Sturgeon spawning update
Attention Winnebago System Sturgeon Enthusiasts:
As I indicated this morning the lake sturgeon are now spawning on the Winnebago System. Our crew was able to capture and tag 52 fish at the Sturgeon Trail on County X in New London this morning, 7 fish at the Manawa Dam on the Little Wolf River and 12 fish at the Clintonville Dam on the Pigeon River. This was truly a productive day for our crew as we were able to implant 10-year sonic transmitters into all 7 fish captured below the Manawa Dam and a number of the fish captured on the Pigeon River. This is also the first time that DNR staff have tagged fish spawning on the Pigeon River, which is only 3 miles upstream from the confluence with the Embarrass River. Fish were also observed at numerous other sites today, but these fish were not exhibiting strong spawning behavior at the time we observed them. These sites include Bamboo Bend in Shiocton, Pfeifer Park in New London, the Shawano Dam, and then numerous sites on private property. Given what we observed today, I predict that tomorrow will be a very busy day with intense spawning taking place at multiple sites throughout the Winnebago System waters. Notably tomorrow will likely be a big spawning day at the Sturgeon Trail in New London and Bamboo Bend in Shiocton. If you want to see fish at either of these two sites, tomorrowlikely provides the best opportunity. We will have 3 tagging crews working sturgeon at various sites tomorrow as well, but it’s too early to tell which sites those will be throughout the day. To start with, we will have a tagging crew at the Sturgeon Trail starting around 9:15-9:30 and at Bamboo Bend around that same time.
I will try to send out another email tomorrow after I get back from the field, but it undoubtedly will be a very busy day. So I suggest getting out and enjoy the weather and experience of sturgeon spearing.
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Ryan Koenigs
Senior Fisheries Biologist / Winnebago System Sturgeon Biologist
Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources
625 E County Rd. Y, Suite 700
Oshkosh, WI 54901
Phone: (920)303-5450
Fax: (920)424-4404
Ryan.koenigs@wisconsin.gov