Urban and Community Fisheries Programs: Development, Management, and Evaluation

<em>Abstract.-</em>Little published information exists on the utility of tournament and anglercatch data for assessing sizes and numbers of channel catfish <em>Ictalurus punctatus</em>. We compared channel catfish caught concurrently from May-August 2006 by small tournament anglers, creel-surveyed anglers, and soybean-baited tandem hoop nets (nets) in Lake Manawa, an 800 ac urban lake in Council Bluffs, Iowa. Mean total length of channel catfish caught was lowest in the nets, intermediate for creel-surveyed anglers, and highest for tournament anglers. Tournament anglers selected against small channel catfish (i.e., RSD S-Q: 11-16 in), selected for intermediate-sized channel catfish (RSD Q-P: 16-24 in), and caught similar proportions of large channel catfish (RSD P-M: 24-28 in) as compared to creel-surveyed anglers. Comparisons of angler and net catch rates by size categories revealed that both tournament and creel-surveyed anglers selected against small channel catfish, but overestimated both intermediate and larger channel catfish. We believe there is some utility and cost-savings benefits associated with using angler-caught channel catfish data for making management decisions, but biases need to be considered and more information on comparisons between angler caught channel catfish and sampling data are warranted.

Urban and Community Fisheries Programs: Development, Management, and Evaluation

<em>Abstract.-</em>The Nebraska Game and Parks Commission incorporated fishing clinics into its Urban Fisheries Program in 1999. Clinics are designed to expose youth to fishing opportunities, and it is our goal to utilize fishing clinics to enrich the lives of youth with the outdoor experience. In the process, we aim to recruit new anglers and ultimately increase fishing permit sales. For a fishing clinic to be successful in recruiting new anglers, it must meet the needs of participants. A fishing clinic must provide them with quality fishing equipment and readily available assistance. It must take place at a location where participants will catch fish in comfort and safety. A clinic must be the grounds for establishing lasting mentor relationships, and most importantly, it must provide participants with the skills necessary for them to enjoy fishing in the future as dedicated anglers. Considering the options for bait, target fish species, equipment, clinic location, participant age, group type, and clinic structure will do much to ensure that a fishing clinic is a success for everyone involved.

Urban and Community Fisheries Programs: Development, Management, and Evaluation

<em>Abstract.-</em>As part of the nation’s sixth fastest growing and sixth most urbanized state, Utah’s natural resource professionals face the challenge of managing fisheries for an increasingly urban population. As the state’s population continues to grow, recreational areas are often lost to urban development. This, coupled with increasing cost of living, dual-income households, and busy urban lifestyles, reduces the ability of urban residents to travel to more distant, traditional fisheries. To address the challenges arising from changing demographics, the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources (UDWR) created the Community Fisheries Program (CFP). The goals of the CFP are to provide fishing opportunities close to urban centers and to use these opportunities to recruit youth to the sport of fishing. Initiated in 2000, this program has been successful in partnering with city and county governments to secure fishing opportunities along the Wasatch Front, where 80% of Utah’s population resides. Additionally, program staff have teamed up with community recreation coordinators to offer youth fishing clubs in many cities. These community youth fishing clubs have increased in enrollment each year and have graduated over 10,000 youth over a period of seven years.

