Zombie fish in Lake Superior

Plus: WI tourism, fee hikes, tribal fishing

Author

Forrest Koslowski
May 07, 2026

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Mornin’ to everyone interested in picking up some Wisconsin swag from the DNR. This is the Wiscampsin Weekly, the email that gets you in the know on the Wisconsin outdoors in 5 minutes or less. New reader? Subscribe here.

This week’s weekly:

🏞️ Wisconsin tourism notches another record-breaking year

💵 Hunters and anglers back license fee hikes

⚖️ Federal judge halts tribal fishing restrictions

🧟 STORY OF THE WEEK: Zombie fish in Lake Superior

🏞️ Wisconsin tourism notches another record-breaking year LINK

  • Gov. Evers and Tourism Secretary Anne Sayers kicked off National Travel and Tourism Week (May 3–9), spotlighting an industry that just notched its third straight record-breaking year — $25.8 billion in total economic impact across 2024.

  • Wisconsin pulled in 114.4 million visitors last year, generating a record $1.7 billion in state and local tax revenue, while outdoor recreation alone contributed over $12 billion to the state's GDP.

  • The 2025-27 budget locked in $31 million for tourism marketing, made the Office of Outdoor Recreation permanent, and launched Film Wisconsin — the state's new film office and tax credit program. The 2025 economic impact report drops in June.

💵 Hunters and anglers back license fee hikes LINK

  • At this year's Wisconsin Conservation Congress spring hearings, a majority of respondents in nearly every county supported raising hunting, fishing, and trapping license fees by at least 25 percent — the first real appetite for a bump in two decades.

  • Nearly 7,000 folks weighed in (1,200 in person), also backing higher trout and turkey stamps, splitting on a public lands access fee, and rejecting registration fees for canoes, kayaks, and paddleboards.

  • Wisconsin hasn't touched these fees in 20 years, and DNR programs are feeling the squeeze. Any increase still has to clear the legislature, which has long been skittish about anything that smells like a tax hike. Twenty years is a long stretch, hey.

⚖️ Federal judge halts tribal fishing restrictions LINK

  • A federal judge issued a temporary restraining order against the Lac du Flambeau Band of Lake Superior Chippewa, halting the tribe's effort to bar non-members from musky and walleye fishing on 19 reservation lakes ahead of Friday's inland opener.

  • The tribe passed the resolutions citing "critically low" walleye and musky populations, pointing to hatchery data, climate change, and steep cuts in DNR stocking — a 70% reduction for muskies and 45% drop for walleyes this year.

  • The state sued, arguing the move violated the Treaty of 1854 and its sole authority to regulate non-tribal anglers. A hearing is set for May 29 as both sides continue talks on protecting the fisheries long-term.

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🧟 STORY OF THE WEEK: Zombie fish in Lake Superior LINK

If you’ve ever taken a dip in Lake Superior, you know it’s basically an industrial-sized ice bath. It’s cold, it’s deep, and it’s generally pretty stable. But something weird is happening at the very bottom that has biologists doing a double-take.

For the last few years, researchers conducting deep-water surveys have been pulling up Siscowet lake trout that look… well, rough. We’re talking white, fuzzy growths, lesioned skin, and a general "undead" aesthetic. These fish are usually the tanks of the lake—fat, hardy, and capable of living decades in total darkness.

Typically, the fungus causing this (Saprolegnia) is a "schoolyard bully" that picks on fish that are already stressed out by warm water or spawning exhaustion. Seeing it thrive in the near-freezing, high-pressure environment of the lake floor is like finding a tropical palm tree growing in the middle of a blizzard.

Scientists are currently investigating whether "internal tides" or underwater waves are pushing warmer water down deep, or if the trout are just getting more stressed out as their population grows. For now, the "Zombie Trout" remain a fascinating mystery of the deep. While they won't be starting a fish apocalypse anytime soon, they serve as a chilling reminder that there is still so much we don't know about the massive inland sea in our own backyard. For those of us topside, it’s just one more reason to respect the power—and the occasional weirdness—of Lake Superior.

Now get out 'der.

WISCAMPSIN WEEKLY POLL

Last Week's Trivia Check

We asked what primary evolutionary advantage Northern Pike and Musky gain from having their dorsal fin located right next to their tail. 64% of you correctly identified the mechanics behind this apex predator!

The Correct Answer: It creates a massive rear surface area for explosive, lightning-fast ambush strikes.

The Takeaway: Pike and Musky are "lie-and-wait" ambush predators. By grouping their dorsal, anal, and tail fins all together at the very back of their body, they effectively create one giant, paddle-like propeller. As one reader noted in the poll comments, they "have been startled by the attack of muskys on a lure"—and that terrifying, torpedo-like acceleration is exactly what this fin placement is built for!

This Week's Trivia

It is early May, which means the Wisconsin DNR has officially issued its annual "Keep Wildlife Wild" warning. As folks head into the woods for spring hiking or mushroom foraging, it is very common to stumble across a tiny, newborn whitetail fawn curled up alone in the brush. While well-meaning people often assume the fawn is orphaned or abandoned, the mother is actually doing exactly what nature intended.

Why does a mother doe intentionally abandon her newborn fawn for hours at a time during its first few weeks of life?

Give it a gut check and click a response below:

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Meme of the Week 😆

A review from the trail… Thanks for the note!

Well, how'd we do this week?

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