The atmosphere this week at Riveredge Nature Center in Saukville is akin to a hospital maternity ward.
Excited. Determined. A little worried and sleep deprived, too.
“We’ve got babies,” Mary Holleback, Riveredge’s citizen science manager, said May 13. “A fresh, new start. We’re crossing our fingers from here.”
These young ones are not swaddled in blankets but the fisheries equivalent: swimming in temperature-controlled tanks and raceways.
They are lake sturgeon, the most recent hatchlings of one of Wisconsin’s most ancient and revered species, and the focus of “Return the Sturgeon,” an effort to restore the species in the Milwaukee River.
The work is a partnership between Riveredge, the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
At its core, it involves the DNR obtaining sturgeon eggs from spawning fish on the Wolf River in central Wisconsin and transferring them to a hatchery trailer at Riveredge.
Holleback then leads a crew of more than 30 volunteers over the coming months as they clean tanks, feed and monitor the developing sturgeon.
If all goes well, in late September about 1,000 sturgeon will be ready for release into the Milwaukee harbor.
This year marks two major milestones in Return the Sturgeon. It’s the 20th year Riveredge has reared sturgeon at its facility along the Milwaukee River in Saukville. And thanks to fish passages installed over the last few years at Kletzsch and Estabrook parks, 2026 is the first year sturgeon have been documented passing through the Mequon-Thiensville fish passage, likely the first time the species has been so far upstream in the Milwaukee in more than 150 years.
Fish migrating out of Lake Michigan or the lower river now have access to 60 miles of the Milwaukee River, all the way to the Bridge Street Dam in Grafton.
As of May 13, at least 16 individual sturgeon – determined by unique passive integrated transponder tag – were detected in the Milwaukee River, according to DNR fisheries biologist Aaron Schiller. The sturgeon tally included 13 that passed through the Kletzsch Park fish passage and five through the Mequon-Thiensville fish passage.
The actual number of sturgeon in the river is likely higher because some fish are not tagged (often due to small size) and some expel their tag.
One of these years, hopefully soon, the finny products of the DNR-Riveredge partnership will find suitable habitat and begin naturally reproducing in the river.
It takes male sturgeon about 15 years to reach maturity and females about 20. So some of the fish produced through Return the Sturgeon should be at or approaching spawning age.
“That’s our goal,” Holleback said. “And we’re doing our part to try to give the new arrivals the best start at life.”
Holleback has earned the right to feel parental toward the sturgeon. After receiving initial training from the DNR, she has managed the sturgeon rearing at Riveredge for all 20 years of the project.
It would have been 21 if not for a year they were forced to skip due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Over the last two decades approximately 22,800 sturgeon have been raised at Riveredge and released into the Milwaukee harbor or river, Holleback said.
This year several thousand sturgeon eggs arrived April 21 and many started hatching four days later.
“They’re calling them fingerlings already, but they are hardly an inch long,” Holleback said May 13.
Her recent work included training volunteers May 12, with more sessions planned.
The coming months will be focused on meeting the needs – food, clean water and appropriate temperatures – of the developing sturgeon class of 2026.
It’s all pointing toward Sturgeon Fest, scheduled for Sept. 27, 2026 at the UW-Milwaukee School of Freshwater Sciences in conjunction with HarborFest. Once again this year people can sponsor a Riveredge sturgeon and release the fish at the event.
“We couldn’t be more excited,” Holleback said. “This work to help restore a native species is as gratifying as it gets.”
Outdoors expo at Havenwoods
The DNR will host “Explore the Outdoors Expo” from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, May 16 at Havenwoods State Forest in Milwaukee.
The event is free and open to the public. The DNR invites visitors to learn more about some of Wisconsin’s most popular outdoor recreation activities in an open house-style showcase featuring hiking, mountain biking, hunting, fishing, birding, foraging, climbing, camping, kayaking and universal recreation options. Campfire snacks also will be available.
This is an introductory-level event, and no experience is required to attend. During the expo, attendees can sign up for field trips later in the year to further develop their outdoor skills. These immersive sessions will be held within a one-hour drive of the Milwaukee area, with low to no cost.
The May 16 event at Havenwoods will take place rain or shine. Havenwoods is located at 6141 N. Hopkins St. in Milwaukee. For more information, contact the DNR’s Angela Vickio at angela.vickio@wisconsin.gov or (414) 527-0232.
Bender boat launch to open
Following a major dredging project to restore public access to the harbor, Milwaukee County Parks will hold a ceremony at noon Tuesday, May 19 to officially reopen the Bender Park Boat Launch in Oak Creek.
The boat launch, especially popular with sport anglers, has had significant problems with sediment accumulation since the park opened in 1999.
The timeline for this year’s dredging included project planning and permitting efforts in 2024 with the Wisconsin DNR and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers; bids for the work in 2025 (which exceeded the budget); and approval for additional funding through the 2026 Milwaukee County Capital Budget.
Milwaukee County allocated $820,500 in Capital Funds for sediment abatement and dredging efforts at the harbor, according to county officials.
The completed project improves navigation and allows boaters to safely access and utilize the launch area during the summer boating season.
“Bender Park is an important recreational destination along Milwaukee County’s lakefront, and this project restores safe and reliable access for the boating community,” Guy Smith, executive director of the Milwaukee County Parks, said in a statement. “We appreciate the public’s patience throughout construction and are excited to welcome boaters back to the harbor.”
In a separate but related effort this year, the Bender Park Friends group collected signatures on a petition for federal funding to reconstruct the harbor break wall system, preventing ongoing sediment buildup and eliminating the need for repeated dredging. Such a project likely would take years to happen, but the group is making an effort to get a plan in place for a longer-term fix before dredging is needed again.
Bender Park is located at 4503 E. Ryan Road in Oak Creek.
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Excitement grows with 2026 class of lake sturgeon at Riveredge | Paul A. Smith
Reporting by Paul A. Smith, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
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