Urban and Community Fisheries Programs: Development, Management, and Evaluation

<em>Abstract.-</em>The MinnAqua Program, the angling and aquatic education program of the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources, was established in 1989. Its purpose was to introduce urban youth in the Twin Cities of Minneapolis and St. Paul to fishing. MinnAqua has since grown notably, expanding into a successful statewide program reaching over 40,000 people a year, still with a focus on angler recruitment and retention. In addition, the MinnAqua Program also recognizes that fishing provides a powerful context for environmental education, which gets kids outdoors and can serve to foster the development of systems-based awareness, environmental knowledge, skills, and attitudes, and can consequently lay a foundation for active stewardship of Minnesota’s aquatic resources. Through 2000, programming occurred in both formal (schools) and nonformal education settings; however, MinnAqua had been especially effective in reaching out to youth in nonformal settings. In 2001, the decision was made to update the Leader’s Guide to create a tool to aid in strengthening and expanding the program’s outreach in all areas, especially in the formal setting. The new <em>Fishing: Get in the Habitat! </em>MinnAqua Program Leader’s Guide was created and published in June of 2007. This innovative and comprehensive angling and aquatic education curriculum guide is being delivered throughout Minnesota to classroom teachers. To date, over 500 Minnesota educators have received this new guide. One way that educators and youth program leaders receive the guide is by attending a MinnAqua facilitated training workshop. Opportunities for making the publication available for downloading from the Internet are currently being reviewed.

Urban and Community Fisheries Programs: Development, Management, and Evaluation

<em>Abstract.—</em>Little is known about the differences in the human dimensions of organized and nonorganized anglers in general, and among those living in urban environments specifically. Lack of knowledge about the attitudes and behaviors of anglers can constrain the development of sustainable fisheries management strategies. The present study was based on 1,061 urban anglers responding to a mail survey in Berlin, Germany. Half of the anglers (58.3%) were members of a fishing club. Organized and nonorganized anglers differed with regard to a number of characteristics and behavioral patterns. Organized anglers comprised the more committed angler segment and were significantly more experienced, more avid, and more consumptive. Motivations of both angler segments were similar, with noncatch aspects of the fishing experience constituting the main angling motive. However, organized urban anglers placed significantly more importance on social, achievement, and challenge aspects of the fishing experience. In terms of management preferences, both groups suggested stocking of fish most often, but organized anglers more often suggested promotion of angling to children and youths as a means to increase angling quality than did nonorganized anglers. Targeted marketing approaches to increase the attractiveness of club membership to nonorganized anglers will increase the social capital held within angler organizations. Further studies need to analyze the factors that prevent nonorganized anglers from joining angler organizations.

Urban and Community Fisheries Programs: Development, Management, and Evaluation

<em>Abstract.-</em>The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) has implemented an urban fishing program with a goal of introducing angling to demographic groups less likely to participate. One challenge is finding marketing methods that effectively identify and recruit target demographic groups to the program. In December 2005, TPWD began year-round biweekly stockings of adult rainbow trout <em>Oncorhynchus mykiss </em>(winter) and channel catfish <em>Ictalurus punctatus </em>(other seasons) in eight major metropolitan area lakes throughout Texas. On-site angler surveys were conducted from December 2005 through November 2006 to determine the number of people fishing at the lakes, the degree to which they had previously participated in fishing, and their ZIP code of residence. We used a Geographic Information System (GIS) supported by the Environmental Systems Research Institute’s (ESRI) ArcGIS® software, including ESRI’s Business Analyst extension, to geocode each respondent’s ZIP code of residence. This allowed us to examine geographic distribution patterns of anglers. The software’s databases of census and marketing survey data allowed us to learn about the characteristics of people residing near the lakes, as well as the probable characteristics of respondents as typified by the characteristics of people residing in their ZIP codes areas. We were able to obtain insight into sensitive demographic information (information that some respondents are reluctant to provide during surveys such as income, race, etc.), evaluate our success in targeting the desired groups, and are using information from the GIS to develop marketing strategies that may help us more effectively reach those groups.

