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2023 mlf fisheries management division impact report
Partnerships buoyed successful efforts to protect and enhance fisheries resources
By Steven Bardin and Gary Klein
The founding principle of the MLF Fisheries Management Division was the idea that conservation work is about partnerships .
The 2023 Bass Pro Tour season saw our previously established partnerships continue to flourish . The Ferguson Habitat Booth at REDCREST and Minn Kota Habitat Restoration program both expanded to new heights , and our collaboration with state agencies as well as angler groups continued to develop . As a result , the MLF FMD experienced another successful year living out its mission of protecting and improving fishery resources .
redcrest 2023
While BPT anglers battled for the championship trophy on Lake Norman , the MLF FMD led several events at the 2023 REDCREST expo to promote conservation . One of them saw the instruction of 24 Boy Scouts , resulting in them earning Fish and Wildlife merit badges .
MLF FMD co-director Steven Bardin earned certification as a Scout merit badge instructor and used his background as a fisheries biologist and college professor to write a curriculum for the Scouts . They received daily instruction on the principles of fisheries management , surveying methods , fish anatomy , fish identification , habitat restoration and angler recycling programs . Instructors included Bardin , MLF co-founder Gary Klein , state biologists from North Carolina and South Carolina , the American Eagle Foundation and Chris Pitsilos from Berkley labs .
A primary requirement for earning the merit badge is creating a fisheries improvement project . With the help of Ferguson , the MLF FMD provided the materials and instructions for the Scouts to build 75 line-recycling tubes . These tubes were donated to be installed in public access areas in North Carolina and South Carolina , encouraging anglers to responsibly discard fishing line . Passing an exit exam , during which the Scouts had to demonstrate their knowledge in fish
Local Boy Scouts participated in an FMD habitat project at REDCREST 2023 . and wildlife management , represented the final step in earning their badges .
Educating the Scouts wasn ’ t the only goal for MLF FMD at REDCREST . We wanted to give the public insight into MLF ’ s conservation efforts , as well as what the North Carolina Wildlife Resource Commission and American Eagle Foundation were doing locally . Each day , Bardin and Klein led three 30-minute conservation seminars . These seminars allowed fans to engage and ask questions about their favorite fisheries , how fisheries management works and what our MLF FMD programs do . They covered topics such as reservoir aging , fish care and habitat management .
Our final REDCREST project was to facilitate conservation donations from the Kevin VanDam Foundation . VanDam started this program in 2022 by making donations to the Oklahoma Department of Wildlife Conservation .
In 2023 , the foundation partnered with MossBack Fish Habitat to support the Boy Scouts ’ merit badge projects by providing materials for the scouts to build artificial fish habitat during the expo . This habitat was then donated to the NCWRC to be installed on Lake Norman . The Kevin VanDam Foundation also donated $ 5,000 for the stocking of F1 largemouth bass into Gaston , Norman , and Jordan lakes . The state matched the donation three times , bringing the total to $ 20,000 . These lakes have experienced an invasion of Alabama bass , which , without management , will completely replace native spotted and smallmouth and reduce largemouth to historically low population densities . VanDam ’ s donation marked the first step in a long restoration process and a significant example of conservation leadership from one of the best anglers in the world .
12 MAJORLEAGUEFISHING . COM | DECEMBER-JANUARY 2024