Research Institute, Expert to Educate on Catch-and-Release

PLATTSBURGH, NY (11/23/2009)(readMedia)-- Fishing tournaments are big business in the Lake Champlain region, according to Dr. Tim Mihuc, director of SUNY Plattsburgh's Lake Champlain Sea Institute.

As a result, the institute will host a seminar, "Biology of Catch-and-Release: Implications for Management of Fishing Tournaments," Dec. 9 from 6:30 to 9 p.m. in the Cardinal Lounge, Angell College Center.

"The Lake Champlain Research Institute has been interested in catch-and-release for a while now, and it's time for an educational opportunity for the community," said Mihuc. "We hope to attract the public, anglers, and anyone who has an interest in Lake Champlain."

The seminar will feature Dr. Bruce Tufts from Queen's University in Ontario, an internationally recognized expert on catch and release fishing.

Tufts has done extensive lab work on the topic and, in turn, has worked directly with event organizers to decrease tournament impacts on the ecology of lakes and the environment.

Tufts will discuss the structure of bass populations as well as his work reducing bass tournament fish mortalities in Canada. The workshop will include introductions by Mark Malchoff, a Sea Grant extension specialist at the institute, along with a panel discussion.

This seminar is the first session in the 2009 Lake Champlain Fisheries Leadership Institute Seminar Series. Future topics will continue to center on lake ecology.

For more information, contact the institute offices at 518-564-3038 or Malchoff directly at mark.malchoff@plattsburgh.edu.