Minnesota Steelheader Updates Creel Project Collection

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See link at the bottom of this page to access the new Creel Form
Beginning this fall, MNST is changing the way we collect data for the MNST Creel Project.

Unfortunately we are limited in keeping up with the times; up-to-date servers and applications cost money, and all of our membership funds and donations go right back into programs and outreach to facilitate our mission of Informing, Inspiring and Educating online and in the community. The good news is MNST’s staff are a creative bunch, and we have solutions to a number of Creel Project challenges.
  
If you were not aware, the creel project was developed to answer questions about steelhead in Minnesota waters specifically, and to also provide anglers with the most up-to-date information possible. The more we study the data, the more MNST realizes that we need well, more data… 

One significant challenge is that with the age of our current servers and web applications, MNST is severely limited in what we can do about making it easy for you to get the data into our hands using our native web service. We were also limited in the types of data we could collect as part of any given submission. This is an important consideration; MNST is finding that the more we can learn about the various migratory species which inhabit Lake Superior, the more we can all learn about steelhead and become more rounded anglers. 

The changes you will note with the new MNST Creel Project Collection Form are as follows:
  • The form is far more mobile friendly and much easier to use. If you have cell reception anywhere on the North Shore, entering your catch data is a snap. Select the Region of the Shore, enter the date, and select the numbers of each type of fish caught  by clicking the corresponding number scale
    • One caveat here: The form allows for a max of 10 to be selected. If you catch more than 10 of one type, please split the numbers between two reports using the same date   
  • The most significant update to the Creel form is being driven by the change in stocking protocols. The adipose-clipped fish you catch in the future may or may not be Kamloops. We should still see Kamloops returns until 2021 or 2022; but we may also start to see the first of the Kamloops replacement program adipose-clipped Steelhead returns as early 2020 which means there will be overlap. Because of this, the new Creel form includes both "Steelhead " and "Adipose-Clipped fish" rather than Kamloops. If your fish has a clipped adipose, simply select the appropriate number under Adipose-Clipped Fish 
  • The new form now includes Pink and Coho Salmon in addition to Coaster Brook Trout. We do have data on fall-run fish, but our goal is to present additional creel information similar to that of steelhead. This addition will help to build a formidable information resource for all North Shore anglers. MNST is only looking to capture Coho and Pink catch in the fall as indicated on the Creel Form. We will take steelhead and coaster reports year-round
  • The last change is a section to include tagged fish reporting. This section is purely optional, but MNST's goal is to eventually create migration and movement maps to show how far tagged fish travel in any given year subsequent to being trapped. MNST will never publicly report specific rivers as part of this new data-set. What we are looking to produce is a graphical map which displays individual fish, where they were trapped, what region of the shore they were caught in after being trapped, and how far and how quickly they traveled between those two locations.
    • You can simply report the tag number, and then write "Mid Shore" or "Upper Shore" or whatever after the tag number. This will give us enough information to go on, but if you report the tag number and river name, we can produce a map that is far more accurate in terms of time and distance. Again, we will not publicly report the river name if you provide it. MNST will also mask the distance so that even if someone measures, they won't be able to determine that a fish was trapped in Knife River but then traveled to the Split Rock for example. All they will know at that point is, "Mid Shore" 
You can bookmark the new MNST Creel Reporting tool by clicking on the link below and saving the bookmark/favorite on your computer or mobile device. MNST has already begun accepting creel reports, and the plan is to continue year-round reporting. Our main goal is providing you, the angler, the best North Shore information possible regarding the how, where, why and when of any given species' runs.

A heart-felt THANK YOU to all who have participated in the past, today, and into the future! 

MNST Creel Project

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