Perkins Tank Work Nearing Completion 

   Biologists from Arizona Game and Fish and the Kaibab National Forest, with the help of Northern Arizona Flycasters, have drained Perkins Tank to remove green sunfish that were illegally stocked into this blue-ribbon trout fishery.

  Perkins Tank is a three-acre trout lake located in the south part of Kaibab National Forest in Game Management Unit 8, south of Williams. Part of the management group of J.D. Lake, Perkins Tank, Middle and Elk Tanks that are managed for quality trout fishing, anglers are currently limited to only two trout between 12 and 16 inches from all waters combined. This regulation will be modified beginning Jan. 1, 2002 to catch-and-release only.

 "We hope the new regulation will discourage the illegal stocking of other fishes that compete with trout for the food base," said Region II fisheries specialist Chuck Benedict. "We estimate the cost of removing green sunfish at Perkins in the neighborhood of $10,000. That includes the cost of renting pumps and hoses, fuel cost, personnel time, transportation and over one hundred hours of volunteer time from Northern Arizona Flycasters."

  Rick Keller, regional assistant with the Flagstaff office of Game and Fish, spent last Friday at Perkins salvaging rainbow trout from the shrinking pool of water. "I netted 70 to 80 nice rainbows," said Keller, "The largest was about 20 inches and weighed just over three pounds, although the majority were in the nine to 11-inch class. There were thousands of little green sunfish I had to sort through. It really makes you sick to think someone created this mess intentionally. I wish people would just leave fisheries management to the department instead of taking matters into their own hands," he added.

  The captured fish were carefully sorted to eliminate sunfish contamination and transported to a nearby lake where they will provide excellent fishing opportunities for anglers visiting the Kaibab National Forest.

  Perkins will be stocked with fingerlings and catchables next spring, providing the lake receives sufficient run-off this winter. The hope is with new regulations preventing any harvest, anglers will not contaminate the fishery with species they hope to catch and take home.