S

The Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency (TWRA) is inviting the public to an Open House at the Normandy Fish Hatchery in Normandy from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturday, March 30.

Tours available with the hatchery staff and an explanation of the hatching facility and grounds.

Inside the facility, a large viewing tank will be filled with an assortment of native fish. Visitors will get to witness walleye eggs hatching and fry swimming in a tank. A viewing station will be set up with a microscope to allow individuals to get an up-close view and identify the developing body parts.

Outside, electrofishing boats and fish hauling trucks will be on display and hatchery crew members will be explaining how these are used in the process of creating better fisheries. The Wildlife on Wheels trailer will be on site allowing visitors to walk through and identify a variety of native wildlife.

Fish stocking is an important management tool in Tennessee and helps TWRA support the wide variety of fishing experiences available to anglers. TWRA owns and operates a total of ten hatcheries located throughout the state. Five of these are warm/cool water facilities and 5 are cold water facilities dedicated to trout production.

Normandy Hatchery is a warm/cool water facility producing more than 1.8 million walleye, striped bass, crappie, hybrid striped bass, and Florida largemouth bass each year.