From Small Fry to Fingerlings

By Brett Larson Inaajimowin Editor

Aquaculture Biologist Keith Wiggins came back to Mille Lacs in 2018 to work on a fledgling hatchery cobbled together by biologists Carl Klimah and Chad Weiss, under the direction of former Commissioner of Natural Resources Susan Klapel.

When he first saw the hatchery, he said at the time, ”My first thought was ’Oh no!’ There’s a reason we call it ’the Frankenhatchery.’”

Fast-forward three years, and the Frankenhatchery has ex- ceeded its expectations, with 8 million ogaa (walleye) fry and 65,000 ogaa fingerlings being stocked in 13 area lakes, including Platte, Sullivan, Ann, Shakopee, and Nammachers.

”Last year we put 800,000 in Ann Lake and around half a million in Shakopee,” said Keith.

On an August morning, Keith was out on the ”giigoonh ponds” (former wastewater treatment ponds) behind Grand Casino in District I, pulling fyke nets full of ”phase 1 fingerlings,” with help from Harvey Goodsky and Chinoodin Weyaus, an intern with the WEX program.

Most of the ogaawag were 2-3 inches, with a few at 4-5. ”Those are the cannibals,” said Keith.

The fingerlings grew from fry that were hatched in the Band’s facility near Shakopee Lake, with eggs taken from speared and netted walleyes. The fry were brought to the giigoonh ponds in early June and grew fast into August.

”Those eggs would’ve ended up in the garbage, so we are truly making something from nothing here,” said Keith, looking fondly at a thousand or so of his ”babies.”

The goal of the hatchery program is to create opportunities for Band members (and others) to catch fish within the 1837 ceded territory.

Eventually, they’d like to open some of the giigoonh ponds to Elders and youth for fishing.

That may be a few years off, as Keith and the crew are still dealing with challenges like algae blooms, caused by abnormally high temperatures and no rain, which can kill fish.

He’s also experimenting with aerators to make sure the shallow ponds receive enough oxygen. Some of the full-grown fish pulled from the fyke nets show that plenty are making it through the winter.

”I hate that my job exists, but I love doing it,” said Keith. ”In a perfect world, you wouldn’t need fish hatcheries, and the fact that we do means things are out of whack.”

The fisheries department is still set on its goal of building a brand new hatchery one day and are currently working towards that vision. Until that time, they will continue stocking and hatching ogaa, to help expand tribal fishery resources.