ST. PAUL — A group is protesting new regulations for walleye fishing on Mille Lacs Lake this summer.

According to a press release, demonstrators gathered Saturday at the state Capitol in St. Paul.

The Department of Natural Resources said all walleyes caught on the popular fishing lake must be immediately released. The agency also had planned to bar most anglers from using live bait as part of a package of regulations aimed at reviving Mille Lacs’ struggling walleye population, but later decided to allow live bait on the lake this season after all.

Minnesota’s fishing opener is May 14.

The DNR closed the walleye season on Mille Lacs early last summer. That prompted many business owners to claim the DNR’s management of the lake’s walleye population subsequently hurt business in the area.