500 young sturgeons released into the Saginaw River system

As part of ongoing efforts by the Michigan Department of Natural Resources and Michigan State University to rebuild the population of this giant fish, 500 juvenile sturgeon were released last week at four locations in the Saginaw River system.

The sturgeon came from the Black Lake Stream Side Rearing Facility in Onaway, a facility opened by the DNR and MSU that supplies hatcheries across the state. Each August, sturgeon are also released into the Black River, Mullett Lake in Cheboygan County and the Boardman River in Grand Traverse County, the DNR and MSU said in a news release Wednesday.

Researchers, graduate students and undergraduates capture newly hatched surgeonfish in the spring and raise them until August, the news release said. During those three months, the sturgeons grow from less than an inch to 7 inches long. They are then fitted with passive embedded transponders similar to microchips in pets and released into rivers across the state.

Illegal fishing of sturgeon has led to significant population loss, pushing the giant fish to the brink of extinction in the Great Lakes. Industrialization and dams have also contributed to habitat loss, preventing sturgeon from reaching their spawning grounds.

Now, all lake sturgeon that catch fish must be reported to the DNR, and anglers are only allowed to take one lake sturgeon per year under the Michigan Fishing Regulations of 2024. Lake sturgeon fishing is also limited to certain waters, and various catch-and-release size requirements apply. In Black Lake, the fishing season lasts just five days, starting the first Saturday in February, the release said. Licensed anglers are allowed to take six sturgeon each, and tribal nations are also allowed to take six.

Raising sturgeons at the Black Lake facility increases the fish's chances of survival after they are released, said Kim Scribner, MSU professor emeritus. Because of their small size, newly hatched sturgeons often become prey to other predators in the wild, and few survive to adulthood.

“Many animals eat sturgeon eggs and baby sturgeon throughout the first year of life,” Scribner said. “The mortality rate is extremely high.”

The population of adult sturgeon in Black Lake has doubled thanks to hatchery and stocking efforts, the release said. The ultimate goal is for the sturgeon population in the lake to be self-sufficient, even if they are fished for pleasure each year, Ed Baker, DNR Marquette Fisheries Research Station manager, said in the release. Research on sturgeon and their care has helped improve the hatchery and stocking program over time, the release said.

“The hatchery provides healthier, more robust sturgeon that are more likely to survive,” Scribner said. “This is all made possible by research at the facility.”

On average, surgeonfish live between 50 and 100 years and can grow to between 4 and 6 feet (1.2 and 1.8 meters) in length. According to Michigan Sea Grant, a research, education and outreach program of the University of Michigan, MSU and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, some have lived up to 150 years, reaching lengths of 8 feet (2.4 meters) and weights of 300 pounds (136 kilograms).

Other sturgeon populations in Michigan, such as those in the Detroit and St. Clair rivers, are holding strong despite industrialization at about 30,000 fish, the Detroit News previously reported. The rivers are home to the largest lake sturgeon population in the Great Lakes.

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