2/26/23 Sturgeon Report Day 15
26 February 2023 Sports
Many spearers took to the ice to enjoy the last two days of the season. It was nice to see families and friends taking advantage of the last weekend of this spearing season. Today, 29 fish were harvested on Lake Winnebago with 3 juvenile females, 15 adult females and 11 males. Pipe continues to put up big registration numbers, with more fish registered today (18 fish) than the other shacks combined.
Two fish today were registered over 100 pounds. Both came from the Pipe registration shack, including the fish speared by Alex Wilkens at 101.6 lbs. (a 66.5 inch, F2 female).
View the full details in today’s harvest report.
With so many big fish registered this year, many might have noticed that these larger individuals look slightly different from younger Lake Sturgeon in the population. When sturgeon are young, they have sharp scutes along their bodies that are modified scales used for protection. As sturgeon grow to larger sizes, such as the 100-pound fish we see during the spearing season, they do not need the protection from these scutes. These scutes will then wear down, and either fall off or, as the lake sturgeon gets larger, the skin will envelop the scute. While other species of sturgeon, such as Atlantic and Gulf sturgeon, have scutes, these sturgeon will keep the scutes for their lifetime. Unlike Lake Sturgeon, these species have to contend with large predators such as sharks even after they grow to big sizes.
Pictured: Alex Wilkens registered one of the 100-pound sturgeon on the 15th day of the sturgeon spearing season (101.6 lbs., 66.5 inch, F2, female). / Photo Credit: Wisconsin DNR
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