Groups work to bring sturgeon to NW Ohio
TOLEDO, Ohio – Work is underway to find spawning habitats for prehistoric fish thought to be all but gone from Lake Erie a few decades ago.
Wildlife agencies and an organization dedicated to protecting the lake started scouting out potential spawning spots for lake sturgeon on the Maumee River near Toledo.
Scientists haven’t determined yet the best spots for lake sturgeon to spawn or if the best locations are closer to the mouth of the river near the lake or other points upstream, said Chris Vandergoot, supervisor of the Sandusky Fisheries Research Station, which is part of the Ohio Department of Natural Resources.
Sturgeon – once so abundant on Lake Erie they were burned for fuel in steamships – were overfished and nearly disappeared in the early 1900s.
Until the late 1990s, sturgeon sightings were unheard of on Lake Erie. Now, there are several each year, mostly around the islands region in the western part of the lake.
What makes the sturgeon so appealing to environmentalists and anglers is its size, appearance and age.
They are covered with bony plates and often called “living fossils” because they have been around for 150 million years. The lake sturgeon can grow to 200 pounds. And they can live more than 100 years on the bottoms of rivers, which is why they have been able to survive as a species despite pollution and other threats.
Several agencies already had success re-establishing sturgeon in the Detroit River, through a $10 million project that started in 2003, The (Toledo) Blade reported.
Bruce Manny, a retired U.S. Geological Survey biologist, said researchers made a big stride.
“I think the long-term prognosis is very good,” he said.
Lake Erie Waterkeeper is working with the Ohio Department of Natural Resources, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and the Toledo Zoo on identifying and enhancing spawning habitat along the Maumee River for the sturgeon.
Sandy Bihn, founder of Lake Erie Waterkeeper, said successful spawning in the Maumee River would create a buzz for the river known more as a spawning site for walleye.