By Louie Stout

Lake of the Woods Bluegill

A recent survey of Lake of the Woods (Bremen, Ind.) produced some surprising results for Hoosier anglers.

Oddly enough, walleyes were a small part of what DNR Research Biologist Tom Bacula discovered on the 416-acre lake. It’s located southwest of Bremen in Marshall County.

“We caught more black crappie than we expected and a ridiculous amount of bluegill,” he said. “On a lake like this, I would expect about 200 crappies. We measured 780 and saw a lot more.”

The crappies averaged a little over 10 inches and most were 9 to 12 inches long.

Those fish were captured in nets the DNR team set in 4-6 feet of water in mid-April. The plan was to capture walleyes that moved up to attempt to spawn and access the population.

The walleye haul was somewhat disappointing although Bacula said it was probably because of the early spring and the water warmed up fast. It was in the mid-50s at the time of the project.

“We caught 26 walleyes, mostly males, but we saw several different year classes and fish from 14½ to 20½ inches,” he said. “While I’m disappointed, I’m not overly concerned as we missed the peak walleye movement and, based upon reports I get, the fishery is still pretty good for walleyes.”

Indiana stocks about 23,000 fingerling walleyes in Lake of the Woods each year. The biologist will be back on the lake in the fall to survey survival of spring stocked fish.

The crappie and bluegill provided a much better picture.

Lake of the Woods Pumpkinseed

“We saw lots of 8-plus-inch bluegills and a lot of really nice pumpkinseed (similar to a bluegill),” Bacula said. “I had heard the bluegill fishing was improving but had no idea it was potentially that good.”

Lake of the Woods White Perch

The team also netted some decent size white perch, a fish that resembles white (aka silver) bass. It’s a non-native species.

He also expressed concerned about the presence of non-native starry stonewart, a nasty plant that has invaded several Michiana lakes the past few years.

Bacula will return to the lake for an all-species survey in June.