AUTHORS: Kristen Patterson: Minnesota Department of Natural Resources; Loren Miller, Minnesota Department of Natural Resources; Beth Holbrook, Minnesota Department of Natural Resources; Chris Smith, Minnesota Department of Natural Resources: Derek Bahr, Minnesota Department of Natural Resources
ABSTRACT: Burbot (Lota lota) are a unique fish in Minnesota as the only freshwater member of the cod family Gadidae and the only under ice spawner. There has been a variable history of appreciation across the state from a productive commercial fishery to some generalized opinion as “trash fish”. Although relatively little is known about populations in Minnesota, Burbot was recently designated a game fish and will have a bag limit set in 2025. Minnesota DNR staff have noted increased Burbot angling interest and have expressed concerns about current exploitation and future potential impacts on area lakes if angling pressure continues to build. Burbot are not well represented with methods employed in current fisheries assessments, and generally targeted with methods outside of standard protocols, e.g. hoop or trammel netting, set or long lining. Without employing intensive sampling efforts, we aim to use single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) to determine whether Burbot are currently showing signs of genetic depression in popular fisheries and if this could be a useful method to gain population level information moving forward. We will share our current knowledge on Burbot populations in Minnesota, preliminary genetic analysis results, and welcome input and discussion for future study and management of this cold-water fish.
