(Radio Iowa) – Going after the paddlefish on the Missouri and Big Sioux rivers was once banned, but the populations came back enough to restart the paddlefish season. The D-N-R is hoping for similar success in bringing the paddlefish back at two popular lake areas. D-N-R Western Regional Fisheries Supervisor Chris Larson says West Okoboji is one area they have targeted. “They used to migrate up the little Sioux River out of the Missouri River and get into the big, great lakes up there, but now there’s barriers to keep them from doing that. And so we’re trying to experimental stocking at West Okoboji, where we reintroduced paddlefish this past fall,” Larson says. Two years ago they were stocked at Rathbun Lake as Larson says the paddlefish were native to the Cherokee River.

“I think they radio tagged about 25 of them, and they lost a few after that initial stocking. But they’re still swimming around in Rathbun and surviving,” he says. “So we assume that a majority of those fish survived and are growing. And it’ll take a number of years before it’ll create a fishable population.” He says it takes come time for the paddlefish to grow to a size that can be caught. “They get stocked at about 12 inches, and it might be six or seven years before you see a ten pound plus paddlefish in Rathbun but they’ll eventually, hopefully show up,” Larson says. The fish have a big paddle that sticks out in front of their face called a rostrum and they use it to help them navigate and find the plankton they eat. Larson says they are hoping to have the same success with paddlefish that other states have had.

“They’re very popular fisheries when you get down into the Missouri, the Ozarks, and into Oklahoma, they do paddlefish snagging in the large reservoirs there. These fish grow quite large — up to 100 pounds plus,” he says. Larson says the paddlefish like deeper areas of water that have some movement to them, and don’t like stagnant backwater.