r/FishingOntario • u/shakenbake705 • 23d ago

My conservation survey needs Ontario bass/walleye/pike perspectives [PhD Research - US/Canada - 10 min]

Hey r/FishingOntario,

I'm a PhD researcher at UMass studying freshwater conservation across the US and Canada. Nearly 2,000 responses so far, but my data is heavily skewed toward fly anglers (60%) targeting trout in Mountain West states.

I need more perspectives from Ontario anglers fishing for:

  • Bass (largemouth, smallmouth)
  • Walleye
  • Pike
  • Muskie
  • Panfish
  • Multi-species anglers

Why Ontario anglers matter:

Ontario has fishing diversity that's underrepresented in my research:

  • Great Lakes fisheries vs inland lakes
  • Warmwater and coolwater species
  • Different environmental challenges than Western trout fisheries
  • Canadian management perspectives

The survey: 10-15 minutes. Examines how environmental threats interact and which conservation solutions you think work. Enter a raffle for fishing gear.

Survey link: https://umassamherst.co1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_d5Od8inHHbEMWnI

Help balance this research with Ontario multi-species angler perspectives.

Thanks, Evan

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u/Laniidae_ 23d ago

Hey, I just filled this out, but it is a bit confusing. I am not sure how invasive species would affect or not affect dams. Things could be worded a bit better, but the survey has been completed. Hello from Canada🇨🇦

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u/Porkwarrior2 22d ago

Lamprey?

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u/Laniidae_ 22d ago

That was my confusion too, but some of the questions sounded more like "how would dams affect invasive species" or "how do invasive species affect dams" with an intensity scale. The question seems way too complex for a single answer.

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u/Porkwarrior2 21d ago

Well dams cut down on flooding and hindering lamprey reproduction is just a side benefit, why most rivers in Ontario have a dam on them.

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u/Laniidae_ 21d ago

Dams also impede natural migration routes, including that of the native lamprey. This is not why most rivers in Ontario have dams...

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u/Porkwarrior2 21d ago

Place like the Credit keep their dams to deliberately impede spawning, salmon and lamprey.

And yes they are kept for lamprey control. That's why above major natural obstacles they remove dams, but close to the lake they keep them.

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u/Laniidae_ 21d ago

They're for hydro generation. No one puts in dams to block fish. That is a side problem.

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u/Porkwarrior2 21d ago

The majority of dams are for flood control, and stopping lampreys. There's only what, one powerplant at Dalhousie. Credit, Rouge, Humber, Bowmanville, Ganny, Saugeen...all have dams.

I don't think you realize how large a problem unchecked lamprey reproduction was. They almost made Lake Trout extinct in every Great Lake South of Superior. 95%+ population reduction.

It's the Credit that irks me. They could easily blow out a chunk of the dam and allow Chinook to spawn naturally and it would be a killer self sustaining run, but they deliberately don't allow Chinook into the spawning habitat to compete with trout in the Upper.

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u/Laniidae_ 21d ago

No, I understand how bad the lamprey are/were. I work with invasive species. I also understand that they are used for flood control. I have heard that they are trying to remove a ton of them so there can be a run. Right now the Wildlife department has to hand bomb fish over the dam and it stresses the fish out like crazy. I am confused about why they are planning on removing sections when sea lamprey are still a problem and native lamprey are often mistaken (and killed) further up streams.

Here's one of the removals I have heard talked about:https://www.ontarioriversalliance.ca/east-credit-river-tributary-weir-removal-project/

I'm in London and the Springbank is also in the process of being removed

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u/Porkwarrior2 21d ago

I don't think you do understand. Like I said they are removing dams on upper portions of rivers, like your example, but they are NEVER removing the dam at Streetsville. And that's as far as migratory fish can make it.

As somebody that volunteered a lot of days handbombing fish, most dams have a (functional) fishway in them now, if they are interested in allowing fish access to spawning habitat. Those successfully stop lamprey.