Lake trout stocking took place for the first time on the newly christened M/V Spencer F. Baird in the spring of 2007.  As it is with any new vessel, minor problems were identified during field operations.  One problem that was encountered during stocking was elevated water temperatures in the lake trout holding tanks.  Unlike the M/V Togue (the retired stocking vessel), the M/V Baird was constructed with the holding tanks mounted on top of the deck.  The advantage to this design is that it allows for gravity release of the fish and the tanks to be removed after stocking is completed.  However, with the tanks located on the deck, they are subjected to direct sun-light and heat appears to be transferring to the water.  Elevated water temperatures increase the stress lake trout are subjected to while being transported to stocking sites, which is already a stressful event for these fish.

Staff at the Alpena NFWCO, including the crew of the M/V Baird, have been discussing options for minimizing the transfer of heat from the tanks to the water within the tanks.  Each of the 10 tanks, which hold 1000 gallons of water, is insulated except for the three lids located on top of the tanks.  During stocking activities in 2007, crew noticed that on sunny days the lids absorbed so much heat that they could not be touched.  It is thought that the heat also transferred to the water from the lids.  Fishery biologists Scott Koproski and Adam Kowalski were charged with painting and insulating the lids in an attempt to alleviate the problem.  By painting the lids white (instead of the raw aluminum surface) it is thought that a majority of the heat produced by direct sunlight will be reflected from the surface thus resulting in a more consistent and cooler water temperature.  In addition to painting, one tanks had insulation injected into the void between two sheets of raw aluminum on the lid.  This one tank will be compared to the remaining nine tanks during stocking activities in 2008 and differences in water temperatures will be recorded.  If the tests indicate that the insulated tank kept the water cooler, the remainder of the tanks will be insulated.