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of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania

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    Fisheries Management

    The Division of Fisheries Management in the Bureau of Fisheries oversees PFBC efforts in the management of Pennsylvania fisheries.

    What Makes a Fishery

    Pennsylvania is fortunate to have a vast water resource comprised of more than 86,000 miles of streams and rivers, along with 4,000 inland lakes and ponds covering 160,000 acres, plus 470,000 acres of Lake Erie.

    A fishery consists of three elements:

    • the animals that are being pursued
    • the habitat in which the animals live
    • the people who are pursuing the animals for either sport or commercial purposes

    Public Resources 

    Surveys of fish populations of individual streams and lakes are posted within the Biologist Reports section of our website. View mapping of PA waters on our County Guide and PA Lakes pages. Other resources include Trout Water Classifications, Habitat Improvement and Lake Habitat Improvement.

    • Biologists Reports
    • Waters of PA
    • PA Lakes
    • Trout Waters
    • Habitat Improvement
    • Lake Habitat Improvement
    Illustration of the Lehigh River Watershed spanning across Berks, Bucks, Lackawanna, Lehigh, Luzerne, Monroe, Northampton, Schuylkill and Wayne Counties.

    Fisheries Management Plans

    The Fisheries Management Plans are designed to guide future actions by the PFBC and aid other stakeholders by providing information about these valuable resources and how to support the mission.

    Fisheries Management Plans
    Close-up of the hands of a biologist holding a Muskellunge yearling in a net just above the water

    Species Management Plans

    The PFBC's Division of Fisheries Management surveys and monitors Pennsylvania's waterways to develop management plans for PA's fish species.

    Species Management Plans