Anglers are being reminded by the North Bay Ministry of Natural Resources to brush up on the knowledge of Zone 11 fishing regulations — specifically the slot sizes for walleye — before heading out when the season opens Saturday.

The general rule is to release walleye 43 to 60 centimetres long and while the limit for a regular licence is four walleye, anglers can keep only one over the slot size per day.

But Lake Nipissing and Lake Temagami have special slot sizes designated specifically for those lakes to help mature female spawners survive and reproduce longer.

Chuck McCrudden, the MNR's Temagami area biologist, said the Lake Nipissing slot size begins at 40 cm, partly because Nipissing walleye grow slower and the fishery is considered stressed.

Anglers, however, are not limited to one walleye over 60 cm based on the slot regulation adopted in 1998.

Temagami's slot size begins at 46 cm because walleye grow faster there, McCrudden said, although anglers are limited to one fish per day larger than 60 cm.

McCrudden said the MNR created the slot size to reflect research indicating that 50% of female walleye are mature at 43 cm and at 47 cm about 90% were mature.

"So we are protecting the spawners for a number of years," he said, adding that the Zone 11 advisory council has met eight times since forming last fall to look at the future of the fisheries.

Lake Nipissing biologist Scott Kaufman said his five-year review of data regarding the Nipissing fishery is being peer-reviewed and may be ready by mid-June.