MSU Extension: Tribes work to restore Great Lakes sturgeon

Historically, the lake sturgeon has been an important member of the Great Lakes fish community. One of the oldest species of fish in existence, a special 2012 report by the Michigan Department of Natural Resources (MDNR) notes there are approximately 29 different species of sturgeon worldwide but only the lake sturgeon (Acipenser fulvescens) is native to Michigan. Sturgeon are toothless bottom-feeders, swallowing crayfish, nymphs, and other small aquatics creatures they find by stirring up sediment on the beds of rivers and lakes with their long, rubbery, spade-like snout. Streamlined in shape with bony plates along their sides and backs, their skeleton is primarily cartilaginous. Sturgeon grow larger and live longer than any other North American freshwater fish. Lake sturgeon can grow to over eight feet in length and weigh up to 800 pounds. Males may live 55 years and females have been known to reach 150 years. Like other long-lived species, they mature slowly and reproduce infrequently. According to the MDNR, sexual maturity males do not reach sexual maturity until 12-17 years of age, spawning every 1 to 4 years thereafter. Females have been known to reach maturity anywhere from 14-33 years of age, though most often at 24-26 years of age. Females only spawn every 3 to 7 years. Other than humans, they have few natural predators.

Prior to European settlement, several Great Lakes tribes built a life around sturgeon which was found in abundance in several large river and lake systems, their primary habitat. Not only did the tribes use the meat, skin, and oil; the sturgeon took on spiritual meaning as well for them. In the late 1800s, however, the sturgeon population in the Great Lakes suffered a dramatic reduction in numbers. This decline is attributed to a combination of overfishing, pollution and habitat loss. Their naturally slow rate of maturation and low rate of reproduction further exacerbated the lake sturgeon’s situation.