mature, their bodies bulk up considerably more than gar.

Muskies are a member of the pike family, along with northern pike, chain pickerel and grass pickerel. The latter two are common to southeast Missouri.

In Lake Girardeau, the muskies, which will number three to an acre, will be compatible with the other species, mainly largemouth bass, channel catfish, crappie and bluegill. The lake's shad are expected to be a favorite food source of the muskies, who prefer soft prey as opposed to hard-spine fish. Muskie favorites are carp, gizzard shad and drum.

"They should do alright," said Boone. "They have a good habitat and a good food source."

Muskies are a long-life fish and can live for as many as 30 years. The Missouri record muskie, which measured 41 pounds, 2 ounces and 49.5 inches long, was 14 years old.

Muskies are normally associated with the frigid waters of Canada, but such release programs have brought the fish in increasing numbers to the United States. Although they prefer cool water, muskies have been released as far south as Georgia and Texas.

They are not expected to effectively reproduce in the lake as bass and bluegill eat the eggs and minnow-size offspring. Additional fish will be added in three year increments. Fish added will be taken from eggs from the released stock.

"We'll never put in another muskie that's not the exact same strain," said Norman.

And while the muskies had a small, quiet beginning in Lake Girardeau, they are sure to make their presence felt on a few fishing lines in the future.

"This load will provide good, high-quality muskie fishing for the next 10 years," said Norman.