Lake Delton (Wi Dells) Die Off

I would contact the DNR... I find them to be very responsive

you can email too

http://dnr.wi.gov/contact/

Same thing happened on Delton about this same time last year. No need to get your undies in a bundle.

http://www.wiscnews.com/portagedailyregister/news/article_092fafe2-995f-11e0-b9f7-001cc4c03286.html

Check this out....

This picture is off the same beach from 3 days ago. There were 113 dead fish on this SHORT stretch of beach.....its getting worse. SPLIT

No it doesn't mean everything is going to be lost. It was one of the better non wikipedia articles on the topic out there.

To make it simple and straightforward....Columnaris is not rare, in fact it exists everywhere. Fish carry the bacteria in them already. The infections occur when water temps rise quickly and there is little to no mixing of the water (wind, current, etc.) The fish are vulnerable at this time of the year because they are stressed from spawning and their immune systems are weakened. Add in the quick increase in water temps and voila, you've got this stuff causing a fish kill.

It happens every year and people get really worked up about it and call in the DNR to figure out what is wrong. There's no way to prevent it and it's not something that will destroy a fishery. Think of it as a survival of the fittest scenario.

Maybe its got something to do with the warm year we've experienced so far. Big positive if its not gonna wipe out the fish pop. SPLIT

Split. I have seen this in Monona and Rock Lake a number of years. usually when the temperature rises sharply when they are stressed "spawn" Some years it looks terrible. On a calm day the lake looks peppered with the dead and dieing. I read it is a very small percentage. I never noticed an impact on the two lakes after. looks awful but is not devastating.

Ulbian Thanks, I just read that whole article. I understood about 1/2. What I got out of it is that in an aquarium it can affect the whole tank.....we are talking about a couple hundred acres of lake... Does this mean we're gonna lose all the fish in the lake if it goes unchecked? Based on the article, which is what it sounds like, they most certainly have the signs listed, I personally saw them barely suspended below the surface, lethargic and barely moving. This was all over the lake. SPLIT

My guess would be this:

http://www.fishvet.com/columnaris.htm