More than 4,000 Walleyes Released into Indiana’s Pine Lake

Fishing at LaPorte’s Pine Lake received a boost this month as the DNR stocked 4,018 walleye advanced fingerlings there.

The walleyes were reared by inmates at Terre Haute’s Federal Correctional Complex as part of a partnership between the DNR and the Federal Bureau of Prisons. The same facility grows catfish for the Go FishIN in the City program, a program to enhance fishing opportunities in Indiana’s urban areas.

The walleyes were stocked Oct. 8. They averaged 7.5 inches and are expected to reach legal size for fishermen to keep (14 inches) in two or three years.

Pine Lake is a 564-acre natural lake in the town of LaPorte. It is connected by a channel to 125-acre Stone Lake, which has a public access boat ramp.

Pine Lake was stocked with walleye fry in 1992 and spring fingerling walleyes in 1993 and 1994. Additional walleye stockings were conducted in 2001 and 2002 with advanced fingerlings.

During a largemouth bass evaluation by DNR biologists last year, two walleyes around 27 inches were collected near the channel that connects Pine Lake to Stone Lake and are believed to have come from the 2002 stocking. Biologists believe the current stocking of walleyes could produce fish that large also.

Fisheries biologists will evaluate the success of the walleye stocking as well as any impact to the other fish populations.

Indiana Department of Natural Resources

The Indiana Department of Natural Resources is the agency of the U.S. state of Indiana charged with maintaining natural areas such as state parks, state forests, recreation areas, etc. There are many divisions within the DNR and each has a specific role. The DNR is not only responsible for maintaining resource areas but also manages Indiana's fish and wildlife, reclaims coal mine ground, manages forested areas, aids in the management of wildlife on private lands, enforces Indiana's conservation laws, and many other duties not named here. According to the department's website, their mission is "to protect, enhance, preserve, and wisely use natural, cultural, and recreational resources for the benefit of Indiana's citizens through professional leadership, management, and education."