The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) is issuing this update on the presence of Viral Hemorrhagic Septecemia (VHS) Virus in New York State waters and a new federal order that restricts the interstate transport of certain live fish. The virus is a pathogen of fish and does not pose any threat to public health. It was first confirmed in Lake Ontario and the St. Lawrence River, and has now also been confirmed in Lake Erie and Conesus Lake.

VHS is a fish disease that causes the hemorrhaging of the fish's tissues, including internal organs. Often, fish do not exhibit any external signs of having the disease. The disease affects all sizes of fish and not all infected fish develop the disease, but can continue to carry it and spread it to others. There is no known cure for VHS. The impact of this particular strain of VHS on fish populations is uncertain. It has caused fish mortalities ranging from a few fish impacted to thousands of fish impacted.

Due to the potential adverse effects of this disease on fish populations and the desire to prevent or delay its spread to other states, the USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) issued a Federal Order on October 24, 2006, that prohibits the importation of certain species of live fish from Ontario and Quebec and interstate movement of the same species from eight states bordering the Great Lakes, effective immediately. The states included are Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.

Fish species included in the federal prohibition are: Atlantic cod, black crappie, bluegill, bluntnose minnow, brown bullhead, brown trout, burbot, channel catfish, chinook salmon, coho salmon, chum salmon, emerald shiner, freshwater drum, gizzard shad, grayling, haddock, herring, Japanese flounder, largemouth bass, muskellunge, Pacific cod, northern pike, pink salmon, pumpkinseed, rainbow trout, redhorse sucker, rock bass, rockling, round goby, smallmouth bass, sprat, turbot, walleye, white bass, white perch, whitefish and yellow perch. Additional fish will be added to the order as they are confirmed to be carriers of this disease. Additional information on the Federal Order can be found on the APHIS website www.aphis.usda.gov/vs/aqua/ .

VHS can be spread from waterbody to waterbody through a variety of means, not all of them known at this point. One known mechanism is through the movement of fish, including bait fish.

Just curious, what does this have to do with catching your own minnows?? Seems to me that you have to catch your own in the same body of water you fish, or take home and bury the commerical ones you buy (since you don't know where they come from in the first place) if I read the artical right. Get me smart on this, cuz I am new up here and don't want to break any rules.
Dusty

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Boat dirty?? So's mine...from using it, not the garage!

To be sure you don't break the rules, fish with jigs or other artificial lure, and immediately release all caught fish. lol Glenn glad you made it up to ny safely!

Here's the deal:

You are allowed to catch minnows and use them in the same body of water, BUT you may not transport them overland - meaning that other than taking them from your trap or net, placing them in a bucket and walking with them to your boat, you can't transport them. Don't put them in your car/truck.

If you purchase minnows, they must be certified VHS free and you must carry the receipt and certification for the minnows with you. The receipt/certification is only good for 7 days. The exception is water-front baitshops that catch their own in the body of water they are located on. You would have to get to the baitshop by boat so that the baitfish are not transported overland.

What the DEC is trying to do is prevent the spread of VHS to other waterways, by preventing baitfish from potentially infected waters from being introduced into VHS-free waters.

My advice is the same as naildriver's... use jigs.

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Fish on!!!

Ok, and thanks. Will try the arti route. Hi there Glen, and thanks for the welcome. Nice to see a bud in here. Any ideas from yall on the way to use jigs up here....what colors, maribou or tube or twister. Single or double. Drift or stick fish cover and so forth. Would be greatly appreciated.
Hey Glen, you going to be heading back down south again. We will be back there in mid nov-apr this season. Looking forward to hooking up and putting a few in the boat with ya.
Dusty

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Boat dirty?? So's mine...from using it, not the garage!