Fishing regulations change next year.

MERCER - The Wisconsin walleye season opened this past weekend, Those that fish the Turtle-Flambeau Flowage near Mercer this season saw nothing change in the rules but regulations will change likely next year regarding the type of walleyes that anglers can keep. Under the current fishing regulations for the flowage, a person can keep up to three walleyes a day with no restrictions on size. The proposed rule would maintain the three-fish daily bag limit, but would require they be at least 12 inches and only one fish over 15 inches is allowed. The proposed change was approved at the state’s recent spring hearings and will likely be put into effect in the 2020 season. The measure still needs to be approved by the Natural Resources Board and the state legislature. The change is ultimately designed to give anglers more opportunities at the kind of fish they are seeking. There are similar issues with the size of the flowage walleye. The DNR wants roughly 30-50% of adults to be over 15 inches, and the fish surveys done in 2016 and 2017 indicated only 23 percent of the population was over 15 inches. The rule is expected to go into effect in 2020.