Pennsylvania's walleye anglers have good reason for optimism as the 2009 season approaches. In many instances, the numbers of legal walleyes should be on the increase this year. Rivers in particular should provide good angling. Aggressive stocking efforts are having a good effect in certain lake situations, boding well for the present as well as the future.

From a fisheries management aspect, one of the more significant items is the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission's decision to -- at least temporarily -- halt stocking efforts on the Susquehanna, Allegheny and Lehigh rivers. Select portions of these three rivers had been stocked with walleye fry in an effort to augment natural reproduction.

"We have been stocking walleye fry in portions of these rivers where spawning habitat was believed to be poor," said Dave Miko, the PFBC's Division of Fisheries Management chief. "In some of these waters, dams restricted the ability of walleyes to move freely throughout the river. However, the recent removal of dams or the improvement of fish passages over these dams has provided walleyes with increased access to spawning areas. As a result, we think the current level of natural reproduction in these rivers may be capable of sustaining the walleye population and providing the recreational opportunities that anglers have come to expect."

Fall electro-shocking surveys to collect young-of-the-year walleyes will take place at the same sites where these activities have traditionally occurred. Comparing data from "stocked" versus "non-stocked" years will enable fisheries managers to determine the contribution stocking makes. And, since not all sections of these rivers had been stocked with walleye fry, the numbers from the formerly stocked sites will also be compared with the findings within traditionally non-stocked waters.

The commission expects it to take at least three years to determine the effect fry stocking makes on these three rivers.

In general, rivers should provide some of the most consistent walleye angling in the state, at least for the first couple of months of the season. That's when the fish tend to be scattered and are more difficult to catch. Excellent year-classes from 2005 and 2007 will fuel the river fisheries. While the 2007 fish will still be sub-legal, most of the walleyes produced during 2005 will be in excess of the 15-inch minimum length requirement this spring.

Last season, the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission -- using data collected over the past few years -- conducted an examination of the Susquehanna River walleye fishery in an attempt to determine the effect fishing pressure has on the walleye resource. The examination included the North Branch and main stem of the Susquehanna. The West Branch was not included.

According to the agency, the PFBC conducted an angler use and harvest study of the Susquehanna River from Sunbury to the Conowingo Pool and the Juniata River from Port Royal to the mouth in 2007.

The agency plans to generate harvest estimates from this study as data analysis progresses. For now, however, raw data from the study will be used to show that walleye anglers practiced a high level of catch-and-release on these rivers.