Sturgeon Spotting in Shiocton, WI

Our spontaneous field trip of the week turned out to be an evening drive out to see the sturgeon spawning in the Wolf River. My mom called me while I was working to see if P and I wanted to drive out to see the sturgeon after supper. After a long winter it hit 80 degrees Fahrenheit yesterday making the conditions just right for the annual sturgeon spawning. There are just a few days each spring when you get the opportunity to see these giant dinosaur-looking fish lay their eggs. I hadn’t been to see them since I was a young child. I was ready to see them again.

After work, I raced home, made supper, cheered P on to get him to eat  faster than a slug, threw on some jeans and flip-flops and hopped in the car with  P and my parents. It was a nice evening drive out to Shiocton, about 45 minutes outside of Green Bay, WI. My dad, a respected botanist and biologist, told P and I a little about sturgeon on the way. P can’t get enough facts these days. Sturgeon, my dad told us, don’t even lay eggs until they are at least 20 years old. The water temperature needs to be just right for them to start spawning . They swim upstream to lay their eggs in the shallow parts of the river. They can grow up to nine feet long. (Whoa). P’s need for new fish facts lost out to his excitement as we got closer.

Once we got into town, it was clear spring flooding had begun. People had fishing boats parked in their back yards and an entire park under water. And then we saw the crowds. Traffic had slowed to a crawl and there were gobs of people all along the river path, all taking pictures. There were older people, kids in strollers, people walking dogs; People from all walks of life. It felt more like a festival than the quiet nature site I imagined.

P was immediately interested. He took it very seriously, following Grandpa’s lead, standing in one place quietly while the crowds did just the opposite. There were too many people there to see the sturgeon well. Most of them were climbing up and down the rocks on the edge of the trail trying to get a better picture and  people were talking loudly and moving quickly, unknowingly making it less likely that the fish would approach the shallow rocky areas they were looking for. It was phenomenal anyway. We were able to block out the crowds and settle in to watch “the fish jump”. It was hard not to exclaim every time we saw one of these enormous fish approach the shoreline. Each fish, alone or in a group, would swim up slowly so that we weren’t able to see their entire body at first. When the rest of their body slid into view it was breathtaking. These fish are huge. Magnificent. Each glimpse was better than the last. It was very hard to pull ourselves away and head for home.

It’s been frustrating to write this blog post because I can’t quite capture the excitement and awe. P kept saying “That was so cool! “He’s right, that’s what I’m still thinking to myself over and over, “That was so cool!” He has plans to go again tonight if the conditions are still good for these beautiful fish. I hope they are. I’d like to see them again, too.

If you can’t make it to Shiocton in person check out these links:

• Live Fish Cam. It’s a pretty neat way to get to see these prehistoric fish under ater.
• This University of Wisconsin’s Seagrant website features a video that gives a really nice feel for the sturgeon-watching experience. It also looks at poaching, the Sturgeon Guard, and the science behind the annual event. They provide information about spawning season.
• The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources has a nice short, page for those elementary-age kids like P that want a few facts to memorize.
• People of the Sturgeon is a gorgeous book about Sturgeon in Wisconsin covering everything from fishing to spawning. It’s filled with beautiful photos.

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