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Task · part of 7. Choose one fisheries task, from an afternoon to sixty days

7(b). A creel census on a small lake, and catch per unit effort

Optional May not apply

This may not apply to you. You have not answered "Requirement 7: which fisheries task?" yet. Answer it and this step will either settle or drop off.

Estimate catch per unit effort and report the results to your counselor. In practice this means interviewing anglers as they finish, so it needs a lake with anglers on it.

Note. This one depends on other people being there. A creel census estimates catch per unit effort, which in practice means asking anglers what they caught and how long they fished for. On a lake with nobody fishing there is no census to conduct, so pick your day as well as your lake.

Where this step comes from

  1. Fish & Wildlife Management Merit Badge Requirements (Merit Badge Hub, last modified 2026-05-05), Requirement 7(b)

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