Volunteers wrap up sturgeon guarding program
The annual sturgeon run in the Upper Black River wrapped up over the Memorial Day weekend as volunteers with Sturgeon for Tomorrow were staked out along the river through the holiday.
Over the past six weeks, Sturgeon For Tomorrow volunteers joined forces with DNR Law Enforcement and local residents to protect spawning lake sturgeon from Black Lake.
“When lake sturgeon migrate upstream to spawn along the rocky banks of the rivers, they are very vulnerable to poachers,” said Brenda Archambo, the dedicated and tireless president of Sturgeon For Tomorrow. “With the assistance of volunteer sturgeon guards, we are able to monitor key spawning areas 24 hours a day.”
The lake sturgeon, the largest and oldest fish in the Great Lakes, is a unique late-maturing, slow-growing fish that can live 60-100 years, grow to more than eight feet in length and weigh more than 200 pounds.
MALE STURGEON reach sexual maturity between 15-20 years of age but they only spawn every other year. Once females mature around 20-25 years of age, they spawn on average every four years. These characteristics have slowed the recovery of sturgeon populations.
When sturgeon are in the river to spawn, volunteers from the Michigan Army National Guard, Vietnam Veterans of America, Boy Scout troops and members of the local chapter of Sturgeon for Tomorrow stand ready to report suspicious activity to the DNR Report All Poaching hotline.
A reward of up to $1,000 is offered by SFT and the RAP program for information leading to the arrest and conviction of any person or persons illegally taking lake sturgeon.
The threat of heavy fines and the volunteer sturgeon guarding program have been effective, as there have not been any reports of poaching for a number of years.
Cheryl Haapapuro, volunteer coordinator for SFT, said about 350 volunteers put in more than 4,000 hours monitoring the sturgeon run this year. BOY SCOUT troops from Harrison and East Lansing participated this year. The scouts camped at their watch sites over the weekend before heading back home Sunday afternoon.
The number of volunteers doesn’t include the DNR law enforcement personnel who are available 24/7 during the sturgeon run.
Archambo mentioned some people make it a family vacation with the chance to see sturgeon and other wildlife along the river.
Talking about the limited spearfishing season for sturgeon that allows the taking of only five fish each year, Archambo said it takes a lot of patience.
“Typically you have a hundred hours on the ice before you even see a sturgeon. It’s really an honor and a privilege to be able to land one of these monsters nowadays with the current regulations and the status of the sturgeon stock around the Great Lakes Basin,” she said.
BLACK LAKE Chapter of Sturgeon for Tomorrow was incorporated in 1999 as a non-profit organization but Archambo already had started talking about a strategic plan for the lake sturgeon back in 1995.
The Black Lake SFT chapter has 800 memberships with most of these being family memberships. The annual dues are $10 and include a membership card, an annual sticker, and a newsletter.
Sturgeon for Tomorrow belongs to the World Sturgeon Conservation Society. Archambo noted that SFT receives inquiries from all over the world through that connection as well as through their website, www.sturgeonfortomorrow.org.
Many people in Michigan are working on sturgeon rehabilitation. Some of these people have expressed interest in opening other chapters, for example, Manistee, Muskegon, Detroit River, and Kalamazoo, according to Archambo.