T U meeting and discussion of Whirling Disease

Just got back from the Pat Barnes TU chapter meeting in Helena. There
had been an article in the local paper ealier this winter about
how fingerlings in the two main spawning tribs of the Mo, the Little
Prickly Pear, and the Dearborn R were 100% infected with W D. Pretty
unsettling !

The biologist from the state confirmed these figures in a power point
display. These guys are very thorough and the data they collect
seems to be very good.

However, there is a caveat and possibly some hope. While the
numbers of fish overall have declined somewhat in the Mo. ( mainly
attributed to low water and attrition) the numbers of year old
fish are up . Last year I noticed many more smaller fish than the year
before. In fact a couple years ago over 2/3 of the fish in the Mo were
over 17 inches. Fortunately the count is more balanced now even as
WD is getting worse.

Hard to figure.... theres just so much we dont know about how the
biosphere works .

MT