{"id":3484,"date":"2025-12-20T06:00:00","date_gmt":"2025-12-20T12:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/trfnews.i234.me\/wordpress\/?p=3484"},"modified":"2025-12-18T16:38:28","modified_gmt":"2025-12-18T22:38:28","slug":"st-paul-dnr-eyes-4-fish-walleye-limit","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/trfnews.i234.me\/wordpress\/st-paul-dnr-eyes-4-fish-walleye-limit\/","title":{"rendered":"St. Paul: DNR Eyes 4-Fish Walleye Limit"},"content":{"rendered":"

St. Paul<\/strong> (trfnews.i234.me<\/a>) \u2014 Minnesota anglers may soon face a smaller walleye limit. The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources is weighing a drop from six fish to four.<\/p>\n

First statewide change since 1956<\/h2>\n

The DNR says the six-fish daily and possession rule dates to 1956. That was during President Dwight Eisenhower\u2019s term. The agency says it is reviewing a statewide four-fish limit.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\"Minnesota<\/div>\n

Why the DNR says it is acting now<\/h2>\n

DNR staff say fishing has changed fast. New tools can help anglers find fish more quickly. The agency points to GPS and advanced fish finders.<\/p>\n

The DNR also points to lake changes. It says climate shifts and invasive species can hurt walleye in many waters.<\/p>\n

Social media is another factor. The agency says posts can send anglers to \u201chot\u201d bites fast. That can hit smaller areas hard.<\/p>\n

Ice fishing is also growing. The DNR cites more than three million hours of winter fishing effort in 2019. That estimate covers Mille Lacs Lake and Lake of the Woods.<\/p>\n

Survey results show mixed support<\/h2>\n

The DNR reports support in several surveys. A 2023 statewide angler survey found 48% favored a lower limit. It found 23% opposed it.<\/p>\n

From 2021 through 2023, staff also did more than 4,000 on-the-water interviews. The DNR says 67% supported the change. It says 18% opposed it.<\/p>\n

The DNR also reports a 2025 online survey. It says the four-fish option drew the highest approval. It lists 61% for four fish. It lists 31% for keeping six.<\/p>\n

Many big lakes already use four fish<\/h2>\n

The DNR says most of the largest inland lakes already have lower limits. It says those lakes account for about 40% of Minnesota\u2019s yearly walleye harvest.<\/p>\n

The agency says Cass Lake and Lake Winnibigoshish are exceptions. It says they still allow six fish.<\/p>\n

The DNR also says resorts on several destination lakes did not report business losses. It listed Kabetogama, Lake of the Woods, Leech, Pepin, Rainy, and Vermilion.<\/p>\n

Timeline and what anglers should watch<\/h2>\n

The DNR says a formal rulemaking process is not yet proposed. If the agency moves ahead, it says the earliest start would be in 2027.<\/p>\n

A DNR news release said any change would not take effect until May 2027. A DNR background page also notes March 1, 2027, as a possible start. Minnesota\u2019s license year starts on March 1.<\/p>\n

Anglers can follow updates on the DNR\u2019s walleye limit page and the state fishing regulations page.<\/p>\n

Learn more:\u00a0DNR walleye limit reduction proposal\u00a0<\/a>|\u00a0DNR news release on the proposal\u00a0<\/a>|\u00a0Minnesota fishing regulations\u00a0<\/a><\/p>\n

I\u2019m Chris Harper reporting for TRF News<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

St. Paul (trfnews.i234.me) \u2014 Minnesota anglers may soon face a smaller walleye limit. The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources is weighing a drop from six fish to four. First statewide change since 1956 The DNR says the six-fish daily and possession rule dates to 1956. That was during President Dwight Eisenhower\u2019s term. The agency says… Continue reading St. Paul: DNR Eyes 4-Fish Walleye Limit<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3955,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":"","_wpscp_schedule_draft_date":"","_wpscp_schedule_republish_date":"","_wpscppro_advance_schedule":false,"_wpscppro_advance_schedule_date":"","_wpscppro_dont_share_socialmedia":null,"_wpscppro_custom_social_share_image":0,"_facebook_share_type":"default","_twitter_share_type":"default","_linkedin_share_type":"default","_pinterest_share_type":"default","_linkedin_share_type_page":"","_instagram_share_type":"default","_medium_share_type":"default","_threads_share_type":"default","_google_business_share_type":"default","_selected_social_profile":[],"_wpsp_enable_custom_social_template":false,"_wpsp_social_scheduling":{"enabled":false,"datetime":null,"platforms":[],"status":"template_only","dateOption":"today","timeOption":"now","customDays":"","customHours":"","customDate":"","customTime":"","schedulingType":"absolute"},"_wpsp_active_default_template":true},"categories":[12],"tags":[5023,4449,4455,772,3046,5024,4451,4445,4452,4453,4454,4448,4450,352,4447,2409,4446,1686,4456,1452,4035,3934,4444,4442,4443],"class_list":["post-3484","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-crime","tag-4-fish","tag-cass-lake","tag-climate-change-lakes","tag-crime","tag-dnr","tag-eyes","tag-fish-finder-electronics","tag-four-fish-limit","tag-gps-fishing","tag-ice-fishing-pressure","tag-invasive-species","tag-lake-of-the-woods","tag-lake-winnibigoshish","tag-limit","tag-mille-lacs-lake","tag-minnesota-dnr","tag-minnesota-fishing-regulations","tag-paul","tag-rulemaking-2027","tag-st","tag-st-paul-mn","tag-walleye","tag-walleye-bag-limit","tag-walleye-limit","tag-walleye-possession-limit","entry"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/trfnews.i234.me\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3484","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/trfnews.i234.me\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/trfnews.i234.me\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/trfnews.i234.me\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/trfnews.i234.me\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3484"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/trfnews.i234.me\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3484\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":3957,"href":"https:\/\/trfnews.i234.me\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/3484\/revisions\/3957"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/trfnews.i234.me\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/3955"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/trfnews.i234.me\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3484"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/trfnews.i234.me\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=3484"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/trfnews.i234.me\/wordpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=3484"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}