Hunt Fish Protect

10/28/2026

More dock pets! This time at Bud N' Mary's Marina in Islamorada, Florida. Always something interesting swimming around the docks!

10/28/2026

🦆 Zebra Mussels and the Duck Express

I was going to post this at a later time, but with the latest zebra mussel discovery at Lake Sakakawea, a few comments brought it right back to the forefront:

“But birds will spread them anyway!”

Birds can potentially transport zebra mussels. But before that becomes an excuse to abandon prevention, let’s look at what researchers actually tested and what they found.

The live duck experiment, reported in 1996

Researchers let mallards swim in infested water or pools containing concentrated zebra mussel larvae and juveniles. The ducks then walked about 8 feet into clean-water pools.

Mussels made the trip, but usually less than half a mussel per duck per trip on average. Researchers also fed ducks mussels and larvae to test survival through digestion. None survived passage through the gut in those tests.

The authors cautioned that the short walk and elevated mussel concentrations could overestimate natural transport.

The simulated flight study, published in 2016

Researchers tested larvae attaching to dead mallards. For the flight simulation, they applied larvae containing water to a dead duck, suspended it above a car with its wings extended and drove about 47 mph.

Yes, roof rack migration. Imagine explaining that one at a traffic stop. 😂

Some larvae survived the ride. However, the fishing gear tested, waders and nets, carried more larvae. Average larval survival time was roughly three times longer on that gear than on the duck.

What do these experiments actually tell us?

These were useful experiments with straightforward setups. But an 8-foot duck walk and a simulated highway flight tested transport potential. Neither demonstrated a bird establishing a new infestation in a previously uninfested lake.

Here in North Dakota, waterfowl regularly move between waters. That raises a reasonable question: how often are birds actually establishing zebra mussel populations in the lakes and ponds surrounding infested waters?

These experiments don’t answer that. A lack of documented bird-caused infestations doesn’t prove it never happens either, infestations can go undetected and their source can be difficult to identify.

But “birds might transport them” is a long way from “birds will spread them everywhere anyway.” These findings don’t justify treating prevention as pointless. The researchers themselves supported continued efforts to reduce human transport.

We can’t make a mallard pull over for an inspection. We can take responsibility for our boats and gear.

Every infestation we prevent, and every year we delay the spread, is a win.

Hunt Fish Protect

10/27/2026

10/27/2026

🚨 ZEBRA MUSSELS IN LAKE SAKAKAWEA: WHAT REGULATIONS CHANGE?

With zebra mussels now confirmed in Lake Sakakawea, anglers and boaters need to understand what additional restrictions come with a Class I Aquatic Nuisance Species (ANS) designation.

The biggest change involves bait and water transportation.

Once Lake Sakakawea is officially designated as Class I ANS infested:

No transporting bait water: All water must be drained from bait buckets and containers before leaving the lake. Live bait cannot be transported away in lake water.

Winter bait exception: During the winter months, live bait may be transported from designated ANS-infested waters if it is in water from that same waterbody and the water is not released into another waterbody. Check current regulations for the specific winter dates and requirements.

No moving lake water: Water cannot be transported away from the infested waterbody.

Bait collection restrictions: Taking legal live aquatic bait from designated ANS-infested waters is prohibited, with an existing exception for rainbow smelt that must be dead before transport.

Docks and lifts: Equipment moved between waters must be dried and kept out of the water for at least 21 days.

Already required statewide:

Drain boats, livewells, bilges and motors before leaving.

Remove drain plugs and leave them out during transportation.

Remove all aquatic vegetation from equipment.

The discovery is unfortunate, but preventing these mussels from spreading to additional waters is now more important than ever.

Hunt Fish Protect.

10/27/2026

Well, delaying proactive prevention efforts for zebra mussels was a poor choice.

NDGF PRESS RELEASE:

Zebra Mussels Discovered in the Eastern End of Lake Sakakawea

After detecting zebra mussel larvae in routine sampling, the North Dakota Game and Fish Department has confirmed the presence of invasive zebra mussels on the extreme eastern portion of Lake Sakakawea.

Ben Holen, department aquatic nuisance species coordinator said, “Follow-up sampling found two adult mussels along the northern shoreline near the Highway 83 Embankment.”

While current findings suggest the infestation is isolated to the far eastern stretch of the reservoir, Game and Fish personnel, working with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, will conduct expanded surveys in the coming days to delineate the infested area.

Officials note that falling water temperatures this fall greatly reduce the immediate risk of zebra mussel spread. The department will work with stakeholders over the winter to refine appropriate rules and implement best management practices to mitigate the spread of mussels before next year’s boating season

10/27/2026

📍 As Far From Home As We Can Get!

2,566 miles by road or 2,006 miles as the crow flies from home in North Dakota!

Hunt Fish Protect has officially made it about as far from home as we can get in the contiguous United States. From the plains of North Dakota to the southernmost point of Key West, Florida!

10/26/2026

NDGF PRESS RELEASE:

The North Dakota Game and Fish Department will continue its hunter-harvested surveillance program during the 2026 hunting season by sampling deer for chronic wasting disease from select units in the southwestern portion of the state.

CWD is a slow-moving brain disease of deer, moose and elk that can cause population-level impacts under high infection rates.

Samples will be tested from deer taken from units 2J1, 3B3, 3C, 3D1, 3D2, 3E1, 3E2, 3F1, 3F2, 4D, 4E and 4F. Outside of this area, hunters can still have their animal tested by taking it to a Game and Fish district office, deer head collection site or by using a self-sampling kit.

Hunters are encouraged to drop off harvested deer heads at collection locations listed on the department’s website at gf.nd.gov. Fawns and head-shot deer cannot be tested. Hunters wishing to keep the heads can bring them to a Game and Fish district office during business hours to have them sampled.

Self-sampling kits, can be requested on the department’s website or at district offices for hunters who wish to have their deer tested but are unable to drop the head at a collection site. The do-it-yourself kit allows hunters to remove the lymph nodes and ship them to the department’s wildlife health lab for testing.

Results can be expected within four weeks and will be sent to your Game and Fish My Account inbox.

Hunters are also reminded that carcass disposal requirements apply statewide. The entire carcass can be transported outside of the gun unit where it was harvested, but the carcass waste (material left after processing) must be disposed of via landfill or waste management provider. This requirement does not apply to heads dropped at CWD collection sites, or lymph nodes submitted for CWD surveillance.

More information on CWD is available at the Game and Fish website.

10/25/2026

Dock Pets of the Florida Keys!

One of the coolest sights in the Keys is seeing massive tarpon, ranging from 10 to 200 pounds, hanging around the docks waiting for a free meal!

Most of these docks are posted NO FISHING and it's common courtesy not to harass the fish. That respect is what makes incredible sights like this possible!

Sometimes just watching these giants is better than catching them!

10/24/2026

Fist fighting trash pandas in Florida.

10/23/2026

I've gotten into a pile of smaller snook fishing from the beach over the last few days! Its to the point my thumb is literally raw from lipping them. What a terrible problem to have.

For you non saltwater people, they are basically a cross between a walleye and a bass.

While snook season is currently open, Florida's strict slot limit of one fish between 28 and 33 inches in this region meant everything I caught got to swim another day.

One interesting thing about snook is that they're strictly a recreational game fish. There is no commercial harvest or market. If you want to bring one of these delicious fish home for dinner, you'll have to catch it yourself!

For now, I'm having plenty of fun sight fishing and releasing these smaller fish while hoping a keeper eventually comes along!

Hunt Fish Protect