Saturday, February 11, 2017

Winnebago System Sturgeon Spearing Enthusiasts:

The opening day of the 2017 sturgeon spearing season is in the books. Overall, I have to say things are off to a good start.  The highlight of today is the size of some of the fish harvested.  Of the 198 fish harvested from Lake Winnebago, 15 were 100 pounds or larger (7.6%).  There were 3 fish larger than 140 pounds harvested today: 1) Sandra Schumacher’s 154.7 pound, 78.5” fish registered at Stockbridge (photo attached), 2) Mason Krueger’s 145.6 pound, 73.2 pound fish registered at Jerry’s Bar (photo attached) and 3) Craig Kelliher’s 140.5 pound, 76.0” fish registered at Wendt’s.  Sandra’s fish is the largest fish harvested since the 2014 season.  Three of the 123 fish (2.4%) harvested from the Upriver Lakes were 100 pounds or larger today.  

Earlier this week I reported that the best water clarity was along the east and north shores of Lake Winnebago and that showed in harvest numbers by registration station (harvest table attached). Stockbridge Harbor paced the way with 59 fish registered on opening day, followed by Payne’s Point (37), Quinney (30), and Wendt’s (28).  Critter’s received the majority of the fish registered on the Upriver Lakes with the other stations of Indian Point and Boom Bay registering far fewer fish. 

Today’s opening day harvest of 198 fish on Lake Winnebago ranks 11th of 16 seasons since shortened spearing hours were implemented in 2002.  With today’s harvest we currently are at 12.5% of the adult female harvest cap on Lake Winnebago.  Each of the 5 previous seasons with lower opening day harvests went the full 16-days.  So at this point I am bracing for the long season that likely will go 16 days.  The harvest of 123 fish from the Upriver Lakes ranks 10th of the 11 seasons since the lottery fishery was implemented in 2007.  We are currently at 31.6% of the adult female harvest cap and 32.8% of the male cap on the Upriver Lakes. Thus, we are expecting this season to at least go into mid-week but likely longer.

Year
LW Harvest
Water Clarity (ft)
LW Shanty Count
2017
198
9.5
5074
2016
84
9
3831
2015
468
12
4436
2014
636
15
4046
2013
41
8
2724
2012
39
10
2197
2011
283
13
4321
2010
515
16
4033
2009
389
14
5958
2008
635
18
3171
2007
195
10
4411
2006
39
6
3434
2005
215
16
2604
2004
1310
15
4751
2003
248
7.5
4150
2002
228
7.5
4368

Year
URL Harvest
2017
123
2016
151
2015
126
2014
242
2013
140
2012
171
2011
159
2010
141
2009
117
2008
169
2007
168

We collected sturgeon stomachs from more than 50 fish today and will be collecting more tomorrow. I plan to go through the stomachs on Monday, with report to follow during the week, but it’s very apparent that sturgeon are heavily predating on gizzard shad this year.  This is not a surprise at all given the large shad hatch that we observed this year during our fall bottom trawl surveys. Overall, I think today was pretty successful.  Harvest numbers were not real high, but 321 spearers were still able to tag out.  Further, another season has commenced, offering spearers opportunities to reunite with friends and family while renewing traditions and expanding on the social culture of sturgeon spearing. 

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