By Heather Graves
Correspondent
BELLEVUE – A nearly one-acre plot of wetland at Bethel Park is now home to a spawning bed for northern pike, a restoration project geared toward improving the population of the popular sport fish.
“In short, it is a restoration of a spawning bed for northern pike to use during high waters in the spring,” said Stephanie Schlag, outgoing Parks, Recreation and Forestry director for the village.
Construction of the spawning restoration began last fall and was completed this summer.
Schlag said the village was approached by Chuck Larscheid, project manager of the West Shore Pike Habitat Project from Brown County Land and Water Conservation Department, in regards to the project.
“He did all the pre-work and research to determine ideal sites in the Green Bay area,” Schlag said. “The village recognized the uniqueness of the project, as well as the importance to the ecosystem to have a spawning area.”
Schlag said the area being used for the project wasn’t being used for anything and was mostly just overgrown shrubs and brush.
“This was seen as a great use of an area that probably otherwise wouldn’t have had much other opportunistic uses,” Schlag said.
County staff said fish will access the spawning marsh by entering the discharge outlet from Willow Creek, and from there will encounter two spawning cells.
After spawning, Larscheid said the fish will reenter Willow Creek by continuing to swim up through the project’s culvert connections with two branches of Willow Creek or swim down through and out of the project into a lower stretch of Willow Creek.
County staff have tracked northern pike from the East River and the Bay of Green Bay to Willow Creek during the spring’s spawning migrations, making Bethel Park a great site for a restoration project.
“Brown County Northern Pike Restoration Project’s objective is to increase the number of adult northern pike in the Bay of Green Bay through actions that increase their spawning success,” Larscheid said. “Brown County has completed over 60 projects since it began this project in 2007. This completed project at Bethel Park is compatible with the passive recreation at the park and is a great location to support northern pike spawning.”
Schlag said the project cost around $70,000 and was completely grant-funded.
“No cost to the village, Schlag said. “And actually, Brown County Land and Water will be reimbursing the village a small monetary amount for use of the land.”