Calendar

All known dates and times are also listed on the live Google Calendar below (previously found on the home page)

Annual Campaigns and Events

• Early Trout Season-Catch and Release - First Saturday in January to the Friday before the first Saturday in May

  • • • DNR Early Trout Season website

      • No formal campaign but this is an important time to reach stream anglers. Many fishing organizations will hold winter events where you may be able to do outreach. If you know shops fly fishers and winter anglers use, winter Bait Shop Initiative visits would be smart. We have a stream angler specific outreach card.

• Drain Campaign – Held on the first full weekend in June on WDNR's Free Fishing Weekend 

  • • • June 6-8, 2025

• Great Lake Regional Landing Blitz – a 10 day event that includes the 4th of July holiday. Our CBCW Program is incorporated in this multi-state and province event.

  • • • June 30-July13, 2025

• Snapshot Day - 

  • • • Snapshot Day Site Leader Training -generally early May

      • Next up August 9, 2025

• Waterfowl Hunter AIS Outreach –  Wild Duck season

  • • • This AIS Outreach Campaign aligns with Wild Duck season which usually begins the last weekend of September in the Mississippi and North hunting Regions and the first weekend of October in the South; Some partners will work throughout the hunting season, while others just do the opener or another weekend during the season when the hunters are likely to be out or there are no schedule conflicts. 

      • Season dates are listed and updated here.

      • Can also do outreach earlier through attending waterfowl hunting related events.

      • See Waterfowl Hunters AIS Outreach page for campaign information. 

    • Exotic Pet Surrender Events with John Moyles are held year round throughout the state and LMPN partners and volunteers often assist at the local events. See the Pet Surrender Events page for more information and the Google Calendar on the home page for specific information about times and locations which are added at they become available. 

Conventions and Conferences

• Lakes & Rivers Convention/WI Water Week – March or April

  • Next up-April 15-17, 2026

  • Wisconsin Water Week website

• Upper Midwest Invasive Species Conference (UMISC) – fall, even numbered year; location varies

  • 1. • Next Up October 6-8, 2026 in La Crosse

• Wisconsin Wetlands Association Science Conference

  • Late February each year

• There are many other events, but these will always have an AIS focus or topics as part of the event

Meetings

• AIS Partnership Spring Meeting - April 29-30, 2025

• AIS Fall Partnership Meeting - Virtual 1-2 days

• Monthly Lake & Rivers Partnership Calls (first Tuesday of most months) – Topics vary monthly, but 3-4 are AIS focused: March, June, Sept. and Dec. 2025

Trainings

• AIS Monitoring – Spring, managed by DNR AIS Regional Coordinators

• Aquatic Plant ID Workshops – Lakes and Rivers Convention and Late June

• Cross Program Train the Trainer – 

Include important updates for CBCW, CLMN, PLB, Snapshot and more

• CBCW and CLMN Trainings: See the CBCW and CLMN websites or contact the statewide and regional coordinators for details on trainings coordinated through these programs which are primarily in the spring and very early summer. 

• Purple Loosestrife Biocontrol (PLB) Training - usually in February

  • • • Recorded trainings on the WDNR Purple Loosestrife Biocontrol webpage for general training videos.

      • See the Purple Loosestrife Biocontrol page on this website for recorded webinars and other information helpful for AIS Coordinators that is not included on the WDNR page. 

• SWIMS Pre-Season Training

  • Recordings are in the Box SWIMS Training folder 

  • Recordings are not captioned. Contact jeanne.scherer@wisc.edu for accessibility needs.

    • Small Bites Trainings-  Short videos to help you get up to speed on various topics. Recordings available on this website. Some on the Small Bites page, others are included on related topics pages.