Washington Dept. of Fish and Wildlife

1. Tiger Muskie Waters in Washington Washington Dept. of Fish and Wildlife • Newman Lake (Spokane Co.) Tiger Muskie (TMK) Diet Studies • Evergreen Res. (Grant Co.) • Silver Lake (Spokane Co.) Purpose: • Determine TMK diet preferences in different fish communities • Curlew Lake (Ferry Co.) • Determine if changes in the fish communities could be attributed to TMK • Mayfield Reservoir • Merwin Reservoir Study Lakes: • Lake Tapps • Mayfield Reservoir • Merwin Reservoir • Silver Lake • Curlew Lake • Green Lake (King Co.) Methods: • TMK stomachs are flushed with water to remove contents - fish are released unharmed • Contents are identified to lowest taxonomic level possible Results: Short-Term Studies: Mayfield Lake, May-October, 2002 Long-term study: n = 61 TMK (34 w/diet items), northern pikeminnow = 42% (by number), sucker = 30%, rainbow trout = 7%, coho salmon = 4% n = 276 TMK (157 w/diet items) from 2001-2004 Green Lake n = 32 trout = 69% - unidentified non-salmonids = 13%, sculpins = 10% Curlew Lake n = 48 northern pikeminnow = 27%, rainbow trout = 23% largemouth bass = 15%, invertebrates = 15% Merwin Reservoir, May-October, 2003 n = 31 TMK (16 w/diet items), northern pikeminnow = 54%, sucker = 6%, kokanee = 17% Silver Lake n = 77 rainbow trout = 25%, largemouth bass = 17%, unidentified non-salmonids = 18% Northern pikeminnow coming out of a tiger muskie 18” northern pikeminnow from a 41” TMK – Curlew Lake Flushing an adult tiger muskie with water to remove stomach contents A small crappie from a small tiger muskie Flushing a juvenile tiger muskie’s stomach For further information, contact Bruce Bolding, WDFW 360-902-8417 or boldibdb@dfw.wa.gov