By Jim Bloch
Get ready for all things lake sturgeon.
The Friends of the St. River’s annual Sturgeon Fest takes over the Fort Gratiot Lighthouse on Saturday, June 6, 10 a.m-3 p.m.
The location of the festival is ideal. The lighthouse is perched just north of the Blue Water Bridge, under which as many as 10,000 sturgeon live and breed, making it the largest free-ranging population in the Great Lakes and a perfect place to celebrate the recovery of the fish. About half of Michigan’s sturgeon population lives in the St. Clair and Detroit rivers.
Once on the brink of extinction, lake sturgeon are making a comeback and have become a spotlight species for the restoration work that has been done in the St. Clair River, according to Sheri Faust, president of the Friends of the St. Clair River.
The event is designed to give visitors up-close and personal encounters with the fish, which organizers refer to as the “Gentle Giants of the Great Lakes.”
Expect a touch-tank in which everyone can have their own tactile experience with the fish. At 2:30 p.m., organizers will release an adult sturgeon and a baby sturgeon into Lake Huron.
For $40 a person, visitors can book a 1.5-hour educational cruise aboard the Huron Lady. Cruises depart the Black River at 11 a.m. and 1 p.m.
“The Sturgeon Cruise takes guests on the St. Clair River and Lake Huron featuring a live sturgeon aquarium experience and sturgeon activities from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s research vessel,” according to the Huron Lady website.
The research vessel is called “N’me,” the Anishinaabe name for sturgeon.
“During this narrated cruise, you can interact with wildlife biologists conducting research that is helping to reintroduce sturgeon around the Great Lakes,” said the Huron Lady. “Each spring, thousands of lake sturgeon gather under the Blue Water Bridges to spawn, making this an experience like none other.”
Kids, families, teachers and classrooms may adopt a Lake Sturgeon for $60 and get a 10-inch plush sturgeon, adoption certificate with naming opportunity, and a species spotlight card full of data about your sturgeon.
Under the picnic pavilion, kids may engage in crafts, such a fish print painting, and taking selfies with Seymour Sturgeon.
Great Lakes-themed exhibitors will be on hand, including the Great Lakes Fisheries Commission, Michigan Sea Grant, St. Clair County Parks, the Toadstool Treasury, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Trev’s Bike Shed and the Michigan Department of Natural Resources.
There will be plenty of food vendors ready to fend off your hunger, such as Big River BBQ, Cousins Maine Lobster, Luv’s Lemonade and the Sip Shop serving coffee, boba and more.
For $5, visitors may climb the spiral staircase inside the lighthouse.
There are four levels of sponsorship. The N’me Lake Sturgeon level is $2,000 and includes Cargill, the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy, Enbridge and the St. Clair-Detroit River Sturgeon for Tomorrow. the Great Lakes Fishery Commission and SEMCO Energy are sponsors at the Brook Trout level, named for the state fish, at $1,000. Eastern Michigan Bank and the Great Lakes Commission are Painted Turtle sponsors, named for the state reptile, at $500. The Petoskey Stone level, named for the state stone, is $250 and includes the Blue Water Sport Fishing Association, Dortman Environmental and Rivers are Life.
Organizers are planning to feature live music, but the schedule had not been finalized at press time.
Admission is free.
The address of the lighthouse is 2802 Omar Street, Port Huron.
Lake sturgeon
Lake sturgeon are sometimes characterized as the the dinosaurs of the Great Lakes, but in fact they are older than dinosaurs.
“Lake sturgeon are an ancient and primitive fish belonging to a group that predates the dinosaurs by many millions of years,” according to the U.S. Geological Survey.
Lake sturgeon are the largest fish in the lakes.
“They can grow to over 8 feet in length and weigh up to 800 pounds,” says the Michigan DNR on its website.
While lake sturgeon are the biggest fish in the lakes, they don’t eat humans. Scientists refer to the fish as “benthivores,” meaning they feed along river and lake bottoms, eating tiny spineless creatures, such as freshly hatched insects, leeches, crayfish, snails and clams. They are a nearshore fish and favor relatively warm water – 50-65 degrees Fahrenheit – and are typically found in 15-30 feet of water.
Lake sturgeon are the longest lived of Great Lake fish, with males living more than a half-century and some females living as long as 150 years. Males don’t reach sexual maturity until eight to 12 years of age, females between 20 and 25, spawning every four years. Their slow, elongated reproduction cycles make their recovery more difficult.
A century ago, sturgeon were so plentiful that they sometimes tipped over boats during their late spring spawning runs. Overfishing, pollution and habitat destruction through dredging and the sea-walling of rivers decimated their population.
The fish are officially classified as threatened in Michigan by the Department of Natural Resources. Since 2012, a coalition of partners has built three sturgeon spawning reefs in
the St. Clair River – in the Middle Channel, Harts Light near East China Township and Pointes Aux Chenes off the Algonac shore. To learn more, visit www.sturgeonfestival.com.
Jim Bloch is a freelance writer. Contact him at bloch.jim@gmail.com.
