05/09/2006

Guardians of an ancient fish

Fisheries crew keeps tabs on sturgeon

BY SHERI McWHIRTER

sherimcwhirter@hotmail.com

Record-Eagle/Sheri McWhirter
Graduate student Jamie Crossman pulls a sturgeon from the net of fishery technician Steve Warner as they work in Cheboygan County's Black River to tag the fish.

BLACK LAKE — Jamie Crossman stood in the Black River and hoisted a sturgeon that topped 4 feet, a fish big enough and sufficiently annoyed that it repeatedly thwacked Crossman's back with its powerful tail.

Then there was a moment of calm in the Cheboygan County stream.

"Maybe he'll settle down here," Crossman said, seconds before the huge fish began to thrash again.

Crossman is part of a fisheries biology crew from Michigan State University who return each year during spring spawning to research the Black Lake population of lake sturgeon. He's here this year with fellow graduate student Patrick Forsythe.

The team has netted and tagged spawning sturgeon since April 20 and thus far caught about 150.

"About two-thirds are already tagged," Forsythe said. "So there are some new fish moving in, some males and females, so that's good."

Between 500 and 600 lake sturgeon are believed to live in the Black Lake population, a closed system because of river dams that block fish access to the Great Lakes.

Neal Godby, a fisheries biologist with the Michigan Department of Natural Resources, said the system is unique in that it's the state's lone naturally reproducing inland lake sturgeon population. He said MSU's research collects valuable biological information.

Crossman and Forsythe are studying sturgeon size and reproductive cycles and also collect fertilized eggs from the stream to hatch at a facility on the Black River near Onaway.

"We also do fin clips for genetic results. We can use genetic technology to determine parentage," Forsythe said. "We can see if larger fish are more successful than smaller sturgeon."

This is the sixth year of river research and the second year for the hatchery.

"Last year we found that fish reared at our hatchery had a better survival rate than those hatched at a state hatchery in non-natal waters," Crossman said.

Lake sturgeon grow as long as 7 feet, weigh up to 200 pounds and have a slow reproductive cycle. Female sturgeon don't mature for about 20 years and only spawn every four to six years.

Sturgeon are an ancient fish that haven't evolved since the time of dinosaurs. Their numbers in the Great Lakes used to be much higher, but dam construction, poaching and over-fishing in previous decades led to the sturgeon's current tenuous position.

That's why volunteers from Sturgeon For Tomorrow spend this time of year guarding the Black River's steep riverbanks, vigilant against would-be poachers. Group members carry mobile phones with the DNR on speed dial and the organization offers a $1,000 reward for poaching convictions.

"This is a welcome break from cabin fever," said Dick Sanford, who has camped in the woods by the Black River every spring since the annual sturgeon watch began eight years ago.

He and his wife Sylvia spend their time cooking for the MSU scientists, who spend long hours in the cold water.