MINNEAPOLIS — The unusually early start to spring following a weirdly mild winter is good news for fans of the Great Outdoors across Minnesota.

The early disappearance of ice from lakes and rivers means spawning should finish early, and that could kick start the walleye season, which opens May 12. Winter was kind to wildlife, which bodes well for hunting. State parks are already drawing campers.

Mille Lacs Lake, the first big walleye lake north of the Twin Cities, saw its earliest ice-out in recorded history on Monday, breaking the record of April 2, 2000.

“I’m looking for it to be great — probably one of our best openers for a long time,” said Terry McQuoid of McQuoid’s Inn in Isle. “… May and June ought to be the most fun we’ve had for a while, and last year was really good.”

Rick Bruesewitz, area fisheries supervisor for the Department of Natural Resources in Aitkin, said Mille Lacs’ fish population is looking good.

“The fish will be well past spawning by the time the fishing opener approaches,” Bruesewitz said. “So they might be in a different location than anglers normally observe.”

On Lake of the Woods, the state’s northernmost lake, Paul Arnesen at Arnesen’s Rocky Point Resort said he’s never seen the ice go out so quickly so he’s anticipating a strong opener. “It’s going to push everything up,” Arnesen said.

If the weather stays warm, Lake of the Woods walleyes should finish spawning early too, said Tom Heinrich, a large lake specialist with the DNR in Baudette.

The early “green up” of the landscape might have anglers thinking about fishing even earlier than usual. Both McQuoid and Arnesen said reservations are running ahead of their usual pace.

The mild winter temperatures and lack of snow were good for Minnesota deer, pheasants and wild turkeys — and the turkey season opens April 18 — but the continuing drought raises concerns for this fall’s duck season.

Glenn DelGuidice, the DNR’s deer project leader in Forest Lake, said the early-green-up is providing excellent nutrition for does, which are in the critical final third of their pregnancies. That should lead to better birth rates, better fawn survival and eventually better hunting, he said.

But it’s hard to say how the weather will affect duck and goose hunting, said Steve Cordts, a DNR waterfowl specialist in Bemidji. The extremely dry conditions have left fewer small ponds and puddles to attract ducks. Without some significant rain soon, Cordts said, he expects a drop in breeding ducks. They’ll keep heading north or choose not to nest, he said, but geese probably won’t be as affected.

Around 20 parties camped last weekend at Wild River State Park on the St. Croix River near Center City, Minnesota state parks spokeswoman Amy Barrett said. While state parks are open for camping year-round, she said, some far northern parks probably haven’t turned their water on yet, so campers should call ahead if they want running water and flush toilets. The DNR has already taken over 6,000 campsite reservations as of Thursday, she said.

The Three Rivers Park District is gearing up, too. Carver Park Reserve’s campground near Victoria will open two weeks early on April 13 while Baker Park Reserve near Maple Plain will open its campground a week early on April 20.

But bugs are taking advantage of the warm weather too. Experts say the mosquitoes out now survived the winter and not all of them bite people. While the first wave of hungry summertime mosquitoes will probably arrive a couple weeks ahead of schedule, their numbers should stay relatively low if the weather remains dry.

Black-legged ticks, also known as deer ticks, have officials worried because they carry Lyme disease and other serious illnesses that are becoming increasingly common. They started becoming active when the temperatures hit the 30s, said Jeff Hahn, an entomologist with the University of Minnesota Extension Service. He stressed the importance of using insect repellent, checking for ticks after leaving the woods and removing ticks as soon as possible.