I was recently sent to a local drain to remove the beavs and while there I saw a notice warning fishermen that the connected lake has cisco, and they are listed as endangered in Indiana and illegal to posses. Which started me down a research trail on the fish. Apparently Indiana had around 45 lakes with Cisco, but now there are only 9 and fisheries biologists are trying to help them out however they can.
So now I find myself being very interested in this small salmon species. You guys in southern Michigan, if I were to want to catch a few and eat them, where would be a good lake preferably near the Indiana border, that I could do that? And are they yummy? Best time of year/methods to catch? Just looking for some help legally tasting a few. Thanks!

When I was a kid my father would travel over to Fort Erie, Ontario, Canada (we lived in Orchard Park) to a particular butcher shop and get a smoked cisco or two. They were super tasty, wish I could get them again. I haven't seen or heard of them in 60 years or so.

I grew up in northern IN on the Michigan border and never caught a cisco in IN or MI. Did see smoked ciscoes for sale in the local grocery stores along with smoked chubs. I do miss the smelt, always liked getting a big basket of fried smelt.

I’m not positive but I believe they call them lake herring in Lake Superior? There are whitefish in the big lake as well and it seems the locals criss cross the names a bit. I cannot be sure.
Cisco as I know them from fishing across Canada are generally 6-8” long and look like they are made of chrome. There are ways to net them deep, they are terrific lake trout bait.
In the north you need deep cold water for them. I have seen schools of them hundreds of yards long, millions of fish, on my graphs.

Osky

You can buy frozen ciscoes for bait. They used to be super abundant and now are rare. Ciscoes used to be the most common fish commercially harvested from Lake Erie at close to 50 million pounds a year.

Keith

They are trying to establish them in Keyuka Lake in NY for the last 5 or so years. Not sure how that is working out.......jk

We fished them through the ice in MN in February. We called them Tulipee. Inland Lake Cisco. Very good eating. They need big water. Deep and cool. They feed on hellgrammites. Nymph of a Mayfly I believe. Stomachs would be full of them. 100s in a school when they would swim thru. Good fight as well. Especially on a little ice rod

I set nets for them here. There is a small local commercial fishery for them I used participate in.

One of my favorite fish to eat. Very oily. Called a Bering Sea Cisco

They come from the Bering Sea and run up the Yukon River

That is something I ain't thought about in years.

I always bought a few smoked Ciscoes when traveling through Two Harbors, MN. I haven't been there in probably a decade. Sure hope they are still there.

I would assume that if 9 lakes in northeast Indiana have them, there must be some in southeast Michigan that have them. Im going to keep looking into it. I must catch some, even if only a a few for a meal. It will likely be an expensive meal.
Apparently Lake Charlevoix has them, and it seems like I remember hearing of folks catching them through the ice on Houghton Lake in the past decade or so at least.
Thanks for the replies, if any of you SE Michiganders have any tips on lakes, I would sure appreciate a heads up. Might actually try contacting MI DNR and see what they can tell me.

This PDF has a map showing the Mchigan lakes that have populations of Cisco, without the names. If you compare it to a map of Michigan, you can very easily see which lakes they are.

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://www.michigan.gov/-/media/Project/Websites/dnr/Documents/WLD/WAP/06_inland_cisco_lakes.pdf%3Frev%3Dbf16958e11bc4274b6261d25303eb084&ved=2ahUKEwjsjNz_hqv9AhUNlIkEHdsmBfcQFnoECBsQAQ&usg=AOvVaw3_7o-qi4sNNbKyXHoffgF5

I first saw Ciscoes when I was 3 years old, when my dad went sailboating and thousands of them had died and washed up on the shore in Michigan. I caught one that wasn't quite dead and my mother would not let me keep it. It was the first fish I ever caught.

Keith

Ciscos, are a Member of the Herring Family - Not a Salmon. FYI - Bob.

I had been told this as well. Many of what are caught thru the ice are Tulipe which are whitefish, not ciscos. Been a while and you hear it many different ways.
What I know for sure is the Cisco have an underbite to their jaw structure, whitefish have an overbite.

Osky

Loosanarrow, are you are familiar with the straights of Mackinac as you enter into the UP of Michigan? Anyway just east of the bridge , their are two small towns Hessel and Cedarville
that have an excellent Lake Herring (ciscoe) fishery. Mid to late June, mainly on caddis fly, it's a blast!

Actually, Cisco really are members of the Salmonidae family, along with the other Whitefish. They are called Lake Herring, even though salt water Herring, like the ones you can buy pickled, are members of the Clupidae family of fishes.

https://www.facebook.com/RussKendalls
If you want smoked Ciscos or Lake Superior Herring checkout Kendalls in Knife River Mn. They are located between Duluth and Two Harbors. Looks like they stop shipping first week of March.
Gary J

We have them here in ND. I have never ate one. They would make good pike bait.

We catch them in Wisconsin and the UP

they spawn in late fall.
One of my Uncles used to dip net them in a Lake in N. WI.
The Musky gorge on them when they are spawning.
Nothing worse than pulling up a dip net with a large musky in it.