|
Project Green Gene - "Our aim is to increase the trophy potential and maximize the effectiveness
of the money spent stocking muskies in Illinois," said Dave Wahl, principal investigator of Project Green Gene. "We
want to find out what strain of muskie performs best in the different regions of Illinois." The project is a
collaborative effort between IDNR fisheries, the Central Illinois Chapter of Muskies, Inc., and several other Illinois Muskie
Clubs which investigates the performance of different genetic strains of muskies in Illinois. Donations collected from Illinois muskie clubs, a
$7500 grant from the Illinois Conservation Foundation and a five-year grant from the federal Sport Fish Restoration
Project will provide funding to test the performance of four strains of muskie. "We are testing fish from the Ohio
River Valley, Upper Mississippi, Great Lakes and from Illinois' Spring Lake," Wahl said. "We are interested in studying
the performance of these strains in growth and survival." Steve Pallo, DNR Fisheries Administrator, added, "We hope to
keep this project over the long term and follow these fish over the next 10 years. Muskie clubs, especially the Central
Illinois Chapter of Muskies, Inc., have been instrumental in raising awareness about this project and getting it off the ground."
|