Little Grassy Fish Hatchery Operations

Study Notes

The Paw Report is a TV show that explores the Little Grassy Fish Hatchery in Southern Illinois, near the Crab Orchard National Wildlife Refuge.
The hatchery is one of three fish hatcheries for the Illinois Department of Natural Resources and was established in 1959.
The hatchery has 21 ponds, 18 raceways, 20 indoor raceways, and incubation facilities for hatching eggs.
The main event at the hatchery is catfish production, and they also produce warm water species such as bluegill, redear sunfish, black crappie, and largemouth bass.
The catfish production process involves pairing adult channel catfish in spawning cubicles, collecting eggs, and then incubating them in jars.
The hatchery used to raise blue catfish from yolk-sac fry obtained from another state, but now they spawn their own blue catfish.
In 2018, the hatchery got its first spawn of blue catfish with 37,000 eggs, and in 2021, they collected two blue catfish spawns with a total of over 200,000 eggs.
The hatchery has a 90-95% survival rate for the eggs they collect and hatch.
The fish are stocked in public water bodies managed by the Illinois Department of Natural Resources, not in private ponds.
The process of stocking waterways involves district fisheries biologists monitoring the water bodies and requesting fish of certain species if needed.
The hatchery harvests the fish, loads them onto trucks, and hauls them to the designated water bodies, where they are released into the water.
The fish are stocked at various sizes depending on the species and water body, ranging from 1-2 inches to 4-7 inches.
The hatchery stocks around 200-300 lakes per year, with different species stocked at different times of the year.
The channel catfish are stocked between 200,000 and 400,000 per year, while the blue catfish are stocked in the fall.Here is a summary of the text in detailed bullet points:

• The Little Grassy Fish Hatchery stocks catfish from mid-June to the end of August or early September, sending out two to four trucks daily, four days a week, to stock catfish across the state.

• The hatchery provides tours to the public, showcasing its facilities, including the incubation room, start room, outdoor raceways, and ponds.

• The hatchery produces between 800,000 to 1.6 million fish per year.

• The visitor center offers a short presentation and a tour of the facilities, including the incubation room, start room, and outdoor raceways.

• In the incubation room, catfish eggs are hatched and incubated for five to eight days before being transferred to the start room.

• In the start room, the catfish fry are grown for two to two and a half weeks before being moved to outdoor ponds.

• The hatchery's indoor raceways have 12 start troughs, each holding between 100,000 to 200,000 small fry fish.

• The catfish are fed powdered feed in the start troughs, and after two and a half weeks, they are moved to outdoor ponds.

• The outdoor raceways are where the channel catfish are grown to around eight inches in length before being stocked out throughout the state.

• The hatchery has 21 ponds on site, each containing different species of fish, including blue catfish, channel catfish, bluegill, redear sunfish, black crappie, and largemouth bass.

• The blue catfish brood fish are held in one of the ponds, where they spawn in containers, and the eggs are collected in mid-to-late May or early June.

• The eggs are then hatched and reared indoors before being moved to ponds, where they are grown out for the rest of the summer.

• The hatchery has a variety of fish species, including channel catfish, blue catfish, bluegill, redear sunfish, black crappie, and largemouth bass.

• The fish are fed commercial fish food, and the amount of food varies depending on the species and size of the fish.

• The outdoor ponds are aerated and have water flushing into them to keep them clean and cool during the summer.

• The hatchery's staff provide educational services and community outreach, including tours and presentations.

Description

This quiz covers the operations of the Little Grassy Fish Hatchery in Southern Illinois, including fish production, hatching, and stocking processes. Learn about the hatchery's facilities, species of fish, and stocking procedures.