Urban and Community Fisheries Programs: Development, Management, and Evaluation

<em>Abstract.—</em>As the United States has become increasingly urbanized, angling participation has declined. Urban fishing programs provide an opportunity to reverse this trend by effectively targeting new anglers while increasing fishing opportunities for current or recently lapsed urban anglers. There are three essential components in a successful urban fishing program: a resource with clean water and a quality fishery close to current or potential anglers, facilities to accommodate anglers, and advertisement of the fishery to inform and recruit anglers. Early in the development of an urban fishing program, urban anglers’ interests should be assessed and the program should be developed to meet these interests. Next, access to a quality fishery must be developed—either by creating new bodies of water or enhancing existing ones. Depending upon the level of fishing pressure and the species of interest to anglers, supplemental stocking and intensive management may be needed to maintain the fishery. Amenities such as restrooms, picnic areas, docks, and waste receptacles may also be important. Different angling groups may desire different amenities, so providing different sites to cater to these different groups is advisable. Once the facilities and amenities are in place, the resource must be marketed to targeted potential anglers. The marketing strategy should be tailored to each market segment being targeted. Lapsed anglers are the most easily recruited segment and should be a top priority for advertising. Minorities and children are also commonly targeted. As the U.S. population becomes more urbanized, urban fishing opportunities will continue to grow in importance. Without these opportunities, urbanites will likely be drawn toward the numerous other recreational activities that are conveniently available in urban centers, leading to further declines in angling involvement and concern for natural resource conservation and the environment.

Urban and Community Fisheries Programs: Development, Management, and Evaluation

<em>Abstract.—</em>Urban and community fishing (UCF) projects are viewed as a way to provide easily accessible fishing opportunities to an increasingly urbanized society, thereby retaining and recruiting anglers and maintaining support for conservation of fisheries resources. Nearby, out-of-city fishery resources provide an option for development of UCF opportunities by municipalities lacking aquatic resources that can support recreational fishing. Examples of out-of-city fishing sites used as part of UCF projects in eight states are summarized. These out-of-city fishery resources not only provide relatively accessible fishing opportunities, but they also provide more diverse and often more natural fishing experiences. This diversity of fishing experiences may be useful for satisfying a broader angler constituency and aiding the transition of anglers from urban to more traditional, rural fisheries. Inclusion of out-of-city fishery resources in UCF programs can benefit from partnerships between state fisheries management agencies and municipal agencies and organizations.

Urban and Community Fisheries Programs: Development, Management, and Evaluation

<em>Abstract.-</em>New York’s involvement in urban fisheries can be traced back to 1978 when a two-year demonstration project was initiated in New York City and other urban areas in the state. Unfortunately, the program failed to consider the inherent differences between metropolitan New York and the Midwest in terms of what the public expectations were of such a program. While the St. Louis program was achieving use rates of over 10,000 h/acre, the New York program was only achieving use rates of 49-2,176 h/acre annually, resulting in its demise in 1980. In 1992, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation began a new community fishing initiative in Nassau County (Long Island). This initiative used traditional and innovative strategies to encourage local governments to work to improve the County’s freshwater resources, encourage individuals to try the sport of fishing, better manage existing fish populations, and enhance existing fishing opportunities through a fall trout stocking program. These efforts contributed to an 85% to 162% increase in angler use of individual ponds and a 111% increase in the number of angler-days expended in Nassau County.

Urban and Community Fisheries Programs: Development, Management, and Evaluation

<em>Abstract.-</em>Numerous community lakes throughout Nebraska were suffering from water quality degradation. Historically, these lakes were focal points within the community park system; however, cultural and natural eutrophication had reduced water clarity and diminished esthetic and recreational benefits. The Community Lakes Enhancement and Restoration (CLEAR) program was created in 2000 to combine the resources and technical expertise of the Nebraska Game and Parks Commission, the Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality, and the University of Nebraska- Lincoln in fisheries, water quality and education. With funding totaling $4.97 million from the Nebraska Environmental Trust Fund, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and local community partners, CLEAR assisted 26 communities improve their park lakes. Pre- and postproject water quality measurements showed improvements in total phosphorus (75% average decline), total nitrogen (39% average decline), turbidity (85% average decline), and chlorophyll a (86% average decline), yielding improvements in water clarity (350% average increase), as measured by Secchi disk. Postproject electrofishing samples and angler surveys demonstrated the positive impact of CLEAR program improvements on the quality of fishing opportunities and a resultant increase in angler use.