Michigan Fresh Fish Website
Learn how to support your local fishing economy and improve your and your family’s health all at the same time—by eating delish Michigan fish! This website maintains a searchable database of Michigan fish suppliers and producers is a fast and easy way to buy fresh, local fish. Michigan fish producers are located across the state. This includes producers of food fish, bait fish, fish for stocking, ornamental fish, and fee-fishing. The Fresh Fish Finder tool (freshfishfinder.org) can help you find fish businesses across the state so you can buy directly from the source. Find fresh fish and fish products in your area, support local and Great Lakes businesses, and eat great fish.
People of the Sturgeon Story Map
Lake sturgeon, an ancient fish native to the Great Lakes region, can grow to be more than six feet long, 200 pounds, and live more than 100 years. This “dinosaur fish” has teetered on the brink of extinction since the late 19th century. But in Wisconsin, careful management over the last 100 years has allowed one population to thrive. The book, People of the Sturgeon outlines the history of the cultures surrounding lake sturgeon in Wisconsin’s Lake Winnebago region, told by a fascinating collection of photos, artifacts, and a few good fish tales. This story map takes much of the original materials in the book and presents them in Story Map form. The website includes photographs, oral histories and maps.
Fishlines Newsletter
“Fish Lines” is an on-line newsletter for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Great Lakes Fisheries Division.
Lake Erie Fishermen – Work, Identity, and Tradition
Lake Erie Fishermen: Work, Identity, and Tradition by Lloyd, Timothy C.; Mullen, Patrick B. This book was published in 1990 by Univ. Ilinois Press, and is available online (open access) through ACLS Humanities E-Book collection. A summary of this book, as provided by ACLS Humanities, is described as follows: Timothy C. Lloyd and Patrick B. Mullen began their fieldwork in March 1983 and ended it in September 1985. They spent a total of twelve weeks on or along the Lake, observing, interviewing and documenting the work of commercial fishermen on fishing boats, at shore seining sites, at local fish wholesale houses and at leisure in restaurants, VFW halls, bars, and at kitchen tables. They interviewed active and retired fishermen, members of their families, wholesale distributors, State of Ohio biologists and wildlife enforcement agents. They were lucky enough be able to document the techniques and customs of gill-net fishing before it was prohibited by state regulation a year ago. They found active verbal, material and customary traditions shared among local fishermen, through which the culture and identity of this group are expressed. Chapters of this book are outlined in table of contents, as follows: Introduction: Commercial Fishing on Lake Erie A. The Current State of the Occupation B. A Brief History of Lake Erie Commercial Fishing 1. Technique and Custom 2. The Past 3. Heroes, Characters, and Notable Men 4. Hazards 5. Identity 6. Conflict Conclusion: Personal Narratives and Occupational Identity
Great Lakes Literacy Principles
Website and brochure explores eight Great Lakes Literacy Principles. Developed through the Sea Grant Center for Great Lakes Literacy, these are considered essential Principles and Fundamental Concepts for Great Lakes Learning (these parallel and match those of Ocean Literacy Principles). Website also includes a variety of supporting resources, lessons and educational materials relating to these principles. View a PDF version of Great Lakes Literacy Principles brochure.
Wisconsin Fish ID
This website is an online and interactive fish identification tool developed by Wisconsin Sea Grant, Wisconsin Dept of Natural Resources, and University of Wisconsin Center for Limnology. This site allows you to search, sort, and identify Great Lakes fish (Wisconsin watersheds) both by name and appearance. A mobile Wisconsin Fish ID Mobile App is also available for download.
NatureChange.org
NatureChange.org is a website promoting online conversations about environmental issues. A great resource for engaging in issue explorations relevant to the Great Lakes region.
Walters Fishery, Fishing Family Profile
Dale Witham – General Fishery Manager and Chief Smoker! Dale Witham is ready to deliver another load of smoked fishIf you must smoke…smoke fish! That’s the motto of Walters Fishery in Ludington, and they do a lot of it. Many Michigan fish processors smoke fish, either for the wholesale or retail market, but it’s Walters’ exclusive focus. The “Old World” method of natural hardwood smoking lends a special savory hickory taste to Great Lakes whitefish, and they tap three generations of experience to produce the delicacy. According to Walters’ general manager Dale Witham, they carefully select and hand craft each batch of fish. They use no supplementary flavorings such as brown sugar or molasses. Instead, they let the cherry, maple, and hickory wood chips do the work and create the finished product’s distinctive aroma and flavor. Witham is especially proud of the comment by an Alaska seafood expert that Walters’ golden smoked whitefish product is better than Alaska salmon. He’s also proud of complying with state regulations and implementing their federally required Seafood Hazard Analysis and Critical Control Point (HACCP) process. The focus on standards comes naturally to Witham, a former quality assurance specialist for a medical equipment firm and for Hunt-Wesson Foods. “It’s really important to produce a consistently high quality product,” he says cheerfully. Witham runs the operation for Walters’ owner George Shrink, who bought it from Ron Walters, a second generation fish smoker. Shrink, who fishes with Witham’s nephew, lured “Uncle Dale” (as he prefers to be called) to lend his quality control expertise to build the business. In addition to his professional experience, Witham grew up working in the meat department of his family’s Thriftway grocery store in Muskegon. A large portion Walters’ smoked fish business is to wholesale markets within a 100 mile radius. At their walk-in location in Ludington, local customers are on an honor system, where they deposit money in a slot and take their fish. Witham likes it that way, appreciating the loyal, honest folks who patronize their product. He also foresees a growth in cyber sales, as customers from all parts of the country can access the flavor of smoked Great Lakes whitefish. The work days are long, but Witham’s contagious enthusiasm for educating people about the benefits of eating fish sees him through. This story posted in Fishing Families on Great Lakes Whitefish website (view PDF version of original web content)
Eat Wisconsin Fish website
Eat Wisconsin Fish is all about local fish that is available to purchase in Wisconsin—fish caught by commercial fishermen on the Great Lakes and fish raised by Wisconsin farmers. A project of Wisconsin Sea Grant, Eat Wisconsin Fish supports its goal of creating a safe and sustainable seafood supply to meet consumer demand, as well as fostering informed consumers who understand the health benefits of seafood consumption and how to evaluate the safety and sustainability of the seafood they buy. This food-focused informational website offers information about Great Lakes fish, commercial fish producers, recipes for cooking and preserving fish, and where to buy local Wisconsin fish.
History of state-licensed Great Lakes commercial fishing in Michigan
Michigan Department of Natural Resources website offers history, images, and resources relating to state-licensed Great Lakes commercial fishing in Michigan, including: Early History The Rise of Recreation and Modern Commercial Fishery The Current Commercial Fishery References
