Albino Muskie Fish Found in Wisconsin (Wildlife Officials Net Rare White Muskie)

AP on Yahoo ^ | 6/11/05 | Robert Imrie - AP

[NormsRevenge]

WAUSAU, Wis. - This is indeed a fish story — not about the one that got away, but about a rare one. A white muskellunge is swimming in the waters of Lake Tomahawk, a northern Wisconsin lake in Oneida County.

State fisheries experts captured it in nets during a population survey in April and released it back into the lake.

"I've never seen nor heard of an albino muskie, so it's an unusual fish to say the least," said John Lyons, a longtime fisheries researcher for the state Department of Natural Resources in Madison.

The nearly 33-inch long, 8-pound muskie had white skin but with a slight greenish tint, said John Kubisiak, a DNR fish biologist who was with the netting crew that handled the fish.

Muskies typically are silver, light green or light brown with dark, vertical bars along their long bodies.

Cory Painter, an officer with the Madison chapter of Muskies Inc., said Friday the discovery of the white muskie created some buzz among anglers.

"I think it would be pretty cool to catch it," said Painter, a 36-year-old angler who's caught about 100 muskies in his fishing ventures.

He'll have to wait for it to grow, though.

Anglers can keep muskies caught in inland Wisconsin lakes only if the fish measures at least 34 inches long. If the albino muskie is female, it could grow to more than 50 inches long and weigh more than 40 pounds, Painter said.

"Even if I caught it and it was 50 inches, I would still get a picture and release it back because I would rather have someone else catch it," he said.

Lyons said he believes the fish is an albino, although it had a small amount of pigment in its eyes and around its head.

"I'm not sure there's an official definition of an albino fish," Lyons said. "In nature, there can be a continuum of levels of pigmentation, and I've seen specimens of some species that are intermediate in pigmentation between normal and fully albino with pink eyes."

The muskie that was netted was close to the fully albino end of the spectrum, he said.

Albinism is rare but occurs normally, particularly in Wisconsin whitetail deer or a squirrels, Lyons said.

Steve AveLallemant, the DNR's northern regional fisheries coordinator, said the white muskie was 3 to 4 years old.

"It was healthy," he said. "It might be a freak of nature. I don't know how else to explain it."

He said no one knows whether other white muskies could be swimming in the 3,600-acre Lake Tomahawk.

"If it was the only one, he was darn lucky to catch it," AveLallemant said, referring to Kubisiak's netting crew.

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On the Net:

Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources: http://www.dnr.state.wi.us

[NormsRevenge]

This photo provided by the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources shows John Kubisiak holding a 33-inch albino muskellunge captured during a population survey in April 2005, on Lake Tomahawk in Oneida County, Wis. Muskies typically are silver, light green or light brown with dark, vertical bars along their long bodies. Anglers can keep muskies caught only if the fish measures at least 34 inches long. The nearly 8-pound muskie with white skin and a slight greenish tint was released back into the lake. (AP Photo/Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources)

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This photo provided by the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources shows a 33-inch albino muskellunge caught by John Kubisiak in April 2005, while doing fish population studies on Lake Tomahawk in Oneida County, Wis. Muskies typically are silver, light green or light brown with dark, vertical bars along their long bodies. Anglers can keep muskies caught only if the fish measures at least 34 inches long. The nearly 8-pound muskie with white skin and a slight greenish tint was released back into the lake. (AP Photo/Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources)

[NormsRevenge]

As a kid, I remember seeding some local lakes with little muskies.

It takes years and lots of feed for lunkers much less legal for catch muskies emerge.

I'm glad they let this one get away.

[1stFreedom]

Call the NY Times! Place this in breaking news!! lol

[ReadyNow]

They're working on a cross between the Coho, the Walleye, and the Muskie. They call it a Kowalski, and it will be a great game fish if they ever can teach it to swim.

[Luddite Patent Counsel]

How strange! In the past, white Muskies were found crying in New Hampshire:

[MotleyGirl70]

Large WI lakes and big flowages have muskies the size of small children. Talk about lunkers.

[MotleyGirl70]

Lol

[Cvengr]

That's not a Muskie,...here's a couple o' real Muskies:

140 ft Muskie:

[miele man]

Don't let Howard Dean know about this fish. He'll think it is a Republican and not a "Muskie".

[cripplecreek]

I know a guy that has muskies in a pond on his property. He was out floating in an innertube and a muskie nailed his foot (we think). He got some 30 odd stitches out of that deal.

[Enterprise]

How ungrateful to bite the foot that seeds you.

[Constitution Day]

Ha! Good one.

[cripplecreek]

Could have been worse. If it had been nighttime he would have been skinny dipping.

[MotleyGirl70]

I believe it. The big ones have teeth are like little razors. I've seen them mounted on bait shops.

Until this day I've never caught even a small muskie, but I think I saw a big one swimming by the boat. Not really sure though. My eyes were probably playing tricks on me. It was probably just a big log.

Still on my list that I want to catch: walleye, northern and muskie.

[Red Sea Swimmer]

Very interesting. I like fish stories.

[tubebender]

There is something fishy about this story...

[cripplecreek]

I live on a lake full of northerns and bass. It's a perfect lake for them. It averages about 7 feet deep, weedy, full of stumps and small bluegills.

A few years back a guy caught a northern about 48 inches long out here.

[TheBattman]

Not albino - it is melanistic - abnormal coloring - normally a lack of normal color. The fish clearly is an oddball, but not a true albino.

Would still be exciting to catch.

[Lurker]

I hooked one once while fishing in Michigan.

I got it near the boat and it peeled off line like nothing I've ever seen. Suddenly it was gone. I reeled in my line and found that it had actually straightened the hook on my spinner bait.

Muskies are amazingly powerful fish.

L

[MotleyGirl70]

I've caught many, many largemouth bass and one smallmouth. Bass are always fun to catch, but pound for pound smallies are the most fun to catch. They put up a good fight.

All this fishing talk makes me want to grab my pole and go fishing :)